The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Foxey Lady (Miami Pop 1968)
Keep the Fed Out of Municipal Finance
The Federal Reserve has taken extreme actions in response to the coronavirus outbreak and lockdown. In addition to purchasing more than $2 trillion worth of US Treasuries and mortgage-backed securities, the Fed has created a variety of emergency lending programs which were previously only used in times of severe financial crisis.
Among the most controversial of these is the Municipal Liquidity Facility (MLF), which provides funding for state and local governments, a task the Fed has traditionally avoided. Under the MLF, the Fed will provide funds directly to state and local governments in exchange for newly-issued municipal bonds. The Fed has posted a list of eligible borrowers that includes all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and more than 100 US cities and counties, as well as “certain multistate entities.”
The MLF is supported by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which authorizes the Fed to buy bonds from municipal governments “that do not, in the aggregate, exceed” $500 billion. With only about $16 billion of those funds currently in use, it appears the MLF is just getting started. However, the language “do not […] exceed” indicates that the Fed need not spend the full authorized amount of $500 billion. In fact, some economists have suggested the Fed close down the MLF immediately, before it causes irreparable damage to the perception of Fed independence.
https://www.aier.org/article/keep-the-fed-out-of-municipal-finance/
How the Federal Reserve Literally Makes Money
The Federal Reserve has vowed to provide up to US$2.3 trillion in lending to support households, employers, financial markets and state and local governments struggling as a result of the coronavirus and corresponding stay-at-home orders.
Let that number sink in: $2,300,000,000,000.
I have a Ph.D. in economics, direct the Sound Money Project at the American Institute for Economic Research and write regularly on Federal Reserve policy. And, yet, it is difficult for me to wrap my head around a number that large. If you were to stack 2.3 trillion $1 bills, it would reach over halfway to the Moon.
Put simply, it is a lot of money. Where does it all come from?
Unlike the trillions of dollars the Treasury is spending to save the economy by bailing out companies or beefing up unemployment checks, very little of the Fed’s money actually comes from taxpayers or sales of government bonds. Most of it, in fact, emerges right out of thin air. And that has costs.
Printing green
https://www.aier.org/article/how-the-federal-reserve-literally-makes-money/
John Hickenlooper accepted millions in off-the-books donations to fund positions in governor’s office
Former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper reportedly used off-the-books donations from corporations and private foundations to fund positions in his office.
An investigation from CBS4 found the Democrat accepted millions in private donations to fund programs and positions in his gubernatorial office without any type of oversight from the public.
In one instance, Hickenlooper accepted a $25,000 donation to his office from Anadarko Petroleum a few days after a leaky gas pipe owned by the company exploded and killed two men. Hickenlooper accepted more than $300,000 from Anadarko over his tenure in the governor’s mansion. Hickenlooper accepted $10,000 from the grocery chain Safeway the same year he signed legislation to allow grocery stores to sell alcohol.
Corporations also said they were allowed to pay for policy positions in Hickenlooper’s office to create legislation for their industry. Donation records were not easily accessible, and some donations were made anonymously.
https://dnyuz.com/2020/06/12/john-hickenlooper-accepted-millions-in-off-the-books-donations-to-fund-positions-in-governors-office/
Author of new Jeffrey Epstein book: ‘Where’s the criminal investigation’ against Ghislaine Maxwell?
Author Daniel Halper asked Friday “where’s the criminal investigation” against Ghislaine Maxwell, the alleged madam of disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, and stressed that “transparency” from the Department of Justice is needed.
Halper, the author of “A Convenient Death: The Mysterious Demise of Jeffrey Epstein,” noted on Friday that Maxwell “has been accused of partaking” and “being an accessory to” crimes related to Epstein and told “America’s Newsroom” that “what’s shocking” is “that the Justice Department doesn’t seem so keen to go after her.”
Last month, Maxwell won a critical request to delay questioning in a civil suit filed against her on the grounds that her sworn testimony could incriminate her should there be a criminal case against her in the future.
Maxwell, the daughter of late British media magnate Robert Maxwell, has been accused in court filings of facilitating a sex-trafficking operation that brought girls — some as young as 14 — to Epstein’s Manhattan home, though she has not been formally charged with any criminal wrongdoing.
https://dnyuz.com/2020/06/12/author-of-new-jeffrey-epstein-book-wheres-the-criminal-investigation-against-ghislaine-maxwell/
The Real Dangers of Surveillance
How citizens and authorities respond to one another during large-scale protests — including how they use technology as a tool in the battle — can say a lot about trust in the entire political system.
Paul Mozur, who has written extensively about the Chinese state surveillance machine for The New York Times, told me that mistrust of the authorities in Hong Kong was reflected in constant digital surveillance and paranoia during the pro-democracy demonstrations that started a year ago and continue to break out.
Paul and I talked about how police and protesters used surveillance technology during the height of the Hong Kong protests last year, and what Americans — now gripped by their own protests — can learn from it.
https://dnyuz.com/2020/06/12/the-real-dangers-of-surveillance/
The murky life and death of Robert Maxwell – and how it shaped his daughter Ghislaine
Was it murder? Suicide? Or just an accident? Almost 30 years before Jeffrey Epstein’s demise, Ghislaine Maxwell was caught up in another shocking and scandal-ridden mystery
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/aug/22/the-murky-life-and-death-of-robert-maxwell-and-how-it-shaped-his-daughter-ghislaine
Premier League players to have shirt names replaced with 'Black Lives Matter' for first 12 games of resumed season
Premier League players will have 'Black Lives Matter' written on the back of their shirts for the first 12 games of the resumed season in place of where there names would usually be shown, it has been announced.
"We, the Players, stand together with the singular objective of eradicating racial prejudice wherever it exists, to bring about a global society of inclusion, respect, and equal opportunities for All, regardless of their colour or creed,"a statement read on Friday.
"This symbol is a sign of unity from all Players, all Staff, all Clubs, all Match Officials and the Premier League #blacklivesmatter #playerstogether."
The Premier League stands alongside players, clubs, the FA, EFL, PFA, LMA, PGMOL and all those who oppose discrimination The #PL will support players who ‘take a knee’ before or during matchesThere is #NoRoomForRacism, anywhere.Full Statement: https://t.co/fdShPIq2IDpic.twitter.com/A661OWzyrx
— Premier League (@premierleague) June 12, 2020
The Premier League, which is set to resume from its coronavirus-enforced hiatus on June 17, also said shirts would feature a Black Lives Matter logo, as well as a badge thanking the NHS for their work during the Covid-19 pandemic.
"In addition, the League will support players who 'take a knee' before or during matches," the statement added.
https://www.rt.com/sport/491670-premier-league-players-black-lives-matter/
Exactly