THIS WEEK IN REVIEW

Portugal: Promises mean nothing in the financial world. When the Novo Bank became bankrupt, instead of letting it fail like any other mismanaged business, the government allowed it to simply declare its bonds to be null and void. Those who thought banks could be trusted and that governments would enforce contracts, simply had their investments legally stolen. The government claimed that it was against the bank’s decision but did nothing to stop it or punish the thieves who are, after all, their partners. ZeroHedge 2016 Jan 15 (Story) (Cached)

The British government is assisting the Saudis in their attacks in Yemen. Adel al-Jubeir, the Saudi foreign minister, says that British officers are in Saudi operation control rooms. He said, “I know they are aware of the target lists.” The US State Department has approved the sale of $1.29 billion worth of weaponry to Saudi Arabia to continue the air strikes in Yemen. InfoWars 2016 Jan 15 (Story) (Cached)

The UK is facing a multi-billion dollar lawsuit by a group called The Campaign Against the Arms Trade for selling arms to the Saudis. The British have admitted that its military advises the Saudi forces but that it runs a “quick check” to make sure that there are no humanitarian violations in the attacks on Yemen. The facts are that more than 6,000 people have been killed in Yemen by Saudi attacks in less than a year, and at least half of them were civilians. Even hospitals have been bombed in spite of the fact that the Saudis were given the coordinates of their exact locations. RT 2016 Jan 13 (Story)

US: 46 states sold tickets for the $1.58 billion powerball lottery, with promises that the proceeds would go to schools and education. However, in nineteen states, the money goes into the general fund. The claim about helping education is totally false. CBS News 2016 Jan 14 (Story)

Seven people are dead after a series of explosions and gunfire near a shopping mall in Jakarta. The identity of the attackers is not known. [But something is strange. Look closely at the video clip showing the explosion near Starbucks and you will see a man seated on the ground. He is very close to the explosion in the bushes but does not even flinch when it occurs. There is a plume of smoke but no evidence of destruction. We don’t know what this means, but are inclined to think that this explosion may have been from a large firecracker rather than a bomb, and that the man could have been the one who set it off. What do you think?] ABC News 2016 Jan 14 (Story)

Turkey: Ten German tourists are killed and others injured by a suicide bomber in Istanbul’s Sultanahmet Square. No terrorist groups have boasted responsibility for the attack, but Western media is reporting that it was done by ISIS. It is in the best interest of the Turkish government to blame ISIS because that provides an excuse to raid Syria and Iraq, the PKK. CNN 2016 Jan 14 (Story)

Turkey’s military is claiming that it killed nearly 200 ISIS soldiers in Iraq and Syria in the past 48 hours. PBS Newshour 2016 Jan 14 (Story)

Oregon: The armed protest at the Malhuer Wildlife Center took an unexpected turn when the local Fire Marshall Chris Briels resigned his office and joined the protestors. Briels revealed that FBI agents, not only were pretending to be militia, but were harassing local residents apparently to generate community sentiment against the protest. Next News Network 2016 Jan 14 (Story)

The Baltic Dry Index tracks rates for ships carrying industrial commodities between countries, and it slumped to an all-time low this week. That’s because the demand for shipping has fallen off the charts. The significance of this is that consumer demand and production are at all-time lows, which is another way of saying the global economy is in depression even though politicians and media pundits refuse to say it. Reuters 2016 Jan 13 (Story) (Cached)

The global bond bubble has grown by more than $20 trillion since 2008. Today it is larger than $100 trillion, with an additional $555 trillion in derivatives trading on top of that. $555 trillion is more than seven times global GDP and more than ten times the Credit Default Swap market that triggered the 2008 financial crisis. [There is no way this can end well.] ZeroHedge 2016 Jan 13 (Story) (Cached)

Iran freed ten US sailors one day after detaining them aboard two US Navy patrol boats in the Gulf, bringing a swift end to an incident that rattled nerves just before the expected implementation of a landmark nuclear agreement. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it released the sailors after determining they had entered Iranian territorial waters by mistake. Reuters 2016 Jan 13 (Story)

US: The White House is blocking an investigation into hundreds of suspected terrorists in the country illegally. PrisonPlanet 2016 Jan 12 (Story) (Cached)

Arab and North African migrants have imported a rape game into Europe called Taharrush Gamea. The object of the game is to perform rapes in the middle of crowded events by encircling the rapist and his victim to conceal the act from bystanders. Then the group quickly disperses, including the rapist. RT 2016 Jan 12 (Story)

Texas: An Iraqi refugee, Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan, was granted residence in the US under Obama’s immigration policies in 2011 when he was 17. He was arrested recently on charges of supporting ISIS. He had trained with machine guns before coming to the US. Judicial Watch 2016 Jan 12 (Story) (Cached)

A video from a German school shows Muslim migrant teens speaking about how they find Germans “disgusting” and that the country would be better off if they all disappeared. Even after supposedly “integrating” into society, many immigrants still harbor deep animosity toward the host population. D. Taggart 2016 Jan 11 (Story)

Arizona State Senator, John Kavanagh, has introduced a bill that would make it illegal to film police without their permission. Free Thought Project 2016 Jan 11 (Story) (Cached)

Iraq: The US dropped two 2,000-pound bombs on a financial building in the city of Mosul. The stated purpose was to destroy several millions in cash that was controlled by ISIS. The media is saying that this proves a stronger US stance against ISIS, but we cannot ignore the fact that several million dollars is a mere token compared to the many millions per day that are derived from oil sales and financial support from America’s allies, the Saudis and the Turks. [The suspicion lingers that this bombing may be for show. In fact, there is no confirmation that the money was destroyed or even that it was there in the first place.] CNN 2016 Jan 11 (Story)

Yemen: Four people were killed when a hospital run by Doctors Without Borders was bombed for the third time in three months. The Saudis and their coalition forces have been dropping bombs in the middle of the city with disregard for civilians. A total of 2,795 civilians have died since the Saudis entered Yemen to fight the Houthis that are allies of Iran. Humanosphere 2016 Jan 11 (Story) (Cached)

Cologne, Germany: The number of women who have come forward to report attacks during a New Years celebration has risen to over 516. 40% of the complaints were for sexual assault. Over 100 more cases were reported in Hamburg and Stuttgart. Officials say the attacks appeared to be planned. Anti-immigration protesters were hit with water cannons and tear gas over the weekend. France24 2016 Jan 11 (Story)

Mexican actress, Kate Del Castillo, helped to arrange a secret meeting between actor, Sean Penn, and fugitive drug lord El Chapo Guzman Loera. Mexican officials say that digital communications between these parties were what made it possible to track and then capture El Chapo last week following a fierce gun battle. Breitbart 2016 Jan 10 (Story) (Cached)

Five employees of a bookstore in Hong Kong that sells books critical of the Chinese government are missing. There is no doubt in the minds of the population that they are victims of the Chinese government. Hong Kong is powerless to do anything about it, and the people can do nothing but protest. CBS News 2016 Jan 10 (Story)

California assemblyman, Travis Allen, has introduced a bill that would punish companies that boycott Israel in protest of its occupation of Palestine. JPost/ Mintpress News posted 2016 Jan 10 (Story) (Cached)

A recent survey reveals that 80% of cannabis users eventually give up prescription medications and alcohol in favor of pot. The pharmaceutical and alcohol industries are losing revenue because of it and are trying to stop the current trend for cannabis legalization. True Activist 2016 Jan 10 (Story) (Cached)