Importantly, we discuss some points I haven’t been able to shoehorn into recent blogs because they were already so massive. The first thing is the JCPOA negotiations in Vienna. They are pushing rapidly to conclusion now in order to stabilize oil markets by trying to offset voluntary embargoes of Russian oil with newly-released Iranian production. There are a couple of problems with this calculus, not the least of which is that Iran’s oil sector will not be able to just spin up another 1.5 million bbls/day before Russia responds in ways I discussed in the article linked above, i.e....
Gold
The Inflationary Attack on America’s Poor
The ramp-up of money-printing by the Federal Reserve Bank since the COVID pandemic began has meant, like clockwork, an increase in CPI price inflation exceeding a seven percent annual rate. Though price inflation as measured by the CPI was temporarily delayed by the crosswinds of the shutdown-induced recession, the Fed inflation of the currency had already enriched the financial sector and created a wider income divide between the top one percent and the rest of the people. And this has not gone unnoticed by the political left, even if they remain ignorant of the real economic causes....
Vaccines, Autonomy, and Mandates: A Libertarian Analysis
Prefatory Note Given the subject matter discussed below, I believe it prudent to state at the outset that I am not at all opposed to vaccinations themselves: indeed, I have received a COVID-19 vaccine, as well as all other normal-course vaccinations recommended for someone my age. Yet there are, it seems to me, interesting, difficult questions surrounding the state’s role in promoting or mandating vaccines. The goal here is to start a conversation not about the effectiveness of vaccines, but about the individual’s sphere of autonomy and what kinds of medical decisions are within it, and...
Lunatic With a Plan: Erdogan and Turkey’s Economic Woes
Since the first assault on Turkey’s finances in 2018, which I wrote about multiple times (here, here, and here), I’ve been the lone voice telling everyone that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is a lunatic but he’s a lunatic with a plan. That plan is to de-dollarize the economy of a valuable member of NATO geostrategically. Since the first shots across the bow by the Trump administration at Erdogan’s toying with those powers east of the Bosporus (Russia, China and Iran) the Turkish lira has been the primary mode of attack against Erdogan. Erdogan has pursued what has been deemed unorthodox...
Is Virtue Signaling Vicious?
Virtue signaling—the practice of highlighting what one takes to be one’s own moral superiority, often by loudly denouncing the character and comportment, including the speech, of other people—has become a dominant mode of rhetoric throughout social media and network television. Virtue theory, in contrast, is a teleological approach to normative morality concerned with how actions affect one’s soul or character. Historians of philosophy usually trace virtue theory to Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics, the first extant articulation of ideas such as that habits build character, and virtues...
Episode 663: How, And Who Do We Fight? w/ Monica Perez and Brad Binkley
99 Minutes Some Strong Language Monica Perez and Brad Binkley are the hosts of the Propaganda Report Podcast Monica and Brad asked Pete to come on to have a long discussion about the last 21 months, what's happening now, and how to approach the future. Today's Sponsors: Open a Crypto IRA w/ iTrustCapital to Invest in Cryptocurrency & Physical Gold. Get $100 in Bitcoin when you sign up and fund your account through the link below. https://itrust.capital/freeman and THC Hemp Spot - Promo Code "Pete" for 15% off any Order The Propaganda Report Rokfin.com Get Autonomy 19 Skills PDF...
Episode 662: An Entrepreneur Overcomes Government’s Crushing Regulation w/ Jared Wall
56 Minutes PG-13 Jared Wall is an entrepreneur and former guest on this podcast. Jared joins Pete to talk about his moving out of the northeast when CV19 madness started to kick in. He talks mostly about the business he started this year that has run into every form of obstruction it possibly could from the State and its apparatchiks and how he overcame it. Today's Sponsor: Open a Crypto IRA w/ iTrustCapital to Invest in Cryptocurrency & Physical Gold. Get $100 in Bitcoin when you sign up and fund your account through the link below. THC Hemp Spot - Promo Code "Pete" for 15% off any...
Episode 661: Pete and Aaron From Timeline Earth Reading The Unabomber’s Manifesto Pt 5
82 Minutes Some Strong Language Aaron is one of the hosts of the Timeline Earth podcast. Aaron and Pete continue their series reading the Unabomber, Ted Kaczynski's, Manifesto, "Industrial Society and Its Future" while commenting on it. Today's Sponsor: Open a Crypto IRA w/ iTrustCapital to Invest in Cryptocurrency & Physical Gold. Get $100 in Bitcoin when you sign up and fund your account through the link below. https://itrust.capital/freeman Get Autonomy 19 Skills PDF Download The Monopoly On Violence Support Pete on His Website Pete's Patreon Pete's Substack Pete's Subscribestar...
Episode 660: Is Social Media A ‘Necessary Evil’ And Some Rittenhouse Commentary w/ Steppy From ‘Not a Podcast’
64 Minutes Some Strong Language Steppy is one of the hosts of "Not a Podcast" and a Twitter legend Steppy joined Pete for a livestream to do a little commentary on the Rittenhouse trial but also to talk about the good and bad of social media in general. Considering most of what anyone knows about the trial comes from social media, it's a good place to start the discussion. Today's Sponsor: crash.co and Open a Crypto IRA w/ iTrustCapital to Invest in Cryptocurrency & Physical Gold. Get $100 in Bitcoin when you sign up and fund your account through the link below....
Episode 659: The Irrationality Of Policing w/ Former LEO Pat Watson
81 Minutes Strong Language Pat Watson is former military/law enforcement and is the host of the Uncensored Tactical Podcast. He has written two books and his latest is titled, "Fuck Bureaucracy" Pat joins Pete for a special episode in which he has designed a line of questions for the law enforcement officer that at the end of which should make any man or woman in the profession want to quit their job. Or... yeah, you know, the goalposts start shifting. Today's Sponsor: Open a Crypto IRA w/ iTrustCapital to Invest in Cryptocurrency & Physical Gold. Get $100 in Bitcoin when you sign up...