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ANALYSIS

News and commentaries that reveal historical facts and trends that place current events into perspective and make it possible to anticipate future events.

 

Pope Francis said in a meeting with Jewish leaders that to attack Jews is anti-Semitism, and that to attack the State of Israel also is anti-Semitism. Earlier this year, a Portuguese Israeli reporter quoted Pope Francis as saying, “Whoever does not recognize the Jewish people and the State of Israel is guilty of anti-Semitism.” [It is not clear what the Pope meant by the word “attack” but it is apparent from the context of his remarks that he defines harsh criticism of Jewish political leaders or their policies as an attack.] Newsweek 2015 Oct 29 (Story) (Cached)

Peter Mooslechner, the executive director for Austria’s central bank, said that central banks in Asia are increasing their reserves so they can intervene in markets and, thereby, control market prices. [This is significant at three levels: (1) Market-price manipulation is what we can expect from the growing reserves in China’s central bank, (2) central-bank intervention in market prices is an accepted global practice, and (3) there is no reason to believe that the Federal Reserve, which is the pace-setter for all central banks, would refrain from this practice. In other words, it is further confirmation of the assertion that the Fed is at the center of manipulating US market prices in gold, the stock market, and real estate.] GATA 2015 Oct 29 (Story) (Cached)

Americans are dependent on the profitability of an estimated $8.4 trillion in pensions and retirement funds. The Obama administration now is encouraging fund managers, not to generate maximum retirement revenue, but to invest in less profitable or even in failing green-energy producers instead of fossil-fuel energy producers. They are calling this socially-responsible investing to attract popular support, but the consequences are anything but socially responsible. They include giving politically derived economic advantage to companies that heavily donate to the Obama administration, lowering the living standard for those on retirement pensions, greatly increasing the cost of electrical energy, and allowing managers of corporate or union pension funds to manipulate investments to pursue political objectives. IB Times 2015 Oct 27 (Story) (Cached)