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Signal Flare, CNN Asks if Government Should Take Over Food and Gas Prices

History may not always repeat, but it rhymes.   As seen in just about every situation where socialism and government intervention in the market economy of any nation is triggered, eventually you get to the point where government solutions to their created crisis take center stage.

We have seen this exact scenario repeated in the former Soviet Union, Poland, Europe, Cuba and more recently Venezuela.  The triggers are the same, and the outcomes are identical. Now, as unbelievable as it may seem, Joe Biden’s socialist policies have triggered the discussion in the United States.

CTH warned this was going to become a narrative; and we saw the first signs of it at the White House podium on January 12th.

WASHINGTON – People are paying a lot more for food, gas, cars and services, and inflation isn’t over yet as the pandemic continues to distort the economy. So, should governments consider setting the price of essential goods?

It’s been done before, typically during times of crisis, but for most mainstream economists, the answer to this question is a resounding “no.” Limiting how much companies can charge will distort markets, they argue, causing shortages and exacerbating supply chain problems while only temporarily reducing inflation.

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Cross-Border Trucker Vaccine Protest Continues – First Warnings Issued for Food Supply Disruption and Higher Prices

There are two merging inflection points set to hit the public in a few days.

The first, is a much faster collapse in credibility for those who are pushing the vaccine benefit narrative.  The second, the more widespread appearance of shortages for food and basic essentials.  These two broad narratives are going to merge. CTH will outline the issues as they predictably surface.  This outline focuses on the latter, the supply chain angle.

♦ The cross-border vaccination mandate protests by truckers are continuing in Canada and at areas near the U.S-Canada border.  The vaccine mandate for the Canadian side began on January 15th. The mandate for the U.S. truckers begins January 22nd.  Both groups are currently slow-rolling the protest in/around the border crossings.

A coordinated Trucker Protest on the Canadian side is scheduled for January 23rd {LINK}, coincidentally the same time as a protest rally in Washington DC by members of the healthcare industry.  It is not coincidental that retail executives in the grocery industry are starting to prepare people in Canada for major grocery shortages {LINK}.

CANADA – “[…] “Independent grocers are in a myriad of communities in this country where there is no other grocery store,” Sands said. “If those stores close, you’ve got a food security issue.”

Meanwhile, stores are also experiencing a shortage of goods stemming from supply chain issues, including a shortage of truckers, packaging and processing delays and the Canadian winter.

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The Event That Triggered the FBI to Reverse Their Narrative on the Colleyville Terror Attack

As noted by the Washington media, “The FBI reversed its position late Sunday on the Texas synagogue hostage-taker, acknowledging it was a case of terrorism after first improbably insisting the suspect’s motives were unclear.”

It wasn’t just a happenstance reversal, and it wasn’t a reversal based on evidence discovered that caused them to adopt new conclusions.   Immediately preceding the FBI reversal in position was a public statement by Joe Biden in Philadelphia:

[11:58 A.M. EST, SUNDAY] …”Hey, folks.  With regard to Texas and the synagogue, I spoke this morning with the Attorney General and — to get a rundown.  He said there’s overwhelming cooperation with the local authorities and the FBI, and they did one hell of a job. 

This was an act of terrorThis was an act of terror.  And it not only was related to someone who had been arrested, I might add, 15 years ago and been in jail for 10 years — the idea that it was something new.  And they did just a great job. “…   ~ Joe Biden

The reason this aspect is important is to highlight the motives of the FBI and DOJ.  The actions of the institutions are driven by political defenses of the leftist regime.

If President Donald Trump was to have said “This was an act of terror“, the same institutions would have castigated him by saying, there’s still not enough information to make that legal distinction.  The media would then inflate the issue and spend the next two media cycles ridiculing him.  This is not supposition, this example, is a reference point that actually played out several times during the Trump administration.

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Was the Terrorist Attack in Colleyville a Replay of the Terrorist Attack in Garland in 2015?

I have intentionally not written about the terrorist attack in Colleyville, Texas, because my initial review saw significant parallels to the first ISIS attack on U.S. soil which took place in 2015 at Garland Texas, carried out by Elton Simpson and Nadir Soofi.

In the Garland attack the FBI organized, facilitated and coordinated the attack. The FBI even drove the terrorists to the attack venue and then left once the shooting began. Yes, you read that correctly, the first ISIS attack on U.S. soil was organized by the FBI. {Go Deep} CTH dug deep on the 2015 Garland attack, so it wasn’t too difficult to spot the similarities between Garland 2015 and Colleyville 2022.

♦ Colleyville, Texas – Malik Faisal Akram, who was known as Faisal Akram, had a well known Islamic extremist history to British and American intelligence. Akram ranted, prior to his travel to the U.S, that he wished he had died in the 9/11 terror attacks. He was a regular visitor to Pakistan, and reportedly a member of the Tablighi Jamaat group set up to ‘purify’ Islam. To say the U.S. intelligence system knew Faisal Akram would be an understatement.  The FBI knowledge of Akram has now been confirmed by The Daily Mail.

So, the questions become: (1) how did Faisal Akram gain a visa to enter the United States? (2) Who did he visit?  (3) Who gave him the weapon?  (4) Who facilitated his travel and targeting operations; and lastly, (5) who financed and assisted him in his attack?

Unfortunately, the most obvious answer is just like the 2015 Garland example, the FBI was his enabler.

Akram entered the synagogue around 11am Saturday morning as a service was live streamed online. Akram shouted anti-Semitic rants at the Jewish members, took them hostage and then demanded the release of convicted terrorist Aafia Siddiqu, whom he referred to as his ‘sister’. The location in Colleyville seems significant, because ‘Lady al-Qaeda’ is being held in a federal prison about 20 miles from Colleyville, at FMC Carswell in Fort Worth.

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Study, Fourth Shot of COVID Vaccine Ineffective at Preventing Omicron Infection

A study out of Israel is showing the fourth shot, second booster of COVID vaccine, provides no benefit in the prevention of the Omicron variant.

(Reuters) – A fourth shot of COVID-19 vaccine boosts antibodies to even higher levels than the third jab but it is not enough to prevent Omicron infections, according to a preliminary study in Israel.

Israel’s Sheba Medical Center has given second booster shots in a trial among its staff and is studying the effect of the Pfizer booster in 154 people after two weeks and the Moderna booster in 120 people after one week, said Gili Regev-Yochay, director of the Infectious Diseases Unit.

[…] “We know by now that the level of antibodies needed to protect and not to get infected from Omicron is probably too high for the vaccine, even if it’s a good vaccine.” (read more)

I’m at a complete loss about why anyone would keep arguing for value in the vaccine passport.  If vaccinated and unvaccinated equally are susceptible to COVID infection, and the vaccine does nothing of benefit in that encounter, then why in the heck are vaccine passports even considered of value?

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Dr. Mary Talley Bowden Takes a Stand for Texas Patients

Dr. Mary Talley Bowden has taken a stand in Houston, Texas, against the medical establishment’s COVID-19 protocols, and withstood massive pressure upon her.  Dr. Bowden disengaged herself from a medical system that was not treating the core of patient’s needs and set off on her own path.

Dr. Bowden created BreatheMD to treat patients suffering from COVID-19 with therapeutics, wellness and monoclonal antibody treatments.  To take this approach, Mary Bowden had to disconnect herself from the medical establishment.  Her clinic is thriving despite the ongoing assaults from Big Pharma, the Houston Methodist hospital system and media.   Dr. Bowden is on the right side of history.  Earlier today she held a press conference.  WATCH:

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Slow Rolling Trucker Vaccine Protest Begins at Manitoba U.S. Border Crossing

Global News is reporting on a slow moving vaccine protest by truckers at the Manitoba, Canada-U.S border crossing.

(Global News) – […] “Truck drivers are circling MB-75 between Emerson Duty Free and the Commercial Inspection station blocking all lanes heading south to the United States and Northbound traffic coming from the USA,” Throp said.

In a video sent to Global News by Dawn Davey, trucks can be seen slowly driving on Hwy. 75 and horns are blasting. (read more)

The Canadian vaccine mandate for cross-border truck drivers began Saturday, January 15.  The U.S. vaccine mandate for cross-border truckers begins January 22nd.

Vaccine Mandate for Cross Border Trucking Now in Effect, Mandate for Domestic Trucking Begins in a Week, Prepare Your Affairs Accordingly

The cross border vaccine mandate for truckers in/out of Canada is now in effect.  The U.S. vaccine mandate takes effect on January 22nd.

It will take a few days to see the consequences, but there will be consequences.

Keep in mind, any impact is taking place in a supply chain system that is already tenuous and unstable at best.  A small disruption that may have been minimally significant against a fully operational supply chain, is more likely to be a much bigger disruption in a supply chain that is already under a severe amount of demand side stress.  Somewhere in the range of 16,000 to 38,000 daily loads are likely to be impacted.

When questioned about this, Canadian Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic Leblanc says the trucking industry “has had adequate time to prepare for this.”  Keep in mind, the mandate was announced 45 days ago (November 30th).  According to the Canadian government, changing the structural rules for all the logistics and commerce in cross border shipping, 45 days is enough notice.  WATCH:

CANADA – […] “I think you probably won’t see that movement … that the government’s looking for,” retail expert Bruce Winder told CTV News Channel on Saturday when asked if the effort will encourage truckers to get vaccinated.

[…]  The mandate throws a “major wrench” in the Canadian and North American supply chains, he added, with grocers, food producers, the auto parts industry and building materials among the sectors expected to be most affected.

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Australian Government Deports Unvaccinated Tennis Player Novak Djokovic Citing His Threat to Social Cohesion

The Australian Open is scheduled to begin January 17th in Melbourne, the epicenter of Australia’s totalitarian COVID mandates.  Australia granted unvaccinated tennis superstar Novak Djokovic a visa to compete.  Australian border officials then attempted to block his entry and deport him, because he was unvaccinated.  Novak Djokovic took the issue to the federal court in Australia, and won his legal case against the Australian government. The government then decided unilaterally to revoke his visa on immigration grounds.  Djokovic appealed.

The world #1 ranked tennis player Novak Djokovic lost his appeal today to remain in Australia and play the Australian Open tournament.   He was immediately escorted to the airport and kicked out.

The government did not hide their reasoning, as immigration minister Alex Hawke said getting Djokovic out of the country was “fundamental to safe-guarding Australia’s social cohesion which continues to strengthen despite the pandemic.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison echoed the Hawke sentiment saying forcing Novak Djokovic out of the country quickly was a matter of “public interest“, because his continued presence would destabilize the government.   Morrison further stated, “Australians have made many sacrifices during this pandemic, and they rightly expect the result of those sacrifices to be protected,” allowing an unvaccinated person to enter Australia was a threat to the social fabric that has bowed to the controls and threats of government vaccination mandates.

None of the statements by the government, and none of their legal arguments had anything to do with COVID-19, or any medical issue or threat represented by Mr. Djokovic.  The government didn’t even attempt to make any such case in their court arguments.  Instead, the government relied upon convincing the court that Djokovic’s physical presence represented a threat to “social cohesion“.

To support the position of the government, Australian Chief Justice James Allsop stressed the court was ruling on the “lawfulness and legality” of the decision and not whether it was right or wrong to deport him. {LINK} The government can arbitrarily decide who comes and goes into the country, therefore, if the government wants to ban Djokovic for whatever reason, they can.  That was the determining legal factor, nothing else.

Now we get to the key distinction between Americans and Australians.  This is the point where many Americans find it difficult to reconcile with the outlook of Australians.  This is where the distinctions in democracy become very important to understand.

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Media Beginning to Notice Food Supply Chain “Perfect Storm” as It Arrives

Quite remarkably this ABC report on empty shelves is not far away from outlining the truth.  They are still obfuscating some of the predictable reasons, and they completely ignore the vaccination mandate aspect that is going to worsen the issue, but they are nibbling the edges, nonetheless.

The backward-looking comparative statistics they cite, “15% shortage for food and beverages” overall, are nonsense.  The severity of unavailable products is much higher than that.  You will note from your own store visits the most unavailable products are the manufactured food and heavily processed products.

The raw material shortage inside the retail manufacturing supply chain path, combined with the increased demand on those manufactured sectors, is the direct cause of the manufactured food shortage. {Go Deep}  [Example: a high demand for citric acid means complex foods that use citrus flavorings (ie. sports drinks) are in short supply.  Chase that backward, and you see shortages in citrus & higher citrus costs, etc.]

Each seemingly small issue creates another small issue, which creates another small issue, which ultimately pokes holes in the supply.  Poke enough holes in enough small categories from manufactured condiments to manufactured drinks, to manufactured cereals, pasta, grains, soups, pet foods, and the complex food processing system overall begins to show the larger problem.  It’s a system collapse by a thousand paper cuts.

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