Via Brandon Smith of Alt-Market.com,
It is an unfortunate reality that most people tend to be oblivious to massive sea changes in geopolitics and economics. You would think that these events would catch the immediate attention of everyone as they happen, but usually it is not until they realize that the microcosm of their personal lives is subject to the consequences of the macrocosm that they wake up and take notice.
The Germans are once again angry at the Americans over spying. Just a few years after Obama's infamous apology for hacking Merkel's phone, Germany's chief federal prosecutor announced plans to carefully examine documents from Wikileaks (related to a secret CIA cyber-spy hub in Frankfurt), and will launch an investigation if it sees concrete indications of wrongdoing.
As the European Union continues to threaten member states with fines for "falling short" of fulfilling their duties to help international refugees (see "EU Threatens Member States With Fines Over Failure To Accept Refugees"), the daily reminders of why a wave of nationalism is sweeping over Europe in defiance of Merkel's open border policies continue to mount.
Via Kevin Muir of The Macro Tourist blog,
Although the market is convinced the Federal Reserve will get aggressive with their rate hikes, I am not sure market participants have thought this through. Let’s not forget the Federal Reserve is sitting on the largest balance sheet in history.
This portfolio is the result of years of Quantitative Easing. It was made riskier with the Fed’s “Operation Twist” that extended the duration of their balance sheet by buying long dated securities while selling shorter ones.
Thousands of CIA documents published by WikiLeaks on Tuesday reveal that the Central Intelligence Agency had tools enabling them to listen to private conversation on any iPhone device. The Vault7 documents reveal that the CIA developed malware enabling them to turn iPhones, Android devices and Samsung smart TVs into covert listening devices. Under the codename “Weeping Angel,” developed in co-operation with MI5, the spy agency was able to listen into private conversations held in front of a smart TV – even whilst the television set was apparently switched off.