From the MBA: Mortgage Applications Decrease in Latest MBA Weekly Survey

Mortgage applications decreased 3.8 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending December 12, 2025.

The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 3.8 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 5 percent compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index decreased 4 percent from the previous week and was 86 percent higher than the same week one year ago. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 3 percent from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index decreased 7 percent compared with the previous week and was 13 percent higher than the same week one year ago.

“Mortgage rates inched up last week following the FOMC meeting, as investors interpreted the comments to signal that we are near the end of this rate cutting cycle. As a result, mortgage applications declined slightly,” said Mike Fratantoni, MBA’s SVP and Chief Economist. “Purchase application volume typically drops off quickly at the end of the year, and this shifts the mix of the business, with the refinance share reaching 59 percent last week, the highest level since September. However, refinance activity has remained mostly the same for the past month as rates continue to hold at around the same narrow range.”
...
The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($806,500 or less) increased to 6.38 percent from 6.33 percent, with points increasing to 0.62 from 0.60 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value ratio (LTV) loans.
emphasis added

Click on graph for larger image.

The first graph shows the MBA mortgage purchase index.

According to the MBA, purchase activity is up 13% year-over-year unadjusted. 
Red is a four-week average (blue is weekly).  
Purchase application activity is still depressed, but solidly above the lows of 2023 and above the lowest levels during the housing bust.  

The second graph shows the refinance index since 1990.

The refinance index increased from the bottom as mortgage rates declined, but is down from the recent peak in September.

"Buy Nicotine, Energy Drink, Candy Stocks": Goldman Tells Clients Get Ready For Party In USA 

Bonnie Herzog, managing director and senior consumer analyst at Goldman Sachs, told clients Tuesday that, after consumer staples' underperformance in 2025, it is time to buy nicotine, energy drink, candy, and beauty stocks heading into 2026 as a stronger consumer backdrop emerges.

Herzog wrote:

Our View -- 2025 has been another year of underperformance by Consumer Staples with all but Nicotine stocks lagging the market as concerns around the health of the US consumer (owing to macro uncertainty, geopolitical tensions, tariffs, layoffs, etc.) which weighed on consumption trends and drove value-seeking behavior amongst consumers during the year.

Heading into 2026, we expect a more constructive US consumer backdrop (esp. middle-income cohorts) given a pickup in real income growth (aided by job growth, tax cuts, and fading tariff-related inflation) to support a discretionary over defensive approach, which will likely weigh on Staples' performance again next year. Irrespective of Staples' trajectory, we see an encouraging backdrop for stock picking in 2026. We continue to encourage investors to put new money to work in stocks with exposure to categories with attractive and profitable growth that should outpace broader Staples such as energy drinks, nicotine, candy, and beauty.

Herzog even noted that next year could be considered "the year of beer stocks":

Furthermore, we believe 2026 could be the year of beer stocks as we expect headwinds to abate and see a few tailwinds such as the lapping of easy comps, better weather (we hope), and increased consumption occasions given a trifecta of events next year including the FIFA World Cup, the Olympics, and the 250th anniversary of the US, which we believe should support greater beer consumption in the year.

Amid the growing specter of a "K-shaped" economy, core retail sales growth was strong in October. Whether that strength reflects inflation or real economic growth, the consumer is holding up in aggregate. With tailwinds expected to emerge in the economy early next year, as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently outlined, Herzog's bullish call to buy nicotine, energy drink, candy, and beauty stocks appears to reflect that improving backdrop.

Here is Herzog's bull call (summary):

• Market share gainers and strong topline performers: Philip Morris International and Monster Beverage

• Where bearishness appears overdone: PepsiCo, e.l.f. Beauty, Celsius Holdings, Hershey, and Sprouts Farmers Market

• Beer recovery beneficiaries: Constellation Brands and Molson Coors

• Growth-advantaged emerging market exposure: Philip Morris International, Mondelez International, and Colgate-Palmolive

• Easing cost pressure beneficiary: Hershey

• GLP-1 and better-for-you positioning: Sprouts Farmers Market

Is next year going to be like .... ?

For the full note and a much more granular breakdown of this bull case, ZeroHedge Pro subscribers can read it in the usual place.

Tyler Durden Wed, 12/17/2025 - 06:55

US, Mexico Reach Agreement To Fix Tijuana River Sewage Crisis: EPA

Authored by Melanie Sun via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

The Trump administration has signed a new binational agreement with Mexico, advancing efforts to solve a decades-long sewage crisis plaguing residents both north and south of the transnational Tijuana River.

Trash lines the beaches near the Tijuana River mouth outside of San Diego, Calif., on Sept. 19, 2024. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said on Dec. 15 that the United States and Mexico have signed a “historic new agreement” called Minute 333. The binational agreement saw both nations agree to additional actions that the EPA said will “progress to permanently and urgently end the decades-long Tijuana River sewage crisis.”

The majority of the 120-mile Tijuana River lies south of the U.S.–Mexico border in the Mexican state of Baja California. Only the last five miles are on the U.S. side of the border, flowing to San Diego and emptying into the Pacific Ocean. The San Diego City Council first declared a state of emergency because of the pollution—ranging from raw sewage to industrial runoff—in 1993.

A list of actions outlined in the new agreement includes Mexico developing a water infrastructure plan for Tijuana within six months, creating plans to ensure the proper operation and maintenance of critical systems, and determining the feasibility of a new ocean outfall for the San Antonio de los Buenos Wastewater Treatment Plant, as well as expanding the plant’s capacity by at least 25 million gallons per day (MGD).

The plant is currently operational after being shut down due to long-term disrepair from 2015 until early 2025. It currently has a capacity of 18 MGD, or about 800 liters per second, but receives 40–45 MGD, leading to sewage overflows, according to the EPA.

All plans are to account for future population growth in Tijuana, a key component that was missing from previous agreements made prior to the Trump administration being in office, the EPA said.

Other actions include Mexico’s agreement to construct a sediment basin near the international boundary at Matadero Canyon, also known as Smuggler’s Gulch, before the 2026–2027 rainy season, and a Tecolote-La Gloria Wastewater Treatment Plant in Tijuana, which is 5 miles south of the U.S.–Mexico border, by December 2028. The plant will have a capacity of 3 MGD and treat wastewater that is currently flowing untreated into the Pacific Ocean in Mexico, causing pollution issues on both sides of the border.

Across the region, deterioration of Tijuana’s water treatment infrastructure, compounded by the city’s fast-growing population, has created a health crisis in recent years. In 2015, Mexico’s San Antonio de los Buenos Wastewater Treatment Facility broke down, which led to the daily release of millions of gallons of untreated sewage, trash, and industrial waste into the Tijuana River.

Residents around San Diego have faced major water quality and public health concerns, with the transboundary pollution from Mexico causing the release of noxious gases such as hydrogen sulfide and hydrogen cyanide from the Tijuana River. Residents in affected communities were advised to use air purifiers and filters.

Trash builds up along the Tijuana River outside of San Diego, Calif., on Sept. 19, 2024. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

San Diego’s beaches have been closed, and even Naval in-water training has been suspended due to dangerously high concentrations of bacteria from the river entering the Pacific Ocean.

“Through this agreement, a set of technical, financial, and governance actions is established to carry out concrete sanitation works in Tijuana, including new treatment infrastructure and sediment control, which will have a positive impact on public health, the environment, and the beaches of Tijuana and San Diego,” Mexico’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

“It should be noted that the United States will assume shared financial responsibility, through the North American Development Bank (NADB), to ensure the operation and maintenance of the infrastructure on the Mexican side and to prevent its deterioration over time.”

According to the EPA, Minute 333 does not obligate “any additional U.S. taxpayer funding, including for Mexican-side projects.” U.S. funds to the NADB for the Border Water Infrastructure Program are appropriated by Congress every year, and are contingent on confirmation that Mexico’s projects—as outlined in the minutes—are on schedule to complete construction.

Water flows along the Tijuana River outside of San Diego, Calif., on Sept. 19, 2024. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said that Minute 333 sets the “framework for tremendous steps to be made” and that his agency looks forward to “very quickly hitting the ground running to implement the mutually agreed upon actions.”

“I saw the frustration of San Diego area residents firsthand when I visited in April,” he said. “I promised them a 100 percent solution to this issue, and the Trump EPA is doing its part to deliver.”

Minute 333 builds on a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed by Zeldin and Mexican Environment Minister Alicia Bárcena in July, in which Mexico agreed to expedite the expenditure of $93 million worth of improvements to the Tijuana sewage system and commit to several projects to account for future population growth and maintenance.

It codifies all actions listed in Section 4 of the MOU, which were “specifically designed to account for future population growth in Tijuana and the broader region,” the EPA said.

Tyler Durden Wed, 12/17/2025 - 06:30

Iran's Economy Struggles Amid High Inflation

Since early December 2025, a wave of protests has swept across Iran, ranging from human rights campaigns in major urban areas to labor strikes in industrial hubs.

As Statista's Tristan Gaudiat reports, part of the growing popular unrest concerns the accelerating use of the death penalty by the Iranian regime (more than 1,000 executions documented so far in 2025), while the country's economic situation has significantly deteriorated.

Iran is currently facing one of its most severe economic and social crises of the decade, as the country grapples with near-zero GDP growth, soaring inflation and escalating social and geopolitical tensions.

According to the IMF's latest projection (October 2025), Iran’s real GDP is expected to grow by just 0.6 percent in 2025, a sharp decline from previous years (+3.7 percent in 2024, +5.3 percent in 2023).

Inflation, meanwhile, is forecast to surge to 43.3 percent, one of the highest rates in the world, as the national currency (rial) continues its dramatic depreciation.

You will find more infographics at Statista
 

This grim outlook underscores the depth of Iran’s economic issues, driven by a combination of chronic mismanagement, systemic corruption and the impact of international sanctions.

The escalation of the conflict with Israel and the United States this year has further deteriorated the situation.

After a brief but intense war in June 2025, causing billions of dollars in damage in Iran, the United States imposed additional sanctions, targeting Iran’s oil, banking and shipping sectors.

The reimposition of the United Nations' “snapback” sanctions in late 2025 has also added to the pressure.

Tyler Durden Wed, 12/17/2025 - 04:15

The Folly Of Establishing A US Military Base In Damascus

Authored by José Niño via The Libertarian Institute

Recent reports indicate the United States is preparing to establish a military presence at an airbase in Damascus, allegedly to facilitate a security agreement between Syria and Israel. This development represents yet another misguided expansion of American military overreach in a region where Washington has already caused tremendous damage through decades of failed interventionist policies.

The United States currently operates approximately 750 to 877 military installations across roughly eighty countries worldwide. This staggering number represents about 70 to 85% of all foreign military bases globally. To put this in perspective, the next eighteen countries with foreign bases combined maintain only 370 installations total. Russia has just twenty-nine foreign bases, and China operates merely six. The American empire of bases already dwarfs every other nation combined, and the financial burden is crushing. Washington spends approximately $65 billion annually just to build and maintain these overseas installations, with total spending on foreign bases and personnel reaching over $94 billion per year.

These figures are not abstract accounting entries. They translate directly into American lives placed in volatile environments, as demonstrated by the recent insider attack in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra, where a purported "ISIS infiltrator" embedded in local government security forces turned his weapon on a joint U.S. Syrian patrol, killing two U.S. soldiers and one U.S. civilian during what was described as a routine field tour. The incident underscores how the sprawling U.S. basing network increasingly exposes American personnel to unpredictable and lethal blowback in unstable theaters far from home.

Syria itself already hosts between 1,500 and 2,000 American troops, primarily concentrated in the northeastern Hasakah province and at the Al Tanf base in the Syrian Desert. The Pentagon recently announced plans to reduce this presence to fewer than 1,000 personnel and consolidated operations from eight installations to just three. Yet now, despite this supposed drawdown, Washington reportedly plans to establish a new presence in Damascus itself, either at Mezzeh Air Base or Al Seen Military Airport. This contradictory expansion reveals the hollow nature of promises to reduce American military commitments abroad.

Since the fall of Bashar al Assad in December 2024, Israel has conducted hundreds of airstrikes on Syrian military and civilian infrastructure while occupying parts of southern Syria including Quneitra and Daraa. Israel has systematically violated the 1974 disengagement agreement and expanded control over buffer zones. These actions align disturbingly well with the Yinon Plan, a 1982 Israeli strategic document by Israeli foreign policy official Oded Yinon that envisions the dissolution of surrounding Arab states into smaller ethnic and religious entities. The plan explicitly calls for fragmenting Syria along its ethnic and religious lines to prevent a strong centralized government that could challenge Israeli interests.

A permanent American military presence in Damascus would effectively serve as a tripwire guaranteeing continued U.S. involvement in securing Israeli strategic objectives in the Levant. Rather than protecting American interests or enhancing national security, such a base would entrench Washington deeper into regional conflicts that have consistently proven disastrous for both American taxpayers and Middle Eastern populations.

The human cost of American intervention in Syria should give any policymaker pause. The Syrian proxy war has resulted in between 617,000 and 656,000 deaths, including civilians, rebels, and government forces. More than 7.4 million people remain internally displaced within Syria, while approximately 6.3 million Syrian refugees live abroad. This catastrophic toll stems partly from Operation Timber Sycamore, the CIA covert program that ran from 2012 to 2017 to train and equip Syrian rebel forces.

Timber Sycamore represented a joint effort involving American intelligence services along with Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar, Turkey, and the United Kingdom. The CIA ran secret training camps in Jordan and Turkey, providing rebels with small arms, ammunition, trucks, and eventually advanced weaponry like BGM 71 TOW anti-tank missiles. Saudi Arabia provided significant funding while the United States supplied training and logistical support.

The program proved to be counterproductive. Jordanian intelligence officers stole and sold millions of dollars worth of weapons intended for rebels on the black market. Even worse, U.S.-supplied weapons regularly fell into the hands of the al Nusra Front, al-Qaeda’s Syrian affiliate, and ISIS itself. The program strengthened the very extremists Washington was ostensibly fighting.

The failure of Timber Sycamore illustrates a fundamental problem with American interventionism in Syria. Washington has pursued regime change in Damascus in various forms for decades, yet these efforts have consistently backfired, creating power vacuums filled by jihadist groups and prolonging devastating conflicts. The current enthusiasm for establishing a military presence in Damascus suggests American policymakers have learned absolutely nothing from these failures.

Our entire National Guard family mourns the loss of Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres Tovar, 25, of Des Moines, Iowa, and Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown, Iowa-the Iowa Army National Guard Soldiers who were ambushed and killed in Syria. Their mission was in support of… pic.twitter.com/eXcyCquOwb

— Gen. Steven Nordhaus (@ChiefNGB) December 15, 2025

The figure now leading Syria exemplifies the moral bankruptcy of this entire enterprise. Ahmed al Sharaa, better known by his nom de guerre Abu Mohammad al Julani, currently serves as president of Syria’s interim government. This represents a stunning rehabilitation for a man who founded al Nusra Front in 2012 as an al-Qaeda affiliate and later formed Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS) by merging various rebel factions. Under the name Abu Mohammad al Julani, he was designated a Specially Designated Global Terrorist by the United States on July 24, 2013, with a $10 million bounty maintained on his head.

Al Sharaa’s terrorist designation stemmed from his leadership of al Nusra Front, which perpetrated numerous war crimes including suicide bombings, forced conversions, ethnic cleansing, and sectarian massacres against Christian, Alawite, Shia, and Druze minorities. He fought with al-Qaeda in Iraq, spent time imprisoned at Camp Bucca between 2006 and 2010, and was dispatched to Syria by Abu Bakr al Baghdadi in 2011 with $50,000 to establish al Nusra. His close associates have faced accusations from the United States of overseeing torture, kidnappings, trafficking, ransom schemes, and displacing residents to seize property. The New York Times reported that his group was accused of initially operating under al-Qaeda’s umbrella.

Yet in November 2025, the United Nations Security Council adopted resolution 2799, removing al Sharaa and Interior Minister Anas Khattab from the ISIL and al-Qaeda sanctions list. The U.S. Treasury Department followed suit, delisting him from the Specially Designated Global Terrorist registry. This reversal came after the State Department revoked HTS’s Foreign Terrorist Organization designation in July 2025. Washington essentially decided that a former al-Qaeda commander who oversaw sectarian massacres was now a legitimate partner worthy of American military support. This absurd rehabilitation demonstrates how completely untethered American foreign policy has become from any coherent moral framework or strategic logic.

Critics rightly question whether al Sharaa has truly broken from his extremist roots or merely engaged in calculated political rebranding. The speed with which Washington embraced him as a legitimate leader suggests American policymakers care far more about advancing Israeli interests and maintaining regional influence than about genuine counterterrorism or protecting religious minorities.

The blatant lies and cover-up by U.S. officials after the attack in Syria show one thing clearly: they don’t give a damn about American troops. They’re treated as expendable cannon fodder to further consolidate the al-Qaeda regime in Damascus. https://t.co/kS0xCWPGZk

— Kevork Almassian (@KevorkAlmassian) December 14, 2025

The United States needs to pursue a fundamentally different approach to foreign policy. Rather than establishing yet another military base to advance Israeli strategic objectives in Syria, Washington should implement a comprehensive drawdown of overseas military commitments. The hundreds of foreign bases it maintains abroad represent an unsustainable burden that diverts resources from genuine national security priorities like border security and stability in the Western Hemisphere. American taxpayers deserve better than footing the bill for an empire that consistently fails to advance their interests while enriching defense contractors and serving foreign powers.

Syria offers a perfect case study in the futility of American interventionism. Decades of attempts at regime change through covert programs like Timber Sycamore and direct military presence have produced nothing but chaos, empowered jihadist groups, created millions of refugees, and cost hundreds of thousands of lives. The rehabilitation of a former al-Qaeda commander into Syria’s president illustrates how divorced American policy has become from any coherent strategy or values.

Rather than doubling down on failed policies, the United States should pursue strategic restraint, scale back its sprawling network of foreign bases, and allow regional powers to sort out their own affairs without American military involvement. That represents the path toward a more sustainable, affordable, and morally defensible foreign policy. The Damascus base proposal deserves to be rejected outright as yet another wasteful expansion of an already overextended military empire.

Tyler Durden Wed, 12/17/2025 - 03:30

Europe Establishes Hague-Based Reparations Commission For Ukraine

Top European officials met on Tuesday in The Hague in order to establish an international commission to oversee eventual reparations to compensate Ukraine for Russia's military invasion. President Volodymyr Zelensky and EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas were present for the high level talks in The Netherlands.

The International Claims Commission for Ukraine will assess and decide on claims for reparations, and will determine and discharge any amount to be paid out. This is likely to see hundreds of billions of dollars eventually flow to Ukraine for the sake of rebuilding and keeping the civic services sector afloat after nearly four years of war.

via European Union

The treaty to establish the commission has been signed by 35 countries at Tuesday's conference. It also has the involvement of Strasbourg-based Council of Europe, which is a 46-nation group protecting human rights on the continent. The new commission is going to be based in The Hague.

Zelensky welcomed the newly established mechanism, declaring that Russia "paying for its crimes" was "exactly where the real path to peace begins." He added: "This war and Russia’s responsibility for it must become a clear example so that others learn not to choose aggression," and followed with, "We must make Russia accept that there are rules in the world."

Dutch Foreign Minister David van Weel agreed, explaining that "Without accountability, a conflict cannot be fully resolved. And part of that accountability is also paying damages that have been done."

All this comes as EU leadership is trying to push through a scheme not just to permanently freeze Russian assets held chiefly in Belgium, but to use the funds for Ukraine's long-term defense and reconstruction.

But Russia’s Central Bank has this week filed a lawsuit seeking 18.2 trillion rubles ($229 billion) in damages from Belgium-based Euroclear, which is meant as a loud shot across Brussels' bow.

The EU's Kallas has lately admitted that the issue of using Russian frozen assets had become "increasingly difficult" ahead of a summit of European leaders which is set for Thursday. The EU is seeking to bypass obvious objectors such as Hungary, and is seeking legal loopholes which would allow a plan to pass based on simple majority vote among EU members.

NOW - Secretary General of the Council of Europe announces the establishment of the "International Claims Commission" and says that work is underway for a "special tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine." pic.twitter.com/XlVYKUPtzb

— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) December 16, 2025

The World Bank has estimated the cost of reconstruction due to the war, only figuring in numbers up to December 2024, at $524 billion.

Tyler Durden Wed, 12/17/2025 - 02:45

The Military Story Ken Burns Missed In The Revolution

Authored by David Stewart via RealClearDefense,

Ken Burns’ documentary on the American Revolution has generated much commentary, some supportive and some critical. Across social media, complaints abound that he paid too much, or too little, attention to the traditional Founding Fathers—Washington, Hamilton, Monroe, Jefferson. Critics pillory him for overemphasizing one specific type of history—military, political, economic, or social—while minimizing or ignoring the other types. In nearly every interview, Ken Burns repeatedly asserts that he sought to complicate the traditional narrative about the Revolution, to insert more nuance into the conversation, and these various criticisms from across the ideological spectrum might seem to suggest he has done so.

The major flaw in the documentary, however, is not that he presented the Founders in the wrong light nor that he complicated the traditional story. Rather, in his attempt to invoke a more nuanced narrative, Burns in fact obscured the most important elements of that narrative.

Some conservative commentators object, for example, to the documentary discussing Major-General Horatio Gates’ actions after the Battle of Camden. In August 1780, Gates’ 4.000-man American army suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Lieutenant-General Cornwallis’ 2.000 British in the South Carolina midlands. In the waning moments of the battle, Gates abandoned his army, riding almost 200 miles before stopping near Durham, North Carolina. Does this make Gates look bad? Yes; deservedly so. Is it the whole story, or even the most important element? Not at all.

Congress quickly replaced Gates, appointing Major-General Nathanael Greene to command the Southern Department. He inherited a remnant army of fewer than 2.000 soldiers—isolated, defeated, and out of supply. Over the next several months, Greene doubled the size of his army as he slowly withdrew northward, drawing Cornwallis after him. As they moved north, the Americans fought a series of skirmishes and battles, losing almost every encounter—a process of strategic retreats Greene famously summarized as “we get beat, rise, and fight again.” But in this series of defeats, the Americans drew Cornwallis far beyond his supply lines, leading him to abandon the Carolinas completely and to march on Yorktown.

Notably, Greene had far more men in his army by the Fall of 1781 than he had inherited a year earlier. This strongly suggests some important values drove those American soldiers, that they fought for more than money. They did not endure a year of hard marching, a string of tactical defeats, constant food shortages, chronic undersupply, and hundreds of casualties in the hope that this feeble army or a fragile government would someday reward them with land or cash. Those men believed in some higher cause, fought for principles. This is the story Burns’ documentary should emphasize—the context that frames Gates’ cowardice.

The soldiers at Valley Forge spoke a variety of languages—that’s interesting. But why did they suffer through that winter? Why did men dive repeatedly into a frozen Hudson River in January 1776? Why did soldiers volunteer to lead a forlorn hope at Stony Point? Why did three hundred Maryland riflemen choose to die rather than retreat during as the American army crumbled in the Battle of Brooklyn? We can all easily understand why men lie, embezzle, flee, or compromise their principles. It is heroism and self-sacrifice that demand explanation, and Burns’ documentary deserves criticism for failing to explain the extraordinary.

As a trained military historian, I’ve limited my comments to military history. Other scholars, far more qualified than I, have suggested similar reservations about the documentary’s discussions of Native Americans, Blacks, women, political thought, and economic history.

Ken Burns did not make General Gates look bad—Gates did that himself. My objection is that Burns, rather than nuancing or complicating the story of the Revolution, simply marginalized one set of much-discussed actors and substituted a new set, and thereby missed the real story.

David Stewart is a professor of history at Hillsdale College and a founding faculty member of the college’s Center for Military History and Grand Strategy.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/16/2025 - 23:25

Hegseth Planning Massive Overhaul Of US Commands, Fewer Generals, Smaller Presence In Europe

More major Pentagon reshuffling is coming down the line, driven by Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, but this time it's being reported this will involve far more than just staffing and personnel changes - it will impact the entire US global command and headquarters structure.

Washington Post reports this week that the Pentagon is drafting a sweeping overhaul of American military command structures that would downgrade several major headquarters and reshape the balance of influence among senior generals.

via Associated Press

The plan is reportedly being driven in large part by Hegseth’s pledge to "break the status quo" and reduce the number of four-star generals across the armed forces, sources quoted in WaPo say. He's also long been talking about purging the 'woke agenda' from within military ranks.

The restructuring would diminish the standing of US Central Command, US European Command, and US Africa Command by bringing these theatres under a newly created entity called US International Command.

Also of note will be the creation of an "Americom," according to the report. Currently it is US Southern Command and US Northern Command which are responsible for military operations across the Western Hemisphere, but now these will be placed under the US Americas Command.

"To ensure that America remains the world's strongest, richest, most powerful, and most successful country for decades to come, our country needs a coherent, focused strategy for how we interact with the world … The US must be preeminent in the Western Hemisphere as a condition of our security and prosperity," the strategy says, based on the report. 

According to another interesting note in the WaPo report:

"Pentagon officials also discussed creating a US Arctic Command that would report to Americom, but that idea appears to have been abandoned."

This comes on the heels of the recently published new National Security Strategy issued by the White House.

Within the 33-page national security document is the laying out of a "Trump Corollary" to the Monroe Doctrine: "The United States must be preeminent in the Western Hemisphere as a condition of our security and prosperity — a condition that allows us to assert ourselves confidently where and when we need to in the region," the document states.

"The terms of our alliances, and the terms upon which we provide any kind of aid, must be contingent on winding down adversarial outside influence — from control of military installations, ports, and key infrastructure to the purchase of strategic assets broadly defined," it adds.

One thing the potential revamping of conventional global command sectors does is to provide a more centralized structure under Pentagon top leadership, and it seems this is what Hegseth is aiming for.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/16/2025 - 23:00

Catholics, Trump, And Affordability

Authored by Steve Cortes via RealClearPolitics,

Catholics have been some of Trump’s most important voters. But right now, 55% of Catholics give Trump a D or F grade on handling inflation. Affordability is the central issue for most Americans, especially swing voters. Patriotic middle-class Catholic families feel the squeeze, so this new populist coalition is being tested.

Back in 2016 Trump won the Catholic vote by 8 points, but in 2020 he split the Catholic vote nationally with Biden. Last November, Trump surged to a 12-point win among the faithful in 2024. That massive shift within the largest denomination in America drove the popular vote victory.

Now, this determinative group of voters watches closely, increasingly disenchanted with the state of the economy. So, we commissioned a survey of 1,483 registered voters in Wisconsin, the consummate swing state and one of the most Catholic states in America.

Overall, the Wisconsin economic outlook is grim. When asked to give a letter grade on Trump and the economy, here is the Badger State breakdown:

A - 10%

B - 18%

C – 17%

D – 19%

F – 33%

On inflation specifically, Midwest women deliver some harsh marks, with only 6% giving an A vs. 45% an F grade. Those grades are notable because women are disproportionately the CFOs and shoppers in households.  

Trump’s job approval in Wisconsin is -11% net: 41% approve vs. 52% disapprove. Trump remains very popular among Republicans, with 82% approval, but sinks to only 28% approval among independents. For Wisconsin Catholics, Trump remains more popular at only -4% net, with 45% job approval vs. 49% disapproval.

So … what can be done?

There are fixes, both in policy and in framing/messaging, beginning with blunt honesty with the American people, from Wisconsin Catholics to California agnostics. Recognize and acknowledge the very real angst out there.

The pain of cumulative inflation for five years takes a material toll on both the psyche and the bank accounts of hard-working Americans. The pain is especially acute for the masses of modest earners who have not enjoyed the benefits of asset inflation via stocks and real estate. Culturally, Catholics embrace a very middle-class mindset, even those who have achieved material financial success. They still identify with the mores and habits of their Irish, Mexican, and Italian grandparents.

So, empathy is crucial. Many on the right routinely – and understandably – mock Bill Clinton for his insincere “I feel your pain” tagline, but guess what? It is effective in politics. People need to believe that their leaders care.

So, here are the three points:

1. Level with people and show authentic concern. Communicate clearly that the present angst is real and justified, after years of economic hardship for regular citizens.
2. Detail the current positive trajectory of some key metrics, backed by data and evidence. President Trump and other Republicans can rightly claim serious early progress, using real world numbers.

-Real Wages jump higher, meaning pay adjusted for inflation.

-Residential rents finally trend lower.

-National gasoline prices dipped below $3/gallon for the first time in four years.

3. Accelerate these wins! How? Continue to negotiate for the best possible trade deals for America. Continue to attract massive flows of foreign capital into America. And keep pushing to get illegal aliens out of America, raising wages for citizens and easing the pressure on the scarce supply of housing.

Taken together, these strategies will work for all Americans, including the crucial Catholic population. Catholics are not locked-in partisans. They are practical and patriotic. Appeal to their common sense and persuade them of the efficacy of the plan, from the businessman leader who created the amazing first Trump Boom during the first term into 2019.

The faithful rallied big to Trump in 2024. They now have valid concerns. Repay their loyalty with honest, clear messaging … confirmed by tangible kitchen-table results. Then, Trump and his allies can once again earn robust Catholic support for the 2026 midterms, and beyond.

Steve Cortes is president of the League of American Workers, a populist right pro-laborer advocacy group, and senior political advisor to Catholic Vote. He is a former senior advisor to President Trump and JD Vance, and a former commentator for Fox News and CNN.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/16/2025 - 22:35

Susie Wiles Let's Slip She Stands With Massie On War Powers & Venezuela

Trump chief of staff Susie Wiles said the following as part of the controversial Vanity Fair interview in reference to Venezuela policy: "If he were to authorize some activity on land, then it’s war, then (we’d need) Congress."

But only last month when President Trump was asked about this issue, he said, "We don’t have to get their approval. But I think letting them know is good."

All of this could come to a head if enough Congressional leaders, especially on the Republican side, decide to grow a spine and stand up to the White House's foreign policy adventurism down south - which polls show is not supported by most Americans.

The House is expected to vote Thursday on a bipartisan War Powers Resolution. It aims to halt any potential attack on Venezuela after Trump has threatened that the US military hitting land targets would happen 'soon'.

AFP via Getty Images

Introduced by Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA), the bipartisan bill has 31 co-sponsors, including three Republicans: Reps. Thomas Massie (KY), Marjorie Taylor Greene (GA), and Don Bacon (NE).

Massie has of course been at the forefront of Trump criticisms, and he's again helping lead the charge on Venezuela pushback, amid the huge American presence in the southern Caribbean.

"The Constitution does not permit the executive branch to unilaterally commit an act of war against a sovereign nation that hasn’t attacked the United States," Massie said in a statement upon the bill being introduced. '

"Congress has the sole power to declare war against Venezuela. Congress must decide such matters according to our Constitution." This viewpoint is precisely what Wiles has voiced in her comments to Vanity Fair.

According to a brief summary of the Trump admin's rationale: 

A central legal question is whether the administration can treat anti-cartel maritime strikes as a form of armed conflict falling within the President’s independent Article II power or within some existing statutory authorization.

CRS reports the Trump administration has asserted drug trafficking and terrorism “involving or associated with Maduro” threaten U.S. national security, and that it reportedly told Congress U.S. forces are in a “non-international armed conflict” with drug cartels – an assertion that other experts and government lawyers reportedly questioned. This framing signals the administration’s likely legal posture without requiring anyone outside government to guess at classified briefings.

Also, Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY) is simultaneously seeking to reign in the drone strikes on alleged drug boats with his own war powers legislation. No Republicans have signed on to his initiative.

Recently, the President announced land strikes against Venezuela. No U.S. President is authorized to commit acts of war in a sovereign country without authorization from Congress. I cosponsored this War Powers Resolution to force Congress to vote “for or against” this action. pic.twitter.com/GfIaeQUiny

— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) December 13, 2025

He said: "the Trump Administration has not provided a credible rationale for its 21 unauthorized military strikes on vessels in the Western Hemisphere, which have resulted in the extrajudicial killings of dozens of individuals."

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/16/2025 - 22:10

WSJ's Fearmongering Doesn't Survive Contact With Evidence

Authored by John R. Lott Jr. via RealClearPolitics,

Legally armed civilians, we’re told, pose a major danger. They shoot innocent bystanders, justifiably kill others whenever they personally believe “force is reasonably necessary,” and rely on racist self-defense laws.

At least these concerns are the case in several recent news articles in the Wall Street Journal. On Monday, with the story on the front page of the Journal, reporter Mark Maremont continued his attacks on people legally carrying concealed handguns. His article presents four stories from 2021 to the present where citizens who used a gun in self-defense accidentally shot a bystander.

But with more than 1.6 million defensive gun uses each year, almost 21 million permit holders, and 29 constitutional-carry states where a permit to carry isn’t necessary, four cases over four years offers little perspective.

Even worse, only two of the four cases even involve people who were legally carrying concealed handguns in public (one case each from Massachusetts and Michigan). In the Ohio case, the convenience store employee had the gun at her workplace, so concealed-carry laws didn’t apply. In the California case, the state required a permit, but there is no evidence that the individual had a permit.

The Wall Street Journal article warns about the dangers of constitutional carry (what it calls “permitless carry”) and quotes gun-control advocates claiming that “When untrained or panicked shooters miss their target, it’s children, neighbors and bystanders who pay the price.” Yet, not a single one of the article’s examples involved constitutional carry.

To examine the issue more directly, the Crime Prevention Research Center, which I head, used ChatGPT and Grok to search news reports and compile a list of cases from the past decade in which concealed-carry permit holders accidentally shot an innocent bystander. Since 2016, we have also collected cases where people legally carrying guns in public have used them to stop crimes and we have reviewed those cases. All together there were four cases from 2016 through nearly all of 2025. One listed incident involved a security guard, who arguably should not be counted.

From 2016 to 2025, including the security-guard case, permit holders accidentally shot five bystanders – two killed and three wounded. Excluding the security guard, permit holders shot three bystanders – two killed and one wounded.

But the issue isn’t one of perfection. The question is: What is the alternative?

We then did the same review of police incidents from 2016 to 2025 and found 20 cases in which officers accidentally shot a total of 28 bystanders: six killed and 22 wounded. In one case, an officer wounded six people; in another, three officers wounded three people. Some news stories do not make clear whether the criminal or the police shot the bystander, so these numbers may understate the total number of bystanders shot by police.

Overall, police accidentally wounded 5.6 times as many bystanders as civilians (including the security-guard case), killed three times as many, and wounded seven times as many. Excluding the security guard, police shot seven times more bystanders, killed three times more, and wounded 22 times more. Without the security guard case, bystanders were seven times more likely to be accidentally shot by police than by civilians.

Other research using the FBI’s active-shooter definition confirms this pattern. We looked at cases from 2014 to 2024 – cases where individuals actively attempt to kill people in a public area and excluding shootings tied to other crimes – showing that armed civilians consistently act safely and effectively. They stopped over half of the attacks in places where they could legally carry, more frequently than police.

Police are extremely important in stopping crime, and research shows they are the single most important factor. But their uniforms make them operate at a real tactical disadvantage in stopping these shootings. Attackers can wait for officers to leave, strike elsewhere, or shoot them first. As a result, police were killed at eleven times the rate of intervening civilians and accidentally killed civilians or fellow officers five times – or five times more than civilians accidentally shot bystanders.

Attackers don’t just avoid police officers – they risk encountering far fewer of them than permit holders. In 2020, the U.S. had roughly 671,000 full-time sworn law enforcement officers, and typically fewer than 240,000 were on duty at any given time, amounting to less than 0.1% of the population. By contrast, almost 21 million adults held concealed-carry permits, representing about 7.8% of the adult population.

Permit holders are also extremely law-abiding, losing their licenses for firearm-related violations at rates of thousandths or tens of thousandths of 1 percentage point. Police rarely commit crimes, but concealed handgun permit holders are even more law-abiding, facing a conviction rate for firearms offenses that is just 1/12th the rate of police convictions.

Unfortunately, that isn’t the only recent problem with the Wall Street Journal news articles. Another long article co-authored by Maremont at the end of October warns that justifiable homicides increased after Stand Your Ground laws made it easier for people to defend themselves. What the article ignores is that while justifiable self defense killings rose, in the first five years after Stand Your Ground laws are adopted, murder rates fell on average by more than 8%.

The article misstates the legal principal that governs what is justifiable self-defense. It claims that anyone can shoot another person by simply claiming they thought force was “reasonably necessary.” But that isn’t the standard. The law requires that a reasonable third party believe the defendant faced a serious risk of injury or death from the attack.

But the fact that there were fewer murders and more self-defense uses is exactly what the proponents of Stand Your Ground would predict. On top of that, yet another Journal piece attacked these laws as racist because “Nationwide, Black men and boys account for almost two-thirds of the victims in civilian justifiable homicides, according to the Journal analysis of FBI data from 2019 to 2024.” Yet, the Journal ignores past research showing that blacks, who are the most likely victims of violent crime, are also by far the most likely to use Stand Your Ground laws as a legal defense. It is also important to note that about 90% of murders of blacks are committed by other blacks.

The Wall Street Journal alarms readers by focusing on anecdotes, yet it ignores extensive evidence showing that armed civilians pose little risk – and far less risk to bystanders than police. Permit holders regularly stop crimes and active shooters with minimal collateral harm. Stand Your Ground laws are not racist nor do they cause excessive violence; instead, they have reduced murder rates and empowered vulnerable communities – especially black victims – to defend themselves legally. By prioritizing sensational stories over solid data, such news stories ultimately undermine public safety.

John R. Lott Jr. is a contributor to RealClearInvestigations, focusing on voting and gun rights. His articles have appeared in publications such as the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, New York Post, USA Today, and Chicago Tribune. Lott is an economist who has held research and/or teaching positions at the University of Chicago, Yale University, Stanford, UCLA, Wharton, and Rice.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/16/2025 - 21:45

Survival skills encompass techniques for thriving in challenging environments, detailed in numerous PDF guides. These resources, exceeding 100 files, cover essential knowledge.

PDF documents outline everything from bug-out bag setup to advanced strategies, ensuring preparedness for diverse scenarios, including those mirroring ARK: Survival Evolved.

A comprehensive 101 Survival Skills checklist is available, aiding in long-term self-sufficiency, like establishing farms and preserving food—vital for resilience.

What are Survival Skills?

Survival skills, extensively documented in available PDF resources, represent a compilation of techniques enabling individuals to sustain life in adverse conditions. These skills, exceeding 100 files worth of information, range from basic first aid to complex shelter construction, mirroring challenges found in games like ARK: Survival Evolved.

PDF guides detail methods for procuring food and water, navigating without technology, and building fires—essential for both short-term emergencies and long-term self-reliance. A 101 Survival Skills checklist provides a structured approach to mastering these vital competencies, ensuring preparedness.

Why Learn Survival Skills?

Learning survival skills, as detailed in numerous PDF guides, provides self-reliance and resilience in unpredictable situations. Over 100 files offer knowledge applicable to real-world emergencies, or even immersive experiences like ARK: Survival Evolved, fostering adaptability.

PDF resources emphasize preparedness for natural disasters, wilderness encounters, or societal disruptions. Mastering these skills—from fire-starting to food preservation—enhances confidence and the ability to overcome adversity. The 101 Survival Skills checklist promotes a proactive mindset, ensuring readiness for any challenge.

Essential Survival Kit & Gear

PDF guides detail crucial gear for survival, including “bug-out bag” essentials. These resources, exceeding 100 files, outline tools and equipment for self-sufficiency.

Preparation, mirroring ARK: Survival Evolved needs, involves selecting appropriate tools for shelter building, trapping, and resource procurement—all covered in PDFs.

Bug Out Bag Essentials

PDF resources extensively detail the contents of a vital “bug-out bag,” emphasizing preparedness for rapid evacuation. These guides, numbering over 100, recommend prioritizing essential items for short-term survival, mirroring the resourcefulness demanded in games like ARK: Survival Evolved.

Key components include water purification tools, non-perishable food supplies, first-aid kits, navigation aids (maps and compasses), shelter materials, fire-starting implements, and versatile tools. PDF checklists ensure nothing is overlooked, covering everything from clothing and hygiene items to self-defense tools and communication devices, fostering self-reliance.

Tools for Survival: Making & Using

PDF guides highlight the importance of both carrying pre-made tools and learning to craft them in the wild. These resources, exceeding 100 files, detail methods for creating essential implements from natural materials, echoing the crafting aspects of ARK: Survival Evolved.

Skills covered include flint knapping for creating blades, constructing digging sticks, fashioning containers from bark, and building simple traps. PDF instructions emphasize resourcefulness, teaching how to repurpose found objects and maximize efficiency, fostering self-sufficiency and adaptability in challenging environments.

Navigation & Orientation

PDF survival manuals prioritize the ability to determine location and direction, crucial for avoiding becoming lost. These guides, numbering over 100, detail techniques beyond modern technology, mirroring the exploratory nature of games like ARK: Survival Evolved.

Essential skills include utilizing natural navigation cues – sun, stars, and terrain features – alongside map reading and compass use. PDF resources emphasize understanding contour lines and declination, ensuring accurate positioning and safe travel, even in unfamiliar landscapes, promoting confident exploration.

Map Reading & Compass Skills

PDF survival guides extensively cover topographic map interpretation, a cornerstone of wilderness navigation. These resources, exceeding 100 files, detail understanding contour lines, symbols, and scales, vital for planning routes and assessing terrain, much like strategizing in ARK: Survival Evolved.

Compass skills, as outlined in these PDFs, include taking bearings, following a course, and triangulating position. Mastering these techniques, alongside map reading, ensures accurate orientation and safe travel, even without GPS, fostering self-reliance and informed decision-making in any environment.

Shelter Building

PDF survival manuals detail constructing both natural shelters and more elaborate constructed shelters. They cover material selection and considerations for protection, mirroring ARK’s base-building.

These guides emphasize adapting to the environment, crucial for long-term survival and resilience, as highlighted in comprehensive checklists.

Natural Shelters

PDF survival guides extensively cover utilizing the environment for immediate protection. These resources detail identifying and adapting existing formations like caves, rock overhangs, and dense vegetation for shelter.

Survival skills PDFs emphasize leveraging natural features to minimize energy expenditure, crucial in emergency situations. They explain how to reinforce these natural structures with available materials – branches, leaves, and mud – for improved insulation and weather resistance.

Understanding microclimates and selecting locations offering natural windbreaks or sun exposure are key skills detailed within these guides, mirroring the strategic base-building found in games like ARK: Survival Evolved.

Constructed Shelters

Survival skills PDF guides dedicate significant sections to building shelters from scratch, vital when natural options are limited. These resources detail various designs – lean-tos, A-frames, and debris huts – outlining material requirements and construction techniques.

PDFs emphasize efficient use of resources, mirroring the crafting aspects of games like ARK: Survival Evolved. They provide step-by-step instructions, including knot tying (detailed elsewhere), for securing structures and maximizing stability.

Considerations for insulation, waterproofing, and camouflage are thoroughly covered, ensuring constructed shelters offer effective protection against the elements and potential threats.

Shelter Materials & Considerations

Survival skills PDF guides meticulously detail suitable shelter materials, prioritizing readily available resources. These include branches, leaves, mud, snow, and even salvaged materials, echoing resourcefulness seen in ARK: Survival Evolved.

PDFs emphasize assessing material properties – insulation value, durability, and water resistance – for optimal shelter construction. Considerations extend to location, avoiding floodplains or unstable ground.

Crucially, guides address camouflage and concealment, vital for security. They also highlight the importance of minimizing environmental impact, promoting sustainable practices during prolonged survival scenarios.

Fire Starting

Survival skills PDF resources detail methods like friction and flint & steel. They emphasize finding and preparing tinder, crucial for ignition, mirroring challenges in ARK.

PDF guides prioritize fire safety and efficient management, vital for warmth, cooking, and signaling—essential survival components.

Fire Starting Methods (Friction, Flint & Steel)

Survival skills PDF guides extensively cover traditional fire-starting techniques. Friction-based methods, like the bow drill and hand drill, demand practice and suitable wood types, detailed in downloadable resources.

Flint and steel, another core skill, requires char cloth for catching sparks, a process thoroughly explained in these PDF documents. Mastering these techniques provides redundancy, crucial when lighters fail.

These resources often include diagrams and step-by-step instructions, mirroring the resourcefulness needed in games like ARK: Survival Evolved, where fire is paramount for defense and sustenance.

Successful implementation relies on understanding wood properties and spark generation, knowledge readily available within these comprehensive PDF guides.

Finding & Preparing Tinder

Survival skills PDF resources emphasize the critical role of tinder in successful fire starting. Natural tinder sources, like birch bark, pine needles, and dry grasses, are detailed with identification guides within these downloadable documents.

Preparation is key; tinder must be finely shredded and completely dry. PDF guides illustrate techniques for processing materials, including creating char cloth from cotton, enhancing its spark-catching ability.

Understanding local flora and fauna for optimal tinder selection is vital, mirroring the resourcefulness needed in survival scenarios. These PDFs often include regional plant lists.

Effective tinder preparation dramatically increases fire-starting success, a skill crucial for warmth, cooking, and signaling, as highlighted in comprehensive survival guides.

Fire Safety & Management

Survival skills PDF guides dedicate significant sections to fire safety, stressing the importance of creating a firebreak – clearing a ten-foot radius around the fire to prevent spread. These resources detail responsible fire management techniques for minimizing environmental impact.

PDF documents emphasize constant supervision, never leaving a fire unattended, and having readily available extinguishing materials like water or sand. They also cover wind direction considerations.

Properly extinguishing a fire is paramount; PDFs instruct on thoroughly dousing embers and stirring ashes to ensure complete extinguishment, preventing wildfires.

Understanding these safety protocols, detailed in downloadable guides, is crucial for responsible wilderness survival, mirroring the careful resource management in games like ARK: Survival Evolved.

Food & Water Procurement

Survival skills PDF guides detail locating water sources and purification methods. They also cover foraging for edible plants, trapping, and fishing—essential for sustenance.

PDF resources emphasize identifying safe plants and constructing effective traps, mirroring resourcefulness needed in survival scenarios.

Water Sources & Purification

Survival skills PDF documents extensively cover identifying potential water sources in diverse environments, ranging from rainfall collection to locating springs and streams. Crucially, these guides emphasize that raw water is rarely safe for consumption.

PDF resources detail multiple purification techniques, including boiling—the simplest method—and constructing improvised filters using charcoal, sand, and gravel. They also discuss chemical purification using iodine or chlorine tablets, outlining proper dosage and safety precautions.

Understanding these methods, as detailed in the PDFs, is paramount for preventing waterborne illnesses and ensuring long-term survival, mirroring the challenges faced in games like ARK: Survival Evolved.

Foraging for Edible Plants

Survival skills PDF guides dedicate significant sections to identifying edible plants, stressing the critical importance of accurate identification to avoid poisonous varieties. These resources often include detailed illustrations and descriptions to aid in plant recognition.

PDF documents emphasize learning regional flora, as edible plants vary drastically by location. They also caution against consuming any plant unless 100% certain of its safety, advocating for the “universal edibility test” as a last resort.

Successfully foraging, as detailed in these PDFs, provides a sustainable food source, vital for long-term survival, much like resource gathering in ARK: Survival Evolved.

Trapping & Snaring Animals

Survival skills PDF resources extensively cover trapping and snaring, outlining various techniques for procuring protein in a wilderness setting. These guides detail constructing snares using readily available materials, emphasizing ethical considerations and legal restrictions regarding trapping.

PDF documents illustrate different trap designs – figure-four traps, snare loops, and deadfalls – explaining their construction and optimal placement for targeting specific animals. They stress the importance of checking traps regularly.

Mastering these skills, as presented in these PDFs, offers a crucial food source, mirroring the hunting aspects found within games like ARK: Survival Evolved.

Fishing Techniques

Survival skills PDF guides dedicate significant sections to fishing, a reliable method for obtaining sustenance. These resources detail constructing improvised fishing gear from natural materials – hooks from bone, lines from plant fibers, and spears from sharpened wood.

PDF documents illustrate various techniques, including line fishing, spear fishing, and building fish traps. They emphasize identifying edible fish species and understanding local fishing regulations.

These PDFs highlight the importance of patience and observation, skills mirroring resourcefulness needed in survival scenarios, even those depicted in games like ARK: Survival Evolved.

Knot Tying for Survival

Survival skills PDF resources emphasize mastering essential knots—Bowline, Square Knot, and Taut-Line Hitch—for shelter building, trapping, and securing gear effectively.

PDF guides detail knot applications in diverse survival scenarios, mirroring the resourcefulness needed in challenging environments.

Essential Knots (Bowline, Square Knot, Taut-Line Hitch)

Survival skills PDF guides consistently highlight three knots as fundamentally crucial: the Bowline, Square Knot, and Taut-Line Hitch. The Bowline creates a secure loop, invaluable for rescue or anchoring. The Square Knot, though simple, is vital for joining ropes – however, it’s crucial to understand its limitations for load-bearing applications.

The Taut-Line Hitch is exceptionally adaptable, allowing for adjustable tension, making it perfect for tent guy lines or creating a secure ridgeline for shelters. Mastering these knots, as detailed in comprehensive PDF resources, provides a foundational skillset for various survival applications, mirroring the practical needs presented in scenarios like ARK: Survival Evolved.

Knot Applications in Survival Scenarios

Survival skills PDF resources emphasize practical knot usage beyond simple tying. The Bowline secures a climbing line or creates a rescue loop. A Square Knot joins shelter poles, though reinforced with caution. The Taut-Line Hitch adjusts tarp tension, crucial for weather protection, and secures a clothesline.

These applications extend to trapping snares, constructing improvised litters, and securing gear. PDF guides detail how knots aid in building shelters, similar to those needed in ARK: Survival Evolved. Understanding these applications transforms theoretical knowledge into life-saving skills, enhancing preparedness in any survival situation.

First Aid & Medical Skills

Survival skills PDF guides detail basic wound care, treating injuries, and improvising medical supplies. These resources are vital for self-reliance in remote settings.

PDF documents cover essential techniques for managing illness and injury, mirroring the challenges faced in survival simulations.

Basic Wound Care

Survival skills PDF resources emphasize immediate action for wound management. Initial steps involve controlling bleeding through direct pressure and elevation, detailed in comprehensive guides.

Cleaning wounds thoroughly with purified water—sourced and treated as outlined in PDF documents—is crucial to prevent infection. Improvised bandages, utilizing clean cloth, are frequently detailed.

PDF guides also cover recognizing infection signs (redness, swelling, pus) and utilizing natural antiseptics when available. Proper wound care significantly increases survival chances, mirroring scenarios in games like ARK: Survival Evolved.

These skills are foundational for self-sufficiency.

Treating Common Injuries & Illnesses

Survival skills PDF guides detail managing common ailments with limited resources. Sprains and fractures require immobilization using splints crafted from available materials, as illustrated in detailed diagrams.

Hypothermia and heatstroke protocols are crucial, emphasizing shelter construction and regulating body temperature—skills frequently highlighted in PDF checklists.

Recognizing and treating dehydration, alongside utilizing foraged plants for medicinal purposes (with caution!), are also covered. These PDF resources prepare individuals for scenarios demanding self-reliance, akin to ARK: Survival Evolved challenges.

Knowledge is paramount for survival;

Improvised Medical Supplies

Survival skills PDF resources emphasize resourcefulness in medical emergencies. Creating bandages from clean cloth, utilizing plantain leaves for wound healing, and fashioning slings from clothing are key techniques.

Charcoal acts as an absorbent for poisoning, while boiled water serves as a sterile cleansing agent—information readily available in comprehensive PDF guides.

These PDF documents detail constructing sutures from natural fibers and utilizing tree resin as an antiseptic, mirroring the self-sufficiency needed in scenarios like ARK: Survival Evolved.

Improvisation is vital when conventional supplies are unavailable.

Long-Term Survival Strategies

Survival skills PDF guides detail sustainable living: soap making, farming, seed collection, and animal husbandry.

These PDF resources emphasize self-reliance, mirroring the extended survival aspects found in games like ARK: Survival Evolved.

Soap Making

Survival skills PDF resources highlight soap making as crucial for long-term hygiene, preventing disease in off-grid scenarios. Historically, lye – derived from wood ash – was essential, a technique detailed in many guides.

These PDF documents explain sourcing fats (animal or plant-based) and the saponification process, transforming them into usable soap. Mastering this skill reduces reliance on external supplies, mirroring the self-sufficiency needed in challenging environments like those presented in ARK: Survival Evolved.

Proper soap production safeguards health, a fundamental aspect of sustained survival, as outlined in comprehensive survival checklists.

Farming & Seed Collection

Survival skills PDF guides emphasize farming and seed collection for sustainable food sources, vital for long-term resilience. These resources detail soil preparation, crop selection, and companion planting techniques for maximizing yields.

Seed saving is paramount, ensuring future harvests and genetic diversity. PDF documents explain proper drying and storage methods to maintain viability, mirroring the resourcefulness needed in games like ARK: Survival Evolved.

Establishing a farm provides a stable food supply, reducing dependence on foraging and hunting, a cornerstone of self-sufficiency as detailed in survival checklists.

Raising Animals for Sustenance

Survival skills PDF resources highlight animal husbandry as a crucial element of long-term self-reliance. Guides detail selecting appropriate livestock – chickens, rabbits, goats – based on resource availability and climate conditions.

PDF documents cover essential aspects like shelter construction, feeding strategies, and disease prevention, mirroring the challenges faced in survival scenarios. This parallels resource management in games like ARK: Survival Evolved.

Raising animals provides meat, eggs, milk, and valuable resources like manure for fertilizer, bolstering food security and overall sustainability, as outlined in comprehensive survival checklists.

Food Preservation Techniques

Survival skills PDF guides detail methods like drying, smoking, salting, and fermentation to extend food supplies. These techniques, crucial for long-term survival,

ensure sustenance without refrigeration, mirroring strategies for resource management in challenging environments.

Drying & Smoking

Survival skills PDF resources extensively cover drying and smoking as vital food preservation techniques. Drying, utilizing sun or low heat, removes moisture, inhibiting bacterial growth. This method works exceptionally well for meats, fruits, and vegetables, extending their shelf life considerably.

Smoking adds flavor while further preserving food through chemical compounds in the smoke. Both methods align with long-term survival strategies, mirroring resourcefulness needed in scenarios like ARK: Survival Evolved.

Detailed guides within these PDFs outline construction of drying racks and smokehouses, alongside optimal wood choices for smoking, ensuring effective preservation.

Salting & Fermentation

Survival skills PDF guides detail salting and fermentation as crucial food preservation methods. Salting draws out moisture, creating a hostile environment for bacteria, effectively preserving meats and fish. These PDFs provide ratios and techniques for dry-brining and wet-curing, maximizing preservation.

Fermentation utilizes beneficial microorganisms to transform food, creating lactic acid which inhibits spoilage. This applies to vegetables like cabbage (sauerkraut) and can extend food availability.

These techniques, vital for long-term self-sufficiency, echo the resourcefulness needed in challenging environments, similar to those found in ARK: Survival Evolved.

Root Cellaring

Survival skills PDF resources emphasize root cellaring as a low-tech, effective food storage solution. These guides detail constructing underground spaces – or utilizing existing basements – to maintain cool, humid conditions ideal for preserving root vegetables like potatoes and carrots.

Proper ventilation and temperature control, outlined in the PDFs, are key to preventing spoilage. Root cellaring minimizes reliance on refrigeration, a critical advantage in long-term survival scenarios.

This method, mirroring resourcefulness needed in games like ARK: Survival Evolved, ensures a stable food supply throughout the winter months.

Advanced Survival Skills

Survival skills PDF guides detail advanced techniques like camouflage, signaling, and self-defense. Mastering these skills, crucial for resilience, enhances your ability to thrive.

These PDFs prepare you for complex scenarios, mirroring the challenges found in survival-focused games like ARK: Survival Evolved.

Camouflage & Concealment

Survival skills PDF resources emphasize camouflage and concealment as vital for evading detection. These guides detail techniques for blending into diverse environments, utilizing natural materials for effective disguise.

Mastering these skills, mirroring strategies in games like ARK: Survival Evolved, significantly increases your chances of survival. PDF documents cover ghillie suit construction, face paint application, and utilizing shadows for concealment.

Effective camouflage isn’t just about visual blending; it also includes scent control and minimizing noise. Advanced techniques detailed in these guides focus on disrupting your silhouette and movement patterns, making you nearly invisible to potential threats.

Signaling for Rescue

Survival skills PDF guides dedicate significant attention to signaling for rescue, a crucial element of wilderness survival. These resources detail various methods, from creating visible signals to utilizing reflective surfaces for attracting attention.

Documents outline building signal fires, constructing ground-to-air signals using contrasting materials, and employing mirrors or polished metal to flash sunlight. Understanding these techniques, akin to strategies in ARK: Survival Evolved, dramatically increases rescue probability.

PDFs also cover utilizing whistles, brightly colored clothing, and even improvised flags to maximize visibility. Prioritizing clear, concise signals is key, ensuring rescuers can quickly locate your position.

Self-Defense Techniques

Survival skills PDF resources acknowledge the potential need for self-defense in hostile environments. While avoidance is paramount, these guides detail basic techniques for protecting oneself against both human and animal threats.

Documents often cover improvised weapons creation, utilizing readily available materials for defense. They emphasize situational awareness, de-escalation tactics, and understanding personal limitations. These skills, mirroring the challenges in ARK: Survival Evolved, are vital for survival.

PDFs stress that self-defense is a last resort, focusing on escape and evasion whenever possible, but preparedness is key to increasing chances of survival.

Survival Mindset

Survival skills PDF guides highlight the crucial role of mental fortitude. Maintaining positivity, resilience, and sound decision-making are paramount for overcoming adversity.

Effective risk assessment, detailed in these PDFs, is vital for navigating challenging situations and maximizing chances of long-term survival.

Maintaining Positivity & Resilience

Survival skills PDF resources consistently emphasize the psychological aspects of enduring hardship. A positive outlook isn’t merely optimistic; it’s a practical tool for problem-solving and conserving energy. Resilience, the ability to bounce back from setbacks, is cultivated through mental preparation and acceptance of unavoidable challenges.

These guides detail techniques for managing fear and stress, recognizing that panic can be as dangerous as any physical threat. Cultivating a determined mindset, focusing on achievable goals, and celebrating small victories are all strategies outlined within these PDF documents. Remember, a strong spirit is often the most valuable survival tool.

Risk Assessment & Decision Making

Survival skills PDF guides highlight that informed decisions are paramount. Effective risk assessment involves identifying potential hazards – mirroring the dangers in games like ARK: Survival Evolved – and evaluating their likelihood and potential impact. These resources emphasize a systematic approach, prioritizing needs and avoiding impulsive actions.

The PDF documents detail methods for weighing options, considering limited resources, and accepting calculated risks. They stress the importance of gathering information, observing surroundings, and adapting plans as circumstances change. Sound judgment, honed through knowledge and practice, significantly increases survival probability.

The post survival skills pdf appeared first on Every Task, Every Guide: The Instruction Portal
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Side Effects Of 30 Antidepressants Ranked And Compared: Lancet Study

Authored by Cara Michelle Miller via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Not all antidepressants are created equal when it comes to your waistline, heart, and blood pressure, according to a sweeping study published in The Lancet that analyzed data from more than 58,000 people to create the first comprehensive ranking of drug side effects.

The Epoch Times/Shutterstock

The analysis compared 30 antidepressants, some of which are not available in the United States, from older tricyclics such as amitriptyline to newer selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) such as sertraline (Zoloft).

Experts said that the side effects listed are not new or surprising.

The study affirmed well-known observations about antidepressant side effects, Dr. Joseph Goldberg, a clinical professor of psychiatry at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, who was not involved in the study, told The Epoch Times in an email.

What’s new, Goldberg noted, is the comprehensive review of the literature that reassures us, and helpfully quantifies for us, that many of these common side effects tend to have only modest impacts.

The findings reinforce the need for personalized choices and regular monitoring, especially for long-term users, because side effects can build over time.

Weight Gain, Blood Pressure, and Cholesterol Changes

People on antidepressants experienced a 9-pound difference in weight change across drugs.

The most extreme weight changes occurred in those taking agomelatine (Valdoxan) and maprotiline (Ludiomil), with the former associated with a weight loss of about five pounds and the latter with a weight gain of about four pounds.

Both of these drugs, however, are not approved for use in the United States.

Differences in heart rates exceeded 20 beats per minute, from fluvoxamine (Luvox), which slowed the heart by calming the nervous system, to nortriptyline (Pamelor), a stimulant that increased heart rates.

Blood pressure shifts were also notable, with the upper (systolic) number differing by about 11 points between certain tricyclics such as nortriptyline and doxepin (Silenor). These drugs directly act on the body’s nervous system and blood vessel receptors, which can raise or lower blood pressure.

“These are not alarming effects,” Dr. Daniel Carlat, a psychiatrist and chair of the psychiatry department at MelroseWakefield Healthcare, part of the Tufts Medicine network, who was not involved in the study, said in an email to The Epoch Times, “but the paper reinforces the value of simple monitoring—blood pressure, weight, and labs—especially for patients with heart or metabolic risk.”

“Some of the serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors—like duloxetine and venlafaxine—caused  small but measurable increases in blood pressure and cholesterol, which makes it worth checking those numbers periodically.”

For people with diabetes, hypertension, or heart problems, small increases in weight gain and heart measurements can affect blood-sugar levels or add strain to the heart and blood-vessel system.

Common Antidepressants and Potential Side Effects

The following is not a complete list of potential side effects, and the effects listed vary by person, with not everyone experiencing them.

Why Different Drugs Have Different Effects

About 20 million Americans take antidepressants for depression or anxiety. Beyond mood, these drugs can influence your metabolism, often in very different ways.

Antidepressants affect brain chemicals that lift mood—the same chemicals that regulate appetite, metabolism, blood vessels, and the heartbeat.

Depending on the specific medication, appetite may increase or decrease, blood vessels may relax or constrict, and the heart’s rate may shift slightly.

For example, agomelatine, which causes weight loss and regulates the sleep-wake cycle, may help reduce appetite, while maprotiline, which is linked with weight gain, increases appetite.

Outside of drug side effects, weight gain can also occur when an antidepressant lifts mood—people who were eating less due to depression may return to their usual appetite.

Side effects aren’t the same for everyone, which is why it’s important to consider a person’s overall health, symptoms, and sensitivities when choosing a treatment.

Risks vs. Benefits

“Side effects are not necessarily equal-opportunity offenders,” Goldberg said. “Every patient is unique, and almost all medications carry some side effects—even placebos.”

Some antidepressants that are more effective at treating difficult-to-treat depression carry a higher risk of weight gain, and it would be a disservice to patients if their doctor were to avoid prescribing them simply due to a higher risk of weight gain, Goldberg said.

The patient would be at risk of persistent depression, having functional impairment, and possibly even suicide if their depression went untreated.

“It all starts with a conversation about whether the depression is severe enough to merit medication versus therapy,” Carlat said. “If we do decide to try a medication, I start with those that offer the best balance of benefit and tolerability—typically an SSRI like sertraline or escitalopram. Bupropion is also high on my list because it rarely causes sexual side-effects or weight gain.”

In children and young adults, antidepressants can provoke or exacerbate suicidal thoughts, while older adults appear to be somewhat protected from this side effect, Goldberg said. Additionally, patients with anxiety may also be more prone to developing such side effects.

Some symptoms of depression may also overlap with side effects from medication, Goldberg said. Appetite changes, weight gain, and sexual issues can stem from either depression or medication use.

Clinicians, therefore, need to consider all factors and make personal decisions for each patient. Maintaining open communication between patients and doctors is essential.

Age, anxiety level, genetics, and the use of multiple medications also influence side effect risk. The study did not address why some people are more vulnerable to side effects than others, or how clinicians can identify higher-risk patients.

What to Know Before Starting an Antidepressant

According to Goldberg and Carlat, for patients considering antidepressants, shared decision-making with doctors is key. Common concerns, according to the study’s researchers, include:

• High Blood Pressure: Ask about medications known to raise blood pressure, such as amitriptyline or venlafaxine.
• Weight Gain: Options such as agomelatine, sertraline, or venlafaxine may lead to smaller average weight changes.
• Cholesterol: Some SSRIs, such as citalopram and escitalopram, appeared more neutral on cholesterol compared with paroxetine or duloxetine.
• Usage Period: Ask questions like, “How long will I need this medication?” and, “Are there non-drug options—such as group therapy or exercise—that could work as well?”

Because most of the trials covered in the study lasted only eight weeks, the long-term physical effects of antidepressants remain uncertain, thus experts recommend routine checks of weight, blood pressure, heart rate, and cholesterol for anyone on long-term therapy.

“There are seldom absolutes,” Goldberg said. “A person with high risk for heart disease may be a poorer candidate for a drug that causes weight gain or raises blood sugar.”

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/16/2025 - 20:55

"He'll Be Lucky To Have A Bookmobile": The Future Of Joe Biden's Presidential Library In Doubt As Donations Fail To Come In

Former President Joe Biden’s planned monument to his presidency is becoming a brutal reality check on his legacy. 

In September, the Biden camp announced plans to build his presidential library in Delaware - assembling a team of former aides, friends, and political allies to oversee the project, which is supposed to include a museum and archive.

A senior member of the Biden Foundation described the project to CBS News as a “vibrant and lasting space where history, learning, and civic leadership come together, inspiring future generations to lead with purpose, serve their communities, and strengthen our nation.” 

However, a recent New York Times report suggests Biden will likely have to scale back the project.

“Former President Joseph R. Biden Jr. has raised only a small fraction of the money needed to construct a presidential library,” the paper reported Saturday, “leaving uncertainty about when a library might be built and its viability as a stand-alone project, according to public filings and interviews with his donors.”

In filings with the Internal Revenue Service, Biden’s library foundation revealed that it had not received any new donations in 2024, the final year of his presidency. The foundation was instead seeded entirely with $4 million left over from his 2021 inauguration.

The library foundation declined to say what it had raised in 2025. It said that Mr. Biden was only now beginning to actively raise money. He is holding the first event for potential library donors on Monday in Washington’s Georgetown neighborhood.

Still, Mr. Biden’s foundation told the I.R.S. this year that it expected to bring in just $11.3 million, total, by the end of 2027. That would be far below the pace set by other recent presidents, and far less than the $200 million that Mr. Biden’s aides say they want to raise eventually.

 As a result, Biden insiders say there’s talk of folding the potential Biden library into existing Biden-related projects at the University of Delaware. According to four anonymous sources, this could let the library ride on the millions the university—Biden’s own alma mater—has already raised for a “Biden Hall” project.

It appears that no matter what happens with the project, donations will be hard to come by. The New York Times reports that even some of Joe Biden’s most reliable donors say nobody has reached out to them about contributing to his presidential library. Others in the Democratic donor class sound even less enthusiastic, and say they plan to pour their resources into battling President Trump. Others admit that bitterness over Biden’s time in office has closed their wallets entirely.

“The Biden staff, they ruined any type of good library for him,” explained John Morgan, a longtime Democratic donor. “He’ll be lucky to have a bookmobile.”

Morgan was previously one of Biden’s top bundlers.

Biden now plans to personally start raising money for his library, beginning with a Georgetown cocktail event billed as a casual meet-and-greet. But the Joe and Jill Biden Foundation doesn’t sound particularly confident in his ability to raise funds. According to IRS filings, the foundation expects to raise only about $11.3 million by the end of 2027. For comparison, George W. Bush raised $500 million before cutting the ribbon on his library. Obama’s center costs around $850 million. Trump’s team is projecting close to $900 million. 

What’s happening to Biden is simple. The Democratic Party needed a placeholder to stop Trump in 2020, but there was never any genuine enthusiasm for him. When doubts about his cognitive decline became impossible to spin, his party kicked him to the curb. Now, to the Democratic donor class, Biden’s brand equity is virtually nonexistent, and the people who once filled his campaign war chest have moved on.

Joe Biden wanted a monument. What he’s getting is a mausoleum nobody wants to build.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/16/2025 - 20:30

James Bradshaw of the Globe and Mail reports AIMCo names Ray Gilmour as permanent CEO:

Alberta Investment Management Corp. has made Ray Gilmour its permanent chief executive officer, removing the interim tag from the job he took more than a year ago when the province overhauled the pension fund manager’s senior ranks.

AIMCo’s board of directors appointed Mr. Gilmour as CEO effective immediately, according to an announcement released on Tuesday. His performance had been reviewed by a third party.

Mr. Gilmour was an unconventional choice to lead the $179.6-billion public-sector pension fund manager, which invests retirement savings for pension, endowment, insurance and government clients in Alberta. 

He was hand-picked by the provincial government to serve as interim CEO in November, 2024, after Finance Minister Nate Horner dismissed AIMCo’s board of directors, previous CEO Evan Siddall and other top executives.

Since then, Mr. Gilmour has helped steady AIMCo after a period of tumultuous change, and revamped the pension fund manager’s senior executive team. That included promoting Justin Lord to chief investment officer earlier this year.

In the first six months of 2025, AIMCo earned a 2-per-cent return on its investments during a volatile start to the year for markets, which were unsettled by shifting tariff policies.

“The board has complete confidence in Ray’s clear management expertise and proven ability to excel, both as leader of this organization and as an effective steward of the funds AIMCo manages on behalf of its clients,” board chair Stephen Harper said in a news release.

AIMCo’s board hired “an independent third-party organization to conduct a comprehensive review of Ray’s performance during his tenure as Interim CEO, including interviews with key stakeholders such as clients, members of the Executive Committee, and others across AIMCo,” spokesperson Sabrina Bhangoo said in an e-mail.

Mr. Gilmour has deep experience as a public servant. He held senior roles under several Alberta premiers, including a five-year stint as deputy minister of the province’s executive council and also a deputy role in its finance department. He spent an earlier part of his career in the banking industry.

But he arrived to lead AIMCo without the senior-level experience in investing and finance that would by typical for the CEO of a major pension fund manager. And his appointment, combined with the province’s decision to appoint the province’s deputy finance minister as a permanent member of AIMCo’s board, raised questions about whether the arm’s length pension fund manager was being drawn closer to government.

In a letter published by the province last summer, Mr. Horner laid out a “renewed mandate” for AIMCo, affirming that it “will operate independently and at arm’s length from the Government of Alberta.”

From the outset, people close to AIMCo and the Alberta government expected Mr. Gilmour to stay put, serving as a steady hand with a mandate to keep costs under control and boost satisfaction among pension plan clients.

“Over the past year, I have seen firsthand that the AIMCo team is talented and committed to excellence, and that it shares a deep sense of purpose to deliver long-term value for our clients,” Mr. Gilmour said in a statement.

Since Mr. Gilmour started at AIMCo, former private equity head Peter Teti was named global head of private assets. The pension fund manager also hired John Walsh as chief legal officer and promoted Janice Guzzo to chief human resources officer earlier this year.

Three board members who were previously dismissed by the province returned to form a smaller, revamped board chaired by Mr. Harper: private-equity executive Jason Montemurro, real estate investor Bob Dhillon and former Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan CEO Jim Keohane. AIMCo also added its former CIO Sandra Lau to the board.

Barbara Shecter of the National Post also reports AIMCo names former senior bureaucrat Ray Gilmour as permanent CEO:

Former senior bureaucrat Ray Gilmour has been named chief executive of Alberta Investment Management Corp.

Gilmour, Alberta’s former deputy minister of executive council, was installed as interim CEO of AIMCo on Nov. 8 last year, the day after the Alberta government jettisoned the entire board of the pension and endowment fund and four members of the management team, including then-CEO Evan Siddall.

Alberta Finance Minister Nate Horner blamed the shakeup on rising costs without commensurate returns for the fund, which was set up to operate at arms-length from government and manages pensions for a range of clients including teachers, municipal employees and judges. But insiders said there was growing friction over decisions made by the management team and board, including those involving the establishment of international offices and energy transition funds.

Shortly after Gilmour was appointed interim CEO a little over a year ago, the Alberta government named former prime minister Stephen Harper as AIMCo’s chair and established a permanent unpaid board seat to be filled by the province’s deputy minister of treasury board and finance. The board position was added “to ensure more consistent communications between AIMCo and Alberta’s government.”

Before Gilmour joined AIMCo, he was Alberta’s deputy minister of executive council for more than five years and held other senior positions in government including deputy minister roles in finance, intergovernmental relations and infrastructure.

Prior to joining the Alberta government, he worked in the banking and financial services industry for 15 years. A chartered professional accountant by training, Gilmour also has a masters of business administration from the University of Saskatchewan.

“The board has complete confidence in Ray’s clear management expertise and proven ability to excel, both as leader of this organization and as an effective steward of the funds AIMCo manages on behalf of its clients,” Harper said in a statement.

When Harper was appointed chair a little over a year ago, three of AIMCo’s 10 former directors re-joined the scaled-down board.

At the time, pension and governance professionals expected that replacing the interim CEO would be a top priority for the reconstituted board and its chair to re-establish confidence in the arms-length model. But some also noted that it could be a challenge to recruit a skilled investment management professional in the wake of the government’s shock reorganization of AIMCo.

Earlier today, AIMCo's Board issued a press release stating they appointed Ray Gilmour as permanent CEO, effective immediately:

Edmonton – Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo) is pleased to announce that its Board of Directors has appointed Ray Gilmour as the organization’s Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Gilmour has been fulfilling the role on an interim basis since November 8, 2024.

“The Board has complete confidence in Ray’s clear management expertise and proven ability to excel, both as leader of this organization and as an effective steward of the funds AIMCo manages on behalf of its clients,” said The Right Honourable Stephen Harper, Chair, AIMCo Board of Directors. “Together with Ray, the Board is committed to ensuring that AIMCo remains an admired institution that will continue to serve the best interests of Albertans for decades to come.”

“Over the past year, I have seen firsthand that the AIMCo team is talented and committed to excellence, and that it shares a deep sense of purpose to deliver long-term value for our clients,” said Mr. Gilmour. “I am proud to serve as AIMCo’s CEO as we continue to grow and evolve in ways that enhance our ability to deliver for all of our stakeholders.”

Prior to joining AIMCo, Mr. Gilmour served as Alberta’s Deputy Minister of Executive Council for more than five years. He has also held senior positions in the Alberta government, including Deputy Minister roles in Finance, Intergovernmental Relations, and Infrastructure. Prior to these roles in government, Mr. Gilmour worked in the banking and financial services industry for 15 years. Mr. Gilmour has a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Saskatchewan. In addition, he is a Chartered Professional Accountant and a graduate of the Institute of Corporate Directors Program.

About Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo)

AIMCo is one of Canada’s largest and most diversified institutional investment managers with more than C$182 billion of assets under management as at June 30, 2025. AIMCo invests globally on behalf of pension, endowment, insurance and government funds in the Province of Alberta. With offices in Edmonton, Calgary, Toronto, London and Luxembourg, our more than 200 investment professionals bring deep expertise in a range of sectors, geographies and industries.

 Alright, let me get right to it.

First, congratulations to Ray Gilmour, he's now officially the permanent CEO of AIMCo with a mandate that lasts five years and is renewable if he does a satisfactory job. 

Second, I don't think anyone is surprised that Ray Gilmour was made permanent CEO.

In my opinion, this was in the works from the get-go after Alberta's finance minister Nate Horner dismissed former CEO Evan Siddall, some senior executives and the entire board of directors.

Of course, Mr. Horner and the Board reiterated the organization's independence and there was a trial run for Mr. Gilmour which he passed. 

Note this passage which was conveyed to James Bradshaw of the Globe and Mail:

AIMCo’s board hired “an independent third-party organization to conduct a comprehensive review of Ray’s performance during his tenure as Interim CEO, including interviews with key stakeholders such as clients, members of the Executive Committee, and others across AIMCo,” spokesperson Sabrina Bhangoo said in an e-mail.  

Why is this passage important? Well, it reaffirms the Board has the power to fire and hire the CEO and it did its job hiring a third party to conduct a comprehensive review Mr. Gilmour's performance  including interviews with key stakeholders such as clients, members of the Executive Committee, and others across AIMCo.

They basically wanted to make sure he's up for the job and the huge responsibility it carries and they wanted to make sure the public knows it was they and not the government of Alberta that made him permanent CEO.

Of course, the optics don't look good and critics will claim this is "backdoor government interference".

Fair enough but I think there was another problem here.

Who in their right mind would take the job of CEO at AIMCo after the purging and compensation was cut?

Mr. Gilmour just got a huge raise but others wouldn't move to Edmonton so easily under difficult circumstances and knowing very well what happened there.

To my knowledge, there were no other internal or external candidates reviewed for the top job at AIMCo and this too doesn't pass the smell test.

In other words, it confirms Gilmour was and remains Nate Horner's top choice and I'm sure Danielle Smith's as well.

Will the Alberta's government introduce a dual mandate like the one La Caisse has in Quebec?

Well, if that's the direction they're headed, Ray Gilmour is the best choice to lead AIMCo.

I also want to be fair here because thus far Mr. Gilmour has done a decent job and he obviously has the support of AIMCo's clients and that is the critical bit I want to emphasize here.

AIMCo manages the assets of many clients including Alberta's teachers and the CEO has to manage all these relationships very diplomatically. 

In that regard, maybe Ray Gilmour is doing a much better job than his predecessors.

We shall see, I think he deserves a fair shot and I remind my readers that not every CEO of a major Canadian pension fund comes from the investment world.

Michael Sabia came from Bell and prior to that he was also a high level bureaucrat in Ottawa.

Sabia did a decent job heading up the Caisse, reinforced governance, introduced gender equality at all levels and managed to kick-start the REM which is now operational and the envy of most North American cities (minus the glitches here and there).

But I told Sabia at a private party we both attended after he left the Caisse that he was damn lucky he never had to face a severe financial crisis and he wiped his eyebrow and said "PHEW!".

The test of any CEO in the investment world isn't when everything is melting up, it's when it hits the fan and you have shore up the troops and perform under very difficult and tough circumstances.

The late Harvard economist John Kenneth Galbraith once famously noted: "In a bull market, everyone is a financial genius."

Don't forget that, and in that sense I'm glad Ray Gilmour has a solid and experienced investment team headed up by CIO Justin Lord. He will be leaning heavily on them when the going gets tough.

Lastly, if Ray Gilmour succeeds and AIMCo continues to perform well over the long run, it could represent an existential threat to the other Maple 8 funds because politicians might be asking tough questions on compensation and more (I doubt it but you never know).

Below,Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is now among 21 MLAs in the province facing a recall petition — which represents almost a quarter of those sitting in the Alberta Legislature. The CBC’s Hilary Johnstone explains the next steps in the recall process.

I didn't know there were so many crazy lefties in Alberta, quite surprising to me. I'm on record stating Premier Smith is the best politician in the country by a mile and wonder which interest groups (Canadian or American) are behind these recall petitions.

Also, CNBC’s “Closing Bell” team discusses the outlook for markets, U.S. economy and more with Liz Thomas of SoFi, Lauren Goodwin of New York Life Investments and Ellen Zentner of Morgan Stanley Wealth Management.

Note: Mortgage rates are from MortgageNewsDaily.com and are for top tier scenarios.

Wednesday:
• At 7:00 AM ET, The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) will release the results for the mortgage purchase applications index.

• During the day: The AIA's Architecture Billings Index for November (a leading indicator for commercial real estate).

Will The US Hit A Deflationary Wall Or Will The Fed Inflate Again In 2026?

Authored by Brandon Smith via Alt-Market.us

In a system dominated by Keynesian economics the word “deflation” is considered taboo; like saying Donald Trump’s name out loud in a crowded Seattle yoga studio. The screeching reaction you will get is rarely worth the effort of arguing the point. Every element of modern financial policy is designed to prevent a deflationary event. Every central bank policy is designed to artificially drag the economy out of deflation using whatever fiat stimulus is necessary.

Of course, deflation is not always a bad thing. It’s the harsh tasting medicine sometimes needed to correct the many problems caused by bad investments, corporate fraud, consumer debt addiction, government interference in markets, etc. We saw this during the crash of 2008, but the Federal Reserve refused to let the treatment run its course.

The US, like many countries, has become disconnected from the concept of financial consequences. But when America’s massive system dodges accountability, the cost to future generations can be immense.

So now we’re stuck with 17 years of persistent monetary intervention and the inevitable stagflationary crisis it created. The fact that Keynesians like Paul Krugman, Janet Yellen and Ben Bernanke downplayed or outright denied the existence of the inflationary threat shows, at the very least, that they know inflation is a bad thing for the general public (otherwise, why would they try to hide it?).

They denied reality so hard it made them look stupid when 2022 hit the US with a 9.1% CPI rate. The consequences of stimulus driven policies are now undeniable and the Keynesian “experts” have been proven useless, but this doesn’t mean anything is going to change for the better.

My ongoing question with the return of Donald Trump to the White House has been this: How are the banks going to pull the rug out from under this administration? Will it be a deflationary crisis, or an even bigger inflationary crisis?

As I noted last month in my article “Inflection Point: US Government Shutdown And Strange Economic Signals”, gold and silver prices seem to be on the verge of going parabolic (beyond the price explosion we’ve already seen this year), which indicates incoming inflationary pressures. Or, at the very least, a global expectation among investors and central banks of a crisis event which will precipitate further inflation.

I suspect this is partially due to the monolithic interest payments that the US government is required to make on existing debt ($250 billion every 3 months currently). Central banks and investors are snapping up gold and silver, perhaps with the expectation that US debt will become unstable, thus affecting dollar value or triggering a new round of QE.

Furthermore, despite Federal Reserve intervention in interest rates, consumer spending has not significantly slowed down and debt borrowing continues to climb to record highs. CPI growth has slowed dramatically from the Biden era, but prices have not dropped enough to give relief to average Americans. If the Fed’s goal in jacking up interest rates was to slow demand, they failed miserably.

As I’ve noted in the past, the central bank had to hike interest rates to over 20% in the early 1980s to finally end the decade long stagflation crisis – We didn’t come anywhere close to that post-pandemic. Meaning, the Fed put a band aid on an inflationary gunshot wound.

But is deflation just around the corner? There are some signs that this is happening. For example, job availability has dropped by 500,000 openings in the past year, and keep in mind around 30% of all advertised employment opportunities are actually “ghost jobs” that don’t actually exist.

There have been increases in job layoffs in 2025, but 27% of those are connected to DOGE cuts to government bureaucracy. White collar jobs have seen a increase in layoffs of around 19% for the year.

The US national debt increased by $2.2 trillion in 2025. Consumer credit debt is increasing by around $190 billion every quarter. Total household debt has hit $18.5 trillion. Eventually, the debt expansion is going to drag down consumption, but this doesn’t seem to be happening yet.

There hasn’t been a noticeable slowdown in retail spending, nor in credit borrowing. Prices remain significantly higher compared to before the pandemic despite softening of the CPI. The elements needed for deflation to pull prices down just don’t exist.

I continue to suspect that a deflationary event is coming, but I think this will only happen after another round of inflation hits the economy. If the Fed cuts rates to the point that CPI spikes sharply again (which won’t take long), then rising prices will ultimately hobble consumer spending. If they don’t, then the Fed will hike rates well beyond recent highs, just as they did in the 1980s.

It’s the Catch-22 trap that I have been talking about for years and it’s not going away. The choice is really up to the Fed – To increase interest rates far beyond what they did in the past three years, or stimulate. In other words, the roller coaster starts in 2026 as the central bank continues to cut. Watch for returning instability in the CPI in the summer and fall.

Trump’s tariffs, if they are still in effect, will likely be blamed despite the fact that tariffs have avoided the kind of cost crisis that many critics were predicting. How did this happen? Well, because the critics don’t take into account the massive mark-up from manufacturers overseas to retail prices on the shelf.

Prices on many goods are jacked up by 250% on average once they reach the US. Some apparel items see a markup of over 900% before they hit the shelf. The price of labor and materials in Asia is exceedingly low, and the charges on final products in America are exceedingly high. This is why most international corporations can eat the tariff taxes without much trouble to consumers.

Tariffs are estimated to have caused an increase in CPI of 0.7% since they began according to Harvard research data; a negligible amount compared to the disastrous predictions of many mainstream economists.

That said, inflation continues to loom and tariffs make for a useful scapegoat simply because most people don’t understand them. There has been no deflationary correction, not since 2008 and not since the pandemic stimulus. Which means high demand has not been quelled and savings are not increasing (the US personal savings rate declined to record lows in 2024-2025). Excess dollars are still increasing in circulation and FRED M2 continues to climb. The system never took its medicine.

This means that as the central bank returns to lower rates, borrowing will explode to even higher levels.  Inflation will resurface, likely by the third quarter of 2026 if the Fed continues to cut interest rates into next year.

The Trump Administration is taking measures that could help mitigate prices. Mass deportations will certainly reduce domestic demand for goods and housing, which means more supply and falling prices. But this won’t happen at the kind of pace we need unless Trump finds a way to at least double the current annual deportations. The effects will be cumulative and will take years to affect markets.

Overall, I don’t see a way to escape more inflation in the near term without dramatic changes to economic conditions, or a historic move by the Federal Reserve to hike interest rates to levels not seen since the stagflation crisis 50 years ago.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/16/2025 - 20:05

House Oversight Report Says DC Police Chief Manipulated Crime Data

A few years ago a propaganda narrative was launched by Democrat leaders and the left-wing media asserting that conservative red states are the greatest source of criminal activity in the US.  The narrative was designed to misdirect the public, distracting from the ongoing problem of progressive soft-on-crime policies which help violent offenders stay out of prison while putting the population at risk.    

In reality, red states only have a crime problem because of blue cities.  Democrat controlled cities suffer the most criminal activity by far.  Data shows that 27 out of 30 of the most violent cities in the US are Democrat run. The leftist propaganda backfired, leading to wider discussions on blue city decay and liberal delusions that crime is a "product of society" rather than a product of inherent psychopathy. 

The situation is far worse than reports indicate. For many years evidence has been mounting that reveals a pattern of suppression when it comes to blue city crime stats.  One city that has been placed under a microscope is Washington DC - A new report from the House Oversight Committee alleges former D.C. Police Chief Pamela Smith played a considerable role in the overall Democrat effort to hide true crime stats from the general public.

The report, based on evidence and testimony collected over the course of the past several months, alleges that Smith pressured officers to manipulate crime data. The committee released the report on Sunday, less than a week after Smith announced she was stepping down.  

DC crime stats have been under suspicion for many years, but suppression did not come to light until Donald Trump initiated a crackdown on DC crime, deploying the National Guard to the city leading to an immediate drop in reported violence.  DC police officials claimed that there was no crime problem, boasting of a 30-year-low in murders and assaults.  This claim is now under dispute after the House Oversight report.

The report's key findings include:

1)  Chief Smith used a pressure campaign against staff which led to inaccurate crime data. Testimony from MPD commanders revealed that Chief Smith prioritized lowering publicly reported crime numbers over reducing actual crime, placing intense pressure on district commanders to produce low crime statistics by any means necessary.

2)  Commanders also testified that Chief Smith pushed for more frequent use of lesser, intermediate charges - which are not publicly reported - and required certain crimes to be reviewed by her office, actions that together amounted to manipulating crime data to present the illusion of lower crime in the District. 

3)  Chief Smith punished and removed officers for reporting accurate crime numbers and fostered a toxic culture. Commanders described a culture of fear and stated that Chief Smith propagated an ecosystem of retaliation and toxicity. Testimony reveals commanders were berated for reporting rising crime and faced retaliation.  

4)  D.C. crime statistics are still at risk of manipulation.  Crime classifications - which affect reported MPD crime data - have been and are still at risk of being artificially reduced to manipulate crime statistics at the expense of public safety, even after Chief Smith’s abrupt resignation. 

5)  MPD commanders also confirmed that President Trump’s federal law enforcement surge in D.C. has been effective in lowering crime.  

While Smith has not yet publicly responded to the report, she's previously denied allegations of manipulating crime data, saying the investigation did not play a factor into her decision to step down at the end of the year.  Democrat Mayor Muriel Bowser also released a statement Monday, writing in part that “the interim report betrays its bias from the outset, admitting that it was rushed to release."

This argument doesn't address the damning testimony from transcribed interviews with the commanders of all seven D.C. patrol districts and a former commander currently on suspended leave.  The Democrat position is, as usual, that everyone else is lying and only they are telling the truth.  When faced with questions about the testimonies, Mayor Bowser asserted that the Police Chief's "management style" was none of Congress' business.  

This is the kind of blatant corruption that is suffocating many US cities.  

According to current crime stats from the Metropolitan Police Department, since Trump's federal law enforcement surge started in August, total violent crime is down 26%. Homicides are down 12% and carjackings 37%.  

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/16/2025 - 19:40

Trump Wants Tiny Cars In America: What To Know

Authored by Andrew Moran via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Microcars could be driving on a street near you.

The affordability issue has also extended to the car market. At a time when the average price of a brand-new automobile is almost $50,000, the White House is seeking to offer motorists other affordable options.

Honda Motor's new N-BOX mini-vehicles at the company's headquarters in Tokyo on Aug. 31, 2017. Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP via Getty Images

Japan may have inspired President Donald Trump’s latest decision to allow U.S. manufacturers to produce tiny automobiles—also known as kei cars.

Administration Actions

Trump, speaking at a White House event on Dec. 3, expressed admiration for tiny cars after seeing them in Japan, comparing these models to the classic Volkswagen Beetle.

“They’re very small; they’re really cute,” Trump told reporters. “And everyone seems to think they’re good, but you’re not allowed to build them.”

He confirmed that he authorized Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy to “immediately approve the production” of these smaller vehicles, which are common throughout Malaysia and South Korea.

“So, you’ll be able to buy [them],” the president said.

In a Dec. 5 Truth Social post, Trump reiterated the charm of these miniature cars.

“Manufacturers have long wanted to do this, just like they are so successfully built in other countries. They can be propelled by gasoline, electric, or hybrid,” the president wrote.

“These cars of the very near future are inexpensive, safe, fuel efficient and, quite simply, amazing!!! Start building them now!”

In a Dec. 4 interview with CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” Duffy stated that if there is market support for low-cost microcars, he wants to afford U.S. manufacturers the opportunity to satisfy consumer demand.

While they might not be functional on freeways, the secretary noted that they could work in urban settings.

“If that’s where you drive, it could be a great solution for you,” he said. “And, by the way, much more affordable than other options that are on the market today.”

Terminating CAFE Standards

The president’s comments came as he moved to dismantle his predecessor’s fuel‑economy rules, formally scrapping the Biden administration’s Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards.

The original program required automakers to average 50.4 miles per gallon by 2031, but Trump’s rollback lowers the target to 34.5 miles per gallon over the next six years.

The White House estimates that the change will trim at least $1,000 from sticker prices and deliver about $109 billion in consumer savings over the next five years.

Driving a Kei Car

Emerging in the late 1940s and ‘50s, tiny automobiles—kei cars—were created to provide low-cost personal transportation during Japan’s postwar reconstruction. Their compact size suited the era’s infrastructure, when most roads were narrow, winding, and frequently unpaved.

The federal government does not explicitly ban Japanese-style microcars. However, regulatory exclusions effectively prevented automakers from producing these types of vehicles, forcing them to manufacture larger, heavier cars.

People cross a street under the hot sun in Tokyo on June 20, 2025. Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP via Getty Images

Since the 1970s, the United States has implemented modern federal crash-safety and highway-safety standards under the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. This includes airbags, crash-test performance, side-impact protection, and structural strength.

Kei cars—designed with small dimensions and engines—cannot comply with these standards without adding weight and size, ultimately undermining the very concept.

‘Game Changer’ for US Automakers

The president’s public support and policy actions regarding kei cars are a “game changer,” said Lauren Fix, a sector analyst and industry expert at Car Coach Reports.

“This is not an overnight process, but the tooling could be shipped to the U.S. and produced within a year,” Fix told The Epoch Times.

One automaker is already putting the pedal to the metal to see if Americans want smaller cars.

Chrysler parent Stellantis said on Dec. 8 that it will begin offering an all-electric small car called the Fiat Topolino—translated to “little mouse”—in the United States in 2026.

Fiat CEO Olivier François stopped short of providing more information, but he said in a statement that more details would be shared in 2026.

“The Fiat Topolino, our small, joyful, colorful car that is now everywhere in Europe, has made several appearances in the U.S. over the past year, including last month at the LA Auto Show, where it’s creating tremendous excitement among consumers,” François said in the statement.

“So much so that I’m happy to share that we’ll be bringing the Fiat Topolino to the U.S., with more details to come next year.”

Trump’s enthusiasm for tiny cars, meanwhile, could also lead to savings for families, according to Fix.

Affordability Versus Market Demand

In Japan, brand-new gasoline-powered kei cars range from $8,000 to $14,000—electric alternatives can run as high as $27,800.

Stellantis sells the Topolino in Europe for approximately $11,500.

By comparison, the average transaction price of a new automobile in the United States is almost $50,000, according to Cox Automotive’s Kelley Blue Book report, released on Dec. 9.

But availability and cost may not be enough to entice motorists to hop into a kei car anytime soon.

Two in five Americans say an SUV or crossover is their primary vehicle, according to YouGov survey data—and that preference is reflected clearly in the country’s best-selling models.

The U.S. auto market remains dominated by SUVs and pickup trucks—sedans account for a smaller share of domestic sales. In the first seven months of 2025, the top-selling cars have been the Ford F-Series, Chevrolet Silverado, Toyota RAV4, Honda CR-V, and Ram Trucks’ pickup.

If there is market demand, models such as Toyota’s Hilux pickup truck or the Fiat Topolino could be hitting U.S. streets in the coming years.

Travis Gillmore contributed to this report

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/16/2025 - 19:15

Nick Reiner Charged With Murdering His Parents

Nick Reiner faces two counts of first-degree murder in the killing of his parents, actor-director Rob Reiner and his wife Michele Singer Reiner.

The Los Angeles District Attorney’s office announced the charges Tuesday after the Reiners’ son was arrested Sunday night and booked into jail Monday.

“These are some of the most serious charges a DA can bring against anyone,” LA District Attorney Nathan Hochman said at a press conference.

“Prosecuting these cases involving family members are some of the most challenging and most heart-wrenching cases that this office faces because of the intimate and often brutal nature of the crimes involved,” the prosecutor added.

The weekend stabbing deaths of the acclaimed actor-director, 78, and his wife, 70, stunned the Hollywood community, as well as residents of Brentwood, the wealthy Los Angeles enclave where they lived.

Their bodies were discovered Sunday.

As Zachary Stieber reports for The Epoch Times, Nick Reiner allegedly murdered his parents with a deadly weapon, or a knife, Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman told reporters at a press conference. 

Hochman declined to say whether the weapon has been located.

Officials also declined to outline the time of death or how specifically they determined Nick Reiner killed Rob and Michele Reiner.

“He was found with good, solid police work,” Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said during the briefing. He added that he would not talk about “what was found or anything that could potentially taint the investigation.”

More details will be presented during court hearings and filings in the future, Hochman and McDonnell said.

“The LAPD remains steadfast in our mission to protect life and uphold justice,” McDonnell said.

“We will continue to support the Reiner family to ensure that every step forward is taken with care and dignity.”

Alan Jackson, an attorney hired to represent Nick Reiner, did not respond to a request for comment. Jackson told reporters in Los Angeles earlier Tuesday that his client would not be appearing in court before Wednesday because he has not been medically cleared. 

“Hopefully he’ll be cleared tomorrow and we’ll get him here,” he said.

Prosecutors said Nick Reiner faces a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted, and they are still evaluating whether to seek the death penalty.

Nick Reiner is currently being held without bail.

Hochman indicated the case will be handled like other similar cases.

“This will proceed along the tracks that many of the first-degree murder cases proceed,” Hochman said.

“Do I anticipate it being particularly fast? No. I anticipate it being very thorough.” 

Police officers went to the home of Rob and Michele Reiner in Brentwood in west Los Angeles on Sunday afternoon after receiving a call from the Los Angeles Fire Department.

They determined a crime had occurred and called homicide detectives, McDonnell said. 

“It is with profound sorrow that we announce the tragic passing of Michele and Rob Reiner,“ family members said in a statement to media outlets. ”We are heartbroken by this sudden loss, and we ask for privacy during this unbelievably difficult time.”

Rob Reiner was a famous actor, director, and producer. Michele Reiner was a photographer. 

Rob Reiner made the 2016 film “Being Charlie” with Nick Reiner. They said that the movie, which features a man struggling with addiction and family problems, was inspired by experiences they went through. Nick Reiner has said he has at times been addicted to drugs and homeless. 

Officials said Tuesday that any past statements by Nick Reiner may be utilized in the case against him.

They also said that if there is any evidence of mental illness, it will emerge in court.

Tyler Durden Tue, 12/16/2025 - 18:50