How Chinese goods dodge American tariffs

• There are big winners from this tariff avoidance. They include Chinese producers. However, the avoidance also generates a windfall for American consumers. 
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SCOTUS, Bribery Instructions...

BIG Deal

US Supreme Court threw out a decades-old legal doctrine (Chevron decision) that empowered federal regulators to interpret unclear laws, issuing a blockbuster ruling that will constrain environmental, consumer and financial-watchdog agencies - huge win for corporations!

Jon Stewart Biden Trump Debate (I need to call a real estate agent in New Zealand)

Notes today

• The US Supreme Court blocked a Biden administration rule that would mean stringent new emissions requirements on power plants and pipelines in parts of the country to stem ozone pollution that wanders into downwind states… 

• Bloomberg: A wide range of US data showed the economy downshifting as borrowing costs stay high.

Problem with these notes: some tend to run up against a deeply rooted feature of human cognition - the desire not to think about anything unpleasant…Sorry about that.

Btw, humans can only think about 4 things at once – according to the research team led by University of Oregon psychology professors Edward Awh and Edward Vogel. So, to help, we limit notes. 😉

"Everything will be all right. And, even if it won't be, we'll have the consolation of having lived honest lives." Alexei Navalny

The U.S. House of Representatives just voted 269-144 to ban giving funds to the State Department to cite the death toll from the Gaza Health Ministry.

And this from the ONION

Notes today

• The world uses about 100 million barrels of oil per day.

   

• A wax sculpture of Abraham Lincoln in Northwest DC has melted due to the heat. 
  
  
  

• "Since the Paris Agreement in 2016, the world's 60 largest banks have provided almost $7 trillion of financing to the fossil fuel industry. 

• Scientists once thought the East Antarctic ice sheet, which contains enough water to raise sea levels 52m (170ft), was stable. But now its ice shelves are beginning to melt.

• New AI data centers are coming online so fast that the electricity demand is straining global power grids. 

• The International Criminal Court issues an arrest warrant for former Russian defense minister Sergei Shoigu over allegations he committed war crimes in Ukraine. 

• Norway's largest pension fund KLP said it will no longer invest in Caterpillar because of risk that equipment sold by the US group to Israel is used to demolish Palestinian homes and infrastructure, including in the Gaza war. 

• OpenAI takes steps to block China’s access to its AI tools..

Problem with these notes: some tend to run up against a deeply rooted feature of human cognition - the desire not to think about anything unpleasant…Sorry about that.

Btw, humans can only think about 4 things at once – according to the research team led by University of Oregon psychology professors Edward Awh and Edward Vogel. So, to help, we limit notes. 😉

"Everything will be all right. And, even if it won't be, we'll have the consolation of having lived honest lives." Alexei Navalny

 

How the Dash to Ditch Paper Money Created a Playground for Criminals

• “That means you can generate profits from crime and then ultimately get a state pension based on that income,” said Larson, the Swedish prosecutor. “That is extremely offensive.”

48C+

Agriculture cannot survive at 48C + air temperatures and ongoing severe droughts for very long. The bread baskets of #India have been hitting these temps for nearly 40 days straight. There is no #civilization without #Agriculture. Billions of people at risk #Delhi #heatwave.

Peter Dynes

@PGDynes

Notes today 

• National debt will exceed $50 trillion by 2034, budget watchdog estimates.

 

Problem with these notes: some tend to run up against a deeply rooted feature of human cognition - the desire not to think about anything unpleasant…Sorry about that.

Btw, humans can only think about 4 things at once – according to the research team led by University of Oregon psychology professors Edward Awh and Edward Vogel. So, to help, we limit notes. 😉

Notes today 

• Elon Musk takes victory lap after 77% of Tesla shareholder votes back his $56 bn pay. (remember - One billion is equivalent to 1000 million)  
• Vanguard supposedly voted in favor of the package..

• Mexico just hit an astonishing 51.9°C (125.4°F), the hottest June day ever recorded in Mexico.
• 1.5c limit - on track..

• Overall, government debt worldwide is four times what it was in 2000. Joseph E. Stiglitz 

• The Supreme Court invalidates a ban on bump stocks enacted after the deadliest shooting in modern U.S. history. 

• “You can also commit injustice by doing nothing.” — Marcus Aurelius 

Problem with these notes: some tend to run up against a deeply rooted feature of human cognition - the desire not to think about anything unpleasant…Sorry about that.

Btw, humans can only think about 4 things at once – according to the research team led by University of Oregon psychology professors Edward Awh and Edward Vogel. So, to help, we limit notes. 😉

"Everything will be all right. And, even if it won't be, we'll have the consolation of having lived honest lives." Alexei Navalny

 

Notes today 

• America’s 100% tariffs on Chinese EVs:  bad policy, worse leadership
• Return, for a moment, to first principles. As David Ricardo laid out more than two centuries ago and experience has since shown, it makes sense for governments to open their borders to imports even when others throw up barriers. Residents in the liberalising country enjoy lower prices and greater variety, while companies focus on what they are best at producing. By contrast, tariffs coddle inefficient firms and harm consumers.
• JPMorgan is warning that China has a near monopoly on many critical minerals…

• Bloomberg by Ewa Krukowska: This weekend’s European Union elections marked the end of the bloc’s greenest parliament ever after concerns over everything from climate policies to migration gave the populists a boost.
• The Greens, whose rise five years ago helped the 27-nation bloc embrace the world’s most ambitious climate strategy, emerged in all but tatters from a ballot that ended on Sunday. Climate-friendly liberals also suffered a massive blow from voters while far-right nationalist parties strengthened their position in countries from Germany to Italy. 
• A 2021 study found that the AMOC was weaker than any other time in the past 1,000 years. And a particularly alarming — and somewhat controversial — report published in July last year, concluded that the AMOC could be on course to collapse potentially as early as 2025.
• Tipping risk of the Atlantic Ocean's overturning circulation, AMOC.

 

• And this, from one of the greatest logicians the world has ever known.
• There are other worlds and rational beings of a different and higher kind. The world in which we live is not the only one in which we shall live or have lived. - Kurt Gödel  
• (his 14 points)

Problem with these notes: some tend to run up against a deeply rooted feature of human cognition - the desire not to think about anything unpleasant…Sorry about that.

Btw, humans can only think about 4 things at once – according to the research team led by University of Oregon psychology professors Edward Awh and Edward Vogel. So, to help, we limit notes. 😉

"Everything will be all right. And, even if it won't be, we'll have the consolation of having lived honest lives." Alexei Navalny

 

Quick Overview   is up to date

Research Finds a Shocking Amount of Previously Undetected 'Nanoplastics' in Bottled Water

• They found about 240,000 plastic fragments in a single liter of water, which is more than ten times the expected quantity..
• Unlike microplastics, nanoplastics have the capability to penetrate directly into the bloodstream through the intestines and lungs due to their extremely small size. Once in the bloodstream, they can then travel to various organs, including the heart and brain.
  
  

Notes today 

• Egypt: Sisi government raises price raises price of subsidized bread by 300 percent. 

• Concern is mounting that funding the US deficit will drive yields higher. 

• Bloomberg: BYD unveiled a hybrid powertrain able to go more than 2,000 kilometers without recharging or refueling—the equivalent of New York to Miami. Its Seal 06 model will be among the first to offer the system. 

• Nvidia is now worth $2.8tn after the recent rally, a whole $300bn more than the German stock market.
• What was the last German product becoming a worldwide success story? 

• Coca Cola serves more than 1.9 billion drinks per day. So, if KO were to add a penny to the price per drink – it would raise pretax earnings by some 2 billion.
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• Migratory freshwater fish populations ‘down by more than 80% since 1970’down by more than 80% since 1970’

Problem with these notes: some tend to run up against a deeply rooted feature of human cognition - the desire not to think about anything unpleasant…Sorry about that.

Btw, humans can only think about 4 things at once – according to the research team led by University of Oregon psychology professors Edward Awh and Edward Vogel. So, to help, we limit notes. 😉

"Everything will be all right. And, even if it won't be, we'll have the consolation of having lived honest lives." Alexei Navalny

• German stocks are now worth less than Nvidia. 
• Germany's stock market value is just $2.5tn, Nvidia's value is $2.62tn. This week, Nvidia has gained $348bn in value, the combined value of traditional co's Siemens, Deutsche Telekom, and Mercedes...

• The next industrial revolution has begun said Jensen Huang, founder and CEO ...

 

Notes today

•  Silver is limit up in China .. and $1.2 in US

• Russian court seizes millions of euros worth of German bank assets . 

• As the insects they eat vanish, the UK populations of birds like swallows + swifts have crashed by 40% or more in just a decade. 

• Bloomberg reports that 42% of those with household income of over $100,000 report being 'behind or delinquent' on 'Buy Now, Pay Later' payments 

• The 112°F heat index at 3pm in #Miami breaks the previous daily record by 11°F and the monthly record by 6°F.  It's tied for the 3rd-highest heat index ever recorded in Miami:

114° - Aug 9, 2023

113° - Aug 8, 2023

112° - Jul 3, 2021

112° - May 18, 2024

111° - Jul 22, 2023 

• Did you hear the one about how Ron DeSantis solved climate change in Florida? | Opinion
• Read more.Read more.

• China's selling of US paper. Wonder why? 
• Three guesses. 

 

 

Problem with these notes: some tend to run up against a deeply rooted feature of human cognition - the desire not to think about anything unpleasant…Sorry about that.

Btw, humans can only think about 4 things at once – according to the research team led by University of Oregon psychology professors Edward Awh and Edward Vogel. So, to help, we limit notes. 😉

"Everything will be all right. And, even if it won't be, we'll have the consolation of having lived honest lives." Alexei Navalny

 

 

Thoughts about silver:

•  It is at three year high
• According to the  silver institute 2024 survey, world silver supply is forecast to post a 6^th year global supply deficit.
• The 2024 deficit being 265 million oz.
• Amounting to more than 1 billion oz over the past six years.
• The gold-to-silver ratio in the earth's crust is about 1:19.
• (now, just for giggles, dividing $2461 gold by 19 = $129)
•  Ratio

• Silver

• Btw, Copper above $5

1.   

• Intersting Chart from Jefferson Lab and Silver Bullion

• You want to seriously giggle some more? do a copper price silver price division using above data.

Notes today

•  Russian 10-Year Yield
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• US to send $1bn more in weapons and ammo to Israel.

•  Copper
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• The ECB is very likely to start cutting interest rates at its next policy meeting in June, says Bank of France Governor Francois Villeroy de Galhau 

• Soth Africa's Jobless rate
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• What the herd hates the most is the one who thinks differently. It is not so much the opinion itself, as the audacity of wanting to think for themselves. Schopenhauer

Problem with these notes: some tend to run up against a deeply rooted feature of human cognition - the desire not to think about anything unpleasant…Sorry about that.

Btw, humans can only think about 4 things at once – according to the research team led by University of Oregon psychology professors Edward Awh and Edward Vogel. So, to help, we limit notes. 😉

"Everything will be all right. And, even if it won't be, we'll have the consolation of having lived honest lives." Alexei Navalny

 

     Later

Notes today

US fertillity rate

 

• Google, aka Alphabet, said growth in its ‘once-in-a-generation’ AI opportunity, has raised Q1 revenue that exceeded analysts’ expectations. 
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• Almost a quarter of Austin (TX) commercial office space is vacant. Austin has been going so strong for so long that the tide was bound to turn.
• Oracle ORCL has unveiled plans to move its headquarters again, this time to Nashville, Tenn., to be closer to companies in the healthcare industry.

 

Problem with these notes: some tend to run up against a deeply rooted feature of human cognition - the desire not to think about anything unpleasant…Sorry about that.

Btw, humans can only think about 4 things at once – according to the research team led by University of Oregon psychology professors Edward Awh and Edward Vogel. So, to help, we limit notes. 😉

"Everything will be all right. And, even if it won't be, we'll have the consolation of having lived honest lives." Alexei Navalny 

Notes today

• 33 named storms. University of Pennsylvania EES scientists Dr. Michael E. Mann and Shannon Christiansen, and Penn State ESSC alumnus Dr. Michael Kozar have released their seasonal prediction for the 2024 North Atlantic hurricane season, which officially starts on 1 June and runs through 30 November. The prediction is for 33.1 +/- 5.8 total named tropical cyclones, which corresponds to a range between 27 and 39 storms, with a best estimate of 33 named storms.
• Climate Change Is Coming For Your Insurance

• Reuters: US requires bird flu tests for dairy cattle moving between states..

• Biden signs a $95 billion war aid for Ukraine, "Israel" and Taiwan. 

Problem with these notes: some tend to run up against a deeply rooted feature of human cognition - the desire not to think about anything unpleasant…Sorry about that.

Btw, humans can only think about 4 things at once – according to the research team led by University of Oregon psychology professors Edward Awh and Edward Vogel. So, to help, we limit notes. 😉

"Everything will be all right. And, even if it won't be, we'll have the consolation of having lived honest lives." Alexei Navalny

 

Economist: China University Graduates

 

Notes today

• Israel received its first-ever sovereign downgrade as S&P Global Ratings lowered its credit rating to A+ from AA- on heightened geopolitical risks for the region.

• “Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe.”

― Albert Einstein

 

Problem with these notes: some tend to run up against a deeply rooted feature of human cognition - the desire not to think about anything unpleasant…Sorry about that.

Btw, humans can only think about 4 things at once – according to the research team led by University of Oregon psychology professors Edward Awh and Edward Vogel. So, to help, we limit notes. 😉

"Everything will be all right. And, even if it won't be, we'll have the consolation of having lived honest lives." Alexei Navalny

 

Notes today 

• Good news: Murder rates declining

• Reports suggest that the Israeli war cabinet has made a decision to launch an attack on Iran tonight. 

• Prices of aluminum, copper and nickel may increase after the London Metal Exchange responded to new US and UK sanctions by banning deliveries of any Russian supplies produced after midnight on Friday. 
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• Pawnshops:  the number of people coming in selling and pawning gold jewelry is more than three times above normal levels since prices started to rally in late February. 
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Problem with these notes: some tend to run up against a deeply rooted feature of human cognition - the desire not to think about anything unpleasant…Sorry about that.

Btw, humans can only think about 4 things at once – according to the research team led by University of Oregon psychology professors Edward Awh and Edward Vogel. So, to help, we limit notes. 😉

"Everything will be all right. And, even if it won't be, we'll have the consolation of having lived honest lives." Alexei Navalny

Please Take the Threat of a Fiscal Breakdown Seriously

The trajectory of US government borrowing is unsustainable.

Notes today

• Bloomberg: A record-sized bullish bet on interest-rate futures that was made hours before Wednesday’s US inflation report blew up in spectacular fashion after a stronger-than-expected reading triggered a market rout. 

• Costco: A Wells Fargo analyst recently estimated that that the company could be selling $200 million of gold and silver each month.
• Costco: 1 once gold bars are selling out within a few hours.

• E-commerce same-store sales once again grew by double-digits, up 28.3% YoY

• Bloomberg:  The average premium for US homeowners’ insurance is expected to hit $2,522 this year — and $11,759 in Florida.

Problem with these notes: some tend to run up against a deeply rooted feature of human cognition - the desire not to think about anything unpleasant…Sorry about that.

Btw, humans can only think about 4 things at once – according to the research team led by University of Oregon psychology professors Edward Awh and Edward Vogel. So, to help, we limit notes. 😉

"Everything will be all right. And, even if it won't be, we'll have the consolation of having lived honest lives." Alexei Navalny

 

Cartoon of the day:

Southwest Airlines “Boeing” 737-800 flight headed to Houston had to make emergency landing at the Denver International Airport after the engine cover seemingly 'tore away' during takeoff.

Time for a nap.