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Neil Wilson First published 27th December 2022 here   Eliminating the cost of the Asset Purchase Indemnity   Summary In 2012, the Bank of England agreed to transfer gilt coupon …

The post Eliminating the cost of the Asset Purchase Indemnity appeared first on The Gower Initiative for Modern Money Studies.

He seems preoccupied with Ukraine and Russia What are your hopes for the American people in 2023, Mr President? “Peace. We never should have been involved with a certain war that’s taking place that’s hurting a lot of people, killing a lot of people, hurting a lot of countries and hopefully that will be straightened out very quickly with Ukraine and Russia …” Interesting that he leads with that. And after dodging questions about DeSantis and abortion he blathers about the border and inflation and then makes this very adamant statement at the end “We have to stop the war between Russia and Ukraine…” I think we can see the outlines of his campaign coming into focus. It shouldn’t be a surprise considering his base’s views on these issues. Of course he’s going to rant and rave about the border and demagogue inflation to death, But it’s clear that he’s going to come out solidly against NATO and demand withdrawal of support for Ukraine in support of Vladimir Putin’s war of aggression.

Happy new year, Jazz Pickles.

A close reading of "End of Year" lists.

Slacker Sunday holiday edition! My West Cost excursion is coming to an end soon, so between that and the holidays ending, more normal blogging should resume soon.

Week-end Wrap – Political Economy – January 1, 2023

by Tony Wikrent

The dark side

Dress Rehearsal: Trump’s attempt almost two years ago to undermine the 2020 election reads today like a blueprint drawn for a future autocrat.

Fintan O’Toole, January 19, 2023 issue [The New York Review]

Apparently, he’s staying at Mar-a-Lago. How perfect. What’s a MAGA man to do after losing an election? Emulating President Trump, Brazil’s outgoing president, Jair Bolsonaro, plans to skip his successor’s inauguration ceremony and travel instead to — where else — Mar-a-Lago. Mr. Bolsonaro will avoid handing over the official presidential sash to Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva at an inauguration ceremony at Brasilia on Sunday. Instead, the October election loser will fly this weekend to Florida for a visit with Mr. Trump at the famed Palm Beach resort, several Brazilian press outlets report.  On Tuesday, the official Brazilian government website published a statement saying that the Office of Institutional Security has confirmed that the security team for Mr. Bolsonaro’s family will be “on a trip to Miami, Florida,” next week. “Bolsonaro will not be in Brazil for the inauguration ceremony,” a professor of international relations at the Federal University of Sao Paulo, Regiane Nitsch Bressan, told the Sun.

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Today's News:

We are being led in our anti-China hysteria by the United States which is not concerned that China will attack us, or even the United States, but is concerned that its world hegemony is being challenged. A repost from November 11, 2022 That is why the US is persistently goading China into conflict and possible Continue reading »

This article was originally published in the March 1950 issue of the Bulletin in the wake of President Harry Truman’s announcement that the United States would pursue a hydrogen bomb. The idea of achieving security through national armament is, at the present state of military technique, a disastrous illusion. On the part of the United Continue reading »

Chinese Leader Jiang Zemin, who just died at the age of 96, made changes that altered the nature of the country’s government and the course of the global economy, affecting people worldwide, although few people realise it. Most reports provide key dates in his life but don’t explain his biggest contribution: a policy change that Continue reading »

A groundbreaking new report From Outrage to Opportunity: How to Include The Missing Perspectives of Women of All Colours in News Leadership and Coverage has found that women continue to be significantly underrepresented in editorial leadership roles and news coverage worldwide – with their voices muted in a global news industry still dominated by men. Continue reading »

Capitalism and “liberal democracy” are failing and destroying our world. In this, the third in a three-part series, I explore how Australia must embrace a new future by emphasising trade and cultural relationships in foreign policy, managing mass media concentration and the military/industrial complex, and addressing social inequality. We have the means. Do we have Continue reading »

Something of epochal importance happened in Egypt last week – the most significant event since Cheops shoved up his triangular monument, four thousand odd-years ago at the dawn of ‘civilisation’. But the world media, true to form, missed it almost completely. A repost from November 21, 2022 The nations of the world voted to terminate Continue reading »

The meeting between Anthony Albanese and Xi Jinping put me in mind of the public reaction in Australia when Whitlam met Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai in 1971. A repost from November 17, 2022 The meeting in Bali is potentially more than just a diplomatic reset. It could be a pivotal moment for Australia, in the Continue reading »

Siberian artist marks the coming year with a dung sculpture of rabbit (Thanks to pharmaross)

It was a “battle on the bowl” as Collier County deputies did what they needed to pry a burglar off the toilet of a house he had forced himself into. (Thanks to pharmaross)

My prediction for 2023 is that the corruption of all levels of law enforcement will be increasingly hard to ignore, but politicians will still ignore it!

When the most powerful politicians in the country have an obvious law enforcement problem very close to home (Secret Service, Capitol Police, FBI, effing IRS enforcement), and do *nothing* about it, well...

Once again, thank you so, so much for your support this year. I am genuinely overwhelmed. The readers of this blog are the nicest people in the world and I could not be more grateful. Here’s hoping that this next year brings us some peace and stability. I always wish that every year. But even if it doesn’t, we’ll be here documenting, analyzing and synthesizing the news as we see it. Tom, Dennis, tristero, spocko, Batocchio and I look forward to delivering it to you every day of the week as we’ve been doing for the past 20 years. To all that we lost and all that we gained in the past year, and to all that’s to come in the days ahead…cheers! — digby

I have argued that in order for a mathematical modeling exercise to illuminate its target the following two conditions must be met:(1*) the objects under investigation must plausibly be stable, modular, and quantitative, with no qualitative differences among instantiations of each type; and (2*) the relations between them must be fixed and law-like throughout the […]

A brief recap before the storm The White House wants to remind you what Democrats got done last year. Maybe because unless the GOP self-destructs the Biden administration’s ability to be loud and proud has a short half-life. I know someone needing the shingles vaccine. As of today there is no cost for those covered under Medicare Part D. If eligible, get vaccinated. Here is one benefit that slipped by me. We’ll see how much more Biden can get done in 2023 with a hostile, Republican-controlled House obsessed with investigating Anthony Fauci and Hunter Biden’s alleged laptop. Jeffrey Billman of Informed Dissent cautioned that we’re looking at two years of Benghazis because “when you elect clowns, you get a circus.” It will be a clown show or a horror show, one way or another. Update: Forgot to link to this Guardian longer review of more good news from 2022.

I wish you with this illustration strength and courage against all the "dragons" who might be on your way in 2023.

Can you see the numbers in the silhouettes? I'm doing this type of illustration yearly on the blog for the new year, I have a tag with all of them since 2009 if you want to see this little tradition.

Big-Butt Ants Are A South American Delicacy (Thanks to pharmaross)

People gobsmacked over size of 'bigfoot jumbo' sausage from local chippy (Thanks to Emily, Leslie and w) Morrisons shoppers gobsmacked as Easter eggs spotted on Boxing Day (Thanks to pharmaross) People gobsmacked by Asda's 'great value' air fryer that can...