Powell announces new Fed approach to inflation that could keep rates lower for longer
NBC – The Federal Reserve announced a major policy shift Thursday, saying that it is willing to allow inflation to run hotter than normal in order to support the labor market and broader economy.
In a move that Chairman Jerome Powell called a “robust updating” of Fed policy, the central bank formally agreed to a policy of “average inflation targeting.” That means it will allow inflation to run “moderately” above the Fed’s 2% goal “for some time” following periods when it has run below that objective.
The changes were codified in a policy blueprint called the “Statement on Longer-Run Goals and Monetary Policy Strategy,” first adopted in 2012, that has informed the Fed’s approach to interest rates and general economic growth.
As a practical matter, the move means the Fed will be less inclined to hike interest rates when the unemployment rate falls, so long as inflation does not creep up as well. Central bank officials traditionally have believed that low unemployment leads to dangerously higher levels of inflation, and they’ve moved preemptively to head it off.
However, a speech Powell delivered to a virtual gathering of the Fed’s annual Jackson Hole, Wyoming, symposium, and accompanying documents that codified the new policy, signaled a shift away from the old thinking. The policymaking Federal Open Market Commitee approved the changes unanimously.
“Many find it counterintuitive that the Fed would want to push up inflation,” Powell said in prepared remarks. “However, inflation that is persistently too low can pose serious risks to the economy.”
The chairman’s speech began two minutes before the scheduled 9:10 a.m. ET embargoed release that financial markets had been expecting. His remarks did not initially draw a strong reaction, but stock market futures later moved higher and major averages rose in morning trade.
Powell noted that the interest rate level that neither constrains nor pushes growth has fallen considerably over the years and is likely to stay there.
He contrasted the current situation to what the Fed faced 40 years ago, when then-Chairman Paul Volcker ushered through a controversial series of rate hikes that sought to tamp down inflation. Over the years, fundamental changes in the economy, such as demographics and technology, have shifted the Fed’s focus to inflation that has run too low.
The situation, Powell said, “can lead to an unwelcome fall in longer-term inflation expectations, which, in turn, can pull actual inflation even lower, resulting in an adverse cycle of ever-lower inflation and inflation expectations.” Policymakers, consequently, are left with little room to lower rates during times of economic stress.
Since the end of the financial crisis, the Fed has struggled to hit its 2% inflation target. Officials hope that the new approach will change the landscape, raising expectations and allowing inflation to float higher as rates remain low.
While Powell did not specify how much higher he’d like to see inflation run, Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan later in the day told CNBC that he would be content with a range around 2.25%-2.5%.
“Right now, to put it in context, we have an unemployment rate that’s well above 10%,” said Kathy Jones, head of fixed income at Charles Schwab. “The chances of seeing significant inflation anytime soon are quite slim. With or without this policy change, the Fed was going to be at zero for a couple of years.”
PRECIOUS METALS BETTER INVESTMENTS: Uncle Sam Cuts Interest Payments To Bondholders
SRSROCCO Report – At some point, Americans are going to have to wake up. With the Fed funds rate set at 0.25, Americans can no longer earn any interest with their money in the bank. I just checked the average interest rates paid on a five-year CD is a whopping 0.36% while a Money Market Account pays a hefty 0.11%. Talk about what a losing game that is when the real inflation is running at 7-13% per year.
So, if money, or let’s correctly use the term “currency,” is a losing proposition, then why aren’t more Americans acquiring precious metals? Well, actually a few are, but in paper form. There has been a record movement of funds into the Gold and Silver ETFs over the past several months. However, that really isn’t a safe investment as it’s hard to know if the custodians of the ETFs hold all the metal they say, or if it is over-subscribed.
According to GoldChartsRUs.com, there is supposedly 42 million oz (Moz) of gold held in the vaults backing the GLD ETF and 566 Moz in the SLV ETF. Again, no one knows for sure how much of the metal is stored in the GLD & SLV inventories. Worse yet, some metal may have more than one owner.
Regardless, if we look at the following chart, Americans need to start waking up. With the U.S. Debt now $4.5 trillion higher than it was a year ago, the interest expense Uncle Sam paid to Bond Holders is $61 billion less. That’s correct. Even though the U.S. public debt has ballooned to $26.5 trillion (July 31st, 2020) versus $22.0 trillion (July 31st, 2019), Uncle Sam only paid $436 million in interest expense in the first ten months of the fiscal year (Oct-July).
Japanese PM Abe says he’s resigning over resurfacing of chronic illness
Fox – Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced his plans to resign in a news conference Friday due to a chronic illness that has resurfaced.
He called the decision “gut-wrenching.”
Concerns about Abe’s health have swirled since early summer and grew in the last two weeks when he made two visits to a Tokyo hospital.
Abe, 65, has said he suffers from ulcerative colitis had it under control with treatment.
He said Friday he’s on a new treatment that requires IV injections and while there is some improvement, there’s no guarantee it will cure his condition. He made the decision to step down after treatment Monday.
Abe’s term ends in September 2021 and he is expected to stay on until a replacement is elected and approved by parliament.
There are a slew of politicians eager to replace Abe.
Medical examiner: George Floyd had ‘fatal level of fentanyl’ in his system, but is ‘not saying this killed him’
Fox – New court documents filed this week in the case against four Minneapolis police officers charged in the death of George Floyd provide new context to how he died.
A memorandum filed by the Hennepin County Attorney’s office on June 1 indicated that chief medical examiner Dr. Andrew Baker, who listed Floyd’s death as a homicide, thought the amount of fentanyl in Floyd’s blood was “pretty high” and could be “a fatal level of fentanyl under normal circumstances.”
“[Dr. Baker] said that if Mr. Floyd had been found dead in his home (or anywhere else) and there were no other contributing factors he would conclude that it was an overdose death,” the memo said.
According to another memo on June 1, Dr. Baker told investigators that while Floyd had a high amount of fentanyl in his system, he was “not saying this killed him.”
Former New York City chief medical examiner Dr. Michael Baden, who performed an autopsy for Floyd’s family that also determined his death was a homicide, explained that the amount of fentanyl that was in Floyd’s system can have vastly different effects on different people.
“Like all narcotics, there’s a wide range of what’s lethal or not, because it all depends on the tolerance of the individual from whom the blood has been drawn,” Baden, a Fox News contributor, said Thursday. “So clearly, that could be fatal to some people, not necessarily for others. But the circumstances of death are very important, especially in this case.”
Baker listed in his autopsy that Floyd’s death was the result of a “cardiopulmonary arrest complicating law enforcement subdual, restraint, and neck compression.” Other significant conditions were listed as “arteriosclerotic and hypertensive heart disease; fentanyl intoxication; recent methamphetamine use.”
A federal evaluation performed by the Office of the Armed Forces medical examiner agreed with Baker’s findings that Floyd’s heart stopped while cops were restraining him.
“His death was caused by the police subdual and restraint in the setting of severe hypertensive atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, and methamphetamine and fentanyl intoxication,” officials from the Office of the Armed Forces Medical Examiner wrote. “The subdual and restraint had elements of positional and mechanical asphyxiation. … We concur with the reported manner of death of homicide.”
NFL Legend Brian Urlacher Mocks NBA For Boycotting Over Sex Offender, Supports Kyle Rittenhouse
National File – Former National Football League star Brian Urlacher has incurred the wrath of corporate media for posting unfashionable opinions on his Instagram account.
On Thursday, Urlacher made a post that mocked NBA players who threatened to boycott the remainder of the season – which has received terrible ratings and been trounced in primetime by cable news host Tucker Carlson – in solidarity with felon Jacob Blake, who was shot by police after resisting arrest and attempting to get into his vehicle, where a knife lay on the floor.
“Brett Favre played the MNF game the day his dad died, threw four TDs in the first half, and was a legend for playing in the face of adversity,” Urlacher’s post read.
“NBA players boycott the playoffs because a dude reaching for a knife, wanted on a felony sexual assault warrant, was shot by police.”
Urlacher also liked a post in support of 17-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse, who has been charged with first degree homicide after reportedly shooting three Black Lives Matter rioters who attacked him amidst ongoing looting and arson in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Urlacher was immediately set upon by the corporate media, and the post disappeared from his Instagram.It remains to be seen if Urlacher will be pressured into apologizing for his factual statements on the platform.
Public displays of support for Rittenhouse, despite the video evidence that indicates he acted in self defense, have repeatedly not been treated as free speech by media and big tech platforms.
AFTER HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS RALLY AGAINST PANDEMIC MEASURES, BERLIN BANS COVID PROTESTS
Waking Times – Earlier this we reported on a major protest in Berlin against Covid-19 mandates, which many feel are infringing upon basic civil rights. Mainstream media reports had the number of participants pegged at around 20,000, while independent sources said the number was easily over one million, potentially up to 1.3 million.
Furthermore, the mainstream media news coverage of the event went out of the way to demonize and pigeon hole all of the participants as ‘far-right’ extremists and such, effectively demonizing them. Photos and first-hand accounts of the event show people from all walks of life, however, all coming together to end the lockdown, the Draconian mandates, and get back to work.
Several more protests have been planned, however, Berlin just decided to ban protests and events which speak out against the CV-19 measures.
“In further developments, organizers canceled plans for a large concert with Bryan Adams in Duesseldorf on Sept. 4, while in Berlin authorities banned several protests planned for the weekend against coronavirus pandemic measures.
Officials said that those protesting would likely have breached rules on social distancing designed to stop the spread of the virus. Germany has seen an upswing in new confirmed cases in recent weeks, and the government is considering whether to impose fresh restrictions again.
Authorities in the capital cited a rally against COVID-19 restrictions on Aug. 1 during which participants ignored mask-wearing and distancing rules and other conditions imposed on the protest.” [Source]
Andreas Geisel, the Berlin interior senator commented on the banning of such protests, and is quoted by Reuters:
About 20,000 people, including libertarians, constitutional loyalists, far-right supporters and anti-vaccination activists, marched in Berlin on Aug. 1.
Geisel said the organisers of that protest had deliberately broken rules they had previously agreed with police, including wearing masks and maintaining social distancing.
“Such behaviour is not acceptable. The state cannot be given the runaround,” he said, adding he did not want Berlin to be a stage for conspiracy theorists and right-wing extremists.” [Source]
Again, a leading politician suggests that being opposed to lockdowns and severe Covid measures is not only a political issue, but one only championed by ‘extremists.’ Such rhetoric is incredibly dangerous in a world that is sliding faster than ever into global tyranny.
IV High-Dose Vitamin C Saves Critically Ill COVID-19 Patient
Mercola – While U.S. media and self-appointed “fact checkers” claim the use of vitamin C against COVID-19 is nothing but fake news and dangerous nonsense, the Chinese have been hard at work looking at vitamin C against this pandemic illness.
One source where you can find pertinent research material is the Orthomolecular Medicine News Service website,1 which has published more than a dozen reports on this topic.
Earlier this year I interviewed Dr. Andrew Saul, editor-in-chief of the Orthomolecular Medicine News Service, about vitamin C against viral illnesses such as COVID-19, in which he reviewed some of its established benefits. Importantly, vitamin C is an essential component of immune cell function, it has potent anti-inflammatory effects and at high doses even works as an antiviral.
Vitamin C is a foundational component of two distinct and highly effective treatment protocols developed by Dr. Paul Marik — one for sepsis and another, called MATH+, specifically for COVID-19. I’ve reviewed both protocols in previous articles.
Take-Home Message: Fight for the Treatment You Want
Remarkably, while suffering from severe COVID-19 infection, septic shock and ARDS — and being on mechanical ventilation — this elderly woman made a full recovery.
According to the doctors who reported the case, she was the first patient to successfully discontinue mechanical ventilation early at that hospital. The median duration of mechanical ventilation for COVID-19 patients is 10 days, whereas this patient was able to get off it in five.
Vitamin C has been recognized as an essential component of immune cell function with a critical role in numerous immune system mechanisms. Severe vitamin C deficiency is also known to increase the risk for … pneumonia and other infections.
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US Marshals rescue DOZENS of missing children in Georgia during ‘Operation Not Forgotten’
RT – The US Marshals Service Missing Child Unit has rescued 26 children and confirmed the safety of an additional 13, while arresting nine people for child trafficking-related offenses in Atlanta and Macon, Georgia.
The children rescued were aged between three and 17 years old, and 15 were confirmed as victims of sex trafficking.
The massive sweep concluded the two-week-long Operation Not Forgotten, as officers cleared 26 arrest warrants in total, including charges for sex trafficking, parental kidnapping, registered sex offender violations, drugs and weapons possession, and custodial interference.
Senator Rand Paul is ‘attacked’ by protesters leaving RNC at the White House
Daily Mail – Kentucky senator Rand Paul and his wife were last night attacked by a large mob of Black Lives Matter protesters who shoved the police escorting him out of the RNC conference, knocking one of the officers into the Senator.
Video shows Paul and wife Kelley being surrounded by dozens of activists and aggressively accosted as they leave the Republican National Convention, where Trump had just accepted the party’s nomination, as police officers try to hold the crowd back.
At one point an officer holding a bicycle to shield the couple from the demonstrators was shoved backwards, stumbling into Paul and almost knocking the Kentucky senator to the ground.
After being escorted safely to his hotel, Paul tweeted thanking police, saying there were ‘over 100 activists’ and that officers had ‘literally saved our lives’ from the ‘crazed mob’.
A large crowd that included Black Lives Matter activists had gathered near the White House on Thursday night in an attempt to drown out Donald Trump’s acceptance speech with firecrackers and airhorns.
Later, video showed Black Lives Matter activists aggressively harassing people leaving the White House after Trump’s speech.
One man was punched in the back of the head and later knocked to the ground by a mob of activists who also threw water over him.
Meanwhile RNC committeeman Chris Ager and his wife were repeatedly abused by a balaclava-wearing protester who threatened to ‘f*** you up’ as they tried to get into the doors of their hotel.
Speaking to Fox News this morning, Paul said: ‘They would have killed us had the police not been there.
‘The threats were to f— you up, to you know, to kill you. The threats were if they could get ahold of you, and I truly believe with every fiber of my being, had they gotten at us, they would have gotten us to the ground.
‘We might not have been killed. We might just have been injured by being kicked in the head or kicked in the stomach until we were senseless. You’ve seen the pictures. Most of the networks will not show the pictures of this. This is happening in all of our cities. Its got to stop and thank God for the police.”
‘Had we not gotten to the police, I truly leave that the police saved our lives, and we would not be here today, or we’d be in a hospital today had the police not been there.’
Beijing warns of possible ‘military accidents’ after US carries out ‘provocative’ operation in South China Sea
RT – Beijing has cautioned against further US naval operations in the South China Sea, claiming that recent activities by the American side create conditions for an unintentional military confrontation.
A spokesman for the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) said on Friday that a US warship entered Chinese territorial waters without permission.
“We urge the US to stop such provocative behavior and restrict its maritime actions to avoid possible military accidents,” Senior Colonel Li Huamin said, adding that PLA naval and aerial forces monitored the vessel as it traveled through the South China Sea.
The US Navy said that the USS Martin carried out a “routine” operation in the region. Washington has cited the so-called “freedom of navigation” principle to defend its regular activity in the sea.
Russian FM: US Sanctions on Institute Working on COVID Vaccine Aimed at Promoting Their Own Pharma
Sputnik – On Wednesday, the US slapped sanctions on five Russian institutes, accusing them of developing chemical and biological weapons. The restrictions were specifically imposed on a research institute of the Russian Defence Ministry that developed the first COVID-19 vaccine together with the Gamaleya Institute.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on Friday said that the US sanctions against Russian institutes working on a COVID-19 vaccine are aimed at promoting their own pharmaceutical companies.
“We are not sure that this is the right step towards cooperation in the fight against the [coronavirus] pandemic, the importance of which, we think, is not disputed even in Washington”, she stressed.
Referring to the US, Zakharova added that “one gets the impression that it is all about the trivial use of sanctions pressure in the interests of promoting their own companies, now pharmaceutical ones, as is the case with the ongoing promotion of their gas on the European market”.
The statement comes a day after Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov pointed out that Washington’s latest round of restrictions on Russian research institutes on the grounds that they’re developing chemical and biological weapons are nonsensical.
“This is a continuation of a sort of an addiction to sanctions. Some kind of a Theatre of the Absurd of sanctions. We, of course, categorically reject any statements alleging some of our organisations of involvement or participation in the development of chemical and bacteriological weapons — this is absolute nonsense”, he told reporters on Thursday, citing the US imposition of sanctions as “another example of overt, unbridled, and unfair competition”.
Asked to clarify whose addiction he meant, Peskov referred to the US, which he said “cannot live without sanctions and without going a single day without a declaration of sanctions, or rather restrictions, on anyone”.
Pregnant women who DON’T get vaccinated have healthier babies than those who do – so why do we still give them flu shots?
Natural News – Fewer than four in ten pregnant women in America follow the public health recommendation to get a flu vaccine. Although this percentage is a lot lower than public health officials might like to see, it is still remarkably high when you consider the dangers.
Worries by mothers-to-be about potential harm to their fetuses are the main reason many choose to avoid the jab, and their concerns are justified. Unfortunately, a lot of pregnant women aren’t hearing about studies like one from a team of South African researchers that compared four outcomes for infants whose mothers were given flu shots during pregnancy versus those who were given a placebo. They found that the shot was ineffective at lowering the risk of the outcomes studied, which were low birth weight, preterm birth, small for gestational age birth and fetal death.
Perhaps even more concerningly, they found that the infants whose mothers were vaccinated actually fared worse on these metrics.
The study was a large randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind study involving more than 2,000 mothers who were given the flu shot or a placebo during the second or third trimester of pregnancy. The researchers then followed up on fetal outcomes once the infants involved reached 24 weeks of age.
Another interesting finding was that the average gestational age at birth in the vaccinated group was lower than that of the placebo group, which is a statistically significant result pointing to a greater risk of preterm birth from the shot.
It is also worth noting that studies have shown there is a higher risk of autism among children whose mothers got the flu shot during their first trimester of pregnancy.
Not surprisingly, researchers are trying to find ways that they can design “communication interventions” that are more persuasive and improve uptake. In other words, they still want to convince pregnant women they need these shots even as research shows it can damage their children’s health.
A study from 2013 that looked at adverse pregnancy outcomes among women who were given the flu vaccine determined that low-risk women without medical complications who were given the jab during the 2009-2011 flu seasons saw a rise in a composite measure of negative outcomes (fetal demise, neonatal demise, preterm birth, and miscarriage) when compared to pregnant women who were unvaccinated, even after the researchers made adjustments for confounding factors.
KEEP ON KILLING: UK health officials ordered care homes to place “do not resuscitate” orders on ALL residents
NaturalNews – A chilling new report states the National Health Service — the national healthcare system of the U.K. — ordered care homes across the country to place their residents under “do not resuscitate” (DNR) orders at the height of the coronavirus pandemic. According to the Queen’s Nursing Institute, officials of the NHS pressured around one in 10 care homes to introduce DNRs without permission from the residents, family members and even fellow staff. The officials also said that the move was made to free up hospital beds for other COVID-19 patients.
In an interview with the London Telegraph, Alison Leary, a professor at London South Bank University and the author of the damning report, also called for an investigation on the matter. While the British Medical Association maintains that a DNR order should be made after talking with the patient or their family, the practice has been controversial in the U.K., especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Recently, the NHS was forced to issue new guidance on DNR orders after a woman sued the government over its failure to provide consistent advice on the matter.
In her report, Leary surveyed 128 nurses and care home managers, all of whom worked either in elderly homes or institutions that took care of younger people with cognitive disabilities. One respondent said that they challenged the order to place DNR orders for all residents, saying the practice was unethical, while another reported that DNRs were put in place without consent from the family or discussions with care home staff.
In addition, the respondents said that some hospitals refused to admit care home residents at the height of the pandemic, even for non-COVID-19 conditions. Care home staff reported having a hard time setting appointments with general practitioners for elderly residents. (Related: London struggles to cope with an ‘explosion’ of coronavirus cases in the city: Prime Minister Johnson puts city on lockdown.)
“Do not resuscitate orders should, wherever possible, be made in consultation with the person concerned and their family and be based on fitness to be treated, as well as personal preference,” said Deborah Alsina, chief executive of the nonprofit Independent Age.
Cuomo and de Blasio are fine with restaurants going bankrupt because of the pandemic, but they’ll give celebrities a free pass for a pointless awards show
NaturalNews – Throughout New York, businesses, particularly bars and restaurants, are struggling to stay afloat because of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Yet while ordinary citizens are required to quarantine while traveling to the city, celebrities who will perform at the MTV Video Music Awards (MTV VMAs) on Sunday, August 30, are exempted from travel restrictions.
Why give celebrities a free pass?
At the MTV VMAs, performers and dancers from all over the country will gather in New York City. It’s almost certain that some of them will be coming from California, especially Los Angeles, the unofficial capital of the pop music industry.
But California also falls under left-leaning Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s mandatory quarantine executive order. Travelers heading to New York from at least 30 states on a travel advisory list are required to self-quarantine for 14 days. (Related: Traveling to New York? Expect to have a “papers, please” encounter with coronavirus contact tracers.)
According to a public safety announcement released last August 11 on Cuomo’s official website, the quarantine applies to anyone “arriving from an area with a positive test rate higher than 10 per 100,000 residents over a 7-day rolling average or an area with a 10 percent or higher positivity rate over a 7-day rolling average.”
Additionally, Cuomo confirmed 667 additional cases of coronavirus, which brought the statewide total to 422,003 confirmed cases in New York State.
Cuomo even talked about NY being “one of the worst situations in the country, to an example for the rest of the nation to follow.” He added that New York’s numbers continue to remain low and steady, which suggests that COVID-19 can be kept at bay using a science-based approach instead of politics.
But none of that significant progress seems to matter when it comes to celebrities and a silly awards show.
According to the New York State Department of Health, offenders may face a maximum fine of $10,000 fine or imprisonment of to 15 days.
The Mind-Blowing Mathematics of Sunflowers …From Scientific American Magazine on Their 175th Birthday
Good News Network – Did you know that the thousands of little florets in the middle of a sunflower actually grow with the mathematical precision of a Fibonacci sequence?
An evenly-growing spiral named after the Italian mathematician who described it, Fibonacci numbers form a sequence—often seen in nature—whereby each number is the sum of the two preceding ones.
The sunflower phenomenon is neatly illustrated in a video from the Instant Egghead YouTube series by Scientific American, which that today is celebrating its 175th birthday.
On this day in 1845, the magazine published its first issue, founded by inventor Rufus M. Porter who began reporting on what was happening at the U.S. Patent Office.
The oldest continuously-published monthly magazine in the US, it now reports on noteworthy advances in science and technology, and educates youth and adults alike with its YouTube channel and website.
Marking the milestone anniversary, the website is presenting a mix of Harry Houdini and M. C. Escher; is reinserting a regular poetry column; and making a deep dive into some of the most transformative, thrilling, dizzying discoveries of the past 175 years.
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