Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is way behind the times. On Sunday he very belatedly expressed willingness to drop Ukraine’s bid to join NATO. In place of this, he’s seeking robust security guarantees. “We are talking about bilateral security guarantees between Ukraine and the United States — namely, Article 5-like guarantees … as well as security guarantees for us from our European partners and from other countries such as Canada, Japan and others,” Zelensky told journalists in a group chat, as reported in Financial Times.

“These security guarantees are an opportunity to prevent another wave of Russian aggression,” he said. “And this is already a compromise on our part.” But this should have been taken off the table all the way back in February of 2022, on the eve of the Russian invasion, or even well before. He’s much too late ‘offering’ this ‘concession’ just as White House envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner are meeting Sunday in Berlin with Zelensky, and then separately with the national security advisers of Germany, France and the UK.

The open secret has for years been that the Washington and EU establishments know full well that it was historic and recent constant NATO expansion which led to this horrific, grinding war. This reality is so well understood that in their private, non-official commentary even former top Biden officials fully admit the fact. Yet these same Biden officials had while in government pursued policies fueling the Ukrainian proxy war as they wanted to ‘weaken’ Russia. They considered the issue of NATO expansion as a prime rationale of Russia’s invasion to be an off-limits talking point. Indeed for any sincere, independent commentators… to so much as raise the issue would get them smeared as a “Putin apologist”. But watch this recent and highly revealing clip below of Joe Biden’s top official for Europe and former national security official Amanda Sloat admitting the truth:

Absolut MUST Watch!

Joe Biden’s top official for Europe Amanda Sloat casually admitting explosive facts that the Blob not only suppressed for years, but you would have been accused of being a Putin apologist if you ever raised.

Remember the energy expended to silence and… pic.twitter.com/8caof42O1D

— Trita Parsi (@tparsi) December 12, 2025

Authored by Dave DeCamp via AntiWar.com

The gunman who killed two members of the Iowa National Guard and an American civilian interpreter in an attack in Palmyra, central Syria, on Saturday was a member of the Syrian government’s security forces, according to the Syrian Interior Ministry.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) first reported that the attacker was a member of the security forces and called for the Syrian government, which is led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an offshoot of al-Qaeda, to get rid of members who have an “ISIS ideology.”

The Syrian Interior Ministry claimed that, before the attack, Syrian authorities had “decided to fire him” for having “extremist Islamist ideology” and had planned to do so on Sunday. “We discovered him in December and were going to dismiss him, but we didn’t make it in time because it was a holiday,” said ministry spokesman Nour al-Din al-Baba, according to The Cradle.

A Syrian security official told AFP that the attacker had been in the security forces “for more than 10 months and was posted to several cities before being transferred to Palmyra.”

According to Wael Essam, a Palestinian journalist who has covered the conflict in Syria for many years, the perpetrator has been identified as Tariq Satouf al-Hamd from the Aleppo countryside. Essam said that al-Hamd was previously a member of ISIS, but after the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad, he traveled to Idlib, the former home base of HTS, and joined the General Security.

The attack occurred when US military officers were meeting with Syrian Interior Ministry officials while US and Syrian troops stood guard at a base near the city of Palmyra. According to The Wall Street Journal, a lone gunman appeared in a window and opened fire on the US and Syrian soldiers, and he was pursued by Syrian troops and killed. However, according to Essam’s report, the attacker blew himself up.

“The attacker tried to reach the meeting room in the headquarters of the General Security in Palmyra (formerly the Military Security headquarters) where senior officers are present, and in the corridor he clashed with the American guards and the translator and blew himself up,” Essam wrote on X.

Essam also suggested that other members of the Syrian security forces were involved in the attack. “Security sources confirmed to me that Syrian intelligence, along with the Coalition forces, arrested six elements from the General Security at the headquarters in Palmyra, accused of coordinating the operation with him, and it is said that they are from the group that moved with him from the desert to the General Security in Idlib,” he said.

He added that Syrian authorities were “unable to identify his previous affiliation with the organization (ISIS), and there are hundreds like him, due to the large numbers who joined and which the security apparatus needed after the fall of the regime.”

President Trump and other US officials have called the incident an “ISIS attack” and have left out the detail that the perpetrator was a member of the Syrian military, which the US has allied itself with despite HTS’s al-Qaeda past, and as of Sunday, ISIS hasn’t taken credit for the shooting.

“This was an ISIS attack against the US, and Syria, in a very dangerous part of Syria, that is not fully controlled by them,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

He added that Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa is “extremely angry” about the attack. Trump recently hosted Sharaa at the White House despite his past as an al-Qaeda leader and ally of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the founder of ISIS.

The Syrian government itself has contradicted the below Trump claims…

Trump on Syria:

We had 3 great patriots terminated by bad people.

It was not the Syrian government, it was ISIS.

The Syrian government fought by our side. pic.twitter.com/oIO0ntdHvL

— Clash Report (@clashreport) December 14, 2025

Both Trump and US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth vowed there would be retaliation for the attack, and according to the SOHR, there’s been an escalation of US operations in the region, including surveillance flights and arrests of people on suspicion of “affiliating with ISIS and/or adopting its ideology.”

The Syrian government has also announced its escalating operations against Syria. During Sharaa’s visit to the Oval Office, his government officially joined the US-led anti-ISIS coalition despite its al-Qaeda links and many of its soldiers having a similar ideology to ISIS, putting US troops operating in Syria at risk of insider attacks.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is willing to drop efforts to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) if the United States and European allies offer “security guarantees” in order to end the war.

“Thus, today, bilateral security guarantees between Ukraine and the US, Article 5-like guarantees for us from the US, and security guarantees from European colleagues, as well as other countries — Canada, Japan — are an opportunity to prevent another Russian invasion,” Zelenskyy said in a WhatsApp chat with reporters on Dec. 14.

As Jacki Thrapp reports for The Epoch Times, Zelenskyy insisted that the “compromise” must be legally binding and supported by the U.S. Congress in order to bring an end to the years-long conflict.

The Ukrainian leader’s comments to journalists came ahead of his meeting in Berlin with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner on Sunday.

“We are preparing for a meeting with the American side,” Zelenskyy posted on X Sunday morning.

“There are many important details, and we are working thoroughly on every point of every draft. The key thing is that all the steps we agree on with partners must work in practice to deliver guaranteed security. Only reliable guarantees can deliver peace. We count on our partners to continue working constructively as well.”

Zelenskyy is expected to meet with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz after the meeting with U.S. officials on Sunday night.

Ukraine’s openness to dropping a NATO bid is a move that is welcomed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who does not want any NATO troops stationed there.

Kushner and Witkoff met with Putin on Dec. 2 for a five-hour-long negotiating session.

Putin’s top foreign policy aide, Yuri Ushakov, told reporters afterward that the meeting was “constructive” but “compromises have not yet been found.”

Russians want Ukraine to withdraw forces from the part of the Donetsk region that the United States proposed making a demilitarized free economic zone, which was rejected by Kyiv.

Zelenskyy confirmed on Dec. 10 that Ukraine supported key parts of an economic outline to rebuild the country once the war ends, which has been a major aspect of peace discussions.

The rebuilding plan was a refined version of Trump’s initial 28-point proposal, in which Ukraine would yield territories such as Crimea, Luhansk, and Donetsk to Russia, Ukraine having a constitutional block from joining NATO, and allowing Russia to return to the G7.

Russia has launched more than 1,500 drones, nearly 900 guided aerial bombs, and 46 missiles at Ukraine in the past week, Zelenskyy said on Sunday.

Recent attacks have left hundreds of thousands without power, heat, or water in multiple regions across the country.

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

In an unexpected pivot that’s sending shockwaves through the pharma lobby, Liam Neeson has narrated a documentary titled Plague of Corruption: 80 Years of Pharmaceutical Corruption Exposed, an adaption of Dr. Judy Mikovits’ book and backed by Robert F. Kennedy Jr.‘s Children’s Health Defense. 

It appears this is not just another celeb voiceover—it’s a direct assault on the COVID-era overreach that crushed freedoms and livelihoods under the guise of “public health.”

Neeson, long hailed for his UNICEF ambassadorship pushing global jabs, now aligns with the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement, calling out mRNA vaccines as “dangerous experiments” and the scientists behind them as “fanatics.” 

When Liam Neeson narrates the truth they tried to hide…

Full trailer + exclusive screening Nov 16: https://t.co/CIXm4dAZ1B pic.twitter.com/cXeD3UNH4A

— PLAGUE of CORRUPTION Movie – RSVP for Premiere!! (@amigofilmstudio) October 24, 2025

The film is outspoken on lockdowns, highlighting how they wrecked millions without saving lives from the virus itself. 

The documentary, co-authored by Mikovits and attorney Kent Heckenlively, pulls the curtain on decades of alleged pharmaceutical scandals. 

Published by Kennedy’s group—now with RFK Jr. at the helm of Health and Human Services under Trump—it features interviews praising Kennedy as a truth-teller against Big Pharma’s stranglehold.

Neeson’s narration drives home the human cost of tyrannical policies: “Thousands of lives were lost, not to the virus, but to the mental anguish brought on by these harsh restrictions.” 

He wraps with a call to action: “We cannot change the past, but we can demand transparency and accountability for the future.” And defiantly: “This is not the end of our story. This is the beginning of a new chapter.”

Of course, the backlash was swift from the usual suspects in media and pharma circles, desperate to discredit anyone questioning their narrative. 

Neeson’s reps fired back in a statement, insisting: “We all recognize that corruption can exist within the pharmaceutical industry, but that should never be conflated with opposition to vaccines. Liam never has been, and is not, anti-vaccination.”

Liam Neeson is denying holding anti-vaccine views after narrating a controversial new documentary, and insisting: ‘He did not shape the film’s editorial content.’ https://t.co/Of1ZI2Om6O

— Entertainment Weekly (@EW) December 12, 2025

They doubled down: “His extensive work with UNICEF underscores his long-held support for global immunization and public-health initiatives.” And clarified: “He did not shape the film’s editorial content, and any questions about its claims or messaging should be directed to the producers.”

So he just did it for the money? Weak sauce, man.https://t.co/G940Gl269F

— Deonandan (@deonandan) December 12, 2025

It’s a very odd move for Neeson, who  previously heaped praise on vaccines, including COVID jabs, in a 2022 UNICEF spot, where he called them a “remarkable human success story.” 

He elaborated: “Over the last 75 years, billions of children have been vaccinated, thanks to scientists, to health workers, to volunteers.”

Continuing: “If you’ve ever been vaccinated, or vaccinated your children, then you are part of the arm-to-arm chain that keeps all humanity safe.”

But in today’s climate, with RFK Jr.  draining the swamp at HHS, Neeson’s involvement signals a shift. It’s no secret the COVID mandates were a power grab, forcing experimental shots on Americans while Big Pharma raked in billions tax-free. Lockdowns shuttered businesses, spiked suicides, and eroded liberties—all while elites partied mask-free.

For the documentary, Mikovits, a whistleblower vilified by the establishment, teams with Heckenlively to expose how agencies like the CDC buried evidence of harm.

The film’s trailer features RFK Jr. front and center, promising accountability. It’s a far cry from the Plandemic series, but builds on that momentum to challenge the deep state’s health cartel.

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.

In a bid to help young Americans make better-informed judgements about the costs and benefits of college education, the US Department of Education has started issuing warnings to students applying for financial aid to attend schools whose graduates have weak earnings. 

The red flag is now being presented within the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) process. It’s triggered when applicants indicate they’re considering a school where the average graduate earns less than a high school graduate. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said the move will help clear the fog that’s led too many students to stumble into educational paths that carry a high risk of a crummy earnings:  

“More than half of all Americans now say a college degree is not worth the price, and total outstanding student loan debt is approaching $1.7 trillion. Families deserve a clearer picture of how postsecondary education connects to real-world earnings, and this new indicator will provide that transparency. Not only will this new FAFSA feature make public earnings data more accessible, but it will empower prospective students to make data-driven decisions before they are saddled with debt.” 

As students complete the FAFSA, they will be presented with an “earnings indicator” for every school where they direct FAFSA to provide information to. When applicants apply to a school that fails the high school comparison, a “low earnings” warning will appear, and the school’s average graduate earnings will be depicted with the color red in the accompanying chart.    

According to the Education Department, more than 2% of the country’s undergrads are attending colleges that fit that dismal profile. However, more than 22% of colleges in the Education database are in the “low earnings” category. Most of them are for-profit schools — such as beauty schools — and there are also an assortment of historically black institutions, Bloomberg reports. Collectively, colleges whose grads lag high school graduates  are raking in upwards of $2 billion in federal aid every year. 

At CollegeScorecard.ed.gov, students can not only view average earnings at some 5,900 colleges, but also dive deeper to see earnings at the program level. For example, the report on Bucknell University shows that median graduates of the selective Pennsylvania school earn $93,807, compared to the $53,747 midpoint for four-year colleges. (These figures are incomes 10 years after entering a school.) For economics majors, the Bucknell median is $101,580. Meanwhile, the historically black Virginia University of Lynchburg’s median earnings are just $28,000 — below the $32,860 median for American high school completers. 

Nudging people away from schools with lousy earnings profiles doesn’t only help students, it may also serve taxpayers by trimming the number of people who default on federal loans. Student loan delinquencies are soaring following the end of the Biden-era payment holiday / vote-buying scheme. More than 9 million student-loan debtors have missed at least one payment in 2025, and the share of accounts more than 30 days past a payment due-date has doubled from the level seen before the payment suspensions kicked in during the Covid pandemic, according to the Financial Times.  

Authored by Melanie Sun via The Epoch Times,

The Department of Justice has been ordered by a federal judge to return everything that it seized and obtained between 2017 to 2020 from a longtime confidant of former FBI Director James Comey, siding with the friend and plaintiff who said his constitutional rights had been violated when the materials in his possession were misused to investigate Comey.

In a decision on Dec. 12, U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly for the District of Columbia ruled that the DOJ had violated law professor Daniel Richman’s Fourth Amendment right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures when it retained certain files copied from the plaintiff’s personal computer and online accounts between 2017 to 2020 when it was investigating whether Comey had leaked classified material after being fired as FBI director, and used those files for further investigations not covered by the original warrant.

“This seizure is unreasonable because the Government’s warrantless search of the files earlier this year reveals that the Government has not implemented effective safeguards to protect copies of the files from unlawful access while they remain in the Government’s custody and control,” the judge wrote.

Kollar-Kotelly said the materials copied from Richman had been handled with “callous disregard” for the plaintiff’s constitutional rights and called the recent warrantless search of the materials a “remarkable breach of protocol.”

“Because Petitioner Richman is entitled to return of his property as a remedy for the violation of his constitutional rights, the Court is unpersuaded by the Government’s contention that his motion must be denied based on its potential collateral effects on the investigation and prosecution of Mr. Comey,” Kollar-Kotelly wrote.

However, the judge only partially granted Richman’s petition, declaring as moot his request for a temporary restraining order.

Instead, Kollar-Kotelly ruled that before the materials are returned to Richman, the government may create “one complete electronic copy of those materials and deposit that copy, under seal, with the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, which shall have supervisory authority over access to this material, for future access pursuant to a lawful search warrant and judicial order.”

This addresses the violations against Richman “without preventing the Government from conducting any future investigation or prosecution,” the judge said.

“[H]e is not entitled to an order preventing the Government from ‘using or relying on’ those materials in a separate investigation or proceeding, as long as they are obtained through a valid warrant and judicial order.”

Prosecutors can seek a new warrant to regain access to the files, the judge said.

The DOJ must return the materials to Richman by Dec. 15. In addition to the copy of his personal computer, the order also relates to any images of Richman’s email or Apple iCloud accounts, including from any Columbia University email accounts.

The judge last week had temporarily blocked the DOJ from accessing the materials without the court’s permission in response to an emergency motion filed by Richman’s lawyers.

DOJ Indicts Comey

The DOJ in September indicted Comey in Virginia on charges of making false statements to Congress in 2020 and obstructing Congress when he denied authorizing the leak of memos alleged to contain classified information. Comey testified at the time that FBI officials had anonymously provided information to news outlets, which the DOJ alleged conflicted with his 2018 testimony to Congress.

Comey pleaded not guilty. The indictment was dismissed in November after a judge ruled that prosecutor Lindsey Halligan’s appointment was unlawful.

Comey had testified in 2018 that he had leaked some personal memos to Richman after President Donald Trump fired him from the FBI, including one memo that allegedly contained classified information. The firing was over his refusal to prosecute former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for using a private email server to convey sensitive national-security messages.

Comey said in 2018 that he considered the memos to be “personal documents” as they were his recollection of his conversation with Trump. He also said his intention with leaking the documents was to trigger the appointment of a special counsel to continue the investigation into alleged Russian election meddling, in which he succeeded with the appointment of special counsel Robert Mueller.

After a DOJ Inspector General investigation in 2019 found policy violations but no criminal charges regarding Comey’s handing of the memos, the DOJ under Attorney General William Barr declined to prosecute the allegations of classified elements being released in the memos.

As the DOJ in September had relied on the materials previously obtained from Richman to indict Comey, the DOJ had argued to Kollar-Kotelly that Richman’s appeal “amounts to nothing more than an improper collateral attack on the investigation and prosecution of Mr. Comey and that return of property to Petitioner Richman is not an available remedy.”

The DOJ’s motion to dissolve the temporary restraining order was also denied as moot.

Authored by Lance Roberts via RealInvestmentAdvice.com,

This weekend, global investors are reckoning with a stark warning from the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). In its December 2025 Quarterly Review, the BIS flagged what it called a rare “double bubble” forming across both gold and equity markets. According to the report, “the combination of gold and share prices soaring in unison is a phenomenon not seen in at least half a century.” In fact, BIS Economic Adviser Hyun Song Shin put the risk clearly: “Gold has behaved very differently this year compared to its usual pattern. The interesting phenomenon this time has been that gold has become much more like a speculative asset.”

The data also reflects the increased risk in both asset classes. Gold has jumped about 60 percent in 2025, its strongest annual performance since 1979. At the same time, U.S. equities, led by tech and AI‑related names, have pushed major indexes to record highs as investors chase yield, growth, and momentum. Notably, the backdrop for today’s conversation is that, starting in October 2022, both stocks and gold began a parabolic ascent, breaking from their previous growth trendlines.

That is not a fundamentally driven move; that is solely speculation. As noted in the BIS report, for the first time in over 50 years, both gold and equities have shown “explosive behavior” simultaneously.

In prior episodes, such explosive behavior occurred separately. For example, gold saw a steep bubble in the late 1970s, culminating around 1980 during a period of high inflation. In that episode, gold peaked, then collapsed and spent decades losing relevance as a mainstream asset, illustrating the fleeting nature of speculative gold booms. On the equity side, previous bubbles, such as the late 1990s technology stock run-up, ended in sharp corrections when speculative exuberance outpaced fundamentals. Because the last time both markets were “bubbly” at once was over a half‑century ago, the BIS lacks a recent precedent for what could happen. The concern, however, is rather simplistic:

“If history repeats itself, overvaluation followed by reversion, investors could suffer steep losses in both their equity and gold holdings simultaneously, eliminating the traditional diversification benefit of holding both.”

I would read that again.

While the underlying drivers of the “double bubble” are multiple, this does not equate to a “this time is different” scenario. For example, while it is true that central banks have increased their purchases of bullion at a rate of approximately 1% annually over the last five years, these purchases are insignificant in terms of overall price appreciation. However, it has been retail investors, speculators, and professionals, drawn in by momentum, that have pushed gold prices sharply higher. That momentum chase, ETF inflows, and media coverage have caused investment dollars to flood into both gold and equity funds. As the BIS stated, ETF prices trading consistently above net asset value (NAV) is a clear sign of “strong buying pressure coupled with impediments to arbitrage.”

The result is a market environment where traditional relationships between risk and haven, growth and refuge, appear broken. As the BIS notes, the most significant risk of the “Double Bubble” is that what seems to be diversification may actually be concentrated risk.

Why This Matters

Re-read that last sentence from the BIS. For investors with invested capital, this matters deeply. While many are chasing gold and precious metals like silver higher, along with high-risk equities, leverage, and speculative trading activities, this is essentially a function of momentum chasing. This is illustrated in the chart below, which shows the annual rate of change in margin debt (leverage) alongside the annual rate of change in both equities and silver.

Yes, it remains the same for gold as well.

However, since most individuals do not understand the fundamental dynamics of “supply and demand” within traded assets, the media and promoters create “narratives” to support the price rise. Those narratives provide a comforting “calm” amid the “chaos,” but mask the risk that investors may unwittingly be taking on.

While there is nothing wrong with these “narratives,” or rather “justifications,” it is ultimately the “supply and demand” of buyers versus sellers that sets the prevailing price. With yields low and central banks maintaining loose monetary policies, assets such as equities and gold have continued to attract steady inflows, as leverage remains cheap and price momentum fuels asset speculation. However, that setup leaves little margin for error, and when something occurs to reverse leverage, the negative impact on correlated assets (such as equities, gold, and silver) occurs simultaneously.

Before dismissing this analysis out of hand, it is worth considering that when an institution like the BIS, known for its conservative, stability-focused analysis, raises the alarm, it deserves a modicum of your attention. This doesn’t mean you should go “sell everything and go to cash,” but the warning from the BIS is not theoretical, and should at least give you reason to think about the risk you are currently carrying. Such is particularly the case when the BIS noted that dual bubbles of this kind typically end with “a sharp and swift correction.”

Here is the risk to be watching. If both gold and equities unwind together, investors seeking safety have limited options. Such leaves Treasury bonds, cash, and very defensive positioning as traditional havens no longer deliver. As the BIS highlighted, the risk is that if central banks and reserve managers, many of whom have invested in gold, find themselves in unfamiliar territory where both markets fall simultaneously, the reversal of their positioning could be swift and uncoordinated.

As is always the case, beneath the surface lies broader structural fragility. Debt levels worldwide remain elevated. Real interest rates, fiscal imbalances, geopolitical tensions, and unstable monetary policy combine to create a precarious macro environment. Those fears have been the driving force behind higher gold prices. However, when combined with speculative capital flows and retail-driven momentum in the equity markets, the risk of volatility increases.

In fact, a largely unnoticed concern is that while global central banks were aggressively cutting rates over the last two years, they are now mostly all on hold.

This environment is a challenge to conventional diversification strategies. While the primary assumption is that gold provides a ballast when equities fall, it is not entirely unwise to question whether that assumption may no longer hold. In other words, when a “risk‑off” environment eventually manifests in the equity market, it may not necessarily translate to a rotation into gold.

That rethinking matters for anyone managing significant wealth or seeking capital preservation.

📒 Navigating the “Double Bubble.”

Let me be very clear. I am not stating that, with absolute certainty, that a “mean-reverting” event is about to occur. Irrational markets can persist in this state for a prolonged period. However, as investors, we must consider the rising risk of a simultaneous correction in both gold and equities due to the current “Double Bubble.” This makes a measured and more flexible approach sensible.

Does this mean you should sell out of everything today? Absolutely, not. You should never “sell everything and go to cash,” as that tends to lead to even worse outcomes in the future. However, it does suggest that we consider taking small actions today that can protect us when the inevitable happens.

1. Focus first on quality, stability, and liquidity. Begin by gradually adjusting your exposure to equities, focusing on companies with strong balance sheets, low leverage, consistent earnings, and pricing power. Defensive sectors, which have underperformed this year, such as consumer staples, industrial infrastructure, utilities, real estate, and essential services, may offer more resilience than high-beta, speculative growth names.

2. Treat gold and precious metals as a hedge, not a core driver of growth. A moderate allocation to bullion, gold‑linked instruments, or commodities can offer a buffer. However, being aggressively overweight in precious metals increases risk if the “double bubble” bursts and gold behaves more like a speculative asset than a haven.

3. Complement with inflation‑protected or flexible income assets. Inflation‑indexed bonds, short‑duration credit, high-quality municipal or sovereign debt, and cash equivalents provide ballast and optionality without undue sensitivity to high valuations or speculative excess.

4. Maintain liquidity and readiness. Volatile markets can produce sharp drawdowns. Holding a portion of the portfolio in liquid, high-quality assets gives optionality. Such dry powder allows investors to redeploy into opportunities if markets reprice.

5. Focus on diversification across uncorrelated asset classes. Combining income-producing equities, real estate, fixed income, and hedges, skewed toward downside protection, reduces dependence on any single trend or asset class.

6. Monitor macroeconomic indicators closely. Track global debt levels, central bank behavior, currency movement (especially the US dollar), and interest rate trajectories. Evaluate changes in market sentiment, fund flows, and valuation metrics.

7. Avoid momentum‑driven “herd” plays. Retail-driven inflows have helped fuel the dual rally. That kind of enthusiasm can reverse quickly if sentiment shifts. Therefore, resist chasing year-to-date outperformers purely on momentum.

8. Prepare mentally and strategically for volatility. Accept that drawdowns may come. Use them to rebalance and reposition toward quality, safety, and value. Over time, that discipline often wins more than chasing every upside wave.

The BIS warning of the “Double Bubble” should not be dismissed as alarmist. It reflects structural shifts in how global reserves, investor behavior, and asset correlations are evolving. The simultaneous surge in gold and equities, that very “double bubble,” calls into question long-held assumptions about risk and refuge.

Investors who act now with clarity, balance, and discipline can be better positioned, whether markets continue to rise or correct sharply. Prudent investors will treat gold as a strategic hedge, not a speculative play, but most importantly, they will “understand the difference.” As an investor, you should always emphasize quality, liquidity, and diversification.

That approach gives you the chance to preserve capital, capture value, and survive in the long game.

Luxury cars. Private villas. First-class flights. And taxpayer money meant to feed hungry kids.

New exhibits from court obtained by CBS News reveal how Somali defendants in one of the largest COVID-era fraud schemes in US history plowed through hundreds of millions of dollars in taxpayer money on lavish lifestyles – including lakefront Minnesota properties, overwater bungalows in the Maldives, a Porsche Macan, stacks of cash, designer jewelry, campaigne-soaked vacations, and overseas wire transfers. 

Videos show defendants in the case celebrating poolside at a Madlives luxury resort.

In one text, a defendant bragged: “You are gonna be the richest 25 year old InshaAllah [God willing].”

Exhibits entered into evidence include:

• A confirmation email for a stay in an overwater villa with a private pool at Radisson Blu Resort Maldives
• Lakefront property in Minnesota
• Receipts showing wire transfers to China and East Africa
• First class tickets to Istanbul and Amsterdam
• A 2021 Porsche Macan
• Stacks of cash, texted between defendants

Millions for ‘Meals’ That Never Existed

At the center of the scandal is a nonprofit-backed food program that prosecutors say was systematically exploited. One defendant alone billed the state for $47 million, claiming to have served 18 million meals at more than 30 locations – while failing to distribute a single meal, according to prosecutors. 

Among those sentenced is Abdimajid Mohamed Nur, 24, who used stolen taxpayer funds to finance luxury travel and high-end purchases. At sentencing, U.S. District Judge Nancy E. Brasel issued a sharp rebuke, telling him: “Where others saw a crisis and rushed to help, you saw money and rushed to steal.”

Nur was sentenced to 10 years in prison and ordered to pay nearly $48 million in restitution.

Cash Flows Overseas — and Unanswered Questions

The defendants also wired millions of dollars overseas, including to banks and companies in China, East Africa, and Kenya. Investigators say tracing funds routed through China is especially difficult, calling it an investigative “black hole.”

One defendant, Abdiaziz Shafii Farah, 36, sent more than $1 million to Chinese banks in six separate wire transfers in 2021 and nearly $3 million to Kenyan accounts. In one text message, Farah instructed someone to send money to Mogadishu’s Bakara Market, a location once controlled by al Shabaab.

Farah, who owned a Minnesota restaurant contracted to provide meals under the program, was sentenced last month to 28 years in prison. At sentencing, a judge said his crimes were driven by “pure, unmitigated greed.”

Terror Funding? Officials Say No Evidence… So Far

The scale of the fraud has reignited political scrutiny. House Republicans recently launched a probe into Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s handling of the case, while the Treasury Department announced it is reviewing whether stolen funds could have reached extremist organizations – with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent revealing that investigators are tracking the overseas transfers. That said, CBS News sources tell the outlet that they have yet to uncover evidence that taxpayer money made it to terrorist group al Shabaab. 

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday that investigators are tracking overseas transfers to determine their ultimate use. But federal investigators told CBS News there is no evidence that taxpayer money was funneled to al Shabaab, and prosecutors have presented no terrorism-related charges.

“There was never any evidence that this money went to fund terrorism nor was there any evidence that was the intent of the 70 people we indicted,” said former U.S. Attorney Andy Luger, whose office prosecuted many of the cases. 

So far, 61 people have been convicted in the sprawling Minnesota fraud scandal, with more investigations still underway. As investigators continue chasing the money trail, one question still looms: How did so much cash slip through the cracks – and who else knew?

Authored by Thomas Brooke via Remix News,

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has said he will block any European Union solution that finances Ukraine’s military expenditures, accusing Western Europe of treating Russian and Ukrainian lives as being “worth shit” and of prolonging what he described as senseless bloodshed.

In a post on X, Fico said he had held an almost hour-long phone conversation with European Council President António Costa focused on EU funding for Ukraine.

“While he spoke about money for the war in Ukraine, I kept repeating the senseless daily killing of hundreds to thousands of Russians and Ukrainians,” Fico wrote.

“If for Western Europe the life of a Russian or a Ukrainian is worth shit, I do not want to be part of such a Western Europe.”

Fico said he told Costa that Slovakia would not support any measure leading to EU financing of Ukraine’s military costs, regardless of how long negotiations might last. “I told A. Costa that I will not support anything, even if we have to sit in Brussels until the New Year, which would lead to support for Ukraine’s military expenditures,” he wrote.

The post accompanied the publication of a formal letter sent by Fico to Costa and to all EU prime ministers ahead of the next European Council meeting, where the European Commission’s proposals to secure Ukraine’s financial needs for 2026 and 2027, including the possible use of frozen Russian assets, are expected to be discussed.

In the letter, Fico stated that Slovakia would not back any solution that includes funding Ukraine’s military expenses.

“At the upcoming European Council, I am not in the position to support any solution to Ukraine’s financial needs that would include covering Ukraine’s military expenses for the coming years,” he wrote.

Fico argued that there was no military solution to the conflict and that continued arms financing was extending the war.

“The policy of peace that I consistently advocate prevents me from voting in favor of prolonging military conflict, because providing tens of billions of euros for military spending is prolonging the war,” he said.

He also warned against using frozen Russian assets for military purposes, arguing this could undermine peace efforts, including those led by the United States, which he said envisaged using such assets for Ukraine’s postwar reconstruction. He recalled raising these concerns at an informal EU meeting in Angola and pointed to corruption risks in Ukraine.

While rejecting EU-funded military support, Fico said Slovakia would continue to assist Ukraine in non-military areas. He cited humanitarian aid, electricity supplies, gas delivered through reverse flow, infrastructure projects, and support for nearly 200,000 Ukrainian refugees living in Slovakia. He reiterated Slovakia’s support for Ukraine’s accession to the European Union, while noting that some member states were increasingly voicing reservations about early membership.

Fico said his position was final and would not change under pressure or prolonged negotiations. “I cannot, and will not under any pressure, endorse any solution to support Ukraine’s military expenditures in which the Slovak Republic would participate,” he wrote, while adding that he respected the right of other EU member states to pursue different approaches on a voluntary basis.

The European Council has not publicly responded to Fico’s remarks.

Read more here…

A person of interest connected to the Brown University shooting was taken into custody early Sunday morning at a hotel in Coventry, Rhode Island, according to law enforcement officials.

Latest:

• Providence Police Chief Oscar Perez told reporters he was limited in what he could disclose about the person taken into custody. He said police intend “to coordinate with the prosecutors, to collect evidence, to conduct interviews, and then from there, we’ll be able – when it’s appropriate and accurate – to share more details.”

• Providence Mayor Brett Smiley provided an update, noting that seven shooting victims are in stable condition, one is in critical but stable condition, and one has been discharged from the hospital. Two individuals died in the shooting. All victims were students.

• Brown University President Christina Paxson confirmed that the shooting unfolded inside a final exam review for a Principles of Economics class.

• The shooter then exited the east side of the Barus and Holley building, where the campus meets downtown Providence. 

The shooter “yelled something” before the attack … 

BREAKING – Police now have a suspect in the mass shooting at Brown University but are refusing to provide the suspect’s age, race, or motive, only stating that the shooter “yelled something” before the attack and that the weapon used has a “unique characteristic” on it. pic.twitter.com/971tJeYDUU

— Right Angle News Network (@Rightanglenews) December 14, 2025

The elite Ivy League school ended the shelter-in-place order around 6:00 a.m. ET.

BrownUAlert: Providence police have advised the University that the shelter in place order has ended for the entire Brown campus. However, police activity continues in areas that are still considered an active crime scene. Be advised that access to these areas of campus continues…

— Brown University (@BrownUniversity) December 14, 2025

X users cited a 2021 study indicating that Brown University operates roughly 800 surveillance cameras across its campus.

Yet, more than six hours after the shooting, the university was still unable to release any images showing what the suspect looked like while at large.

Brown University tuition is $70,000.

Its endowment is $8 billion and just hit a new record.

AND THEY DON’T HAVE A SINGLE SECURITY CAMERA THAT GOT A CLEAR VIEW OF THE SHOOTER IN THE BUILDING!!!

You can afford it! BUY SOME. pic.twitter.com/vji9lXkiHL

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) December 14, 2025

Then finally released this… 

Video released by the Providence police shows the suspect in the Brown University shooting as he leaves the scene.

The shooting left two people dead and nine others wounded.

See the latest updates: https://t.co/8dntt9p7bR pic.twitter.com/1PNVhUYaeP

— Providence Journal (@projo) December 14, 2025

Note that Brown’s policy generally prohibits students, faculty, staff, and visitors from bringing guns, ammunition, or other weapons onto campus, into buildings, or into residence halls. This applies regardless of whether someone has a permit to carry a firearm elsewhere in Rhode Island.

Brown University has a relatively high representation of Jewish students compared with its overall student population. The incident occurred on the night before Hanukkah, a period of heightened religious significance. Separately, Australia experienced its deadliest terrorist attack since 1996, when two shooters targeted a Jewish celebration.

*Developing…