America

Submitted by John Whitehead via The Rutherford Institute,

Last week we wrote about the epic collapse of the Galleria Mall at Pittsburgh Mills which sold for $100 after once being appraised for $190 million shortly after being opened in 2005 (see "Pittsburgh Mall Once Worth $190 Million Sells For $100").  Unfortunately for mall owners, while the Pittsburgh Mills Galleria is an extreme example, crashing mall valuations are hardly an anomaly these days.  In fact, just a few weeks ago Commercial Real Estate Direct wrote about the Foothills Mall in Tuscon, Arizona which was valued at $115mm in 2006 and backs a $75mm CMBS loan but recen

President Trump has seen the data and threatens to "send in the Feds"...

If Chicago doesn't fix the horrible "carnage" going on, 228 shootings in 2017 with 42 killings (up 24% from 2016), I will send in the Feds!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 25, 2017

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The Badlands National Park, in an apparent effort to stay true to it's name, sent out a series of tweets earlier today about climate change which were most likely intended specifically to ruffle the feathers of the new Trump administration.  The tweets have since been deleted but not before being retweeted thousands of times.

“Today, the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is higher than at any time in the last 650,000 years. #climate”

 

Submitted by Doug Casey via InternationalMan.com,

You've heard the axiom "History repeats itself." It does, but never in exactly the same way. To apply the lessons of the past, we must understand the differences of the present.

During the American Revolution, the British came prepared to fight a successful war—but against a European army. Their formations, which gave them devastating firepower, and their red coats, which emphasized their numbers, proved the exact opposite of the tactics needed to fight a guerrilla war.