United States

U.S. equity futures are little changed with the GOP Tax Plan now a done deal and no more daily "pricing in" of tax reform possible, as traders nerviously look to see if others will now be "selling the news", a preview of which we got yesterday when US equity indexes closed red across the board despite Trump's biggest legislative win to date, while bonds were spooked by the blowout in government debt needed to fund the giveaways.

Authored by Tsvetana Paraskova via OilPrice.com,

Russia’s oil company Tatneft, one of the biggest in the country, operated in Crimea until very recently despite the risk of being blacklisted by the U.S., Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing Tatneft documents and a source close to the company.

Authored by Eric Zuesse via The Strategic Culture Foundation,

Due to a historic data-dump on December 10th, the biggest swindle that occurred in the 20th Century (or perhaps ever) is now proven as a historical fact; and this swindle was done by the US Government, against the Government and people of Russia, and it continues today and keeps getting worse under every US President.

Authored by Mac Slavo via SHTFplan.com,

Daniel Ellsberg, the man who leaked the Pentagon papers which exposed the government’s lies during the Vietnam war is vocalizing a warning. He says the United States is really close to a nuclear Armageddon.

Ellsberg, now 86-years-old, leaked the Pentagon papers back in 1969 and he’s now got a new book out which serves a warning to those who care to listen.

After years of covert American involvement in the Ukrainian proxy and civil war which has raged since 2014 - and which a leaked recording confirmed was precipitated by the US State Department - President Trump has decided to come off the fence regarding his prior reluctance to formally approve arms sales to the Kiev government.