March 22
BTC is $68,710 vs $70,938 Friday | 14:15 Sunday
President set a Monday deadline for Tehran to reopen the strait or face strikes on power plants | WSJ
IRAN: ‘We will strike all fuel, energy, information technology and desalination infrastructure in the region’
Iranian missiles struck Israeli cities of Arad and Dimona, home to Nuclear Research Center | TrendP
The attacks occurred hours after a U.S.-Israeli strike on Iran’s Natanz nuclear enrichment facility, which Iran described as the trigger for its retaliatory barrage.
Iran’s Sampson Card: The Dimona reactor represents a symbol of “Israel’s” nuclear program | Arm
Iran’s Dimona Strike Shatters Myth of ‘Impenetrable’ THAAD, Patriot & Arrow Air Defenses | Sput
The fact that apresident is posting a message like this on social media represents a total breakdown in the systems that are meant to ensure the US fights wars intelligently and judiciously. The commander in chief is not of sound mind, no one in his cabinet is willing to admit it, and we are being pushed towards the edge of an abyss.
Bro just met women for the first time | 11-second clip
Financial markets are the ultimate constraint on Trump and we're near a breaking point
Across a number of fronts, the stress level in markets has risen appreciably. In my mind, this means the US is more likely to declare “mission accomplished” rather than escalate things by taking Kharg Island.
Iran has already won | Hua
Because the purpose of wars is the achievement of political objectives. The US war objective is regime change – in Trump’s hyperbolic language, “unconditional surrender” and “I will name the next leader”.There is zero chance that will happen.
Sophisticated drones attacked Louisiana’s Barksdale bomber base on March 9 | Asia
Software engineers. Now you can buy intelligence on a metered basis.
Pay per token. No recruiting, no vetting, no retention, no equity. Just intelligence as a utility. Consumers pay $20/month. Enterprise power users pay $200/month. And companies are spending millions per year because the ROI is there.
I asked ChatGPT to give a thumbs up or down for all 100 senators. The results are ridiculous. | Insta
All but 2 Dems got a thumbs up, all but 4 Republicans got a thumbs down (and those 4 Republicans with thumbs up are Murkowski, Collins, Romney and Britt...aka not real Republicans)
Debt Rattle
S&P Oil FX Gold Silver 10Y USM
The S&P500 fell 1.9% (down 5.0% y-t-d)
Ten-year Treasury yields gained 10 bps to 4.38% (up 21bps)
Dollar Index declined 0.7% to 99.647 (up 1.3% y-t-d)
Spot Gold dropped 10.5% to $4,492 (up 4.0%)
WTI Crude slipped 48 cents, or 0.5%, to $98.23 (up 71%).
Gasoline jumped another 8.0% (up 92%)
Brent oil closed at 112.19. WTI crude oil closed at $98.23. Spread at $13.96
Markets are pricing in oil supply destruction and a prolonged disruption to energy flows
The disruption includes important feedstock for fertilizer, and sulfur, helium and aluminum.
Qatar has indicated that it will take several years to rebuild the damage to its LNG facility.
Foreign Minister: Tehran is ready to facilitate passage of Japanese vessels through Strait of Hormuz | Clima
Gas price, the default barometer of otevrs’ ability to absorb pain, has gone from $2.90 to $3.90 | Hua
Amazingly, that society’s focal point about foreign wars is always the impact on gas prices, and never the legality or morality of the atrocities. Or the cost to the nation as a whole.
Credit Spreads Are Flashing A Warning
If Brent stabilizes below $95, the Fed gets breathing room and rate-cut expectations reopen. If it pushes toward $110, the March CPI will be damaging, and the Fed will stay frozen. Should investors panic? Not yet. Patience is a position.
Doug Noland Credit Bubble Bulletin
It was a close call, but the largest ever Q1 options/derivatives expiration went off without an accident. That said, it was anything but pretty. Friday saw a troubling market dynamic in full force. No place to hide. No safe havens. Key “insurance” (Credit default swaps) markets lurching toward dislocation. Global bonds under further heavy selling pressure. Treasuries, MBS, agencies, corporates, and muni bonds all hammered. Stocks clobbered. Precious metals battered. Spreads blowing out. CDS prices spiking higher. Emerging markets bludgeoned. Currency instability taking hold.
Why the Fed’s Next Rate Move Could Be a Hike | Greg Ip, WSJ
MeToo has come for Cesar Chavez, rather late in the game | Neo
Chavez’s cancellation comes now because of his history of being against illegal immigration. That’s his real crime against the left of today, and the reason he’s being exposed. The union organizer was vehemently opposed to undocumented immigrant workers.
Acqui-hiring is the practice of acquiring a company primarily to hire its employees, rather than for its products or services. This strategy is often used to quickly bring in a skilled team to work on a specific project or to fill a talent gap.
General of the Army Dwight Eisenhower, February, 1951
“If in 10 years, all American troops stationed in Europe for national defense purposes have not been returned to the United States, then this whole project [NATO] will have failed.”
Email: wkidder42@gmail.com
Text: 1 646 257 2130
Voice: Use WhatsApp +1 646 257 2130
at 1:00 AM