Not again: for a month US Administration faces shutdown due to budget deficits

The USA might spend trillions of dollars in Defence, but those who really serve see little of it. 

Much of the monies end up in the pockets of shareholders of the military apparatus, but real servicemen and their families end up begging to make ends meet.

Not, it is not Jamaica. It is the United States of America when middle classes are vanishing and the gap between the super rich and the super poor rises steadily while public debt grows exponentially.

Elon Musk is more than right to state that unless the budget is brought under control the USA is literally bankrupt. An Empire running on empty and promoting and justifying ever more brutal foreign policies that justify Genocide in a world in which the ends justify the means. A far cry from the nation led by the Founding Fathers. There is no compassion, There is no right nor wrong. Everything goes. 

On January 20th, 2025, a new President will be inaugurated. Will things ever change or will things keep going in the wrong direction?

Respect must not be confused with fear and fear is no respect whatsoever. 

 

Friedrich Merz: New German Chancellor?

Labour liars promised no new taxes and no tax rises. Friedrich Merx promises tax cuts to return government expenditure under control. Will he keep his promises if he is de facto the new German Chancellor?

The United States of America and its pirate policies is Germany's main enemy. As Alternative für Deutschland has insistently said 'Ukraine ist nicht in unserem Interesse'. Germany needs energy and must not prostitute itself against German interests.

Soviet troops left, but Germany is still under American occupation and the time is long overdue for American troops to be thrown out of Germany.

A sovereign Germany must be a Germany for the German Peoples. German foreign policy must only exist to benefit German interests without being attached to the American Chariot like slaves were chained to the Roman conquerors.

All Syrian refugees must be thrown out. Since President Assad is no more, there is no justification to keep them in Germany, occupying space that belongs to the German Peoples.

Deutschland, Deutschland über Alles. Germany represents 24 per cent of the European Union economy. In fact, German sweat is subsidizing countries that act against German interests. This state of affairs is like the Versailles Pakt and war reparations. 

In fact, German speakers of CDU have been calling for Germany to leave the European Court of Justice that forces Germany to accept what is unacceptable and most importantly Germany needs a trully German Constitution, not the shameful Constitution imposed on the German Peoples by foreign powers.

We await the new Federal Elections and we do hope that German Nationalists do well in these elections to put Germany First.

Die Welt braucht ein neues und starker Deutschland. 

Keir Starmer planning to cut down British Armed Forces by 20,000

 

Plans announced as part of a Defence Review indicate that the British government led by Keir Starmer is planning to cut down the size of the British Armed Forces by 20,000 (down from present level of 73,000 including all branches). 

It must be said that barely 40,000 are actual trained combattant personnel. Such is the state of the British Armed Forces.

Manpower or lack of it is a very serious issue, but also material resources are critically absent. All of which renders Britain totally incapable in case of a real conflict involving Air Force, Navy and Army and other branches of the services.

Statements made by David Lammy beggar belief. The Foreign Secretary does not have a clue about what is he is actually saying and has no knowledge whatsoever when it comes to military matters. President Trump, during his first mandate as American President, made abondantly clear that each NATO member country should do its part. This is not just about Article 5. It is about Article 3 that commits every NATO member country to be self-reliant when it comes to self-preservation. Changes proposed by the Labour government goes in exactly the opposite direction, weakening Britain even more.

We must look beyond statements made by politicians regarding state of readiness. Britain is only ready to lose and budget constraints are not reassuring. It takes years to recruit and train military personnel. No matter how much money you have got, time is of the essence and time for Britain is running out.

Are monies going where voters want monies to go?

 

What we call Democracy are merely a collection of blank cheques to be used in many ways other than the ways voters want their monies to be used.

In every election, voters are asked to support a given candidate and/or political party and many attend polling stations or use other ways of voting to make a choice. But what choice are they really making? Apart from marking their ballots, what choices are they really making?

In actual fact, they are just giving away their decision making powers to individuals that they hardly know or that they hardly ever meet for the said individuals to do as they please. They are given away the entitlement to make decisions. They are giving away their rights.

Democracy is based on illusions. Democracy is a mirage. Democracy is fiction. And the consequences of maintaining fiction can be and usually have been  catastrophic, because all voters can do is to vote down a political party to replace it with yet another ilusion months or years later. We lie to ourselves pretending that things will be better if so or so gets elected.

Elections are about how monies are used and when it comes to how monies are going to be used we have no choice whatsoever. We have got no choice in terms of where the monies are going to be coming from or how monies are going to be spent. Decisions about where the monies are going to be coming from are arbitrary and decisions about where the monies are going to go are equally arbitrary.

What we call Peace is in actual fact an ongoing War in which those who have little bargaining power are bound to lose.

This is why voters should be able to keep in their pockets as much of their monies as possible and be able to make their own personal decisions. The numbers of those in employment are debatable as they don't tell us the truth about subemploment, the kind of employment leading to even greater poverty. If in spite of working long hours you don't get enough to have decent life then you are not employed and you are actually a slave. This is Modern Slavery. If we were to discriminate between those who earn enough and those who do not earn enough then the numbers of those in real employment would be much lower.  

EURO ERM New Chapter with both France and Germany's budget deficits exceeding the limits set up for the EURO

 

The days of the Exchange Rate Mechanism come back to haunt both France and Germany whose budget deficits have gone beyond the limits set up for the EURO. 

We remember both John Major and Norman Lamont making desperate efforst and selling British gold reserves as it there was no tomorrow to try and keep the value of the Pound that was collapsing. 

Now, the French political crisis is also an economic crisis and the fact that from now on there might be no government or a government kept hostage by a fragmented French Assembly says a lot. 

Only in July 2025 could President Emmanuel Macron dissolve the French Assembly and call new Parliamentary Elections. Although on a speech made the day after the vote that defeated the government and marked the end of Michel Barnier as Prime Minister the President promised to stay for the whole duration of his mandate that ends in 2027, doubts remain about what will happen in France until 2027 in terms of real governance. The question is 'who will actually rule France?' The country should not until 2027 be run by decree because of the President's lack of support in the French Assembly. And what does this mean for the European Union?

In January 2025 there should be a vote in the German Parliament to decide the fate of Olaf Scholz, followed by a Federal Election in February 2025. Once again, what happens to German budgets? Rule by decree? Germany represents 24 per cent of the European Union economy.

Both Germany and France need stable governance and the EU itself will be in great difficulty when two major players face such uncertainty.

On January 20th 2024, new challenges to the European Union economy could rise. Who will then be the negotiators. The Axe Berlin/Paris is in trouble.  

Michel Barnier on the way out? What next for France?

 

Michel Barnier was chosen as Prime Minister with a Parliament in which there is no Constitutional Majority to choose a Prime Minister.

Emannuel Macron appointed Michel Barnier as a pair of safe hands to guide France at a difficult time after Parliamentary Elections that generated more chaos than order.

Now, Michel Barnier could be outsted in a vote of confidence. After the Parliamentary Elections, the French government became hostage of adverse circumstances.

The next Presidential Election is due to take place in 2027 or wherever the French President resigns. If Emmanuel Macron were to resign, he could not stand again as Presidential Candidate. Such are the rules. Could the rules be broken to allow Emmanuel Macron to take part in yet another Presidential Election? While this is happening in France, in Germany Olaf Scholz faces a vote of confidence in January 2025 and possible Federal Elections in February 2025.

The two major players of the European Union are on the brink of a major upheaval in European politics and geopolitics. 

When everybody is celebrating war.....

 

When more and more people who will not be fighting any wars are jumping in promoting war, you know that something will be going awfully wrong.

Mark Rutter, as many other war promoters who will be watching war, comfortably sitted in their offices or living rooms, could not care less about those who are going to die, including his own compatriots that rejected him in free elections.

The images coming from Gaza give you an idea of how many European cities will look should there be war in Europe. This is something that all those listening to Mark Rutter should internalize. Will David Lammy ever put on an uniform and head for war? Never. They can say 'we will stand. as many times as they wish, but the fact is that they will never stand where it matters. People fighting the war themselves understand the full meaning of what is going on. Mark Rutter will continue getting his monies paid into his bank accounts without ever having to face the possibility of being shot in the battlefield.

However, should a European War happen, then the battlefield will come to us. London, Brussels, Berlin, Paris and many other European cities will be part of the battlefield and your home, the one you have been working for and paying for for so many years will be turn to rubble with you and your family inside. Or perhaps you will be at work in an office or factory when the nuclear blast comes.

January 20th 2025: Let's Hope that Joe Biden does not start World War Three

Let's Hope that Joe Biden does not start World War Three

We are almost two months away from the inauguration of a new USA President and there are reasons to be concerned when Joe Biden authorised the use of long range weapons against the Russian Federation. 

The Russian Federation acted with extreme caution knowing that in two months time, Joe Biden will no longer be around. The use of intercontinental ballistic missiles against Kiev show that the capability exists to wipe out Kiev in a single move. The payload might be conventional but this is something that not even the USA and others with all their technology can prevent. The technology to prevent an attack with such missiles does not exist.

London is merely 15 minutes away from a nuclear catastrophe. The British Prime Minister Keir Starmer knows that. Paris and Berlin are even closer to a Nuclear Holocaust. Only the Russian Federation's rational and measured approach has prevented World War Three, but I reckon this is the last call. 

Whoever cut submarine communication cables is preparing for war. China has not been practising about how to destroy satellites without a plan and is preparing for the worst case scenario. A world without communication satellites is a world that will go back decades. Nowadays, everything depends on either communication satellites or submarine cables. Without advanced communication systems, the economy will be the first critical casualty and with it will go any sense of political stability. This goes beyond hacking, when there will be nothing left to hack.

The financial losses without advanced communication systems will be catastrophic in every possible sense. Somebody said that should the Gulf Stream cease to exist this would trigger a new Ice Age. The losses will be not less dramatic.  An entire way of life will be wiped out.

Nuclear sites will be immediately targeted and no one knows for certain what would happen when silos containing vast amounts of nuclear weapons are hit. One can only imagine the dimension, what happens when ammunition depots are hit. Although in this the case, the ammunition will not be conventional ammunition, but hydrogen bombs.

Britain is building depots for nuclear weapons in at least three locations in the United Kingdom. Should any of those depots be hit, Britain as we know it will no longer exist. 

 

 

Does the ceremonial have anything to do with Christianity?

 

Does the ceremonial, ritual and clothing have anything to do with Christianity?

For centuries, so called Christian churches and so called Christian organizations have been characterized by all kinds of peculiar attires that have nothing to do with Christianity.

Who invented 'Nuns'? Who said that certain attires had anything to do with the teachings of Jesus? Did Jesus talk about building temples full of statues and decorations or talk about the proclamation of so called saints? No, he did not. Jesus was not immortal. He was made immortal by Emperor Constantine. So all that has been spread for centuries by organised churches has been an an absolute lie. Jesus was prophet, a mortal man that had wife and children. Where did the abstentinence vows come from? Another invention that has served to hide homosexuality and depravity. It is no surprise to learn about sexual abuses within churches.

How does he look like? Like a clown. And there are many of them. Recent scandals are not even the tip of the iceberg.

I recently spoke with two ladies working for the Church of England and ask them why they don't go around spreading the Word of Jesus. They told me that they don't do that because 'we are not Evangelists'. Well, truet Christianity is evangelical. By saying that they are not Evangelical they go against Jesus.

As more and more temples get sold to developers or are taking over by other religious organisations, the fate of the Church of England and other churches is all too obvious.

Muslims are everywhere preaching Islam, in the same way that true Christians went around and go around preaching the word of Jesus. I recently met a group of Muslims in the centre of town. They asked me what languages did I speak and they offered me a copy of the Quran in different languages, including several European languages.

What is the Church of England doing to promote Christianity? Absolutely nothing. Or even worse, with every single scandal, they are proving that the Church of England is a source of corruption of all kinds.

  

President Donald Trump: even with majority in both houses, it is not going to be an easy ride

 

It the run towards the elections was not an easy ride, the first half of President Donald Trump is not going to be an easy ride either.

Having a majority in both the Senate and the House of Representatives is no guarantee of support when new projects reach both houses and full support will be needed to implement any piece of legislation.

Commentators of all political colours make all sorts of forecasts about the direction of travel of the new administration. Every statement made leads to speculation.

The reality is that from day one it is going to be a one day at a time business. Few could predict that COVID would be so fundamental in both national and international politics.

No one has the crystal ball to foresee what new crise will be in the horizon. At this point in time the one war that will lead to the big war could start anywhere. Political crisis in both Germany and France are just beginning and these are two major European players. It remains to be determined what will be the impact of massive political changes in both Germany and France. Bans could be the trigger of major events. Attempts to incarcerate Marine Le Pen in France could badly backfire. Attempts to ban AfD in Germany could literally destroy democracy in Germany. So who will be the players? Soonafter President Donald Trump is officially inaugurated as American President, there will be Federal Elections in Germany.

Car manufacturing is vital for the German economy and right now there are not just news about closures in Germany, but also closures in Europe when AUDI moves its operations to Brazil. Scania, Volkswagen and in the near future also AUDI will be based in Brazil. This will be of course good news for Brasilian workers, but not very good news for EU workers - at a time when Germany represents more than 24 per cent of the European Union economy. 

German Coalition: Vote of Confidence due to take place in January will actually take place on December 16th 2024

 

The days of Olaf Scholz as German Chancellor could be numbered. 

The vote originally planned for January 2025 is due to take place on December 16th, 2024 and the Federal Election will actually take place in February.

This can change quite a lot in German politics at a time when urgent measures are needed to sort out German economics.

Germany was remarklably absent from a top meeting about the Environment. The German government has more pressing concerns when the Green Party barely has a calculated 10 per cent support across Germany and in three state elections only managed to get 7 representatives elected out of 120 in Saxony and none in Thuringen and none in Brandenburg.

As part of a deal to get a coalition together, hawkish Annalena Baerbock got chosen as Minister for Foreign Affairs. The fact that she could be on her way out within weeks would be a step forward towards peace in Europe.But the outcome of the Federal Election will tell the story and possibly write a new script.

The outsted Finance Minister Christian Lindner wanted to stop sending money to Ukraine by sending Taurus missiles instead. To have a member of FDP, a Junior member of the coalition, dictating foreign policy would have been a serious error of judgment. Olaf Scholz was asking to change rules to allow more borrowing. Christian Lindner refused to change the rules abour borrowing and decided to blackmail the German Chancellor to force him to adopt an idea he is very much against because of the dangerous implications of having Germany as the initiator of a European-wide conflict. FDP has no foot to stand on.

But money is in short supply and recent announcements about major German industrial players talking about factory closures and lays offs does not help. Energy and migration are bound to become even more important subjects. Increasing the Defense Budget? Where are the monies going to come from? NATO quotas could simply be unreachable. Listening to individuals like Ursula von der Layen or Emmanuel Macron might make somebody think that there are resources aplenty. Well, no. France is running huge deficits and Germany faces borrowing limitations. Any monies sent Eastwards come from borrowing. Will Germany and France - like Britain - go for tax rises? What effect would tax rises produce when unemployment is rising? What political effects will rising unemployment produce?

 

A New Political Era for Europe: Germany falters

The announcement that the German coalition headed by SPD has collapsed leaves in power a government headed by a political party that in three recent state elections failed dramatically to capture the public imagination. In three consecutive elections, Grüne barely managed to get 7 representatives out of 88, 119 and 88. This is how bad things are and they are bound to get worse. Support for the war in Ukraine has banrupted Germany and attempts to increase borrowing led to a political showdown leading to the end of coalition that was unsustainable from the very begining.

FDP and Grüne are exact opposites in various ways and such agreement was bound to end in tears. Can a Federal Election clear the air? Such election would take place in March 2025 and not in September 2025. Germany has been leading and financing the European Union. Changes in German politics are bound to have a significant effect in terms of German leadership and of the survival of the European Union. Talks about increasing defence expenditure are bound to go anywhere as Germany tries to sanitanize its own finances. Job losses already announced are not going to make the present coalition popular amongst voters.

Who could be the real winners in March 2024? There could be three potential winners: CDU, a new political party that had success in recent state elections and Alternative für Deutschland. The one party that has a real project for Germany is Alternative für Deutschland, a project that takes care of Germany´s energy needs and of migration - a subject that is a major concern in many European countries, including Germany. 

Shoemaker makes Shoes: Something that does not apply to the present government

When you have people who have never ever been in business and don't have a clue about running a business, when you have people making decisions about farming when the closest they have been to managing a farm is standing near the shelves of a supermarket, you know that the country is in trouble.

Ideology does not replace knowledge and expertise, but we have got politicians driven by blind ideology deciding what is best for the country. So, if anything can go wrong, it will go wrong.

First thing you learn about economics is that the closest the factory is to raw materials the lower production costs will be, but then comes Ed Miliband and decides to prevent new oil and gas exploration in the North Sea.

How old was he when Britain was going over the edge because of lack of oil and gas? In the 1970s, Britain was saved by the discovery of oil and gas in the North Sea, but now the all knowledgeable Marxist politician wants to prevent any more exploration for oil and gas.

Britain buys already too much foodstuff abroad so reducing the number of farms on British soil will force Britain to buy even more foodstuff abroad as population keeps growing. What does Labour do? Implements tax measures that will put more and more farms out of business thus reducing production in the United Kingdom.

Every step of the way, Labour policies are based on ignorance, ideological hatred and misconceptions and the alternative is, as it always have been, to borrow more and to produce less. When Labour talks about growth, Labour is not talking about economic growth. Labour is talking about indebtedness growth. And then when they can borrow no more, they will propose massive cuts that will leave people ever poorer.

The consequences of economic mismanagement will be worse than the Covid Pandemic and the energy crisis combined and this could become a very long Winter of Discontent that will end up with tears, and even spilt blood.

Here came the budget: Main target NHS and Second target the economy and particularly interest rates and growth.

The general thinking is that the Labour government will inflict pain earlier with the hope that near the next General Election the numbers will be much better to produce good feelings amongst voters. But this is a gamble by a government that publicly stated that if they had not inherited interest rates that were already going down the present announcements about borrowing could not have been made. 

Everything is based on the presumption that the economy will improve, that interest rates will go down and that repaying the borrowing will become easier. Another factor is promised improvements of the NHS. If the economy does not improve and if improvements promised regarding the NHS are not delivered then this would be a double political wammy that could bring down the present government at the next General Election.

The hope is that no crise like the Covid Pandemic or the energy crise generated by sanctions implemented against the Russian Federation or anything of the sort happens from now until the next General Election. Anything that would require much more borrowing and generate emergency conditions, negatively affecting. the economy, is not welcome. 

Et ceteris paribus? All other things being equal? Expecting that nothing will happen along the way that could change or derail present plans is a very negligent attitude. Things are bound to change. There are crucial ongoing conflicts and the seeds for more conflicts are being planted.

Now, lets have a look at potential trading partners. What is the situation in Europe? What is the situation in the Americas? What is the situation in Africa and Oceania? What is the situation regarding new players that are rising and increasing mutual cooperation?

The belief that new global associations will remain focused on the East and will not spread towards the West is extremely naive. We now live not in a bipolar world. We live in a multipolar world. In which direction the Americas, Africa, and Oceania will go is not a given. But present trends indicate that BRICS is making inroads. Those joining BRICS happen to be the most populous countries in the world. They also happen to be those which tend to have more resources in terms of raw materials. 

Founding countries? Russian Federation, China, India and Brazil. While the main Western countries have been involved in a rising number of conflicts, China has been spreading financially and economically across key regions of the world. The impopularity of the Western approach when dealing with conflicts is spreading and such impopularity does not benefit Western countries. China has not been involved in any major conflict. In fact, it is gathering more and more influence in countries that are far away from China.

Israel vs Iran: is this the real show?

 Is Israel versus Iran the real show?

We hear the news and see mass media flooded with articles about the dangers of widespread war in the Middle East and Asia Minor. We hear the news about North Koreans joining the fight in Ukraine. It is difficult to ascertain the real dimension of what we have been told. 

The real issue of widespred war in the Middle East and Asia Minor are not Israel or Iran, for that matter. The real issue are the vast amounts of oil and gas spread across the entire region. Kuwair, Bahrain, UAE, Saudi Arabia, and so forth. If the Middle East and Asia Minor were to go up in smoke this will be a catastrophe for the world economy as a whole and there would be massive political consequences.

Both Israel and Iran have to play according to the rules. The United States of America might care about Iran, but the USA cares more about money and as long as money is being made the lives of hundreds of thousands don't matter at all, but the monies being made by shareholders matter more than human lives.

As long as the business of war keeps going and does not get out of control threatening the value of shares it is business as usual. Don't attack nuclear facilities! Don't attack oil reserves! Don't do anything that could ruin the business of war. Both Israel and Iran have to play for their own public and therefore they have to do something to prove that they are doing something.

We are dealing with Jews that do not give a damn about Jews, people for whom their own people matter very little as long as they get what they want. We are dealing with the Bernie Madoffs of geopolitics. Benjamin Netanyahu is a Bernie Madoff of geopolitics. The massacres carried out by Israel will continue. Israel has a license to kill as long as the business of war goes on as usual and monies are being made, but the Bernie Madoff also know that there are limitations. When Iran threatens to attack all those who help Israel there are direct references to oil and gas countries in the region. So any action against Iran has to be limited not to push Iran to attack the real targets in the Middle East and Asia Minor. We know how things are now under the present US Administration and I reckon that things will not change dramatically under a new US Administration because the interests are the same and the people actually running the circus are the same.

With regards to North Korea, I reckon that Ukraine is for North Korea what the Spain's Civil War was for the Wehrmacht: a training ground. North Korea has been in isolation and has not had any opporunity to test its Army in real battles. Although the number of North Korean troops is minimal, Ukraine can provide valuable opportunities. It also sends the message of unity: boys, we are all in it together. Military cooperation at every level. About 3,000 North Korean troops will not make any major difference in the conduct of the war, from a Russian standpoint as the Russian Federation has mobilized hundreds of thousands of troops.

Much of what Western politicians say is no more than chit chat, a propaganda effort to justify the existence of people who are absolutely irrelevant. NATO is a business to keep money rolling in for shareholders. Any monies that go into the pockets of shareholders are not monies that serve the general public. They are not invested in health, education, transport, infra-structure and so forth. The most important problems remain forever unsolved and this is why we have got the problems that we have got with more and more people facing miserable lives.  

Wednesday, October 30th, 2024 - Budget Day

 

This is personal, stated the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves. She refers to realities of the 1980s and 1990s. The Chancellor's efforts to gather capital will drag hundreds of thousands more people into paying tax and even more into higher rates as their pay rises, indicates none other than The Guardian.

Could a personal crusade turn into a nightmare? Changing fiscal rules to disguise debt making it appear as something else does not change the fact that it will still be borrowing. So more taxes and more borrowing that will be increased for public interest, according to the Chancellor.

Ordinary folk and many business were badly hit by the Covid Pandemic and the measures implemented to deal with the Covid Pandemic. After that, people and many business were hit by the energy crise generated by the conflict in Ukraine and the measures adopted against the Russian Federation. 

Now, they stand to be hit again by taxation and potentially higher prices of utilities, housing and daily shopping.

But the Chancellor of the Exchequer still says that she will implement the budget in a way that she will 'protect the living standards of working people'. 

Well, in an interview made in Washington, USA, Rachel Reeves - perhaps inadvertently - made promises that she will have to deliver. If she does not deliver and if the measures implemented by the Labour government become a de facto nightmare, then this will create a widely open door for another Conservative government.

Starting on Wednesday, October 30th, 2024, the government will have to deliver and with every failure, and every new crise, there will be many by-elections along the way in which people will express their discontent.

She talks about building schools and hospitals. Well, what will she do about nurses salaries that are not enough to rent a one bedroom flat? If living costs keep rising, this will be a de facto devaluation of salaries and a worsening of living standards. Before she goes around building schools and hospitals, she will have to look carefully at salaries actually paid to teachers and NHS staff. 

Even with the triple lock, state pensions are not enough to rent a one bedroom flat. State pensions are totally insufficient. Taxing state pensions and private pensions can only worsen an already bad situation. And this is going to do nothing to 'protect living standards'.  

Taxing private pensions, assets and shares? More madness on the way.

 Due to low productivity, Britain has increasingly relied on financial services. There are two sides of banking. One is the conventional side of banking based on mortgages and loans and the other is financial banking, lending money to investors that take a huge deal of risk and therefore expect higher rewards. 

Private pension funds very much depend on shares and investments and values fluctuate on a daily basis, so there is an inherent level of risk. How can you tax shares? Will you tax what a share was worth on Monday or what a share was worth on Tuesday?

Imagine yourself as a Northern Rock shareholder. One day you count your wins. You have an investment and you have a return. The next day, your investment evaporates because the value of your shares is literally zero and you have no return. Are we going to see debt taxed?

The only growth that the present Labour government will produce is the growth of debt, unemployment, illegal employment, and fraud. Launching a virulent attack against the one sector that keeps Britain alive is cutting down the tree on which you are standing. The 2008 financial crise will feel like a pleasant vacation.

The infamous event affecting people who had used their assets to support insurance payments comes to mind. One day they were riding the waves of opulence and the next day they were selling everything they had to pay for insurance claims.

Kemi Badenoch and Robert Jenrick: Conservative Party has demolished stereotypes

 

Kemi Badenoch and Robert Jenrick

The British Conservative Party has demolished all stereotypes 

In a few years, the British Conservative Party has demolished all stereotypes and offered the country a wide range of choices, both in terms of ethnicity and of political beliefs, going much farther afield than any other political party, destroying every tool in the Labour Party's workshop. The traditional left used to dress itself as the representative of ethnic minorities and talked a lot about gender. The traditional left has been totally and utterly defeated and can no longer use the race card nor the gender card.

Kemi Badenoch, married, mother of three is an engineer that has held several high positions in government. Robert Jenrrick, also married, father of three, also University graduate and has held several high positions in government.

Both of them have been described as Far Right of Extremist. Really? I suppose that having family values, solid education and professional careers, caring more about the country in which they were born, it is easy to understand that those bent on destroying family values and British identity would certainly see them as something to be afraid of, especially when none other than Keir Starmer, the British Prime Minister, does not know what a woman is.

Political commentators who oppose them say that they might become leaders of the Conservative Party, but would have no political future in terms of leading the party and winning the next General Election.

One can never foresee what the future will bring. Suffice to say, that in recent by-elections, 14 Labour seats were already lost, after a disastrous beginning for a political party that had recently won a General Election with an outstanding majority. We haven't even reached the first national budget and there is already infighting within Labour ranks. 

We await the first national budget with trepidation.Already several MPs decided to become Independent and major figures of the Labour Party were literally pushed out of the Labour Party. It can be literally said that the present Labour Party won the General Election under false pretenses. Major policies that helped them win the election have already been thrown out. No more taxes? It seems that there was one Labour Party before the General Election and another, different, Labour Party after the General Election. A combination of lies, deceit, and miscalculation. 

More than 600,OOO UK companies in financial distress. Labour's answer? More financial burden.

 

In recent years, the level of taxation imposed by Labour authorities increased exponentially. 

Congestion charge? ULEZ? Parking permits? Announced increased of capital gains and national insurance payments? 

Not enough with having to contend with rising costs of utilities - to name one range of expenses for any business to deal with - more regulation on the horizon.

After COVID,  the energy crisis, and after the energy crisis a Labour government that is bent on creating new obstacles along the way.

When we talk about more than 600,000 businesses in trouble, we are surely talking not mainly about big operators, but about medium size and small businesses, many of which might certainly be family businesses.

The amount of money people spend shopping has dropped and this means less revenues for companies, whatever their size. If you add regulation and taxation, there is going to be less monies to invest in the normal economic cycle. If by cutting down the flow of money in the normal economic cycle, unemployment and subemployment rise then the Welfare State will be affected. The annnounced intention to cut down welfare payments by 3 billion Pound is pie in the sky. It is for the birds. Lack of economic activity due to people having less money in their pockets will lead to unemployment. The natural consequence is that several things will grow: domestic violence, street crime, deprivation, and illness.

Taxing people and companies to the hilt will not produce economic growth. 

Oil and Gas: they never learn

When in the 1970s, Britain was going under, North Sea Oil and Gas saved the day. When the war in Ukraine started the conflict led to a shortage of oil and gas that led many European countries and Britain to harsh economic realities.

Now, Britain has a Labour government that is bent on taxing oil and gas companies to the hilt. Companies pay almost 80% as taxes. There comes a point when exploration and production costs are no longer sustainable and the natural consequence is that the oil and gas business can become no longer viable. We already have the experience of what happened to British shipyards that could not remain competitive. They went under. They could not survive.

Now, we have a vociferous government that is bent in getting Britain into several wars, wars that could make oil and gas unattainable, unreachable. Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates and others happen to be in a region that could be engulfed by war and if that happens access to oil and gas produced in such region will no longer be a possibility. What will happen then? What happened before when we had no access to oil and gas?

The British Prime Minister that does not know what a woman is believes that carbon capture is energy production. The level of stupidity has risen exponentially. He talks about alternatives. Well, private business might not be interested in such alternatives when they don't make sense for business. In fact, in recent times that been public tenders and the private sector showed no interest in bidding.

It could be the case that everything will have to be financed mostly with public monies coming from taxation and not with private investment. But in the meantime, while the British governent struggles to transform dreams into reality we might find ourselves facing blackouts and mass unemployment should there be a military conflict that prevents from having access to present energy sources. 

Austria: Now it is Freedom Party's turn with about 30% of the vote

 

So called mainstream politicians and political parties keep their heads buried in the sand and plough ahead with policies that ordinary voters reject, to the point of lying to voters to win elections.

One typical example is the talk about migration. People are increasingly fed up with what they call an invasion and when so called maintream politicians don't listen then they vote for political parties like the Freedom Party of Austria.

This is the natural consequence because more and more people no longer trust mainstream political parties that want to continue flooding Europe with migrants and want to fight a European War. Who are the warmongers? A typical example is the Green Party in Germany. The Green Party is bent on engaging Europe in Nuclear War, not that nuclear war will benefit the environment. Anyone who opposes warmongering ends up being called a Fascist or a Traitor.

The Freedom Party stands againt migrantion and the Freedom Party is against War. Therefore, it does not surprise that policians and mass media that have prostituted themselves to promote criminal wars immediately went on the offensive attacking those who are against war.

As economic figures show decline, EU Panic over immigration

 

One by one, EU countries are now panicking over immigration. The announcement of massive job losses in Germany, accompanied by news about border controls that go against the spirit of the Schengen Agreement don't go easy down the throats of German voters that are now turning to support AfD and/or walking away from the ruling coalition SDP/Grüne/FDP and this poses many questions about the coming Federal Election, after three state elections - Germany has 16 Federal States - in which vote for Alternative für Deutschland was 29% in the worst of cases and peaked at more than 33%. The use of the word ´peak´ is relative as the economic and financial situation hangs in the balance and as months go by the state of the German economy could be even worse thus favouring the vote for Alternative für Deutschland and for another 'leftwing Party' that has pushed Die Linke to the side and is making inroads in German Politics. Two options - one Right and one Left - and both anti-immigration have pushed the ruling coalition to curb migration into Germany.

As this happens, in France, Michel Barnier - a Prime Minister of necessity - after President Macron lost both the European Parliament Elections and the French Assembly Elections - is also inclined to talk against migration and the word 'Deportation' is going around. Italy has also spoken for closing borders and now there is the mention that EU makers and breakers want to have a dialogue to coordinate with Britain the transit of migrants. Keir Starmer stated today 'that being worried about migration is not Far Right', a clear change after Keir Starmer's trip to Italy when he met Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni.

They also seem to remember Angela Merkel and blame for her open invitation to migrants to come to Germany. That was German Chancellor Angela Merkel then also Leader of the CDU. It must also be remember that soonafter she stated 'Multikulti ist tot', publicly declared that multiculturalism had completely failed in Germany.

Hermann Göring: No German cities will ever be bombed = NATO: we can attack the Russian Federation, but the Russian Federation will never attack us.

 

The concept of invincibility is still very much amongst us and we see it in the speeches and statements made by politicians and mass media personalities. We see in news reports and commentary about the conflict in Ukraine.

All the talk about using long range missiles is based on the concept of invincibility and of 'it cannot happen to us'.

Reality is exactly the opposite. A war by proxy can really and truly become a direct military involvement that could see Berlin, London, Paris, Warsaw and many other cities turned into ash and debris with no living soul in them.

We are not in the 1930s and 1940s. We are in 2024. The distances have become a lot shorter. What could be done in months and weeks can now be done in minutes.

It takes 15 minutes for a 100 megaton nuclear device to reach London and there will be scarcely the time to evacuate a city of more than 8 million people during the night and of more than 9 million people during the day. Not that policians, military men, mass media and civilians could take any notice of what could land on top of them all. They have got the same of awareness the inhabitants of Hiroshima and Nagasaki had in 1945. They believe - once again - in the concept of invincibility.  

One only has to read what those posting messages on social media say to know how convinced they are, believing that they can attack somebody else without a care in the world.

Understanbly, people have no personal memories of World War One or World War Two. The scenes of devastation is something that they can see in pictures, but they never had any personal experience of it. I guess those have an idea of what could happen to Europe are now being massacred by Israel and seeing their cities and towns turned into rubble with no living soul in them. It takes time for those who have not been exposed to total destruction to understand they themselves could suffer a similar fate.

Labour: Cutting consumption with higher taxes, higher utility prices and higher prices in the shops will lead to mass unemployment

 

Even before the first budget is presented in Parliament, the Labour government has cut disposable income with higher taxes, higher utility prices and higher prices in the shops. 

In a reminder of what happened during the Covid Pandemic when lockdowns reduced economic activity dramatically to the point that the then Conservative government had to implement furloughs schemes to try to save ailing companies and prevent massive job losses, the Labour government now seems to intend to cause yet another financial crise.

Cutting disposable income in the United Kingdom while increasing the amount of monies thrown into a foreign bottomless barrel is a strategy for disaster. Money, money, money but not for Britain. Is this a government for the United Kingdom?

In the meantime, Prime Minister Keir Starmer travels around the world, organising new wars and leaving a trail of Pounds as he smiles for television cameras, but.... never mind... private donations for his wife's wardrobe are always welcomed.

When eve supermarket chains like Tesco are closing down branches, you can foresee what the future will be as numbers of cases of shoplifting in supermarkets increase exponentially.

 

Labour Party?

 

 

Keir Starmer: is he a Labour Labour Party Leader?

From the very beginning, and despite a massive majority in terms of number of Members of Parliament representing, the Labour Party has been struggling and will presumably continue to struggle.

None other than Keir Starmer is asking whoever remains loyal to the leadership not to vote for the fuel winter allowance that benefits pensioners in the United Kingdom. Keir Starmer want to get rid of it and cannot trust his own MPs. This week in the House of Commons, Conservatives, Liberal Democrats, Greens, SNP, Independents and presumably several Labour Party MPs might vote against the Labour goveernment. What will happen is tens of Labour MPs vote against the Labour government? Will they all be suspended?

Speaking openly and directly, many now former Labour voters and former Labour Party supporters are saying the Labour Party is no longer a Labour Party and talking about voting for other political parties because the Labour Party does not represent them anymore.

If Labour Party grassroots turn against the Labour Party, who knows what could happen at the next elections. There will be Council Elections across London in 2026 and guess what.... Keir Starmer's constituency is a London constituency. If as a reaction Labour voters across Greater London turn against the Labour Party the situation will be not just uncomfortable, but also very difficult in political terms. There will also be by-elections coming up. The political honeymoon is over even before the first budget is announced.

What would happen if an Islamic political party was created?

 

What would happen to British politics if an Islamic political party was created? 

Looking at demographics, it is easy to imagine that if Muslim communities stopped supporting existing political parties and decided to create an Islamic Party such political party would be very successful. Muslim families tend to have more children and therefore, every year, the number of those supporting the said party electorally would be increasing. Nowadays, a sizeable number of those coming to Britain as refugees come from Muslim countries and with European countries increasingle averse to accept Muslim refugees the numbers of those coming to UK would also be growing up.

If Jeremy Corbyn wanted to increase his political influence, he is making all the right moves. Those he is now joining as a group happen to be mostly former Labour candidates and former Labour members now acting as Independents that happen to be Muslim. As the Conservative Party did before, Labour is alienating Muslim voters. More conservative Muslim voters not only oppose the mainstream political parties' policies and attitudes regarding Israel. They also oppose sexual ideology that openly contradicts traditional Muslim values.

Six Conservative Candidates to become Leader of His Majesty's Opposition

 

Six candidates to become Leader of His Majesty's Opposition. This week, it is expected that two of them will be voted out in ballots in which only Conservative MPs will vote.

Mel Stride, Priti Patel, Robert Jenrick, James Cleverly, Tom Tugendhat, and Kemi Badenock are the six hopeful candidates.

With the Labour Party moving towards the right for internal reasons, Reform will be the bone of contention for the Conservative Party.

Question 1 - What do they stand for?

Question 2 - What do party members want?

Ultimately, whoever the last two contenders will be, party members will have to chose. What is the mood in the Conservative Party? Will the party want to go left in order to place itself in the mythical centre? Will the party have to go right to counter Reform?

With the horrendous experience of a similar leadership contest, who will be the chosen one and how long will the chosen one last?

The first year of the Labour governement will be a test for the Labour government and for His Majesty's Opposition. If the Labour government falters, then there has to be somebody who is killed enough to capitalize on Labour's mistakes. But it has to be also somebody skilled enough to prevent any additional casualties. There were casualties before the General Election and there were casualties after the election with several Conservative candidates being pushed aside because of the rising support for Reform.

If Conservative MPs decide to go awol and join other parties, including Reform, this could sink the Conservative Party in favour of Reform or other political parties. There is hope that 2026 could produce better news for the Conservative Party. Is that hope justified?

The first test will be the coming budget to be presented by the Labour government. If because of tax changes the Labour government's plan goes South, then the chances of doing better in local and regional elections will rise. Having said that, party unity will be a critical factor.

 

Alternative for Germany - Is there an Alternative for Germany?

 

Is there an Alternative for Germany?

When the ruling SPD barely gets about 5% and his partners in the ruling coalition - Greens and FDP - get even less in state elections in Germany, something surely must change. Next stop? Brandenburg. If a disaster of the scale of what happened in Thuringen and Saxony also happens in Brandenburg then the ruling coalition must surely question its own future.

SPD and CDU quickly reacted proposing a ban on migration from two countries after lamentable events, but this did not seem to be enough to persuade voters to support the ruling coalition. In Thuringen, AfD got more votes than CDU and in Saxony the difference in favour of CDU was minimal compared to the level of support for AfD.

With Federal Elections around the corner, surely this is something to very much worry about. Geopolitical issues are dividing Germany, but internal issues seem to be equally divisive.

Immigration is being rejected by both sides of the political spectrum. A rising movement of the left is also anti-immigration.

The question is: have voters from both left and right of the political spectrum had enough of open borders? Let's remember that the official stance has been to punish Hungary for its reluctance to accept open borders. This beggars the question: are so called mainstream political parties out of tune? 

If they try to swim against the tide they will continue loosing support. SPD has even tried to ban Alternative für Deutchland. What will the argument in favour of banning Alternative für Deutschland? They got more than 30% of support and we got less than 6% and therefore we need to ban them because they are winning against us?

The Greens are the loudest party in favour of war in Europe. Do the Greens understand that their policies and stances are not supported by a vast number of German voters who have had enough of warmongers?

 

Will a 40% tax on oil and gas companies reduce investment from about 13 billion down to 2.5 billion?

 Dear Rachel Reeves MP,

As Chancellor of the Exchequer, you will impose a windfall tax of almost 40% on oil and gas companies. 

Reports indicate that investment in the UK of the said oil and gas companies will fall from about 13 billion down to 2.5 billion and that therefore in coming years the tax revenues will be reduced accordingly.

When such tax revenues fall, how do you plan to replace oil and gas falling tax revenues?

I am also sending this message to my Member of Parliament, Helen Hayes MP, because I am very curious and very much interested in knowing about Plan B, if Plan A reduces tax revenues, what plans are in place to find tax revenues to replaced oil and gas tax revenues?

This is a very relevant question when you are about to implement a new state of austerity because we are talking both about tax revenues, investment and energy prices. If less oil and gas are produced, will this push prices up and therefore also push consumer prices up (inflation)?

Workers working in the oil and gas industries are highly especialized workers whose jobs are going to be in danger. We are talking about 35,000 highly trained individuals. If investment falls, it is also expected that unemployment will rise. Is this something that you have taken into consideration?

This could have a domino effect regarding industries that are closely linked to oil and gas industries. Is this something that you have taken into consideration?

Best regards,

Karl Hohenstauffen 

In 2008, Britain faced a gigantic crise and billions were 'invested' to save the financial sector

Native Americans have an expression: keeping an ear on the ground. This literally means keeping an year on the ground to hear galloping horses. Looking at the pages of The Guardian and at postings on Internet from well known Labour Party operators it is easy to see that all is not well on Planet Starmer.

No more taxes and no more Austerity? North of the border, in Scotland, the SNP has been collecting taxes by imposing taxes on property transactions. South of the border, in England, the Labour Party is planning to charge taxes on property transacttions. This means that property owners are going to get a lot less than they now get for selling their properties.

If a property is worth 1000 and property transactions are for 1000, then the selling amount minus the cost of the ititial acquisition will be taxed 40%. Sellers will have to recoup the 40% the government is planning to take away. Selling prices will rise or sales will come to a hault altogether.

If the idea is to lower the cost of housing, imposing a tax on transactions will push prices up or will stop sales thus compromising, once again, the financial sector. We know that the properties market is what keeps the British economy afloat. Paralizing the properties market will send the British economy in a downwards spiral.

If the financial sector is compromised, the state cannot rescue the financial sector and it would be meaningless to try to rescue the financial sector if the rules that promove the crise are not changed. 

So Keir Starmer stated that he is out to fight against what he calls 'far right extremists'. In fact, a gigantic financial crise will do exactly the opposite. 

Alexander Gauland, from Alternative für Deutschland wrote: Wie schlimm kann es Deutschland gehen? Wie viel können wir provozieren? Es sei demnach im Interesse der Partei, dass noch mehr Migranten nach Deutschland kommen, denn gann gehe es der AfD wesser. 

What applies to immigration in Germany, applies to financial crise in the United Kingdom. If in less than a year the Labour Party bankrupts the British economy, the malaise generated by a financial crise will motivate people to move in the opposite direction and support so called right wing policies. 

Since the act passed by David Cameron and Nick Clegg regarding fixed terms is no more, it is more than likely that Labour MPs will start moving against Keir Starmer and if Keir Starmer were to introduce rules that only allow MPs to select Prime Ministerial Candidates and prevent Labour Party members from voting then Keir Starmer will have yet another crise to contend with.

Let us remember that thanks to Jeremy Corbyn and many other MPs that either left the Labour Party or were thrown out of the Labour Party membership grew exponentially. Getting rid of voting rights for members could send Labour Party membership numbers downwards.

The situation will then be critical for both the Labour Party and the 'middle-ground Conservatives' and will be a net benefit for those to the left of the Labour Party and for those to the right of the Conservative Party. With meltdown in the middle, the extremes will gain millions of supporters.

Britain: long before the first official budget is published, announcements are not encouraging

As part of point scoring, two digit salary increases are announced for public workers and Union workers while, at the same time, measures to support pensioners are discontinued and new increases of utility bills are announced.

Presumably, in october, we are going to be told about a tax shower. So get your spreadsheets ready because it is going to take some time to calculate how much ordinary britons are gong to be hit with a barrage of taxes and utility bills that sooner than later are going to be reflected on the cost of basic items of the family basket. Nominal values might be going up but real values are going to make you poorer.

We are really and truly talking about a new period of austerity, but this time under a Labour government. The Labour Party played a new version of 'read my lips, no more taxes' and the gullible fell for it. People are going to be taxed to the hilt and beyond. Let's look at rental prices. They were already beyond reach for a growing number of peoples.

If you are going to have even less disposable income, things can only be worse and one of the most worrying bits for any economy is a massive reduction of consumption. Using Covid as an example, if people - deterred by rising taxes and rising utility bills - start consuming less and less then already struggling businesses will go out of business pushing upwards unemployment numbers.

In any case, get your spreadsheets ready. 

Tommy Robinson`: a picture that speaks a thousand words

 

This is Tommy Robinson, proudly and happily standing on top of an Israeli Defense Force tank near the Syrian border.

His anti-Muslim rhetoric is clearly linked to Irsael so when questions are asked about who is funding Tommy Robinson, the answers should be very straightforward.

Whatever happens in United Kingdom is directly linked to conflicts in Middle East and Asia Minor.

Some operators play the two sides. On the one hand they criticize Tommy Robinson in public while pledging support for Muslim communities, while in private they fully support what he is doing in the United Kingdom and also support what is being done in the Arab World, including the genocide taking place in the occupied territories and now spreading to neighbouring countries.

Wednesday, July 17th 2024 - State Opening of British Parliament

 

On Wednesday, July 17th, 2024, a new era in British politics begins with the official Opening of Parliament in the United Kingdom. 

A new Prime Minister with a massive number of MPs to back him up - 412 - faces a completely different environment. Conservatives down and Liberal Democrats with a massive increase of seats. 

The State Opening of Parliament takes place in the House of Lords with the reading of a full package of policies and iniatiatives that the new administration intends to implement from now until the next General Election, supposedly due in 2029. And there is another ingredient in the new Parliament which is the presence of a new player - Reform - with Nigel Farage and Richard Tice at the helm. This should increase the pressure on the new government - pressure that has been perhaps temporarily reduced by a massively reduce presence of Conservative MPs.

But nothing should be taken for granted. As a political commentator stated, big majorities in Parliament can also be a huge nightmare for the man on the chair as Prime Minister. The fact that the Conservative Party has still to name a Leader after the resignation of Rishi Sunak MP, might provide some relief to the new Labour Administration.

And what about the process to choose a new Conservative Party Leader. Despite calls for MPs not to engage in blood letting exercises, the strength of feelings and strong personalities in the Conservative Party, and given the fact that non elected and non-reelected politicians will have a strong influence in the decision making process, could lead precisely to a fight without quarters. 

Assassination attempt against President Donald Trump

 

Jumping on the war bandwagon, EU MEPs will set EU on fire

 

Jumping on the war bandwagon, EU MEPs will set EU on fire

Next time around, EU voters should think more carefully when choosing Members of the European Parliament, not to choose warmongers that are bent on causing a nuclear holocaust in Europe, individuals that call traitor anybody who is for a peaceful resolution of a conflict that could engulf Europe and the world as a whole.

German authorities think that the European Union Flag is a foreign flag and has passed legislation 'banning the burning of foreign flags'. By passing such legislation they are shooting themselves on the foot because they are stating what more and more people think - that the EU flag has nothing to do with Germany and that it is a foreign symbol. Perhaps they should think carefully about detaining and jailing somebody for burning the foreign EU flag.

It should also be a reminder for German voters that should now see that many so called democratic politicians in Germany want Germany to go to war. One of the most outspoken politicians that are very much in favour of going to war is none other that a Green Party member of the coalition that rules Germany at the moment, the same Green Party that is being routed in one election after another. One wonders what war, and nuclear war in particular, has to do with protecting the environment and saving the planet. 

Labour's 1997 historic majority led to Afghanistan and Iraq, but a war in Europe is a different cup of tea

 

Tony Blair / Prime Minister

Labour's historic majority in 1997 led straight to war in Afghanistan and in Iraq. Years later, we face the prospect of yet another war - although much more catastrophic if it ever happens.

In one of his initial appearances, Keir Starmer told the country and the world that he will allow the use of British weapons to attack the Russian Federation.

No interpretation needed. It is all too clear in which direction the wind is blowing.

And this is the same Labour Leader that opposed National Service. When conscription letters arrive telling young untrained men and women that they have to fight a war, I wonder what the public response will be.

Be assured that Keir Starmer will have no hesitation in terms of sending untrained British citizens to war, because reality tells that the British Armed Forces have been severely weaknened and do not have the manpower nor the equipment for any long term war.

It is not secret that Britain as well as other NATO countries expect that the USA will send young Americans to the slaughter house to defend European countries that have been entirely negligent when it comes to compliance of NATO Article 3 that demands that each member has to be able to defend itself.

Britain has done very little to beef up its Armed Forces. In fact, the now former Defense Secretary Grant Shapps could hardly explain why what he called an increase in defense expenditure was what actually a reduction in real terms. He couldn't because it was a reduction.

British morale is at an all time low affecting recruitment. Reports about more than 64% of those serving members of the Armed Forces living in substandard accommodation do not help. Let's see what Keir Starmer has to say about beefing up the Armed Forces because if he does not pay attention to the Armed Forces then we will know that all the rhetoric is based on thin air. 

Labour government: Public sector pay promises that cannot be delivered will be the beginning

 

Is the edifice already starting to fall apart? Rachel Reeves promises of public sector pay rises have already backfired with Unions told that what they were promised is not affordable.

Winning an election acting under false pretenses is not a sign of political stability.

The 2024 September Budget will be crucial to know if this is the end of the beginning or the beginning of the end for the new Labour Administration, and this without taking into account dangerous statements that could take Britain to war in Europe, a war that will transform the Britain mainland into a battlefield.

Labour Administrations have a tendency to get Britain involved in disastrous wars. In 1997, Tony Blair won a historic majority only to get Britain involded in two major military conflicts that spelled absolute disaster. If Keir Starmer follows suit, the consequences for Britain would be catastrophic.