I didn’t plan for this newsletter to be weekly. But it might end up that way. As I took note of the important, untold themes that piled up over the last few days, I realized I would need to put this together quickly or there’d be too much to share. So let’s jump right in!
What’s Happening Now
Both Putin and Snowden came out in favor of non-state cryptocurrency. This shouldn’t be a surprise at this point, for it’s crypto that is enabling Putin’s state-sanctioned hackers to run ransomware attacks. Likewise, whatever Snowden was, he is now an organ of the Russian state (Putin); nothing he says will see daylight without meeting the state’s approval. Putin said crypto was perfectly lovely; Snowden endorsed crypto while dissing central banks and their own potential efforts to issue digital currencies. This is all part of the assault on the dollar and fiat currencies, and is an attempt to break the back of the world’s central banks. Meanwhile, Turkey’s Lira is in a freefall, which is undoubtedly bolstering crypto in that region. BTC just crossed $60,000 USD for the first time in months, while the US Treasury department just released new guidance on sanctions compliance which markets have yet to digest; and China has added further restrictions on the crypto industry. AP has a great report on how white supremacists are using crypto to fuel their global operations.
Secretary of Defense warns about risks of default. Many within government have been warning that we really need to raise the debt ceiling. If we don’t, the dollar will be clobbered and we’ll enter into an extremely dark time. This week Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin warned about the very real risks of default, joining the voices of Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Jerome Powell who have issued dire warnings about the consequences of default. Most people are still operating under the assumption that the Republicans will always cave and raise the debt ceiling. While they may very well do so, it’s a mistake to underestimate their desire to hobble the dollar, so great is their animus to the Jekyll Island events of 1913.
Bannon is trying to split the Catholic church and establish Moscow as the “Third Rome.” While he made big headlines this week for defying the January 6th Committee’s subpoena, pay attention to the other hand: he’s planned a rally in Baltimore for November 16 with his pals Cardinal Carlo Maria Viganò, Milo Yinannopoulos, and Michelle Malkin, et al, to protest the US Conference of Bishops happening nearby. What he’s trying to do is amplify a long-standing division in the Church between Jesuits and factions aligned with Opus Dei. They want to unify the Orthodox Greek + Russian Churches and fulfill a prophecy where Moscow becomes the “Third Rome,” (after Rome, and Constantinople). This is an old historical theme and was even the early title for Whittaker Chambers’ little-known second memoir. They, laughably, see Moscow as a bastion of “Judeo-Christian values” (i.e. anti-LGBT sentiment). Viganò, tight with Bannon, Flynn, and Q, and his pal Cardinal Burke are chief agitators on this. I also found evidence of Catholic schism chatter in examining the OathKeepers’ email dump. Ali Alexander recently converted to Catholicism, as did Milo. This is all Bannon.
Anarchocapitalism is key to understanding the current moment. This week I refined the above list to help zero in on exactly the network and forces that are dominant today. Obviously this is just a rough sketch, but it’s notable for all it leaves out. Nixon? These people hated him. Too many regulations, too soft on China. Reagan? They warmed to him, but they would have preferred David Koch. Dominionism? Yeah, but that’s a little different network with other priorities. If you want to understand this moment, it’s crucial to understand gold, cults like I AM, and the hardcore libertarian philosophy born out of LeFevre’s Freedom School. What we are dealing with is a takeover of the Republican Party by this libertarian network. Focus on this thread.
Havana Syndrome keeps spreading. Is it real? It seems to be, though we still don’t have public information on what it exactly is. While idiots online debate outdated information and try to discredit any theories, there are real victims who keep turning up around the world. Whatever is causing this, it’s proven an effective way to sow doubt and uncertainty within the diplomatic and intelligence worlds, and to raise doubts about the United States’ ability and willingness to exercise soft power. It’s just one part of the hybrid war we find ourselves in. The latest reports are out of Colombia and Berlin. If it is a death ray (directed energy weapon) of some kind, we know from physics it has to be close-range and likely mounted in a car, van, or truck. So maybe we should put out a global APB for vehicles with weird antennae or orifices doing shady stuff.
It’s time to talk about “Alt” and “Rogue” US Government-branded accounts. In 2017 when the new Trump administration started doing awful things, a spate of “Alt” and “Rogue” accounts popped up, mostly on Twitter, claiming to represent government employees who were aghast at the new regime and doing what they could to “resist.” Yeah, fine enough, we get it; that was an awful time and some of these accounts were run by real people in government doing some good things. But they have become wildly popular, and there is no way to verify that they are all valid, or indeed who may be running them. But put that aside: is this a good idea from a national security and policy perspective? We don’t need “unofficial” accounts claiming to be run by rogue government employees; this is not how a serious country conducts itself. When I raised this question this week (in a very dry, uncontroversial way), I was subject to a massive troll attack that culminated in a “joke” DM from “@alt_FDA” threatening to sexually assault my mother. Twitter decided that wasn’t in violation of their policies. A bunch of haggard bureaucrats don’t need an army of low-follow troll bots to defend their activities. It would seem something else is going on here, and Twitter and the media would be wise to take a stand on whether this kind of activity is desirable. (I know, they’re “funny” and “interesting.” Please stop being naïve. Thanks.)
And I was reminded of this because I was looking at the accounts followed by would-be Annapolis nuclear spy Diana Toebbe, and around 40% of them were these Alt/Rogue accounts. That alone means nothing, but it does suggest at least one person fueled by alienation was attracted to them. I will confess to following them myself; until they started talking about assaulting my mother.
Don’t call it a Civil War. Call it World War III. While Marjorie Taylor Greene is talking about “getting a national divorce,” it’s worth remembering that Gen. Charles Flynn, brother of Gen. Michael Flynn who helped cause January 6th, is head of the US Army’s command in the Pacific. Graham Allison has previously warned that it’s bad faith and missteps that are likely to spark a conflict with China. Takeaway: let’s not fool ourselves into thinking that the conflicts we’re facing are unique to America or are confined to our borders. The same kind of insanity is brewing all around the world and we have some unstable people in important places who could unleash a hellish future within days. Meanwhile, Rod of Iron Ministries, run by Moon cult heir and weapons manufacturer Sean Moon, is moving to Tennessee to setup a massive new cult compound. Trump is telling Republicans not to vote in 2022 and 2024… raising the question, what’s the alternative? And the John Birch Society is back — pushing against masks in Tennessee.
Attack on school boards continues. A massive, astroturfed campaign against the country’s local school boards has been underway for several months now, and is escalating. I won’t pretend to know all the details of it, but this thread by Jennifer Cohn gets at the key issues. Coordinated by the Council for National Policy and Turning Point USA, it’s the same anarchocapitalists we have been tracking. Now they’re falsely claiming the DOJ has authorized spying on “protestors.” This is all tied to the “Critical Race Theory” red herring, which Bannon et al are amplifying to great effect, including in the red-hot Virginia Governor’s race, just weeks away.
California is a target. I’m hearing from researchers and activists in both Los Angeles and San Francisco about a bunch of nasty activity that seems to be coordinated. Susan D. Reynolds is waging a series of attacks on San Francisco DA Chesa Boudin. A bunch of other people connected to the Newsom recall effort seem to be coordinating and attacking people in SF and LA. If I sound a bit fuzzy on this, it’s because I am. I’m hoping to get a better idea of the bigger picture on this for next time, but in the meantime I’m seeing Michael Shellenberger pushing his new book, “San Fransicko,” which strikes me as a bad faith attack on progressivism. I’ve witnessed several rounds of this in my own city, Baltimore, and while there is ample room for deep critique of American local governance, there is little to no evidence that anarchocapitalism is a viable solution. But, Americans will always try simple, wrong solutions before dealing with the hard work in front of them.
What May Happen Next
The dollar is very much at risk. While we sashay towards December 3, look for signs that McConnell and friends will or will not persist and go nuclear. At this point, it could go either way.
In the meantime, I’d expect a growing number of voices to start embracing cryptocurrencies and NFT’s. It’s worth noting that only a cultish society can support the shared delusions necessary to convince a sufficient number of people that such things have value, so it is no surprise that we are seeing an accompanying increase in cultish behaviors. A good way to reverse cultishness would be to eliminate the incentives under cryptocurrencies.
We’ll see if the January 6th Committee has any real power. If it fails to bring people to justice, expect an acceleration in desperation and in perception warping towards disillusionment.
Boy, there’s plenty more I could share… but we’re aiming here to boil down to essential themes. So I’ll spare you Ron Watkins running for Congress and many of the other circus acts. And we’ll be back soon with more of what matters most.
We’re interested in the major historical trends that shape current events. Tips? Ideas? Drop us a line via email or Twitter DM. Please note: this analysis is historical and political in nature; it is not intended as financial advice and should not be taken as such.
For an even deeper dive, check out my series, The Big History Behind January 6th.
