USA - Since the creation of the US Federal Reserve over a century ago, every major financial market collapse has been deliberately triggered for political motives by the central bank. The situation is no different today, as clearly the US Fed is acting with its interest rate weapon to crash what is the greatest speculative financial bubble in human history, a bubble it created. Global crash events always begin on the periphery, such as with the 1931 Austrian Creditanstalt or the Lehman Bros failure in September 2008. The June 15 decision by the Fed to impose the largest single rate hike in almost 30 years as financial markets are already in a meltdown, now guarantees a global depression and worse. The extent of the “cheap credit” bubble that the Fed, the ECB and Bank of Japan have engineered with buying up of bonds and maintaining unprecedented near-zero or even negative interest rates for now 14 years, is beyond imagination. Financial media cover it over with daily nonsense reporting, while the world economy is being readied, not for so-called “stagflation” or recession. What is coming now in the coming months, barring a dramatic policy reversal, is the worst economic depression in history to date.

USA - After releasing the trailer for the upcoming “Monster High: the Movie,” Nickelodeon is facing tremendous criticism for using pronouns to introduce the LGBT characters. In the sneak peek, two of the characters introduced themselves using their respective pronouns. Frankie Stein, a nonbinary, refers to herself as they/them, while Clawdeen Wolf, a lesbian character, refers to herself as she/her. This is not the first time that Nickelodeon has been criticized for its controversial and woke programming choices. The Gateway Pundit previously reported that Nickelodeon was facing backlash after releasing a video of a creepy drag queen singing about Pride in front of a trans flag. Of course, with this one, Nickelodeon went too far for many parents, one of whom asked “is this the slippery slope I was told not to worry about?”

EUROPE - If the European Union hopes to compete in global politics, it can no longer afford to allow individual member states to veto the bloc’s actions, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in an article published by the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper on Sunday. Arguing that the bloc should become a geopolitical actor, the German leader highlighted the importance of unity in Europe in light of the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine. He insisted it was time to put an end to the “selfish blockades” of EU decisions by individual members. “We simply can no longer afford national vetoes, for example in foreign policy, if we want to continue to be heard in a world of competing great powers,” he wrote.

USA - The killer US heat wave of 1936 spread as far north as Canada, led to the heat-related deaths of an estimated 5,000 people, sent thermometers to a record 121 degrees Fahrenheit in Steele, North Dakota, and made that July the warmest month ever recorded in the United States. The country and much of the world are currently baking in a brutal heat wave. Britain had its hottest day on record Tuesday, with temperatures hitting 104 degrees at London Heathrow Airport.

EUROPE - The EU should play a “geopolitical role” and therefore “close ranks” and step up its militarization, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz demands in an op-ed published in the Frankfurter Allgemeinen Zeitung. He promises “concrete proposals” in the next few months and is already demanding the abolition of the right to veto on foreign policy issues, which enables smaller states to protect their vital interests against the pressure of the powerful member states. A similar view was recently expressed by SPD Chair Lars Klingbeil. “After nearly 80 years” of alleged “restraint,” Germany should claim “the role of a leading power,” the SPD-Chair demanded. This would “require tough decisions by Berlin.” Klingbeil also called for massive rearmament of the Bundeswehr. Scholz and Klingbeil are worried because the developing and emerging countries are refusing, to a growing extent, to follow the old West and are pursuing their own independent policy. The call to engage in “geopolitical” activities in the future comes at a time of rapidly growing poverty in the EU.

GERMANY - Olaf Scholz has chillingly warned that if Vladimir Putin is allowed to "get away with it" in Ukraine with Russia's ongoing war, Germany's security and freedom could be under serious threat. The Chancellor acknowledged Germany is now waking up to the “value of democracy and liberty, and the fact that they are worth defending”. The warning comes with Germany under huge pressure to scrap sanctions aimed at crippling Russia's economy as the European Union struggles to stop the continent's economic situation from spiralling out of control. Germany could face a horrific winter amid surging fears Vladimir Putin will cut off gas supplies from Russia following the completed annual maintenance work to the Nord Stream 1 pipeline. Worse still, this could send inflation surging throughout the bloc, with experts warning the Eurozone could crash into recession. The German Government is now planning for a sustained outage that could force parts of the country - home to the EU's biggest economy - to shut down as the bitterly cold winter months approach. Heating bills could even triple, with fears right-wing populists could stir up riots that would make the ill-feeling over the country's Covid restrictions look like a “child’s birthday party”.

PAKISTAN - It’s been almost a year now since Joe Biden and the US Military surrendered to the Taliban terrorists. Joe Biden, General Milley and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin are still in power. As part of the surrender, Joe Biden armed the Taliban with nearly $80 billion in US weapons and left thousands of Americans stranded in the country to fend for themselves. The White House and Pentagon have never admitted to how many billion dollars worth of weapons they left behind for the Islamist group. Rather than destroying the equipment before leaving the country, Joe Biden decided to leave the nearly $85 billion worth of US military equipment to the Taliban. Today the Taliban has one of the best-equipped militaries on the planet. And now the Taliban from Afghanistan and Pakistan have joined together to take control of Pakistan.

UK - Britain must be prepared to face the long-term threat from China and cannot be distracted by Russia's war in Ukraine, the First Sea Lord has warned. Admiral Sir Ben Key, speaking to the Council on Geostrategy yesterday, acknowledged that Vladimir Putin's brutal invasion 'represents a near and present danger to us' and Britain 'must respond' to it. But, he added, 'focussing solely on the Russian bear risks missing the tiger,' with Beijing posing a greater 'long-term strategic challenge' to the UK. China, Sir Ben noted, has a growing economy that is already ten times that of Russia and is spending four times as much as Putin on its military - $298 billion in 2021.

VATICAN - The Vatican’s foreign minister said Pope Francis is “very committed to multilateralism” and “believes in the multilateral system,” in an interview published Monday. The pope is a firm believer in multilateralism even if “he believes in a reformed and renewed multilateral system, more responsive to the challenges of the 21st century,” Archbishop Paul Gallagher declared in an interview with the Jesuit magazine America. “We’ve got to try and make our multinational, multilateral institutions work better,” Archbishop Gallagher stated. “We have to try and get the United Nations to be incisive in confronting and resolving some problems in the world.” “And if necessary, maybe these institutions have to be reformed,” he added. “For example, here in Europe, the Organization for Security and Cooperation is more or less paralyzed. We have to work at this, I think, in some way, making them more efficient and proactive.” Throughout his pontificate, Pope Francis has been a vocal advocate for multilateralism as a remedy to what he sees as a dangerous resurgence of nationalism and populism.

UNITED NATIONS - Already, we know that we need more — and more effective — multilateralism, with vision, ambition and impact. National sovereignty, a pillar of the United Nations, goes hand in hand with enhanced international cooperation based on common values and shared responsibilities in pursuit of progress for all. No one wants a world government, BUT we must work together to improve world governance. In an interconnected world, we need a networked multilateralism, in which the United Nations family, international financial institutions, regional organizations, trading blocs and others work together more closely and more effectively.

UK - Reservoirs across the country are on the verge of running dry, with dramatic photos showing the impact of the sizzling sunshine, months of below average rainfall and an unusual surge in water demand among Britons as the heatwave hit the UK. Water companies have warned reservoirs are struggling to keep up with nationwide heatwave demands. Such are the pressures providers are facing that they could be forced to restrict usage in case there is not enough rainfall in the coming weeks. Thames Water, which supplies London and large parts of Oxfordshire, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire, did not rule out a ban. A spokesperson said: "While we're not currently expecting to need to introduce restrictions on water use this summer… If we do not receive around or above average rainfall in the coming months this will increase pressure on our resources. It may indeed result in the need for more water saving measures including restrictions."

USA - President Joe Biden could declare a climate emergency as soon as this week, according to The Washington Post, in a bid to implement elements of his environmental agenda as climate legislation has stalled in Congress. Leading Biden administration officials are debating ways to advance the president’s agenda, and the president is prepared to announce a number of new initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, reported the Post, citing three people familiar with the matter. The internal discussions come after Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia told party leaders last week that he opposes the plans to advance this month’s significant economic package that includes billions of dollars toward slashing carbon emissions and promoting green energy.

USA - In case it wasn't clear that Biden and the Dems have learned absolutely nothing and are still committed to running this country off a cliff with their "green energy" push, John Kerry is here to remind you that they are still as crazy as ever. Green policies caused chaos around the globe, and the message from the "climate czar" is that we are behind and we need to transition away from fossil fuels even faster. It's not enough that fuel is through the roof because of these green policies. It's not enough that the power grids are nowhere close to being able to support as many electric cars as there are gas cars. The Left is always progressing forward. Straight off a cliff. If you want to know what a faster, more drastic, move to green energy looks like, the Democrats' dream world, just look to Sri Lanka.

USA - As more Americans buy electric vehicles, the pitfalls of owning such a car become clear, and one teenager in Florida just discovered a major problem firsthand. Avery Siwinski, a 17-year-old student in St Petersburg, was thrilled to join the ranks of electric car owners, thinking she not only was helping to save the environment but also was going to save a ton of money by avoiding high gasoline prices. But not long after taking possession of her car, she was met with a major crisis unique to EV owners. Her dashboard started lighting up like a Christmas tree telling her that a major problem was detected. After owning the vehicle for only six months, Siwinski was shocked that it needed a service so soon. The Siwinskis were told the battery pack was at the end of its life and needed to be replaced — and the bill was going to be $14,000. But then things got worse. The dealer said it couldn’t even get a battery. Ray Siwinski said customers should be aware that car dealers are not able to really service EVs because of a lack of qualified technicians as well as parts. “If you’re buying a new one, you have to realize there is no secondhand market out there because manufacturers aren’t supporting the cars,” the grandfather said.

USA - An explosion has rocked the Hoover Dam, after a transformer caught fire at the hydroelectric complex on the border between Nevada and Arizona. Officials said there were no injuries following the fire on Tuesday in the turbine house of the massive power-generating dam, which supplies electricity to parts of three states. Water levels in Lake Mead, the reservoir created by the dam, are at historically low levels due to an ongoing mega-drought in the area, which was also experiencing extreme heat on Tuesday. It's unclear whether high demand for electricity, or diminished generating capacity due to low water levels, played a role in the fire. Officials said the cause of the fire was under investigation. As both an iconic American structure and a piece of critical infrastructure, Hoover Dam has long been tightly protected against potential attacks.