Iran Deal

The Economy, The Numbers, And The Stats

Posted on by Helena

The average tax refund for filers in 2025 per the IRS is $3275.  The average tax refund for filers in 2024 was $3138.  An increase of 4% but less than 2021 and 2022.  But averages are rather meaningless when incomes vary from $-0- to hundreds of millions.  The average refund for taxpayers making over $1 million jumps to $246,696. That category is lumped in with the low end of $898 in refund if you make less than $5000. 

Like most numbers coming out of the White House, ‘average refund’ is a ridiculous base line of economic success. He other one is the DOW. Worse:  Bezos effective tax rate is 1.1%. Trump has paid no taxes since 2020. The reason?  Massive business losses. Of the 700 billionaires in the US, their effective tax rate is just 8% – although there have been years where these elitists paid nothing. The reason Trump doesn’t take a salary is because it would raise his tax liability on all his income. Stealing allows for tax evasion.

People have been advocating for a flat tax since I was born.  It won’t happen.  The idea that Tariff Revenue would replace the income tax was a fantasy that never even came close and died from the media standpoint.

The Board of Peace funds originally deposited in the World Bank have been withdrawn and redeposited into an individual personal account at JP Morgan. No transparency requirements are required. 

The Trump Rx Fiasco:  Drug companies involved in the program drastically increased their spending through lobbying firms with ties to the administration. For instance, a firm associated with Donald Trump Jr. saw its federal lobbying revenue jump significantly after representing major manufacturers who secured pricing deals on TrumpRx.  While benefiting Big Pharma given Trump Rx does not list generic counterparts, the kickbacks to Trump et al, are likely in the range of ‘Angies List’.  Trump does NOTHING for free.

I decided to look at the terms:  1. To get the sale price it is a cash out of pocket price – insurance doesn’t apply.  2.  The price only applies if continuous monthly refills are ordered. 3. The amount may be changed by the manufacturer at will and without notice. 4. You give the manufacturer all your information which can be used for whatever purpose. 5. Zepbound is Lilly’s weight loss drug – it must be taken for life just like all weight loss drugs. 6.  On TrumpRx a discounted monthly cost was $299 for a 2.5 dose.  With insurance the price is $25 per month.  Other discounted Rx Companies offer pricing at $99 to $159.

TRUMP REVENUE:

Everything Trump touches turns to trash.  How much would his businesses have to lose every year that generated enough to wipe out all income?  In 2020 Trump claimed business losses on his personal tax return of $20.5 million. Donald Trump Holdings, LLC reported losses of $59.945 million. DJT Holdings Managing Member, LLC = losses of $3.65 million. DTTM Partnership losses $758,500.  All while his Net Worth ROSE.

Funny Numbers. 

The Funny Numbers only apply to The Club and are only outdone by the Funny Policies:

Trump has announced that he doesn’t care about the Midterms (likely already fixed) therefore he is going to do ‘nothing’ in regards to an Iran Deal.  Meaning hardship is about to get much harder.  Brent Crude stands at $95. But commodity markets in general remain very volatile as the shipping crunch ensures more shortages.  With China reaping the greatest supplies.

There are only five countries with budget surpluses; Norway, Singapore, Luxembourg, Qatar, and Switzerland. The global economy is just as much a farce as America’s.  Exasperated by Trump’s inability to do anything about the Strait of Hormuz but prick the bear, so to speak. The Bond market is reacting.  Not just because of the Strait but also because of the tariffs – a double whammy.

The end result of the two pronged whammy is inflation.  Funny numbers or not, inflation will spike as trade drops and shortages accrue putting a damper on growth. Mortgage rates have climbed to 6.65% and 6.9%.  The annual cost of debt has surpassed $1 Trillion – for context that is 20% of all federal tax revenue collected.   Matched closely by Defense Spending of just shy of $1 trillion …and Federal level fraud clocking in at $714 billion.  Together accounting for nearly 50% of tax revenue. This does not include the Bunker, the ballroom, the arche, the pool, the MMC, or the rest of Government Agency spending.

Capitalism as it stands is NOT working.  Capitalism as defined by America’s Government is a Mafia Government built on fraud, blackmail, graft, theft, and lies.  Climbing out of this is akin to holding onto a snake that is wrapped around a twig on a tree as we slowly sink in quicksand. 

We need to scrap the Federal Government & Capitalism.

Iran Deal – Merkel Bows

Posted on by Helena

Iran’s relationship with Germany, and by default the EU, is precariously preposterously muddled in piddle.   Iran is calling the shots. Iran is denoting the ‘additional’ terms that the EU must follow if Iran is going to continue holding to the Obama terms of the Iran Deal.   And Merkel looks like a wimperton.

Khameini has provided five additional pledges that the EU must incorporate into the Deal or else the deal is off:

  • They will pledge to avoid opening negotiations over Iran’s ballistic missile program or actions in the Middle East.
  • European banks should “safeguard trade” with Tehran.
  • They should continue buying Iranian oil and should, if necessary, also buy Iranian oil the US decides not to buy.
  • They should “stand up against US sanctions” on Iran.
  • They should condemn US for allegedly breaking a United Nations resolution that supports the nuclear deal.

IF the EU does not accept all of the above, Iran will “continue its enrichment of uranium”.   What this reveals is the fact that a renegotiation of the original deal Obama and Kerry drafted, is off the table.   Iran is holding firm. It also reveals that uranium enrichment is and has been a long term commitment in Iran.   Despite the pinky swear that Liberals and Libertarians hold on to feverishly.

By defense, Pompeo has stated that unless Iran renegotiates the deal, they face the strongest sanctions ever stipulated in history.   And of course, that ultimately would include ‘regime change’ by the Iranian people, or by coup.

Like the governments of each and every country across the globe, it is unclear whether they represent the will of The People, or the will of The Government, and Iran is no different.

Unfortunately, trying to access Iranian blogs is much like trying to access German Blogs, repression of the media and censorship reign.

Interestingly, in 2017, a number of prominent Iranians sent Trump a joint letter urging him to ‘keep the Iranian Nuclear Deal’, these prominent Iranians, were all artists, actors, with the exception of one scientist who went to Harvard, the school of ir-repute and Open Societies.

The letter apparently sparked a recourse of dissidents who claimed that the views of these select artists did not represent the will of The People.   And it is upon this Will – that I believe we must focus.   I have met a few Iranian converts over the course of my years, and they have all – without exception – been the best of the best.   Educated, philosophical, and well informed, their voices were subjugated until they came to the states.   Still, they were not of the Liberal ilk wherein they fumed and fret and made a nuisance of themselves demanding this and that entitlement. Instead, they dove into the world of business, and made their mark.

I think too often we lose sight of the diction of the government vs the diction of society. It is easy to see it in our own country, but when a country is demonized, too often, we marginalize the people as well. It is and has been the fate of Syria, of Yemen, of Russia, of Germany, of the US, and of Iran.

Oddly, we are quick to understand there are good cops and bad cops, good politicians and bad politicians, good actors and bad actors, and yet when the media wants to indoctrinate an agenda, the evil is profoundly – all.

And without the proper guides, the People – believe.

If we were to impose that same way of thinking upon the US, we would assume that all women were just like Hillary, all men were just like Epstein, and all others were – deplorables. We don’t accept that here, so why in the world would we accept that anywhere else – including – Iran?

Maybe, just maybe, Khomeini is as lauded there as Obama was here… just a thought.

TRUMP Speech at UN was exactly Trump

Posted on by Helena

Another UN General Assembly and apparently the only speaker was Trump, because according to the media, no one else apparently said – anything… The entire mélange of dialogue from Deutscheland to France, to New York to The Economist has been the edification of Trump. Using such verbiage as “rhetoric”, the German newspaper quoted a number of students studying “Presidential Rhetoric” as their college major.   Really?  I wonder how many jobs there are for a major in presidential rhetoric…?

While Trump spoke as Trump does, it is odd that anyone would be surprised. What exactly did anyone expect?

The ‘rhetoric’ referenced centered around his comments regarding North Korea and Iran. The alter-rhetoric suggests that if the US backs out of the Iran deal, they will ramp up their proliferation of nuclear capabilities… As in pinky swear I won’t? What? Iran is going to do what Iran wants no matter what ‘deal’ is flitting about. And Kim Jong Un is going to continue strutting about like a cock in search of a hen until – he decides not to.

The media also seems to take issue with the concept that Trump conveyed, “America First”. As the media so wearily continues to do, it failed to present the entire dialogue; America is first for Trump, just as Germany should be first for Merkel, France for Macron, etc… In other words, he advocates sovereignty, a concept that the Socialists and Communists abhor, because it nullifies Globalism, a one world monetary system, and an effective UN centrist Communist government.

Trump also took aim at the UN budget, specifically, the “Peacekeeping” budget that is nearly $8 billion and counting. Given the UN’s Peacekeeping record is abysmal at best, and laughable by most accounts, in my opinion they could easily be neutralized from existence, as in – cut.

*The UN Peacekeepers and UK established the Israeli territory after WWII that they now claim should be given to the Palestinians because they goofed and the Palestinians are miffed and the UN feels bad.

*The UN has been the moniker monitor of peace between North and South Korea… not doing so well.

*The UN has brought peace and prosperity to Sudan… to The Congo… to Ukraine… to Venezuela… to Rwanda, the Ivory Coast, Haiti, Somalia, Cambodia, Mozambique…

Rife with scandals involving prostitution, sex trafficking, and sexual abuse, their successes are nowhere to be found.

In fact, the UN Secretary General, Guterres, who belongs to the Socialist Party and is a member of The Council on Foreign Relations, is calling on ‘world leaders’ to repair the world that has fallen into conflict, disarray and violence, effectively acknowledging that their Peacekeeping unit is defective, obsolete and worthless. Who edited his speech?

The only other speaker on the roster would appear to be Macron. Coming out of hiding after the expose regarding his obsession with expensive ‘makeup’, Macron’s words were exactly what we would expect – Socialism and Globalism.   The difference? Macron talks, but has no action other than applying makeup and hosting a few dinners. His actionable account is a qualified – zero.

Again the topic of choice for Macron and Guterres was the Paris Climate Change Agreement which is not a contract at all but a suggestion of pinky swear cooperation for which France has paid $0 into the pledged coffers. Obama put in $1 billion of the $3 billion he pledged toward the $100 billion per year budget. Analysts predict that budget will rise to more than $420 billion per year by 2020. Who is going to actually pay? To date roughly $5 billion has actually been raised including the $1 billion from US…  That’s pathetic.

China says they can’t reduce emissions until 2030, North Korea says they plan to increase emissions by 300%, Syria has said nothing, gasp, they are a country of rubble, and the money is supposedly going toward developing countries who produce -0- emissions. What the hey!

Fodder for Presidential Rhetoric majors analyzing Trump might want to consider the massive rhetoric being parlayed around the climate change ‘discussions’. But hey, it sounds good when blustering journalists and Hollywooders raise their fist and ‘demand’…

I have an idea!  Why doesn’t the UN pledge their entire Peacekeeping Budget to Climate Change in China…

IRAN Sanction Deal – A Business Bonanza!

Posted on by Helena

Why The Iran Deal Had To Go Forward –

It wasn’t really about the actual deal, it was about opening a new business market. Flocking to Tehran, EU businesses have already cut deals, secured contracts and readied for the blitz while US counterparts hedged their bets waiting for Congress to aye or nay the deal.

A baby’s bottom, the Iran deal is a business bonanza!  Iran opens the door to $$$$, and in a stagnant economy, any new market poses the possibility of generating beaucoup profits. The lobbyists could care less about the hostages, the prisoners, the ethics or even the risks, because that’s their game – shoot the moon.

Before the sanctions, France, Germany and the UK were Iran’s biggest trading partners, and by golly, they aim to be again! The French have already lined up a delegation of over 100 firms including automakers, plane makers, oil companies, agriculture companies, banking, pharmaceuticals and construction firms. Italy has already set up a memorandum of understanding for business dealings.

The EU wanted the Iran deal, and by any means possible, they were going to force the hand of the US. It was never about the terms, it was about just getting a deal signed so that businesses could reopen and the flow of money could be reinstated. Only two countries opposed the deal – Israel and Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia doesn’t want an economically strong Iran, they want a weak neighbor, one that they can destroy, one that has no power. Had Iran the strength, the Saudi’s would never have been able to annihilate Yemen. Instead of a ‘coalition’, it would have amounted to an aggressive war. A distinction that is ridiculously waived by the EU and the US as the Saudi’s continue to bomb civilians daily. Yemen was closely aligned with Iran. Giving Iran more power could easily disrupt the power plays that riddle the Middle East.

Israel. While Netanyahu lobbied for a more transparent deal, as in don’t have the wolf guard the chicken coop, it was a lost cause. Iran is not a negotiating country and President Rouhani made it quite clear that this is the deal, take it or leave it. But for Israel, it is not just about nuclear, it is about the influx of billions of dollars of revenue and how that will be used to bolster Iran’s military as well. It’s about a country that has adamantly proclaimed its desire to destroy Israel and the stress that threat invokes. Changing the balance, Iran will most likely use it’s new found cash flow to bolster Hamas and Hezbollah, further putting Israel at risk. It is incredibly short sighted to simply focus on nuclear energy when the entire economic balance will change, albeit not too rapidly, but certainly within the next decade.

There were some opposition forces that wanted the US to drop a partial list of sanctions, but the EU had already readied to drop theirs entirely, which would create an imbalance of trade for US businesses and further alienate the US economically. In addition, the mud effect this would have on multi-international businesses could prove a legal nightmare bordering catastrophic.

So while pundants are busily talking about how Iran will use smoke screens and magic tricks to hide nuclear advancement, no one cares, because when weighing business vs security, security looses every time. And once businesses start back up in Iran, the cost of imposing sanctions again at some later date will be met with fire and brimstone.

Of course, from a White House position, this is just another tick mark for the history books lauding President Obama and giving him a written legacy from which he can gain one giant ego in the name of mankind.

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