Tensions in the Strait of Hormuz force us to reconsider the material benefits of fossil fuels

“FOSSIL” FUELS ARE NOT JUST ENERGY….THEY ARE THE LITERAL FOOD OF LIFE IN EVERY WAY

https://blackmon.substack.com/p/ronald-stein-tensions-in-the-strait?

MORE AMERICANS DOUBT VACCINES THAN TRUST THEM

Can you feel the Reckoning approaching? Politico does. Wait till you see this development. Yesterday, Politico published the results of its own vaccine poll under the headline, “More Americans doubt vaccine safety than trust it, POLITICO Poll finds.” It was a stinker.

https://www.politico.com/news/2026/04/14/poll-rfk-maha-vaccine-safety-americans-00869088?

JEFF CHILDERS : IN THE COMMENT SECTION

STAND BY

CANADA – when bankers set the rules …..

https://x.com/JB_Slear/status/2044391654908637590

15 seconds

After Orbán Loss, Polish MEP Warns EU Set To “Subjugate Everything And Everyone” As VDL Moves Quickly To Abolish Veto Power

For many who backed Viktor Orbán, one of their greatest fears was exactly what von der Leyen is now advancing…

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/after-orban-loss-polish-mep-warns-eu-set-subjugate-everything-and-everyone-vdl-moves

URGENT – ACTION – ALERT

Silver is about to explode higher.  As I commented in AA’s post yesterday, we broke out and I was looking for a quick, one day back test.  We may have had it today already, OR it could still drop later today or possibly part of tomorrow.  However, by late tomorrow or Friday, Silver is going to take off, with a big upside move next week.

Is The EU’s €90 Billion Loan To Ukraine Meant To Buy Time For The Return Of Democrats

Orban’s “democratic ouster” is expected to remove Hungary’s procedural opposition to the EU’s planned €90 billion loan to Ukraine that’ll be financed by members raising common debt.

Hopes of a military breakthrough along the front or a diplomatic breakthrough in US-mediated talks have yet to materialize, so the pace of Russia’s on-the-ground advance remains glacial, thus meaning that it could take years to achieve Russia’s reported minimum goal of obtaining control over all of Donbass.

There’s also always the chance that Putin will turn the special operation into a formal war in which he’d no longer care about civilian casualties in an attempt to decisively end the conflict on Russia’s terms.

There are two competing schools of thought about why he hasn’t yet done so.

One speculates that he doesn’t want to inadvertently risk an escalation with the US that could easily spiral into World War III…

…while the other is that he still truly considers Russians and Ukrainians to be one people like he explained at length in summer 2021’s magnum opus, ergo his reluctance to see their civilians suffer.

The EU’s unstated goal is to perpetuate the conflict till at least 2029 in the hope that the Democrats will regain control of the White House and resume the US’ Biden-era Ukrainian policy.

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/eus-eu90-billion-loan-ukraine-meant-buy-time-return-democrats

 

POPE

CLICK TO ENLARGE

BEST BUDS

Stagflation and this…if you don’t like silver here, you’re a permabear.

Silver Market Faces Sixth Consecutive Year of Deficit as Stockpiles Fall

Analysis of Silver Market Trends and Outlook

Ongoing Deficit and Market Dynamics

LONDON, April 15 (Reuters) – The silver market is heading for a sixth year of structural deficit, with 762 million troy ounces drawn from stocks since 2021, raising the risk of a renewed liquidity squeeze despite weaker demand expectations, the Silver Institute and consultancy Metals Focus said on Wednesday.

Silver, used in jewellery, electronics, electric vehicles and solar panels as well as for investment, is down 35% since a bout of frenzied retail buying – following a 147% surge in 2025 – drove prices to a record high of $121.6 an ounce in January.

Forecasts for Supply, Demand, and Market Balance

The global silver market deficit is expected to widen to 46.3 million ounces in 2026 from 40.3 million in 2025, even as total demand falls 2% due to weaker industrial and jewellery consumption, partly offset by stronger coin and bar demand, the research showed.

Industrial silver fabrication is forecast to fall 3% to a four-year low with the Iran war’s damage to global growth threatening further downside. By contrast, coin and bar demand is seen rising 18% supported by a recovery in the U.S. buying.

Total global silver supply is forecast to decline 2%, reflecting producer hedging normalising after jumping in the second half of 2025.

TOTAL SUPPLY 1,019.6 1,090.4 1,066.4

TOTAL DEMAND 1,157.4 1,130.6 1,112.6

https://www.globalbankingandfinance.com/silver-faces-sixth-year-deficit-stock-drawdown-raising/

IRAN – Iraq has sent another convoy of militias into Iran under the cover of humanitarian aid This is not mercy or aid, but a Trojan horse. THE IRAN WATCHER

These Iranian-backed Shia militias, known as the PMF, are the same forces who played a role in brutal crackdowns on Iranian protesters that killed over 45,000.

With no meaningful border control or vetting, the Islamic Republic has deliberately allowed them in and is counting on them as another uprising begins to take shape.

The regime is preparing for a violent crackdown on its own people.

https://x.com/TheIranWatcher/status/2044248938698379641

AND

A new wave of Iraqi PMF militias is pouring into Iran. Here is what it means:

1. The IRGC has taken heavy losses from weeks of US and Israeli strikes. It is weakened and stretched thin. Now these same PMF forces entering Iran are also exposed to the same drone and air strikes.

2. The regime fears unrest during the war, even if it has not started. These fighters are meant to suppress protests and control the population.

3. PMF forces are filling gaps the IRGC and army can no longer cover. They guard key areas and support security operations, they lie and say it’s “aid” but arriving armed.

4. These convoys should be targeted before entering Iranian territory, with aircraft like the A-10 designed well for this type of mission.

This shows the regime cannot control or defend the country on its own anymore, and their proxy terrorist forces were always going to go down with it.

https://x.com/TheIranWatcher/status/2040085156141171084

 

These posts sound like messaging meant for US/Israeli intelligence services. Including how to handle it.

This is INSANE. CANCER has been Cured via something found in Japanese forests.

• Literally ERADICATED TUMORS IN A SINGLE DOSE
• Head to Head against chemo & immuno — worked Way Better
• No bad side effects
• Prevented Recurrence: the cancer COULD NOT be brought back

All this was possible via a single bacterium isolated from the intestines of Japanese tree frogs – Ewingella americana.

Nature is amazing. Spread the word.

https://x.com/NaturallyFTW/status/2043754967165517903

 

The author is correct though — the medical industry will NEVER allow this to see the light of day (but you can be sure that the elite will have a vial close at hand should they need it – cheap insurance at any price).

Vance says Trump wants ‘grand bargain’ with Iran

Vance said today that Trump “wants to make the grand bargain” on Iran and is promising economic success to the isolated country.

“He doesn’t want to make like a small deal. He wants to make the grand bargain,” Vance said at a Turning Point USA event in Georgia today.

“In Pakistan, we made a ton of progress,” he said of negotiations this weekend that failed to produce a final agreement.

“But the reason why the deal is not yet done is because the president, he really wants a deal where Iran doesn’t have a nuclear weapon, Iran is not state-sponsoring terrorism — but also, the people of Iran can thrive and prosper and join the world economy,” Vance said.

Vance described the proposal as one that could normalize economic ties with Iran.

https://www.nbcnews.com/world/iran/live-blog/live-updates-trump-blockade-iran-war-hormuz-israel-lebanon-talks-rcna331668#rcrd107983

 

How does this possibly fit with Netanyahu’s objectives — they don’t rhyme with his statements.

Europe Is Accelerating a NATO Fallback Plan in Case Trump Pulls Out

The Continent is drawing up a contingency for greater European involvement as tensions rise over Iran war

A fallback plan to ensure Europe can defend itself using NATO’s existing military structures if the U.S. departs is gaining traction after getting buy-in from Germany, a long-term opponent of a go-it-alone approach.

The officials working on the plans, which some officials are referring to as “European NATO,” are seeking to get more Europeans into the alliance’s command-and-control roles and supplement U.S. military assets with their own.

https://archive.is/vJCuW#selection-933.0-937.225

 

So Germany is ASKED to build a Fourth Reich and has just closed it’s exit borders to young men (for the coming draft) while Ukraine is conspicuously absent from the article rhetoric. Surely Zelensky will have to extract himself quickly from the European continent if he hopes to enjoy the multiple mansions, yachts and $US Billion bank accounts that await (not to mention avoiding citizens (mostly women) still alive when he makes his move).

Meta Builds Photorealistic AI Version Of Mark Zuckerberg To Interact With Employees

Tech giant accelerates its AI ambitions with a digital twin of its founder, amid a multibillion-dollar push to lead in artificial intelligence

According to FT, the social media giant has been working on photorealistic, AI-driven 3D characters that users can interact with in real time – and has recently prioritized the development of a Zuckerberg AI character, which could provide conversation, feedback, and a stronger sense of connection to the founder for staff. AI Zuckerberg is being trained not only on textual data but also on images of the CEO and recordings of his voice. Should the experiment succeed, Meta envisions a future in which influencers and creators could similarly generate AI versions of themselves.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/meta-builds-photorealistic-ai-version-mark-zuckerberg-interact-employees

 

So neither the AI replica nor the real person will have any personality?? And they think that employees talking to a fictionalized character will provide them with a “stronger sense of connection to the founder”? REALLY??  

Fauci Deputy Who Refused COVID-19 Vaccine Feared Retaliation: Emails

A top government doctor who declined to receive a COVID-19 vaccine in 2021 was worried he would lose his job and medical license in retaliation, according to newly obtained emails.

“Washington, DC directly threatened to take away my medical license which would have threatened my job (I need a medical license) so I applied for a Virginia license and protected myself that way,” Memoli also wrote in the email, sent on Jan. 17, 2024, and obtained by The Epoch Times through a Freedom of Information Act request.

https://www.zerohedge.com/medical/fauci-deputy-who-refused-covid-19-vaccine-feared-retaliation-emails

THE RESISTANCE

Basij commander assassinated in Tehran yesterday

Mohammad Sheermahmoudian, head of a Basij base in District 18, was shot and killed by unidentified attackers.

This marks a rising wave of targeted attacks against IRGC and Basij forces, signaling expanding armed resistance on the ground.

https://x.com/TheIranWatcher/status/2044198264338104790

COMMENTS

The Mullahs have murdered and oppressed the Iranian people for almost fifty years. Vigilante justice will be swift and brutal. Payback is coming and it will be epic.

This is the real reason why the mullahs are so willing to negotiate now. Their power has slipped so far now that the Iranian people have been able to acquire arms for themselves and are killing those who have been oppressing them.

If they don’t put a stop to this soon, the mullahs have to know they will be next.

While Canada admits to 100,000 MAID state controlled deaths, the government is purposefully HIDING the REAL death toll from the public

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/18APaYa9DZ/?mibextid=wwXIfr

SHAWN BUCKLEY LAW       2 minute 15 seconds

 

Similar to tactics used (and death/injury caused) by COVID state controlled injections — “If it’s not recorded… it never happened—right?” 

— https://goldtadise.com/?p=674012 — yes that’s correct 16M souls by 2047 of which ~80% are forecast to be NON-VOLUNTARY — think about that!

BLOCKADE SCORECARD

First full day of the U.S. naval blockade on Iran:
– Zero vessels left Iranian ports
– Six merchant ships turned back after American warnings
– No shots fired, no enforcement needed

Meanwhile, traffic through the Strait of Hormuz continued normally with over 20 vessels passing through.

The blockade is off to a quiet but effective start.

Iran blinked first, ships are turning around without a fight.

The real test will come in the next few days when Tehran decides whether to push back or keep playing it safe.

COMEX In Trouble! Gold & Silver Stackers Will be Millionaires Soon – Martin Armstrong

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TING91eGnQI

14 minutes

Back to Atkinson

TheLastRefuge@TheLastRefuge2
https://x.com/TheLastRefuge2/status/2044159892034826391
·
2h
I see a lot of punditries missing the forest as they peer intently at the trees.

You know the real reason CIA whistleblower Eric Ciaramella’s name was never permitted to be mentioned?

Because the CIA tried to remove a sitting President from office.

The point is being lost.

TheLastRefuge@TheLastRefuge2
·
Oct 9, 2020
How does the office of a U.S. president; and more importantly the republic itself; survive a coordinated coup effort involving all three branches of government; while simultaneously those in charge of exposing the corruption fear the scale is too damaging for them to reveal?

Elon Musk Reveals COVID Vaccine Injury After Former Pfizer Official Admits Shots Likely Killed Tens of Thousands in Germany

In an X post that went viral Sunday, Elon Musk said he “felt like I was dying” and almost went to the hospital after taking his second COVID-19 vaccine. Musk was responding to an X post about how Dr. Helmut Sterz, Pfizer’s former chief toxicologist, admitted during a German COVID-19 inquiry that an estimated 60,000 Germans died from Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine.

https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/elon-musk-covid-vaccine-injury-former-pfizer-official-shots-likely-killed-thousands-germany/?

Quebec church destroyed in blaze as questions emerge about possible link to national trend

A major fire has decimated a 92-year-old church in Saint-Romain, Quebec, prompting a large response from local emergency crews and heated online speculation.

According to an Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) report from 2025, between 2021 and 2024, at least 44 churches in Canada were burned to the ground, with 24 confirmed as arson.

More recent reports have suggested that 123 churches across the country have been vandalized, burned to the ground, or desecrated, with the majority occurring in British Columbia.

https://www.westernstandard.news/news/quebec-church-destroyed-in-blaze-as-questions-emerge-about-possible-link-to-national-trend/72674

WE CAN NOW ACKNOWLEGE THAT THE EPSTEIN FILES ARE FULLY RELEASED

ANY FILES THAT WERE NOT RELEASED (DUE TO REDACTIONS DEEMED LEGALLY NECESSARY BY THE DOJ) ARE ACCESSABLE TO ANY OF THE 535 WELL 533 MEMBERS OF CONGRESS WHO AFTER STUDYING THEM CAN DEMAND ANY OF THEM BE RELEASED TO THE PUBLIC.

THIS IS AS TRANSPARENT AS ANY RATIONAL HUMAN CAN EXPECT….SO …PUT A FORK IN IT…EPSTEIN IS DONE .

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche just said he has offered EVERY member of Congress to view UNREDACTED Epstein Files, with no restrictions

“We have released EVERYTHING. We reviewed 6 million pieces of paper! We are not sitting on a SINGLE piece of paper to be released.”

“We said to Congress, any congressman can come in and spend as much time as they want, looking at everything unredacted.”

“And if you think we should be doing something, congressman or congresswoman, let us know and we will do it.”

“I don’t know how this department or this president can be more transparent than saying ”

American people.

“Here is every single document in our entire database. And if we had to redact it because of victim names, anybody can come look at it if you’re a member of Congress. No restrictions, unredacted.”

https://x.com/EricLDaugh/status/2044065906892960094

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BONDI AND THIS GUY BLANCHE IS THAT HE IS ABLE TO REASONABLY AND LOGICALLY EXPLAIN THIS IN ONE SHORT INTERVIEW WHEREAS BONDI SEEMED TO LACK THAT SKILL

DOLLAR STORE OBAMA

HAKEEM JEFFRIES JUST PANICKED AND RAN!

CNN: Why didn’t you call publicly for Eric Swalwell to resign given these allegations? What about Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, should she resign [for stealing FEMA funds]?”

*Hakeem walks away*

Hakeem REFUSES to hold his own accountable!

https://x.com/EricLDaugh/status/2044067140609720650

It’s time to add to some of these silver beauties if you have none….

..don’s list.  Already a producer or near term (in the next 2 years) or will be relatively soon.  Note the market caps on the far right.  Best opportunity for upsized gains is buying a developer when it’s between 200 and 400 million, finally read Don’s book on PM stock investing.  FD, I own every stock on this list.  I don’t know how to make this thing bigger without clicking on it…..I’m a bit of a tech retard….

Judge James Boasberg just got SLAPPED DOWN by the US Appeals Court

Boasberg is hereby banned from trying to hold Trump officials in contempt after they DEPORTED illegal aliens under the Alien Enemies Act

He LOST!

ACTING AG TODD BLANCHE: “Today’s decision by the DC Circuit should finally end Judge Boasberg’s year-long campaign against the hardworking Department attorneys doing their jobs fighting illegal immigration.”

Last year, SCOTUS upheld Trump deporting illegals under the Alien Enemies Act, and Stephen Miller said at the time:

“This was a huge, I mean monumental victory for President Trump…A total embarrassment for Judge Boasberg…Those monsters can now be hunted down and expelled from this country with speed, force, and efficiency.”

It’s official! Trump wins again!

https://x.com/EricLDaugh/status/2044101543465759165

CANADA – Forcing people to pay a moral tax if they leave the country won’t inspire them to stay

“You want to go to the U.S.? Give me back my money,” he said at the Liberal Party convention in Montreal this past weekend, arguing that graduates educated at Canadian post-secondary institutions should repay his wild estimate of $500,000 in partially taxpayer-subsidized education they received.

The growing number of successful Canadians who are leaving Canada or exploring the idea is not a theoretical trend and the capital attached to those departures is measured in the tens of billions of dollars. Proposals such as Pichette’s don’t solve the talent and capital exodus; they concede it.

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/money/topstories/forcing-people-to-pay-a-moral-tax-if-they-leave-the-country-won-t-inspire-them-to-stay/ar-AA20Qn3R?

 

Tick-tock  Tick-tock  Tick-tock

Hi Latitudes !!

“In the 2014 paper, the [melanoma] mortality rate among [Swedish] women who avoided sun exposure was approximately twofold higher than in the highest sun-exposure group.

That is not a rounding error:”

https://x.com/karlmehta/status/2044052586261819880/photo/1

Air Canada ordered to pay pilots who were denied religious COVID-19 vaccine exemption

An arbitrator has ordered Air Canada to grant back pay to seven pilots denied religious exemptions from the airline’s mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy in a violation of the Canadian Human Rights Act.

In a case of workplace religious discrimination, Air Canada placed the pilots on unpaid leave because they failed to meet the company’s bar for “sincere religious belief,” while other pilots who cleared it received more than six months of paid leave, the decision states.

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/canada/air-canada-ordered-to-pay-pilots-who-were-denied-religious-covid-19-vaccine-exemption/ar-AA20Sf5C?

How low can California go?

Investigative Journalism is verboten in California. Do they think the people are stupid or what?

California is advancing the Stop Nick Shirley Bill

Tracking Trump’s Trade Deals – Council on Foreign Relations

The president has set out to rewrite the rules of trade, one deal at a time.

Indonesia
Japan
European Union
Vietnam
Cambodia
Malaysia
Thailand
South Korea
Argentina
Ecuador
El Salvador
Guatemala
Switzerland and Liechtenstein
Taiwan
India
Bangladesh
North Macedonia

https://www.cfr.org/articles/tracking-trumps-trade-deals?

 

Does not include any deals finalized in last month or so………

IRAN – The regime confiscates Iran’s women’s football captain’s assets!

While in Australia for the Asian Cup, Zahra Ghanbari was threatened and sought asylum. The Islamic Republic then targeted her family, forcing her to withdraw her claim in March 2026, making her the fifth player pushed to reverse course under pressure. They promised her safety if she returned.

This is the pattern. Coerce. Threaten families. Lure people back with promises of safety. Then punish and silence them.

The system promises protection, then turns on you the moment you are within its reach.

https://x.com/TheIranWatcher/status/2043530845076504681