Four Key Lessons From 2013

Four key lessons from 2013 (Sovereign Man, Jan 2, 2014):

1) Politicians believe there are no consequences for destroying our liberty…

Stimulus and response. That’s the easiest way of summing this up. When politicians steal, and there are no consequences, they’re going to keep stealing.

Cyprus proved this point handily. The government froze bank accounts for everyone in the country (of course, the big bosses got their money out in time). And yet, there was no violent revolution in the streets. People just accepted it.

Poland nationalized pensions. Argentina imposed severe capital controls. The French are taxing everything under the sun. The US government was caught red-handed spying on… everyone.

Read moreFour Key Lessons From 2013

U.N.’s Civilian Disarmament Program: ‘Voluntary Surrender Of Firearms’

Related info:

Harvard Research: ‘Where Firearms Are Most Dense Violent Crime Rates Are Lowest, And Where Guns Are Least Dense Violent Crime Rates Are Highest’

Britain: ‘Gun Ban Caused 40% Jump In Gun Crime’ (Video)

Here Is What Happened When Guns Were Taken From Australians (Video)

Why Switzerland Has The Lowest Crime Rate In The World (Video)


Thursday at U.N.: Panel on voluntary surrender of firearms (Examiner, Oct 22, 2013):

One month after Secretary of State John Kerry signed the United Nations Arms Trade Treaty and just a few days after 50 U.S. senators said they will not ratify the agreement, a curious “high level panel” on Argentina’s national program for the voluntary surrender of firearms is scheduled this Thursday in a U.N. conference room in New York, Examiner learned today.

Apparently hosted by Ambassador Maria Cristina Perceval, permanent representative of Argentina to the U.N., according to the invitation obtained by this column, the gathering was described as a “side event” scheduled during the daily lunch break, from 1:15 to 2:30 p.m.

Last year, according to the U.N. Office of Drugs and Crime, Argentina authorities destroyed nearly 11,000 firearms that had been voluntarily turned in. Argentine President Cristina Fernandez Kirchner, now recovering from serious surgery, spoke last month at the U.N.

Read moreU.N.’s Civilian Disarmament Program: ‘Voluntary Surrender Of Firearms’

SIBIOS: Argentina’s Massive, Orwellian Biometric Database

–  Meet SIBIOS: Argentina’s Massive, Orwellian Biometric Database (Liberty Blitzkrieg, Oct 21, 2013):

Two years ago, the UK dismantled their national ID scheme and shredded their National Identity Registry in response to great public outcry over the privacy-invasive program. Unfortunately privacy protections have been less rosy elsewhere. In Argentina, the national ID fight was lost some time ago. A law enacted during the military dictatorship forced all individuals to obtain a government-mandated ID. Now, they are in the process of enhancing its mandatory National Registry of Persons (RENAPER) with biometric data such as fingerprints and digitized faces. The government plans to repurpose this database in order to facilitate “easyaccess” to law enforcement by merging this data into a new, security-focused integrated system. This raises the specter of mass surveillance, as Argentinean law enforcement will have access to mass repositories of citizen information and be able to leverage existing facial recognition and fingerprint matching technologies in order to identify any citizen anywhere.

– From the EFF’s must read article: Biometrics in Argentina: Mass Surveillance as a State Policy

The above passage was written in early 2012, but I had never taken the time to look into Argentina’s burgeoning and extremely creepy biometric database until now. It takes on increased importance to Americans now that Apple has rolled out its iPhone 5NsA.

Don’t worry though, Apple is a private company and they’d never work with the NSA or anything…

The video below is the promotional video of the Biometric ID Database in Argentina, and is an epic example of state propaganda.

Because the Argentine government has such a storied history of doing the right thing…In Liberty,
Mike

When Countries Go Broke

When countries go broke (Sovereign Man, Oct 14, 2013):

It’s become almost cliche these days to point out how many governments are broke beyond belief.

In Japan, where the country’s debt level already exceeds 200% of GDP, the government has to finance 46% of its budget by issuing more debt.

Read moreWhen Countries Go Broke

They Are Coming … “IMF Proposes A 10% Supertax On All Eurozone Household Savings” … For Your Savings!

“They have taken the bridge and the second hall. We have barred the gates but cannot hold them for long. The ground shakes, drums… drums in the deep. We cannot get out. A shadow lurks in the dark. We can not get out… they are coming.”
– Gandalf (reading)

They’re Coming For Your Savings (Dollar Collapse, Oct 12, 2013):

Another of history’s many lessons is that governments under pressure become thieves. And today’s governments are under a lot of pressure.

Before we look at the coming wave of asset confiscations, let’s stroll through some notable episodes of the past, just to make the point that government theft of private wealth is actually pretty common.

Read moreThey Are Coming … “IMF Proposes A 10% Supertax On All Eurozone Household Savings” … For Your Savings!

Argentina: ‘Bring What You Want, Take What You Want’

In the face of an intense wave of consumerism, some people in Argentina are beginning to discover the advantages of sharing goods and services, instead of buying them.


Nothing is for sale at this street market in Plaza Italia, in the Palermo district of Buenos Aires. Credit: Juan Moseinco/IPS

“Bring What You Want, Take What You Want” (IPS, Sep 8, 2013):

BUENOS AIRES, Sep 8 2013 (IPS) – Disillusioned with an economy that promotes individualism and ruthless consumption, thousands of people in Argentina are giving things away in street markets, organising car pools with strangers or offering free accommodation to travellers from abroad.

These are early trends in this South American country, but they are expanding, based on Web 2.0 platforms. Users share a concern for the environment and a rejection of consumerism. But they also have a desire to strengthen a sense of community and trust.

“We need much less than we consume. The basis of our street markets is detachment, the need to free ourselves from the concept of private ownership,” said Ariel Rodríguez, the creator of La Gratiferia (The Free Market) which operates under the slogan: “Bring what you want (or nothing), take what you want (or nothing).”

Read moreArgentina: ‘Bring What You Want, Take What You Want’

Dare To Question Argentina’s Inflation Data, Prepare To Go To Jail

Dare To Question Argentina’s Inflation Data, Prepare To Go To Jail (ZeroHedge, Sep 14, 2013):

Back in April, we saw that merely asking the local economy minister what Argentina’s rate of inflation is, was enough to prematurely terminate any interview and result in a mocking, viral twitter meme. Since then, things for Argentina haven’t exactly worked out too well: a recent Appeals court ruling found in favor of Elliott and the holdout bondholders, resulting in a downgrade of the country to CCC+, and leaving it with the possibility of having to fund billions in deferred obligations. “The lawsuit could result in the interruption of payments on bonds currently under New York jurisdiction, or it could prompt Argentina to undertake a debt exchange that we could view as distressed,” S&P said in the statement. “There is at least a one-in-three chance of either occurring within the coming 12 months.”

Of course, to many the fact that Argentina has still not redefaulted is even more surprising. The reason for that is that despite president Fernandez ongoing rose-colored glasses PR campaign, the domestic economy has been deteriorating at an accelerating pace with runaway inflation destroying local purchasing power for years. As a result of the ongoing authoritarian crackdown on not only individual liberties, but economic data, it has gotten to the point that the government is criminally prosecuting anyone who dares to publish independent inflation data.

Read moreDare To Question Argentina’s Inflation Data, Prepare To Go To Jail

President Morales: US Hacked Top Bolivian Officials’ Emails

US hacked top Bolivian officials’ emails: President Morales (PressTV, July 14, 2013):

Bolivian President Evo Morales says US intelligence has hacked into the email accounts of senior Bolivian officials amid growing concerns about Washington’s secret surveillance programs.

“Those US intelligence agents have accessed the emails of our most senior authorities in Bolivia,” Morales said in a Saturday speech.

“It was recommended to me that I not use email, and I’ve followed suit and shut it down,” the Bolivian president added.

Read morePresident Morales: US Hacked Top Bolivian Officials’ Emails

State Department Debunks Iranian Latin American Terrorism Links (Veterans Today)

State Department Debunks Iranian Latin American Terrorism Links (Veterans Today, June 28, 2013):

False anti-Iranian accusations persist. They’re longstanding. Claims about alleged nuclear bomb development don’t wash. Nor do well publicized terror attack charges.

The Islamic Republic’s maliciously vilified. False accusations follow earlier ones. A disturbing pattern repeats. Iran’s sovereignty is challenged. Its independence is threatened.

Washington wants pro-Western stooges everywhere. It wants rival states eliminated. It wants unchallenged global dominance. Everything’s fair game to achieve it. Duplicitous misinformation proliferates.

Read moreState Department Debunks Iranian Latin American Terrorism Links (Veterans Today)

How Life On Earth Could Be And Should Be: Laguna Blanca (Video, German Subtitles)

Doug Tompkins is the Founder of Esprit and The North Face.

He left the business world behind to ‘create’ Laguna Blanca.



YouTube Added: 29.01.2013

Description:

Organic Farming in Entre Ríos Province, Argentina

Douglas Tompkins: ‘There Is No Sustainable Business.’ (New York Times, Feb. 25, 2013):

BARCELONA — Sustainable entrepreneurship — a buzzword in an increasingly eco-conscious business world — is often described as a balance between profit and environmental impact.

It’s a subject that Douglas Tompkins seems to have thought a lot about. He founded Esprit and The North Face, two of America’s most iconic clothing and fashion brands, only to quit the business world to become a staunch conservationalist, environmentalist and critic.

“Remove ‘sustainable’ from your dictionary, there is no sustainable business. Only biological sustainability counts,” he told a room full of business students at the IESE business school Doing Great and Doing Good conference on responsible business. (Disclosure: I moderated a panel at the same conference).

“Economic activity has impact and we are just now doing a better job of measuring what those impacts are,” said Mr. Tompkins in an interview.

A strict conservationalist, he rejects the idea that big business can reform itself and thinks the answer lies outside what he calls the “techno-industrial culture.” He thinks measuring biodiversity is a yardstick for how society is doing.

“Healthy biodiversity is at the base of everything,” he said, with species extinction being the ultimate catastrophe. “We’ll be living on a sand heap with a Norwegian rat and a few cockroaches at the end.”

Despite having co-founded ESPRIT, the multinational clothing giant, and The North Face, the maker of outdoor equipment, in the 1960s and having earned millions of the sale of the former, Mr. Tompkins is critical of business’s paradigms.

“We have an economy that’s based on growth without limits,” he said. “How is that possible?”

“To grow and grow and grow without limits is out of the question,” he said.

Even the companies that he is famous for launching do not escape his disapproval.

“My two companies are two monsters now,” he said.

Read moreHow Life On Earth Could Be And Should Be: Laguna Blanca (Video, German Subtitles)

This Is What Crisis Feels Like: Basic Services Still Functioned, No One Had To Really Worry About Food Or Water … Then It All Changed … Literally Within A Day!


Greece, Athens

This is what crisis feels like: a personal story (Sovereign Man, June 12, 2013):

On December 1, 2001, Argentina’s economy was in trouble. Unemployment was high, debt was high, and recession had taken hold. But life was somewhat ‘normal’.

Basic services still functioned. And no one had to really worry about… food. Or water. Then it all changed. Literally within a day.

On December 2nd, our bankrupt government imposed measures that essentially froze everyone’s bank accounts. You can just imagine– one day having access to your funds, and the next day being completely cut off.

Within a matter of days, people were out in the streets doing battle with the police. The government soon defaulted on its debt, and the currency went into freefall.

I was doing some post-graduate work in Boston at the time. As a foreigner in the US, I wasn’t really able to work… so I was living on a tight budget from my savings.

Yet, overnight, I went from being able to pay my rent and living expenses to being completely cut off from my funds. I had nothing.

But when I spoke to my family back in Argentina, I realized that they had it even worse.

Everything became scarce. The electricity went out all the time. Even food on the grocery store shelves ran low. You would eat what you had available at home.

Read moreThis Is What Crisis Feels Like: Basic Services Still Functioned, No One Had To Really Worry About Food Or Water … Then It All Changed … Literally Within A Day!

Argentina: ‘It’s Like A Textbook Case In Government Gone Mad’ – ‘Comletely Out Of Control’ – ‘Spinning Off Into La-La-Land’

From the article:

“It is like a textbook case in government gone mad.

They have stolen the retirement accounts, devalued the currency, and put capital controls in place. There are trade controls so that people can’t import necessities into the country, but instead, have to manufacture them locally, with the government giving monopolies to their friends. They have price controls, which force the local supermarkets to not raise their prices. This will ultimately lead to shortages. And there are already shortages of certain items. They didn’t like an opposition newspaper, so they nationalized the newsprint manufacturing industry. In fact, just about every single thing that you could do to screw up a country, they have done. It is comical to see the extremes they have gone to. For example, in Argentina, if you publish an inflation statistic that differs from of the official government numbers, you could be hit with a $100,000 fine. I had never heard of this anywhere else – except maybe in communist Russia. They are really completely out of control and the country is spinning off into la-la-land.”

Flashback:

Inflation, Hyperinflation and Real Estate (Price Collaps)

Argentina’s Economic Collapse (Full Documentary)


Lessons from Economic Crises in Argentina (Casey Research, June 5, 2013):

Nick Giambruno: Joining me now is David Galland, the managing director of Casey Research. His internationalization story, which involved moving his life and his family from the US to Argentina, was recently featured in Internationalize Your Assets, a free online video from Casey Research. He is perfectly suited to help us better understand some of the important lessons in internationalization that Argentina offers. Welcome, David.

David Galland: Nice to be here.

Nick: First, why don’t you give us a little background about the Argentine people and how they have learned to deal with their government and recurring financial crises?

Read moreArgentina: ‘It’s Like A Textbook Case In Government Gone Mad’ – ‘Comletely Out Of Control’ – ‘Spinning Off Into La-La-Land’

Argentina’s Economic Collapse (Full Documentary)

Flashback.


Documentary on the events that led to the economic collapse of Argentina in 2001 which wiped out the middle class and raised the level of poverty to 57.5%.

Central to the collapse was the implementation of neo-liberal policies which enabled the swindle of billions of dollars by foreign banks and corporations.

Many of Argentina’s assets and resources were shamefully plundered.

Its financial system was even used for money laundering by Citibank, Credit Suisse, and JP Morgan.

The net result was massive wealth transfers and the impoverishment of society which culminated in many deaths due to oppression and malnutrition.

Official name: Memoria del Saqueo by Fernando Solanas 2003.

Hyperinflation: The 10 Worst Cases

Hyperinflation – 10 Worst Cases (ToTheTick, May 22, 2013):

I have a neat little app on my smartphone that I like to look at when I’m feeling bored. It won’t change anything in my life, but it makes me think as I see the numbers clocking up, and then suddenly stopping for a few seconds. It’s the app that tells me the how much the National Debt of each country stands at in real-time. As I sit down at my computer screen the USA National Debt amounts to $17 041 241 xxx xxx. Forgive the x’s…they’re not kisses…I tried to get the last six digits, but, there’s no point, they’re moving too fast! Speedie Gonzalez has got into that app! It works out to $54 087 per person. That’s the same value as 3 408 248 816 XXX Big Mac Meals.

Inflation is hot property today, hyperinflation is even hotter! We think we are modern, contemporary, smart and ready to deal with anything. We’ve got that seen-it-all-before, been-there-done-it attitude. But, we are not a patch on what some countries have been through in the worst cases of hyperinflation in history. Here’s the top 10 list of worst cases in history. We’ll start with the worst first…let’s think positive!

Read moreHyperinflation: The 10 Worst Cases

Argentine Inflation: It’s Tough When All You Get Is Lies

Argentine Inflation: It’s Tough When All You Get Is Lies (Testosterone Pit, May 21, 2013):

The issue of inflation is complex everywhere. Official rates are disputed. People can’t reconcile them with what they see at the store. There are different formulas and data sets, resulting in different rates, and everyone picks and chooses what suits their needs. But nowhere is the issue as “complex,” infested with lies, and shrouded in obscurity as in Argentina.

Read moreArgentine Inflation: It’s Tough When All You Get Is Lies

Argentines Are Hoarding 1 Of Every 15 Cash Dollars In The World

Argentines Are Hoarding 1 Of Every 15 Cash Dollars In The World (ZeroHedge, May 15, 2013):

With the shadow (or blue) market for Argentina Pesos already devalued by an incredible 50%, it is little surprise that the population is bidding for any store of value. Demand for luxury cars is soaring (BMW sales up 30% in the last 20 months) and Bitcoin activity is often discussed as the population transfer increasingly worthless Pesos into a fungible “currency” or domestic CPI protection; but it is USD that are the most-cherished item (despite a ban on buying USD) as hyperinflation hedges. But as Bloomberg Businessweek reports, a lot of US Dollar bills are tucked away somewhere in Argentina (in stacks of $100 bills since the number in circulation has risen from 58% of the total to 62% since 2008). One table is a 2012 Fed paper on demand abroad for US currency shows net inflows to Russia and Argentina has increased by 500% since 2006 (compared to US demand up around 10%). In fact, demand for large dollar transfers to Argentina since 2006 has outstripped demand for dollar cash overall in the world. It is safe to surmise from the data (that is relatively well guarded by the government) that over $50bn is being hoarded in Argentina (or well over one in every fifteen dollars). It is little wonder that the government is furiously digging at the country’s undeclared (stashed under the mattress) wealth.

Read moreArgentines Are Hoarding 1 Of Every 15 Cash Dollars In The World

Argentina: President Cristina Fernandez De Kirchner’s Modest Proposal: Buy Bonds Or Go To Jail

Argentina’s Modest Proposal: Buy Bonds Or Go To Jail (ZeroHedge, May 11, 2013):

While Argentina’s recent extraordinary attempts at central planning have been widely documented, ranging from freezing supermarket prices in a (failed) attempt to control inflation, to banning advertising in a (failed) attempt to weaken the private media, so far nothing has worked at stabilizing the economy and preventing the collapse in the domestic currency (if leading to such humorous viral videos as #mequieroir). Ironically, this is both good and bad news. It is good news because as we showed two days ago, even the ludicrous speed rise in the Nikkei has been a snail’s pace compared to that other unknown “Nation 1.” We can now reveal that while Japan is Nation 2, Nation 1 is that inflationary basket case Argentina, and specifically its Merval stock index.

Read moreArgentina: President Cristina Fernandez De Kirchner’s Modest Proposal: Buy Bonds Or Go To Jail

Why Cyprus 2013 Is Worse Than The KreditAnstalt (1931) And Argentina 2001 Crises

Why Cyprus 2013 is worse than the KreditAnstalt (1931) and Argentina 2001 crises (A View from the Trenches, March 24, 2013):

The Cyprus 2013, like any other event, can be thought in political and economic terms.

Political analysis: Two dimensions

Politically, I can see two dimensions. The first dimension belongs to the geopolitical history of the region, with the addition of the recently discovered natural gas reserves. The historical relevance goes as far back as 1853, the year the Crimean War began. The Crimean War took place in the adjacent Black Sea, but the political interest was the same: To avoid the expansion of Russia into the Mediterranean. The relevance of this episode was the break-up of the balance of power established after the Napoleonic Wars, with the Congress of Vienna, in 1815. From then on, a whole new series of unexpected events would lead to a weaker France, a stronger Prussia, new alliances and a final resolution sixty years later: World War I.  It is within this same framework that I see Cyprus 2013 as a very relevant political event: Should Russia eventually obtain a bailout of Cyprus (as I write, this does not seem likely) against a pledge on the natural gas reserves or a naval base, a new balance of power will have been drafted in the region, with Israel as the biggest loser.

The second political dimension refers to a point I made exactly a year ago, precisely inspired in the KreditAnstalt event of 1931. In an article titled: “On gold, stocks, financial repression and the KreditAnstalt of 1931” I wrote:

Read moreWhy Cyprus 2013 Is Worse Than The KreditAnstalt (1931) And Argentina 2001 Crises

Pope Francis Pushed Civil Unions For Gays In 2010 As Cardinal

?Pope Francis pushed civil unions for gays in 2010 as cardinal (Washington Times, March 20, 2013):

Gay rights supporters may have found a friend in Pope Francis.

Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio — now Pope Francis — came out in support of civil unions for gay couples in 2010, Newser reports. It was during a time of spiritual chaos in Argentina, as the church there was battling attempts to legalize gay marriage. And Cardinal Bergoglio came forward with what he described as the “lesser of two evils” solution, Newser reports.

“He wagered on a position of greater dialogue with society,” his authorized biographer says, in the Newser report. He publicly criticized the gay marriage bill winding through Argentina’s legislature, but quietly supported same-sex union rights.“He listened to my views with a great deal of respect,” one gay activist leader said, the biographer recounted. “He told me that homosexuals need to have recognized rights and that he supported civil unions, but not same-sex marriage.”

His same-sex union proposal was ultimately shot down during a heated gathering of bishops, Newser says. But some religion watchers say those 2010 discussions may indicate a new and more modern direction of the Catholic Church.

Related info:

St. Malachy Prophecy Fulfilled: Pope Francis Is ‘Petrus Romanus’ (Video)

Pope Francis Is ‘Petrus Romanus’ – ‘Fantastic Fulfillment Of Prophecy’

Malachy Prophecy: Next Pope Will Be Last – Update: Pope Francis I Is ‘Petrus Romanus’

JESUIT Pope Francis Has Blood On His Hands

The First JESUIT Pope: Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio Of Argentina Takes Name Pope Francis I

JESUIT Pope Francis Has Blood On His Hands

Related info:

The First JESUIT Pope: Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio Of Argentina Takes Name Pope Francis I


Pope Francis Has Blood On His Hands (Zen-Haven, March 13, 2013):

Google Translated:

Cardinals in the conclave may have thought that they made an uncontroversial choice, and that they have found a transitional figure by selecting the 76-year-old Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio to new pope.

But they have chosen a pope who has blood on his hands.

Jorge Bergoglio defended throughout the military junta in Argentina, which was notorious for its murder squads that eliminated opposition politicians from their homes and executed them. Mothers of Buenos Aires created international awareness of the junta’s assassination.

As an international commission came to Argentina to investigate the murders, saved Bergoglio in his holiday home on the island of El Silencio in the River Plate.

Read moreJESUIT Pope Francis Has Blood On His Hands

Flashback: The Sins Of The Argentinian Church (Guardian)

Hmmh.


The sins of the Argentinian church (Guardian, Jan 4, 2012):

The Catholic church was complicit in dreadful crimes in Argentina. Now it has a chance to repent

Benedict XVI gave us words of great comfort and encouragement in the message he delivered on Christmas Eve.

“God anticipates us again and again in unexpected ways,” the pope said. “He does not cease to search for us, to raise us up as often as we might need. He does not abandon the lost sheep in the wilderness into which it had strayed. God does not allow himself to be confounded by our sin. Again and again he begins afresh with us”.

Read moreFlashback: The Sins Of The Argentinian Church (Guardian)

The First JESUIT Pope: Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio Of Argentina Takes Name Pope Francis I

13.03.2013: 13 + 0 + 3 + 2 + 0 + 1 + 3 = 13


Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina elected pope, takes name Pope Francis I (Washington Post, March 13, 2013):

VATICAN CITY — Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina was elected pope Wednesday, becoming the first pontiff from the Americas and taking the name Pope Francis I.Appearing on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica a short time later, the new pope greeted a vast crowd gathered below in St. Peter’s Square with salutations in Italian and led a prayer for his predecessor, Benedict XVI.

“As you know, the duty of the conclave was to appoint a bishop of Rome, and it seems to me that my brother cardinals went to fetch him at the end of the world,” he said. “But here I am.”

Moments earlier, Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, the church’s most senior cardinal in the order of deacons, or the proto-deacon, announced “habemus papam” and spoke the name of the new pope, chosen on the second day of deliberations by the assembled cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church. But his words were barely audible to the throng in the square, and there was initial confusion over the identity of the new leader of the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics.

Bergoglio, 76, the first Jesuit pope, spent nearly his entire career at home in Argentina, overseeing churches and shoe-leather priests, the Associated Press reported. He reportedly received the second-most votes after Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger — who became Benedict XVI — in the 2005 papal election, and he has long specialized in the kind of pastoral work considered an essential skill for the next pope.

Read moreThe First JESUIT Pope: Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio Of Argentina Takes Name Pope Francis I