“How Can Europe Respond to the Ukraine Standoff?”
An example of European paralysis as a result of the US looking likely to abandon not just Ukraine but also NATO.
Read more...Author Archives: Yves Smith
New Suit Seeks Clawback of >$4 Billion of Fines and Insider Trading Profits from TD Bank Executives Earned While Running Decade+ Massive Money Laundering Schemes
TD Bank engaged in over a decade of criminal misconduct. A new suit seeks to make its board and executives pay.
Read more...A Fiscal Crisis Is Looming for Many US Cities
US cities, which enjoyed a renaissance after the flight of the 60s and 70s reversed, now face a world of budget hurt.
Read more...Blackouts Are Becoming the Norm—Can the U.S. Power Grid Be Saved?
The US future of more erratic power supplies comes nearer as officials dither over what to do about a creaky grid.
Read more...Guantánamo, Donald Trump’s “Immigrant Problem,” and the Rest of Us
Trump’s methods for dealing with immigrants with less than solid visa status are often cruel. That is almost certainly a feature, not a bug.
Read more...Musk Is Lying About Waste and Fraud in Social Security to Have an Excuse to Kill It
Musk wants to cut your Social Security benefits and then have Congress use the savings to give himself a gigantic tax cut.
Read more...EU Consumers Don’t Trust US Goods: A Look into Trump’s Trade Deficit Claims
Why trade deficits can’t always be solved by price, as in tariffs or currency manipulation.
Read more...Charles Kindleberger, the Dollar System, and Financial Crises
On Perry Mehrling’s Money and Empire: Charles P. Kindleberger and the Dollar System, including how some of his key ideas have been borne out.
Read more...The Bazooka Diplomacy of Trump’s Tariffs
A look at theory and practice as far as tariffs are concerned, and what that means for Trump’s threats and plans.
Read more...Links 2/19/2025
After We Amplified Warnings of Wildly Overvalued Unicorns, They Crash and Burn
“What Is the Mainstream Media Missing About Elon Musk? He Is Instituting Technocracy”
A discussion of the regime that Elon Musk and his tech bros are in the process of implementing.
Read more...Trump’s No-Prisoners Approach to Iran-China Oil Crackdown
The US plans further sanctions on intermediaries like tankers and broker that facilitate Iran oil sales to China. Will they work?
Read more...Links 2/18/2025
“We Must Fund Oppositions Properly to Save Democracy”
The Financial Times’ Martin Wolf, like quite a few others, looks for ways to save democracy from itself, as in rule by voters.
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