As the Qatargate scandal widens, questions are being asked as to whether its reverberations will reach the Commission, the EU’s executive branch. Recent revelations suggest the EU’s Chief Diplomat Josep Borrell could be implicated.
Friday, September 12, 2025
Stocks Open Eyes, See Fed Pivot Hawkish; ECB Hike into Recession, Start QT; BoE Hike into Recession; SNB Hike, Sell Foreign Currency Assets
ECB’s assets drop by €800 billion. Mexico hiked too today, way ahead of the Fed, keeps peso from falling against USD.
Bankman-Fried, Political Money, and the Crash of FTX
How FTX showering money on both parties to try to paralyze regulators.
2:00PM Water Cooler 12/15/2022
~ Today’s Water Cooler ~
Arctic Report Card 2022: The Arctic Is Getting Rainier and Seasons Are Shifting, with Broad Disturbances for People, Ecosystems and Wildlife
An update on the impact of global warming in the Arctic.
US Heavy-Handedness Forges Russia-Iran-India Ties
This Asian north-south bloc grows stronger in response to Washington’s efforts to maintain hegemony, and as Sir Halford John Mackinder said, “Who rules the world island commands the world.”
Hungary Asks the War Questions and Probes Merkel’s Minsk Deception
On Merkel’s and Germany’s posture toward the war in Ukraine and Russia generally.
Needed Global Financial Reforms Foregone Yet Again
The pathologies that produced the financial crisis are still circulating.
Reviewing WHO’s Draft “Respiratory Pathogens: Pandemic Preparedness Guidance” [Pounds Head on Desk]
Needs a rewrite.
2:00PM Water Cooler 12/14/2022
~ Today’s Water Cooler: Open Thread ~
Notes on SBF’s Indictment and SEC/CFTC Civil Suits, Incarceration, Meetup with Reality
SBF’s fortunes just took a big nosedive, or for the more jaundiced, got marked to market.
The Economic Consequences of War
On the economic effects of wars, drawing on a novel database of nearly 400 wars over the past two centuries.
New York Times Strike: From Reporters to Rabble-Rousers
Workers at the New York Times stopped working to demand better pay and labor rights—but only for a day. What if they flexed their power?
