Americans are almost evenly split on whether companies should take public stands on social and political issues. A new Bentley University/Gallup poll finds that 52% of U.S. adults disapprove of such public posturing, while 48% support it. 

We hasten to note that the pollsters don’t seem to approach the topic from an impartial perspective. That’s initially evident from the name of the undertaking: “The Force for Good Survey.” Then there’s this language on the survey website: 

“Business can be a powerful force for positive change in our society. But are businesses doing enough to live up to that potential and make the world a better place?” 

That said, even if the survey seems prone to cultivating the leftist stance on this question — which is asked among a variety of others — it surely provides directional insights, so let’s have a look. 

While the big picture shows a roughly even split, differences start to emerge when results are sorted by age, with younger adults more prone to support corporate stances on current events. The poll found 59% of those 18 to 29 years old approve, compared to 43% of those 60 and over. 

Those substantial gaps turn into enormous divides when you get to party affiliation: 75% of Democrats want companies to share their beliefs, compared to 18% of Republicans. Only 40% of independents want companies spouting off on current events.  

Turning to other crosscuts, strong majorities of Asians (74%) and blacks (72%) support corporate pontification, while just 49% of Hispanics and 41% of whites do. 

Meanwhile, women are more likely to back corporate preaching than men, by a 52% to 43% margin.

The findings show the predicament companies face in deciding if they should speak out on everything from racism to LGBT activism and Covid policy, with substantial portions of the population on each side of that question. The pressures aren’t only external: businesses face pressure from their employees too.  

Other top-level findings from the survey: 

• 55% think business has a positive impact on society
• 71% of young Americans think business hurts the environment
• 84% of young Americans think businesses should promote diversity, equity and inclusion
• 62% of blacks and 33% of whites think the federal government is effective in making a positive impact on people’s lives

Authored by Douglas Eckenrood via The Epoch Times,

It is late 2024, and the special agent in charge of the COVID Misinformation Compliance Task Force begins her daily brief by disseminating a list of the days’ five targets to her team of ten sworn peace officers on special assignment from local law enforcement agencies.

The team reviews the targets’ criminal histories and firearm ownership records, takes note of logistical concerns, and employs a host of social media and “not to be mentioned” electronic data gathering tools. Warrants are confirmed and onsite surveillance is initiated, providing real-time information to the incoming arrest team.

The law enforcement team exits their vehicles at a safe distance and approaches the suspect’s location with caution. As the team makes its approach, verbal commands are given to the women and children entering and exiting the pediatric clinic to clear a path in front of the office door and vacate the area immediately.

After the team enters, clerical and medical staff are ordered to take seats and provide their doctor’s location. The doctor is located in the hallway between patient rooms, placed in restraints, searched for weapons, and immediately taken to the transport vehicle idling outside.

Witnesses state they could hear the doctor protesting loudly, “My license appeal is still under review!”

Could This Happen?

Of course you’re asking, “What the heck is this guy talking about?” Please, allow me to explain. Using the same perfect pitch that George Orwell used to author “1984,” the California State Senate authored another piece of legislation that summoned the intertwined spirits of Josef Mengele and Joseph Goebbels. As you may already know, the current Sacramento political lineup is the gift that keeps on giving.

Governor Newsom signed Assembly Bill 2098 on Sept. 30, 2022, and it became state law effective Jan. 1. The bill, titled “Physicians and surgeons: unprofessional conduct,” adds the following section to California’s Business and Professions Code:

2270. (a) It shall constitute unprofessional conduct for a physician and surgeon to disseminate misinformation or disinformation related to COVID-19, including false or misleading information regarding the nature and risks of the virus, its prevention and treatment; and the development, safety, and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines.

It defines misinformation as “false information that is contradicted by contemporary scientific consensus contrary to the standard of care.”

In a nutshell, if you are a doctor who deviates from the established CDC talking points or even attempts to assess and advise their patient as an individual, you may be guilty of COVID misinformation and thus be guilty of unprofessional conduct.

What are the potential penalties? Well, let’s just say that the student loan forgiveness plan won’t be helping you, as the $10,000 forgiveness limit won’t even cover the lab fees you incurred with your now worthless medical degree.

The Medical Board of California has been imbued with expanded authority to investigate, review, and refer for disposition to the State Attorney General’s Health Quality Enforcement Section’s office, complaints against “COVID misinformation.” The outcome of this completely vaporous virtue-signaling trope may include having your medical license pulled by the state, as well as exposure to fees and other sanctions. Don’t forget that this assault on the pursuit of the truth came out of a change in business code!

I hear you saying, “What’s this have to do with the dystopian scene above?”

Ah, good reader! Yes, what happens if you don’t comply and continue to practice medicine anyway?

Business and Professions Code 2052 nicely dovetails into the above by making this an arrestable offense with with the potential of a year in county jail.

I cannot possibly know the percentage of doctors who will either submit to a CCP-style tyranny or adopt skillful wordplay like 15th century astronomers wrestling with heliocentric revelations that the dominant church of their day forbid. But I can predict the number will not be zero.

What Consensus?

Obviously I am not a doctor, but I do have a memory and do archive the articles I read, especially when I’m making medical decisions. I generally review the same sources that AB 2098 references when regarding consensus, for example the American Medical Association. The only consistencies I’ve seen surrounding COVID-19 and the “vaccine” are the consistent inconsistencies. Wait a week and it will change.

Remember the “protect grandma and get the jab” mantras? Or “do your part for herd immunity?” Now we learn that mRNA vaccination doesn’t accomplish either, and the new goal is “reduce severe illness and hospitalization.” I won’t mention some of the latest data regarding that claim, but it doesn’t look good. And I won’t speak more on the issue of defining the undefinable, because I run the risk of losing focus on the real problem. Sacramento power-hungry politicians have pulled off the ultimate gaslighting. We have been debating the way government is going to intercede in our lives rather than focusing on the fact that they don’t have the authority to do so.

The inherent desire for government to give itself additional authority is one of the reasons our Constitution and Bill of Rights were constructed the way they were. The founders made individual liberty the underpinning of much of their writing and have warned future generations to protect it at all costs.

Public Health Overreach

Unfortunately, the California Legislatures’ penchant to rely on questionable medical “consensus” is nothing new. During the 1920s, California adopted “model laws,” in which law enforcement conducted the proactive arrest of women suspected to have sexually transmitted diseases—all in the name of public health. Literal law enforcement sweeps, arrests, and forced gynecological exams would happen with no probable cause needed.

California relied on the U.S. Attorney General’s published opinion that these proactive public health efforts were constitutional and that the public’s interest trumped individual liberty. One of the reasons that this unbelievable and sick overreach is even known is that during a particular morality sweep, of the 22 women arrested and inspected that day, two of the arrestees were sisters, one of whom was Margaret Hennessy. The wife of a Standard Oil manager, she was recovering from influenza and was out for some fresh air with her sister, which was a common practice in that day.

Mrs. Hennessy had the courage to go to the news media and let her outrage be known, which should be an example to all of us. California’s “morality policy” using public heath concerns to expand the power to investigate, detain, and arrest individuals was illegal then and is still illegal now.

The first step in combating authoritarian overreach is not debating what or why they are doing something. It’s making the government identify where their authority to impose a mandate or new law comes from and then impose the constitutional test. You already know the answer, don’t you? They don’t have the authority to do what they are doing.

Since 1850, California has suffered through innumerable attempts to exceed its own constitutional authority, not to mention the Constitution of the United States. Historically, we seem to work things out and get as close to what’s right as possible. However, I’m afraid that much of today’s public has forgotten what freedom looks like and is suffering from Stockholm Syndrome.

Authored by Mimi Nguyen Ly via The Epoch Times,

The U.S. government has now collected a total of 510 UFO reports, according to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), marking a relatively significant increase in recent months of such reports.

That’s compared to 144 – the number of UFO reports confirmed in June 2021 in the DNI’s preliminary assessment that covers reports of sightings in the 17 years spanning 2004 to 2021.

The updated figure of 510 is logged as of Aug. 30, 2022 in the “2022 Annual Report on Unidentified Aerial Phenomena,” which was published Jan. 12.

It marks an increase of 366 reports in the 17 months since the preliminary assessment. That’s 247 new reports, as well as 119 reports that were either discovered or reported late that fell within the original 17-year period but weren’t included in the preliminary assessment.

The DNI on Jan. 11 delivered the annual report to Congress, as required by the the annual military funding bill—the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022.

The increase in reporting of UFOs—or what the DNI calls “UAP” (Unidentified Aerial Phenomena—now Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena)—is “partially due to a concentrated effort to destigmatize the topic of UAP and instead recognize the potential risks that it poses as both a safety of flight hazard and potential adversarial activity.”

Many Cases ‘Unresolved’

The report states that while more UAP are being reported and sent for analysis, many cases “remain unresolved.”

Most of the 366 new cases were reported by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force aviators and operators while on duty. “Many reports lack enough detailed data to enable attribution of UAP with high certainty,” the report reads.

More than half of the new 366 cases reported were initially judged as “exhibiting unremarkable characteristics,” according to the report. These 195 sightings comprise 26 characterized as Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS)—drones—or “UAS-like entities;” 163 characterized as balloon or balloon-like entities; and six attributed to clutter.

The 171 remaining UAP reports are “uncharacterized and unattributed,” the report states, adding that some of the uncharacterized UAP “appear to have demonstrated unusual flight characteristics or performance capabilities” and need to be analyzed further.

The DNI has been working with the All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO), which was established in mid-July 2022 by the Pentagon to “detect, identify and attribute objects of interest” in all domains, including air, ground, sea, or space, to help address “any associated threats to safety of operations and national security.”

According to the report, AARO is the “single focal point” for all efforts from the Pentagon regarding UAP. AARO is leading a “whole-of-government approach to coordinate UAP collection, reporting, and analysis efforts” throughout the Pentagon, the Intelligence Community, and other government agencies.

No Collisions, Adverse Health Effects Reported

While UAP “continue to represent a hazard to flight safety and pose a possible adversary collection threat,” the increased reporting of such phenomena has enabled “a greater awareness of the airspace and increased opportunity to resolve UAP events,” reads the report.

It notes that there have been no reported collisions between U.S. aircraft and UAP.

The report adds that there have been “encounters with UAP confirmed to contribute directly to adverse health-related effects to the observer(s).”

“Acknowledging that health-related effects may appear at any time after an event occurs, AARO will track any reported health implications related to UAP should they emerge,” the report reads.

“The safety of our service personnel, our bases and installations, and the protection of U.S. operations security on land, in the skies, seas, and space are paramount,” Pentagon press secretary Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said in a statement, commenting on the UAP report. “We take reports of incursions into our designated space, land, sea, or airspaces seriously and examine each one.”

Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-Va.), the chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, said the 2022 UAP report “reflects a step forward in understanding and addressing risks to aviators.”

“Overall, I am encouraged to see an increase in UAP reporting—a sign of decreased stigma among pilots who are aware of the potential threat that UAPs can pose,” he said in a statement.

Read more here…

A nonprofit organization headed by an FBI analyst-turned-Democrat operative & vociferous Russiagater, Daniel Jones, has funded both Fusion GPS – the firm that laundered Hillary Clinton’s funding of the infamous ‘Steele Dossier’ – and a study which found an increase in “climate change misinformation” on Twitter since Elon Musk bought the company.

Jones, a former staffer for Democrat Senator Dianne Feinstein (of ‘Chinese spy driver‘ fame), founded ‘Advanced Democracy,’ through which he shared a study with USA Today which claims that instances of “climate fraud,” “climate hoax,” and “climate scam” jumped over 300% in 2022.

As the Daily Caller notes, however, Advance Democracy has also funded groups pushing now-debunked claims involving the 2016 US election, as well as a group which pushed a disinformation campaign in the 2017 Alabama special Senate election.

The non-profit in 2020 paid $140,000 to Bean LLC, the parent company of Fusion GPS, for “research consulting” services. Fusion GPS was hired by Perkins Coie, a Democrat-linked law firm retained by the Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee, to conduct opposition research on the Trump campaign between April 2016 and October 2016; Fusion GPS commissioned Christopher Steele to produce a now-discredited opposition research report on the Trump campaign, according to public tax filings.

Many of the Steele dossier’s allegations have been subsequently debunked and proven false.

Advance Democracy has previously funded Fusion’s parent company to the tune of $6,051,251 as of 2020, according to the Washington Examiner’s review of earlier tax filings.

Additionally, Advance Democracy paid $540,000 to the research firm Yonder, according to public tax filings; Yonder was previously known as New Knowledge, the Daily Caller News Foundation previously reported. New Knowledge CEO Jonathon Morgan reportedly participated in a disinformation operation during the 2017 Alabama special Senate election between Doug Jones and Roy Moore, ostensibly to study how Russian disinformation campaigns during the 2016 election operated, according to The New York Times. -Daily Caller

“We orchestrated an elaborate ‘false flag’ operation that planted the idea that the Moore campaign was amplified on social media by a Russian botnet,” read an internal report, according to the NY Times.

Jones’ group has also provided reports on ‘online misinformation and disinformation’ to sites such as Politico and The Washington Post to push narratives involving election misinformation and ‘threats to democracy.’

The Federal Reserve announced on Friday that it sent $76 billion in profits to the US Treasury last year, though those transfers stopped in September when its income turned negative and the Fed started accumulating a massive, multi-billion loss which totaled $18.8 billion by the end of the year, and which has only grown exponentially every since. Only the Fed was quick to correct any misperception associated with calling its massive wealth transfer a loss – after all, the genius brain trust of career academics at the Fed could never be associated with such a pedestrian concepts as a “loss” as that would tarnish its brilliance and imply the need for a bailout by Congress, similar to what happened in the UK – and opted for the term “deferred asset” which supposedly “has no implications for the Federal Reserve’s conduct of monetary policy or its ability to meet its financial obligations”; and after all, the Fed can always print whatever money it needs to plug the “deferred asset” hole.

The remitted amount was down from $109 billion remitted in 2021 and $87 billion in 2020.

Incidentally, while the Fed is all hip with the proper bailout vernacular and the correct usage of less politically-charged synonyms, the UK still has to realize that calling a central bank loss a “loss” is not a good idea as it implies, well, losing and suggests bailouts are imminent, as this FT article shows.

The Fed’s circular check-kiting scheme, where it was collecting interest on the Treasurys and MBS it bought under QE (allowing the government to fund its deficit in the process) ended in in March when the Fed started hiking rates, and the Fed’s clever scheme to fund the US budget deficit in yet another creative way (by sending Treasury the interest collected from the bonds purchased under QE) was nuked as that’s when the losses deferred asset first appeared, and have since grown to a massive $22.6 billion.

The losses were the result of the Fed’s own rate hikes, which increased the amount of interest the Fed has to pay to banks on their deposits and to money market funds that make overnight loans to the Fed. Its net income plummeted, and the interest earned from its bond holdings was eventually not enough to offset the costs.

In other words, the Fed remains a fund flow passthru vehicle, only instead of remitting the interest collected from QE to the Treasury, it is paying the banks instead.

How much is the Fed paying banks? Simple: there is currently $2.18TN in reverse repos parked at the Fed which receive interest at the effective Fed Funds rate (4.33% today), as well as $3.08 trillion in reserves, which are paid at the Interest On Reserve Balances rate (4.40%). Add it across, and we get approximately $650 million in daily interest which the Fed pays to dozens of foreign and domestic banks and other financial institutions.

Earlier, we asked everyone’s favorite Indian and undisputed Peoples’ Champion and crusader against all that is not socialist, Liz Warren, when this unprecedented bank subsidy – which could feed, clothe and shelter millions of homeless Americans for years, would be addressed by Congress – after all this matter is precisely in her wheelhouse, or at least we can all pretend it is…

hey @ewarren when will you talk about how the Fed is paying banks $650 million in interest EVERY DAY? Or is it easier to distract the masses with bitcoin and gas stoves? pic.twitter.com/zGzuF6ZpCB

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) January 13, 2023

… but we are confident that there are other much more important matters such as gas stoves and bitcoin criminals that the Senator would much rather distract the population with.

Via SpotGamma.com,

TL;DR: SpotGamma believes that there will be many periods of high call buying as traders protect against missing market rallies.

2023 will be the year that the VIX index shifts from being known primarily as a “fear indicator” to the “fear of missing out indicator”. This is because traders will be increasingly concerned about missing a significant market rally, which may result in spurts of heavy call buying. This heavy call buying can, over short periods, drive the VIX higher.

These ideas have been discussed in several of our members notes, here.

*  *  *

2022 was a fascinating year in markets, particularly from the perspective of options volatility. The most well known measure of volatility is the VIX index, historically known as the “Fear gauge” because it tends to spike when stock markets are crashing. The reason for this, is that in tumultuous times traders will often seek out put protection. As more traders purchase put options, it increases the price of the VIX.

However, an interesting thing happened last year: The VIX had an intraday high of 39 on January 24, 2022, and never made a new intraday high despite escalating geopolitical tensions, a record increase in rates, a commodity crisis, and the S&P500 trading 11% lower.

There are several theories as to why the VIX failed to make new highs despite deteriorating conditions. We believe that the main driver was a lower need for puts. Rather than seeking hedges for equity portfolios, investors simply chose to reduce their equity allocation. This reduced the need for large stock hedges via put options and/or VIX calls.

Why Does the VIX Matter

The VIX is based on the prices of options on the S&P 500 index. When investors are more uncertain about the future of the stock market, they tend to buy more options as a way to protect their portfolios. As a result, the prices of options rise, and the VIX increases. Conversely, when investors are more confident about the market, they tend to buy fewer options, and the VIX falls.

The VIX is calculated using a complex formula that takes into account the prices of both call and put options on the S&P 500 index. It is expressed as a percentage, and it is typically quoted in annualized terms. For example, a VIX reading of 20% means that the market is expecting the S&P 500 to move up or down by an average of 20% over the next year.

The VIX is based on the prices of options on the S&P 500 index. Specifically, it is calculated using the prices of options on the SPX Index, expiring within 30 days. The CBOE calculates the VIX using a formula that takes into account the prices of both call options and put options on the S&P 500 index.

To calculate the VIX, the CBOE first determines the implied volatilities of a wide range of call and put options on the S&P 500 index with different strike prices and expiration dates. Implied volatility is a measure of the expected volatility of a security’s price over a given time period, as implied by the current price of options on that security.

Next, the CBOE takes the weighted average of the implied volatilities of the options to arrive at a single number that represents the expected volatility of the S&P 500 index over the next 30 days. This number is then annualized, meaning it is expressed as a percentage and scaled up to represent the expected volatility over a full year.

Evidence of Low Put Demand

The lack of demand for downside hedges is also evident in skew based volatility indices like the VVIX & SKEW. Each of these indices price the value of a put option vs the value of a call option. As demand for the puts decrease relative to calls.

Traders Rotating Their Equity Exposure

The other interesting feature of the 2022 equity market selloff what that it hit different sectors disproportionately. This was particularly true into Q4, and suggested that traders were not simply trying to sell of their equity postions writ-large, but instead allocating out of more interest rate sensitive sectors like tech, and into stocks which may benefit from this evolving economic environment (ex: healthcare, high dividend paying stocks).

This impact can also be seen in the shuffle amongst top constituents in the S&P500. While the top S&P stocks have recently been dominated by tech names, we are now seeing a more broad diversification of names enter the top slots.

As noted above, during times of great fear and uncertainty traders may sell all of their equities. These selloffs result in stocks having highly correlated movement – wherein correlation moves to 1, detecting that all stocks are moving in tandem.

In this case, it appears that correlation (bottom row) is moving down as equities had a weak 4th quarter. This further supports the notion that selling is more due to cash rotating amongst equities, and not out of equities.

Source: S&P Global

Another way to look at equity flows is through the CBOE 1 month correlation index. Implied Correlation Indexes offers insight into the relative cost of SPX options compared to the price of options on individual stocks that comprise the S&P 500.

The Right Tail Chase

While not all stocks are participating equally during downside movement, upside movement may be a different story. SpotGamma, like many bank analysts, believe that there is a great deal of investor concern with respect to missing a significant stock rally. This can often occur in situations wherein traders may feel that they are underallocated with respect to equities, after periods of prolonged declines.

This threat of missing stock market upside is often referred to as “right tail risk”, whereas “left tail risk” is that of a large market crash.

Source: Candor

Arguably the most efficient way to protect against right tail risk is to purchase call options, which may provide a leveraged upside return with a fixed risk profile. When call demand is strong enough in the SPX index, it can result in moving the VIX higher.

We have seen several instances of this behavior in 2022, and none more prevalent than into the December 13th CPI data release. Heading into the morning of December 13th, the SPX climbed over 2.5% while the VIX added 3 points (13%). This, after several banks predicted a large bullish response to the CPI, likely leading many to hedge upside risk with long call positions.

Further, we believe that stock rallies will be associated with high levels of correlation, and high levels of correlation are often associated with high levels of volatility. This is because all stocks often move higher during bear market rallies, with the strongest moves coming in the weakest, most shorted stocks.

Consider moves like those of November 10th, wherein the S&P rose 5.4% off of CPI data:

“Tech stocks that have been hardest hit by the rise in inflation and surging interest rates led the gains Thursday. Shares of Amazon were up about 12.2%. Apple and Microsoft each advanced more than 8%. Shares of Meta rallied more than 10%. Tesla jumped 7%.”

When volatility expresses itself in higher stocks, it can serve to increase call values, which could further drive the VIX higher.

Consider this, from Bloomberg*: “While the S&P 500 saw far fewer up days than is normal in 2022, when the index did manage to rebound, it did so violently. Rising a median 1.15%, the index’s increase on positive sessions was the largest since 1938.”

We hate to say it, but another day, another mysterious and unexpected death of a seemingly normal collegiate athlete. As we wrote yesterday, either there is a new focus in media on reporting about the untimely deaths of athletes and young adults, or something very odd appears to be taking place across the country.

Jack Madison, a sophomore on the Colorado College men’s tennis team, passed away in his sleep on January 2nd, a new report from the Gazette, published yesterday, confirms. Colorado College vice president and director of athletics Lesley Irvine commented: “We are devastated by the tragic passing of Jack Madison.”

A sought after athlete, the piece notes that Madison was recruited “out of Bexley, Ohio, where he was a two-time all-state selection at Columbus Academy.” His cause of death has not been announced.

“As a community, we grieve his death and loss and hold all who cared for and loved Jack in the light during this time of grief, especially his family and friends,” the college said in a statement obtained by FOX. 

“He loved tennis and being part of CC’s tennis team, for which he was recruited. He engaged fully with campus life in a myriad of ways, embracing CC to the fullest. Jack was observant, super imaginative, creative, and independent-minded. His humor, deep thinking, and generous spirit were a gift in his friendships and to all of us,” it continued.

Madison’s death follows a growing list of mysterious deaths and medical episodes among young adults and athletes:

• On January 12, 2023, we wrote about 18 year old Jordan Brister, a Las Vegas High School student who collapsed and died in the bathroom after gym class.

• His death came the same week as the death of another Las Vegas High School student. Brister’s collapse was on January 8, 2023, and another student, 16 year old Ashari Hughes, had died just three days prior “following a flag football game at Desert Oasis High School” and suffering a “medical episode”. 

• Also in the first week of January 2023, we wrote about 21 year old Air Force football player Hunter Brown, who suffered a “medical emergency” while walking to class and passed away.

• In the opening days of 2023 the MMA world was also shocked at the unexpected death of 18 year old Victoria Lee, a rising star on the the ONE Championship MMA promotion.

• In January 2023, we also highlighted Old Dominion basketball player Imo Essien collapsing on the court during the middle of a game.

• His collapse came a little more than a week after NFL player Demar Hamlin collapsed on the field due to cardiac arrest after making what appeared to be a routine tackle. 

Authored by Naveen Anthrapully via The Epoch Times,

A larger number of U.S. consumers are having a tough time paying off credit card dues every month in an environment of elevated inflation, with those making lower income less likely to clear their debts while accruing greater interest payments.

Roughly 46 percent of credit card holders do not pay off their dues in full each month, according to data from Bankrate in December.

This is up from 39 percent a year back.

Roughly 43 percent of those with credit card debt are not aware of the interest rates charged on their cards.

“People may not be fully aware of how expensive credit card debt—or other alternative loans—are, and that interest on these loans compounds,” Michaela Pagel, a Columbia Business School professor, said to Bloomberg.

“If somebody rolls over $5,000 of credit card debt over five years, it balloons into $12,441 at 20 percent interest.”

Those who make more money are likely to pay their credit card dues in full each month. Pagel pointed out that it is getting more expensive to buy goods and services that households need.

The rising costs of living might be reflected in credit card obligations, and households may have trouble meeting such obligations if their wages have remained constant, he added. Annual inflation has remained above 7 percent for every single month last year until November.

Among those making less than $50,000 annually, only around 45 percent were able to clear off credit card debts each month, while it was 63 percent for people earning more than $100,000, according to Bankrate.

Rising Interest Rates

Credit card interest rates now average above 19 percent, which is an all-time high. According to Greg McBride, chief financial analyst at Bankrate, rates will only go higher this year.

Interest rates on credit cards closely track the Federal Reserve’s benchmark interest rate changes. With the Fed having indicated that there might be more rate hikes in the future, average credit card annual percentage rate (APR) may hit 20.5 percent by the end of 2023, McBride predicted, according to CNBC.

“The important takeaway for current cardholders is that another one percentage point in rate hikes by the Fed means your rate will move up by one percentage point,” he said.

Overusing credit cards can be financially dangerous. An individual who carries a balance on their credit card is likely to face higher interest charges.

Moreover, credit scores can get affected. The score is calculated using multiple factors, including credit card balances and payment history. If your credit card balance becomes unmanageable and you miss a payment, it can have a negative impact on the score.

Credit Card Market in 2023

Since second quarter 2021, the credit card industry has seen “strong growth” in originations, according to a TransUnion news release on Dec. 14.  Due to tighter lender underwriting standards in anticipation of a potential economic downturn, the company expects card originations to moderate this year.

Credit card originations in 2023 are predicted to be 7.6 percent lower when compared to 2022. TransUnion expects 80.9 million new credit cards this year compared to 87.5 million last year. Credit card balances are estimated to rise to $934.5 billion by the end of 2023, which would be a 1.8 percent year-over-year rise.

“When taking 2022 out of the equation, more consumers will gain access to credit cards in 2023 than in any other year in the last decade. In fact, TransUnion expects 14 million more credit cards to be issued in 2023 than in 2019, a strong year for the consumer credit market,” said Paul Siegfried, senior vice president and credit card business leader at TransUnion.

Credit card delinquency, which has been rising since 2022, is predicted to increase to 2.6 percent through the end of 2023, which would be a 20.3 percent year-over-year increase.

Lithuania natural gas transmission operator Amber Grid told Reuters its pipeline that connects Lithuania to Latvia was rocked by an explosion on Friday. 

Footage of the explosion emerged on Twitter in the last 30 minutes. 

A powerful explosion rocked the gas pipeline that connects Latvia and Lithuania. What’s going on?? #war #BREAKING #RussiaUkraineWar #NATO pic.twitter.com/V9Mivq093K

— CassiusClan (@ClanCassius) January 13, 2023

🚨ALERT🇱🇹🇱🇻 Massive Fire caught on video from the blast from the gas pipeline connecting Lithuania and Latvia

Public broadcaster LRT reports that the entire town of Pasvalys, located in northern Lithuania, has evacuated due to the situation. pic.twitter.com/Q9kUhPmpWc

— Megh Updates 🚨™ (@MeghUpdates) January 13, 2023

Explosion in gas pipeline connecting #Latvia & #Lithuania: very high flames, evacuations

Police officers reported that the flames reached a height of about 50 meters. Residents in the surrounding area have been evacuated. #MeteoWeb #Breaking pic.twitter.com/cvciuuPauo

— 🌎 Sarwar 🌐 (@ferozwala) January 13, 2023

A Lithuanian gas transmission operator to Reuters has stated that there has been an explosion at a gas pipeline between Latvia and Lithuania. pic.twitter.com/EOgz2n10nE

— Global: Military-Info (@Global_Mil_Info) January 13, 2023

The location of the blast is in northern Lithuania. Amber Grid said an investigation is underway into the source of the explosion. 

Baltic news agency BNS said police evacuated the entire town of Pasvalys, located in northern Lithuania, due to the situation.

“The gas transmission system in the area consists of two parallel pipelines, and initial data indicates that the explosion occurred in one of them,” SKY News said. 

Amber Grid’s pipeline flows show where Natgas supplies have been halted. 

The grid is an interconnected NatGas transmission system of four countries – Latvia, Belarus, Poland, Russia’s Kaliningrad region, the Klaipėda LNG terminal, and the systems of Lithuania’s gas distribution operators.

A statement from the grid operator read:

On Friday at around 5pm an explosion occurred in the Amber Grid gas pipeline in Pasvalys district. According to initial data, no people were injured. The explosion took place away from residential buildings. The fire is being extinguished by the fire brigades that immediately arrived on the scene.

The gas transmission system in this area consists of two parallel pipelines, and initial data indicate that the explosion occurred in one of them. The other pipeline was not damaged. The gas supply through the damaged pipeline was immediately interrupted, but the Pasvalys district consumers are already being supplied with gas through the adjacent pipeline. 

Nemunas Biknius, CEO of the gas transmission system operator Amber Grid, said: “We regret this incident in the gas pipeline system. We immediately started to investigate the circumstances of the incident and ensure gas supply to consumers. At the moment, all our efforts and those of the responsible services are focused on containing the consequences of the fire and ensuring safety. We have immediately informed Government representatives, the Energy Distribution Operator (ESO) and Pasvalys city authorities about the situation. We will provide more details on the circumstances of the incident as we have more details.”

The gas pipeline where the fire broke out is used to supply gas to the northern part of Lithuania and to transport gas to Latvia. 

Gas pipelines are potentially hazardous installations, so we ask residents to pay attention to the signs marking the route of the pipeline, to refrain from carrying out unplanned work in the protection zone of the pipeline that has not been approved by Amber Grid, and to protect themselves and their property.

*Developing 

The Federal Aviation Administration’s Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) system, which alerts pilots and other personnel about airborne issues and delays at airports nationwide, experienced a massive outage on Wednesday that resulted in travel chaos of over 10,000 delayed flights and more than 1,000 canceled. 

The White House quickly squashed speculation of a potential cyber attack. President Biden’s Transportation Secretary, Pete Buttigieg, has since ordered an investigation of NOTAM’s outage. 

Bloomberg reports that a person familiar with the FAA investigation might already know what caused headaches for tens of thousands of travelers — just weeks after the Southwest Airlines debacle. 

The person said unspecified “personnel” corrupted a file on the NOTAM system, resulting in a nationwide outage.

The preliminary indications are that two people working for a contractor introduced errors into the core data used on the system known as Notice to Air Missions, or Notam, according to a person familiar with the FAA review. The person asked not to be identified speaking about the sensitive, ongoing issue. 

Like other computer systems that are critical to operating flights, the FAA has imposed procedures to ensure data aren’t damaged by technicians working on them, said the person. The file or files were altered in spite of rules that prohibit those kind of changes on a live system. –Bloomberg 

The question many are asking is if there was any wrongdoing: 

Agency officials are attempting to determine whether the two people made the changes accidentally or intentionally, and if there was any malicious intent, the person said. –Bloomberg 

The NOTAM system is more than three decades old. Perhaps Buttigieg should refocus his efforts on upgrading the FAA’s system instead of making it ‘more inclusive.’