Free Republic

[…]Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC), tie the financial freedom of citizens to the government and the banking establishment. The central bank issues its centralized digital currencies, and essentially creates a new monetary system, "fiat on steroids", a system that takes everything that is bad in the fiat system, and adds more of it; surveillance, control, censorship, and enforcement capabilities. A modern prison? Indeed, the CBDC is the ultimate prototype of a prison without physical chains. By connecting CBDCs to digital identity cards, and to government systems such as universal basic income, social credits and more, we get the ultimate control...

The gas-powered Dodge Charger isn't dead yet. While the V-8 may be gone, Dodge will continue to offer the Charger will an internal combustion engine alongside the two new electric variants revealed today. At the top of the internal combustion food chain sits the Dodge Charger Sixpack H.O. It's powered by Stellantis's 3.0-liter twin-turbo Hurricane straight-six engine, rated at 550 horsepower. There's also a Sixpack S.O. version rated at 420 horsepower. "The Hurricane engine-powered Dodge Charger Sixpack models will give the Brotherhood of Muscle a gas option that produces better horsepower and torque numbers than the outgoing 5.7 and 6.4-liter...

I was asked a lot of questions by people on FR about what BTC is or ways to learn more about it. I have provided the Source URL above for such a video. Michael Sailor gave slide briefing that essentially started out covering the tope of Money over the past and into the future. Fiat Currencies of the US have depriciated by 7% per year for the past 100 years. 100 years from now a million dollars in a safe will have a purchasing power of only $977, if you put it in the S&P 500, it would still be...

“Ohio-based coin shop owner took to social media this week to inform the world that his regional bank, where he has been a customer in good standing for many years, shut down all six of his business and personal bank accounts…”

A Texas judge ruled Friday the state’s abortion ban has proven too restrictive for women with serious pregnancy complications and must allow exceptions without doctors fearing the threat of criminal charges. The ruling is the first to undercut Texas’ law since it took effect in 2022 and delivers a major victory to abortion rights supporters, who see the case as a potential blueprint to weaken restrictions elsewhere that Republican-led states have rushed to implement. *** “This is exactly why we did this. This is why we put ourselves through the pain and the trauma over and over again to share...

he governments of Brazil and Argentina will announce next week preparations to launch a common currency project that could turn the two countries, South America's two largest economies, into the world's second largest currency bloc. The initial intention is that this new currency -- whose name, Brazil proposes, will be "the South" -- will boost regional trade and reduce the impact of the dollar. In principle, both countries envisage a period of simultaneous trade with the Brazilian real and the Argentine peso. "We will announce the decision to start studying the necessary parameters for a common currency, which includes everything...

Total new vehicle sales in September dropped to 1.01 million vehicles, down 37% from 1.6 million vehicles in March, when there were still enough new vehicles to sell. The industry-standard Seasonally Adjusted Annual Rate (SAAR) of sales – which adjusts for the number of selling days per month and for seasonal factors, and converts the monthly sales into what sales would be for an entire year – plunged for the fifth month in a row, by 29% year-over-year, to 12.2 million units SAAR, the lowest, outside of the two lockdown months, since June 2011 ,according to data from the Bureau...

President Biden's top national security and economic advisers are trying to address a critical supply crunch that is slowing U.S. automobile manufacturing and threatens other sectors, including national security, according to experts. National security adviser Jake Sullivan, National Economic Council director Brian Deese, and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimodo will meet with executives from 19 companies to discuss growing shortage of semiconductors, a key component of many computerized electronics. The shortage touches nearly every industry, but U.S. auto makers have been especially hit hard. General Motors, Ford and Stellantis (formed by a merger involving Fiat Chrysler) have all temporarily closed down...

The carmaker is implementing an “asset-light” strategy in the country because of concerns that rising political tensions could lead to sanctions in a conflict between China and the rest of the world... The CEO’s candid comments offer an explanation for Stellantis’s announcement last week it’s leaving a 12-year manufacturing partnership with state-owned Guangzhou Automobile Group. The exit raises uncomfortable questions about what the future may hold for foreign manufacturers in China. The war in Ukraine has disrupted supply chains in Europe, and the lengthening list of sanctions targeting Russia is a grim reminder of what could happen if China were...

Stellantis is closing its assembly plant in Belvidere, Illinois, in February 2023. The Illinois plant employs about 1,350 workers, who are expected to be laid off. Stellantis cited the rising costs of electric vehicle production for the closure. The company said the replacement of the Jeep Cherokee SUV, along with other vehicles on a new electrified platform, will be produced in Toluca, Mexico. Stellantis has said it will invest over $31.6 billion through 2025 on electrifying its vehicle lineup. It also has said it expects EVs to make up 100 percent of its sales in Europe and 50 percent in...

Multinational automaker Stellantis is indefinitely closing an assembly plant in Illinois in February and laying off hundreds of workers, in large part due to the high cost of making electric vehicles. Stellantis noted in a statement emailed to FOX Business on Friday that the industry had been adversely affected by factors including the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the global microchip shortage and the increasing cost related to the electrification of the automotive market, which it said was the most impactful. There are about 1,350 workers at the Belvedere plant, which produces the Jeep Cherokee. Stellantis reportedly told The Associated Press that...

Multinational automaker Stellantis, which formed last year in a merger between Italian-American conglomerate Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and the French PSA Group, is shuttering a plant in Illinois that produces the Jeep Cherokee. The company dropped a statement for local media: Our industry has been adversely affected by a multitude of factors like the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the global microchip shortage, but the most impactful challenge is the increasing cost related to the electrification of the automotive market. Stellantis has taken a number of actions to stabilize production and improve efficiency at its North American facilities to preserve affordability and...

DETROIT – Stellantis said Friday that it plans to indefinitely idle a Jeep plant in Illinois, starting early next year, to cut costs as it invests in electric vehicles. The transatlantic automaker, formerly known as Fiat Chrysler, said the plant will cease production as of Feb. 28. The more than 1,200 workers at the facility, which produces Jeep Cherokee SUVs, will be placed on indefinite layoffs, the company said. “Our industry has been adversely affected by a multitude of factors like the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the global microchip shortage, but the most impactful challenge is the increasing cost related...

Almost 20,000 2017-18 models are being recalled following several fires. Chrysler's parent company, Stellantis, is recalling 19,808 Pacifica Hybrid minivans due to a potential fire risk. Only 2017-18 models are affected, with the recall coming after an internal investigation found 12 fires occurred with Pacifica Hybrids in those model years. All of those 12 fires happened when the vehicles were parked and turned off, with 8 of them charging as well. Fortunately Stellantis is not aware of any injuries or accidents as a result of the fires, but they are urging all owners not to charge their Pacificas and to...

Stellantis’ mysterious concept EV now has a name, and it’s called the Airflow. Revealed during the brand’s EV Day earlier this summer, the Chrysler crossover concept looks to be sized relative to the Tesla Model Y and Ford Mustang Mach-E, with familiar nods to late Chrysler-branded products. Digital rendering of the Chrysler Airflow EV concept on display.Photo: Stellantis ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This EV concept is part of Stellantis’ roadmap it plans to reveal at the 2022 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) on January 5 in Las Vegas, what Stellantis is calling it’s “transformation to clean mobility and seamlessly connected customer experiences.” The Airflow...

WASHINGTON—Roughly half of all cars and light trucks sold in the U.S. by 2030 would be electric, hydrogen-fuel cell and plug-in hybrid vehicles under voluntary targets set to be announced Thursday by the Biden administration and backed by auto makers, contingent on government support. In a joint statement, General Motors Co. , Ford Motor Co. , and Chrysler maker Stellantis NV said their commitment hinges on federal funding for manufacturing and supply-chain research and development, purchase incentives and an EV-charging network. The auto makers said the voluntary targets for EV sales “can be achieved only with the timely deployment of...

Based on either the Charger or Challenger, the last of seven limited editions was planned for the SEMA show in November, but supply-chain problems pushed that date back. ==================================================================== ** Dodge has revealed six out of the seven "Last Call" send-offs for the Charger and Challenger, but has now announced the final debut has been pushed back. ** Dodge cited "product and supply challenges" and said the reveal will be rescheduled. ** We’re not sure what form this Last Call model will take, but we can be fairly certain that it will be powered by a V-8 with at least...

Dodge has announced a “last call” for its Charger and Challenger models, as the company is “celebrating the end of an era” and switching to electric vehicles — whether their customers want them or not. “The Dodge Charger and Dodge Challenger, in current form, are coming to an end,” announced Dodge’s parent company Stellantis on Monday. The company added that it plans to release the look of its final 2023 Charger and Challenger models, which will come with a commemorative “Last Call” underhood plaque.

Sean Nemeth, the owner of a plug-in hybrid Chrysler Pacifica, was perplexed when earlier this year he received a rather surprising recall notice, advising him to park his vehicle outside and away from structures. The notice informed him that his particular model is at risk of catching fire—even while stationary and turned off—and the cause is still unknown. “What am I supposed to do with it then?” said Mr. Nemeth, recalling his reaction at the time. He eventually decided to park it across the street from his house in a low-traffic cul-de-sac. His predicament has become more commonplace in recent...

VIDEO AT LINK ................ Ram has released a new video teaser of its upcoming all-electric Ram 1500 pickup truck, which is scheduled to enter the market in 2024. The new video is entitled "Ram Revolution | First Look" and shows the front of the vehicle, with a futuristic shape and an interesting LED headlight. It's very similar to the two images that we saw in March. The tweet version includes info that suggests the presentation of the vehicle in Fall 2022: "Time to steal some thunder. Unleashing Fall 2022. https://RamRevolution.com" At this point, we don't know whether it's a concept...