Was a little under the weather yesterday and missed a couple key items, hopefully will catch up today
Initial review of the past year -
Who could have imagined this year would have turned into such a dumpster fire.
One year ago, the House impeached President Trump.
One year ago, the wuhan virus epidemic started creating issues in China. I personally started tracking reports in December with confirmed reports post #123 (Jan 19).
I’m also looking at the Priority Intelligence (Post #5) I started out tracking at the first of the year and summarize how things panned out - as well as the significant changes over the course of the year.
Wuhan Virus -
Moderna’s wuhan vaccine became the second in the US approved for emergency use. Distribution is expected over the weekend with first shots starting on Monday.
The Department of Health and Human Services says U.S. states reporting cutbacks in their Pfizer Covid vaccine allocations have confused initial numbers provided last month with the actual allotments. States recently were complaining about ‘cut’ in the number of vaccines to be delivered.
For another cure is worse than the disease outlook, Drug overdose deaths have substantially increased in the U.S., and set a new record for fatalities in the year ending in May, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced.
The CDC’s Health Alert Network released a report Thursday saying 81,230 drug overdose deaths occurred during that time starting in June 2019.
Economy -
Congress passes a couple day extension, temporally avoiding a partial government shut down.
Current reviews of the pandemic rescue package have provisions that would give Americans stimulus checks of up to $600-$700 per individual, for single income up to $75K. Some are saying that isn’t enough. Other differences include loans and who those loans would go to.
2020 Election-
More legal wrangling. Apparently a couple of Powell’s cases have hit the USSC, but Roberts is slow walking the process, not requiring states to respond until Jan 14th.
Overnight, President Trump tweeted for support for a Jan 6 rally in DC. “Be there, it will be wild”.
Key dates - House of Representatives officially counts electoral votes on Jan. 6. Inauguration is Jan 20.
CW2/Civil Disturbances -
As noted yesterday, Antifa attempted to create a new“CHAZ” in Seattle, building barricades around Cal Anderson Park. They were trying to prevent the police and the city from clearing out the park that they and the homeless had been occupying. Yesterday, police moved in with numbers that overwhelmed the Antifa, arresting 21 and chasing the rest down the street. Antifa had also taken over a “Yellow House” (wanting to create a YHAZ), but SWAT raided it.
MY OBSERVATION - Unlike Portland that capitulated, Seattle showed a little more backbone and BLM/Antifa was lax in their support/logistics to defend the site, possibly thinking that Seattle would buckle like Portland. I also think that Antifa gets more support when attacking the government versus defending homeless. Not as glamorous.
May need to make a new category, but Schumer and Pelosi are pushing for the declaration of a climate “emergency”, most likely designed to parallel the current ‘emergencies’ associated with Wuhan virus to allow a biden presidency (as well as blue state governors) to by pass legislative branches and issue edicts to change regulations and make new “laws” to force aspects of the ‘green new deal’ on Americans. Such heavy handedness will likely see push back in states already tired of tyrannical governors to red states that will flat out reject such demands. This will serve to further widen the gap between conservatives and progressive/marxists.
Cyber Warfare -
The attack against the US wasn’t limited to the US. Microsoft announced that customers in Canada, Mexico, Belgium, Spain and the UK, Israel and UAE were also targeted. Meanwhile, US officials are still assessing the depth and breath of the attack that started as early as March.
China -
President Trump on Friday signed legislation that would kick Chinese companies off U.S. stock exchanges unless they adhere to American auditing standards, the White House said, giving the Republican one more tool to threaten Beijing with before leaving office next month. “The Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act” bars securities of foreign companies from being listed on any U.S. exchange if they have failed to comply with the U.S. Public Accounting Oversight Board’s audits for three years in a row. Legislation initially targets Chinese companies listed in the United States, such as Alibaba, tech firm Pinduoduo and oil giant PetroChina. Chinese authorities have long been reluctant to let overseas regulators inspect local accounting firms, citing national security concerns.
Russia -
Under there microscope due to the cyberattack believed to have originated there with government support.
Will the world see the Light next week, or willingly turn to deeper darkness?
Wuhan Virus -
Advocate Condell Medical Center, Libertyville IL, stopped wuhan vaccinations when 4 of the medical staff started having adverse reactions to the vaccine. FDA is now investigating other reactions in Alaska.
A new strain of the wuhan virus is capable of spreading faster and easier than earlier ones. Currently in Britain, but now showing signs of being in other countries (South Africa). PM Johnson has imposed a full lockdown on London and Southeast England as a result. Italy has imposed a new lockdown as well. The Netherlands and Belgium on Sunday banned flights from the U.K. and Germany considered limiting such flights in attempt to ensure that a new strain of coronavirus sweeping across southern England does not establish a strong foothold on the continent.
Unknown if the current ‘vaccines’ will have an effect on this new strain.
All San Diego County restaurants can now reopen for on-site dining after a California judge’s ruling. Civil disobedience and resistance to tyrannical lockdown/shutdown restrictions continue to gain momentum across the nation.
Economy -
Meat packers across North America are bracing for a resurgence of coronavirus cases, trying to avoid the shutdowns that left supermarket shelves empty earlier in the pandemic. Since the wuhan hit, meat packers have adjusted and created more resilient systems to meet demands. If the packers get hit hard, we will see if this claim is true.
It appears the Senate has reached an agreement on a $900 Billion simulus after coming to some sort of agreement on how the Fed can use the CARE Act on their own. It sounds like that now the Fed needs congressional approval to continue market driving corporate bond buying in 2021.
2020 Election-
Key dates - House of Representatives officially counts electoral votes on Jan. 6. Inauguration is Jan 20.
There is a growing number of Senators readying to challenge the Electoral College, in opposition to McConnell’s edict not to.
With all the talk about using martial law to force either recounts or re-voting in swing stated, the DoD issued a statement saying that they will not be involved in any such operation - that doing so would be extra constitutional. In part that is true, about the only way they would be involved in something is the institution of the Insurrection Act, but even then much of their involvement would be limited.
An option being floated is the declaration of a national emergency (possibly bolstered by the recent discovery of a massive cyberattack) stating the election was corrupted and the president taking very active steps to arrest/confescate election officials and materials. That would trigger a violent response by the left (courts will try to delay, but the ball would be rolling) and the Insurrection Act could come into play. However, as when BLM/Antifa rioters threatened to storm the WH and the DoD was openly reluctant to defend the WH under the act, there may be serious challenges by the military leadership. That may cause some serious issues among the ranks.
Maricopa County AZ refuses to turn over Dominion machines under subpoena, setting up further legal battles.
CW2/Civil Disturbances -
10 years ago the “arab spring” uprisings began, throwing much of the middle east into greater turmoil, much of which is still reverberating today. Those on the left here in America threatened their version if Trump won a second term. Those discussions have ceased with the election steal of Biden (unless lightning strikes soon to turn the events around). Now there are those on the right starting to talk about a patriot version of the “spring” should biden get placed into the WH.
Cyber Warfare -
Assessments of the latest hack are ongoing, but the penetration is deep. New concerns whether the controls for the electrical grid were hit as well.
China -
Naval group lead by China’s newest aircraft carrier, the Shandong, passed through the Taiwan Strait, triggering Tiawanese military to deploy aircraft and naval vessels during the transit. China has increased activity, mostly using military aircraft, in the straits, over the past year, increasing tensions in the region.
Taiwan -
Taiwan’s staging of a live-fire drill in the Pratas Islands on Sunday has highlighted the chain’s strategic importance and potential to be a flashpoint in the South China Sea, analysts said. According to Taiwan’s Coast Guard Administration, which 20 years ago took over the Taiwanese military’s role of safeguarding the islands, the exercise is part of its annual training program there, and will consist of two live-fire drills, one on Sunday and the other seven days later. In May, Japan’s Kyodo News reported that the PLA was planning to conduct a large-scale training exercise on the southern Chinese island of Hainan in August that would include simulating taking the Pratas islets. “In capturing the Pratas Islands, China could kill several birds with one stone,” he said. “For instance, success could serve to consolidate [Chinese President] Xi’s grip on the Chinese Communist Party. As such, the [Pratas] is a potential flashpoint that now needs to come to the attention of the US, Japan and other democratic countries.”
Israel -
If no budget is passed in the next couple days, new elections will automatically be triggered.