VENEZUELA - The writing is on the wall for Europe in terms of this coming winter – it’s going to get ugly. With natural gas imports from Russia cut by 80% through Nord Stream 1 along with the majority of oil shipments, the EU is going to be scrambling for whatever fuel sources they can find to supply electricity and heating through the coming winter. Two sources that were originally suggested as alternatives were Iran and Venezuela. Increased Iranian oil and gas exports to the west are highly dependent on the tentative nuclear deal, but as Goldman Sachs recently suggested, such a deal is unlikely anytime soon as deadlines on proposals have not been met and the Israeli government calls for negotiators to ‘walk away.’ Venezuela had restarted shipments to Europe after 2 years of US sanctions under a deal that allows them to trade oil for debt relief. However, the country’s government has now suspended those shipments, saying it is no longer interested in oil-for-debt deals and instead wants refined fuels from Italian and Spanish producers in exchange for crude.

SWITZERLAND - All bets are off if severe blackouts take place, a top official warns. Swiss people may revolt and resort to looting if the Alpine nation is hit by a severe energy crunch this winter, the police chief of one of its cantons told local media on Saturday. Fredy Fassler, the head of the Security and Justice Department in the canton of St Gallen, told German-language daily Blick that a blackout would have “far-reaching consequences.” “Imagine, you can no longer withdraw money at the ATM, you can no longer pay with the card in the store or refuel your tank at the gas station. Heating stops working. It’s cold. Streets go dark. It is conceivable that the population would rebel or that there would be looting,” he said, adding that the country’s authorities should take measures to prepare for such extreme scenarios.

USA - If you tune in to the right frequency, you’ll be sure to hear the voices. Beneath the static of the daily horoscopes (“Your brightness can’t be dimmed because … Leo rising!”), the sound baths on the beach and the vaguely Eastern ambiance of tea “experiences,” the Woo Woo are communicating with the universe on their own terms. Angelenos tend toward the sublime; we seek out perspective. We like to make sense of the mood.

GERMANY - Germany is about to see its highest inflation in decades, the president of its central bank, Joachim Nagel, told the Rheinische Post on Saturday, adding that the country might fall into a recession. “An inflation rate of even 10% is possible in the autumn months,” Nagel told the paper, adding that the latest surge in energy prices caused by reduced supplies from Russia – Germany’s major supplier – is likely to drive consumer prices further up. “Double-digit inflation rates were last measured in Germany more than 70 years ago,” the Bundesbank president added. The nation saw a similar inflation level back in 1951 when it reached 11%, according to calculations made at that time, according to German media. The situation in the national economy is likely to remain tense next year as well, Nagel warned, adding that “the issue of inflation will not go away in 2023” since “supply bottlenecks and geopolitical tensions are likely to continue.”

USA - The US Has Only Been At Peace For 21 Years Total Since Its Birth. Since the United States was founded in 1776, she has been at war during 214 out of her 235 calendar years of existence. In other words, there were only 21 calendar years in which the US did not wage any wars. Pick any year since 1776 and there is about a 91% chance that America was involved in some war during that calendar year. No US president truly qualifies as a peacetime president. Instead, all US presidents can technically be considered “war presidents.” The US has never gone a decade without war. The only time the US went five years without war (1935-40) was during the isolationist period of the Great Depression. Indeed, most of the military operations launched since World War II have been launched by the US. And American military spending dwarfs the rest of the world put together. No wonder polls show that the world believes America is the number 1 threat to peace.

USA - Society is now celebrating people who say they have mental health issues. Athletes who “come forward” with their confessions are heroes. So let me be clear. “Mental health issues” is a PRODUCT. It’s being sold like SUVs, cereal, beer, skin care lotions. And just to give you an idea of how successful the sales campaign is, here is a staggering quote from NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, about a large survey of college students: “The researchers also found that students are more willing to use university mental health services… By 2015, nearly 20 percent of those surveyed said they used these services… Moreover, nearly 75 percent said they would consider using university mental health services…” These services are a gateway, a funnel into the diagnosis of a mental disorder… and then the prescription of drugs. The drugs are the bottom line, the moneymaker.

NORWAY - The political fiction that humans cause most or all climate change and the claim that the science behind this notion is ‘settled’, has been dealt a savage blow by the publication of a ‘World Climate Declaration (WCD)’ signed by over 1,100 scientists and professionals. There is no climate emergency, say the authors, who are drawn from across the world and led by the Norwegian physics Nobel Prize laureate Professor Ivar Giaever. Climate science is said to have degenerated into a discussion based on beliefs, not on sound self-critical science.

USA - According to climate change crackpots, carbon dioxide is destroying the planet. And while they pretend this is based on scientific consensus, there are many true scientists who object to the notion that attempting to suffocate plant life is somehow beneficial. Lest we forget, plants “inhale” carbon dioxide and “exhale” oxygen. It creates a perfect symbiosis with oxygen-breathing animals that exhale carbon dioxide. When there’s balance, all is good. But the climate change industry wants to tear down what we know to be true and replace it with what they know to be false.

USA - The globalists and the left-wing media will not stop convincing people to eat bugs. “If you’re sick of that post-protein-shake bloat or tired of heavy powders and supplements that leave you feeling overly full and sluggish, try this out instead!” This is the very first line that you come across on TMZ’s website in their advertisement for a protein powder alternative made from crickets. “Cricket protein is high in fiber and prebiotics and is not only easy to digest but research shows it may actually help boost gut-health,” the company said. “Cricket protein is one of the most sustainable and nutritious protein sources on earth. Not only is it a complete protein that is high in B12, iron, and prebiotics but it also requires a fraction of the resources used by traditional animal protein sources,” Human Improvement wrote. A South African entrepreneur is innovating new ways of turning ‘mopane worms’ into flour to be used for protein bars and protein smoothies. Wendy Vesela, the chemical engineer behind the push for people to eat the caterpillars, said the bugs can also be used as pizza toppings.

EUROPE - Drought reveals ‘hunger stones’ in River Elbe historically used to forecast famine. One stone on the bank of the River Elbe, in the Czech Republic town of Decin, has emerged this year. Noticed recently by German journalist Olaf Koens, it bears the inscription: “If you see me, then weep.” Some markings date back to the 15th century, Czech researchers found in 2013, and the Decin stone commemorates at least 12 droughts over 600 years. Europe’s current drought could be the worst on the continent in 500 years and could continue for three months, according to Andrea Toreti, a scientist at the European Drought Observatory.

USA - Bereft of two crucial authority figures – their fathers and the police, youngsters struggle to find their place. A disturbing trend is on the rise in the US, where violent crimes are being perpetrated by some of the youngest members of society. But given the political divisiveness that has fractured the nation, pinning down blame for this phenomenon is no easy task.

CHINA - Chinese planes are firing rods into the sky to bring more rainfall to its crucial Yangtze River, which has dried up in parts, as swaths of the nation fall into drought and grapple with the worst heat wave on record. Several regions on the Yangtze have launched weather modification programs, but with cloud cover too thin, operations in some drought-ravaged parts of the river's basin have remained on standby. The Ministry of Water Resources said in a notice on Wednesday that drought throughout the Yangtze river basin was "adversely affecting drinking water security of rural people and livestock, and the growth of crops." On Wednesday, central China's Hubei province became the latest to announce it would seed clouds, using silver iodide rods to induce rainfall. The silver iodide rods - which are typically the size of cigarettes - are shot into existing clouds to help form ice crystals. The crystals then help the cloud produce more rain, making its moisture content heavier and more likely to be released.

GERMANY - North Rhine-Westphalia’s interior minister has said the energy crisis and rising prices could be exploited by conspiracy theorists. The current energy crisis and inflation could lead to protests in Germany’s North Rhine-Westphalia, the region’s interior minister has warned. Herbert Reul added that these issues are being exploited by conspiracy theorists, whom he described as a threat to the German state. Appearing on n-tv’s Fruhstart program on Monday, Reul said that “we’re now no longer talking about protesters, but rather almost something like new enemies of the state, who are establishing themselves there.” The official expressed concern that, when things like the “energy crisis, prices, a cold living room” become “really tangible,” conspiracy theorists’ narratives could gain more currency among the population. To make matters worse, Russia has recently cut its gas supplies to Germany. Several top German officials have repeatedly warned their fellow countrymen and women of a hard winter ahead, and urged them to be sparing with energy so the country can fill up its gas reservoirs in time.

NORTH KOREA - Russia and China could be about to 'normalize' North Korea and leave the US with another Asian headache. At the beginning of this week the North Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin had exchanged letters with Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un. The report stated both countries had agreed to “expand their comprehensive and constructive bilateral relations with common efforts”. Matching the anniversary of Korean independence on August 15th, Putin’s outreach comes as Russia seeks new partners away from the West. It also follows reports that North Korean expatriate workers would be assisting in the reconstruction of liberated territories in the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, to which it recently granted diplomatic recognition. But it’s also an indication that the world has changed, significantly. Only a few years ago Russia, as well as China, were at least somewhat willing to cooperate with the United States in imposing sanctions on the DPRK in the bid to curb its nuclear and missile development. That situation no longer exists.

GERMANY - Chancellor Olaf Scholz has pulled a humiliating U-turn after Vladimir Putin's gas cuts forced Germany to lodge plans to stop its nuclear shutdown amid fears of winter gas shortages. Germany’s three remaining nuclear plants were scheduled to shutdown by the end of the year as part of a long-planned nuclear phase-out. But after Russia slashed gas deliveries, it sparked panic for Berlin, which is now in the second phase of an emergency plan and one step away from gas rationing. With gas flowing through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline to Germany at just 20 percent of its normal capacity, the situation is appearing so dire in Germany that it is even threatening to push the country into a recession. Last week, the German Chancellor said that extending the life of these nuclear plants would “make sense” given the current situation. If Mr Scholz made this move, it would go against his predecessor Angela Merkel’s pledge to shut them down following Japan’s Fukushima disaster in 2011.