In a post on X, Barchart shared a Bank of America Global Research chart showing the U.S. had about 43 days of crude oil supply, including the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, compared with a long-term average of around 65 days.

Based on Bloomberg data, the chart showed the measure falling to its lowest level since the early 1980s.

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Source: https://seekingalpha.com/news/4615184-oil-cushion-thins-as-us-crude-supply-falls-to-45-year-low

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The post Oil rises, as thousands of US troops set to head to Middle East first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

KYIV: Ukraine has deployed military units to five Middle Eastern countries to help protect critical and civilian infrastructure against drones, Ukrainian security council secretary Rustem Umerov said on Friday (Mar 20) after visiting the region.

He said the teams had been sent to the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, and Jordan, which have come under fire during the Iran war. Further steps for “long-term security cooperation” have been outlined with each of the five nations, he said, without giving details.

“Ukrainian military specialists are operating in each of these countries under the coordination of the National Security and Defense Council,” Umerov wrote on X.

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Source: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/world/ukraine-middle-east-deploy-unit-intercept-drone-war-6006871?fbclid=IwY2xjawQqdqVleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeqMMUNao2T4dF-66uCulSyIpDtg3Elf2zEGXCstAjNwS-25NJNz3pPcOmgn4_aem_2XnfA0P6PMu39brLOFUauw

The post Ukraine deploys units to five Middle East countries to intercept drones first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

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Source: https://www.frontex.europa.eu/what-we-do/monitoring-and-risk-analysis/migratory-map/?fbclid=IwY2xjawOIPEhleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyCGNhbGxzaXRlAjMwAAEeui43sWqODao70jCjlyiI7w-Vm_D7JFDbMXuDvV0DFiUFvDB9KBsl1HXTESs_aem_Rd3sa2SXy7UMhrYYfZlPFQ

The post Migratory Map first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Global defence spending increased by 9% to a record $2.2tn during 2023 driven by heightened geopolitical tensions caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to an annual assessment by a military thinktank.

The International Institute of Strategic Studies added that it expected budgets to increase further in 2024 as the war continued into a third year and international uncertainty spread across the Middle East in the wake of the Israel-Gaza war.

Bastian Giegerich, the thinktank’s director general, described the near-double-digit uplift as reflecting “a deteriorating security landscape”. Russian and Ukrainian military spending soared, as well as western aid to Kyiv.

Continue reading HERE

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/feb/13/global-defence-spending-rises-9-per-cent-to-record-22tn-dollars

The post Global defence spending rises 9% to record $2.2tn first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

The atmosphere we find ourselves in is more than unsettling. It’s a whirlwind of unacceptable realities that we can scarcely believe. We’ve all seen the blocking of freeways and bridges, whether we wanted to or not. Now there can be no official statements from anyone denouncing what happened on October 7. The videos of what these idiots did can’t be watched. It would be illegal to put them on the air. So we’ve got these massive demonstrations all over the place, and I’ve got one question. Where did these people come from, and when did they come here?  

Nobody can put out statements about the mayhem and misery caused by these supposedly down-trodden people. I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating. The so-called Palestinians are schooled in hatred for Jews from their birth. They get it at school, at the mosque and at home. We hear all the cries for the innocent civilians, but Gaza reveled in the massacre.

Here we are, border wide open, people coming in from all over the world.  It’s a free for all.  Worst of all, there’s no end in sight. We’ve got the high-stepper striding down airplane stairways and across grass to helicopters. He keeps getting this blank, far off stare. Do you think we’re the only ones that see it?

The world has blown up, and there might be more to come.  The priority, it seems, is to do away with anything the hated Donald Trump put in place, without regard to the consequences. Look where it’s gotten us. Inflation all over the place, gas prices we don’t like, wars in Eastern Europe and in the Middle East.  Iran is emboldened, after being broke. Now they’re financing and supplying murderous outfits all over the Middle East. Nobody dares speak their name. Merchant ships are being shot at, sometimes hit.  Now they’re rounding up “spies” and executing them in Iran. 

You heard about the Hamas commander that got smoked in Lebanon. No doubt there will be reprisals. His name was Saleh al Arouri, the deputy leader of Hamas. Israel is taking out the leadership, and everybody’s more worked up than ever.

Commercial vessels are being attacked by the Houthis in the Red Sea.  It’s out of control already. Disputes between hostiles are always welcome. Apparently China doesn’t want to pay what Iran is asking for its oil. Isn’t that a shame?  

If you’ve not seen the pictures of flooding across the UK, it’s startling. The worst part is that it’s not through raining. You can hardly believe the photos. Flooded cars, people traversing streets in boats. I don’t know how widespread the damage is, but the photos don’t look good.

How’s the war in Ukraine going? There’s not much news about the war in Ukraine lately, and there’s a reason for that. According to recent reports, the Ukrainians are falling back all along the front as Russians move forward destroying enterprises the Ukrainians need to stay in the fray. The much ballyhooed counter-offensive failed, whether they admit it or not. The Russians are gaining ground and now it’s good money after bad.

So they’re still chasing us around about Covid. A U. S. ally is getting routed in Ukraine, the Middle East is ablaze, and they’re arguing about who’s being “oppressed” as usual. They haven’t given up talking to us like we’re a bunch of five year olds.  

It gets tiresome. We’re being force fed a bunch of nonsense by our government. The Jeffrey Epstein story is front and center, and the way they’re reporting it, you’d think Trump was a primary offender.    Who knows what Epstein’s job was. Was it blackmail? Things can’t be going too well for the Clintons these days. We may well find out more than we want to know. Apparently lots of people were lured to the island on the basis of who’d already gone. We don’t know what to believe about the allegations. Some are too hideous to contemplate.  

We’re in for a rough ride, obviously. May the U. S. recover its sanity before they get us cursed.

Mark

The post Weekly Update by Mark Armstrong – January 5, 2024 first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Demonstrations are going on all over the world, and here in the U. S.  They’re on several university campuses, choking Central Station, the Brooklyn bridge…  They’re waving flags, shouting slogans, demanding a ceasefire?  Maybe somebody should have thought of that a few weeks ago.

The way to break up these demonstrations is to place a big screen where it can’t be avoided.  We don’t want to see what Hamas did, but they need to.  

Informed diplomats are popping up everywhere to demand a humanitarian pause in Israel’s response to the terrorists in Gaza.  Somehow the news anchors are not swayed by terrorists tunnels safely beneath the hospital.  Everybody’s an innocent victim, except that guy on the phone with his parents boasting in near tears about how he’d killed them “with my own hands.”  

I saw a report on a guy who survived the assault on a kibbutz.  He had a Glock.  Otherwise he and his family would have been shot or dragged off as hostages.  The guy killed ten or twelve bad guys and saved his family.  They’re giving interviews.  Israel is going to have to do something about their strict gun laws.  Apparently the demand is surging amid current circumstances.  What sense does it make to be defenseless in that environment?

The Hamas shot-callers are reportedly phoning it in from lavish penthouses in Qatar.  The Israeli military already has assets in Gaza, having cleared a path.  From there, you presumably know the latest on the situation.  Assuming you’re interested.  It’s our job to be interested, and we probably would be anyway.  

Now Erdogan of Turkey is making brave threats about sending his military to the war zone.  

As you’ve heard, Qatar is doing all the negotiating for the hostages.  Somehow they’ve been able to position themselves as the broker of Middle East deals.

Some Iranian diplomat was allowed into the United States where he threatened the U. S. on Iran’s behalf at the UN podium.  Now the Houthis from Yemen have declared war on Israel.   Diplomats are racing around like its WWIII.  Not yet, but the war is threatening to take on new dimensions.  Do those in Lebanon really want Beirut to look like Gaza?  There are drone shots of crowds of young men scouring the powdered concrete blocks.

Maybe I-24 News has the most detailed coverage, but the news channels are Live around the clock.  Black and white target cams obliterate your screen as bombs detonate structures.  They say there are 300 miles of tunnels deep under Gaza city.  Hostages are still being held, even some with American passports.  There will be books written, movies made.  We can’t imagine all that is transpiring in real time.

Israeli forces caught a bunch of the infiltrators.  They were making maybe 25 or 30 of them listen to Israeli nursery music by the hour.  They say they’re conducting interrogations “by the law.”  Some of the target information for all the buildings we see imploding is coming from these guys.  Some reportedly start singing right away, others…  Physical pressure is applied.  You don’t want to know.

The top universities in the U. S. are choked with demonstrations on behalf of… Hamas?  Yes, you read it right.  

Now we’re wondering if the terror will come to the United States.  The F.B.I. Director said it’s a strong possibility.  The border is leaking at a tremendous rate.  We can’t even stand to watch as huge crowds stream toward the crossings.  Just another day for those responsible.  They send some moron before Congress to explain how it’s all under control.  Department of what? 

So the terrorists are making brave threats.  Americans will pay for their support of Israel, they boast.  You don’t suppose some terrorist network has infiltrated amid the border charade?  They’re not sure who all got away, but as we’ve seen the “immigrants” are coming from all over the world.

Congress is wrestling with funding.  As you know, the administration is lobbying for Ukraine funding and financial help for Israel be lumped together.  Some, growing weary of backing the skirmish in Ukraine, want the two issues decoupled.  An interview with someone in the know in the top echelons of Ukraine made the reporter turn off his tape recorder, and then said they’re stealing “like there’s no tomorrow,” speaking of the distribution of U. S. aid.  We suspected so.

You know Al Gore must be pacing the floor, worried that there are more immediate threats than his desperate view of the future. We weren’t buying it anyway. 

Mark

The post Weekly Update by Mark Armstrong – November 3, 2023 first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

It was the only thing that hadn’t gone wrong.  At least there was no war in the Middle East.  But, suddenly, there is.  Maybe this wasn’t thought all the way through.  Did the terrorists not know the wrath their inhumane actions would unleash?  Now they can watch Gaza get blown up.  Large segments already have been.

Americans who haven’t lived in the society of those who sneaked into Israel have no idea about the mindset of these people.  It’s a society where hatred is king.  The more hatred they can drum up, the more successful they’ll be in their society.  If you want to know what they did, you’ve come to the wrong place.  Do people not know the  savagery that defines them?  By their way of thinking, there’s nothing they can do to equal the injustices visited upon them.  The fact of Israel’s existence is the supposed reason for their rage, generation after generation.  Or they might just be crazy.   

In order to understand the depths to which some individuals will go, you have to realize they’re schooled in it.  And it’s their religion.  It’s non-stop on their TV channels, a fact of life, and even in the cartoons.  Allah has spoken, and will not stand by and be insulted.  It’s been going on forever.  But a fuse has been lit with this sneak invasion.  

For years now racism has been the worst thing going.  It’s just about the worst accusation (in woke society) there is.  But liberals have traditionally argued the Palestinian cause.  The Palestinians are drenched in racism.   “Intellectuals” are  saying this war is all Israel’s fault.  Hatred is taught unabashedly in the schools, at home and in the mosques.  From the time children are old enough to talk they parrot back the talking points.  The more they thirst for revenge, the further they will go.  Western minds have a hard time grasping such depth of hatred.  

Everything else will now take a back seat.  This war might well spread.  It already has as missiles are being fired from southern Lebanon, opening another front.  Let’s hope Jordan and Egypt stay out of it, or this could be the one that gets out of control.

We can’t help wondering if Iran is in the mix.  The missiles, the speedboats, the training.  The media are already linking money released to Iran with this terrorist action.  The pretender’s team is saying that money was designated for humanitarian purposes and has not been touched.  Since when do we pay ransom?  There will be Americans getting kidnapped all the time!  

Terrorists don’t wear uniforms.  They can blend back into the civilian population, and they do.  The next thing we’ll hear is how Israel is killing innocent civilians.  Israel delayed it’s ground offensive and told the residents to evacuate.  The Arabs have been beating their breasts for forty years and longer about how heartless and brutal Israel is.  There’s no atrocity they can commit to even the score.  It is borne of a hatred we can scarcely understand.

Beheadings, bodies blown to bits, torture…  No one can imagine the pain of families with lost loved ones, especially when they know they endured suffering at the hands of these animals.  There are reportedly photographs that will break the heart of anyone who sees them.  We’re supposed to look, and experience the heartbroken rage against those responsible.  No thanks.  

Iran is denying they had anything to do with the sneak attack that killed a thousand civilians and took hostages back into Gaza.  It may have been a big mistake to carry off American hostages who were attending a music festival near the border.  There’s video circulating.  Maybe you’ve seen the guy who played dead in the bushes and avoided the fate of those rounded up or shot.  He says the terrorists were laughing, celebrating.  

The terrorists are calling for worldwide jihad.  Syria, Jordan and Egypt are making statements that are less than reassuring.  Israel already bombed airport facilities in Syria to prevent arms being forwarded to Gaza.  

Believe it or not, one publication predicted that the weakness of the incoming administration would result in another Middle Eastern war.  It was the Spectator in Australia.  If you want to see what they said we’ll link it here.  I don’t think this is the big one, but who knows where this will go? 

Mark

The post Weekly Update by Mark Armstrong – October 13, 2023 first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

A filing by Nvidia, Reuters writes, would indicate that the U.S. government has imposed new export restrictions on the chip and AI giant’s high-performance AI processors in writing. These include the Nvidia A100 and H100 processors that are especially well-suited for machine learning tasks. The restrictions now also apply to a number of unspecified countries in the Middle East.

According to sources, chip maker AMD has also received a similar written notice to stop exporting its high-end AI processors to Middle Eastern countries. This manufacturer also recently had to stop exporting its AMD MI250 AI processors to China.

Continue reading HERE

Source: https://www.techzine.eu/news/privacy-compliance/110763/us-restricts-sales-of-ai-chips-nvidia-and-amd-to-middle-east/#:~:text=The%20United%20States%20has%20extended%20restrictions%20on%20exports,and%20AI%20giant%E2%80%99s%20high-performance%20AI%20processors%20in%20writing.

The post US restricts sales of AI chips Nvidia and AMD to Middle East first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Does it seem like things are building to some kind of crescendo? The mainstream sources of information have been holding back the onslaught, but the levy’s about to break. Material is now circulating freely, and at some point the legacy media will have to save its own credibility. You can bet they’re figuring out how to handle it right now.

No doubt you’ve noticed. The “save the planet” contingent wants us to eat meatless meat. That way they can justify getting rid of those pesky cows, contributing to methane in the atmosphere. Maybe you didn’t see the massive revolt in Holland. It only lasted a day, but it was a message that farmers are not about to put up with EU regulations that hamper their efforts and in some cases may put them out of business all together. They blocked highways, ports and spewed manure at government buildings. Let’s just say they’re displeased. Not hearing about this on the mainstream news? They can’t afford to let you know that somebody’s got the guts to blow off environmental nonsense.

Tucker Carlson is going where the mainstream dare not tread. He showed the extensive video of the mob swarming the streets and government buildings. Sri Lanka went green. They had other problems. They borrowed way too much money, and can’t begin to pay it back. Farms shut down on account of nitrogen fertilizer damaging the environment, so there’s a food shortage. Nothing seems to get people into a rage like a food shortage. The video is something out of a high budget film. The leaders fled a few days ago, no doubt brimming with pride over their ESG score. They can’t go back.

There’s all kinds of controversy over tennis great Novak Djokovic and whether he’ll be allowed entry into the United States. It seems he’s a foreigner without a vaccine. Maybe he should consider the southern border, they don’t have many requirements, and Then just show up at the tournament. Maybe the tennis association will look the other way. Unbelievable that the government is flexing mandate muscle this long after the fact. Australia pulled this stunt, to its shame. Novak likes his internal chemistry and doesn’t want to take a chance. Power can be exercised capriciously just so we all get it through our thick heads. You WILL comply or they’ll dream up a punishment.

We don’t know anybody that knows anybody, but the local news is rife with Corona virus outbreaks. They’re advising shots for toddlers and infants, as if we haven’t heard about the “rare” harm that may ensue. Word is that masks and vaccines are still on the table, and we’ve been advised to take action. Though it seems that the vaccine and booster shots are not particularly effective. But that kind of talk will get you canceled.

Educated people are warning that vaccines sometimes have unforeseen consequences. You know how they warn you of all the rare things that might happen if you take some advertised drug. In this case the drug companies are immune from whatever legal problems that might arise. So, how bad does Novak want to play in the U. S. Open? Not that bad. Maybe this seems off the subject, but it is global institutions calling the shots. The WHO (used to be a rock band) or the WEC. They don’t require logic. When Dr. Fauci speaks…

The City of New York is airing a public service announcement telling people what to do in case of nuclear attack. And you thought they hated everything about the 1950’s. That’s the last time we were schooled about nuclear attack. The pretender seems to be doing everything but sending troops to Ukraine to tick Putin off. Let’s hope he doesn’t have a terminal disease. Putin, that is. The pretender is in tremendous trouble, and probably won’t last more than a few months, in office that is. The mainstream media is beginning to abandon the impossible defense. The poll numbers are atrocious but
we suspect not near as bad as the truth.

These people (the pretender’s family) have got to be experiencing tremendous anguish. The kind that overtakes a person. It’s a weight, a cloud, a nightmare they hope to wake up from. But now it’s all over TV and there’s no escaping the damning video. There’s no denying the phone message everybody’s heard by now. It gives the lie to previous statements. The worst of escapades were filmed , and now it’s being released to the media. The mainstream media mostly knows nothing about it. But it’s all over TV and the internet. Still, they know nothing except it must be Russian propaganda. That dog won’t hunt. We’re not even going to describe the low rent conduct here. Good luck trying to hide this stuff now.

Apparently the January 6 committee is still going. Headlines in the mainstream claim that Trump has lost half of his support. (Right!) But their record for trying to herd us has not gone unnoticed. The headlines have been steering us wrong for as long as we can remember. The near universal mainstream hatred of Trump and his supporters has been obvious right along. It seems there is an effort to disqualify him permanently from office, and convince his supporters that they’d have to be crazy to back him. Why are they in such a hurry? It’s their last chance. Or who knows, maybe they’ll try again if this doesn’t do the trick.

There is ongoing fallout from the Supreme Court decision. There’s a reported bounty on Justices’ home addresses, and they might have to use the rear exit if dining out. The news reporting on the nonexistent “right” doesn’t seem quite accurate. In essence the Court washed it’s hands of the issue, sending it back to each individual state. But there are ramifications. You’ve no doubt seen that a long list of familiar corporate names have lined up to pay the expenses of a woman needing to go to another state.

The inflation rate was just released, and you know the result. Just over 9%. That’s spread out over a whole range of products. Chances are you buy more gasoline than other goods. In that case we’re talking way more than the number being reported. We know what gas is costing. Everybody, save the wealthy who can’t be bothered, just got a giant demotion. Take-home pay isn’t what it used to be.

The Pretender is embarrassing himself all over the Middle East at present. Don’t show us the gaffes. We can’t take it. He’s on bended knee before some of our worst enemies, and not a bit shy.

Much has been made of the poor old codger doing somebody’s dirty work, and blaming everyone else. As soon as he’s outlived his usefulness he’ll get all the blame, but the damage will have been done. It is being done. This one’s complicated, but God knows what’s up. We don’t need to stress too much. His Will definitely will be done, regardless.

Mark

Source: http://www.intercontinentalcog.org/fridayupdates.php

The post Weekly Update by Mark Armstrong – 15 July 2022 first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.