Authored by Frank Fang via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

A U.S. Army intelligence analyst has pleaded guilty to charges accusing him of selling military secrets to China for a total of $42,000, according to the Department of Justice.

Sgt. Korbein Schultz was an army intelligence analyst with the First Battalion of the 506th Infantry Regiment at Fort Campbell, an army installation on the Kentucky-Tennessee border. He was arrested at the military base in March following an indictment by a federal grand jury.

On Aug. 13, Schultz pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to obtain and disclose national defense information, exporting technical data related to defense articles without a license, conspiracy to export defense articles without a license, and bribery of a public official, the Justice Department said in a press release.

“The defendant abused his access to restricted government systems to sell sensitive military information to a person he knew to be a foreign national,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division in a statement.

“By conspiring to transmit national defense information to a person living outside the United States, this defendant callously put our national security at risk to cash in on the trust our military placed in him.”

Schultz held a Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) security clearance in the Army.

He was recruited by an individual who lived in Hong Kong and identified only as “Conspirator A,” whom he suspected of being “associated with the Chinese government,” according to the Justice Department.

The conspiracy started in 2022 until the time of his arrest, the indictment said, and the two used “multiple-based encrypted methods” to communicate.

Schultz handed over dozens of sensitive and restricted, but unclassified, military documents, including information on the HH-60 helicopter, F-22A fighter aircraft, the U-2 reconnaissance aircraft, intercontinental ballistic missiles, the B-52 aircraft, the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS), and the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system, according to the indictment.

Conspirator A also asked Schultz to provide information on hypersonic equipment, the indictment said, but it is unclear if Schultz had successfully complied with the request.

HIMARS, a long-range precision strike system, made headlines after Ukraine used U.S.-supplied rocket systems to destroy Russian ammunition depots.

Other documents supplied by Schultz included one discussing lessons learned by the U.S. Army from the Ukraine war that it would apply in a defense of Taiwan, a self-ruled island that China seeks to control.

Schultz also passed on several documents relating to military exercises and the U.S. military forces in South Korea and the Philippines, as well as a document related to U.S. military satellites.

Conspirator A also obtained from Schultz a document about China’s military tactics and another about China’s Liberation Army Rocket Force.

‘Corrupt Other Members’

The indictment also mentioned an individual identified as “U.S. Person 1,” a fellow U.S. Amy solider, whom Schultz had recruited to provide information. Conspirator A asked that U.S. Person 1 provide information related to the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM), such as documents on the command’s studies of the Ukraine war and Taiwan.

In November 2022, Conspirator A determined that a document titled “INDOPACOM Lessons Learned” provided by U.S. Person 1 was “too simple,” according to the indictment.

On Aug. 10, 2023, Schultz and Conspirator A discussed a case involving two U.S. Navy sailors, who were arrested two days prior for allegedly passing sensitive military information to China.

Following their discussion, Conspirator A told Schultz that “they must be more careful with security,” according to the indictment.

One of the two Navy sailors, Wenheng Zhao of Monterey Park, was sentenced to 27 months in prison in Los Angeles in January.

“This defendant sold national defense information to a foreign actor and conspired to corrupt other members of our military,” said U.S. Attorney Henry Leventis for the Middle District of Tennessee in a statement.

“In doing so, he violated his training and his oath as a member of the armed services and he compromised our national security. Today’s guilty plea to all of the charges in the indictment ensures that he will be held fully accountable for his crimes.”

Schultz is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 23 next year.

Schultz’s attorney Mary Kathryn Harcombe declined to comment

Residents in downtown San Francisco have been furious about Waymo robot taxis honking at each other in the middle of the night. 

Residents spoke with NBC Bay Area about the honking chaos coming from Waymo cars in a parking lot near their apartment building in the South of Market neighborhood near 2nd Street.

The residents said peak honking occurred at 0400 local time.

A video uploaded on X by ABC7 News shows what residents have been dealing with for weeks… 

Imagine being woken up at 4 a.m. by cars honking at each other. That’s what some San Francisco residents have been dealing with for weeks, as the Waymos can be heard in this video honking and blinking headlights in a parking lot outside of their condo. https://t.co/2cVmDfUk4i pic.twitter.com/pkxNTT5vXd

— ABC7 News (@abc7newsbayarea) August 13, 2024

On Tuesday, residents were given relief from the overnight honking. Waymo spokesperson told NBC Bay Area that the company had implemented a fix:

“We’ve updated the software, so our electric vehicles should keep the noise down for our neighbors moving forward.”

The spokesperson said the honking feature on the robotaxis first launched in January “to help avoid low speed collisions by honking if other cars get too close while reversing toward us.”

“It has been working great in the city, but we didn’t quite anticipate it would happen so often in our own parking lots,” the spokesperson continued.

Waymo’s Chief Product Officer recently shared a real-life situation of the honking feature in use.  

We get this a lot 😀. The @Waymo Driver does indeed honk when necessary! Here’s an example where a garbage truck in SF began reversing towards our vehicle. The Driver automatically honked and reversed to make way for the truck before moving on. https://t.co/tuNrtx9qGB pic.twitter.com/v0IGgljHoc

— Saswat Panigrahi (@saswat101) August 7, 2024

One X user said, “This is an easy fix compared to lot of other things SF residents are dealing with for several years.” 

This is an easy fix compared to lot of other things SF residents are dealing with for several years .

— Bpain (@bipanthegreat) August 13, 2024

Others said…

It’s kind of like all the red robots in I Robot. I’m sure it’s fine.

— Joe Moschella (@joemosch) August 13, 2024

Why is this legal? What kind of city allows this kind of disturbance in a residential neighborhood?

— realhackhistory ۗۗۗۗۗۗۗۗۗۗۗۗۗۗۗۗۗۗۗۗ (@realhackhistory) August 13, 2024

It’s really a dystopian cyberpunk future hell for San Fran residents.

Authored by Dominic Vogelbacher via The College Fix,

University of Cambridge leaders have agreed to a list of concessions to convince pro-Palestinian demonstrators to end a three-month-old encampment set up at a high-profile zone along the prestigious British institution, including a pledge to fully fund Palestinian scholars and students.

The student organization Cambridge for Palestine has occupied King’s Parade with a large encampment since May 6. King’s Parade is a highly touristic area with massive foot traffic in front of the historic King’s College gates and chapel, built in 1446. On the other side of the street is the Corpus Clock, one of Cambridge’s famous tourist attractions.

To end the occupation, the university recently committed to giving Palestinians undergraduate and postgraduate scholarships, fully funded residential placements for visiting doctoral students and academics, clinical placements for med students, and grants for researchers from Palestinian regions.

“In addition, the Institute for Continuing Education has recently offered places to Palestinian students to attend the University of Cambridge’s International Summer Programme free of charge,” the university stated in its Aug. 1 announcement.

Cambridge also pledged to submit its full application next month to become a so-called University of Sanctuary.

“We share the horror of our students at the loss of life, and the appalling destruction of education institutions and infrastructure in Gaza,” the university stated.

“We are … committing our own networks and resources to ensure that these processes reflect the needs of the Palestinian people.”

The encampment included about 30 tents and pavilions, with large banners placed on King’s College and signs lining the sidewalk. The banners displayed slogans such as “Cambridge Jews For Justice in Palestine” and “Money for Education, Not War + Occupation.” Several posters featured lists of demands and community guidelines.

The community guidelines board included a no-tolerance policy for Islamophobia, ableism, transphobia, racism, and misogyny, as well as the slogan: “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” The sign also asserted that both Britain and Cambridge University are not simply complicit, but “knowing benefactors and partners in the genocide.”

The group initially stated it would not end the encampment until Cambridge agreed to divest all of its business ties with pro-Israel companies and invest in Palestinian students, academics, and causes — including becoming a University of Sanctuary.

The student activists argued in statements that some companies Cambridge invests in are “complicit in the ongoing ethnic cleansing of Palestine,” including Barclays, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, General Dynamics, Caterpillar, and Rolls Royce.

On June 8, over a month after the encampment was formed, the university created a Humanitarian Response Fund and allocated $128,000 in initial funding to help students affected by the “conflict or crisis.”

On Aug. 1, Cambridge University announced its concessions, noting campus leaders “have agreed to explore” the demands to change university policy, but the proposed actions are “contingent on the encampment closing down.”

The proposed actions include reviewing their “approach to responsible investment” and “academic and industry research ties and collaborations including those falling within the arms/defense category.”

Campus leaders have invited a proposed student task force to join the “working group” that will “make recommendations to subsequent meetings of… governance committees that oversee policies” that are relevant to the students’ demands.

In their Instagram response, Cambridge for Palestine stated while the university’s statement was a “long-overdue step toward building an academic institution that has no ties to genocide,” the commitments are “insufficient.”

The organization wants a “comprehensive disclosure and divestment effort” and is “appalled” that the word “genocide” was not used in the statement.

In the same post, Cambridge for Palestine stated the encampment on King’s Parade is slated to close sometime in mid-August. However, they are planning a “Concrete Camp Project” that will be a “permanent physical space for Palestinian liberation organizing in Cambridge.”

Cambridge for Palestine declined requests from The College Fix seeking comment.

A fresh Wall Street Journal investigative report purports to finally provide the “real story” on the Nord Stream pipeline sabotage which happened nearly two years ago, and has since resulted in a series of seeming endless theories and speculation. After as we previously detailed Germany has issued its first arrest warrant in the case amid a lengthy investigation, the WSJ unveils a fantastical sounding tale which began among Ukrainian senior officers and businessmen over drinks one night early in the war.

The new WSJ reporting weaves a narrative that essentially focuses on a rogue general who ultimately defied efforts by President Zelensky and the CIA to reign him in. “Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky initially approved the plan, according to one officer who participated and three people familiar with it. But later, when the CIA learned of it and asked the Ukrainian president to pull the plug, he ordered a halt, those people said,” the report says.

We are told that Zelensky’s since fired commander-in-chief of the armed forces, Valeriy Zaluzhniy, still moved ahead with a high risk plan funded by businessmen to the tune of $300,000 and involving a rented yacht with a six-member crew which included experienced civilian divers.

The scheme was dubbed a “public-private” partnership as it involved military officers reportedly being financed from these private sector sources. Some top Ukrainian special-operations officers were recruited, and the crew set out “armed only with diving equipment, satellite navigation, a portable sonar and open-source maps of the seabed charting the position of the pipelines.”

They used a powerful explosive called HMX and timer-controlled detonators, the account says. WSJ described that once the plan was set in motion, the team went incommunicado and thus Zelensky’s supposed desperate efforts to call off the operation couldn’t be conveyed. Again, the whole narrative appears crafted to exculpate Zelensky and the CIA. A key section of the WSJ report reads as follows:

Within days, Zelensky approved the plan, according to the four people familiar with the plot. All arrangements were made verbally, leaving no paper trail.

But the next month, the Dutch military intelligence agency MIVD learned of the plot and warned the CIA, according to several people familiar with the Dutch report. U.S. officials then promptly informed Germany, according to U.S. and German officials.

The CIA warned Zelensky’s office to stop the operation, U.S. officials said. The Ukrainian president then ordered Zalyzhniy to halt it, according to Ukrainian officers and officials familiar with the conversation as well as Western intelligence officials. But the general ignored the order, and his team modified the original plan, these people said.

The CIA also just days after the bombing in late Sept. 2022 was able to provide European allied intelligence agencies a detailed report of how the covert operation went down, the WSJ story says. According to more from the report, German investigators were later able to identify the boat and thus gain valuable evidence:

They had one lucky break. In rushing to leave Germany, the sabotage crew neglected to wash the Andromeda, allowing German detectives to find traces of explosives, fingerprints and DNA samples of the crew.

Investigators later identified their mobile phone numbers and their Iridium satellite phone. That data allowed them to reconstruct the entire journey of the boat, which moored in Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Poland. U.S. authorities sought a court order to obtain from Google the emails a Ukrainian businessman used to lease the boat, and handed them over to the Germans. That Ukrainian businessman had contacted a number of boat rental firms in Sweden as well as in Germany, starting from mid-May 2022.

Investigators then analyzed all mobile phone traffic in the areas where the boat was located, trawling through thousands of connections to distill the relevant data.

We are then told that the German investigation has been unable to link President Zelensky directly to the operation and is now focused on former General Zalazhniy and his aides (Zaluzhniy is now the Ukrainian ambassador to the UK).

The report also includes the key admission that allies of Kiev have this whole time had incentive to hide, withhold, or cover-up information that arises from the investigation: “The findings could upend relations between Kyiv and Berlin, which has provided much of the financing and military equipment to Ukraine, second only to the U.S. Some German political leaders may have been willing to overlook evidence pointing to Ukraine for fear of undermining domestic support for the war effort.”

Indeed this high level blame-game in the aftermath of recent findings being made public is already beginning:

The former head of German intelligence says that there was an “agreement” between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the President of Poland to carry out the attack on the Nord Stream Pipelines.

…Much of the legacy media initially blamed Russia for attack, claiming it was a false flag but offering no sensible reason as to why Moscow would target its own energy infrastructure.

However, during an appearance on German broadcaster WELT-TV, August Hanning, who served as the head of Germany’s Federal Intelligence Service (BND) from 1998 to 2005, the attack was carried out at the behest of Zelensky and Andrzej Duda.

Meanwhile, in reaction to the flurry of new reporting this week on the German investigation the Ukrainian presidency’s office has issued a fresh statement vehemently denying the government’s involvement in the pipeline blasts.

Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak told Reuters that “Such an act can only be carried out with extensive technical and financial resources … and who possessed all this at the time of the bombing? Only Russia.”

So the official version of the Nord Stream bombing (as per yesterday’s WaPo article) now is that Zelenskyy himself ordered Valerii Zaluzhnyi, former Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, to carry out the bombing — and that the CIA tried to stop them but the… pic.twitter.com/KnI8decBJr

— Thomas Fazi (@battleforeurope) August 15, 2024

But contrast this with some of the statements in the fresh WSJ report. It cited one Ukrainian officer who was involved in the plot as saying, “I always laugh when I read media speculation about some huge operation involving secret services, submarines, drones and satellites.” The officer continued, “The whole thing was born out of a night of heavy boozing and the iron determination of a handful of people who had the guts to risk their lives for their country.”

Many readers of the fresh WSJ account remain high skeptical to say the least…

Couple dudes got wasted, rented a boat, and blew up Nord Stream.

This is LOL absurd…

Maybe more absurd than “safe and effective.”

At this point the global elite are just playing a game of “let’s see how ridiculous a story we can get people to believe.” pic.twitter.com/ZFrHFLtfwS

— George Gammon (@GeorgeGammon) August 15, 2024

The following questions still remain: Was it the CIA, as famed journalist and Pulitzer prize winner Seymour Hersh claimed? Was it a Ukrainian team of commandos with a sailing yacht? Or was it a high-level op approved by the top leadership of Ukraine and Poland, with knowledge of American intelligence? 

Authored by Christopher Roark via CoinTelegaph.com,

Aug. 15, 2024, marks the 53rd anniversary of the “Nixon Shock,” the day that United States President Richard Nixon eliminated the gold standard for the US dollar. At the time, Nixon claimed that taking the dollar off the gold standard was “temporary” and would “stabilize” the dollar. 

However, the effects of this decision have proven to be profound, and economists still debate its benefits and costs today.

On Aug. 14, Niel Jacobs, head of brand management at Bitcoin savings platform Swan Bitcoin, reminded readers of the event’s continuing importance and argued that Bitcoin should be used as money. He stated, “TOMORROW marks the 53rd anniversary of President Richard Nixon’s speech that took the US off the gold standard.” 

Noting that Nixon promised his action would “stabilize the dollar,” which has lost 98.5% of its gold value since that day, Jacobs stated, “This is why we ₿itcoin.”

Source: Niel Jacobs

The website WTF Happened in 1971, which was referenced in Jacobs’ post, chronicles the effects of the Nixon shock since the day it occurred. Citing data from the Economic Policy Institute, it claims that the relationship between wages and productivity was severed when the gold standard was ended. 

Before 1971, productivity gains were passed down to workers in the form of higher wages. But after the gold standard was ended, the majority of productivity gains went into the hands of shareholders, causing the standard of living of workers in the U.S. to stagnate.

Wages vs productivity. Source: WTF Happened in 1971?

According to the site, stagnation forced families to send both parents to work since the only way to increase income was to work more. It also led to a host of other problems, the website claims, including a more than doubling of the amount of time it takes to save to buy a house, an increase in income inequality, rising prices for electricity, food and fruit, and other social ills.

The website was created by 3D graphics designer Ben Prentice, known as Mrcoolbp on X, and Bitcoin podcaster Colin, who co-hosts The Bitcoin Echo Chamber and is known on X as Heavily Armed Clown.

In contrast to the negative effects cited by Prentice and Colin, the original Nixon speech promised that the dollar would only be off the gold standard “temporarily” and that this policy would reduce inflation, not increase it.

Nixon claimed that “international speculators” had been “waging an all-out war on the American dollar.” These speculators “thrive on crises” and “help to create them,” he stated. To fight against the speculators, he had given an order to “suspend temporarily the convertibility of the dollar into gold or other reserve assets, except in amounts and conditions determined to be in the interest of monetary stability and in the best interests of the United States.”

Contrary to those who stated that ending the gold standard would cause massive inflation, Nixon claimed that “The effect of this action […] will be to stabilize the dollar.” He acknowledged that foreign goods might rise in price, but claimed that “if you are among the overwhelming majority of Americans who buy American-made products in America, your dollar will be worth just as much tomorrow as it is today.”

In addition, Nixon claimed that he was against inflation and was determined to stop it. Inflation “robs every American, every one of you,” Nixon stated. “The 20 million who are retired and living on fixed incomes–they are particularly hard hit.” 

To stop inflation, Nixon would take “decisive action that will break the vicious circle of spiraling prices and costs,” including not only ending the gold standard but also imposing temporary wage and price controls.

Despite this promise, the prices of nearly all US manufactured goods have soared since Nixon’s speech. According to automobile price data platform CJ Pony Parts, the cost of a 1971 Mustang Fastback was $3,006 when it launched. Adjusted for inflation the price would now be $22,595.

Prices for U.S. manufactured Ford Mustang automobile models, 1971. Source: CK Pony Parts.

Prentice and Colin argue that this inflation has been a disaster.

“Inflation is the source of most problems society faces today,” Prentice stated in a July 19, 2019 Post to X.

“Real costs decline, prices rise, but wages don’t. This illusory phenomenon has disrupted all exchange, entrepreneurship, workers, savers, and borrowers; it’s corrupted our lives and culture.”

In a conversation with Cointelegraph in September 2020, Prentice claimed that returning to a gold standard will not solve these problems.

Gold “failed as money,” he stated, “because we had to come up with paper in the first place to scale it and we know how many problems come with paper.”

Instead, Prentice advocated for the use of Bitcoin as money. “We believe that Bitcoin is inevitable and it is the best money that has ever existed,” he stated.

Despite the data presented in WTF Happened in 1971, most economists still consider the end of the gold standard to have been a benefit to the US and the world. In a Chicago Booth poll in 2012, a group of economists was asked whether they agreed or disagreed with the statement

“If the US replaced its discretionary monetary policy regime with a gold standard, defining a ‘dollar’ as a specific number of ounces of gold, the price-stability and employment outcomes would be better for the average American.”

93% of the participants stated that they either “disagreed” or “strongly disagreed” with the statement.

As of today, it’s been 53 years since Nixon made his controversial decision to end the US dollar gold standard. But now that blockchain technology exists, will we still be using fiat currency in another 53 years? It seems that only time will tell. But in the meantime, this August 15 event will likely continue to be debated by economists, investors, and workers, as they continue to be affected by it.

Every time we discuss homebuilder sentiment we can’t help but be reminded of Upton Sinclair’s infamous quote:

“It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.”

But maybe the truth is too hard to ignore now?

NAHB homebuilder sentiment slumped in August to 39 (well below expectations of a rise from prior 41 to 43 – and below the lowest estimate), back near COVID-Lockdown lows…

Source: Bloomberg

The data indicate downbeat views on present conditions, but (of course, remember Sinclair’s quote above) a more optimistic take on the outlook.

Measures of prospective-buyer traffic and of present sales both fell to new low points for 2024, while a gauge of sales expectations for the next six months climbed 1 point to 49.

Source: Bloomberg

That may reflect expectations that mortgage rates are set to fall, NAHB Chief Economist Robert Dietz said in a prepared statement.

“With current inflation data pointing to interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve and mortgage rates down markedly in the second week of August, buyer interest and builder sentiment should improve in the months ahead,” Dietz said.

The picture is ugly for sure.

This month, 33% of builders reported cutting prices, higher than the 31% who did so in July and the highest this year, according to NAHB.

The average price reduction remained at 6% for the 14th month.

The share of builders reporting using sales incentives, at 64%, was the highest since April 2019.

Finally, we wonder just how far this catch-down for homebuilder sentiment will go…

Source: Bloomberg

…with homebuyer sentiment at record lows.

Independent 2024 presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr tried to land a meeting with Vice President Kamala Harris last week, in hopes of trading an endorsement for a top job in her administration, the Washington Post and other outlets reported Wednesday evening. 

So far, Team Harris has ignored RFK Jr’s pitch. “We’ve reached out repeatedly through the highest level intermediaries. We’ve been told that they have no interest in talking with me,” Kennedy told the New York Times. Separately, Kennedy expressed disappointment to the Post. “I think it is a strategic mistake for them. That’s my perspective,” Kennedy said. “I think they ought to be looking at every opportunity. I think it is going to be a very close race.”

In July, Kennedy described Harris as “monumentally unpopular with her own party,” and condemned her tenure as attorney general in California, saying she worked to keep nonviolent criminals in jail in a “modern version of slavery” and thus “has one of the worst civil rights records of any public official.”  He also condemned her for being “a war hawk on Ukraine…a war hawk on China.” 

Robert F. Kennedy Jr: Can I have a job?

Kamala Harris: pic.twitter.com/vsipd2Edr6

— Stream the Vote (@StreamtheVote) August 15, 2024

Kennedy’s poll numbers have sagged since the Democrats pressured President Biden into calling off his re-election campaign — which means his potential endorsement has also lost some zing. The Post says its averaging of polls in July had Kennedy backed by about 9% of voters. With Biden out and Harris in, his support has faded to around 5%. What’s more, some polls suggest that Kennedy’s presence on ballots is a net benefit to Harris.  

While Harris ignored the invitation, Kennedy did secure a meeting with Donald Trump last month in Milwaukee, and reportedly offered the same deal that he now wants to offer to Harris, with a specific interest in advising Trump on health and medical policy. It appears Kennedy’s top goal is a powerful position in the next administration, with little regard for whose administration it is. 

Lis Smith, who advises the Democratic National Committee, scoffed at Kennedy’s dual overtures: “No one has any intention of negotiating with a MAGA-funded fringe candidate who has sought out a job with Donald Trump in exchange for an endorsement.” While Kennedy confirmed his outreach to Harris, he denies having sought conversations with Democratic Party officials. “The only contact I have with the DNC is them suing me through intermediaries,” he told the Post. 

The Kennedy campaign has been fighting to secure a place on general election ballots across the country — and contending with a pesky Democrat lawfare campaign to contest his ballot petitions. Earlier this week, a judge ruled that Kennedy has used a “sham address” to claim New York residency — and thus ruled him ineligible.  “The Democrats are showing contempt for democracy,” said Kennedy. “They aren’t confident they can win at the ballot box, so they are trying to stop voters from having a choice. We will appeal, and we will win.”

Some are suggesting Kennedy may not be operating in good faith…

It sounds to me like RFK Jr is trying to present a pressure point to entice President Trump to pull him closer.  In other words, the CIA is concerned that Trump did not initially take the RFK JR bait, and now they are going to run a public campaign to position their operative.

I’ll say it again, Robert F Kennedy Jr is an intelligence asset.

Many of the low-information alligator emoji people are falling for it.  A few CTH readers are also having a difficult time seeing the IC operation around RFK Jr, particularly because of the CIA involvement in the killing of his family patriarchs before.  However, it is that angle of denial the IC is purposefully exploiting.

RFK Jr is an intel asset. His people know we know.

The stakes are too high this time to be fooled.   Think logically and trust your instincts! -Conservative Treehouse

Kennedy originally sought the Democratic nomination, but abandoned that path after the Democratic National Party rigged the primary process by refusing to host debates, and by re-setting the primary calendar to play to Biden’s strengths. Long after he bailed, however, Kennedy’s advisors continued privately trying to convince Democrats that they should find a way to nominate Kennedy rather than Biden, the Post reported. 

After all the drama and hard work of his team and volunteers, Kennedy now seems content to bail on his campaign and turn a transparently unprincipled endorsement into a high-profile position.   

OMFG!….they can’t keep the lies straight.

For the 13th month in the last 16, US Industrial Production data was revised lower (significantly lower)…

Source: Bloomberg

That meant US industrial production tumbled 0.6% MoM in July (dragging production down 0.2% YoY after revisions)…

Source: Bloomberg

US manufacturing also tumbled more than expected (-0.3% MoM) and thanks to yet more downward revisions, the YoY change fell to just 0.1%…

Source: Bloomberg

Capacity Utilization fell again to 77.8% – well below expectations…

Source: Bloomberg

And finally, this will really make you laugh… remember 30 mins ago when Retail Sales data showed a surge in auto sales (despite CPI signaling prices plunging because dealers can’t sell them)… well guess what happened to auto production – it collapsed!!!!

Source: Bloomberg

That is the biggest 3-month decline in auto production since the COVID lockdowns…

Source: Bloomberg

Does that sound like automakers are buying what the government’s retail sales data is selling?

Authored by Paul Joseph Watson via modernity.news,

The BBC reports that a 40-year-old man has been arrested and criminally charged for social media posts that contained “anti-establishment rhetoric.”

Yes, really.

Wayne O’Rourke becomes the latest example of the wave of authoritarian hysteria to impact free speech in the UK following the recent anti-mass migration riots.

O’Rourke was arrested on Sunday in connection with “posts made from a social media account,” according to Lincolnshire Police.

“Nottingham Magistrates’ Court heard the posts were alleged to contain anti-Muslim and anti-establishment rhetoric,” reports the BBC.

“Anti-establishment rhetoric” is a criminal offence? If so, a lot of BLM, pro Palentine protesters and anyone with a SWP placard should have been jailed. #TwoTierBritain pic.twitter.com/FH6vxozqBn

— Chris Rose (@ArchRose90) August 14, 2024

O’Rourke had nearly 100,000 followers on X and predicted his own arrest days beforehand.

When I’m inevitably arrested for having an opinion and they ask if I speak English I’ll just say no, and they will let me go

— Sick Of It 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@WayneGb88) August 11, 2024

So now apparently posting “anti-establishment rhetoric” in the United Kingdom is enough to get you locked up.

The report does not give any specifics of what the thought criminal actually posted, but he had “allegedly expressed support for the recent riots and offered advice on how to remain anonymous to his 90,000 followers.”

Wayne O’Rourke, 40, whose @X handle is believed to be @WayneGb88 was arrested in Lincoln, on Sunday.

He is alleged to have written posts containing anti-Muslim & anti-establishment rhetoric. He also supported the riots & informed his 98,000 followers how to remain anonymous.… pic.twitter.com/IB5SGy0UEt

— David Atherton (@DaveAtherton20) August 15, 2024

O’Rourke will appear at Lincoln Crown Court tomorrow to face charges of “publishing written material online to stir up racial hatred.”

As we highlighted yesterday, A 61-year-old man in the UK was jailed for 18 months for chanting “who the fuck is Allah” and telling police officers “you’re not English anymore” during a protest outside Downing Street.

Another man was imprisoned for 2 months merely for posting the words “coming to a town near you” alongside images of Muslim men on Facebook.

The legacy media continues to offer rolling, around the clock coverage of the charges being handed out to people who posted offensive content online, seemingly in an effort to act as a warning to others.

Children as young as 12-years-old have also been charged in connection with the riots, as authorities warn that merely observing a riot taking place and not even taking part in it is enough to bring criminal charges against someone.

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.