A Texas jury has delivered a financial verdict against Alex Jones, awarding two parents of the Sandy Hook elementary school victim, 4.1 million in compensatory damages and $45.2 million in punitive damages.  However, Texas limits punitive damages at $750,000.  The verdict comes after a civil lawsuit against Alex Jones for defamation relating to his comments around the Sandy Hook school shooting, and his claims of a hoax.

During the trial Mr. Jones admitted his statements were false and accepted the events were horrific, resulting in the deaths of 26 students and teachers in the 2012 Newtown, Connecticut attack. Mr Jones and his media company, Free Speech Systems, were sued his false statements about the mass shooting.

(Via MSM) – […] “Alex Jones is patient zero for our society’s inability to speak without lies,” plaintiff attorney Wesley Ball told the jurors on Friday as he pleaded for them to “take him out of this discourse of this misinformation, of this peddling of lies and make sure he can’t do it again.”

Jones’ defense attorney, F. Andino Reynal, asked the jury on Friday to return a verdict that is “fair and proportionate,” which he suggested was $270,000. He previously asked the jury to award no more than $8 in compensatory damages.

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McDonalds has announced they are dropping their program testing plant-based meats because people didn’t like it.

As noted by the Washington Times, “other trials at Panda Express and Yum! Brands (KFC, Taco Bell, and Pizza Hut) have also ended without a subsequent product launch. Beyond Meat products at Dunkin’, Hardee’s, and A&W have been discontinued after launching.”

Apparently, American consumers do not want to eat fake meat; at least not fake meat made from plants.

Next up….  Bug meat.

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The good news is that gasoline prices have dropped in the past several weeks to an average of $4.13/gal.  However, the bad news is that most of the drop in price is related to gasoline demand dropping to the same level as July 2020 during the pandemic lockdown phase.

Obviously, $4.13/gal is still a very high price for gasoline, and that is leading to fewer people purchasing gasoline.

(Via Fox) – […] New data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) shows that gas demand dropped from 9.25 million barrels per day to 8.54 million per day last week. That’s 1.24 million barrels per day lower than last year and “in line with demand at the end of July 2020,” when there were widespread virus-related restrictions and fewer people were hitting the road, according to AAA. 

The latest demand figures bolster a recent AAA survey that revealed 64% of drivers had changed their driving habits or lifestyle since March to offset the high prices at the pump. (read more)

If you think about the position of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC or OPEC+), it makes sense for them to recognize the intentions of the western leaders to shrink the western industrial economies and respond accordingly.

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A few days ago, we were discussing the disconnect within the economy as it relates to corporate valuations.  The Bureau of Labor Statistics report today [DATA HERE] highlights another economic disconnect, this time with labor.  According to the BLS survey 528,000 jobs were added to the economy in July, the unemployment rate drops to 3.5%.

The household data [Table A] shows the number of eligible workers unemployed dropped 242,000; however, the number of eligible workers no longer in the workforce increased by 239,000.  The total labor force is shrinking as unemployment drops.

Keep in mind the previous BLS survey of job openings (JOLTS report) showed available jobs dropped 605,000 in July.  “On the last business day of June, the number and rate of job openings decreased to 10.7 million (-605,000) and 6.6 percent, respectively. The largest decreases in job openings were in retail trade (-343,000), wholesale trade (-82,000), and in state and local government education (-62,000).” [JOLTS survey]

Going back to today’s release, 303,000 part-time jobs were added in July; these are workers working part-time for economic reasons.  The Household Data shows that within the leisure and hospitality sector [Table B-1] restaurants and bars added 74,000 jobs.

If we combine both BLS surveys two days apart is: 605,000 job openings cancelled, and 528,000 new jobs gained.

Of the 528,000 new jobs gained, 303,000 were part time jobs with the largest growth in the jobs in restaurants and bars.

Again, blending data from both reports and focusing on retail.  The retail sector cancelled 343,000 job openings in July, and the retail sector added 21,600 jobs in July.  Within the retail sector (table B-1), jobs at automotive dealers, furniture stores and clothing/apparel stores dropped by a combined 7,200 jobs.

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Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema has announced her support for the senate climate change spending and tax proposal after some modifications to the new taxation.

To support the hedge fund donors, Senator Sinema insisted the carried interest loophole tax provision be removed and instead replaced with a corporate tax on stock buybacks.  Any time a corporation wants to buy back their own shares of stock, they will now pay the U.S. government a tax for doing so; at least that’s the ¹intent.

[¹Note: taxing shares of company stock will never work, because that’s exactly what shell companies were designed to avoid.  Set up a child shell company to purchase the stock and the parent company doesn’t pay taxes on the child’s purchase.  It’s a shell game]

Additionally, according to reports, there is some kind of agreement to modify the 15% corporate minimum tax.  Details unknown.  Bottom line, Senator Sinema now supports the $700 billion climate change spending and tax proposal.

“We have agreed to remove the carried interest tax provision, protect advanced manufacturing, and boost our clean energy economy in the Senate’s budget reconciliation legislation,” Sinema said, signaling that she plans to vote to begin debate on the bill.  “Subject to the parliamentarian’s review, I’ll move forward,” she said.  (link)

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Tucker Carlson used his opening monologue tonight to discuss George Soros and the efforts of the Soros foundation to fund activist state prosecutors who will not enforce laws. The Soros agenda is an end-run around the U.S. constitution that empowers We The People to enact laws and rules of society through legislative representation.

By selecting prosecutors who will not enforce laws against criminal behavior, the Soros initiative subverts the voice of the people.  Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is the first governor to use his state constitutional authority to remove an activist prosecutor.  Tucker Carlson interviewed him immediately after the monologue. {Direct Rumble Link} WATCH:

The monologue that preceded the interview is below.

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With ballots continuing to be counted in various counties around Arizona, specifically including the corrupt county of Maricopa, Republican candidate Kari Lake has extended her lead beyond the ability of Arizona election officials to remove it.  The Associated Press calls the race for Kari Lake.

PHOENIX (AP) — Kari Lake, a former news anchor who walked away from her journalism career and was embraced by Donald Trump and his staunch supporters, won the Republican primary for Arizona governor on Thursday.

Lake’s victory was a blow to the GOP establishment that lined up behind lawyer and businesswoman Karrin Taylor Robson in an attempt to push their party past the chaotic Trump era. Lake said she would not have certified President Joe Biden’s 2020 victory and put false claims of election fraud at the center of her campaign.

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The long-term motives and plans of the J6 committee and their coordination with the DOJ are starting to come into increased clarity as the mid-term elections draw near.

A key indicator of the strategy from within the J6/DOJ effort surfaced when the quasi-constitutional “committee” sent a subpoena to former President Trump legal counsel Pat Cipollone, then leaked the subpoena, then leaked the testimony, then shaped, edited and broadcast the testimony during their prime-time broadcast.   After the J6 broadcast, attorney Cipollene was then subpoenaed by the DOJ and recent reports indicate he is being called to testify before a grand jury.

The legal strategy, hereafter called by what it is, a Lawfare strategy, is now clear.

The legislative branch, specifically the J6 committee, is attempting to use their self-created legislative legal authorities, to fracture long established attorney-client privileges, and then send the results to the DOJ for use against the client of the attorney.  This explains the importance of former White House attorney Lisa Monaco taking up her position as Deputy Asst Attorney General.

The DOJ would be shut down by any ordinary court of jurisdiction, even in the heavily political Washington DC system, if they attempted to get a lawyer to give testimony about his legal advice to a client.  It is one of the most basic tenets and legal privileges in our system.

Attorneys cannot be compelled to give testimony against their clients, it is a standard long accepted in our legal system.  Any attorney who would break the confidence of the attorney-client privilege would lose their license.

Additionally, as the president, other privileges exist for President Trump, specifically the executive privilege to receive counsel or advice -from any person- on any issue that would pertain toward the administration of the executive office.  The president needs to be able to receive information in confidence, and the people giving advice and counsel need to be able to speak freely without fear the content of the conversation would later be used by another entity not involved in the issue at hand.

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Despite the overwhelming support of mainstream corporate media, Wyoming DeceptiCon Liz Cheney is likely to be crushed in the republican primary race on August 16.

In addition to voting to impeach President Trump and being removed from her congressional leadership position, DC Liz was one of only two republican votes to support the formation of the J6 Committee (the other was Adam Kinzinger).  DC Liz has been begging Wyoming Democrats to vote for her in the republican primary contest so she can save her seat.

In an embarrassing and genuinely pathetic last-ditch effort, her father, DC Dick, recorded a campaign commercial begging the people in Wyoming to support his daughter.

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Keeping with historic trends in Puerto Rico, another corrupt governor has been arrested and indicted on corruption, bribery and fraud charges.  Wanda Vazquez Garced replaced Ricardo Rosselló after he was accused of racism and having a homophobic cabinet.

During her term in office, millions of dollars’ worth of Hurricane Maria aid was discovered being stored and sold on the black market from various warehouses. [Go Deep]

The hurricane supplies provided by U.S. taxpayers were never given to citizens and were instead being used by government officials and sold to retailers. The Housing Secretary (Fernando Gil), the Department of Family Secretary (Glorimar Andújar) and the director of Puerto Rico’s emergency management agency were all fired as part of the scandal.

Governor Wanda Vazquez lost her primary reelection bid in August 2020, and today was indicted for corruption, bribery and wire fraud.

(Via DOJ) -A former governor of Puerto Rico was arrested today on bribery charges related to the financing of her 2020 campaign.

Relatedly, a political consultant for the former governor and the president of the international bank have also pleaded guilty to participating in the bribery scheme.

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