The bad news is the propaganda from the global media and intelligence apparatus is astronomical surrounding the Ukraine narrative.  The good news is that most Americans can sense the background manipulation, even if they cannot quite put a finger on it.

You can see the general sense of distrust across the broad spectrum of discussions online and in almost all social media platforms.  The majority of people sense something just doesn’t add up. While the people who follow political events closely are the ones who can see the more specific details of the manipulation.   Those who were paying closest attention, in the 2014 Ukraine story line, are the ones who see the same methods deployed.

To get a sense of where the close political following group are, I asked the question last night.  The results are not surprising to the high-info crowd, but the responses have stunned the moderate observers:

The roughly 3:1 ratio is remaining consistent [updated results here].  What this shows us is the diminished power of the Mainstream Media, despite almost every outlet parroting the exact same talking points.   The drumbeat of U.S. and global media propaganda is falling upon increasingly deaf ears.

Perhaps this outcome should not be surprising, given the nature of the institutional deployment of the same Ukranian propaganda playbook by western government and media, and yet it is.  The psychological bombardment by every aligned public-private corporate, multinational and government entity, is extreme.  Yet people can see through it.  That says something very positive about the current outlook of people toward government.

Unfortunately, amid the echo chamber that is globalist government, and amid the detachment of national politicians to the perspectives of the citizens they claim to represent, the disconnect between the people and the ruling self-described ‘elites’ is a recipe for either massive change or a more overt totalitarian effort by government officials who will never concede to the will of the majority.  That is our current status.

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A Gallup news survey [DATA HERE] indicates that eight out of ten Americans expect higher prices and continued rising inflation, as the working class can see the through the smoke and mirrors of the Biden economy.

Overall, there are multiple datapoints that show the economic quagmire that is taking place right now.  Gasoline continues to rise in price, as oil costs continue to skyrocket as an outcome of Biden energy policy.  Food store prices have only just begun to show the higher prices that are built into the replenishment process.

Newly arriving goods overall are at a much higher price that previous inventory.  The 30, 60 and 90-day terms of purchase order fulfillment are now reflecting the cumulative cost increases at every stage in the supply chain.  Inbound prices to retail are still climbing. This is an economic quagmire created by inflation that cannot be avoided.

Fuel, food, home energy and home prices overall are rising.  As a result, durable good spending has contracted.  CTH has pointed out this dynamic for almost five months; however, the actual data is difficult to extract, because the scale of government spending in 2021 has clouded all of the economic indicators.

The official government inflation statistics at 7 to 9% do not accurately reflect the real inflation being felt by consumers, which is in the 25 to 40 percent range for highly consumable products.  If you look around your local community, it is not difficult to see that working class Americans have modified all of their spending priorities to deal with the food, energy and housing inflation that cannot be avoided.

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It’s easy to ignore the United Nations and World Bank pontificators as Über-leftists and global climate change fanatics.  However, of value to us ordinary peeps, is a recognition that U.N and WB outlooks permeate the World Economic Forum and Davos groups.

The multinational corporations and quasi-governmental entities in/around the World Economic Forum (WEF) are the people who call themselves “elites” and shape global policy.  As a result, when the U.N. and Word Bank start talking about widespread global famine as a result of energy policy impacts to the farming industry, specifically natural gas costs and fertilizer resulting in lower crop yields, it is worth paying attention.

We have already discussed the U.S. impact from higher fertilizer costs HERE.   As a nation we are blessed and fortunate to be living on land that is naturally healthy and fertile enough to grow food in abundance.   However, if our crop yields drop our export ability diminishes.  The world relies on the U.S. as a food basket.  You might have recently heard about foreign countries buying up U.S. farmland? Well….

In this outline from the Wall Street Journal, they note those increased costs mean less crops in all continents especially the third world regions.  That can be catastrophic for nations that already have food insecurity issues.

(Via Wall Street Journal) Christina Ribeiro do Valle, who comes from a long line of coffee growers in Brazil, is this year paying three times what she paid last year for the fertilizer she needs. Coupled with a recent drought that hit her crop hard, it means Ms. do Valle, 75, will produce a fraction of her Ribeiro do Valle brand of coffee, some of which is exported.

There is also a shortage of fertilizer. “This year, you pay, then put your name on a waiting list, and the supplier delivers it when he has it,” she said.

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Proctor and Gamble makes a variety of familiar products under various brand names.  As we noted last October, we were awaiting details on a predictable next wave of retail price increases for products in the chemical and household cleaner segment.

Today, P&G announced an average price increase to retailers of 8% on their laundry products (Tide, Gain, etc.) effective with the next fulfillment of supplier purchase orders.  On the liquid detergents, that’s an average increase well over $1 per bottle…. YIKES.

(VIA CNN Business) – It’s going to cost you more to wash your clothes. Procter & Gamble (PG) said Wednesday that it was raising prices by an average of about 8% on retail customers next month for its Tide and Gain laundry detergents, Downy fabric softener and Bounce dryer sheets.

[…] “Transportation and labor markets remain tight. Availability of materials remain stretched,” P&G CEO Jon Moeller said on an analyst call Wednesday. “In some categories and in some markets, inflationary pressures are broad-based with little sign of near-term relief.” P&G makes many of the most recognizable brands in US homes, such as Gillette, Charmin, Bounty, Pampers and Crest.

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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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There are no coincidences in politics; there are only people who recognize them, and people who do not.

Yesterday, the biggest fraudulent and heavily managed autocrat in modern American political history gave instructions to his fellow travelers in Big Tech, and I quote:

“I make a special appeal to social media companies and media outlets: Please deal with the misinformation and disinformation that’s on your shows.  It has to stop.”   ~ Joe Biden

Today, they begin responding:

(The Story of the “Infraction” is Here)

Some may see this as coincidental timing (you would be amazed at the number of people willfully blind to how the system of controlled communication works in the modern era); for the rest of us who accept things as they are – not as we need to pretend them to be, we can see the patterns as they develop.  We are engaged in information warfare.

Another important example from today is highlighted below.

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(h/t No9 Coal) This is specifically the #1 precursor, for all the reasons previously mentioned.

Do not be alarmed; be prudent.

What are you seeing in your area?

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The empty shelf problems in/around DC last weekend were mostly due to regional weather and employment issues.  However, the snapshot represents an example of how people react to their first encounter.  The conditions in the video represent a worst case scenario for those who have been watching the supply chain issue coming over the horizon. {Go Deep}

I doubt our average 2022 result will be this bad overall, however, there are areas where this might be the status.  For most people outside urban areas, this severity of a food store shortage is unlikely, unless the federal government gets involved.  If the federal government intervenes, this will be more common.

We know from prior examples, if these types of conditions were to last for just 72 hours across every store in a metropolitan region, you would see a level of panic begin.  Civic stability remains relatively stable for 72 hours (3 days).  However, if these conditions are persistent for more than 3 days, the general mindset of the population changes quickly.  Things rapidly deteriorate.  After three days, all reference points for civic norms are gone.

Those who remember Miami-Dade, specifically the Homestead region, in the aftermath of hurricane Andrew have a solid reference for what happens.  New Orleans after hurricane Katrina was a lesser, albeit more public version.   Hunger, fear and desperation are not a good combination.

{Background on Larger Issues HERE}

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BUMPED by request. Unfortunately, there is a lot of wrong information being discussed and shared.  Even reputable regional media are giving inaccurate information, making wrong interpretations {LINK}, and generally getting the explanations wrong.  Additionally, there’s general misinterpretations of ordinary outages based on the day of the week (Sunday) and bad weather in the Northeast {ex Twitter Thread}.

All of these #BidensEmptyShelves assumptions, which are being heightened by increased attention and social media, are leading to confusion.

An empty retail shelf or case for a 24, 36 to 48-hour period is not, I repeat, NOT, part of a systemic supply chain disruption.  Those are mostly location and regional specific out of stock situations caused by localized events, weather and employee shortages.

What CTH has been describing for the past several months is NOT what is noted above.  What we have been describing is a long term supply chain crisis that will slowly unfold over a period of about a week or two, and then remain a problem over time, for a period of 6+ months. {GO DEEP}

The thirteen bullet points below are the issues we will first notice as the general food supply chain begins to show signs of that type of vulnerability.  This outline explains why it is happening and how long it can be expected.

In the previous October, November and December warnings, we emphasized preparation and counted down the 90-day window.  Now, as we enter the final two weeks before mid/late January, the date of our original prediction, it appears that some media are starting to catch up, and the larger public is starting to notice.

Feel free to note in the comments section what is happening in your area.  Hopefully, most of us are much better positioned than the average person who has not been following this as closely over the past several months.

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Many people have wondered how the Biden administration could implement massive economic policies against the interests of their own constituents.  The answer to that question is hidden inside the COVID relief bills, which are used as a method to pay the expenses of his policies so that targeted Democrat groups in urban regions do not have to pay for the policy.

One example of this policy and urban dependency scheme is found in the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP).

The “American Rescue Plan”, the mechanism to use taxpayer monies as redistributive subsidies to special interests under the guise of COVID bailouts and relief, contained $8 billion in funding to pay for the electricity and home heating costs of low income families.

WHITE HOUSE – […] In 2021, the Biden-Harris Administration and Congressional Democrats delivered $8 billion in LIHEAP funding nationally, more than doubling typical annual appropriations, thanks to an additional $4.5 billion provided by the American Rescue Plan. These funds represent the largest appropriation in a single year since the program was established in 1981. (more)

In essence, what this scheme allows is the Biden administration to trigger ‘Green New Deal‘ energy policies that drive massive increases in the cost of electricity, home heating, and energy use for the middle class and working class families, and yet the federal government pays those costs for the constituents they need to keep voting for them.  Lower income families do not feel the energy policy burden, but middle class families are punished.

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