Russia Still Open To Trump-Backed Peace Talks, But Ukraine Must Open Door: Kremlin

Clearly the status of US efforts to find peace in Ukraine have stalled to the point of dying, following the Trump-Putin summit in Alaska back in August. Since then attacks on energy sites by both warring countries have only intensified.

The White House in the meantime unleashed its latest round of sanctions targeting Russia's two state oil majors Rosneft and Lukoil. All of this represented an inability to find compromise. But Russia has the upper-hand and saw no real effort from Washington to push Ukraine into territorial concessions in the east - the one thing that would probably end the war. This week Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov explained that the Kremlin is still open to a negotiated settlement. 

The Thursday Kremlin statement was the first on the prospect of returning to the peace table in a long time. "Given the lack of an opportunity to continue negotiations, we will certainly proceed with the special military operation to achieve the objectives set by the Supreme Commander-in-Chief and the President [Vladimir Putin]," Peskov said. 

He continued, "Russia is open to settling the Ukrainian conflict via political and diplomatic means. But with the lack of such an opportunity, when the doors for this have been slammed shut by the Kiev regime, we continue with the special military operation."

Despite Russian forces having made significant gains of late in the Donbass, President Zelensky has continued to try and rally Western support - including demands for NATO to help "close the skies". He has also been demanding that Putin be tried for war crimes.

Since a mid-October phone call with Putin, the question of President Trump meeting with the Russian leader in Hungary has also constituted a stalled prospect.

But for a peace process to be set in motion again, there would have to be a meeting with Trump, the Kremlin has said.

"The issue of a new meeting between the presidents was discussed in this context by Lavrov in a phone call with Rubio on October 20," TASS has newly quoted the foreign ministry as saying. "The summit is definitely necessary, but it must be preceded by careful organizational and substantive preparation. However, this is only feasible if the US firmly adheres to the Anchorage agreements."

So Washington is being chastised here too, in terms of thwarting peace. "We are convinced that the practical details of the meeting between the presidents must be worked out in the spirit of the understandings reached in Alaska," the Kremlin side continued.

And yet by the time the sides to potentially or eventually reach the negotiating table, Russia is likely to be in an even better position on the battlefield, at the rate things are going near Pokrovsk, for example.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 23:00

Major American Fast Food Chain Moo-ving To Popular 'New' Milk

Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Fast food chain Steak ‘n Shake announced in a Nov. 13 alert on X that it is changing its milk and chocolate milk to A2 beginning Dec. 1.

A sign for the Steak 'n Shake chain restaurant in Middletown, Del., on July 26, 2019. Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images

Steak ‘n Shake said the shift was due to A2 being easier on digestion and may help some customers avoid discomfort. The company will source A2 milk from cows that “only produce A2 type protein” and are “never treated with growth hormone rBST.”

A1 and A2 are the different types of milk proteins produced by cows, with some animals’ milk having both proteins, while others have one.

According to an August 2022 study published in the National Library of Medicine, “there seems to be a sufficient consensus on the beneficial effects of A2 milk on the reduction in digestive intolerance associated with the consumption of A1 milk.”

“This positive effect is of great importance, since a good part of the consumers who have abandoned milk consumption have done so because conventional milk causes them discomfort,” it said.

People with lactose intolerance will also face issues with A2 milk. However, for individuals who only have casein A1 intolerance, A2 milk may offer relief.

According to data analysis company Scrape Hero, Steak ‘n Shake has nearly 400 outlets across 24 U.S. states, with the number declining from a peak of 600 before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Most of the outlets are based in Florida, Illinois, and Indiana.

Steak ‘n Shake’s switch comes at a time when Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been promoting the consumption of milk.

During a news conference in July, Kennedy said: “I grew up in a world where milk was the healthiest thing that you could eat. There’s been an attack on whole milk, cheese, and yogurt over the past couple of decades.”

He said the Health and Human Services Department (HHS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture plan to release new dietary guidelines that aim to “elevate those products where they ought to be in terms of contributing to the health of our children.” The new guidelines are expected to be released next month.

Regarding fries, Steak ‘n Shake announced in an Oct. 29 X post: “Our fries could be partially cooked in 100 percent beef tallow before they’re shipped to us. And then we cook them again in 100 percent beef tallow at the restaurant.”

Kennedy has been an ardent backer of beef tallow.

In an Oct. 22, 2024, post on X, he said McDonald’s used to make its fries with beef tallow from 1940 before beginning to phase it out for seed oils in 1990.

“This switch was made because saturated animal fats were thought to be unhealthy, but we have since discovered that seed oils are one of the driving causes of the obesity epidemic. Interestingly enough, this began to drastically rise around the same time fast food restaurants switched from beef tallow to seed oils in their fryers,” Kennedy said.

“People who enjoy a burger with fries on a night out aren’t to blame, and Americans should have every right to eat out at a restaurant without being unknowingly poisoned by heavily subsidized seed oils. It’s time to Make Frying Oil Tallow Again.”

In an earlier Oct. 19 X post, Steak ‘n Shake said that it eliminated seed oils from its fries.

The American Heart Association (AHA) does not argue against consuming saturated fats, such as beef tallow, but advises limiting their intake.

The AHA recommends that saturated fats make up less than 6 percent of an individual’s daily total calories.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 22:35

Humanoid Robot Roundup: Auto Industry Poised To Lead First Wave Of Adoption

In last week's "Humanoid Robot Roundup" report, we provided readers with additional color on Tesla's Optimus humanoid robot following the company's annual shareholder meeting in Austin, Texas. Limited production of Optimus has already begun at Tesla's Fremont, California factory, with plans to scale production next year.

In this week's robotics roundup, we highlight new insights from Goldman analysts led by Mark Delaney, who met with Sanctuary AI, a Vancouver-based robotics and AI company developing industrial-grade humanoid robots. 

Our view here is to gain a clearer view of current robotics progress and the broader trajectory of automation. 

Delaney's discussion with the heads of Sanctuary AI offers not only a snapshot of where humanoid robotics stands today, but also early signals of when automation may begin scaling across major sectors such as automotive, a shift that will translate into significant job displacement. 

Within the analyst's four takeaways, number three is the most important. He concludes that industrial and automotive companies will likely be among the earliest adopters of humanoids. Timing is important as well: the expectation is that broad industry scaling is still two to three years away.

1. Sanctuary highlighted data/AI and hands/dexterity as key focus areas for R&D: On hardware, the company mentioned hand technology as one key area for development. Management discussed how it is developing proprietary technology for tactile sensors and utilizing hydraulics to improve hand technology and make progress with aspects including touch, strength, and power management. The company believes its hydraulic approach to the humanoid hand is the correct path, and that electromechanical hands can have drawbacks in terms of strength and overheating.

Sanctuary also noted the need for data to further develop its AI. While humanoid robots can be trained from open sourced LLMs and video data, the company noted that those inputs often lack the physical aspect to the world, including the sense of touch and torque. Sanctuary is developing its own foundational AI.

2. Management discussed that not all robots/humanoids need to be bipedal and noted safety, payload, and power usage as key considerations: On the form factor of the bots, Sanctuary commented that while there will be applications for bipedal robots, not all humanoids need two legs and, often times, customers are not specifically asking for bipedal robots. Management noted that some potentially limiting factors for bipedal robots in certain use cases include safety (e.g. two-legged robots can fall over including if they lose power), payload (e.g. the amount a humanoid can lift), and a higher level of power consumption.

3. Sanctuary commented that it believes the first use case for humanoids will be automotive and industrial customers, followed by services and logistics, with consumer applications being last: Management highlighted that industrial and automotive customers would likely be first to adopt humanoid technology in a meaningful way, as these organizations often have robotics/automation departments, and due to cost and safety considerations. The company commented that it is currently working with companies in these verticals on proof of concept deployments. The company also commented that many industrial customers are looking at how fast, accurate, and reliable humanoids are as key KPIs.

Sanctuary is also engaged with logistics companies, and they can have similar challenges as auto and industrial customers, although the requirements on hand/grip strength can vary. For consumer applications, the company cited cost, safety (e.g. the robot falling over), privacy, and connectivity as reasons that this market will likely be later for deployments.

On time to market, Sanctuary noted that while wider scale industry adoption could be 2-3 years away, small targeted deployments could be much sooner (and we believe small trials are underway already in some factories for the industry more generally). Longer-term, the market could be much bigger per the company. This is directionally consistent with the view expressed in our report: Platforms & Power - Part II: Humanoids and profit implications for autos & industrial tech.

4. Management plans to outsource a significant part of the manufacturing, but will make some key parts such as the hands in-house: Sanctuary commented that manufacturing is not one of its core competencies, and it will generally outsource manufacturing. However, the company noted it will do the final assembly and manufacture the hand in-house.

With our focus on point number three, we shift our attention to ....

• China's DeepSeek Issues Rare Warning Of An Incoming AI-Fueled Jobpocalypse

Let's go back in time to our March 2023 warning:

• AI Will Lead To 300 Million Layoffs In The US And Europe

Jobpocalypse incoming.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 22:10

Anti-Abortion 'Word Game' Referred To Aussie Authorities For Investigation

Authored by Naziya Alvi Rahman via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

A fundraising “game” created by prominent anti-abortion campaigner Joanna Howe has sparked political backlash in South Australia.

Joanna Howe speaks to supporters of an abortion law reform gather on the steps of Parliament House in Adelaide, Sept. 25, 2024. AAP Image/Matt Turner

It has now been referred for investigation by the Attorney-General after questions were raised during a heated debate on late-pregnancy abortion laws.

The bingo-style fundraiser was launched on Nov. 12, as the Legislative Council prepared to debate a bill seeking to restrict abortions later in pregnancy.

Supporters were invited to “buy” parliamentary words and phrases—from $1 to $70—that MPs might use during the debate.

Examples on her list included phrases such as:

• pregnant person ($70)
• abortion care ($70)
• misinformation ($50)
• late-term abortions are rare ($10)
• trust the experts ($10)

On her website, Howe wrote that “the beautiful irony is that politicians will be inadvertently funding us every time they attack us.”

The fundraiser was raised in parliament within hours.

Greens MP Robert Simms asked whether the scheme complied with South Australia’s lottery and fundraising laws. He told the chamber that “followers are being encouraged to buy words … in relation to a debate that is due to occur in the parliament this afternoon.”

“My question to the Attorney-General is: is he aware of this fundraiser, and does it raise any concerns for him?” Simms asked.

Attorney-General Seeks Examination

Attorney-General Kyam Maher confirmed he had seen the reports about the fundraiser. He told parliament its legality depended on “a whole range of circumstances,” including whether it fell under South Australia’s Lotteries Act.

“There are certain requirements around things depending on the value of the prizes,” he said.

“Whether it is a major lottery and licences need to be applied for, or whether it is a minor lottery.”

Maher said he would refer the matter to Consumer and Business Affairs.

A spokesperson for the agency later confirmed it was aware of the concerns raised.

“Consumer and Business Services is aware of the matters raised in Parliament this week and is considering them,” he told The Epoch Times.

The issue emerged during an emotional debate, with several Members of the Legislative Council visibly distressed. The late-pregnancy abortion bill was ultimately defeated 11 votes to eight.

Long History of Tension

Howe has held several federal advisory roles, including positions on the Ministerial Advisory Council on Skilled Migration in 2021, the panel reviewing Australia’s Migration Program in 2022, and an International Labour Organisation (ILO) working group on temporary labour migration in 2019.

Her activism has also brought her into repeated conflict with Parliament.

She is currently banned from the South Australian parliament precinct over what officials called “threatening and intimidating tactics’’ during an earlier abortion bill dispute.

Howe denies the allegations, saying that “no formal complaint or allegation has actually been put to me’’ and that she had been denied “procedural and substantive fairness.’’

She has also been a central figure in multiple conservative-backed attempts to wind back abortion access, including working with former One Nation MLC Sarah Game on the bill to restrict abortions after 22 weeks and six days.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 21:45

Consumers Ditch Restaurants For Groceries As Budgets Break 

Goldman analysts led by Christine Cho attended the Restaurant Finance & Development Conference (RFDC) in Las Vegas earlier this week. The conference drew restaurant executives and founders, franchisees and multi-unit operators, private-equity investors and lenders, industry consultants, and other stakeholders across the broader restaurant ecosystem.

Cho and her team met with many of these restaurant industry insiders and heard a very alarming and consistent message: the operating environment is deteriorating, especially among lower- and middle-income consumers, pushing brands to use discount campaigns to defend market share. 

She said there was also increasing discussion around accelerating AI adoption, with operators betting on hybrid human-AI models to reduce costs and improve service.

Cho's takeaways from RFDC are extensive and offer new color into the health of the restaurant industry and, by extension, the consumer. ZeroHedge Pro subscribers can find the complete list of takeaways in the usual place.

In this note, we're focusing on just two of the takeaways. The first is the alarming shift among low- and middle-income consumers who are increasingly giving up on eating out and instead buying groceries and eating at home:

• Also noted was the drag on restaurant traffic by non-restaurants, particularly grocery and c-stores. A combination of data and surveys indicate growing evidence that consumers are leaving fast food and fast casual restaurants, replacing the meals with a combination of grocery (Aldi and Trader Joe's specifically highlighted as taking share), fresh format grocery (for example, the hot food bar at Whole Foods), and c-store food (particularly with breakfast).

The second takeaway that caught our attention is the coming automation tidal wave that's about to sweep through the restaurant industry:

• For the second year in a row, AI was front and center at the conference, with the focus split between current applications of AI and potential future developments across the restaurant space.

• Central to the discussion on current applications of AI was the focus on leveraging the technology to enhance the customer experience. Experts from both the restaurant industry and technology industry believe that it is not a case of robots fully replacing humans, but rather a hybrid approach by which humans leverage AI to drive efficiency gains and redirect their time and effort to other tasks that are more critical to the customer. From the perspective of a restaurant general manager, AI can help inform and expedite critical decisions around labor scheduling, inventory management, and food prep timing, and can also be leveraged to help train the workforce (seen as particularly critical given that it is a high turnover industry). Voice AI in the drive thru was also highlighted as a strong use case, with operators noting that is performing well in their tests.

Given these findings, let's build on yesterday's UBS note from analyst Jonathan Pingle, which highlights a tale of two consumer worlds…

And it gets worse. 

• Early Warning Indicator Signals Sharp Sentiment Deterioration Among Low-Income Consumers, Gen Z

Financial strains are building among low-income, millennial, and Gen-Z consumers, suggesting the Trump administration will likely push an affordability agenda into hyperdrive (read here) to prevent younger and lower-income voters from drifting toward the new unhinged Democratic Party that has been seized by Marxist DSA-ers, which will be dangling "free stuff" heading into next year's midterm elections. 

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 21:20

Bipartisan Congressional Report Finds CCP Manipulates Global Mineral Prices

Authored by Jill McLaughlin via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

A bipartisan congressional report published on Nov. 12 revealed that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) manipulates critical minerals markets to further its global ambitions.

A worker at a factory for Xinwangda Electric Vehicle Battery Co. Ltd, which makes lithium batteries for electric cars and other uses, in Nanjing in China's eastern Jiangsu province on March 12, 2021. STR/AFP via Getty Images

The U.S. House Select Committee on the CCP released the “Predatory Pricing” report following an investigation into market manipulation.

“From cell phones to fighter jets, every American is dependent on minerals that China manipulates for its own selfish reasons,” Committee Chair Rep. John Moolenaar (R-Mich.) said in a statement. “As we saw last month with its rule on rare earths, China has a loaded gun that is pointed at our economy, and we must act quickly.”

Moolenaar accused China of predatory practices that have caused Americans to lose their jobs, driven American miners out of business, and jeopardized national security.

The investigation revealed several findings, including that the Chinese communist regime subsidizes its state mining companies with tens of billions of dollars and gives zero-interest loans to support its global acquisition of mining assets.

The regime engaged in a decades-long strategy to dominate the rare-earth element supply chain, according to the investigation. The strategy involved luring in mostly Western companies to collaborate with Chinese companies, then selling products significantly below existing market prices to put competition out of business.

“Finally, after establishing its dominance, the PRC wielded this market clout as a geopolitical weapon,” the investigation found.

Beijing has also established a legal framework governing mineral price reporting, giving it the ability to raise and lower prices to favor its national security interests, the report said.

China intentionally kept rare-earth element prices low to ensure that Western participants did not enter the market, according to the investigation.

The regime also pushed down the price of critical minerals, including lithium, an important element used in rechargeable batteries and electric vehicle batteries, the report said.

Chinese miners are expected to continue dominating lithium production through 2030, the investigation found.

When prices were low, the regime subsidized its firms to aggressively acquire mining assets and cement its control over the global supply chain, according to the report.

A man drives a front loader to shift soil containing rare earth minerals for export to Japan at a port in Lianyungang, Jiangsu Province, China, on Sept. 5, 2010. Edited by The Epoch Times, STR/AFP via Getty Images

“The PRC government, under the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), has engaged in a coordinated, decades-long scheme to control different critical minerals and bend the global market to their will,” the investigation states.

On Oct. 9, China’s Ministry of Commerce issued a global export licensing regime for rare-earth items, but that was a culmination of policies, investments, and other moves made over decades, according to the investigation.

The congressional report gives several policy recommendations, including aligning critical mineral financing and industrial-base programs under a single authority, such as a “critical minerals czar.”

The report also suggested bolstering U.S. mining and recovery efforts and discussed how to expedite permits while keeping important safeguards.

In this July 6, 2010, file photo, workers use machinery to dig at a rare earth mine in the Baiyunebo mining district of Baotou in China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. AP Photo, File

They also suggested preventing unfairly priced imports from undermining U.S. industries, developing federal tools for price discovery and costs, and strengthening coordination among allies on critical minerals.

The report also suggested creating a Strategic Resources Reserve, similar to the federal reserve for oil.

The committee also encouraged creating a critical minerals tax credit, supporting low-cost loans for critical minerals projects, and developing an American rare earths workforce.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 20:55

RFK Jr. May Revive Food Pyramid Focused On Whole Foods

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President Donald Trump's Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary, will be releasing new dietary guidelines in December to reset America's food supply chain away from toxic seed oils and highly processed foods toward real food, the kind our grandparents and parents ate many decades ago.

Ahead of next month's release, a new Bloomberg report on Thursday night says the administration may roll out a revamped food pyramid centered on protein and whole foods. Sorry, Bill Gates, fake food and insects are not on the menu.

The food pyramid was retired in 2011 and replaced with MyPlate, but RFK Jr., according to the report, could make the food pyramid great again. 

America's top health official has long criticized previous nutrition advice, arguing that saturated fat was wrongly vilified. 

Health and agriculture officials say the forthcoming 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines will be rooted in better "science," focus on reducing chronic disease, and support the administration's "Make America Healthy Again" theme, which will be supercharged in the midterm election cycle. 

The only major hurdle to eating real food that isn't grown on massive commercial farms drenched in chemicals is cost. That's why the Trump administration rolled out Operation Affordability this week, an effort to cut tariffs and strengthen trade deals to boost imports of staple foods and drive grocery prices lower next year.

The administration should also place more emphasis on rebuilding local food supply chains by strengthening small farms and ranches.

Americans are long overdue to push back against the globalist food giants on the food system (see here), a system saturated with chemicals and additives that have left the nation in a health crisis.

One of the simplest acts of rebellion is to plant your own "MAHA Garden" during the Northern Hemisphere's next growing season. Also, purchase chickens and other farm animals ... time to know where your food comes from. 

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 20:30

New Heart-Kidney Syndrome Affects 90% Of Americans... And You've Probably Never Heard Of It

Authored by George Citroner via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Nearly every American adult has a health condition that could lead to heart failure, yet nine out of 10 have never even heard of it. Now, the American Heart Association (AHA) is sounding the alarm on cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic (CKM) syndrome, a newly defined cluster of interconnected diseases that doctors have been treating separately for decades.

The condition encompasses a cluster of interconnected conditions—including heart disease, kidney disease, diabetes, and obesity—that often occur together, significantly increasing the risk of heart attack, stroke, and heart failure. It was first defined in a 2023 AHA Presidential Advisory. Despite affecting roughly 90 percent of U.S. adults, few people have heard of it, according to a recent AHA survey.

In early 2026, the AHA will release its first-ever clinical guidelines on the syndrome to help health care providers better identify and treat this widespread condition.

Study Reveals Widespread Prevalence of CKM Syndrome in U.S. Adults

“It’s really common to have risk factors for heart, kidney, and metabolic disease [like diabetes] at the same time, and they’re interconnected,” Dr. Stacey E. Rosen, national volunteer president of the American Heart Association, told The Epoch Times.

The problem, Rosen noted, is that care for people with multiple conditions is often fractured, with various specialists and primary care clinicians working in silos. Through the AHA’s CKM Health Initiative, the association aims to help doctors work together and treat cardiovascular, kidney, and metabolic risk factors together, because that’s how patients experience them, she said.

The Numbers Behind the Problem

A comprehensive analysis of U.S. adults based on data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey spanning 2011 to 2020 showed that nearly 90 percent of adults had signs indicating early stages of CKM syndrome. They carried risk factors such as high blood pressure, obesity, or problems controlling blood sugar.

About 15 percent of adults were classified as having advanced stages, which include having blood vessel damage or kidney disease. Older adults—particularly those aged 65 and older—were most affected, with more than 55 percent classified as having advanced stages.

The study found that the prevalence of CKM syndrome remained steady over the decade, with no significant improvements in reducing the overall burden of disease. Even younger adults aged 20 to 44 showed notable risk, especially among black adults and men, who were more likely to be in higher stages of CKM syndrome.

The condition stems from overweight and obesity in its initial stage and progresses to multiple risk factors and advanced disease, warranting early recognition, Dr. Eugenia Gianos, director of cardiovascular prevention at Northwell Health and director of women’s heart health at Lenox Hill Hospital, told The Epoch Times.

How Heart, Kidney, and Metabolic Systems Are Connected

CKM health involves three critical systems: the heart, kidneys, and metabolic system.

The heart pumps blood to supply oxygen and nutrients; the kidneys filter waste, regulate fluids, and help control blood pressure; and the metabolic system turns food into energy and manages blood glucose levels.

When one system functions poorly, it can create a domino effect, worsening the others. For example, reduced heart function can lower blood flow to the kidneys, impairing their ability to filter waste and regulate blood pressure. Conversely, kidney dysfunction can lead to high blood pressure and fluid overload, which increases strain on the heart.

Additionally, metabolic issues such as high blood sugar and excess weight contribute to inflammation and damage across these systems.

This interconnected cycle can escalate silently, often without obvious symptoms, until significant damage occurs.

Current guidelines emphasize cardiovascular screening beginning at age 40. “Yet the early drift in blood pressure, glucose, and lipids often begins much earlier, especially among young adults with sedentary lifestyles,” Akshaya Bhagavathula, associate professor of epidemiology at North Dakota State University, told The Epoch Times.

While metabolic syndrome has gained attention as a warning stage, he noted, chronic kidney disease can go unnoticed. “Nearly nine in 10 adults with kidney impairment are unaware of it until significant damage has occurred,” Bhagavathula said. The CKM model encourages integrating prevention, screening, and treatment of the metabolic, renal, and cardiovascular systems together, rather than waiting for the disease to declare itself.

Warning Signs You Shouldn’t Ignore

Many people expect heart disease to appear with dramatic chest pain, but early warning signs are far subtler, Bhagavathula said.

Less obvious symptoms include unusual fatigue or weakness that isn’t proportional to activity level and mood changes—such as depression or brain fog—which might also be early indicators. Other symptoms that may indicate trouble include swelling in uncommon areas such as the abdomen or the back of the ankles, which may be caused by fluid retention related to heart or kidney issues.

Something else to watch for is changes in urination patterns, including foamy urine indicating protein loss, dark urine, or decreased urine output, which can be signs of kidney problems.

Toxin buildup from impaired kidney function may cause a metallic taste or bad breath, and difficulty sleeping can stem from fluid overload or breathing difficulties.

Elevated blood pressure that develops gradually without noticeable symptoms is another warning sign.

“Women may present with jaw pain, nausea, or extreme tiredness rather than classic pressure pain,” he added.

“Even small rises in resting heart rate, post-meal glucose, or inflammatory markers predict future cardiac events years in advance,” Bhagavathula said. “These patterns reflect the systemic nature of CKM syndrome; the heart rarely fails in isolation.”

How to Improve Heart and Kidney Health

Most people with CKM syndrome can reverse or slow down the disease process with lifestyle changes and appropriate medications to reduce their risk for heart attack, stroke, or heart failure, Rosen said.

These lifestyle changes include:

• Adopt a Heart-Healthy Diet: Eat plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats, while limiting salt intake to help control blood pressure.
• Stay Physically Active: Aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise weekly to significantly improve overall health.
• Monitor Health Regularly: Track blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol, weight, and kidney function through routine checkups to catch potential issues early.
• Avoid Tobacco and Limit Alcohol: Both habits significantly increase risk across all three systems.
• Manage Stress Effectively: Use mindfulness or relaxation techniques and ensure adequate sleep.
• Follow Medical Advice: Take prescribed medications and attend routine checkups.

People should also be cautious with over-the-counter medications such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, which can harm kidney health if used excessively.

The AHA offers educational resources and tools through its CKM Health Initiative website to help people understand these connections and take early action to prevent serious complications such as heart attacks or strokes.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 20:05

China Warns Citizens Against Travel To Japan Amid Serious Taiwan-Related Dust Up

It's no secret that Japan and China have had a long history of animosity, which at times appears to cool but at others flares up to intensity again. The past week has seen historic tensions explode to the forefront once again, resulting in China summoning the Japanese ambassador in Beijing to vehemently denounce some recent statements by Tokyo leadership.

The spat started when Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi made comments in a parliamentary meeting which made clear Japan could possibly intervene militarily in the scenario of China invading Taiwan.

Sanae Takaichi, via Japan Forward

This represents a public first, and potential initial move abandoning the US ally's longstanding 'strategic ambiguity' on the Taiwan issue.

China's foreign ministry had been quick to blast the comments as "egregious" - related in the following:

The current tensions were sparked at a parliamentary meeting in Japan last Friday, when an opposition lawmaker asked Takaichi what circumstances surrounding Taiwan would count as a survival-threatening situation for Japan.

"If there are battleships and the use of force, no matter how you think about it, it could constitute a survival-threatening situation," Takaichi responded.

A "survival-threatening situation" is a legal term under Japan's 2015 security law, referring to when an armed attack on its allies poses an existential threat to Japan. In such a situation, Japan's self-defense forces can be activated to respond to the threat.

Now, a week after the initial provocative remarks, and China has further escalated the spat by formally advising its citizens to avoid traveling to Japan in the near future over 'safety concerns'.

The foreign ministry specifically invoked PM Takaichi's incendiary Taiwan-related comments, going so far as to say her words created "major risks" to the safety of Chinese nationals in Japan. The ministry further cited "a surge in crimes against Chinese citizens and numerous attacks against them." 

The NY Times reviews how this could set off deteriorating relations less than a month in to Takaichi taking office:

The abuse abruptly ended a honeymoon between Ms. Takaichi, in office for less than a month, and China. She had met China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, just last month in South Korea, with the two leaders warmly shaking hands and smiling.

It also ended China’s turn away from so-called wolf warrior diplomacy, an aggressive, in-your-face approach to foreign relations that took shape after Mr. Xi rose to power in Beijing in 2012 but had largely faded in recent years.

Relations between China and Japan have for decades been prone to intemperate feuds fueled largely by bitter Chinese memories of World War II, when the Japanese army committed multiple atrocities, including the 1937 Nanjing Massacre, crimes for which Beijing believes Tokyo has never sufficiently apologized.

The drastic move further followed a Thursday social media posting by China's foreign ministry - issued in Japanese and English - which warned Tokyo must "stop playing with fire" and that it would be "act of aggression" if Japan "dares to meddles in the cross-Strait situation."

Our message to Japan is clear: Japan must fully repent for its war crimes, immediately stop its wrong and provocative statements and moves that interfere in China’s internal affairs, and stop playing with fire on the Taiwan question. Those who play with fire will perish by it! pic.twitter.com/F0G6FvU6qD

— CHINA MFA Spokesperson 中国外交部发言人 (@MFA_China) November 13, 2025

As for Japan, it has been most angered at a social media post issued last Saturday by China's consul general in the Japanese city of Osaka, Xue Jian. He had shared article about Takaichi's parliamentary remarks on X with his own words, "the dirty head that sticks itself in must be cut off." Tokyo quickly lodged its own diplomatic protest over the "high inappropriate" commentary.

But China has still maintained all of this ultimately stems from the "extremely wrong and dangerous" words of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi related to defending Taiwan.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 19:40

The Swamp Got Bigger, Better Paid & More Secretive Since 2020

Via Open The Books,

If you were told a business increased their staff headcount by 5% over four years but its payroll rose 24% over that time, all the while withholding the names of 39% of their staff, would you invest in that company?

Unlikely. But that’s just what the United State government does, funded by taxpayer dollars and operating as if accountable to no one.

Open the Books analyzed the FY 2024 payroll records of executive agencies and found that 2.9 million federal employees were paid $270 billion, compared to 2.8 million employees paid $217 billion in FY 2020. While the civilian employee ranks grew 5%, pay grew nearly 5 times as much, 24%.

The Office of Personnel Management provided the pay for over 1.5 million executive agency bureaucrats; Department of Defense provided pay for its 761,624 civilian employees; and United States Postal Service gave its 638,007 employees’ payroll, via Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests.

Not included are pay for judicial branch employees; the 535 members of Congress and their staff; the 1.3 million active-duty military members; the Office of the Vice President (which claims itself entirely exempt from FOIA); nor the staff of several intelligence agencies.

While payroll records don’t include benefits, adding an estimated 30% to the $270 billion payroll brings total costs to $351 billion.

That means the disclosed federal workforce costs the American taxpayer $673,000 per minute, $40.4 million per hour, and just under $1 billion per day.

Meanwhile, more than a million civilian names were redacted from payroll productions produced by Office of Personnel Management and Department of Defense.

The Trump administration has a historic opportunity to bring much-needed transparency to the administrative state. While federal employees don’t add as much to the debt as safety net programs, defense, and overall agency spending, they are an indicator of government growth.

A New Minimum Wage? $100,000 Earners

These employees are now being paid more than ever before.

The average pay exceeded $100,000 in 117 of 127 executive agencies and the White House.

In FY 2024, there were 31,452 federal employees who out-earned every governor of the 50 states. That includes the highest paid, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, who collects a $250,000 salary.

Even worse, there were 956 federal employees who outearned the president himself.

The vast majority — 939 people — are medical officers at the Veterans Health Administration, while another 15 doctors at the National Institutes of Health earning more than $400,000.

Two more people outearned the president: Micah Nix, an emergency room doctor with the Indian Health Service, part of Department of Health and Human Services and one other redacted employee working at Bureau of Prisons, part of Department of Justice.

The highest paid federal employee is cardiologist Gary H. Gibbons, Director of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute at the National Institutes of Health. He earned $519,246 last year.

Lest one think these highly paid doctors are the only ones raking in big checks, the payroll is top-heavy across the board.

Of the 2.1 million non-DOD employees in FY 2024, 793,537 people made $100,000 or more, a 49% increase from 532,784 people in FY 2020.

There were 68,445 employees who earned $200,000 or more – an 82% increase from 37,631 in FY 2020.

Those making $300,000 or more numbered at 14,144 – an 84% increase from 7,692 in FY 2020.

At least 20 federal agencies have an average pay above $150,000. Topping the list is Commodity Futures Trading Commission, where the 721 staffers make an average of $236,006.

The obscure Public Buildings Reform Board and Arctic Research Commission each pay their staff an average of $192,000, while the 1,851 employees of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau earn an average pay of $187,120.

Boards for Civil Rights Cold Case Review, Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight, and Surface Transportation have average pay between $166,091 and $181,903.

The Swamp Gets Larger

In the largest federal agencies, there’s little correlation between employee headcounts and increased pay.

In most cases, even a decrease in headcount still led to an increase in total pay for that agency.

For instance, the Post Office lost 6% of its staff between FY 2020 and FY 2024, yet payroll increased 11% during that time.

At Department of Justice, headcount decreased less than 1% but its payroll nonetheless increased 16%.

Social Security Administration and Department of Commerce both lost staff in those years, 4% and 8%, respectively, but their payrolls still increased 11% and 13%.

At the agencies where headcount increased, payroll soared past them. Department of Homeland Security increased its staff by 6% but its payroll went up 26%. Department of Transportation saw its staff grow by 3% but its payroll by 19%.

Those that grew headcount significantly saw their payroll skyrocket, including a 19% staff increase at both Department of Health and Human Services and Department of State, with 39% and 35% increased payrolls, respectively.

A 20% increase in Department of Energy headcount led to a 37% increase in paychecks.

Top 20 Departments and Agencies by Employee Count

FY 2024 Compared to FY 2020

“Name Withheld” for 39% of Staff

The secrecy of the federal bureaucracy has worsened.

It’s bad enough that Department of Defense redacted all 761,624 civilian employee names from their payroll, and that records production excludes pay for 1.3 million active-duty military members.

When Open the Books requested the FY 2022 federal payroll, the Biden administration had redacted the names of 350,860 rank-and-file employees.

In the most recent FY 2024 production a record-breaking 383,000 names were redacted in 58 federal agencies. Back in FY 2016, a mere 2,300 names were redacted. What gives?

Many of those include investigative and law enforcement roles in agencies including Departments of Homeland Security, Justice, Treasury and Veterans’ Affairs — which account for 97% of the redactions.

But still, dozens of additional agencies redacted names, from two each at U.S. Agency for Global Media, Office of National Drug Control Policy and Armed Forces Retirement Home, to over 1,000 each in Departments of Labor, Agriculture, Transportation and Health and Human Services. At Department of Interior, 2,331 identities were redacted.

The payroll report also contains no information about staff in the Office of the Vice President.

That’s because the Office of the Vice President claims not to be subject to FOIA and is not listed on the FOIA website.

Open the Books has tried unsuccessfully in the past to obtain the salaries through open records requests, and has accessed limited payroll information in the semi-annual Report of the Secretary of the Senate.

In the most recent report covering Oct. 1, 2024, through March 31, 2025, we can see that Kamala Harris ended her stay in the office with 43 staffers, while J.D. Vance began his vice presidential term with 23 staffers.

As the federal headcount and payroll grow, there are far too many redactions and blind spots that DOGE should have identified and fixed. We can’t have accountability for the federal workforce without better transparency.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 19:15

Berkshire Builds $4.9 Billion Stake In Alphabet; Adds To Chevron; Sells More Apple And Bank of America

With less than two months left until the Berkshire Hathway becomes just another company after the 95-year-old Warren Buffett exits as CEO at the end of the year, there is still some (waning) interest in what this massive long only fund with a record $382 billion in cash, is buying and selling, or as we recently discussed, mostly selling. Which is why today's 13F deadline is usually a reason for the Berkshire faithful to promptly check out the company's latest stock holdings on Edgar.com.

What it showed was a total of $267.3 billion in long-only positions, an increase of $10 billion from the previous quarter, with, a handful of notable changes. 

Most notable was that in Q3, Berkshire acquired 17.9 million shares of Google parent Alphabet, the first time it has accumulated a position in the search engine,  while further trimming its holdings in Bank of America by 7% to 568 million shares, and Apple by 15% shares to 238 million shares or $60.6 billion as of Nov 30. At this rate, Apple which has been a mainstay at the top of Berkshire's investments, will soon be surpassed by #2, American Express, which was untouched for another quarter at 151.6 million shares, or roughly $50 billion.

Berkshire’s Alphabet stake, representing 0.31% of the outstanding shares, was worth $4.3 billion as of Sept 30, and about $4.9 billion as of the market close on Friday.

Some other notable movers, starting with additions:

• Added 20.2 million shares of Chevron, boosting the value of that holding to $19 billion at the end of the quarter. 
• Added 4.3 million shares of insurer Chubb, boosting the value of that holding to $8.8 billion 
• Added 400K shares of Coke, bringing the total value to $26.5 billion.
• Added 497.9K shares of Capital One, bringing the total value to $1.5 billion
• Added 348K shares of Dominos Pizza, bringing the total value to $1.3 billion

And the reductions:

• Sold 41.8 million shares of Apple, reducing the value of that holding to $60.7 billion at the end of the quarter. 
• Sold 42.2 million shares of Bank of America, reducing the value of that holding to $29.3 billion 
• Sold 1.6 million shares of Davita, reducing the value of that holding to $4.3 billion 
• Sold 4.3 million shares of Verisign, reducing the value of that holding to $2.5 billion 
• Sold 1.1 million shares of Constellation Bands, reducing the value of that holding to $1.8 billion 

Buffett also liquidated his entire small stake in DR Horton, which stayed on the books for a very brief 3 months, after it was initiated in Q2, 2025. However it wasn't a complete homebuilder capitulation, as Berkshire added a tiny 2,007 shares to its holdings in Lennar. 

Overall, as noted previously, the company was a net seller of equities during the period, offloading $6.1 billion of stocks. 

Buffett, 95, who will step down as CEO at year-end, has been finding ways to deploy some of Berkshire’s gargantuan cash pile, which rose to a record $382 billion at the end of the quarter. The Omaha, Nebraska-based conglomerate recently reached a deal to buy Occidental Petroleum Corp.’s petrochemical business for $9.7 billion and acquired a $1.6 billion stake in UnitedHealth Group Inc.

The full summary of his holdings is below.

Source

 

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 18:50

US Agrees To $330 Million Sale Of Fighter Jets To Taiwan, Drawing Rebuke From China

Authored by Rachel Roberts via The Epoch Times,

The United States agreed a $330 million deal for the sale of fighter jets and other aircraft parts to Taiwan on Nov. 13 in the first such deal since President Donald Trump returned to the White House, prompting anger from China.

The announcement of the proposed arms deal follows last month’s meeting between Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in South Korea in a diplomatic bid to secure a trade deal amid the ongoing tariff war between the world’s two largest economies.

Red Line

Beijing claims Taiwan as its own territory. Beijing’s foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian told reporters that the Chinese regime’s claim over Taiwan is at the core of China’s interests and is a red line that must not be crossed in China–U.S. relations.

He said the arms sale undermines Beijing’s sovereignty and security interests, sending what he called a “wrong signal” to Taiwan’s leaders.

The United States cut official ties with Taipei in 1979. While Washington has formal diplomatic ties with Beijing, its ties with Taiwan remain unofficial as the island nation maintains its own democratic government, military, and distinct way of life.

The United States is the main supplier of arms to the island nation and is bound by law to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself.

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te delivers his address during National Day celebrations in front of the Presidential Office in Taipei on Oct. 10, 2025. Sung Pi-lung/The Epoch Times

‘Cornerstone of Peace’

The Pentagon said in a statement that the proposed sale will improve Taiwan’s “capability to meet current and future threats by maintaining the operational readiness of the recipient’s fleet of F-16, C-130,” and other aircraft.

“The deepening of the Taiwan-U.S. security partnership is an important cornerstone of peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region,” Taiwan’s presidential office spokesperson Karen Kuo said in a statement, noting the arms sale was the first announced by the current administration.

The statement thanked Washington for continuing its policy of regularized arms sales to Taiwan and supporting the island in enhancing its defense capabilities.

The deal, expected to take effect within a month, will help maintain the air force’s fighter readiness and bolster air defenses, strengthen resilience, and enhance the nation’s ability to respond to China’s “gray-zone” incursions, Taiwan’s defense ministry said.

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has not ruled out the use of force to take control of the island.

Taiwan’s government strongly refutes Beijing’s sovereignty claims.

A U.S.-made F-16V fighter jet taxis on the runway at an air force base during Taiwan's annual Han Kuang military drills in Hualien on July 23, 2024. Sam Yeh / AFP via Getty Images

Trump said in August that Xi told him he would not invade Taiwan while the Republican leader remains in office.

He made the comments in an interview with Fox News, ahead of a planned talk with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the Russia–Ukraine war.

“I don’t believe there’s any way it’s going to happen as long as I’m here,” Trump said of a potential invasion of the island nation.

“He told me, ‘I will never do it as long as you’re president,’” Trump said, regarding Xi.

“But he also said, ‘But I am very patient, and China is very patient.’”

Trump said he told Xi, “Well, that’s up to you, but it better not happen now.”

Chinese Premier Li Qiang said in March that China planned to pursue the “reunification” of Taiwan and would oppose external interference. The CCP has never ruled Taiwan.

Military Exercises

The CCP’s military stages regular exercises in the waters and airspace around Taiwan, which the government in Taipei regards as a way of putting pressure on the island, while stopping short of actual combat.

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te has repeatedly offered to have talks with China, but Beijing has refused, calling him a “separatist.”

The history between China and Taiwan is long and complex. The island nation, with an estimated population of around 23.9 million to China’s 1.4 billion, is known officially as the Republic of China, and most nations only recognize it unofficially.

Taiwan, which uses the official name the Republic of China (ROC) as shown on its citizens’ passports, is the last territory of the republic that also ruled mainland China from 1911 to 1949.

After being defeated by the CCP in 1949 on the mainland, the ROC’s nationalist government, led by Chiang Kai-shek, retreated to the island of Taiwan, which was returned to China from Japanese occupation in 1945. The Republic of China has remained Taiwan’s official name since then. Meanwhile, the CCP established the communist regime, the People’s Republic of China (PRC), on the mainland in 1949.

Polling in Taiwan consistently shows that the vast majority favors the status quo, with younger people more in favor of declaring full independence from China. In a poll from earlier this year, 82.5 percent of respondents rejected Beijing’s claim that “Taiwan is part of China’s territory.”

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 18:25

Secret US Memo Links Venezuela To 'Chemical Weapons Threat'

It didn't take long for the words Nicolás Maduro, Venezuela, and chemical weapons to show up in the same US government national security memo. We've examined before various possible 'justifications' Washington might use for some kind of future military action on Venezuela, or even a full regime change operation.

From Vietnam to Iraq to Libya, Washington is always looking for some kind of casus belli - even if it has to be manufactured - to sell war to the American people. And now we're quickly in WMD territory at a moment that unprecedented US Naval power is parked off Venezuela's coast.

"A classified Justice Department brief authorizing strikes on drug-smuggling boats describes fentanyl as a potential chemical weapons threat, according to a House member and another person familiar with the memo," a Friday Wall Street Journal report says.

DEA-seized fentanyl in the US. Image source: DEA/CNN

It cites a lengthy document by the department’s Office of Legal Counsel, which lays out the legal justification of the Trump administration for continuing military operations in the southern Caribbean with an eye on Venezuela. 

Revelation of the classified memo comes less than 12 hours after US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth late in the day Thursday announced a new major US military campaign, dubbed "Operation Southern Spear," ordered by President Trump.

"Led by Joint Task Force Southern Spear and SOUTHCOM, this mission defends our Homeland, removes narco-terrorists from our Hemisphere, and secures our Homeland from the drugs that are killing our people," the Pentagon chief described. He added "The Western Hemisphere is America’s neighborhood – and we will protect it."

But the chemical weapons angle is unlikely to be very convincing to Congressional leaders, much less the American public:

The main argument in the memo is that President Trump’s designation of drug cartels as foreign terrorists makes them legitimate military targets, asserting that the groups are smuggling drugs to fund deadly and destabilizing actions against the U.S. and its allies, according to lawmakers and others who have read it.

So there are 'terrorists' who possess a substance classified as a 'chemical weapon'. WSJ continues, "The mention of fentanyl is one of many points in the brief, which was drafted over the summer to justify the use of military force against drug traffickers. The legal case for military action doesn’t rest on concerns about chemical-weapons use."

Still, it's very questionable whether Venezuela is actually at all involved in the fentanyl trade, as the report notes further:

Venezuela, a base for one of the criminal groups designated as a terrorist organization, has long been a transit route for Colombian cocaine. There is no evidence it produces or traffics fentanyl, which is typically made in Mexico and smuggled over land, experts note.

"It is an incredible stretch," said Brian Finucane, a former legal adviser to the State Department during the Obama administrations and first Trump administration said of the memo’s warning about fentanyl.

Fentanyl as a "chemical weapon"...

 

The Center for Disease Control's (CDC) National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has written that "Fentanyl depresses central nervous system (CNS) and respiratory function. Exposure to fentanyl may be fatal." It has a potency at least 80 times that of morphine.

Going back several years, the single biggest sources of the world's fentanyl trade have been consistently identified as China and Mexico. At this point it's impossible to know, and hasn't been disclosed, whether any of the some 20 boats blown up by US military action off Latin America since September have been loaded with fentanyl, or in what quantities. 

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 18:00

Waymo Launches First US Freeway Robotaxi Rides In California And Arizona

Authored by Cynthia Cai via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Waymo has launched driverless robotaxi rides on freeways in the United States, a first in the country for autonomous ride-hailing services.

A self-driving Waymo vehicle awaits passengers in Los Angeles on July 1, 2025. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

In a Nov. 12 announcement, the Alphabet-owned company said it will provide some riders with routes that include freeways in California’s San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles as well as in Phoenix, Arizona.

The expansion will also include curbside service at San Jose Mineta International Airport. The company is still in the testing phase at San Francisco International Airport.

Users need to opt in to Waymo’s new services and features through the app to be able to try this kind of trip.

“The open road symbolizes freedom and unlimited possibility—highlighted especially by the ease and speed by which freeways allow us to get where we’re going,” the company said in the announcement.

Waymo has been rapidly expanding its autonomous ride-hailing services domestically and abroad. Earlier this month, it announced plans to launch robotaxi services in San Diego, Detroit, and Las Vegas.

London is also slated to welcome these fully driverless vehicles to its streets in 2026 as a pilot project.

“Over the coming months, we’ll lay the groundwork for our service in collaboration with our fleet operations partner Moove, and continue to engage with local and national leaders to secure the necessary permissions for our commercial ride-hailing service in London,” Waymo said.

In April this year, Waymo brought its vehicles to Tokyo, where the company began adapting its technology and operations to the busy roads of Japan’s capital city.

Waymo isn’t the only company aiming to bring autonomous ride-hailing to the public, as Tesla recently launched limited self-driving cab services in Austin, Texas. However, with Tesla rides, a human safety operator sits in the front passenger or driver’s seat. Most Waymo cabs are unmanned.

Tesla’s website says its Robotaxi fleet is currently invite-only and consists of Model Y vehicles, and riders are required to stay out of the driver’s seat.

Earlier this year, California greenlit Tesla’s autonomous ride-hailing services for limited operation in pre-arranged trips available to company employees. Tesla obtained a charter-party carrier permit, which allows the company to work towards expanding its service to members of the public, the California Department of Motor Vehicles stated in March.

Tesla’s self-driving technology relies on exterior cameras for 360-degree visibility and artificial intelligence (AI) to navigate roads. Its AI system works to identify objects on the road and maintain speed to keep up with traffic conditions.

Meanwhile, Waymo’s autonomous technology uses a combination of lidar, cameras, radar, and computing to create a 3D picture of the car’s surroundings for the Waymo Driver system to make decisions while on the road.

Over the years, Waymo has faced obstacles while trying to make autonomous ride-hailing widely available.

In 2024, the company temporarily paused expansion plans in California after public officials in San Mateo and Los Angeles counties raised concerns about Waymo cars potentially stalling and causing public safety issues by blocking firefighters and police.

The U.S. Department of Transportation in 2024 probed Waymo’s autonomous driving system following reports of crashes and violations of traffic safety laws.

These cars have also been the target of vandalism. A mob surrounded, smashed, and set on fire a stopped car in San Francisco during Lunar New Year celebrations last year.

Similarly, protesters destroyed several Waymo vehicles during riots in Los Angeles earlier this year. Videos and photos showed rioters calling for the vehicles on apps. When the cars arrived, rioters sprayed graffiti, tore the cars apart, and set them ablaze.

The Mountain View, California-based company currently has over 1,500 cars in its fleet spread across San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Austin, with the goal of building 2,000 more fully autonomous I-PACE vehicles through next year.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 17:40

Hegseth Announces New Military Campaign 'Operation Southern Spear'

US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth late in the day Thursday announced a new major US military campaign, dubbed "Operation Southern Spear," which he said was ordered by President Trump at a moment of unprecedented build-up of naval assets and troops in the southern Caribbean.

"President Trump ordered action - and the Department of War is delivering," Hegseth began in his message on X. "Today, I’m announcing Operation SOUTHERN SPEAR."

Source: US Navy handout

The message was not accompanied by any additional escalation or military action against Venezuela, other than the drone boat strikes of late which have become typical. Some 21 alleged drug boats have been blown out of the water off Latin America in operations stretching back to September.

"Led by Joint Task Force Southern Spear and SOUTHCOM, this mission defends our Homeland, removes narco-terrorists from our Hemisphere, and secures our Homeland from the drugs that are killing our people," the Pentagon chief described. He added "The Western Hemisphere is America’s neighborhood – and we will protect it."

Simultaneously in its own post on social media, SOUTHCOM announced that the US Marines were conducting artillery training onboard the USS Iwo Jima in the Caribbean in support of the commander-in-chief's "priorities to disrupt illicit drug trafficking and protect the homeland."

The USS Iwo Jima is the type of amphibious assault ship which could theoretically land on Venezuela's coast and deliver troops, though this is unlikely at this stage. Any Trump-ordered assault would likely stay at the level of aerial strikes on land targets.

Earlier, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday rejected criticism of US attacks on narco-vessels from G-7 allies. He emphasized that Europeans will not dictate how Washington chooses to defend US national security.

"I don’t think that the European Union gets to determine what international law is, and what they certainly don’t get to determine is how the United States defends its national security," he told a reporter while fielding a question. "The United States is under attack from organized criminal narco-terrorists in our hemisphere, and the President is responding in the defense of our country."

#Readiness:
A U.S. Marine with @22nd_MEU conducts battery training aboard USS Iwo Jima. U.S. military forces are deployed to the Caribbean in support of the #SOUTHCOM mission, @DeptofWar-directed operations, and @POTUS' priorities to disrupt illicit drug trafficking and protect… pic.twitter.com/kLaxdHcNKq

— U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom) November 13, 2025

"I do find it interesting that all of these countries want us to send and supply, for example, nuclear-capable Tomahawk missiles to defend Europe, but when the United States positions aircraft carriers in our hemisphere where we live, somehow that’s a problem," Rubio added.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 17:20

5,000 Dead People Getting SNAP; 500,000 Getting Benefits Twice: Rollins

Authored by Jack Phillips via The Epoch Times,

The secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) said in a recent interview that the department found that 500,000 people are registered twice for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, while more than 5,000 deceased people have also been receiving the benefits.

In an interview on Nov. 12 with Fox News, USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins said that SNAP is one of the “most corrupt, dysfunctional programs” in U.S. history, adding that 80 percent of people using the program are able to work.

After an investigation, the secretary said that 5,000 dead people were getting SNAP, while another 500,000 people were getting SNAP twice under the same name.

“They choose not to work because taxpayers are footing the bill,” she added, saying that “very big announcements” will be coming in the next week.

Her comment was made as SNAP benefits, known as food stamps, saw setbacks and legal wrangling during the government shutdown that was ended on Wednesday evening.

Rollins also suggested that if some SNAP benefits are cut off, more illegal immigrants will self-deport, which she said would change the outcome of the Census.

Earlier in the month, as SNAP benefits were suspended, Rollins described “massive fraud” in the system, noting that the fraud was discovered only in states that had cooperated with a prior investigation. She said that 21 states refused to hand over their SNAP data to the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which was established by the Trump administration earlier this year.

After the shutdown ended, the USDA, which runs the program, issued new guidance on Nov. 13 saying that “state agencies must take immediate steps to ensure households receive their full November allotments promptly.”

“The reduction in maximum allotments for November is no longer in effect,” it added.

“State agencies should immediately resume issuing combined allotments for November and December for newly certified applicants who apply after the 15th of the month.”

Officials with USDA said that because households that receive SNAP didn’t get a full month of benefits and saw uncertainty, the department sent instructions to states “to not issue countable months for time limited participants for November 2025” and that states “should resume normal procedures for countable months beginning in December 2025.”

The federal food program is used by about 42 million people, or around one in eight Americans, namely in lower-income households. They receive an average of $190 monthly per person.

In some states where SNAP recipients received nothing in November, officials said they are working to load money onto people’s electronic benefit cards by Friday, if not sooner.

The Arkansas Department of Human Services said on Nov. 13 that full November SNAP benefits are expected to be available at midnight for people to buy groceries.

“This has been difficult for our beneficiaries, and we are incredibly appreciative to our partners across the state who helped bridge the gap through food pantries, donation drives, and other assistance efforts,” Department Secretary Janet Mann said in a statement.

Officials in West Virginia, which also had not issued November benefits, said the full monthly amount should be available by Nov. 14. And Alabama said full SNAP benefits should be issued on Nov. 13.

The shutdown ended as President Donald Trump signed a continuing resolution to fund the federal government until late January, coming after the Senate and House passed a funding package.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 17:00

How Do Empires Fall?

Authored by James Howard Kunstler,

Our Democray (I'm Sure)

"How do empires fall? Not by war, but by unbalanced minds disconnected from reality."

- The Vigilant Fox on “X"

By now, whenever you hear anyone invoke the phrase “saving our democracy,” that should be a signal that they are intent on destroying this republic, and with that, your natural rights to free speech, economic liberty, and public order.

What began in 2016 as a simple, high-level plot to take out Donald Trump and squash Trumpism — a grassroots revolt against those very high-level DC insiders —turned sharply in 2017 into a long-running cover-up operation that spawned a multiplying cycle of seditions, treasons, and betrayals of the public — as the insiders desperately tried to evade culpability for each previous act — and finally blossomed into a rolling coup with crypto-Jacobin overtones as the insiders’ useful idiots were recruited to run with the ball of color revolution.

For those who can’t quite wrap their minds around this game, a color revolution is the surreptitious overthrow of an elected government by concealed parties. Neocons in the US State Department developed the practice of color revolution on many countries over the years. Mr. Obama added a layer of gnostic Marxists to the personnel mix at State, and these wannabe revolutionaries built a fantastic matrix of NGOs outside State to marshal the useful idiots with jobs and salaries. The NGOs, in turn, were connected to international moneybags, with strange agendas of their own such as the megalomanic climate change crusader Bill Gates and George Soros’s Open Society Foundation, which funds anarchist district attorneys, the defense of election fraud, mass illegal migration, internet censorship, and money-flows into Antifa, the Left’s street fighters.

The motives of these players might appear murky, but at this point they can be boiled down to:

1) staying out of jail, and

2) retaining control of their empires.

Hillary Clinton, for instance, surely wants to stay out of jail for her RussiaGate caper, and retain the ill-gotten lucre of the Clinton Foundation she lives off. At 95, George Soros himself is probably beyond caring about all this, but his son Alex, 38, carries on, and recently cemented his alliance with the Clinton Foundation by marrying the former Mrs. Anthony Wiener, Huma Abedin, Hillary Clinton’s long-time wing-gal.

The Democratic Party plays an increasingly curious part in this rolling coup as all its efforts look evermore insane and self-extinguishing — the bootless government shutdown being the latest exercise. The party can no longer meaningfully represent organized labor — since labor moved to faraway lands — so it attempted to replace that earnest bond with fronting for women and minorities.

This has resulted in two problems:

1) women taking over the actual machinery of the party has transformed mere politics into never-ending psychodrama and boosted the amplitude of political dirty-fighting to dangerous new levels; and

2) cultivating minority groups has led to an orgy of race-and-gender hustles that amount to gigantic racketeering operations (i.e., making money dishonestly).

All of that sound, fury, and roguery is now dedicated only to staving off the party’s collapse and thwarting Mr. Trump’s attempt to restore something like regular order in public affairs, which the Democratic Party calls “authoritarianism.” Regular order is something that healthy male psychology takes an interest in, since it entails defense of the culture, in this case, Western Civ and its heritage. That implies the uses of strength as opposed to the stratagems of weakness. It must acknowledge and rely on classic virtues such as fortitude, prudence, and a preference for what is — as opposed to wishes and fantasies.

Psychodrama dispenses with all that for the sake of emotional gratification, often mis-characterized as empathy or caring. It can transform easily into sadism — as you can see now with the calls for violence and murder against Trump-adjacent persons. Meanwhile, be aware that the cries for “saving our democracy” come from the people opposed to regular order in elections, that is, voter ID, voting on election day only, with results reported out at day’s end, paper ballots and no electronic counting machines, and no mail-in ballots (except for people out of the country on election day). All of these stipulations are observed in other nations of Western Civ, and beyond, even in lands where people go about half-clothed.

The current psychodrama, of course, is the latest installment of the Jeffrey Epstein scandal. The Democrats are flogging it with Wile E. Coyote zeal. I suspect it is an Acme booby trap for the ages and it is being carefully laid by Mr. Trump, the Roadrunner, to blow up un the Dems’ faces when all the documents are finally sorted out. Anyway, it has nothing to do with the real-world problems that the US faces, such as runaway financialization of the economy, a broken medical system, mass job layoffs, the collapse of education, surging mental illness, the drug plague, and the sinking middle-class.

We’re entering a new phase in the ongoing color revolution, the coup against America, and it’s liable to be the final phase in which all the mystery gets wrung out, the motives are revealed, and the players are correctly sorted and labeled according to their deeds.

No new psychodrama will avail to stop what’s coming.

*  *  *

Now live: JHK’s new novel, a comic romp set during the week of the tragic JFK Assassination, November 1963. Amusing excerpt from the book at this link.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 16:20

How Do Empires Fall?

Authored by James Howard Kunstler,

Our Democray (I'm Sure)

"How do empires fall? Not by war, but by unbalanced minds disconnected from reality."

- The Vigilant Fox on “X"

By now, whenever you hear anyone invoke the phrase “saving our democracy,” that should be a signal that they are intent on destroying this republic, and with that, your natural rights to free speech, economic liberty, and public order.

What began in 2016 as a simple, high-level plot to take out Donald Trump and squash Trumpism — a grassroots revolt against those very high-level DC insiders —turned sharply in 2017 into a long-running cover-up operation that spawned a multiplying cycle of seditions, treasons, and betrayals of the public — as the insiders desperately tried to evade culpability for each previous act — and finally blossomed into a rolling coup with crypto-Jacobin overtones as the insiders’ useful idiots were recruited to run with the ball of color revolution.

For those who can’t quite wrap their minds around this game, a color revolution is the surreptitious overthrow of an elected government by concealed parties. Neocons in the US State Department developed the practice of color revolution on many countries over the years. Mr. Obama added a layer of gnostic Marxists to the personnel mix at State, and these wannabe revolutionaries built a fantastic matrix of NGOs outside State to marshal the useful idiots with jobs and salaries. The NGOs, in turn, were connected to international moneybags, with strange agendas of their own such as the megalomanic climate change crusader Bill Gates and George Soros’s Open Society Foundation, which funds anarchist district attorneys, the defense of election fraud, mass illegal migration, internet censorship, and money-flows into Antifa, the Left’s street fighters.

The motives of these players might appear murky, but at this point they can be boiled down to:

1) staying out of jail, and

2) retaining control of their empires.

Hillary Clinton, for instance, surely wants to stay out of jail for her RussiaGate caper, and retain the ill-gotten lucre of the Clinton Foundation she lives off. At 95, George Soros himself is probably beyond caring about all this, but his son Alex, 38, carries on, and recently cemented his alliance with the Clinton Foundation by marrying the former Mrs. Anthony Wiener, Huma Abedin, Hillary Clinton’s long-time wing-gal.

The Democratic Party plays an increasingly curious part in this rolling coup as all its efforts look evermore insane and self-extinguishing — the bootless government shutdown being the latest exercise. The party can no longer meaningfully represent organized labor — since labor moved to faraway lands — so it attempted to replace that earnest bond with fronting for women and minorities.

This has resulted in two problems:

1) women taking over the actual machinery of the party has transformed mere politics into never-ending psychodrama and boosted the amplitude of political dirty-fighting to dangerous new levels; and

2) cultivating minority groups has led to an orgy of race-and-gender hustles that amount to gigantic racketeering operations (i.e., making money dishonestly).

All of that sound, fury, and roguery is now dedicated only to staving off the party’s collapse and thwarting Mr. Trump’s attempt to restore something like regular order in public affairs, which the Democratic Party calls “authoritarianism.” Regular order is something that healthy male psychology takes an interest in, since it entails defense of the culture, in this case, Western Civ and its heritage. That implies the uses of strength as opposed to the stratagems of weakness. It must acknowledge and rely on classic virtues such as fortitude, prudence, and a preference for what is — as opposed to wishes and fantasies.

Psychodrama dispenses with all that for the sake of emotional gratification, often mis-characterized as empathy or caring. It can transform easily into sadism — as you can see now with the calls for violence and murder against Trump-adjacent persons. Meanwhile, be aware that the cries for “saving our democracy” come from the people opposed to regular order in elections, that is, voter ID, voting on election day only, with results reported out at day’s end, paper ballots and no electronic counting machines, and no mail-in ballots (except for people out of the country on election day). All of these stipulations are observed in other nations of Western Civ, and beyond, even in lands where people go about half-clothed.

The current psychodrama, of course, is the latest installment of the Jeffrey Epstein scandal. The Democrats are flogging it with Wile E. Coyote zeal. I suspect it is an Acme booby trap for the ages and it is being carefully laid by Mr. Trump, the Roadrunner, to blow up un the Dems’ faces when all the documents are finally sorted out. Anyway, it has nothing to do with the real-world problems that the US faces, such as runaway financialization of the economy, a broken medical system, mass job layoffs, the collapse of education, surging mental illness, the drug plague, and the sinking middle-class.

We’re entering a new phase in the ongoing color revolution, the coup against America, and it’s liable to be the final phase in which all the mystery gets wrung out, the motives are revealed, and the players are correctly sorted and labeled according to their deeds.

No new psychodrama will avail to stop what’s coming.

*  *  *

Now live: JHK’s new novel, a comic romp set during the week of the tragic JFK Assassination, November 1963. Amusing excerpt from the book at this link.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 16:20

The Nerve! DNC Union Furious Over A Five-Day, In-Person Work-Week

Authored by Lincoln Brown via PJMedia.com,

I have been employed at one job or another since high school. My first “real” job was as a busboy in a department store restaurant. Times were tough, so I had to pick up a part-time job after school. I’d get home from school, put on a pair of black polyester pants and a white shirt, both of which reeked of cooked food, and go to work. I’d bus tables during the dinner shift, and during lunch and dinner on the weekends, and do my homework or, more often than not, watch a little MTV when my shift was over. 

Even after things got better for my family, I kept working because even as a teenage boy, I realized that money came in handy. As it turns out, girls appreciate a guy who can pay for dinner and a movie. And you can buy stuff like clothes. 

During my time in the workforce, there were two rules that I thought were pretty much givens.

Rule #1

If your employer schedules you for a shift or whatever it is you work, you show up on time and do what you’re told to do.

Rule #2

If you don’t like Rule #1, find another job. If you can.

That, apparently, is not SOP in the 21st century.

I submit to you the staffers at the Democratic National Committee.

They are currently affronted, insulted, traumatized, made to feel unsafe, victimized, and suffering from acute cases of out-of-joint noses and ruffled feathers because the DNC bosses told them that, henceforth, they would have to show up, in person, at their jobs for the entire five-day work week.

 As Col. Kurtz would say, “The horror. The horror.”

The Daily Caller reports that on Wednesday, DNC Chairman Ken Martin let the word go forth at a staff-wide meeting that as of February of next year, D.C. area employees would need to be back to work, full-time, at the DNC offices in Washington.

And the cries went up from both those who attended the meeting and those watching via Zoom. Citing the New York Times, the Caller said that “thumbs down emojis” began to flood the screen. The Employees International Union, which represents the DNC workers, said:

It was shocking to see the DNC chair disregard staff’s valid concerns on today’s team call.

DNC staff worked extremely hard to support historic wins for Democrats up and down the ballot last Tuesday, and this change feels especially callous considering the current economic conditions created by the Trump administration.

Oh, and the union also thinks that the decision is “callous.”  

This is hilarious.

DNC staffers are “shocked” at being expected to show up to work during a midterm campaign cycle

The best part is that they still get two full months before they actually have to get out of bed 5 days week

Is this a political committee or a daycare? https://t.co/Nsjb8Z4EpX pic.twitter.com/8Db7QD8ELd

— kiersten pels (@KierstenPels) November 13, 2025

One person groused that the party had won the 2020 presidential race with everyone working remotely, and that they should be allowed to work from home at least until 2028.

Of course, no one at the DNC wants to talk about 2024. Or maybe they do, which is why they are rounding everyone up and re-assigning cubicles or workspaces. Or whatever it is they use at the DNC. Maybe hammocks? Who knows?

Martin let the disgruntled team members know that if they felt they were not up to the task of working in person and showing up five days a week, they might want to spruce up their resumes and seek their fortunes elsewhere. And although I am no longer a Democrat, I would have to concur.

So the DNC staff members have until February, February, mind you, to find pants, shoes, a razor, and get a haircut and a shower before doing what millions of other Americans do every day. And they are still unhappy.

This, of course, is the end-product of letting people throw tantrums and make threats under the guise of feeling safe or living their truths. All I have to say to the DNC is you created this monster and now you get to live with it.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 15:40

The Nerve! DNC Union Furious Over A Five-Day, In-Person Work-Week

Authored by Lincoln Brown via PJMedia.com,

I have been employed at one job or another since high school. My first “real” job was as a busboy in a department store restaurant. Times were tough, so I had to pick up a part-time job after school. I’d get home from school, put on a pair of black polyester pants and a white shirt, both of which reeked of cooked food, and go to work. I’d bus tables during the dinner shift, and during lunch and dinner on the weekends, and do my homework or, more often than not, watch a little MTV when my shift was over. 

Even after things got better for my family, I kept working because even as a teenage boy, I realized that money came in handy. As it turns out, girls appreciate a guy who can pay for dinner and a movie. And you can buy stuff like clothes. 

During my time in the workforce, there were two rules that I thought were pretty much givens.

Rule #1

If your employer schedules you for a shift or whatever it is you work, you show up on time and do what you’re told to do.

Rule #2

If you don’t like Rule #1, find another job. If you can.

That, apparently, is not SOP in the 21st century.

I submit to you the staffers at the Democratic National Committee.

They are currently affronted, insulted, traumatized, made to feel unsafe, victimized, and suffering from acute cases of out-of-joint noses and ruffled feathers because the DNC bosses told them that, henceforth, they would have to show up, in person, at their jobs for the entire five-day work week.

 As Col. Kurtz would say, “The horror. The horror.”

The Daily Caller reports that on Wednesday, DNC Chairman Ken Martin let the word go forth at a staff-wide meeting that as of February of next year, D.C. area employees would need to be back to work, full-time, at the DNC offices in Washington.

And the cries went up from both those who attended the meeting and those watching via Zoom. Citing the New York Times, the Caller said that “thumbs down emojis” began to flood the screen. The Employees International Union, which represents the DNC workers, said:

It was shocking to see the DNC chair disregard staff’s valid concerns on today’s team call.

DNC staff worked extremely hard to support historic wins for Democrats up and down the ballot last Tuesday, and this change feels especially callous considering the current economic conditions created by the Trump administration.

Oh, and the union also thinks that the decision is “callous.”  

This is hilarious.

DNC staffers are “shocked” at being expected to show up to work during a midterm campaign cycle

The best part is that they still get two full months before they actually have to get out of bed 5 days week

Is this a political committee or a daycare? https://t.co/Nsjb8Z4EpX pic.twitter.com/8Db7QD8ELd

— kiersten pels (@KierstenPels) November 13, 2025

One person groused that the party had won the 2020 presidential race with everyone working remotely, and that they should be allowed to work from home at least until 2028.

Of course, no one at the DNC wants to talk about 2024. Or maybe they do, which is why they are rounding everyone up and re-assigning cubicles or workspaces. Or whatever it is they use at the DNC. Maybe hammocks? Who knows?

Martin let the disgruntled team members know that if they felt they were not up to the task of working in person and showing up five days a week, they might want to spruce up their resumes and seek their fortunes elsewhere. And although I am no longer a Democrat, I would have to concur.

So the DNC staff members have until February, February, mind you, to find pants, shoes, a razor, and get a haircut and a shower before doing what millions of other Americans do every day. And they are still unhappy.

This, of course, is the end-product of letting people throw tantrums and make threats under the guise of feeling safe or living their truths. All I have to say to the DNC is you created this monster and now you get to live with it.

Tyler Durden Fri, 11/14/2025 - 15:40