WW3 Alert: NATO Readies 35,000 Troops For Combat Amidst ‘Russia Tensions’

Citing increasing tensions with Russia, NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) has begun to prepare 35,000 troops for combat.  The troops will participate in the largest training exercise conducted since the end of the Cold War.

NATO commanders revealed the thousands of soldiers from 30 different countries are expected to take part in the Trident Juncture drill in Norway. Massive parts of the Scandinavian country will be impacted by the influx of around 130 warplanes and 60 warships, reported The Daily Star. Trident Juncture will be aimed at rehearsing for any potential threat posed by Russia when it kicks off in October.

The United States Marines also maintain a constant presence in Norway, with tanks and other military hardware stashed away in frozen caves.

War games of this scale have not been seen in decades as United Nation chiefs admitted the Cold War is back “with a vengeance” and NATO forces will take part in what has been described as a “big important exercise.” But some, such as former Soviet Union general think tensions are now much tighter since the Cold War and a nuclear conflict is inevitable.

Fears of conflict have been renewed as Russia warned the West is approaching a “red line” following US-led airstrikes in Syria.  NATO nations have regularly accused Vladimir Putin’s war machine of “aggression” by moving troops to the edge of Europe. Russian commanders deny an aggressive intent and say their military build-up is in response to NATO’s rhetoric.

Syria has become a flashpoint between the West and Russia after US President Donald Trump’s attack on Putin’s pal Bashar al-Assad. Top Russian lawmaker Konstantin Kosachev said Russia will get tougher if “red lines” continue to be crossed. “There is definitely a clear-cut awareness of the situation in Syria. That understanding is the red lines beyond which Russia’s reaction will clearly get tougher if these red lines are crossed.”

Trident Juncture spokesman Frank Sølvsberg said the war drills are three times larger than anything carried out before in Norway. “It’s an amazing training opportunity for all involved parties. I think it also sends a clear message to others who will threaten the alliance,” said Sølvsberg. He added that the drill will assure “total defense” of the region.  Others see it as a springboard for a world war.

US Marine Corps General Warns "I Hope I"m Wrong, But There"s A War Coming"

Pointing towards the near future possibility of Russia and the Pacific theater being the next major areas of conflict, a US Marine Corps commandant warned troops station in Norway to be prepared for a coming war.

As Military.com reports, the stated goals of the Marine Corps" newest rotational force in Norway are to enhance partnerships with European allies and improve the service"s ability to fight in cold weather.

But on a brief visit to the 300-member unit ahead of Christmas, the commandant and the sergeant major of the Marine Corps both described the strategic role the small unit fills -- and the fact that a peacetime mission can be preface to combat if circumstances change.

“I hope I’m wrong, but there’s a war coming,” Gen. Robert Neller told them.

 

“You’re in a fight here, an informational fight, a political fight, by your presence.”

Fox News writes that Neller pointed to the near future possibility of Russia and the Pacific theater being the next major areas of conflict.

Sgt. Maj. Ronald Green sounded a similar tone.

"Just remember why you"re here," Green said.

 

"They"re watching. Just like you watch them, they watch you. We"ve got 300 Marines up here; we could go from 300 to 3,000 overnight. We could raise the bar."

The warnings came a day before Defense Secretary Jim Mattis told troops at Fort Bragg, N.C., that "storm clouds are gathering" over the Korean Peninsula.

At a Q&A session with the troops in the Norwegian Home Guard base near Trondheim, Neller said that the U.S. could shift its focus from the Middle East to Eastern Europe, citing Russia’s conflicts with Ukraine and Georgia as justification.

He told the Marines that they should be prepared for a “big-ass fight” on the horizon.

China"s Raging Against Dying Of The Light (Or Why Peak Employment Is Imminent)

Authored by Chris Hamilton via Econimica blog,

China"s working age population is clearly defined as those aged 16 to 50 years old for females (55 for "white collar" females) and 16 to 60 years old for males.  China mandates retirement at these outer age limits.  Perhaps of some interest should be that this working age population peaked in 2011 and has been declining since.  This decline will continue indefinitely as China has a collapsing childbearing population (detailed HERE), net emigration (outflow), and a still decidedly negative birthrate.

There is no evidence to believe the working age declines will abate any decade soon.  As the chart below shows, China"s potential workforce will be shrinking indefinitely... and by 2030 China"s potential workforce will be over 100 million fewer than the 2011 peak (an 11% decline)...and only further down from there.

China has one of the youngest average retirement ages in the developed world.  On average, according to a recent study (HERE), Chinese leave the work force by age 55 compared to age 63 in the US (Norway has the latest average departure at age 67).  So, perhaps China will be raising the retirement age to curb the ballooning 60+yr/old population entering retirement (chart below)?  More on that later.

Comparing the working age population versus the 60+yr/old population (chart below).  A shrinking potential workforce since peaking in 2011 and a rapidly growing elderly population.

Below, that elderly growth versus the working age depopulation as a % of all adults (chart below)...think hockey stick.  After nearly six decades of maintaining a consistent 60+yr/old % of the adult population...the elderly explosion is just beginning.

If we take the now declining total potential working age population vs. China"s still rising total number of employed individuals (according to Statista)...the chart below shows that if China adds just a mere million employees a year (about a third of the annual average employment growth seen from "06 through "16)...that by 2030 China"s employment will exceed 100% of the potential workforce.  Wait...what?!?  Or perhaps working from the premise that people who don"t exist can"t be employed...it"s time to start considering China"s employed population is set to begin falling.

This idea that there are "millions upon millions of Chinese just waiting to be incorporated into the workforce"...not so much.  While a continuing shift from rural to urban is likely, China has already or will soon experience peak employment. Simply put, there will be fewer consumers of everything (homes, cars, appliances, etc.) every year than the year before. 

Whatever overcapacity exists now will be joined by massive increases in excess housing, excess production, excess shopping malls as this depopulation plays out over the coming years and decades.

Five big points here:

1) China ends one child policy, with little to no impact...

• 
  

  Although China implemented its one child policy in 1979 and officially phased it out in 2015, China"s birthrate was actually consistently higher than most of the other major economies in East Asia (Japan, S. Korea, Taiwan, Singapore...chart below) and only N. Korea"s fertility rate is currently higher.

  
  

• 
  

  None of these other East Asia nations ever implemented birth restrictions.  Instead, their populaces chose not to replace themselves responding to the availability of birth control, surging costs of child rearing, and inclusion of females into the workforce, etc.  Simply put, the one child policy was inevitable and has now organically gone global.  The phase out of this policy will have little to no impact of China"s fertility rates.

  
  

2) China to raise retirement age, but no time soon...

• 
  

  In early 2015, China suggested it would detail in 2017 (which I still have not seen) a gradual, multiyear process to raise the retirement age (China"s version of political suicide).  Suggestions focused on slowly, incrementally, raising female retirement ages to match males and likewise, pushing retirements out by a month or two per year.  However, none of this was even suggested to start within the next five years and like most things, almost surely be back-end loaded so any real impacts are overstated.  Regardless Communist or "Capitalist" politicians, the game is the same.  A little "razzle-dazzle" that ensures any negative policy impacts never occurs on your watch.

  
  

3) China to institute Universal Pension Plan...

• 
  

  In late 2015, China said "We will achieve a basic pension for all employees nationally".  Currently, about 800 million of China"s 1.3 billion are eligible for state pensions.  According to Sinosphere, pensions for non-state employees vary widely, as high as 3000 RMB ($480) month in Beijing to as little as 80 RMB for rural farmers.  Civil Servants pensions are generally higher than those of non-state employees.  The party statement said, China would be;

  
  
  • 
    

    “Building a fairer and more sustainable social welfare system.

    
    
    
    

    Implementing plans for every person to take part in social insurance.

    
    
    
    
    
    

    Diverting capital from state-owned enterprises to social security funds.

    
    
    
    
    
    

    
    

    Offering all urban and rural residents insurance for serious illness.”

    
    

    
    
    
    
  
  

4) Chinese wages & average per capita disposable income rising but gains are hugely variable...

• 
  

  While Chinese factory wages in tier 1 urban areas are now inline with Portugal or S. Africa, this terrific rise has created it"s own problems.  The rise in wages has been met with inflationary spikes in rents, fuel, food, etc. etc.  Average disposable income has risen in the urban areas but flat at best across rural China.  However, the response of employers to the spectacular rising wages has been automation, a shift away from labor intensive production, and outsourcing to lower cost countries.  This is at odds with the generally low skill/low education rural population looking for opportunity in the urban areas.  The breadth and size of further gains in disposable income is likely to be limited.  Economically, a declining total number of workers making marginally more money will not provide the desired growth.

  
  

5) China cannot export its way out of this...

• 
  

  The annual change to the 0-64yr/old combined populations of the 35 OECD nations (US, Canada, Europe, Japan, S. Korea, Australia/NZ) plus China, Brazil, and Russia begin declining in 2018 (chart below).  The core populations of the nations responsible for consuming 80%+ of all Chinese exports have peaked and begin shrinking.  Fewer consumers every year than the year before, indefinitely.  As for the nations that are doing all the growing, India and Africa, they consume about 4% of all Chinese exports.  BTW, the chart below shows when each nation/region 0-64yr/old population began declining.

  
  

Simply put, China is offering to increase and broaden it"s pension system to a ballooning population of elderly but will have a decreasing potential number of employees from which to pay for that increase?!? 

How will China achieve this?  Well, as the chart below shows, as Chinese core population growth has been decelerating, Chinese debt growth has been accelerating. 

While China"s GDP and energy consumption have led the world, they have not responded in kind to China"s debt explosion and exponentially more will be necessary to continue to show "growth".  Over a third and perhaps half of all the debt has been mal-invested in a housing bubble for a population that is never coming. 

What comes next isn"t going to be good for China nor the rest of the world as China looks to flood a depopulating nation with new debt only creating more housing overcapacity... China will look to beat the Japanese at the debt game.

For instance, the Chinese public-pension system as of 2014, took in 2.33 trillion yuan in revenue and paid out almost 2 trillion...with 3 trillion in net funds.  The net outflows and drawdown of those net funds is imminent.

But not to worry, the Communist Party explained that..."We will look at some opportunities with higher yields but will contain risk".  Again, no details were offered.  However, one asset it is clear the Chinese will not be buying...US Treasury"s (chart below, showing the net purchases since the debt ceiling debate of July 2011 according to TIC).  Since that date, China has been a net seller of US Treasury debt despite running record US dollar surplus" (BLICS = Belgium, Luxembourg, Ireland, Cayman Island, Switzerland).

From 2000 "til July 2011, China recycled 50% of its dollar trade surplus into US Treasury debt accumulating over $1.3 trillion.  Since July 2011, China has net sold over $100 billion and as of October, held about $1.2 trillion (chart below).

But I"m pretty sure those dollars aren"t sitting fallow and are finding their way into some asset, probably one in particular that is selling on the cheap about right now.

 

Some Europeans Have Never Been Outside The EU

When it comes to holidays and travelling in general, Europe has a lot to offer.

Cosmopolitan cities jam packed with culture, pristine beaches, excellent ski resorts, you name it. Given all of that, it comes as little surprise that many Europeans never travel outside the EU.

As Statista"s Niall McCarthy notes, the most recent Eurobarometer data showing the share of people who have travelled at least once outside the EU was published in 2014.

You will find more statistics at Statista

The above infographic shows the results of the research, with Swedes most likely to have been outside the EU. That is more than likely due to the long and open border with neighbouring Norway which is not part of the EU.

The same story is likely true for Austria due to its proximity to Switzerland.

People in newer member states in Eastern Europe are least likely to have been outside the EU with Bulgaria, Lithuania, Poland, Hungary and Romania all towards the bottom of the ranking.

Interestingly, Portugal comes second last, possibly due to the fact that it only shares a land border with Spain. Only 18 percent of all Portuguese residents have travelled outside the EU.

Bond Bears Beware As Ag Prices Hit Record Low

Long-end bond yields are lower and the front-end higher once again this morning as the US Treasury yield curve continues to confound by flattening. Bloomberg macro strategist Mark Cudmore suspects there is more to come... for one simple reason, so often overlooked...

Via Bloomberg,

Cheaper eats are great, but maybe not if you’re one of the many expecting a sustainable bump in bond yields next year.

Falling food prices risk wrecking the forecasts -- seen pretty much every December for years now -- for yields to climb in the new year. Ten-year Treasury rates haven’t closed a year above 2.45 percent since 2013.

 

Bond bears seem to struggle to incorporate structural disinflationary pressures that have come from technology and globalization.

 

The Bloomberg Agriculture Subindex on Monday hit its lowest level since the series began in 1991. Technology and science are making the agriculture industry increasingly efficient, and there are still plenty of production gains to be made globally.

 

 

Combined with the overhang of energy supply that’s capping oil prices -- and therefore processing, transport and distribution costs -- that means the long-term trend remains one of cheaper food prices.

 

And food prices are a key component of consumer price index baskets around the world.

 

The impact is global, real and seems to be constantly underestimated.

 

Since Saturday, China, Denmark, Norway and the Czech Republic have all released CPI prints where the annual rate was both decelerating and below expectations. Food prices were specifically cited in China’s case.

None of this is to argue that bond yields can’t spike higher for short periods, notes Cudmore, but it’s just an argument to highlight that structural disinflationary pressures from technology remain strong and shouldn’t be dismissed.

With several major central banks indicating that the marginal bias is to tighten policy, that will further crimp price rises. And that doesn’t bode well for a sustainable broad rise in developed-market yields.

Homeless Swedes Out In The Cold

Authored by Bruce Bawer via The Gatestone Institute,

• One reason there are so many immigrants in Sweden, both legal and illegal, is that the country"s welfare system is a bonanza for foreigners. Far from not being covered by the system, immigrants often enjoy preferential treatment


• These Swedes should not be sleeping on the streets. The Scandinavian welfare states were founded on a compact between the citizens and their government: the people would pay outrageously high taxes, and in return their government would guarantee them a magnificent safety net should they get sick or get fired. But ever since these countries chose to open their doors to mass Muslim immigration, that compact has been broken.


• A state-employed paper-pusher who gives citizens something for which they have already paid can hardly feel particularly virtuous, whereas handing out free stuff to aliens who have done absolutely nothing to deserve it can make that same government paper-pusher feel like a world-class Good Samaritan.


• Even more shattering is that millions of those Scandinavian citizens accept it. Marinated from birth in multiculturalism, millions of them dare not demand what they have coming to them -- what they have paid for, what they deserve -- lest they be viewed by others, and even by themselves, as bigots.

The other day, I reported about the Church of Sweden"s strenuous efforts to appease Islam. Now comes the news that from December 15 to March 15, churches in the diocese of Gothenburg will be used at night as shelters for the homeless.

Lovely idea. But there is a catch. The only homeless people who will be allowed in are foreigners -- either immigrants from elsewhere in the EU, who are by definition legal, or illegal immigrants from outside the EU. In other words, native Swedes need not apply, even though the initiative is being paid for by taxpayer money.

A man begs on the street in Lund, Sweden, July 23, 2013. (Image source: Sigfrid Lundberg/Flickr)

The argument for this policy -- which represents an expansion and formalization of a practice that began two winters ago -- is that it is designed to help people who are not covered by the Swedish welfare system. But this argument does not hold up. One reason there are so many immigrants in Sweden, both legal and illegal, is that the country"s welfare system is a bonanza for foreigners. Far from not being covered by the system, immigrants often enjoy preferential treatment. Last fall, for example, it was reported that several Swedish municipalities were passing over hardworking citizens who had waited several years to rent government-owned housing, and were giving the homes instead -- for free -- to unemployed, newly-arrived immigrants. Some Swedes actually stirred from their torpor and angrily criticized this policy, but the protest was to no avail: the Swedish Parliament had passed a law compelling local governments to put foreigners at the top of their waiting lists.

That the Swedish Parliament could pass such a law is, of course, a scathing indictment of its welfare system"s priorities. So is the fact that there are, as it happens, a great many ethnic Swedes living and begging on the streets of its cities, and -- in the winter -- huddling in the doorways of stores and offices, wrapped in layers of blankets at night, in hope of keeping alive in the subfreezing cold. The same disgraceful situation can be observed in the major cities of Norway and Denmark.

These Swedes should not be on the streets. The Scandinavian welfare states were founded on a compact between the citizens and their government: the people would pay outrageously high taxes, and in return their government would guarantee them a magnificent safety net should they get sick or get fired. But ever since these countries chose to open their doors to mass Muslim immigration, that compact has been broken.

Yes, the citizens are still being forced to pay for the welfare system -- but that system no longer has their backs. The people in authority, from the highest-ranking national leaders down to the lowest local bureaucrats, would seem to have forgotten for whom they work. In a way, it makes sense: After all, a state-employed paper-pusher who gives citizens something for which they have already paid can hardly feel particularly virtuous, whereas handing out free stuff to aliens who have done absolutely nothing to deserve it can make that same government paper-pusher feel like a world-class Good Samaritan.

What is even more shattering than this state of affairs is that millions of those Scandinavian citizens accept it. Marinated from birth in multiculturalism, millions of them dare not demand what they have coming to them -- what they have paid for, what they deserve -- lest they be viewed by others, and even by themselves, as bigots.

Fortunately, not all Scandinavians fit this description. When the alternative news website Samnytt reported that the churches in Gothenburg would be turning away homeless people who belong to that church in order to accommodate members of a religion that views Christianity as an abomination, dozens of readers reacted with outrage. "The road to hell is paved with good intentions," wrote one. "The hatred toward ethnic Swedes knows no bounds," wrote another. A third suggested that the churches of Gothenburg will soon, in any case, be converted into mosques -- minarets and all.

At present, alas, that seems like the safe bet.

Footage Captured Over Finland Shows A Meteor Turning Night Into Day

Stunning footage from Lapland, Finland has shown an incredible meteor slicing across the night sky.  The meteor was so bright that it lit up the sky with an awe-inspiring and noticeable blast.

On Thursday, November 16, the incident was caught on camera by several locals. Scientists still don’t know if the meteor hit the ground or if it burned up in the atmosphere, but what was caught on camera is amazing.

“So tonight whilst I was sat in our cottage, there was a huge bang and the cottage shook violently,” Tony Bateman, who recorded one of the videos and runs the website Aurora Service Tours, said in the video description. “We run a live video stream capturing the night sky for aurora borealis purposes, I immediately think maybe that caught the show? So I rewind the video and sure enough, there it is. Absolute goosebumps at this stage. What. a. night.”

The footage is actually quite stunning.  The incident is thought to have happened at about 6:40 pm local time in the skies of Inari in Finnish Lapland. The incident was so bright and powerful that there were some reports it was even heard in Norway and Russia.

“The lights came from all around us, like a massive explosion that lasted for some five or six seconds,” eyewitness Atle Staaleen told the Barents Observer. While the event is impressive, meteors are actually not all that rare. Thousands of objects burn up in our atmosphere every year, but many are too small to be noticeable. Others take place over remote, uninhabited areas and are not caught on any recording device.

But this time, there was more than one camera which recorded this event.

According to IFL Science, on some occasions, a meteor will streak over a populated area. In the case of this incident, the meteor looks like it either exploded in the air as a bolide or hit Earth as a meteorite. As humans, we are getting better at tracking meteorites, but we’re not perfect yet. The often used example is the Chelyabinsk meteor over Russia in 2013, which went undetected but injured hundreds of people when it exploded.  There is also video footage of that meteor, and it included a very loud blast. 

Comparing U.S. to Cherry-Picked Countries on Guns Fools No One but the Ignorant

This is what emulating other countries on “gun laws” looks like. (United Naitons)

“These 4 countries have nearly eliminated gun deaths — here’s what the US can learn,” senior innovation reporter Chris Weller presumes to instruct in a Wednesday Business Insider apologia for global citizen disarmament. “Some countries have figured out how to curb gun violence through targeted strategies.”

Those countries are Japan, Australia, Norway, and the United Kingdom, and Weller claims they “may all offer insight.” If the goal is to abandon the Constitution and Bill of Rights and embrace citizen disarmament, he has a point.

Starting with Australia, he lauds the effectiveness of the government’s ban on ownership of semi-automatic firearms and pump action shotguns, and its subsequent mandatory (and misnamed) “buyback” and destruction ofsurrendered guns, fantasizing that the same could be accomplished here.

Economist and author John Lott has compellingly challenged the validity of many of the claims about the crime reduction that supposedly resulted from the Aussie gun-grab. As for compliance, this year marked the fourth attempt at a “buyback” amnesty since 1987 in an attempt to account for massive noncompliance with registration. And last, but certainly not least, a good many of us are just not going to surrender our guns. Ain’t gonna happen.

“Japan seldom has more than 10 shooting deaths a year in a population of 127 million people, due to its strict laws for obtaining firearms,” Weller assures us next.  Really? He’s sure that’s the reason?

It couldn’t be that Japan is essentially a homogeneous and traditional culture that has not allowed the conditions that breed generational violent lawlessness, as exist in U.S. urban areas under “progressive” rule? Because if it’s the guns, explain why the five million members of the NRA – arguably the most heavily-armed civilian population on the planet – are every bit as peaceable — more so, actually — as “law-abiding” Japanese. Don’t forget to add in Japan’s much higher suicide rate than the U.S. has. And you might also want to consider the just-caught serial killer who beheaded nine young people. As for Japan’s comparatively low murder rate and numbers, the city where I live has a much lower rate (as in non-existent), and talking to my neighbors it’s evident we have plenty of guns.

Our next stop is Norway (not that I mean for this to sound like one of those travelogues from the 50s). And Weller declares that “Norway exemplifies the power of social cohesion and trust … through measures like community policing.”

Give the globalist-manufactured refugee “crisis” time to percolate on that “social cohesion” bit, although it looks like somebody may be waking up to that with “[t]he number of asylum seekers …  plummet[ing] by 95 per cent since the start of this year as the country continues strict border checks and financial incentives for migrants to leave voluntarily.”

As for trust in the police and the desirability of adopting Norwegian gun laws, let me quote the first paragraph of one of my GUNS Magazine “Rights Watch” columns from 2011:

“A maniac disguised as a policeman went on a bombing and shooting spree in Norway, unopposed by responding law enforcement for a full 90 minutes. At this writing, eight people were killed by a car bomb explosion in Oslo, and less than two hours later, 69 people were shot and killed at a youth camp on Utoya Island. Per Radar Online, it was ‘the deadliest attack by a single gunman in history.’”

I’m just not seeing the “insight” being offered here on “how to curb gun violence through targeted strategies.”

Last up, the UK. They “took a multi-pronged approach,” meaning they banned handguns, semi-auto and pump action firearms, required shotgun registration, held their own “buybacks,” and destroyed surrendered firearms and ammunition. And again, the comparison between the UK and the U.S. is meaningless without factoring in key population differences

Intent on changing that through insane European “immigration” policies, we now see headlines like “22 Dead, 120 Injured, Youngest Victim Eight Years Old After ‘Suicide Bomb’ at UK Ariana Grande Concert.”  And give it a few years, because my prediction is “When It Comes to ‘Gun Violence,’ the UK Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet.”

If you’re starting to get the feeling that Weller had an assignment to fill and access to gun-grabber talking points, you’re probably not far off the mark. Because another article came out just last week by someone who does his own research, attorney David Kopel, who scored op ed space in The Washington Post of all places, and who demonstrates:

“The global history of mass shootings demonstrates that the vast majority of these crimes are perpetrated in places where citizen firearms ownership is close to nil. While people can argue about cause and effect, the facts are indisputable.”

Let’s see: Listen to Weller and emulate foreign nations by renouncing our guns and turning our backs on the Second Amendment, or reject that subversive call and respond to surrender demands like men who intend to win?

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The post Comparing U.S. to Cherry-Picked Countries on Guns Fools No One but the Ignorant appeared first on Oath Keepers.

49% Favor Mandatory Military Service For US Youth

Nearly half of Americans favor mandatory military service for the country’s youth, according to a recent poll from Gallup.

As TheAntiMedia"s Carey Wedler details, the polling organization surveyed 1,006 Americans over the age of 18 between November 3 and November 4, and 49% of those questioned expressed support for compulsory service.

Further, “a majority of Republicans, including independents who lean Republican, favor it (57%), as do men (57%) and those 65 or older (66%),” Gallup summarized.

Gallup noted that efforts to actually impose such a policy - such House Rep. Charles Rangel’s repeated attempts between 2003 and 2015 to mandate it through legislation - have fallen flat.

Americans’ preferences for a traditional draft have fluctuated over the decades. Gallup explained:

“A majority of Americans (54%) in 1977 favored sticking to a volunteer force, but two 1980 surveys showed a majority wanting to return to a military draft. Eventually, most Americans endorsed the all-volunteer concept, with five polls conducted between 1998 and 2007 showing majorities from 69% to 85% rejecting a return to the draft.”

The draft was a powerful point of contention during the divisive Vietnam War, prompting many of those selected to fight to burn their draft cards in protest.

In Gallup’s poll idea of forcing young people to serve a mandatory year in the armed forces - as opposed to a draft - was unsurprisingly least popular among young people.

Four in ten favored the proposition, however, marking a significant portion of those who would potentially be affected but still wanted to see it enacted.

“While Americans today are not overwhelmingly in favor of it, neither are they overwhelmingly opposed,” Gallup observed.

Militarism has long been a core element of American identity, as evidenced by millions of Americans’ stalwart devotion to and respect for soldiers. Though it currently remains unlikely that mandatory service will be implemented, that half the country would support it reflects this value system.

Countries that require mandatory service include Israel, North Korea, China, Russia, Denmark, Norway, Switzerland, Egypt, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates.

America Is The 22nd "Best" Country In The World For Women

To the surprise of many, Saudi Arabia recently announced it would end its longstanding ban on women driving with the change set to come into effect from June 2018. That ban has served as a major symbol of female oppression throughout the world and it has also done huge damage to the kingdom"s reputation for years. The situation could improve even further in the years ahead with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman pushing to implement more reforms in order to return the country to moderate Islam.

However, as Statista"s Niall McCarthy points out, Saudi Arabia isn"t alone in how it treats women and a new index has gauged the status of women in different countries.

You will find more statistics at Statista

The global Women, Peace and Security Index was launched by The Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security and the Peace Research Institute of Oslo.

It measures women"s well-being by assessing various factors such as inclusion, justice and security in 153 countries.

Iceland comes first, followed by Norway and Switzerland.

The U.S. is in 22nd position and its lack of paid-maternity leave is one possible reason it trails other developed countries. Along with Papua New Guinea, the U.S. is the only country worldwide that doesn"t offer new mothers paid maternity leave.

Countries that are less peaceful and unstable tended to score poorly in the index with Afghanistan and Syria both rock bottom.

Yemen is also embroiled in conflict and it comes third-last. Pakistan is amongst the worst countries in the index and various studies have shown that domestic violence and "honor killings" are widespread there. Nobel Prize Laureate Malala Yousafzai is a key example of just how dangerous Pakistan can get for women. She was shot and nearly killed in 2012 for publicly speaking about women"s right to an education.

Norway"s Oil Sector Faces Existential Crisis

Authored by Tsvetana Paraskova via OilPrice.com,

Oil companies have recently focused on frontier exploration drilling in the Barents Sea offshore in Norway, neglecting the powerhouse of the Norwegian oil industry, the North Sea.

Exploration activity in the North Sea - the most mature area of Western Europe’s biggest oil producer - is at an 11-year low this year, which is a concern for the industry’s regulator, the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD).

“That worries me,” NPD Director General Bente Nyland told Bloomberg in a recent interview, voicing the industry concern that without new oil discoveries, especially in mature areas with well-connected infrastructure, the decline in Norway’s oil production would be even bigger than expected.

Following a continual decline between 2001 and 2013, Norway’s crude oil production rose last year for the third year running, but according to the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD), oil production this year would be nearly half the volume from the peak in 2000-2001.

Two huge fields discovered in 2010 and 2011, Johan Sverdrup in the North Sea, and Johan Castberg in the Barents Sea, are expected to start operations in 2019 and 2022, respectively, and will lift Norway’s oil production in the early 2020s compared to expected declines in 2018 and 2019.

But after 2025, production and activity are expected to significantly drop off unless there are new discoveries, according to oil major Statoil.

Norway’s Ministry of Petroleum and Energy, and NPD say:

“Production from new fields that come on stream will compensate for the decline in production from ageing fields. However, in the longer term, the level of production will depend on new discoveries being made, the development of discoveries, and the implementation of improved recovery projects on existing fields.”

Encouraged by recently opened areas and potentially huge yet-to-be-discovered resources, oil companies launched a record exploration drilling campaign in Norway’s Barents Sea this year. But the drilling campaign was a flop, and even the most promising wildcat yielded no oil.

Companies are vowing to return next year for more exploration in the frontier regions, but they’ve been neglecting the North Sea—the most mature area where Norway’s petroleum history began, and which made the country one of the world’s richest.

The North Sea is still the powerhouse of Norway’s oil with 62 fields in production as of the end of 2016, compared to 16 fields in production in the Norwegian Sea and two fields—Snøhvit and Goliat­—in the Barents Sea.  

This year oil companies drilled a record number of wells in the Barents Sea, which is thought to hold 49 percent of Norway’s undiscovered resources, while the North Sea has 24 percent of undiscovered oil and gas, and the Norwegian Sea 27 percent.

The North Sea’s huge fields have pumped oil and gas for decades and are now maturing. Therefore, Norway needs to add more resources in the North Sea before some of the existing infrastructure, including platforms, is folded and decommissioned, according to NPD’s Nyland.

In an overview of the Norwegian Continental Shelf for 2016, Nyland pointed to “a great deal of uncertainty associated with exploration activity going forward.”

“It is very important to maintain exploration activity at a high level in order to maintain stable production in the future,” she said.  

The Barents Sea was a large part of exploration activity this year, but results were underwhelming.

“Exploration drilling in the Barents Sea in 2017 and 2018 will help clarify future opportunities in the Barents Sea and the Norwegian continental shelf,” Statoil says, but its chief executive Eldar Saetre also points out that the industry needs to heed what NPD’s Nyland has been saying about neglecting the North Sea.

 

“If we continue to see a trend where we’re not making bigger discoveries, we will have to search more in mature areas,” Saetre told Bloomberg in an interview. “This is an important issue,” he added.

As juicy as it sounds, the Barents Sea holds nearly half of Norway’s undiscovered resources, but the North Sea has the developed infrastructure to link new discoveries to existing fields and make even smaller new finds commercially viable when linked to producing areas. So, returning to the old stomping grounds may ultimately pay off.

Norway"s $1 Trillion Wealth Fund Gains 3.2% In Q3 As 70% Equity Allocation Pays Off

Last December we joked that the Norwegian sovereign wealth fund had responded to sinking returns and withdrawals required to fund budget deficits by allocating another $130 billion in assets to what appeared to be an already massively overpriced equity bubble in return for an extra 40bps of "expected average annual real returns" (see: Norway Buying $130 Billion In Global Equities As Sovereign Wealth Fund Continues To Bleed Cash).  The extra equity purchases pushed the fund"s total equity allocation to a staggering 70% of their $860 billion in assets under management.

Alas, with global equity bubbles becoming ever more bubblier with each passing day, the bet on equities has paid off "bigly" for Norway so far this year and grew their $1 trillion in AUM by another 3.2%, or a mere $32 billion, in Q3 2017 alone. 

As Bloomberg notes this morning, the staggering size of Norway"s wealth fund and their seemingly reckless allocation to equities, implies they now own roughly 1% of global stocks.

Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, which owns more than 1 percent of global stocks, is treating its $300 billion bond portfolio as a hedge for what it now essentially views as a stock fund.

 

“60 to 70 percent in equities -- imagine it was 60 to 80 or 90 percent -- the whole thing is that this fund is actually to a large extent now a public equity fund,” CEO Yngve Slyngstad told reporters in Oslo. “We don’t think about this as two separate asset classes that have their distinct dynamics, the real risk of the fund is in the equity market.”

 

The $1 trillion Government Pension Fund Global, which started out as a pure bond portfolio before adding stocks, returned 3.2 percent in the third quarter, or 192 billion kroner ($24 billion), the Oslo-based investor said on Friday. Equities drove returns gaining 4.3 percent, while bonds rose 0.8 percent and real estate investments grew 2.7 percent.

So what does Norway"s wealth fund own?  Aside from the obvious answer of "literally all the things," they have roughly $360 billion in U.S. stocks, with Apple being their largest bet of course and $100 billion in emerging market equities with the remainder spread between Euro equities and U.S., Japanese and German bonds.

Emerging stocks, which make up 10.2 percent of the fund’s equity holdings, returned 6.4 percent, while U.S. stocks, its single largest market with 35.9 percent, returned 3.2 percent. Oil and gas shares were the best preforming sector in the quarter with a 8.7 percent increase as increased demand for oil, OPEC’s quota discipline and lower production of shale oil in the U.S. boosted crude prices, the fund said.

 

Owning close to 1.5 percent of all large listed companies globally, the Norwegian fund largely follows indexes, but is allowed some active management of its portfolio.

 

The fund held 65.9 percent in stocks in the quarter, 31.6 percent in bonds and 2.5 percent in real estate. Its mandate is to keep about 70 percent in stocks, 30 percent in bonds, with about 7 percent in real estate that’s now separate from the main portfolio.  The fund beat its benchmark by 0.1 percentage point.

 

The fund’s biggest equity investments in the quarter are Apple, Nestle and Royal Dutch Shell, while its largest fixed income holdings are U.S., Japanese and German government bonds.

Meanwhile, the fund"s record AUM comes despite taking withdrawals for the first time ever in 2016 and expectations that another 70 billion kroner will be withdrawn this year to help offset budget deficits.

Norway’s government last year made direct withdrawals from the fund for the first time in its history and is expected to take out about 70 billion kroner this year. Meanwhile, Norway has lowered the fund’s expected return to 3 percent from 4 percent.

 

The fund has been given permission to raise its stock holdings to 70 percent from 60 percent, with an equivalent cut in bonds. That could help it eke out higher returns, or at least maintain the 8 percent annualized real return it’s had over the past five years.

 

But Slyngstad also recently said he sees fundamental issues with the global economic system and trade, which is being buffeted by increasing global political risk. And that’s not good for a fund that owns 1.3 percent of global stocks.

So, it appears that Norway"s reckless equity bet has paid off for now...but, what is the saying about "he who laughs last?"

Uranium Deal Turns Spotlight on Hillary Clinton But Not the Way She Wanted

Submitted by Charles Ortel and Ekaterina Blinova

Hillary and Bill Clinton could have been involved in "pay-to-play" schemes, while transferring money through their charity in a non-transparent manner, according to Wall Street analyst and investigative journalist Charles Ortel who believes that the uranium deal may become the trigger for an all-out inquiry into the Clinton Foundation.

The Clintons" "modus operandi" is first, to lie under oath, and, second, to obstruct justice from within government and even from outside government, Charles Ortel alleged, commenting on investigations launched by the Senate and the House of Representatives into the Obama-era uranium deal. It was rumored that as secretary of state Hillary Clinton approved the agreement benefiting Russia in exchange for donations to the Clinton Foundation (CF) from Canadian mining industry leaders involved in the deal. Clinton refuted the claim that she helped support the donors" interests.

Hillary"s Uranium Case: Why Now?

Answering the question why of all times Hillary Clinton"s uranium case has surfaced now, Ortel noted that it was Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley who kicked off the initiative following the release of reports by US journalists John Solomon and Sara Carter.

Ortel believes that Attorney General Jeff Sessions "has been dragging his feet on putting resources behind a full and complete investigation of the network of charities operated by and for the Clintons that seems to be engaged in the largest frauds perpetrated in modern history, when one considers all the tentacles."

While speaking to Alabama voters in late September, Donald Trump responded to their chant "lock her [Clinton] up" by saying: "You"ve got to speak to Jeff Sessions about that." Then, during an October 18 congressional hearing, Attorney General Sessions dropped the hint that the Justice Department was looking into the alleged conflict of interest involving the former secretary of state.

Is the Clinton investigation launched by the US Congress, and, allegedly, Sessions, connected to the ongoing Trump-Russia probe?

Ortel assumed that the narrative concerning Trump"s supposed collusion with the Russians during the 2016 presidential elections, promoted by "Team Obama" and "Team Clinton," is nothing but an attempt to prevent the US president from disclosing "potential criminal activities involving government officials, donors and others [who] might get prosecuted once the Trump administration finds its feet."

"When Trump shocked many by winning, Team Obama and Team Clinton must have realized that skeletons created and put in closets from January 20, 2009 onwards, might get exposed," he explained.

"At first, it seems consideration was given to contesting the election result, and then to obstructing the inauguration. As these moves failed, the Trump-Russia collusion narrative ultimately triggered the appointment of [Special Counsel Robert] Mueller, and then of his team," Ortel said.

The Clinton Foundation Brought Into the Spotlight, Again

The alleged conflict of interest has once again brought the Clinton charity"s murky financial activities into the spotlight. According to Ortel, who has been investigating the CF for the past few years, the Clintons have a long record of receiving grants, including from foreign nations, and not disclosing it in an appropriate manner.

"There are various laws that require a US charity to disclose its government grants, including those from foreign nations," the investigative journalist explained. "When you look through the IRS tax forms from 1998 through 2007 for the Clinton Foundation, you will see that the line "government grants" is not filled in for any of these 10 years."

Ortel noted that "On December 18, 2008, the Clintons reluctantly provided a table that purported to show donor information concerning cumulative contributions, arrayed in a misleading fashion by category." "This list includes numerous "governments" so the CF and its trustees knowingly omitted crucial information on tax forms submitted for 1998 through 2007," the analyst highlighted.

However, Ortel emphasized that the list is "misleading" because "the largest category $25 million and up failed to highlight that UNITAID had donated hundreds of millions by December 18, 2008, and had even advanced monies for 2009 to the CF in 2008."

UNITAID, an organization aimed at providing access to drugs and treatment for AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis patients worldwide, was founded with the assistance of former US President Bill Clinton and then French President Jacques Chirac in 2006. The entity was officially established by the governments of Brazil, Chile, France, Norway and the United Kingdom while the CF was named as one of its key partners.

"These donations had gone to the Clinton Foundation HIV/AIDS Initiative, Inc., an AR [Arkansas] legal entity whose authority to operate had been revoked on March 31, 2008, with effect from December 31, 2007. Moreover, the French government and possibly other donors had grown quite concerned about this illegal activity around then," the analyst surmised.

In addition to federal filings on government grants, New York and California require detailed disclosures that still have not properly been made by the Clinton charity concerning government grants,  amount and intended purposes.  "So, one issue that is deeply troubling for the Clintons and for the regulators who still seem willing to give the Clintons, lawyers, accountants, a pass is what purposes did the donors intend the Clinton Foundation to carry out in each year from 1998 forward. And exactly when, if ever, was the CF authorized by the IRS [Internal Revenue Service] and the states to be more than a Little Rock Presidential Records Repository and Research Center," the Wall Street analyst underscored.

Given the fact that lots of data are omitted in the CF balance sheets the question arises what actually happened to these various government and other donations, Ortel asked.

How Clinton Charity Evolved Into Monstrous Non-Transparent Network

So, when did this trend start?

Citing Taylor Branch, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author and Bill Clinton"s secret diarist, Ortel said "Bill Clinton was thinking about his library immediately after he won his first presidential election." However, the charity intended to gather money for the William J. Clinton Presidential Center in Little Rock has transformed into an enormous and non-transparent international network.

"Early on in Arkansas, [the Clintons] likely discovered that no one actually checks what really happens to sums spent by governments in the granular ways that forensic accountants and investigators can check, if they wish to," Ortel remarked.

The investigative journalist elaborated that "with the "charities," operating without controls, the Clintons, their allies, and others can divert incoming funds to side accounts, and declare only a portion of the vast sums that actually are sent their way." He highlighted that "with the balance of "revenues," they can claim expenses of any amount they wish, but ensure monies go to allies who can then kick back portions of sums actually sent."

"Had the American public learned the truth starting in 2001, the Clinton Foundation long ago would have been shut down, and possibly trustees and Clinton family members, as well as executives would have been prosecuted, convicted, and incarcerated," he alleged.

According to the analyst, there were many other scandals "that plagued the Clintons, while and after Bill was a president."

"During and after the 1996 election, allegations were made and subsequently investigated that the Clintons and Democrats tapped foreign money sources, including possibly the Chinese and there were endless hearings," he said, referring to the 1996 US campaign finance controversy — an alleged effort by the People"s Republic of China to influence domestic American politics.

However, Ortel stressed that "these hearings never seemed to go to the heart of underlying issues, possibly because both politicians in both parties (illegally) may have been engaged in the same bad behavior."

Brandon Smith: How To Stop All Future Mass Shootings

Authored by Brandon Smith via Alt-Market.com,

In my last article "A Tactical Analysis Of The Las Vegas Mass Shooting Incident," I outlined the precarious nature of the mainstream narrative and why the Vegas event in particular requires serious independent investigation into the possibility that Stephen Paddock did not plan or execute the event alone, or, he did not plan or execute the event at all, and someone else with far more tactical knowledge and shooting experience committed the murders outside the Mandalay Bay Hotel. Given that the FBI and Vegas sheriff"s timeline seems to change every few days and that Mandalay surveillance footage is locked up tight, I think it is safe to say that someone more professional, and not muzzled by bureaucracy, needs be involved.

Setting aside the inconsistencies in the official narrative, questioning the motives behind this particular attack does not really bring us any closer to a practical solution. Of course, if you are one of those people that obsessively embraces the "crisis actor" theory, then you likely think that nothing much needs to be solved because "no one actually died." I am not very interested in this impractical theory reminiscent of "The Truman Show", nor the people that promote it. It reminds me of the 9/11 hologram plane theory — remember, the theory designed to discredit the more legitimate 9/11 truth movement which included hundreds of scientists, architects and engineers with real arguments and evidence? Yeah, those establishment disinformation tactics did not go away; they are still being used today to undermine honest and rational investigations of other potential false flag events.

Ask "fake event" theorists for ANY concrete evidence that a single death was theatrical and that thousands of concertgoers and their families are part of the conspiracy, and these guys will demand that YOU show them the dead bodies and prove that the event "wasn"t faked."  In other words, you must prove a negative, which is of course impossible.

Tell them you happen to know people with friends and family who were harmed in the event and they"ll call you a liar or a government "agent." Show them numerous photos of dead bodies and they"ll claim the bodies are actors. Show them first hand accounts of people on the ground — hey, all those people must be actors, too. Ask them for proof again and they"ll try to pawn the burden of proof off on you; proof that they will then again deny when it is presented. It is a pointless circle of idiocy that makes alternative research look ridiculous.

If the establishment is seeking to stage a false flag, why go through the trouble of an elaborate, costly and harder-to-contain Kabuki play with numerous actors that might not keep quiet when they could simply shoot some real people with real bullets and be done with it?

Moving on...

This article will be focusing on the very real shooting (and attacks like it) which did in fact occur. Perhaps not the way that the mainstream media and the FBI claim, but still taking place all the same. How do we prevent such attacks in the future? What about Gladio-type false flag events (the Vegas event has numerous Gladio markers)? Can those be stopped, or is this an impossible task?

As far as false flag attacks are concerned, the long-term solution would be to nullify the people who fund and plan these scenarios. Until the day this is accomplished, though, we need some short-term protections.

I believe it is indeed possible to stop future mass shooting events, and to be sure, the solution does NOTinvolve further gun control measures or confiscation. Why? Because gun control does nothing to prevent mass shootings.

Just take a look at the Paris attacks perpetrated by ISIS. France has strict gun laws in line with what gun control advocates in the U.S. would like to see implemented. Even off-duty police officers in France were not allowed to carry their sidearms until after the Paris attacks in 2015.

French gun laws did nothing to stop ISIS terrorists from killing over 130 people in a single night using weapons already highly restricted in the country. All they accomplished was disarming innocent citizens and making them easy targets.

The nation of India also has some of the strictest gun laws in the world, yet this did nothing to prevent the Mumbai attacks in 2008 in which 164 people were killed.

Norway had extremely tough gun laws in 2011, but these were easily circumvented by Anders Breivik who murdered 69 members of a Workers Youth Camp on the island of Utoya.

As I noted in my previous article, the Vegas attack was initiated using more complex sniper-like tactics as evidenced in the choice of the shooter"s perch as well as in the calculations for bullet drop from an elevated position. I believe this was done quite deliberately; most mass shooters tend to be poorly trained and attack a crowd haphazardly at point blank range in order to achieve maximum casualties in the shortest amount of time.  However, in Vegas, and Nevada in general, the likelihood of running into a person with a conceal carry weapon is rather high. Paddock (or whoever) might not have lasted more than a minute before being confronted with multiple defenders armed with their own sidearms.

The Vegas shooter was smart to avoid a point blank, ground level confrontation. But how do we make future shooters think twice about longer range attacks at crowded events?

The federal government and DHS will probably call for stricter security measures in locations in which many people congregate. I would not be surprised to see demands for TSA-style security in streets in major tourist areas and at concerts, sporting events, etc. Body scanners and luggage scanners in major hotels? Count on it, eventually. Hardcore anti-gun ordinances within major cities, much like the gun measures in places like Washington D.C.? Do not be shocked.

As mentioned above, none of this will really stop a determined mass shooter or terrorist (and certainly not a false flag), but without an alternative solution, frightened people have a tendency to go along with the deluded notion that more government means more security.

Vegas is not a stranger to crisis, but it seems to have forgotten how to prevent it. Many Americans are unaware that back in 1992 during the Rodney King riots, Las Vegas had to deal with its own major civil unrest with millions of dollars in damage and multiple deaths. This was barely reported because of Vegas"s habit of burying stories that might stain the tourist destination"s fun-loving image. But, it did take place.

West Las Vegas erupted in violence in the wake of the Rodney King trial, including snipers shooting at police officers and bystanders, but the Vegas Strip went largely untouched. This was perhaps because hotel and casino private security at that time had a reputation for being rather well armed and vicious. Many hotels had their own rooftop shooters ready and waiting. Given, Vegas was still highly "mobbed up" in the 1990s, but one must admit that their security was not to be trifled with.

No major federal measures were needed and intrusive security was minimal. Can this effect be achieved again (without the mob)?  Yes.

If mass shooters, terrorists and "others" seek to attack highly populous events using advanced tactics, then the organizers of these events should be employing private security groups with applicable tactical training and experience. There are thousands of well-trained veterans and civilians out there with the skills necessary to stop an active shooter, and they are not being employed where they are most capable. A team of two people trained in counter-sniping positioned near the concert at the Mandalay Bay could have cut down the shooter within a couple minutes rather than 10 minutes (or more), saving dozens of lives.

To be clear, I am not talking about poorly organized volunteer security made up of people not vetted, led by other men of questionable competence. I am not talking about guys who claim they have training but are never asked to prove it before they show up for the "gig." And I am not talking about security groups composed of individuals who barely know each other and have never worked together, as we have seen in scenarios like the Berkeley riots.

What I am talking about is the employment of quiet, vetted and tested professionals hired out for specific events in which large crowds will be present.

The Feds are not needed and, in most cases, not wanted. Private security firms WITHOUT federal affiliations could handle the protection of major venues without constitutional violations by simply placing people at events with the proper training. The mere presence of these people may even act as a deterrent for future attacks.

Security should also be organized and managed independently from the venues which they are tasked to protect.  As we have seen recently with the very odd behavior of MGM security employee, Jesus Campos; including his disappearance right before he was expected to give his accounting of events at the Mandalay and his sudden reappearance on the Ellen Show to give a farce of an interview devoid of hard facts or timeline confirmations, rent-a-cops owned by the venue are more vulnerable to manipulations and possible "coaching" after a crisis event occurs.

Excitement seekers and the public at large should avoid events that refuse to pay for truly independent and tactically skilled security, and instead choose typical rent-a-cops, retired cops and moonlighting cops that need extra cash. It is clear in light of the Vegas attack that these people do not have the ability to obstruct any attacker using more advanced combat strategies.  Nor are they likely to be honest about what really happened after the fact.

On top of this, more training and more responsibly armed Americans continue to be the best methods towards defusing and deterring active shooters. The point is, if the American public does not pursue alternative solutions and take tactical realities into account, then the only other option will be government interference on a scale that will promote totalitarianism in the name of safety. It is time for the American people to grow up, stop waiting for Big Brother to protect them and start taking their security into their own hands.

"This Is A Tax Bomb": Norway Considers Massive "Tesla Tax"

Elon Musk can"t seem to catch a break lately with cash burn rates surging to new highs every quarter and embarrassing rumors suggesting that the company, one that was supposed to be the most technologically sophisticated auto manufacturer in the world, has been making parts by hand to try to get Model 3s on the road.

Now, after being one of the largest contributors to Musk"s taxpayer-funded enrichment scheme for years, the country of Norway may have just decided that enough is enough with legislators considering a new tax for buyers of electric cars that weigh over two tons...which, as of now, would pretty much only include Teslas.  As the Financial Times notes today, the proposal could tack on a massively punitive $10,500 tax to the purchase of every Tesla in Norway.

Norway is proposing a “Tesla tax” that would hit owners of the heaviest electric cars in a move that critics say will undermine the Scandinavian country’s standing as a pioneer of zero-emission vehicles.

Sales of electric cars and hybrids accounted for 60 per cent of new vehicle sales in Norway last month, fuelled by extensive subsidies in taxes, tolls and parking fees.

But the centre-right minority government in Oslo is now proposing a one-off tax on all electric cars that weigh more than two tonnes — something that at present would predominantly target Teslas and potentially add up to NKr82,800 ($10,500) to the cost of buying one.

“This is a tax bomb. This is gambling with the whole electric vehicle market. It is a bad signal to send and will affect consumers,” Christina Bu, general secretary of the Norwegian Electric Vehicle Association, told the Financial Times.

To date, Norway has been by far the biggest adopter of electric cars and has vowed to sell only zero-emission new vehicles by 2025. But critics argue that their popularity comes down to an extremely generous set of subsidies that can cut the price of the most expensive Teslas by about NKr450,000.

When and how to withdraw those subsidies has sparked a huge political debate. Some Norwegian politicians point out that many of the early adopters of electric cars were rich households buying Teslas. Bus drivers in the richest parts of Oslo complain that bus lanes are clogged with electric cars, which are permitted to use them.

Before the tax proposal on Thursday, Andreas Halse, environmental spokesman in Oslo for the opposition Labour party, said although electric cars generated no emissions they contributed significantly to congestion in the capital as well as damaging roads because of their weight. “It is not just about emissions; there are other considerations, too, such as the use of cars versus public transport,” he added.

The new tax proposals would add at least NKr36,000 and as much as NKr82,800 to the cost of the Tesla Model X, a sport utility vehicle popular in Norway because of its ability to tow trailers, a feature appreciated by families who own mountain cabins.

Of course, as Morgan Stanley recently pointed out, Teslas and other EVs have recently been found to actually generate more CO2 than they save in many countries around the world.  As a stark reminder to our left-leaning political elites who created these companies with massive taxpayer funded subsidies, Morgan Stanley pointed out that while Teslas don"t burn gasoline they do have to be charged using electricity generated by coal and other fossil fuels.

This is where Tesla, along with China’s Guoxuan High-Tech fall short.

“Whilst the electric vehicles and lithium batteries manufactured by these two companies do indeed help to reduce direct CO2 emissions from vehicles, electricity is needed to power them,” Morgan Stanley wrote. “And with their primary markets still largely weighted towards fossil-fuel power (72% in the U.S. and 75% in China) the CO2 emissions from this electricity generation are still material.”

In other words, “the carbon emissions generated by the electricity required for electric vehicles are greater than those saved by cutting out direct vehicle emissions.”

Morgan Stanley calculated that an investment of $1 million in Canadian Solar results in nearly 15,300 metric tons of carbon dioxide being saved every year. For Tesla, such an investment adds nearly one-third of a metric ton of CO2.

Could it be that Tesla might one day have to compete in a world without the benefit of massive taxpayer-funded subsidies?  One can dream...

The Dark Web's Largest Pedophile Site Was Secretly Run By The Police For A Year

A major international police operation to bust child predators involved police sharing child pornography with over a million unsuspecting online subscribers for a year after investigators took control of the dark web"s largest child abuse forum. Though hundreds of pedophiles were arrested after the site was shut down, the police sting involved undercover officers sharing extremely disturbing content and encouraging followers to engage in sexual acts with children. But police say it was worth it.

A new report reveals that Australian police were running the largest pedophile and child pornography forum on the internet for a year as part of a joint initiative between Australian, European, and Canadian police as well as the US Department of Homeland Security to track down the site"s administrators and child porn producers. Over the weekend the Norwegian newspaper VG published its bombshell investigation which confirmed that between October 2016 and September 2017 a special police task force based in Queensland, Australia was able to quietly hack the site "Childs Play" which had reached over a million registered accounts and had thousands of active users.

Queensland police at Taskforce Argos, including investigator Paul Griffiths (pictured). Image source: Kinsa.net

The task force was able to identify the site"s top tier administrators, leading to hundreds of international arrests and criminal investigations, but not before crossing what critics see as a significant ethical line: to expose those behind the site, police themselves posted child pornography and facilitated what was essentially a pedophile online meet-up.

The site has existed since April 2016 on the dark web, which made it next to impossible to identify users and administrators as the dark web operates based on layers of encryption which ensures complete anonymity. Not only did the forum include over one hundred active producers of child pornography who would daily post videos and images, but even more disturbingly involved a smaller inner circle who shared child torture videos.

Among this inner circle were Childs Play administrators "Warhead" and "Crazymonk" - later revealed to be 26-year old Canadian Benjamin Faulkner and 27-year old Tennessee native Patrick Falte, according the VG report. Both had previously worked as internet security professionals and were active technical support providers for pedophilia related internet sites - the two had initially met, for example, through a website called the the “Pedo Support Community." The Australian child abuse task force had begun tracking the two by assembling profiles of their previous digital footprints in relation to child abuse related chat on the open web.

Source: Norway"s VG

Faulkner (Warhead) for example, had in 2012 posted the following to a chat forum under his previous online identity, CuriousVendetta:

A little about myself to establish credibility here: My name is CuriousVendetta, and I work as a JR forensics consultant and penetration tester for an IT security firm. On the side, I do what I can to cause general mischief on the internet with a few friends of mine...

At the pool is where I am free, and where I can generate my fantasies. I have more girls in my "fan club" than I can even count.

Faulkner was working as a youth swimming instructor in the small Canadian city of North Bay in Ontario and though it appears some parents had become suspicious of his proclivities, no police reports were ever filed. Patrick Falte had lived all his life with his parents a half an hour outside of Nashville and was the more advanced technical expert of the two. Both Warhead and Crazymonk as administrators of the Childs Play dark web forum had promised subscribers increased security measures. For example users knew that should Warhead, the site"s leader, ever miss one of his routine postings to the community which involved a message stamped with a pornographic image, it would be a signal that the community had been infiltrated by police.

But police did infiltrate the community and took it over, partly due to mistakes made by the administrators. The forum transacted in Bitcoin - common for the dark web - but Crazymonk had his bitcoin wallet linked to his personal email address, making it easy for the US Department of Homeland Security to locate him. Other mistakes which helped police included both site leaders posting identifying information in various on the open web which helped investigators build profiles for the two. From there police not only began monitoring the pair - even installing tracking devices on their vehicles - but were also able to observe all communications and postings on the site through a backdoor. It was soon understood that the two would occasionally drive for over 10 hours to meet multiple times a year. After months of monitoring, the two met in person at a usual spot in Manassas, Virginia, where one of Childs Play"s users had regularly offered the men his 4-year old daughter to rape while being video taped.

It was in Manassas that US federal agents finally made the arrest, but only after the 4-year old had already been raped in a Virginia home. Authorities told VG that they had no way of knowing of the rape beforehand, citing online messaging as not indicative of that information. The video tape would later be used to convict Faulkner and Falte, who were given life sentences for both the rape and running the site. After the arrests, the Australian task force, known as Argos, then moved in to assume the identities of the arrested site administrators. Investigators studied the pair"s online language styles and characteristics, eventually posting an admin message so that users wouldn"t get suspicious, which of course required the child pornography image stamp.

The site"s server was located in Australia, which was important to the international investigation as Australian law gives police broad leeway to commit crimes in pursuit of investigations, especially in relation to catching child pornographers. Task force Argo"s officers not only uploaded the image, thereby convincing subscribers that nothing was wrong, but according to VG issued the following message to the community:

"I hope that some of you were able to give a special present to the little ones in your lives, and spend some time with them. It"s a great time of year to snuggle up near a fire, and make some memories."

Police, while running the site, also continued to share images and videos while undergoing their year-long investigation which identified numerous video producers as well as consumers of the content. For example the task force posted a video of an eight-year-old girl being raped only two weeks after taking over the forum, which was viewed 770,617 times, according to the report. Such extreme police tactics, which authorities argue was necessary to rescue victims and put predators behind bars, have outraged some of the victims" families.

VG reporters were able to speak to a mother of one the victims whose video was used by police as part of the operation: "My daughter should not be used as a bait... It is not right for the police to promote these images," she said. But police investigators told VG in response to criticism that, "There is definitely a balance between what we want to achieve and how we go about it." And added, "Eventually we get to the point where it isn’t worth running the forum any more. But as long as we’re identifying victims, producers and abusers, we will keep running it."

A similar investigation by the FBI in 2015 of a site significantly smaller than Child"s Play"s size made 870 arrests and rescued 259 children after agents kept it online for just two weeks. The FBI came under fire for actively sharing, promoting and facilitating the transfer of thousands of images and videos. But the Australian task force ran a site which was over five times the size and content volume for close to a year.