America Can’t Be the Peace Broker

But China can? [Morning Reckoning] May 04, 2023 [WEBSITE]( | [UNSUBSCRIBE]( America Can’t Be the Peace Broker - Saudi Arabia and Iran have normalized diplomatic relations. - Syria may now be readmitted to the Arab League. - Boy, those Chinese diplomats have done a bang-up job! [Biden’s WAR on The Middle Class…]( No president has sabotaged America’s hardest workers like Joe Biden has. That’s why I’m urging you to [watch this urgent presentation](. Because Jim Rickards’ legendary financial contact – who he calls ‘The Banker’ – may be the only man who can solve this American Income Crisis. [Click HERE to learn how 'The Banker' made]( in 4 days… $10,617 in 6 days… and $13,203 in 2 days](. [CLICK HERE NOW]( Asti, Northern Italy May 04, 2023 [Sean Ring] SEAN RING Good Morning Reader, Good morning from Northern Italy, where it’s all play and no work. This week is the local holiday of Festa di San Secondo, which celebrates our patron saint. San Secondo was a 2nd-century Christian martyr who was beheaded under the Roman emperor Hadrian for refusing to abandon his faith. We’ve eaten, drunk and been merry from last Friday night to yesterday. Luckily, the town has opened today, so I can drink my favorite Lavazza Reserva di Tierra from my friend Fabrizio’s café. While we’ve kept to ourselves here in Il Piemonte, peace seems to be breaking out in the Middle East, heaven forfend! Saudi Arabia and Iran kiss and make up? Syria may be readmitted to the Arab League? What new devilry is this? The romantic in me would like to think the CIA has taken a permanent vacation. But the realist in me knows Chinese diplomats have done yeoman’s work in a region the USG has all but abandoned as a partner. In fact, the U.S. is now a strategic competitor to Saudi Arabia, thanks to its shale industry. And that’s put Russia and China in the driver’s seat. After their tiff drove oil negative in 2020, Saudi will never mess with the Russians again. And China buys more oil from Saudi Arabia than anyone else. That’s right; the petrodollar is already on life support. [Download My New Survival Guide Today!]( I’ve created a BRAND-NEW “2023 Crisis Survival Guide” that I’m making available to all of my Strategic Intelligence readers today. This short 54-page document has everything you need to know to protect yourself and your family in times of crisis. Things like what foods to stock up on now, staying safe during periods of rioting and looting and more. Inside I break down all of the coming threats you face and how to prepare. [>> To see how to download your copy, click here now](. [VIEW MY URGENT VIDEO MESSAGE]( The truth is, Saudi Arabia doesn't need America anymore. Chinese purchases easily replaced Uncle Sam’s old haul. And the plus in OPEC+ is Russia, thanks to Saudi insistence. That all makes sense, no matter how shocking it is. But what’s truly astounding is how Iran has worked its way back into the fold without an American diplomat within 10,000 km. And Europe? It’s an afterthought. The Chinese government richly deserves credit for bringing Saudi Arabia and Iran together. Of course, they didn’t do it for the good of humanity. And quite frankly, who cares? No, they want that New Silk Road built. And for it to work, they need Iran in the game. [SJN] Credit: [U.S. Global Investors]( Now that Iran is onside, it seems the Arab League will let Syria back in. The Arab League is a regional organization of Arab countries in and around North Africa and the Middle East. It was established in 1945 to promote economic, cultural, and political cooperation among its member states. As of 2023, the Arab League has 22 members. Syria was suspended from the Arab League in November 2011 in response to its government's violent crackdown on anti-government protests that had erupted earlier that year. Forgiveness for Syria? Or taking advantage of having a dribbling dementia patient in the Oval Office? The United Arab Emirates (UAE) may have even achieved peace with Iran before too long. And this would affect what’s happening in Yemen. Wow, maybe they all don’t hate each other over there. Because of all this progress, China has been called a fair and impartial mediator. This isn’t merely stepping on America’s toes. It’s slipping into its shoes and doing a better job! I asked myself, “Why hasn’t America done a better job over there?” And I came up with three answers. 1. America’s Various Diasporas Prevent It The USG can’t possibly do a good job when hyphenated Americans always go to bat for their ancestral homelands. Can you imagine the Jewish-American lobby allowing the USG to sanction Israel? Of course not. Same as Italian-Americans vis-à-vis Italy, Indian-Americans with respect to India, and so on. The USG can never be fair and impartial. To throw this point into sharp relief, let me tell you a story about how a group of hyphenated Americans inadvertently brought a new financial instrument into being in the 1950s. In 1954, the USG established the "Food for Peace" program to provide surplus agricultural commodities to countries in need, including the Soviet Union. According to the United States Department of Agriculture, between 1954 and 1960, the Soviet Union received 4.1 million metric tons of food under the program. This included wheat, corn, soybeans, and other commodities. However, following the Soviet invasion of Hungary in November 1956, the US government suspended the "Food for Peace" program to the Soviet Union. The USG decided in response to widespread public outrage over the Soviet action in Hungary and concerns about Soviet aggression more broadly. In short, Hungarian-Americans, along with a bunch of other do-gooders, made the USG stop sending food to starving Russians. Clearly, the Hungarian-Yanks didn’t turn the other cheek. Besides depriving the Soviet Union of food, the Soviets were worried that the US would freeze its assets held in American banks. (Sound familiar?) The question was, “How do you keep your USD without having it confiscated?” Luckily for the Russians, they owned a British-chartered bank called the Moscow Narodny Bank. The bank was founded in 1918 by Russian émigrés, and by the 1950s, it had become a major player in the London banking scene. One of its key figures was a banker named Andrei Kosygin. Kosygin was a Soviet who had been sent to London in the early 1950s to manage Soviet assets held in British banks. The MNB worked with Kosygin to create a system for holding Soviet assets in U.S. dollars outside the United States, primarily in London. Et voila! Now you have Eurodollars, which are USD held outside the USA. And since they’re outside the USA, they’re not subject to U.S. banking regulations and reserve requirements. Checkmate. Whenever someone says nothing can replace the USD as the world’s reserve currency, I think about how Hungarian-Americans inadvertently forced the Soviets to invent Eurodollars. “Nothing” just hasn’t been invented yet. 2. The Military-Industrial Complex Doesn’t Want Peace If you tell me nonsense like “peace requires strength,” I’ll laugh at you. Not because it isn’t true. But because of context. In matters of defense, strength certainly matters. But the USG has specialized in offense since the USS Arizona sank. (My great uncle was there and lived. Unfortunately, but understandably, he refused to talk about it.) I won’t belabor this section with anything other than a chart that says it all. [SJN] Since September 10, 2001, LMT is up 1,937.03%, NOC is up 1,733.19%, GD is up 757.60%, the Dow Jones US Aerospace/Defense Sector is up 657.63%, and Boeing is up 609.61%. The SPX pales in comparison, only up 277.06% over the same period. Marine Corps Major General Smedley Butler was correct when he wrote War is a Racket. But that racket makes some people very rich. And they usually have ties to Washington. In this sense, “America” isn’t one unit. Neocons and defense companies always want war because they profit by it. 3. The “Stick” Isn’t as Big as It Used to Be, and America Doesn’t Do Carrots The rest of the world is getting together under Chinese and Russian leadership to escape Dollar World. Many influential economists think this is impossible. But the difference this time is that the move isn’t organic or passive. The BRICS and the Global South are actively looking for alternatives. It’s the same spirit that created the Eurodollar. Just because we can’t see what that alternative will be doesn’t mean it won’t come into being. Most other countries know America can’t stomach a full-blown war. If it could, US troops would’ve been in Ukraine months ago. (Ok, but not clandestinely.) Not only that, but America can’t fight on two fronts anymore. It simply doesn’t have the same industrial capacity it used to have. So the world has become bolder and more brazen. It’s not nearly as afraid as it used to be. And what’s worse, when America comes up with a benign idea, most countries simply don’t believe it. America always has an ulterior motive. So a Russian/Chinese alternative is an excellent bet for these nations. Wrap Up China’s diplomats have embarrassed Foggy Bottom. Peace broke out in the Middle East, and America was caught on the back foot. But can America act as an impartial peace broker anyway? I don’t think so. Though the U.S. is technically at peace now, it’s been at war for [226 out of 246 years](. Twenty years of peace. Ever. There are too many factions inside the U.S. for “America” to act as one unit. And the warmongering factions are happy to send someone else’s sons to fight their war for them. Someone is always ready for battle, whether it’s defense contractors, neocons, or diasporas. So it’s no surprise that the U.S. isn’t viewed as a peace broker. Nor is it a surprise that it’s considered a warmonger. Have a lovely weekend! If this is the sort of thing you’d like to see more of, please let me know [here](mailto:feedback@dailyreckoning.com). Or if you have any suggestions for future topics, do let me know that as well. All the best, [Sean Ring] Sean Ring Contributing Editor, Morning Reckoning feedback@dailyreckoning.com [New “WiFi Crypto” Token is Going NUTS!]( Only a handful of crypto investors know about this… But there’s a tiny, affordable device… That’s paid investors real crypto – every day, with zero work… Just for having a working WiFi connection! It sounds crazy, but it’s true… And [this 3:28 video]( explains everything. [Click here to view it NOW](. [CLICK HERE TO SEE WHY]( In Case You Missed It… How to Trigger a Bank Crash [Greg Guenthner] GREG GUENTHNER Good Morning Reader, Shares of First Republic Bank (FRC) cracked early last week after management revealed the bank had lost half its deposits during the first quarter. Oops! To be fair, the stock had already plummeted as much as 90% in March during the crisis sparked by the Silicon Valley Bank debacle. But the earnings revelations once again spooked investors, opening a trap door that sent shares down more than 60% early last week. As the SVB failure unfolded during the first quarter, we discussed how financial media was quickly losing interest in the banking crisis – but that it probably wasn’t totally finished. It still felt as if another shoe (or three) needed to drop. Luckily, I was in New York late last week to help FRC take its final lap as a publicly traded company. I just so happened to be at the New York Stock Exchange to attend an event celebrating the 50th anniversary of the CMT Association. I was even dragged into a few photos with friends and colleagues on the exchange floor. Here’s one for the scrapbook: [MR] you’ll see the stock had stabilized back above $6 by Thursday’s close. But my presence on the exchange floor apparently sealed its fate. The bank was once again in free-fall the next morning, only to die a quick death over the weekend. Now, Jamie Dimon and the folks at JPMorgan – along with the FDIC – have to sort out whatever’s left. A couple of important lessons as another Bay Area bank bites the dust… [[CHART] Could Inflation Hit 20%+ In 2023?]( [Click here to learn more]( Take a close look at this scary chart pictured here… What you see is the money supply in America… And as you can see, the number of dollars in circulation has exploded in the last few years. In fact, more than 80% of all dollars to ever exist have been printed since just 2020 alone! Which is why some say inflation could soon explode even higher than it is now, to 20% or more. And if you’re at or near retirement age you must take action now to protect yourself… otherwise you risk losing everything. [Simply click here now to see how to survive America’s deadly inflation crisis](. [CLICK HERE FOR THE DETAILS ON MY SPECIAL $10 OFFER]( Much like SVB, First Republic stock gave investors zero reasons to attempt to scoop up shares following the March rout. The stock never came close to rallying after its initial 90% collapse. Instead, shares were stuck in a tight, sideways range. Not good! With the benefit of hindsight, we know FRB is a zero. But even in real-time, any attempts at scooping up shares over the past couple months would have been insane. Remember, every stock that does eventually crash will likely have peaked many months before the main event that seals its fate. Sometimes, the downfalls can be lightning fast. But most of the time, a company will gradually deteriorate and the stock will begin to slowly trend lower. Sellers are orderly at first. But if things start to fall apart, the real crash will happen quickly. Still, speculators love to gamble on potential snapbacks in stocks like FRB. They even bought FRB ahead of last week’s earnings announcement! Don’t be like them. Leave the banks alone – and all the other stocks struggling in downtrends right now. [Ex-CIA and Pentagon Advisor: “This is How Biden will End the Republic”]( [Click here to learn more]( Former advisor to CIA and Pentagon Jim Rickards just got his hands on a Congressional document that he believes details Biden’s plan to end the Republic. [He’s urging you to take these five steps now…]( Because if you don’t prepare, you could soon lose your life savings, god-given rights and your constitutional freedoms. [Click here now]( because we can almost guarantee this expose will be censored by Big Tech and the corrupt media. [CLICK HERE TO LEARN HOW]( The Real “Smart Money” Indicators While I was in New York, I also had a chance to check up on how the real “smart money” feels about two important asset classes: stocks and gold. Analysts love to toss around the numbers from various sentiment indicators, most notably the American Association of Individual Investors (AAII) bull-bear poll. But I’m much more interested in what the technical analysts are doing with their money. This information is especially important right now considering the key levels approaching in stocks and gold as we kick off a new trading month. The averages are trapped in some sideways chop. Meanwhile, gold continues to flirt with a true breakout above $2,000. What do the best technicians and money managers in the country think? First, let’s talk stocks… Unfortunately for the bulls, most of the smart money traders believe the S&P 500 will remain range bound for the rest of the year. Very few are expecting the S&P to finish below 3,600 – yet they also don’t see the market taking out all-time highs by the end of December. There were some folks who think the S&P can clear 4,500 by year-end. That’s not too far-fetched, especially with a big test of 4,200 approaching. If the large-caps can extend here, we could see another thrust higher before encountering any summer consolidation. [MR] Next up: Gold! While most of the experts anticipate a choppy stock market, almost everyone thinks gold finally breaks out above $2,100 and stays above this mark into 2024. That’s great news for gold bugs… The bad news – at least, in the short-term, is that it might not be a clean move. In fact, gold is running into trouble at $2,000 again. The early April run to $2,050 has fizzled out. Gold once again failed to post a monthly close above $2,000 in April. It will have to try again this month – which is also a seasonally weak time for the yellow metal. Keep alert for a bounce in the dollar index. That could cause some weakness in precious metals in the weeks ahead. The longer-term outlook for gold is strong. But some turbulence in May might require a hard reset before it gets moving higher once again. Let me know what you think of this article, or if you have any feedback, suggestions or questions by emailing me [here](mailto:feedback@dailyreckoning.com). Best, [Greg Guenthner] Greg Guenthner Contributing Editor, Morning Reckoning feedback@dailyreckoning.com [Sean Ring] [Sean Ring, CAIA, FRM and CMT]( is a former banker and financial educator and is the editor of the Rude Awakening. Sean has trained interns and graduates from Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Citi, Bank of America, Standard Chartered Bank, DBS (Singapore), the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), Bank Indonesia (the central bank), HSBC, Barclays, RBS, and BlackRock. He knows the global economy is being corrupted by forces that most people can't understand and has used his unique and worldly experiences to help people navigate the markets. [Paradigm]( ☰ ⊗ [ARCHIVE]( [ABOUT]( [Contact Us]( © 2023 Paradigm Press, LLC. 808 Saint Paul Street, Baltimore MD 21202. By submitting your email address, you consent to Paradigm Press, LLC. delivering daily email issues and advertisements. To end your The Daily Reckoning e-mail subscription and associated external offers sent from The Daily Reckoning, feel free to [click here.]( Please note: the mailbox associated with this email address is not monitored, so do not reply to this message. We welcome comments or suggestions at feedback@dailyreckoning.com. 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