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Oversight Chair: Bill Clinton Is “Prime Suspect” In Epstein Investigation

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Oversight Chair: Bill Clinton Is “Prime Suspect” In Epstein Investigation

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer has named Bill Clinton as the number one suspect in the committee’s ongoing investigation into the Jeffrey Epstein saga.

Appearing on Newsmax, Comer urged that he will seek explanations for why Clinton visited the infamous Little St James island and flew on Epstein’s jet so frequently. 

Host Rob Finnerty remarked “The American people want to know what happened on Epstein Island. I’m not going to drop this topic,” adding “You’ve subpoenaed Bill Clinton. He’s going to fight you tooth and nail with the best lawyers in the country, in some cases. Do you think Bill Clinton ever actually testifies? I think his date is—what—October 12th?

“Yes. I think we have a very good chance at this. I’ve never lost a subpoena battle,” Comer responded.

“I’ve been chairman of that committee for a year and a half. This is the most challenging subpoena I’ve ever issued,” he added.

“But what makes this subpoena different is that the Democrats voted with Republicans. This is a bipartisan, congressionally approved subpoena, and I think that will hold a lot of weight in court,” Comer contiuned.

“You’re absolutely right—he’s going to have the best lawyers in America fighting us tooth and toenail on this,” Comer emphasised.

“But the fact that this was voted on by Republicans and Democrats—because we’re hearing from our constituents—means everybody in America wants to know what went on at Epstein Island,” he further urged.

“We’ve all heard reports that Bill Clinton was a frequent visitor there. He’s a prime suspect to be deposed by the House Oversight,” Comer concluded, adding “Hopefully, we’ll win that court battle with that subpoena and see President Clinton in October.”

Last week, Comer announced that the Oversight Committee has issued subpoenas to a whole host of deep staters.

The post continues…

  • Former U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland: October 2

  • Former FBI Director James Comey: October 7

  • Former U.S. Attorney General William Barr: August 18

  • Former U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales: August 26

  • Former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions: August 28

  • Former FBI Director Robert Mueller: September 2

  • Former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch: September 9

  • Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder: September 30

Will anything come of this? People are tired of talking and want to see action.

*  *  *

Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

Tyler Durden
Thu, 08/14/2025 – 09:10

Putin Hints At Expected Nuclear Arms Treaty Breakthrough With Trump At Summit

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Putin Hints At Expected Nuclear Arms Treaty Breakthrough With Trump At Summit

Russian President Vladimir Putin is due in Anchorage, Alaska for the much anticipated bilateral summit with the US President and on Thursday he has praised the Trump administration’s “energetic” efforts to end the war in Ukraine.

What’s more is that he suggested the two leaders could use the opportunity to strike a deal on nuclear arms control during their direct talks.

“The current American administration… is making, in my opinion, quite energetic and sincere efforts to stop the hostilities, stop the crisis and reach agreements that are of interest to all parties involved in this conflict,” Putin said.

He described while chairing a meeting of top security officials that the summit with the US aims to “create long-term conditions for peace between our countries, as well as in Europe, and in the world as a whole.”

So despite Ukraine’s Zelensky and a number of European leaders decrying being cut out of the talks, it seems both Trump and Putin are optimistic that real deal-making can occur related to the Ukraine conflict.

Putin said further in the fresh comments said that the “next stages” of discussions with the administrations could include reaching “agreements in the area of control over strategic offensive weapons.”

New START remains among the last nuclear arms control agreements between Moscow and Washington, and it will expire in February 2026 unless a half-decade extension can be reached.

Both leaders have shown willingness to reach a breakthrough on this issue.

The treaty is intended to limit and reduce nuclear arms on either side, setting a limit of no more than 1,550 deployed warheads and 700 missiles. START I began in 1991, with New START signed under the Obama and Medvedev administrations in 2010 as a successor agreement.

In August 2023 the US accused Russia of violating the treaty in disallowing US on-site inspections under its stipulations. In response, Washington halted Russian inspectors’ ability to do the same on American soil.

Tyler Durden
Thu, 08/14/2025 – 08:55

Initial Jobless Claims Unchanged Since 2021

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Initial Jobless Claims Unchanged Since 2021

Initial Jobless Claims remain muted, at the same level (224k) they were at in Nov 2021 (with non-seasonally adjusted claims hovering near record lows)…

Source: Bloomberg

Continuing jobless claims remain above the 1.9 million Maginot Line…

Source: Bloomberg

But the silver lining (if that’s what one would call it) is the continuing jobless claims across the Deep TriState keep rising…

Source: Bloomberg

DOGE worked!

Tyler Durden
Thu, 08/14/2025 – 08:50

U.S. MQ-9 Reaper Drone Flies Rare Drug-Cartel Hunting Mission In Mexico

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U.S. MQ-9 Reaper Drone Flies Rare Drug-Cartel Hunting Mission In Mexico

Last week, The New York Times reported that President Trump issued a directive authorizing the Department of Defense (DoD) to conduct direct military operations against certain Latin American drug cartels designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs). Shortly afterward, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum rejected the presence of U.S. military forces on her soil. However, it appears Mexico has not opposed the presence of U.S. spy drones in the skies over cartel territory.

Several open source intelligence analysts on X have posted flight tracking data of a General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper spy drone operated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) that flew deep into Mexico on Wednesday morning. 

According to a viral X post by OSINTdefender, the MQ-9B, using the call sign TROY701, “was orbiting for several hours earlier today to the west of Mexico City, near the Valle de Bravo Reservoir in the State of Mexico.” 

The head of Mexico’s Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection, Omar García Harfuch, was quoted in an interview by local media outlet Noticieros Televisa as saying the unarmed spy drone “has been flying over the State of Mexico in recent hours is not a military plane, but an unmanned aircraft flying at the specific request of an institution of the Mexican Government.” 

What remains unclear is the target of the joint U.S.-Mexico spy drone mission. However, given recent news that President Trump is intensifying the campaign against FTO-designated drug cartels, it’s evident that many more such missions are likely on the horizon.

Related:

Recall last week that U.S. forces could embark on capture/kill missions, maritime interdictions, and cross-border SOF raids against high-value cartel members

Why? Well, explained in one chart. China has waged irregular chemical warfare. 

Source: Heritage Foundation

This is all part of a broader effort by Trump to restore law and order, and, more importantly, to strengthen hemispheric defense across the Americas before the 2030s begin.

. . . 

Tyler Durden
Thu, 08/14/2025 – 06:55

Rare Earths Rally After Department Of Defense Sets A Price Floor

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Rare Earths Rally After Department Of Defense Sets A Price Floor

By Metal Miner

The global rare earth metals market has seen a whirlwind of developments in the past few weeks, sending ripples through both supply chains and pricing. A series of U.S. and Chinese policy moves, from Washington’s unprecedented price support for rare earth magnets to Beijing’s export curbs, continue to reshape this critical sector.

U.S. Sets New Rare Earth Price Floor to Challenge China’s Dominance

The United States recently escalated its efforts to reduce dependence on China by directly intervening in pricing. In mid-July, the Department of Defense struck a multi-billion-dollar deal with MP Materials, America’s sole rare earth miner, guaranteeing a minimum price of $110 per kilogram for neodymium-praseodymium (NdPr) oxide.

That price floor, which is nearly double the current China-based market rate of around $60/kg, aims to incentivize domestic production of the super-strong magnets used in EV motors, wind turbines, and defense systems.

Officials and analysts describe the move as a game-changer for the industry. By establishing a higher Western pricing benchmark, the U.S. hopes to offset China’s long-standing tactic of undercutting prices to maintain its dominanceThis benchmark is now a new center of gravity in the industry that will pull prices up,” notes Adamas Intelligence, adding that it could bolster non-Chinese producers globally.

News of the U.S. price support immediately lifted Australian rare earth mining stocks. For instance, Lynas Corp jumped 20% to a three-year high on expectations that non-Chinese suppliers would benefit from a more level playing field. Market watchers say the initiative signals a strong push for North American supply chain independence and may spur similar policy support in allied countries.

China’s Export Curbs Squeeze Supply Chains

Meanwhile, China’s export policies have injected uncertainty into the rare earth market. Back in April, Beijing added seven rare earth metals, including heavy elements like dysprosium, terbium and samarium, to its export control list. A tentative thaw emerged in late July as trade negotiators worked to ease the standoff.

Under an earlier tariff truce, China agreed to begin removing its new rare earth export restrictions. In practice, Chinese authorities have started issuing export licenses to select U.S. customers, resulting in a sharp rebound of magnet shipments in June and July

U.S. Trade Representative officials say progress is being made, but caution that the process is only “about halfway” toward fully restoring normal trade flows. Beijing insists its export controls are “non-discriminatory” and has signaled its willingness for talks. However, it also wields these measures as leverage, a reminder of rare earth metals’ role as a strategic pawn in the broader U.S.-China tech rivalry.

For procurement executives, the situation remains fluid. Contingency plans (such as qualifying alternative suppliers outside China or increasing inventories) are back on the agenda for manufacturing firms. To stay ahead of such geopolitical risks, many organizations are leveraging market intelligence tools like MetalMiner Select.

Global Supply Chain Shifts and New Mining Developments

The recent volatility around rare earth metals is spurring a broader realignment of supply chains as U.S. allies and major consumers collaborate to dilute China’s dominance. Notably, Japan and the EU announced plans for joint rare earth procurement in a public-private partnership aimed at securing a more stable supply.

These initiatives underscore a clear global trend of diversification where governments and companies alike, from Australia to North America, are investing in mining, processing and recycling capacity.

Mining news over the past month reflects this momentum. Australia’s Lynas Rare Earths, the largest producer outside China, reported record quarterly revenue in late July thanks to higher rare earth prices and strong demand. Lynas’s CEO noted that the market has become “more vibrant and buoyant” since China’s export curbs, with the company’s average selling price jumping to its highest level in three years.

To capitalize on its growth, Lynas is ramping up output and expanding downstream. The firm recently inked a deal with a South Korean company to build a 3,000-ton-per-year magnet manufacturing plant in Malaysia. The move will make Lynas the first commercial producer of certain heavy rare earth oxides outside China.

Prices Rise on Tight Supply and Robust Demand

Rare earth prices have climbed significantly in recent weeks, driven by a perfect storm of constrained supply and revived demand. In July alone, the benchmark China price for NdPr alloy jumped from roughly ¥545,000/mt at the start of the month to ¥635,000 by July 28.

Multiple factors are fueling this rally. On the supply side, China’s export restrictions and related bottlenecks have tightened material availability for overseas buyers. Industry analysts note that U.S. ore shipments to China effectively dropped to zero after MP Materials stopped exporting concentrate, removing over 300 metric tons of NdPr oxide equivalent per month from the global supply pool.

Meanwhile, Myanmar, a major source of heavy rare earth feedstock for China, announced plans to ban rare earth metals mining by the end of 2025, raising concerns about future supply. This comes as rumors of output cuts at a large Chinese producer have further stoked scarcity fears. On the demand side, manufacturers are ramping up purchases. With fresh clarity emerging around China’s magnet export rules as of July, many magnet makers have rushed to secure orders for Q3 and Q4 delivery, anticipating possible delays.

Short-Term Outlook for Rare Earth Metals 

Looking ahead to the next few months, the rare earths market appears poised to remain firm. However, this does not mean it is free of risks. Most analysts agree that prices will stay elevated through the end of the third quarter. The demand pipeline is particularly robust, with electric vehicle makers, wind turbine manufacturers and electronics producers all planning for a strong finish to the year. This could mean continued short-term appetite for rare earth magnets.

This seasonal strength, combined with buyers’ ongoing restocking, provides a floor under prices in the near term. Additionally, the U.S. government’s price-support deal effectively establishes $110/kg as a new minimum benchmark for NdPr. Even if Chinese spot prices dip slightly, the incentive for Western producers to hold out for higher prices is now in place.

Potential Challenges

There are also a few wildcards that could swing the outlook, the trajectory of U.S.-China negotiations being chief among them. If diplomatic talks yield concrete resolutions, such as China fully lifting its export licensing requirements for rare earth metals, the rush to secure supply could ease, potentially taking some heat out of prices.

For metal procurement executives, this volatile environment calls for agility and informed strategy. In the short run, many are adopting a hedged approach: committing to some volumes now to avoid future price spikes, while holding contingency budgets in case prices pull back. Engaging alternate suppliers outside China, where possible, is another play—one that could gain traction as projects like the new Malaysian magnet plant or U.S. processing facilities come online.

Rare Earths MMI: Noteworthy Price Shifts

See why technical analysis is a superior forecasting methodology over fundamental analysis and why it matters for your metal buys.

  • Yttria prices dropped by 5.59% to $6,547.97 per metric ton.

  • Neodymium oxide prices surged by 16.36% to $73,418.65 per metric ton.

  • Praseodymium oxide prices rose by 12.7% to $73,868.14 per metric ton

  • Lastly, terbium oxide prices fell 2.91% to $984.56 per kilogram.

Tyler Durden
Thu, 08/14/2025 – 06:30

Police In Southern California Find $30,000 Worth Of Labubus Stolen From Warehouse

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Police In Southern California Find $30,000 Worth Of Labubus Stolen From Warehouse

A police department in Southern California recovered about $30,000 worth of Labubu dolls that were stolen from a warehouse, the agency announced this week.

The collectible items have recently surged in popularity.

The Labubus were stolen in a series of trips that spanned multiple days, the Chino Police Department said in a social media post.

Two suspects, both minors, were later identified as workers at the warehouse, the department said.

Law enforcement found the items at a home in Upland, a city in the state’s Inland Empire.

The Associated Press reports that the announcement comes as authorities in Los Angeles County investigate a separate incident in which thieves stole about $7,000 worth of the toothy little monsters from a store in La Puente.

Chino Police obtained a search warrant to enter the home in Upland, the agency said.

One suspect attempted to flee but later surrendered, the department said.

The other was apprehended in a nearby city Tuesday, days after detectives searched the home, police said.

Both were booked in San Bernardino County juvenile hall for suspected burglary and conspiracy to commit burglary.

Detectives found 14 boxes of stolen items and evidence indicating the suspects were planning to resell and ship the collectibles across the country, the department said.

The Labubu, created by Hong Kong-born artist Kasing Lung, was first introduced in 2015 and is sold by China’s Pop Mart.

Tyler Durden
Thu, 08/14/2025 – 05:45

‘Mired In Soviet Decision-Making’: Report Pins Immense Losses On Zelensky’s Firing Of Gen. Zaluzhny 

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‘Mired In Soviet Decision-Making’: Report Pins Immense Losses On Zelensky’s Firing Of Gen. Zaluzhny 

The Western mainstream media continues the trend of turning on Ukraine, now that it’s clear that it cannot win the war against Russia. Recall that during the opening couple years of war, the MSM treated any criticisms of Zelensky or the Ukrainian Army as totally off-limits.

But now, a fresh Wall Street Journal report published Tuesday calls out Ukraine’s military for having increasingly adopted a rigid, Soviet-style command structure that stifles battlefield initiative.

Atlantic Council in February 2024: Removal of Ukraine’s ‘Iron General’ is one of Zelenskyy’s biggest gambles. Image: Reuters

Soldiers interviewed by the outlet described large-scale meatgrinder type tactics of blindly being sent on suicidal frontal assaults while being denied permission to withdraw from dangerous positions.

The consistent commentary on the war has long been that while Russia might have the manpower to do these old ‘war of attrition’ tactics, Ukraine certainly does not.

Ukrainian forces in the initial stages of the war were praised for their effective use of maneuver warfare and were more nimble and able to more quickly seize the initiative, or strategically retreat as necessary.

“Ukrainian officers and infantrymen complain of a centralized command culture that often punishes initiative and wastes men’s lives. Generals order repetitive frontal assaults that have little hope of success, and deny requests from beleaguered units to carry out tactical retreats and save their men. Casualties accumulate on operations with little strategic value,” the WSJ report says.

Front line commanders have increasingly gone public to voice their frustrations after witnessing needless tragic losses:

Privately, many Ukrainian soldiers repeat a bitter refrain: “Big Soviet army beats little Soviet army.” 

Capt. Oleksandr Shyrshyn, a battalion commander in Ukraine’s 47th Mechanized Brigade, took his frustrations public. In May he denounced the army’s top brass on Facebook. Railing against “stupid” orders and losses, he spoke of pervasive fear in the army of generals who are “only capable of reprimands, investigations, imposing penalties.” Addressing the General Staff of Ukraine’s armed forces, he said: “I hope your children will also be in the infantry and will carry out your tasks.”

He told the Journal he was driven to speak out after his battalion was repeatedly ordered by senior commanders to launch assaults that were unrealistic for the unit’s limited means. 

We also should note something the WSJ and other establishment media won’t admit: the Western allies’ constant arms and monetary support – as well as the naive urging on of Ukraine forces to ‘win’ – has likely only encouraged such ‘repetative’ and ‘unrealistic’ frontal assaults.

After all, if the US and NATO see Ukraine’s military folding or holding back, they will be less inclined to offer big support, and the funds must keep flowing at all costs from Kiev’s perspective.

WSJ Chief Foreign Correspondent Yaroslav Trofimov observes that in the “Early stages, Ukrainian forces were praised for their effective use of maneuver warfare,” but now “troops say that over time, the military shifted to a hierarchical, top-down approach reminiscent of Soviet-era tactics—resulting in heavier losses, declining morale, and a drop in recruitment.”

He also describes the surprise firing of a popular commander to have been key: “Ukraine was successful the first year of the war because its army fought differently. Once Zelensky replaced Zaluzhny with Syrsky last year, it has turned into a war of a small Soviet army against a big Soviet army, with predictable consequences.” Zaluzhny was shipped off to be ambassador to the United Kingdom, and some say he might be groomed by the West to eventually replace Zelensky.

General Oleksandr Syrsky

According to one key quote in the WSJ report:

“Syrsky remains widely unpopular with Ukrainian soldiers, many of whom see him as the epitome of the Soviet syndrome: a Moscow-trained career officer who micromanages units on the ground, delaying retreats or ordering assaults that lead to morale-sapping casualties for tree lines or other objectives with little strategic value.”

This also reflects the general war weariness among Ukrainians in general as well. A recent Gallup Poll shows support for the war to be slipping among the civilian population, with 69% now favoring a negotiated settlement to end the grinding war as soon as possible.

Tyler Durden
Thu, 08/14/2025 – 04:15

Norway’s Sovereign Wealth Fund Ups Its Indirect Exposure To Bitcoin

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Norway’s Sovereign Wealth Fund Ups Its Indirect Exposure To Bitcoin

Authored by Vince Quill via CoinTelegraph.com,

Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, the largest state-directed wealth fund in the world, increased its indirect Bitcoin exposure by 192% over the last year, according to crypto research company K33 Research.

The fund has indirect exposure to 7,161 BTC through its investment portfolio, which includes treasury companies Strategy and Metaplanet and crypto exchange Coinbase.

Norway’s sovereign wealth fund continues to increase its Bitcoin and crypto exposure. Source: Vetle Lunde

The fund currently holds over 11.9 billion Norwegian krone ($1.2 billion) of Strategy’s stock, a 133% increase from 2024. Similarly, the fund has increased its Coinbase holdings by over 96% since 2024.

Norway’s increase in BTC holdings reflects a broader trend of sovereign wealth funds gaining indirect exposure through BTC investment vehicles and corporate proxies, as the world’s first cryptocurrency becomes integrated into the traditional financial system.

The Norwegian sovereign wealth fund also increased exposure to BTC holding company Strategy in 2025. Source: Norges Bank Investment Management

Sovereign and state wealth funds enter crypto game through the side door

Sovereign wealth and state pension funds legally mandate managers to invest only in pre-defined asset classes such as fixed-income securities, corporate bonds, equities and others.

Because of these restrictions, fund managers who want to invest in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies must gain indirect exposure through an investment vehicle like an exchange-traded fund (ETF), a corporate bond or a company proxy like Strategy.

The State of Wisconsin State Investment Board (SWIB), the organization that manages the US state’s pension system, was one of the first state-level pension funds in the country to disclose indirect Bitcoin exposure through a $164 million investment into BTC ETFs.

In February, SWIB disclosed that its BTC holdings nearly doubled, surging to over $321 million, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing.

The pension manager sold off BTC holdings in May but retained a $50 million position in BTC proxy Strategy.

Kazakhstan’s sovereign wealth fund announced in July that it plans to convert a portion of its assets to crypto.

Timur Suleimenov, head of the National Bank of Kazakhstan, said the prospective move is intended to generate more investment income for the wealth fund, and the government is also exploring converting other assets like gold and foreign currency reserves to crypto.

Tyler Durden
Thu, 08/14/2025 – 03:30

On The High Seas, The Navy Is 3D-Printing Its Way Out Of Supply Chain Delays

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On The High Seas, The Navy Is 3D-Printing Its Way Out Of Supply Chain Delays

The United States Navy is testing industrial-scale 3D printing systems it says could reshape the way it supplies and repairs its ships, aircraft and other equipment, particularly in remote or contested environments where weeks-long waits for parts are not an option.

Soldier operates the milling machine in a 3D printing facility to complete a stainless steel part during Exercise Trident Warrior. Photo: US Navy

The demonstrations took place during Trident Warrior, an annual exercise in which the Navy trials advanced technologies under operational conditions. The event is designed to ensure only proven systems advance toward procurement, and it draws heavily on feedback from fleet personnel.

Working alongside the Marine Corps, the Navy showcased 3D printing capabilities that are already in use, some installed in shipping container-sized mobile labs that can be deployed aboard vessels or sent to forward bases. The printers can produce parts ranging from a small hinge to a load-bearing titanium component, and in some cases deliver them off-site via drones or unmanned surface vessels, TheDefensePost.com reports.

This is Uber for manufacturing, delivered at the speed of Amazon across the globe for nuclear-grade propulsion parts,” Lt. Col. Michael Radigan of the Marine Innovation Unit said in an interview with FOX 5/KUSI. He added that operating such systems in contested environments is one of the program’s most promising – and challenging – aspects.

Jacob Lopez, lead manufacturing technologist at the Naval Surface Warfare Center Corona Division in Fallbrook, Calif., emphasized that the ability to fabricate parts on-site is critical because neither ships nor aircraft can carry every spare they might require.

We’re using cutting-edge technology,” he said. “We need to make sure our warfighters are safe, we can get them home, and save lives.

Mr. Lopez cited one example in which a part with a six- to nine-month lead time and a $30,000 replacement cost was produced in just three days. He also trains service members to operate the equipment so they can make battlefield repairs themselves.

The exercise also highlighted “cold spray” repair technology, which can restore a damaged helicopter beam mid-flight – a job that could otherwise require months of work and hundreds of labor hours. Officials said the capability has the potential to save significant time and resources across the fleet.

Military planners see applications that extend beyond mechanical fixes. Lt. Col. Radigan said the same technology could one day be used to produce urgent medical supplies during deployments, further extending the resilience of forces operating far from established supply lines.

Tyler Durden
Thu, 08/14/2025 – 02:45

Stirrings Of Rebellion In Unhappy Britain

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Stirrings Of Rebellion In Unhappy Britain

Authored by Niall McCrae via Off-Guardian.org,

I read it right, the first time.

An ‘elite police division’ has been assembled by the Home Office to monitor remarks made by social media users on immigration, at a time when the provision of over two hundred hotels for illegal migrants is causing rising tension in communities.

Of course, the Daily Mail article meant specially-skilled officers, but it is also true that the ‘elite’ is being protected.

For Britain is not being run for the good of the ordinary people, but for a predatory class that is solidifying its power in an emerging global technocracy.

Is it too late for citizens to resist?

Much depends on a minority of dissidents, while the majority of the populace appears docile and blissfully ignorant of the prison being built around them.

“When did you last post on Facebook?”

Nonetheless, there are hints of revolutionary spirit in the country, albeit misdirected into false saviours such as Nigel Farage’s Reform, futile rallies and petitions, or various media outlets that cynics regard as controlled opposition. Certainly, millions of people have lost faith in politicians, the BBC and the institutions of society, but we are a long way from the violent unrest predicted by David Betz of King’s College London,

I looked back to the time of the Civil War, to consider whether Britain is again at a tipping point.

My guide was The Blazing World: a New History of Revolutionary England (2023) by Jonathan Healey. It’s a work of thorough scholarship, although I came to realise that ‘new history’ means using modern language of identity politics (male householders are ‘patriarchs’) while the Barbary pirates who took hundreds of thousands of English coastal folk as slaves is overlooked (despite occurring in the period covered by the book).

Religious conflict was rife, and the Gunpowder Plot in 1604 was a failed attack by Guy Fawkes and colleagues on the Protestant establishment. The conspirators were hanged until almost dead; then they were castrated, disembowelled, beheaded and quartered, before a fervent crowd of Londoners. The authorities wanted everyone to know that the wages of rebellion were death – through exemplary punishment. Traitors’ heads were put on spikes on London Bridge.

Today there is no barbaric execution, but merely writers of social media posts may be subjected to inquisition for domestic terrorism.

Whenever challenged, the current powers-that-be use the judiciary pour encourager les autres, as displayed by the immediate and severe imprisonment of protestors after the Southport murders last year (magistrates’ sentencing was shown on BBC News). This raised cheer from the progressive middle class, who readily reveal their contempt for the white working-class, as observed by George Orwell. No sleep was lost on the savage attack on innocent girls; the danger was uneducated oiks rebelling against the ‘values’ of multiculturalism. Keir Starmer and ministers declared the guilt of protestors before trial.

An early factor in the eventual Civil War was land enclosure. The Levellers and Diggers organised revolt against the division of farmland, burning hedgerows and filling ditches. The yeomanry of England, who would in the past have sided with their local community, were opposed to this disruption. As Healey wrote, ‘yeomen were able to benefit from the rising prices, rising land values and falling wages that come with population growth’. Therefore, ‘they did well out of exactly the things that were harming their pooper neighbours’.

A similar detachment is seen today, with the professional-managerial class supporting open borders and enjoying the proceeds of a low-wage economy. Like the yeomen, they have been elevated to gentry in the social hierarchy.

In James’ reign the Bible became widely available, and lay readers were particularly drawn to the books of Daniel and Revelation, ‘with their compelling and vivid foretelling of the end times’. The Muslim Ottoman Empire was threatening Christendom, which was riven in sectarianism. Humanity appeared fallen. After decades of a receding tide of faith in the West, recent developments in technocracy and prospects of transhumanism have resulted in a revival of scriptural reading. Described by some as the Mark of the Beast, the Covid-19 vaccines exemplify interpretations of Revelation in the perceived dehumanising dystopia planned for the masses.

In present ‘cancel culture’, people lose their livelihood for expressing a problematic opinion; for example, on transgenderism. Freedom of speech did not exist in the seventeenth century, when heresy was a capital offence. Pilgrims crossed the Atlantic in search of a place to practise their version of Christian life. In the twenty-first century, there is no New World for escape from the global digital surveillance system. Networks of critical thinkers have emerged, but no website, group or movement would be allowed to gain too much traction.

Discipline was maintained by crude and humiliating punishment. Troublesome women (‘scolds’) were strapped to the ducking stool, while drunkards were put in wooden stocks and pelted with rotten fruit. Often the word of a snitch was enough to prove guilt. James was a zealot against witchcraft, bringing to England the Scottish obsession with finding and burning alleged witches. This historical brutality against women is a feminist argument against patriarchal power, but the tendency to project evil on an individual and possibly innocent target persists, as arguably demonstrated by the case of Lucy Letby, a neonatal nurse convicted of baby killings on scant evidence.

Ultimately the authorities want to control our minds. The pub, where people can speak freely about their rulers, is being targeted by the government through extortionate tax and a so-called ‘banter ban’. King James was no Puritan, realising that sport, dancing and festivals of Merry England served as bread and circuses.

However, he wanted to rid the country of its alehouses, supposedly as dens of inequity but perhaps more importantly as the forum of irreverence, rumour and ridicule. The Gunpowder Plot was planned at a pub on The Strand. James ordered that a house of correction be built in every town. Freedom to sup ale ended at an undefined stage of inebriation

Ironically, Britain’s internal strife occurred while war raged in Europe. James, a pacifist, died in 1623, and was succeeded by his son. After a disastrous naval exploit at Cadiz in 1625, Charles signed a peace treaty with Spain in 1630. In 1628 Charles’ right-hand man, the unpopular Lord Buckjngham, was assassinated. His funeral was held at night, to spare it from jeering crowds. The king himself was losing support in the populace, and as food shortages, plague and unrest recurred, he became increasingly dictatorial. He dissolved parliament when he could not get his way.

This tumult led to the carnage of the Civil War, between Parliamentarians and Royalists. The former, led by Oliver Cromwell, were committed to the Common Law, and were of Puritan bent. The latter were anti-Puritan and defended the hierarchical order. In battle, the New Model Army prevailed over Charles’ Cavaliers. The revolution succeeded, but lessons from that episode of history are heeded by rulers whose heads could end on the chopping block.

One of the factors in the momentum of the Great Rebellion was the dawn of a free press. Prior to the 1640s pamphlets were brought from Europe, but censorship was tight. As English society was split down the middle, the monarchy could not suppress the news bulletins produced around the country, and so it produced its own propaganda to cast the irreverent and seditious missives of the other side as conspiracy theory or dangerous misinformation, while promoting the official narrative as the only truth.

Today’s mainstream media are acting as an arm of government, which has passed laws such as the Online Safety Act to curtail dissent. Videos on YouTube, however, are now more widely watched than television programming. ‘Auditors’ (livestreamers who show the action from the front lines of protest) play an important part in informing people of what the major news outlets either ignore or disparage (depending on orders from above).

Whenever civil disorder is rumbling, there is always the diversion of war. In the seventeenth century, after restoration of the monarchy, war kept minds and muscles occupied. Now, after decades of peace, the British people are being primed for conscription, being led to believe that Vladimir Putin’s Russia or the Iranian theocracy could strike at any time. The Stop the War Coalition, which mounted a huge campaign against Britain’s engagement in Iraq and Afghanistan, has been remarkably quiet on the the dramatic expansion of NATO, increased military spending and sabre-rattling with the Kremlin. Some wars are more equal than others.

The traditional working class has little interest in the militarism of the British state, while the privileged graduate class has ditched its pacifism in a call to arms (although they will happily leave the fighting to their poorer compatriots). The intelligentsia, as we know from the first half of the twentieth century, are predisposed to eugenics (a pseudoscientific enterprise now disguised in the green clothing of Net Zero). Fearing the devil making work for idle hands as jobs are replaced by AI, the rich may be inclined to use war to wipe millions of ‘useless eaters’ out of existence. But that would be playing with fire.

This is a race in time. The globalist oligarchy is rapidly developing a technocracy that will ultimately have no means of escape for the masses. But Rome was not built in a day, and the shadowy regime that appears to control all democratic governments and institutions remains vulnerable. You can see what is most threatening to the powers-that-be in the swift and harsh reaction to anyone calling that the emperor has no clothes.

One of approximately a thousand protestors jailed after the unrest following the Southport killings last summer was Peter Lynch. He was unlike any other protestors, he revealed truth about the looming new world order. His crime, during a rally outside a Rotherham hotel housing migrants, was no more than swearing at riot police as they pushed him with unnecessary aggression. The newspapers dutifully described Lynch as a thug propounding conspiracy theories. Judge Jeremy Richardson chastised him as ‘disgraceful example of a grandfather’.

His home-made placard stated: –

‘All corrupt: PMs, MPs, police chiefs, TV media, judiciary, Deep State, WHO, Davos, Vanguard, BlackRock’ (etc)

And that is why, I believe, Lynch (aged 61) was the only protestor to die in prison.

That may seem far-fetched conspiracy theory to some readers, but to continue believing that events happen spontaneously is to follow coincidence theory. The latter could be true, but the odds are lengthening.

A big difference between the revolutionary seventeenth century and now is that whereas in the past there was a real divide between ordinary people and the powers-that-were, the present establishment has created a split within the populace. A massive influx from Muslim regions has fooled patriots into treating the incomers as the enemy, when the real perpetrators are the globalists who treat the people beneath them as pawns.

Peter Lynch’s placard said nothing about Islam, but hinted at who is really turning the world into a dystopian nightmare. Like John Lilburne of the Levellers, his name should be remembered in history.

Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ZeroHedge.

Tyler Durden
Thu, 08/14/2025 – 02:00