Next Stop 6% – Treasury Bond Crisis Officially Out of Control and Looking Like 2008 All Over Again

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Next Stop 6 Percent – The Treasury Bond Crisis Is Officially Out Of Control, And It Is Starting To Look A Lot Like 2008 All Over Again

A historic Treasury bond crisis has erupted and hardly anyone that doesn’t work in the financial world has any idea what is actually going on. We are literally witnessing the most dramatic financial crisis since 2008, and it isn’t even on the radar of most people in the general population. But it soon will be, because it is going to have tremendous implications for all of us. Economic conditions were very painful for several years after the financial chaos of the fall of 2008, and it appears that we are headed for a similar scenario now.

When average people on the street hear that bond yields are going up, most of them think that must be a good thing.

But bond yields and bond prices move inversely to one another, and so when bond yields are spiking that means that bond prices are crashing.

And when bond prices crash, that is not good at all.

Investors were waiting to see whether or not the yield on 10 year U.S. Treasury bonds would smash through the 5 percent barrier, and that is precisely what happened.

Subsequently, investors have been closely watching the 5.25 percent barrier, because historically that is when market conditions really begin to go haywire…

When the yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury bond rises well above 5.25%, the market landscape undergoes a marked shift. Subsequently, bond‑market volatility—and by extension, equity volatility and credit spreads—tend to increase substantially.

That means bonds are no longer a hedge against equities. The transmission chain unfolds in a tightly linked sequence: as U.S. Treasuries lose their appeal as portfolio‑hedging instruments, marginal buyers become more price‑sensitive, and the market’s responsiveness to capital flows intensifies; investors then turn to options to hedge U.S. Treasuries, driving up implied volatility—leading Treasury yields to rise first, which was precisely the official rationale the U.S. Treasury cited last month when it announced an expansion of its repurchase program (to safeguard Treasury liquidity).

Next, equity‑index volatility cannot remain unaffected: the mutual amplification of gains and losses between stocks and bonds will further destabilize rebalancing flows and push the VIX higher; rising demand for stock‑option hedging will also support implied volatility. The third channel is particularly critical today—bond‑market volatility has heightened uncertainty around discount rates for cash flows, while historically low cross‑stock correlations suggest that the market has scarcely priced in “long‑term interest rates,” the single most dominant source of factor risk.

I realize that all of that sounds quite complicated.

The bottom line is that when the yield on 10 year U.S. Treasuries climbs above 5.25 percent, stocks and bonds often start dropping together.

In other words, that level acts as a “line in the sand” beyond which everyone tends to panic.

Well, on Monday the yield on 10 year U.S. Treasuries hit 5.25 percent for the very first time since 2007…

Of course it isn’t just 10 year U.S. Treasuries that are the problem.

At this stage, yields on all long-term U.S. Treasuries are spiking…

Bond charts are never supposed to look like that.

U.S. Treasuries are supposed to be among the most stable financial instruments in the entire world.

As I discussed above, when the yield on 10 year U.S. Treasuries reaches 5.25 percent, stocks and bonds often start dropping simultaneously.

At one point on Monday, U.S. stocks had lost a whopping $720,000,000,000 in value…

Thankfully, the markets have settled down a bit in the last couple of hours.

That is probably because there is some intervention going on behind the scenes.

But without a doubt, things are moving in a very troubling direction, and the consequences could be extremely severe during the weeks ahead.

Right now, our banks are holding vast amounts of U.S. Treasuries.

So when bond yields spike, the value of the U.S. Treasuries that they are carrying plummets.

There are a lot of banks that now have balance sheets that resemble a horror show, and that means that more bank failures are on the way.

In 2025, only two U.S. banks failed.

On Friday, we witnessed the sixth bank failure of 2026 so far…

ANOTHER BANK JUST FAILED…

California’s Nano Banc just failed. Shut down Friday. FDIC appointed receiver.

That makes SIX U.S. bank failures this year, versus two in all of 2025.

California cited years of mismanagement at Nano. Beyond this bank, I’m watching lenders heavily exposed to commercial property.

The FDIC itself has flagged high interest costs and vacant buildings making property debt harder to refinance and repay.

If borrowers can’t pay, losses eat through bank capital. That’s how more failures could follow, one balance sheet at a time.

They like to quietly announce these bank failures on Fridays so that they get as little attention as possible.

Unfortunately, if bond yields continue to soar they won’t be able to contain the panic for long as one bank after another comes apart like a 20 dollar suit.

In addition, rising bond yields could potentially set the stage for a nightmarish derivatives crisis.

Interest rate derivatives are the biggest segment of the derivatives marketplace by a a very wide margin, and if interest rates move up fast enough it could cause a cascading wave of defaults.

Let me put it another way.

If interest rates rise with sufficient velocity, rapid mark-to-market shifts can outpace liquidity buffers, threatening a systemic chain reaction of counterparty failures.

And that would be a massive disaster.

Rising interest rates will also have an enormous impact on U.S. consumers.

The national average for a 30 year fixed-rate mortgage has already jumped above 7 percent.

That is considered to be an extremely important psychological level.

Very few potential homeowners want to pay 7 percent, and home sales are likely to be depressed even more than they have been.

Meanwhile, credit card rates are going to go up, and auto loans are going to become a lot more expensive.

Collectively, all of this is going to slow down economic activity.

Economic activity was already starting to slow down thanks to the global energy crisis, and rising rates will just intensify that slowdown.

This is going to be such a catastrophe.

We are potentially facing a financial crisis and a major economic slowdown at the same time.

If that sounds a lot like 2008, that is because it is a lot like 2008.

Meanwhile, we are forced to deal with a global energy crisis, a global fertilizer crisis and a Super El Niño.

On top of everything else, World War III is raging on the other side of the planet.

Decades of bad decisions have brought us to this point, and now we all get to pay the price.

Via https://activistpost.com/next-stop-6-percent-the-treasury-bond-crisis-is-officially-out-of-control-and-it-is-starting-to-look-a-lot-like-2008-all-over-again/

Rappers For Regime Change: How the CIA Recruits Hip Hop Artists Around the World

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Alan Macleod

Bangladesh: Songs of Subversion

“The U.S. government has observed the power of hip hop culture as a vehicle for expression, protest, and a political voice for young people,” Professor Sujatha Fernandes, a sociologist at the University of Sydney and the author of the book, “Close to the Edge: In Search of the Global Hip Hop Generation,” told MintPress News.

[…]

One of those countries is Bangladesh. In 2024, longstanding prime minister Sheikh Hasina was toppled in a U.S.-supported revolution.

[…]

Hasina was replaced by Muhammad Yunus, a longtime associate, mentor, and close friend of Bill and Hillary Clinton.

[…]

One of the leaders of the demonstrations was rapper and barrister Towfique Ahmed, who shot to prominence after he offered to provide free legal support to anyone arrested by Hasina’s forces.

Yet Ahmed had for years been on the U.S. government payroll, explicitly as an agent of change, the International Republican Institute (IRI) – a CIA front group – funding and promoting his music career far and wide.

[…]

Ahmed’s music became an anthem of the protests, thanks in part to the IRI consistently promoting it, including on its own televised cultural program, that, it boasted, “reached over 79,000 households in Bangladesh.” In total, the IRI spent millions supporting a wide range of artists, musicians, dancers and actors, all with the goal of removing Hasina from power.

[…]

Senegal: The Revolution Will Be Organized

If Bangladesh was the perfect insurrection, Senegal was the blueprint. Western media called it the “Rap Revolution.” In 2012, enormous protests against President Abdoulaye Wade broke out.

[…]

The demonstrations were led by a rap collective called “Y’En a Marre” (Enough is Enough). Y’En a Marre capitalized on public discontent over corruption, blackouts, and economic stagnation, inflaming tensions and encouraged people out on the streets.”

[…]

West Africa: Rage on Behalf of the Machine

[…]

For the United States government, the point of sponsoring huge numbers of individuals and organizations around the world is far less about training the shock troops who will lead a color revolution (although that certainly happens), and more about ensuring that a giant cadre of pro-U.S. agents exists in all countries and in all manner of influential fields, from politics and business to academics and the arts.

[…]

One country, however, where hip hop artists are very much at the forefront of the U.S.’ regime change plans is Cuba.

Cuba: The Great Astroturfed Revolution

The United States has been trying to overthrow the government of Cuba since the Revolution of 1959. And in July 2021, they thought they had concocted the perfect plan. Washington spent enormous amounts of resources encouraging Cubans into the streets in an attempt to topple President Miguel Díaz-Canel.

America believed it had found the ideal figurehead in Yotuel, an aging rapper who left Cuba in the 1990s, and had released the anti-government song, “Patria y Vida” (Fatherland and Life) to great U.S. fanfare just months earlier.

[…]

On the same day as Rubio’s tweet, a huge swath of U.S. media outlets, including The New York Times, NPR, The Wall Street Journal, Rolling Stone, Voice Of America, and National Geographic, all simultaneously published articles profiling the song.

Collectively, this coverage identified “Patria y Vida” as the clarion call for a new generation, noted that it was a retort to the communist slogan “Patria o Muerte” (fatherland or death), and presented Yotuel as a crusading warrior of democracy. But none told readers that anti-government Cuban rappers like Yotuel had been sponsored, hothoused, and coached for years by the U.S. government for precisely this purpose.

The NED was, at the time, financing numerous schemes training Cuban rappers as agents of regime change. One project entitled “Empowering Cuban Hip-Hop Artists as Leaders in Society,” stated that its goal was to “promote citizen participation and social change,” and to “raise awareness about the role hip-hop artists have in strengthening democracy in the region.” Another, called “Promoting Freedom of Expression in Cuba through the Arts,” claimed it was partnering with local musicians on projects related to “democracy, human rights, and historical memory,” and to help “increase awareness about the Cuban reality.” This “reality,” as President Biden himself stated the week of the insurrection, was that the Cuban government is an “authoritarian regime” that has meted out “decades of repression” while its leaders only “enrich themselves.”

At the same time, USAID was offering $2 million worth of funding to groups that could use culture to bring about a color revolution in Cuba.

[…]

In the end, despite the impeccable coordination from the U.S. government, social media, the Cuban-American lobby, celebrities, and the press, all of whom came together to bombard the country with messaging telling them to get out on the streets, barely a few thousand people island-wide heeded their call. Moreover, they were dwarfed by far larger, pro-government counter-demonstrations (images of which, for some time, Western media often presented as anti-government marches).

The reality was that Patria y Vida’s supposed popularity was largely astroturfed. Yotuel had not even lived in Cuba for a quarter-century, and instead led a much larger sympathy demonstration in Miami. Days later, President Biden invited him to the White House for a special meeting.

[…]

This was not the first time that Washington had been caught using hip hop to overthrow the Cuban government. In fact, inside Cuba, the rap scene is notorious for being full of undercover U.S. agents. Gaining popularity in the late 1990s, local rappers had a considerable impact on society, helping bring to the fore many previously under-discussed topics. The United States saw their biting critiques of racism as a wedge they could exploit, and attempted to infiltrate their ranks.

In 2009, the U.S. government sent Serbian music promoter Rajko Bozic to the island with a mission: to recruit a stable of rappers to use as anti-government shock troops. Bozic was a veteran of Otpor, a CIA-backed political group that led the insurrection against Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic – the first successful color revolution of the century.

Bozic soon found willing partners in rap group, Los Aldeanos. With seemingly limitless funds for the operation, he immediately started aggressively promoting the duo, producing an anti-government TV show they starred in. Although it was not broadcast on television, Bozic and his team simply paid for it to be distributed around the country on DVDs and USB drives instead.

He also used Washington’s money and connections to get their music on the radio, and to bribe big Latino music stars into allowing them to open for them at their gigs, thus buying them more credibility and exposure. Los Aldeanos were even flown to Serbia for secret training, under the guise of playing at the Exit Music Festival.

Cuban authorities eventually exposed the scheme, however, and Los Aldeanos fled to Florida.

[…]

Yet, for all its efforts, Fernandes told MintPress that the U.S. government has had little success. Cuba, she said, is a place with an organic hip hop movement built from the ground up, and rappers are “not trying to overthrow their government but to create more spaces for their demands of anti-racism and equality under an expanding market economy. They had little reason to collaborate with U.S. agencies.”

[…]

Funding a Global Medium

In the Republic of Congo, President Denis Sassou Nguesso has been faced with over a decade of opposition from the Ras-le-Bol movement, which, in 2015, […coordinated the largest anti-government protests in the country’s history in response to his attempts to change the constitution.

Ras-le-Bol shares many similarities with Y’En a Marre in Senegal. For one, they were both co-founded by a rapper, in this case, Martial Pa’nucci. Pa’nucci noted that he took direct inspiration from Senegal. Indeed, Ras-le-Bol is a direct translation of Y’En a Marre, both meaning “enough is enough.” And like Thiat, Pa’nucci is a former Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellow at the National Endowment for Democracy.

While at the NED, he used the time to produce “Music for a Democratic Future in Congo”, a 12-track album the NED describes as “denouncing the dictatorship and kleptocracy that undermines his country.”

Unlike in Senegal, however, Ras-le-Bol has been unsuccessful in dislodging Sassou Nguesso, who first came to power in 1979.

The U.S. government has also supported the career of Moroccan political rapper Youssra Oukaf, better known as Soultana. Soultana takes on issues such as patriarchy and sexism in her music, and has helped other women enter the arena. While finding no aid from her own government, she has found plenty from Washington. “For me, it’s so big. It’s not just support, it’s an honor,” she said of her U.S. backing.

In Jordan, a USAID audit reveals that the agency greenlit a project to produce a rap song “targeting first-time voters” ahead of the 2007 elections. The song, it claims, was “played by most commercial radio stations” and reached “more than 2 million Jordanians.”

The U.S. government has also sponsored rap projects on a smaller scale in Uganda, South Africa, Tanzania, Ghana, and El Salvador. These initiatives range from concerts in Haiti featuring Wyclef Jean, to small scale workshops aimed at youths.

[…]

Rap as a Pacifying Force

While successive American administrations have used rap as a wedge to divide populations against each other and heighten existing contradictions within societies, they have also used it as a uniting force in nations with friendly governments, tamping down tensions and papering over divisions.

That was the case in Colombia, a country ravaged by decades of brutal drug war and mass killings by U.S.-backed far-right militias. In 2020, USAID’s Alliances and Reconciliation Program created an initiative aimed at the country’s youth with a message of coexistence, truth, dialogue, and reconciliation.

It appointed local rappers, Melisa MC, and Ken Zingle, as ambassadors of the program. Together, the pair produced the song, “Rímalo” (Rhyme It), which served as the project’s anthem.

Later, USAID also developed an outreach program targeting youths in conflict-affected areas of Colombia (where it was often the United States itself supplying the weapons). The program aimed to channel young people’s anger and frustration into peaceful co-existence and music creation. USAID published one of these rap songs, “Queremos” (We Want) on YouTube.

At the same time in Kenya, USAID partnered with well-known rapper King Kaka to launch its #16BarsforPeace hip hop campaign, wherein it challenged Kenyan youth to submit videos of themselves rapping about peace and conflict resolution.

[…]

From “Fight the Power” To Working For Power

[…]

In 2024, the State Department announced it was joining forces with YouTube to create a new “Global Music Ambassador” program. The initiative was directly modeled on Washington’s Cold War-era efforts to use the arts to inspire U.S.-backed regime change in Eastern Europe, and to use musical tours as covers that the CIA could use to assassinate foreign leaders.

[…].

The CIA has long used music as a cover for overthrowing foreign governments. In 1960, it embedded itself on Louis Armstrong’s tour of the Congo, accompanying the jazz legend in order to secretly gather information on the movements of the country’s prime minister, Patrice Lumumba, whom CIA director Allen Dulles described as Africa’s Fidel Castro. Lumumba was assassinated later that year, plunging the country into decades of U.S.-backed dictatorship, from which it has never recovered.

The project continued until the successful overthrow of Communism and Eastern Europe; events in which the U.S. government played a significant role. There have long been credible rumors that the CIA wrote and promoted the Scorpions’ hit song “Winds of Change” as regime change propaganda. Meanwhile, David Hasselhoff – the American singer who has long been inexplicably popular in Germany – has strongly insinuated that he worked with the agency to bring down the Berlin Wall. His song, “Looking for Freedom,” became the unofficial anthem of the wall’s destruction, and he played it to a huge Berlin crowd in 1989.

More recently, in Venezuela, the NED funded and supported rock bands producing music aimed at destabilizing and overthrowing the socialist government.

[…]

Via https://uprootedpalestinians.wordpress.com/2026/10/18/rappers-for-regime-change-how-the-cia-recruits-hip-hop-artists-around-the-world/

Smashed storefronts, burned buildings as Europe faces aftermath of latest violent protests

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WATCH smashed storefronts, burned buildings as Europe faces aftermath of latest violent protests
A yellow vest is seen draped over the statue of Marianne on the Place de la Republique following nationwide protests, Paris, France, October 18, 2026. ©  Mustafa Yalcin / Anadolu via Getty Images
RT
18 Oct, 2026 
Clashes erupted in several major cities as unrest spread beyond France over the weekend

Tens of thousands took to the streets of European cities over the weekend to protest rising living costs, housing shortages and government policies, with demonstrations escalating into violent clashes, looting and arson in several countries. The unrest left smashed storefronts, damaged public buildings and burned-out vehicles in its wake.

France, where the protests first erupted, saw the most extensive destruction, while clashes also broke out in Belgium and Italy as a separate wave of anti-government demonstrations continued in Albania. In Portugal, tens of thousands also demonstrated, although no comparable scale of violence or damage was reported.

Footage from across Europe showed smashed shop windows, looted stores, burning vehicles and fires near public buildings.

In Limoges, France, flames engulfed the historic town hall, while masked demonstrators in Milan hurled stones at riot police near the Gothic cathedral and set fire to street barricades. In Brussels, protesters overturned a car, while in Tirana, demonstrators threw rocks and petrol bombs at police near the Education Ministry. Riot police in several cities used tear gas and water cannons to disperse crowds.

The massive rallies reflect a range of national grievances rather than a coordinated movement. In France, demonstrations took place in Marseille, Strasbourg, Nantes, Lyon and other cities.

Initially sparked by poor school conditions and teacher shortages, the protests have broadened to include anger over living costs, inequality, public services and proposed spending cuts. Authorities put Saturday’s nationwide turnout at 550,000, while organizers estimated 800,000.

In Belgium, student groups opposed to rising education costs and reforms they say could limit access to higher education. In Italy, marches against living costs and wars began peacefully before groups broke away and clashed with police in Milan and Bologna.

In Portugal, protesters rallied over low wages, rising rents and a shortage of affordable housing. Thousands marched in Lisbon, pitching tents in Rossio square to highlight the crisis.

In Albania, student-led protests entered a fifth consecutive day, with demonstrators demanding Prime Minister Edi Rama’s resignation over corruption allegations, a lack of jobs and poor prospects for young people.

Opposition has also focused on a luxury tourism project on the southern coast linked to an investment firm founded by US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner.

Police in France arrested nearly 1,800 people and reported more than 500 injured officers, gendarmes and firefighters. One demonstrator died after suffering a cardiac arrest in Paris.

Carrefour reported damage to 50 stores, 20 of which were looted, with losses reaching tens of millions of euros. Limoges estimated repairs to its fire-damaged town hall at €1 million, while Bordeaux reported up to 100 looted stores

In Belgium, 45 people were arrested in Liege, including 12 minors, amid clashes and property damage. Italy reported about 50 detentions in Milan and four in Bologna, where 36 law-enforcement personnel were injured. In Albania, reports gave differing totals for arrests and injuries over five days of unrest. Seven officers were suspended pending an investigation into alleged excessive force.

[…]

Via https://rt-english.com/news/647364-aftermath-protests-europe-cost-living/

Blackwater Founder Erik Prince’s Mercenaries Ambushed In Congo, Leaving 20 Dead Or Wounded

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(Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
Jack Cowhick

Blackwater founder Erik Prince’s mercenaries were ambushed in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, leaving 20 members of the team dead or wounded, Reuters reported Friday.

mbers of Prince’s private military and security company Vectus Global were reportedly ambushed in mid-September, amid the company’s contract work with the Congolese government. Among the wounded is Tim Kennedy, a United States Green Beret, former UFC contestant, and podcast host. Kennedy is reportedly recovering from three gunshot wounds at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.

A former New Zealand Special Forces member and “at least seven Congolese” were found dead, according to Reuters.

Vectus Global was initially contracted by President Félix Tshisekedi’s government in October 2024, although the firm has recently expanded its footprint in the country. Prince secured a multi-million dollar logistics contract with the Congolese government, according to Africa Intelligence.

Vectus Global has been active in security contracts in several nations. The firm began operating in Haiti in March 2025, reportedly using armed drones to target gangs across the country. Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa Azin also announced a “strategic alliance” with Prince in an X post in March 2025, aiming to improve the country’s “capabilities in the fight against narcoterrorism and the protection of our waters from illegal fishing.”

Prince, himself a former Navy SEAL, is a close ally of President Donald Trump and a board member of the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC). The military contractor spoke at CPAC 2026, warning against a ground invasion of Iran.

Via https://dailycaller.com/2026/10/10/blackwater-founder-erik-prince-mercenaries-ambush-congo/

Le Pen projected to win French presidential election

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Le Pen projected to win French presidential election – poll
Marine Le Pen. © Getty Images / Thierry Chesnot / Stringer

RT

13 Oct, 2026 00:33  

The leader of the right-wing National Rally would defeat both left-wing and centrist rivals in hypothetical runoffs, a new survey suggests

French right-wing politician Marine Le Pen has emerged as the frontrunner in the 2027 presidential race and would defeat both left-wing and centrist rivals in hypothetical runoffs, according to a new poll.

Published on Monday, the Toluna Harris Interactive survey for French broadcasters M6 and RTL puts Le Pen, the longtime face of the National Rally (RN), at 67% against Jean-Luc Melenchon, leader of the left-wing France Unbowed party, and 56% against former centrist Prime Minister Edouard Philippe.

Le Pen also leads all five first-round scenarios tested, with 35% to 37% support. Melenchon comes second with 18% to 19%, while Philippe polls between 13% and 17%.

The survey also suggests growing confidence in Le Pen’s leadership. Some 51% of respondents believe she would make a good president, up six percentage points from the previous poll, compared with 47% for RN president Jordan Bardella.

Le Pen reached the presidential runoff in both 2017 and 2022 but lost to Emmanuel Macron on each occasion. The incumbent is barred from seeking a third consecutive term. Macron’s approaching departure comes as France faces mounting fiscal pressures.

In July, the Paris Court of Appeals reduced Le Pen’s five-year ban on holding elected office following her conviction for misusing EU funds, clearing the way for her to contest the 2027 election.

Her party has also strengthened its parliamentary position. In September, RN and its ally, the Union of the Right for the Republic (UDR), secured enough Senate seats to form a parliamentary group for the first time.

Macron’s centrist camp has lacked a parliamentary majority since 2022, leaving successive governments struggling to pass budgets. France’s public debt reached €3.6 trillion (over $4 trillion), or 119% of GDP, as of the end of June, while the proposed 2027 budget faces opposition in the fragmented parliament.

Both Le Pen and Melenchon have criticized NATO and Western policy toward Ukraine. Le Pen has advocated withdrawing France from NATO’s integrated military command, lifting sanctions on Russia, and pursuing a negotiated settlement to the Ukraine conflict. Melenchon has called for France to leave NATO altogether.

RN has repeatedly opposed open-ended military funding for Kiev and warned against steps that could bring France into direct confrontation with Russia. Le Pen has called for the normalization of relations with Moscow.

The prospect of a Le Pen presidency has reportedly alarmed Ukraine’s Western backers. The Telegraph reported in August that officials feared her election could undermine French-led efforts to coordinate military and financial aid for Kiev, as well as plans to deploy Western troops to Ukraine following a ceasefire.

The Toluna Harris Interactive survey was conducted online from October 5 to 8 among 2,004 registered voters.

Via https://rt-english.com/news/647104-france-le-pen-leading-poll/

3D-Printed Fake Meat and Fish Have Officially Entered American Grocery Stores Without Clear Labeling

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By Nicolas Hulscher
October 15, 2026

Israeli company Steakholder Foods is rolling out artificial steaks, chicken, and fish under its PERFECTA brand—with NO mention of 3D-printing on the packaging.

3D-printed fake meat and fish have officially hit American grocery stores. Israeli food-technology company Steakholder Foods announced the U.S. retail launch of its PERFECTA brand, introducing 3D-printed meat and seafood to grocery stores across the Northeastern United States.

The packaging DOES NOT disclose that the company’s products are manufactured using 3D-printing technology. Instead, the products are marketed as “premium plant-based meat.”

Steakholder Foods is rolling out five products under its PERFECTA brand:

  • “Marbled Steak”
  • “Filet Mignon”
  • “Chicken Breast”
  • “Salmon Patties”
  • “White Fish Patties”

Its plant-based steak formulation contains soy flour, rapeseed oil, modified starch, methylcellulose, xanthan gum, locust bean gum, and artificial meat coloring designed to imitate the appearance of beef.

[…]

Via https://www.globalresearch.ca/3d-printed-fake-meat-and-fish-have-officially-entered-american-grocery-stores-without-clear-labeling/5943876

US sympathy for Palestinians surpasses support for Israelis

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Al Mayadeen| October 16, 2026

A study by University of Maryland researcher Shibley Telhami points to a major shift in US public opinion, with sympathy for Palestinians surpassing support for “Israel” and growing numbers of Americans viewing the occupation as responsible for genocide.

Drawing on Gallup data, Telhami noted that sympathy for “Israel” among the US public has fallen from around 50% to 36%, while sympathy for Palestinians has risen to 41%.

Among Democrats, support for “Israel” has plunged from more than 50% in 2001 to just 17% today, while sympathy for Palestinians has climbed to 65%, according to the researcher.

Telhami’s Critical Issues Poll at the University of Maryland also found that more than 60% of respondents believe US military and diplomatic support enables “Israel” to carry out its actions.

Generational shift extends across political lines

Citing data from the Pew Research Center, Telhami pointed to a narrowing generational gap among Democrats in negative views of “Israel.” The figures showed that 71% of younger Democrats and 66% of older Democrats held negative views of the occupation.

One of the most significant changes, however, has emerged among young Republicans under the age of 35. According to the cited polling, the share of young Republicans expressing negative views of “Israel” rose from 35% to 57%.

Only 22% of young Republicans agreed that “Israel’s” actions in Gaza were “justified as self-defense,” compared with 52% of their older counterparts.

Self-censorship over criticism of ‘Israel’

The shift in public opinion comes alongside concerns over the freedom to criticize “Israel” and discuss its actions in Palestine.

Telhami highlighted findings indicating that 80% of academics since October 7, 2023, and 42% of the general US public feel they must exercise self-censorship or caution when discussing the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza, fearing accusations linked to their criticism.

The findings point to growing public criticism of “Israel” and US support for it, alongside continued concerns about the social and professional consequences of expressing such views.

Via https://alethonews.com/2026/10/16/us-sympathy-for-palestinians-surpasses-support-for-israelis/

Mike Huckabee’s family selling Israel tours, access to top officials

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(Photo credit: Reuters/Ammar Awad)

The Cradle

OCT 17, 2026

The trips promise US citizens an audience with senior Israeli officials and lectures from extremist pro-Israel figures

A Zeteo investigation published on 17 October has revealed that the family of US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee is selling paid tours to Israel for US citizens that offer access to senior Israeli officials.

According to the company’s advertising and filings, the travel business, now run by Huckabee’s son and formerly marketed as “The Israel Experience with Governor Mike Huckabee,” has taken hundreds of travelers to Israel over the years and continues to bring US citizens to hear Israeli officials speak.

In 2015, the Washington Post reported that the trips cost $5,250 a head, covering five-star hotels, flights out of New York, and meals.

Guests were granted meetings with top Israeli leaders and evening lectures by extremist pro-Israel figures, while Palestinians and their towns were entirely omitted from the itinerary.

Huckabee has repeatedly denied Israel’s genocide of Palestinians in Gaza, its occupation of Palestine, and its apartheid regime, touting that there is “no such thing as a Palestinian.”

On 8 October, the New York Times revealed that Huckabee’s senior aide, David Milstein, repeatedly buried or altered diplomatic reports to Washington that documented Israeli crimes in the occupied West Bank and Gaza to either downplay the atrocities or erase them outright.

Among the suppressed reports was a March review of the killings of nine Palestinian US citizens by Israeli settlers and soldiers, which found that no one had been charged.

Milstein also turned staff warnings about mass casualties at the US-Israeli-run Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF)—where at least 1,400 Palestinian aid seekers were killed—into a story portraying the operation as a success.

He also blocked reports that relayed warnings from Israeli commanders saying that settler attacks could ignite a new uprising, and sent a cable under his own name crediting Netanyahu with reining in the violence instead.

Officials said he subjected colleagues to loyalty tests, demanding to know whether they were “pro-Israel” or “pro-Hamas” and leaving staff afraid to speak out.

[…]

Via https://thecradle.co/articles/Mike-Huckabee-family-selling-Israel-tours-access-to-top-officials-Report

Trump waives sweeping Russia sanctions, mulls easing pressure on Iran’s ‘shadow fleet’ amid global energy crisis

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(Photo credit: AP Photo/Nathan Howard)

The Cradle

On 17 October, Russia welcomed US President Donald Trump’s decision to waive new sanctions targeting Moscow, calling it a “historic move” that would benefit “global stability.”

“Suspension of the Graham Act by the administration of President [Donald] Trump is an important and truly historic moment,” a Kremlin official said on Saturday.

“Instead of sanctions and confrontation, we have dialogue, mutually beneficial cooperation, and shared responsibility for global stability,” the official added.

On Friday, Trump signed an executive order suspending the application of sanctions provisions under the so-called “Lindsey Graham Act,” a law passed in September to target Russia’s energy and defense sectors, including its tanker network used to circumvent US restrictions on oil and gas sales.

The late Lindsey Graham, a longtime advocate of war with Russia, pushed for the legislation before passing away in July after a trip to Ukraine.

The law also included provisions targeting countries that continue to buy Russian oil and gas.

Trump is under pressure to reduce energy and commercial shipping costs resulting from the US-Israel war on Iran and the Islamic Republic’s efforts to close the Strait of Hormuz.

Trump’s Republican Party is widely expected to lose ground to the Democratic Party in next month’s midterm elections due to widespread resentment among US voters over higher gasoline and diesel prices.

The Kremlin said that if the Graham Act had gone into effect, it could have completely halted economic cooperation between Russia and the US and caused serious damage to the US economy and global markets.

Trump’s decision comes as Ukraine and Russia trade attacks on each other’s energy infrastructure. He was reportedly angered that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky resumed strikes on Russian oil refineries despite repeated US requests to stop.

Zelensky criticized Trump’s decision on Saturday.

“A US sanctions blackout, easing pressure on the aggressor, financial rewards for Putin, all of this only encourages him to keep attacking,” Zelensky said on social media.

Washington is reportedly also weighing a move to lift sanctions on the “shadow fleet” of Russian and Iranian tankers to help bring down soaring diesel prices before the midterm elections.

Although US energy companies have benefited from higher prices after Hormuz closed, costly tankers and long-distance shipping of oil and natural gas to new customers in Europe and Asia have cut profits.

The Financial Times (FT) reported on Thursday that the US could allow the sale of sanctioned Russian and Iranian vessels to non-sanctioned operators, allowing them to operate without restrictions.

Reuters reported on Wednesday that the US could allow sanctioned vessels to carry crude or petroleum products not sanctioned by the US.

In 2018, after the US unilaterally withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear agreement and imposed “maximum pressure” sanctions, Iran established a so-called “shadow fleet” of tankers to transport oil in defiance of the sanctions regime.

Energy Aspects, a research and consulting firm specializing in oil, natural gas, and global energy markets, estimates that around 15 percent of the world’s tanker fleet is under US sanctions.

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Via https://thecradle.co/articles/trump-waives-sweeping-russia-sanctions-mulls-easing-pressure-on-irans-shadow-fleet-amid-global-energy-crisis

Welcome to the ‘AI burnout trade’ — as investors grow tired of debating tech’s promises

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AI stocks have come under pressure as investors lose patience with endless valuation debates

AI stocks have come under pressure as investors lose patience with endless valuation debates Photo: MarketWatch photo illustration/iStockphoto

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By Hannah Pedone

Nicholas Colas, co-founder of DataTrek Research, called the current market action evidence of an “AI burnout trade.” In other words, investors are getting sick of projecting payoffs from investments in technology with uncertain, far-off returns — and they’re also tired of debating what that means in the here and now.

“Should an investor in the S&P 500 care about the next 36 months or the next decade? We all know the answer is the latter, but fretting over the former can be (or, frankly, is) exhausting,” Colas wrote.

Investors are also finding it challenging to “cut through the noise surrounding artificial intelligence — from the grand promises of transformative growth and the massive costs of data-center build-outs, to concerns about AI displacing jobs and the steady stream of new chip or model announcements that arrive almost daily,” said Luke Rahbari, the co-portfolio manager of the Rational Equity Armor Fund.

He agreed that “many have grown weary of trying to look years ahead at the ultimate payoff.”

For the last several years, the market has rewarded companies when they announce a new, larger model, a larger data center, or a bigger AI-infrastructure commitment. But that’s changing as investors are demanding clearer proof that capital spending can translate into sustainable revenue growth, StoneX analyst Yi Fu Lee told MarketWatch.

Lately, there has been consternation around reports of financial metrics from leading private AI companies OpenAI and Anthropic. The market can show “little mercy when expectations and reported figures diverge, and AI-related stocks quickly began to show cracks,” Lee added.

Peter Berezin, the chief economist at BCA Research, told MarketWatch that there’s also concern that spending on AI tokens — the units of data that AI models process, and that providers bill for — is slowing. That could pose challenges for AI companies. According to his estimates, AI companies will need $10 trillion in annual sales to generate a “decent rate of return” on their spending on AI data centers. which has become the poster child for AI borrowing needs, are down to their lowest point since July.

Via https://www.marketwatch.com/story/welcome-to-the-ai-burnout-trade-as-investors-grow-tired-of-debating-techs-promises-6ae7836e