South America

With nearly $37 billion loaned to Venezuela since 2008, China (via its China Development Bank) had long been a source funding for the socialist country. It was easy to see how a partnership between the two would be mutually beneficial, as China would have a closer relationship with the country that as of 2015 supplied 4%-5% of its oil import needs, while Venezuela would have a virtual piggy bank to fund projects such as infrastructure.

Doctors have warned that the 2016 Rio Olympics will spark a “full-blown public health disaster”, due to the ongoing Zika virus emergency in Brazil.  The Zika virus has spread throughout South America since May 2015 and latin America has been officially declared a health emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO). Rio de Janeiro has the highest number of suspected cases than any other area, and doctors have warned that the 2016 Olympic Games could create a global health disaster if they go ahead.

Submitted by Michael Snyder via The Economic Collapse blog,

With The Olympics set to open in less than 3 months, Brazilian soccer great Rivaldo is telling tourists to stay away from the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro because of the danger of endemic violence. As AP reports, Rivaldo posted the warning on his Instagram account and alluded to the case of a 17-year-old woman killed on Saturday in a shootout.

Submitted by Brandon Smith via Alt-Market.com,

If an economic system collapses in the woods and no one is paying attention, are there any consequences outside the woods? Well, yes, of course. As with most situations financial and global, however, consequences are not usually taken very seriously until they have spawned a vast bog of sewage we all have to then swim through.

The issue is and always will be “interdependency,” and the dissolution of sovereign borders. Take a close look at the European Union, for example.