No one is forced to be a Christian. But no one should be forced to live according to the "new religion" as though it alone were definitive and obligatory for all mankind.
Distinction Matter - Subscribed Feeds
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Site: 4Christum
Baltimore Catechism:
How does a Catholic sin against faith? A Catholic sins against faith by apostasy, heresy, indifferentism, and by taking part in non-Catholic worship.Cordileone at synagogue's interfaith blessing
Above, we see the Archbishop of San Francisco Salvatore Cordileone speaking at an interfaith blessing of Daniel Lurie that took place on January 7, 2025, one day before Lurie was sworn in as Mayor of San Francisco.
The gathering was at the Reform Synagogue Congregation Emanu-El, a building constructed with the financial collaboration of Lurie's grandfather and where his father rabbi Brian Lurie often preaches.
Representatives of the different beliefs in San Francisco were invited to speak; first row below, Cordileone is seen between two menorahs awaiting his turn, and second row, finally speaking. Then, rabbi Lurie gave an emotional blessing to his son. Next, all the religious representatives – including the Archbishop of San Francisco – gave a collective blessing to the new Mayor, third row.
Then it was the turn of Daniel Lurie to speak. He promised to continue to make San Francisco a city where he LGBT group can live without fear. He also mocked those who think that homosexuality attracts the ire of God and natural plagues and disasters. His speech received a standing ovation, with Cordileone rising with the others, last row.
So, besides taking part in a syncretistic ceremony in which all beliefs were placed on equal footing under the hegemony of the Jewish synagogue, Cordileone also applauded the full support Lurie promised for homosexuality in its more extravagant forms that are included in the acronym LGBT. -
Site: Euthanasia Prevention Coalition
Wesley Smith conducted an interview with Alex Schadenberg and Roger Foley for his podcast titled: The Cruelty of Canada's Euthanasia Regime. (Link to the podcast).
Wesley Smith, Alex Schadenberg
Wesley J SmithEuthanasia is bad medicine and even worse public policy. Once a society accepts the principle that killing is a splendid answer to suffering, the kinds and extent of suffering that come to be seen as appropriate reasons to cause death expands continually.
Often, this suicide agenda — let’s call it — advances so slowly that, over time, people become acclimated to policies that were once unthinkable. But that has not been the case in Canada, where the government and much of the population enthusiastically embraced what the law euphemistically calls medical assistance in dying, or MAID. As a result, the “slippery slope” can be seen slip sliding away in real time to the unfortunate point that euthanasia is now the fifth leading cause of death in Canada. Indeed, in just a few short years, euthanasia has become so normalized that more than 15,000 people are killed by medical professionals in that country each year.
Roger Foley
Joining Wesley to discuss all this are Alex Schadenberg and Roger Foley. Schadenberg founded the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition. He is probably the most effective opponent of euthanasia in Canada and internationally.
Roger Foley has seen the cruelty of Canadian euthanasia permissiveness up close and very personal. He lives with Cerebral Ataxia, a rare, genetic, progressive disease that damages the nervous system, causing people with CA to lose control of their muscles over time. Because of his disability, he has been pressured on several occasions to ask for euthanasia — as if being lethally injected were a proper treatment for his condition. His story illustrates what can happen when a society decides that death with dignity is more important than life with dignity.Related Resources Euthanasia Prevention Coalition
- Alex Schadenberg’s Blog
- New Documentary The Euthanasia Deception Exposes the Shocking Truth of Assisted Suicide | Press Release
- Exposing Vulnerable People to Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide by Alex Schadenberg | Amazon
- Roger Foley: A Passion to Live | Alex Schadenberg’s Blog
Chair and Senior Fellow, Center on Human ExceptionalismWesley J. Smith is Chair and Senior Fellow at the Discovery Institute’s Center on Human Exceptionalism. Wesley is a contributor to National Review and is the author of 14 books, in recent years focusing on human dignity, liberty, and equality. Wesley has been recognized as one of America’s premier public intellectuals on bioethics by National Journal and has been honored by the Human Life Foundation as a “Great Defender of Life” for his work against suicide and euthanasia. Wesley’s most recent book is Culture of Death: The Age of “Do Harm” Medicine, a warning about the dangers to patients of the modern bioethics movement.
- Follow Wesley Profile on Twitter, Facebook
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Site: Catholic ConclaveThere can be no greater, albeit unconscious symbol for the modern Catholic Church than the Divided Church at Kreuzbichl (also known as Kreuzbichl Chapel) is a Roman Catholic church near Gmünd in the Carinthian Oberland, through which a busy road runs. On one side of the street is the sanctuary, and on the other side is a two-story gallery where churchgoers can sit and listen to the sermon from Catholic Conclavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227218883606585321noreply@blogger.com0
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Site: Catholic ConclaveLeo XIV on the Marian and Petrine Principles: Possible Opening?Pope Leo XIV has interpreted a theological principle that had previously been interpreted to justify the exclusively male priesthood in the Catholic Church more openly than his predecessors. He spoke about this in a sermon on Monday in St. Peter's Basilica before approximately 4,000 Vatican employees, including hundreds of priests, Catholic Conclavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227218883606585321noreply@blogger.com0
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Site: LifeNews
Kristan Hawkins, president of Students for Life of America, is calling on pro-life supporters to contact U.S. senators and demand the defunding of Planned Parenthood as part of a budget reconciliation bill moving through Congress.
The push follows a recent victory in the U.S. House, where a bill aimed at cutting funding to the nation’s largest abortion provider passed, signaling strong pro-life momentum.
“This is a critical moment for the pro-life movement,” Hawkins said in a statement. “The House sent a clear message to the abortion lobby, but now we need to ensure the Senate follows through.”
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Students for Life Action, the advocacy arm of the organization, has identified 12 Republican senators whose votes are seen as pivotal to ensuring the defunding provision remains in the Senate’s version of the bill, dubbed the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” by President Donald Trump. The targeted senators include Shelley Capito (R-W.Va.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), John Thune (R-S.D.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), and Todd Young (R-Ind.).
Hawkins emphasized that while some of these senators are staunch pro-life allies, others, including Collins and Murkowski, have previously opposed similar measures. She also noted that fiscal concerns, such as debates over state and local tax deductions, could sway some senators, making grassroots pressure essential.
The campaign, launched on June 3 as part of Students for Life Action’s “One Big Beautiful Month of Pro-Life Activism,” has already gained attention, with Politico reporting on its efforts. The group is urging supporters to sign a petition calling for the defunding of Planned Parenthood, stressing that with a slim 53-seat Republican majority in the Senate, just four dissenting votes could derail the effort.
“Pro-life voters will not forgive or forget if our resources continue to fund Planned Parenthood,” Hawkins said. “Senators need to hear that we mean business.”
The budget reconciliation bill, which requires only a simple majority to pass, is seen as a key opportunity to strip federal funding from Planned Parenthood, a long-standing goal of the pro-life movement. Supporters are encouraged to contact their senators, particularly the 12 targeted Republicans, to ensure the provision remains intact.
The post Pro-Life Group Urges Americans to Tell Senators to Defund Planned Parenthood appeared first on LifeNews.com.
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Site: Catholic ConclaveSanz Montes warns of a “moral demolition” that silences the Christian faith in public lifeThe Archbishop of Oviedo, Jesús Sanz Montes, has firmly denounced what he considers a “moral demolition” of society, in which Christian beliefs are systematically marginalized, and public spaces are stripped of their religious presence and significance. In an article titled “Moral Demolition,” published thisCatholic Conclavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227218883606585321noreply@blogger.com0
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Site: Zero HedgeSupreme Court Rules 9–0 Wisconsin Violated First Amendment By Denying Tax Exemption To Catholic CharityTyler Durden Mon, 06/09/2025 - 14:05
Authored by Matthew Vadum via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),
The U.S. Supreme Court on June 5 ruled unanimously that Wisconsin violated the First Amendment by not granting a Catholic charity an exemption from paying unemployment tax.
The Contemplation of Justice statue at the U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington on May 19, 2025. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times
Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote the 9–0 opinion in Catholic Charities Bureau v. Wisconsin Labor and Industry Review Commission.
Catholic Charities Bureau is a nonprofit organization that functions as an arm of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Superior, Wisconsin. The bureau oversees several other entities that render charitable services to communities across the state.
Wisconsin law excuses religious organizations that are “operated, supervised, controlled, or principally supported by a church or convention or association of churches” from paying state unemployment tax.
The petitioner, Catholic Charities, argued that it is unconstitutional to allow the state to decide what work is religious in nature.
“The First Amendment mandates government neutrality between religions and subjects any state-sponsored denominational preference to strict scrutiny. The Wisconsin Supreme Court’s application of [the state statute] imposed a denominational preference by differentiating between religions based on theological lines. Because the law’s application does not survive strict scrutiny, it cannot stand,” the justice wrote.
Strict scrutiny is the highest level of review used by the courts. Under it, the government has to show that a law is narrowly tailored to advance a compelling governmental interest and that the law is the least restrictive way to serve that interest.
Sotomayor wrote that Wisconsin is not the only jurisdiction that exempts religious organizations from paying taxes to cover unemployment compensation programs. Since Congress in 1970 approved the Federal Unemployment Tax Act, which contains language similar to that found in the Wisconsin law, more than 40 states have adopted similarly worded tax exemptions.
The Supreme Court of Wisconsin held 4–3 in March 2024 that Catholic Charities and its four related organizations that serve the developmentally disabled are not “operated primarily for religious purposes,” so they fail to meet the requirements for a tax exemption.
That court held that the activities of Catholic Charities do not qualify as “typical” religious activities because the organization does not “attempt to imbue program participants with the Catholic faith” and because the help it provides to those with mental and developmental disabilities could be carried out by secular organizations.
Sotomayor wrote that this means that the state court held that the organization could only qualify for the tax exemption if, when providing charitable services, it “engaged in proselytization or limited their ... services to fellow Catholics.”
The organization’s Catholic faith prevents it from using charity to proselytize, while many other religious organizations take a different approach, she wrote. This means that Wisconsin’s law on tax exemptions expresses a preference for some religious denominations over others “based on theological choices.”
Because the Wisconsin law distinguishes among religions on the basis of theological distinctions, it imposed “a denominational preference that must satisfy the highest level of judicial scrutiny.”
“Because Wisconsin has transgressed that principle without the tailoring necessary to survive such scrutiny,” the lower court’s decision must be overturned, she wrote.
The U.S. Supreme Court reversed the ruling of the Supreme Court of Wisconsin and sent the case back to that court “for further proceedings not inconsistent with this opinion.”
The attorney for Catholic Charities, Eric Rassbach, hailed the new ruling.
“It was always absurd to claim that Catholic Charities wasn’t religious because it helps everyone, no matter their religion,” Rassbach, vice president and senior counsel at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, told The Epoch Times.
“Today, the Court resoundingly reaffirmed a fundamental truth of our constitutional order: The First Amendment protects all religious beliefs, not just those the government favors.”
The Epoch Times reached out for comment to the Wisconsin Department of Justice, which represents the Wisconsin Labor and Industry Review Commission. No reply was received by publication time.
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Site: The Orthosphere
“Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.”
Matthew 6:34
“Tolstoy is absolutely correct is classing faith among the forces by which men live. The total absence of it, anhedonia, means collapse.”
William James, Varieties of Religious Experience (1902)*
When Henry David Thoreau wrote that “the mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation,” he did not mean to imply that the remainder are not desperate.** He meant to imply (or at least should have meant to imply) that the remainder are not quiet. The remainder are either loud with lamentations or loud with fatuous gaiety. As Thoreau puts it, “a stereotyped but unconscious despair is concealed even under what are called the games and amusements of mankind.”
To despair is to abandon hope and Dante tells us that the Damned are commanded to “abandon all hope” when they pass through the gate of Hell.*** Dante’s justly famous description of the words above Hell’s gate is wrong, however, to suggest that every damned soul arrives at Hell’s gate with some shreds of hope in hand. It is more often the case, I believe (and Aquinas taught), that a soul is damned and thrust through Hell’s gate when it abandons, or loses, or mislays, or jettisons all hope.
Living or dead, a man who despairs of salvation is in Hell.Thoreau’s lives of quiet desperation are lives without hope of transcendent joy. They are the mean and meagre lives of men whose highest hope is to end each day with a full belly in a warm bed, and to end all their days tranquilized, anesthetized, and decently eulogized—unconsciousness, in any case, of physical pain, social shame, or much of anything else. This is the life of what Nietzsche called “the last man,” the man who “will no longer launch the arrow of his longing beyond man,” the man of whom it may be said that “the string of his bow will have unlearned to whizz.”
* * * * *
We have been warned not to lead little lives of quiet desperation; but there is no gainsaying that human life is very often a desperate affair. We are told to cherish a hope of transcendent joy, of Heaven even. We are told to with whizzing strings launch the arrows of our longing beyond man.
But such words merely mock us because we are, most of us, already in Hell.
We may take this as a second meaning of Jesus’ words, “sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.” Their first meaning is, of course, that men and women have their hands full dealing with the feculence that is handed them today, so there is no need to augment this actual feculence with anticipations of the feculence that will be handed them tomorrow.
Their second meaning is that the evil—the feculence—of today is sufficient to kill all hope for anything but another delivery of evil feculence tomorrow.
In the absence of stout supernatural assistance, the evils of today suffice to make any man abandon all hope and join the Damned as a citizen of Dante’s “dolorous city” of Hell. The evils of today suffice to unstring the bow with which he should shoot the arrow of his longing; suffice to reduce him to grumbling over petty peeves, smirking over pallid pleasures, becoming a little last man.
* * * * *
Loss of hope is loss of what William James calls “the faith-state,” the faith-state being the hope that tomorrow has possibilities that the evils of today would otherwise be sufficient to deny. James describes it as a “mystical vague enthusiasm, half spiritual, half vital, a courage, and a feeling that great and wondrous things are in the air.” It is the state in which no amount of feculent evil is sufficient to kill the hope that tomorrow may bring something other than another delivery of feculent evil.
I have perhaps too often scoffed at “happy-clappy” religion that is a tonic against the sin of despair, but an accelerant to the sin of presumption. You know the merry chant.
Eat, Love and Praise the Lord.
For Tomorrow to Heaven We Go.But it must be said, as William James says in my second epigraph, that an utter absence of happy-clappy religion “means collapse.” It means the abandonment of all hope. It means Hell.
James uses the then new word “anhedonia” to describe the state in which the “faith-state” has dissipated, hope has been abandoned, Hell’s gate has been passed through. The word anhedonia was coined by a French psychologist named Ribót at the turn of the nineteenth century as a companion to analgesia and denotes a numb insensibility to pleasure and the absence of “the slightest impulse of joy.” And what Ribót discovered is that anhedonia makes you listless and weak, whereas pleasure and joy makes you strong.
“The manifestation of joy may be summed up in a single word—dynamogeny. Joy produces energy.”††
Dynamogeny means productive of energy or strength and is the antonym of enfeeblement, physical depression, lethargy. What Ribót means, as I said, is that the flood of agreeable sensations we call joy makes a man strong, unlike the enfeebling waters of the dismal river of Lethe (which a man drinks, perhaps copiously, before shuffling, despondent, through the gate of Hell). And when dynamogeny produces energy and strength, this energy and strength must be expressed in activity, in movement—in the singing, the dancing, the clapping of hands that are the outward manifestations of joy.
The evils of today are sufficient to induce the anhedonia Thoreau calls quiet desperation, the state of hopeless dolor that Dante says possesses the listless and shuffling husks who pass through the gate of Hell. This is why we require a religion that induces the dynamogenic faith-state and enlivens us with joy—that energizes us with strength to slog laughing through the feculent morass of this world. We require, in short, a vital—that means vitalizing—religion, because a life without joy will sooner or later suck the life out of you and thrust you into Hell.
Hence our need for a stout supernatural supply of more life, as promised, for instance, in John 6:33.
“For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world.”
This is what William James, quoting the psychologist James Luba, means when he says that the object of religion is “more life” (meaning less anhedonia, less desperation, more joy).
“Not God but life, more life, a larger, richer, more satisfying life, is in last analysis the end of religion.”†††
Or as James puts the matter in his own words, when faith enthuses a man with a supernatural supply of joy and “more life,” he will not abandon all hope, pass through the gate of Hell, and live a life of quiet desperation. James indeed makes this power to vitalize the test of all religion.
“This readiness for great things, and the sense that the world by its importance, wonderfulness, etc., is apt for their production [rather than apt for nothing but the production of feculent evil], would seem to be the undifferentiated germ of all the higher faiths.”∞
And this seems to me a test that any religion worthy of the name must be able to pass.
*) William James, Varieties of Religious Experience: A Study in Human Nature (New York: Longmans, Green, 1902), p. 505.
**) Henry David Thoreau, Walden, chap. 1.
***) Dante, Inferno, Canto III
†) Nietzsche, This Spake Zarathustra: A Book for All and None, trans. Thomas Common (New York: The Macmillan Co., 1911), p. 12.
††) Théodule Ribot, The Psychology of the Emotions (London: W. Scott, 1897), p. 53.
†††) James H. Leuba, “The Content of Religious Consciousness,” The Monist 11.4 (July 1901), pp. 536-573, quote p. 572
∞) James, Religious Experience, p. 506. -
Site: Euthanasia Prevention Coalition
Testimony of Sharon Quick, MD, MA (Bioethics)
President, Physicians for Compassionate Care Education Foundation (PCCEF)
In opposition to New York A 136 June 8, 2024I am President of Physicians for Compassionate Care Education Foundation (PCCEF), an organization without religious or political affiliation that advocates for the vulnerable at end of life. I have expertise in pediatric anesthesia, critical care, and medical ethics. We oppose A 136.
Summary: A 136, like other medically-assisted suicide laws, inevitably violates (rather than upholds) patient autonomy; creates (based on subjective, often inaccurate, criteria) a class of marginalized patients with the disability of terminal illness from whom the standard of medical care can be withheld; allows lethal drugs to unnecessarily substitute for good palliative care and pain control; disproportionately preys on those with mental health problems and disabilities; and destroys the foundation of medical ethics, creating distrust among patients and the health care profession. In addition, A 136 is the most radical policy in the country because it has no waiting period for obtaining lethal drugs.
1. Pain should never be a reason to seek lethal drugs. Complaints of excessive symptoms indicate doctors lack palliative care knowledge, such as when to refer to pain management specialists. Lethal drugs should never be a solution for lack of education. In addition, those in significant pain lack capacity to consent for lethal drugs. Instead, improve palliative care access and expertise, which has been assessed as likely insufficient to meet the needs of New York.(1) There is evidence that minorities, the uninsured, those on Medicaid, and those living in disadvantaged communities may encounter barriers to receiving palliative care.(2) It would be a tragedy for these under served populations if this legislation made lethal prescriptions more accessible than palliative care.
2. This bill has no waiting period to obtain lethal drugs; no other law is so rash. Immediate death does not give adequate time for appropriate discussion and interventions for vulnerable patients who make rash decisions out of fear, depression, embarrassment, subtle pressure by a tired caregiver who makes them feel like a burden, or other reversible or transient concerns. Such patients often change their minds and no longer want to hasten death. Terminal illness is highly associated with depression, and suicidal thinking is highest when cancer is first diagnosed and becomes less frequent as time goes on and patients get support.
3. Physicians may be wrong about a patient’s prognosis, and they often miss depression and compromised decision-making capacity. Patients in WA and OR have died up to 5 years beyond their original “terminal” diagnosis and receipt of lethal drugs. Neither mental health status nor capacity are required to be assessed immediately before a patient ingests lethal drugs, which could be years after initial assessment; there is no guarantee that patients are not compromised at that time.
4. Lethal drugs are not a proportionate means of achieving palliative care goals but devalue vulnerable patients in a way that violates the very goals palliative care aims to achieve. Assisted suicide is abandonment, not health care, and is not part of palliative medicine. Lethal cocktails are bitter-tasting, sometimes mouth-burning liquids, and patients must ice their mouths with popsicles and take anti-emetics just to get them down. Risks include nausea, vomiting, aspiration, seizures, and not dying. Palliative care can do far better.
5. Lethal drug prescriptions undermine autonomy and discriminate against the disability community. Requests for lethal drugs are not primarily for pain but because of concerns of losing autonomy or abilities or feeling like a burden. These may be symptoms of depression and are usually psychological responses to disabilities developed during terminal illness--which is itself a disability by both social security and ADA criteria. This bill grants new choices and power to health practitioners, not patients, allowing them to treat patients unequally, subjectively placing them into either (1) a protected group (getting standard mental health care) or (2) a marginalized group with the disability of terminal illness (who can be abandoned to lethal drugs). This discriminates against the disability community and undermines autonomy by violating equality of persons. New York does not need a two-tiered health system that devalues those with the disability of terminal illness.
6. The slippery slope is real. Patients with depression and those with non-terminal diagnoses of anorexia, hernia, arthritis, and “medical complications” have received lethal drugs. Hundreds of doctors’ and patients’ consent forms are missing in Washington and Colorado.
a. In 2023, a dementia diagnosis led Cody Sontag to voluntarily stopping eating and drinking (called VSED) to kill herself. An Oregon doctor said dehydration from VSED would soon cause death; he waived the waiting period, prescribed lethal drugs, and Cody died from them.(3) Dehydration is not “incurable” or “irreversible,” as legally required. How many others with non-terminal diagnoses have used VSED to access lethal drugs? No one—least of all physicians whom the vulnerable must be able to trust—should be granted god-like powers to decide which disabilities make life worthless, prey on those who lack capacity, and assist with termination of those so judged.7. There is no mechanism to enforce the law or detect abuse, which is perhaps why no sanctions have been reported. The design of this bill, like other assisted suicide laws, is a set-up for undetected elder abuse, coercion, or murder, given neither capacity re-evaluation nor the presence a neutral party are required when patients ingest lethal drugs (sometimes weeks, months, or years after initial evaluation).
8. Doctors often devalue those with disabilities. Protect the medical profession from acting on that bias by not granting them power to assist the suicides of patients disabled by terminal illness—especially a law with so little oversight that physicians are not disciplined for ending the lives of those with non-terminal illness (like Cody).
9. Protect the medical profession from distrust, both between patients and their doctors and among doctors. Patients in the northwest who are opposed to assisted suicide now have legitimate fears that doctors might overlook depression or compromised capacity, devalue them, and prescribe lethal drugs if they request hastened death while depressed or in a moment of vulnerable weakness. A death request is often a plea for help, and people often change their minds about hastening death with time, treatment, and support. Dr. Bentz lost trust in colleagues after referring a patient to an oncologist who, over Dr. Bentz’ objections, gave lethal drugs to his patient instead of treating his depression.
10. This bill contains potential conscience violations for physicians and health care employers:
a. Requires falsifying the death certificate, naming the underlying disease as the cause, rather than the actual cause of death—lethal drugs (p. 12, lines 12-14)
b. It is unclear whether an objecting health care employer can prohibit physician employees from providing information about lethal drug provision or referring patients for them, both of which would violate their conscience as participation in an unethical practice that is not medical care.
c. It is unclear whether objecting physicians could be forced to inform or refer for this process in violation of their conscience.11. Finally, participants do not need to be New York residents, which may allow out-of-state residents to obtain lethal drugs. These participants may not receive adequate evaluation, especially of capacity and lack of coercion, by New York physicians who may not know them well. Because non-residents would be forced to take the lethal drugs in New York, it may pressure patients to take the lethal drugs immediately, when many patients hold on to the drugs for weeks, months, and even years, and some decide never to take them. Given the number of people who travel to New York from around the world, this may make it an international assisted suicide tourism destination.
Please vote no on A 136. I am happy to answer any questions you may have.
Sincerely,
Sharon Quick, MD, MA (Bioethics)
President, Physicians for Compassionate Care Education Foundation (PCCEF)1. CAPC. Palliative Care in New York. 2025. (Link).
2. Chambers B. How to Increase Awareness and Reduce Gaps in Palliative Care for Minorities July 9, 2020. (Link) (accessed 9-22-2024).
3. Pope TM, Brodoff L. Medical aid in dying to avoid late-stage dementia. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society 2024: 1-7. (Link). -
Site: LifeNews
Yesterday in Brussels, Belgian police arrested Lois McLatchie Miller, a Senior Legal Communications Officer with ADF International, and Billboard Chris, a Canadian child protection advocate, for peacefully holding a sign that read: “Children are never born in the wrong body.”
An angry mob surrounded them, yet it was the peaceful pair—not the agitators—who police arrested.
They were transported to separate police stations, strip-searched, and detained for several hours. Ultimately, no charges were filed. But even after admitting no crime had been committed, police announced that the signs they had carried – signs peacefully expressing a viewpoint -would be destroyed.
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Let that sink in: No charges. No conviction. But property confiscated and destroyed by the government – all for the “crime” of expressing an inconvenient truth in public.
This happened in Brussels – the very heart of the European Union, not Beijing. In Europe, not North Korea. And it should alarm every American – especially Christians and pro-life advocates.
This is just the latest episode in a disturbing trend sweeping Western Europe. Peaceful, moral, fact-based speech is being punished under the guise of public order or tolerance.
In the United Kingdom, Isabel Vaughan-Spruce was arrested – twice – for silently praying outside an abortion facility. Dr. Dermot Kearney faced suspension and investigation for helping women who regretted taking the first abortion pill by offering abortion pill reversal treatment -even though the women he helped thanked him for it. Only after a lengthy legal battle was he fully vindicated.
In Germany and Spain, individuals have been fined for offering support to women facing unexpected pregnancies. And now, in Belgium’s capital, citizens are being arrested, searched, and stripped of their rights – and property – for simply affirming biological reality and the dignity of children.
This is not hypothetical. This is happening now.
Billboard Chris X
In America, our First Amendment protects freedom of speech, religion, and assembly – not as privileges, but as rights given by God and protected by government. The Founders recognized that when government becomes the gatekeeper of truth, freedom dies.
But let’s be honest: the same ideological forces at work in Europe are alive and well here.
Pro-life sidewalk counselors in the U.S. have been arrested under the federal FACE Act for peacefully advocating for women and their unborn children. Others have faced online censorship, vandalism, and government pressure simply for speaking Biblical truth or holding traditional moral views.
But we are not helpless – and we are not without precedent.
For decades, Heartbeat International and the pregnancy help movement have modeled what it means to love boldly, speak truthfully, and serve compassionately. We’ve done so in the face of opposition, misunderstanding, and unjust scrutiny. And still, we’ve grown stronger. Our light has pierced through the darkness of cultural confusion. We’ve shown the world that you can be both unapologetically pro-life and relentlessly compassionate.
Now, with a more religious-liberty-friendly administration in place, we have a renewed opportunity—not just to defend our freedoms, but to affirm them confidently and expand their reach.
Let’s not wait for a crackdown to wake up. Let’s act while the door is open.
Now is the time to be bold. Speak truth in the public square. Pray without apology. Live your faith out loud. Support organizations that uphold life, liberty, and the dignity of every person. And elect leaders who recognize that freedom of speech is not a loophole – it is the bedrock of a free and virtuous society.
And yes, hold our leaders accountable. Even in America, we must remain vigilant. If peaceful signs can be confiscated in Brussels, they can be banned in Boston. If truth can be criminalized there, it can be marginalized here.
Let the arrest and violation of Lois McLatchie Miller and Billboard Chris’s freedom of speech serve as both a warning and a wake-up call. Freedom is fragile. Truth is under fire. But with courage and conviction, we can reclaim the ground where our freedoms are at stake.
LifeNews Note: Andrea Trudden serves as the Vice President of Communications & Marketing at Heartbeat International, overseeing the public presence of the organization and its network of more than 3,600 pregnancy help organizations worldwide. This column originally appeared at Pregnancy Help News.
The post Pro-Life Christians Arrested for Signs Saying “Children are Never Born in the Wrong Body” appeared first on LifeNews.com.
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Site: Zero HedgeChina FX Diversification And The DollarTyler Durden Mon, 06/09/2025 - 13:25
By Martin Lynge Rasmussen of Money: Inside and Out
China has been preparing for further tension in the US-China relationship since Trump's first term, including by increasing the resilience of the Chinese financial system to external shocks. One key part of such plans is likely to reduce the importance of the US dollar for Chinese economic activity and increase the international usage of the RMB. We consider here (some) data relevant to tracking China’s FX diversification. Two trends emerge.
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Firstly, China has managed to reduce its reliance on the dollar by increasing the role of the renminbi. The dollar’s share of Chinese cross-border transfers has declined structurally in the last 15 years, from 80-85% in 2010 to 40-45% now, and the vast majority of the decline has been driven by higher renminbi flows. Relatedly, the CNH's share of global trade financing has increased from around 2% in 2021 to over 7% now (and picked up further since November), and has come at the expense of the dollar's market share. One explanation for the increasing linkage between renminbi cross-border transfers and its global market share is that the RMB is increasingly being used for 'real' economic transactions with foreigners rather than simply for cross-border transfers between Chinese entities.
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Secondly, against this, FX diversification has not made much progress. The dollar share of China's FX reserves, for example, seems to have remained constant in recent years. Relatedly, banks' external dollar net assets have been broadly stable in recent years and stood at $476bn in Q4-2024 (though gross assets and gross liabilities have fallen). But as China’s GDP has increased, dollar exposure-to-GDP ratios have declined. Non-USD FX net assets (e.g. those denominated in EUR) have remained minor and haven't increased meaningfully. And onshore FX trading remains extremely dominated by USDCNY, with very little trading in other pairs.
FX denomination of Chinese flows: structural decline but little sign of sharp drop recently (outside of trade finance)
The share of Chinese cross-border transfers that are denominated in dollars has declined from around 80-85% in the early 2010s to around 40-45% now. But the entirety of the decline in the dollar share is due to the rising role of cross-border renminbi flows. If we exclude CNY and only look at cross-border FX flows, the dollar's share of Chinese cross-border transfers has remained extremely high. As such, beyond the renminbi, other currencies have not become more dominant in Chinese cross-border flows.
This data is published by SAFE each month and measures cross-border bank transfers in both renminbi and FX.
From China's point of view, FX diversification matters as being cut off from the global dollar system, even if a tail risk, would reduce China's ability to carry out transactions related to international trade and investment. A question therefore is the extent to which the rise of renminbi in cross-border flows has led to an increase in China's ability to carry out trade with non-Chinese entities denominated in renminbi, or whether the flows simply reflect e.g. flows between mainland Chinese companies and their offshore subsidiaries (and other activities that wouldn't help China carry out international trade absent access to dollars).
Data from SWIFT suggests that usage of the renminbi has surged in recent years, though it remains very low relative to dollar usage. The CNY's share of global trade finance transactions has increased from 1.9% during 2018-2021 to 6.4% in November last year and 7.4% in March. We would think the freezing of Russian reserves has led to a sharp increase in the usage of renminbi in Russia-China trade, though other EMs might also have begun to dip their toes in CNY-denominated trade, too. Renminbi usage in payments has also doubled since 2022. At the same time, the dollar's share in international trade financing has declined from around 86% during 2018-2021 to around 81% now, a decline similar to the increase seen by the renminbi.
Since 2020, the rising share of renminbi in global trade finance and payments has trended together with the share of renminbi in Chinese cross-border transfers. This could suggest that cross-border renminbi transfers were, to some extent, driven by cross-border transfers between Chinese entities rather than with non-Chinese entities before 2020. If true, this would mean that the rise in cross-border renminbi transfers since 2020 has been due to "real" activities rather than 'financial engineering'.
The share of global trade finance denominated in dollars vs. renminbi has been closely inversely related since at least 2022. This also supports the idea that the renminbi's global usage has risen, and that it has come at the cost of the dollar.
When it comes to onshore FX trading, the dollar is as dominant as ever across different FX instruments as well as on the whole. This mirrors the total ex-CNY cross-border transfers, where the dollar also remains dominant.
Hedging behavior: gradual increase in hedges continues
Another way FX exposure changes is through changes to FX hedging ratios, which measure the extent to which FX assets are protected against moves in foreign exchange rates.
SAFE defines Chinese corporate FX hedging in terms of FX transactions, rather than via the share of FX net assets that are hedged. This ratio has increased from a bottom of <10% in 2015 to nearly 30% in 2025.
Banks' net FX exposure (as a percent of net assets) has declined from a high of around 3.5% in 2015 to below 1.5% by Q4 last year.
The two series are different from regular "FX hedge ratios" yet might still tell us something about "true" hedge ratios, given how closely they correlate over time.
FX exposure of Chinese entities: stable net dollar assets amid a decline in both assets and liabilities
Most Chinese foreign assets (including non-dollar assets) are held by the PBOC, though holdings by other entities have increased in the past decade.
The share of Chinese FX assets that are held in dollars has not materially declined in recent years, however.
As we have little insight into the composition of official FX holdings, we dig into banks' external assets and liabilities, for which we have better data. This data is compiled by SAFE on a BoP basis, and therefore measures Chinese banks' assets and liabilities against non-residents across both CNY and FX. We can see that, like for flows related to trade, it is a question of dollars vs. renminbi and that holdings of non-USD FX remain small.
Chinese banks' net dollar assets now stand at $476bn according to the BoP-basis data published by SAFE. This is much below the $1,115bn implied by the PBOC's data on net foreign assets of "other depositary institutions" (i.e., banks). Though there are likely differences in the statistical caliber of this data, we are surprised that this divergence hasn't gotten attention; we are not sure what is behind the large difference and will investigate the topic further. One explanation could be that the $1,11bn includes net FX assets held onshore, whereas the $476bn only includes assets and liabilities vs. non-residents. While it is technically true that Chinese banks' external net dollar assets have been broadly stable, it has occurred amid a $200bn decline in banks' external dollar assets and $224bn decline in their external dollar liabilities since Q4-2021 (i.e. before Russia invaded Ukraine).
There are many actors beyond banks in China, of course. To get a better sense of dollar holdings beyond banks, we do a rough estimate of bank vs. non-bank holdings of dollar-denominated loans and deposits, as well as bonds. More specifically, we apply banks' dollar share of external assets and apply this to the given IIP category (and our estimate therefore assumes that banks and non-banks' dollar allocations are similar across loans, deposits, and bonds).
Loans and deposits: Chinese external dollar net loans and deposit assets stood at $356bn in Q4-2024, down from $478bn in Q1-2022. Our assumptions furthermore imply that banks' and non-banks' external USD loans and deposit assets are of rather similar size. One explanation for the large size of non-bank dollar net assets could be that they have a substantial amount of dollar deposits with banks outside of China.
Bonds: the vast majority of external dollar net assets are held by banks, however, and non-banks' net assets only turned positive during 2023.
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Site: Henrymakow.com
Left- The US has been invaded by an alien entityWhat would you do if you were in Trump's shoes?Would you deport every illegal in the country?by Mike Stone(henrymakow.com)Are you enjoying the Los Angeles riots? I have a front row seat. After all, I live here, only a couple of blocks from ground zero. Cars burning to my left, cops doing nothing to my right. I love LA.I have mixed feelings about it all. I know dozens of illegals: men, women, and children. My neighbors are illegal. I play with their kids and give them toys. So naturally I'm opposed to their deportation.On the other hand, my car was broken into by illegals. When I lived in Hollywood, an illegal alien broke into the apartment above mine. (I called the cops the second I heard the glass break and they came and arrested the guy. At the ensuing trial, the arresting officer told me I was a rarity, because only one out of every twenty witnesses to a crime actually shows up to court.)I've also dated girls who were here illegally. How could I not? When you live in Los Angeles you're surrounded by non-white people. And if you're a male, you're attracted to what you see around you. So I've dated dozens of Latinas. I've also dated Black and Asian girls. (As a side note, I found them nicer and easier to date than white girls, but that's a topic for another time.)Wait -
Three fire engines just went screaming past me. More cars have been torched, maybe some buildings.I suspect a lot of these rioters are being paid. My suspicions are even stronger knowing that our fraudulently elected mayor is a former "community organizer" and CIA asset who is well experienced in fermenting street riots and violent protests.
There's also the historical context. The 1992 Los Angeles riots were fermented and allowed to continue by both local and federal authorities. There was nothing spontaneous about them.Hold on -No less than thirty police cars just sped past me, sirens blaring.I'm amused by all the so-called conservatives watching these riots from the comfort of their living rooms and screaming for every illegal in the country to be rounded up and either shot or deported. Just how is that going to happen?These are the same "conservatives" who allowed unfettered immigration to happen in the first place. They did that by violently shouting down and silencing anyone who dared to speak out about the Kalergi Plan, or the role that Jews have played in destroying the country through immigration. Now the fruits of their labors are before them, and they respond with outraged shock.
And of course liberal white women are largely responsible for the mess we're in. They support every anti-American platform the Jews present them with. They're the actual foot soldiers of our oppressors. Without liberal white women, we'd be living in a utopia. (Remember what I said about Latina, black and Asian women being nicer and easier to date than white women?)It's the same with white women in Europe. Remember their little "Refugees Welcome" signs? They are a major source of the problem, and the same fake conservatives who lash out at truth-tellers who try to expose the Kalergi plan, will defend these skanks and whores. I don't know who's worse.Whoa -Some shifty-looking individuals are hovering close to me. I'm going to move before something happens.What would you do if you were in Trump's place? What actions would you take if you had all the power in the world?I would engage in massive deportations, but many of them on a case-by-case basis. People like my neighbors are not a threat to anyone other than the insecure, porn-addicted weasels who scream about deportation. It's funny how those that call for Civil War, or for military action abroad, or for the violent deportation of all illegal aliens are always people with no intention of actually doing any of the work themselves.Have you noticed that? They brag constantly about their guns and their patriotism, yet they were the first ones to surrender when the virus hoax took place. They didn't lift a finger to resist, didn't boycott any of their oppressors.In today's America, they're the ones who expect Trump to solve all of their problems, while they sit like drooling retards, watching sports, eating donuts, and jerking off to OnlyFans. Let's call them what they are - pussies.So I ask you again, what would you do if you were in Trump's shoes? Would you deport every illegal in the country?Mike Stone is the author of the new book REAL or FAKE: The Donald Trump Assassination Attempt and Teen Boy's Success Book: the Ultimate Self-Help Book for Boys; Everything You Need to Know to Become a ManFirst Comment from RS (seen on X)You now have irrefutable evidence that these "asylum seekers" aren't escaping failed state lawless hellholes.They were imported for the specific purpose of turning America into a failed state hellhole and we're the ones that need refuge from them. -
Site: Zero HedgeUBS Warns On Slumping iPhone Demand As WWDC 2025 Kicks OffTyler Durden Mon, 06/09/2025 - 13:05
Watch WWDC 25:
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Update (1312ET):
That was quick.
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APPLE TURNS NEGATIVE DURING PRESENTATION AT DEVELOPER'S CONF.
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APPLE SAYS APPLE INTELLIGENCE MODELS ARE COMING FOR DEVELOPERS
And puke.
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Apple's annual Worldwide Developers Conference has kicked off, where the tech giant will roll out the usual updates to iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, and visionOS.
One year ago, CEO Tim Cook unveiled "Apple Intelligence." Since then? A total flop...
One year ago, the "experts" confused the post WWDC surge in AAPL stock with excitement over Apple AI (which was a completely disaster) when it was just a flood of stock buyback orders. Expect the same this year. https://t.co/X6ldA3fRfb
— zerohedge (@zerohedge) June 9, 2025Tech blog Engadget offered insights on what to expect from today's event:
One of the big things we expect Apple to announce later today, based on the rumors, is a new naming standard for its various platforms. The company might move to a year-based identifier instead of an arbitrary generation number. That means instead of iOS 19, iPadOS 19 and watchOS 12, we could see iOS 26, iPadOS 26 and watchOS 26 to indicate the year most people will be using the latest software.'
. . .
As has become the norm, there is already plenty of reporting and rumors out there on what we can expect to hear from Apple later today. Some of the more intriguing include a major update to iPadOS that would make it more Mac-like and better for productivity, multi-tasking and app window management. Some less functional but still noteworthy changes, according to the rumors, include a possible visual refresh and new naming method.
Engadget's Nathan Ingraham noted, "Should we have an over/under bet on how many times we hear the words "Apple Intelligence" today?"
Will rainbows translate into more iPhone sales?
On Sunday, UBS analyst David Vogt shared new survey data with clients based on responses from 7,500 smartphone users across the U.S., U.K., China, Germany, and Japan. The survey data painted a bleak picture of iPhone demand.
Key Survey Findings:
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U.S. and China Intent Drops: iPhone purchase intent in the U.S. dropped to 17%—the lowest in five years—while China fell from 22% to 16% year-over-year, hitting its weakest level in nearly a decade.
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Other Markets Mixed: The UK and Germany saw flat or slight declines, while Japan was the only country with a modest improvement (13%, up from 11%).
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Average iPhone Age Climbs: The average iPhone in use is now 22.9 months old, the highest ever recorded by UBS, indicating delayed upgrade cycles.
Vogt noted that Apple's new GenAI suite, branded as Apple Intelligence, has failed to spark any meaningful upgrade cycle outside China.
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Site: AsiaNews.itThe Commission on Elections has set deadlines for the first legislative elections in Mindanao's autonomous region. The Moro Islamic Liberation Front is calling for the vote not to be postponed any further. The removal of Sulu from the autonomous region's territory is not going without glitches, and the risk of fraud related to registration is raising questions.
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Site: Mises InstituteOur author went to St. Croix in the US Virgin Islands, expecting a vacation in paradise. Unfortunately, thanks to the USVI government‘s laws “protecting” the taxi industry, he had to spend a tidy sum of money just getting around.
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Site: Rorate CaeliPentecost MondayClosing Mass of Pilgrimage - Cathedral of Our Lady of ChartresBishop Philippe Christory, Bishop of ChartresPope Leo has just written a message to the Catholic Church in France on the anniversary of the canonisation of Saint John Eudes, Saint John-Mary Vianney, and Saint Thérèse of Lisieux. The Pope tells us: “they loved Jesus unreservedly in a simple, strong and authentic way; New Catholichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04118576661605931910noreply@blogger.com
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Site: Zero HedgeOPEC Oil Production Fell Short Of OPEC+ Target In MayTyler Durden Mon, 06/09/2025 - 12:45
By Charles Kennedy of OilPrice.com
OPEC’s crude oil production in May increased less than called for in the OPEC+ agreement which had a large output hike planned for last month.
All 12 OPEC members produced 26.75 million barrels per day (bpd) in May, up by 150,000 bpd from April, a Reuters survey showed on Monday.
The five OPEC members that have pledged cuts in the OPEC+ agreement and are now gradually unwinding these cuts had to raise their combined output by 310,000 bpd. But they only lifted production by 180,000 bpd, according to the Reuters survey of data from oil-flow tracking companies and sources at OPEC, oil firms, and consultants.
That’s because Iraq made cuts to compensate for previously chronic overproduction and Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) raised output by less than their targets, the Reuters survey found.
Saudi Arabia made the largest hike in May compared to April. OPEC’s top producer and de facto leader, and leader of the OPEC+ alliance, raised output by 130,000 bpd, per the survey.
That’s not unusual as Saudi Arabia had the largest share of cuts.
OPEC+ producers who have made cuts in the previous three years are now unwinding these at a pace of 411,000 bpd in May, June, and July.
The OPEC+ group earlier this month decided it would boost July production by another 411,000 bpd, citing “current healthy oil market fundamentals and steady global economic outlook.”
In a note on Monday, commodity analysts from Morgan Stanley said the 411,000 barrels daily that OPEC+ said it would add to oil production in May did not materialize.
“Notwithstanding the around 1 million-barrel-a-day increase in production quotas between March and June, an actual increase in production is hard to detect,” the team, led by Martijn Rats said in the note, as quoted by Bloomberg.
“Notably, it does not appear that production in Saudi Arabia has ramped up significantly,” according to Morgan Stanley.
Still, the bank believes that OPEC+ would add some 420,000 bpd to its crude production between June and September, tipping the market into a surplus.
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Site: Mundabor's blogPope Leo has spoken for Pentecost. It wasn’t really bad, but there were too many buzzwords. In particular these word, “walls” and “borders”, that are so easily abused. Let us say one thing first: the walls Leo talks about are, explicitly so, spiritual ones. In Italian, you would use these words commonly. You would use […]
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Site: AsiaNews.itA senior pastor with Yoido Full Gospel Church in Seoul, the 70-year-old was elected at the recent world conference in Helsinki by representatives from 90 countries. His selection shows the growing role of Asian communities in this part of global Christianity.
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Site: Zero HedgeChina Exports To US Tumble As Transshipments To Evade Trump Tariffs SoarTyler Durden Mon, 06/09/2025 - 12:25
Overnight China published its latest inflation/trade data dump. It showed that, as expected, China is still unable to kickstart its economy as it remains mired in deflation, with May CPI printing -0.1% (the last time CPI was positive was in January) while PPI is going from bad to worse, printing -3.3% YoY, and negative since February 2023!
Meanwhile, China's trade growth moderated in May - after the April surge - despite the substantial tariff rollback between the US and China, and came in below consensus expectations (exports: +4.8% yoy, imports: -3.4% yoy).
The moderation in headline export growth reflects the continued fall in China's exports to the US with another 17% sequential decline after seasonal adjustment. Meanwhile, the decline in imports appears widespread, consistent with fewer working days in May compared with a year ago.
By product, export value of housing-related products fell in May, while exports of automobile and tech-related products rose. The imports of energy products and metal ores declined notably, partly due to falling prices. Overall, the trade surplus was US$103.2bn in May, higher than in April.
By region, while China's exports to the US plunged further in May, exports to other economies picked up.
As shown in the next chart, while normally Chinese exports to the US would be around $50BN, they have since dropped to $30 billion. And as Brad Setser notes, "the trailing 12m of exports to the US isn't tracking exports to Europe."
The trade war impact is there if you know where to look -- exports to the US were ~ $30b, and they normally would be ~$50b. The trailing 12m of exports to the US isn't tracking exports to Europe (an easy test)
— Brad Setser (@Brad_Setser) June 9, 2025
3/ pic.twitter.com/CQj2bn7H0nImport values from most trading partners declined in May, except for those from the EU and LatAm.
The broader collapse in Chinese exports to the US, as reported by China, and US imports from China, as reported by the US (both are used to the rather gaping data divergences in the past), can be seen in the next chart.
Among major DM countries, exports to the US dropped by 34.5% yoy in May (vs. -21.0% yoy in April). China's imports from the US declined by 18.1% yoy in May (vs. -13.8% yoy in April). China's exports to the EU rose by 12.0% yoy in May (vs. +8.3% yoy in April), while imports from the EU were roughly unchanged from a year ago in May (vs. -16.5% yoy in April). Among major EM countries, exports to ASEAN rose by 14.8% yoy in May (vs. 20.8% yoy in April). Exports to Africa rose by 33.3% in May (vs. 26.3% yoy in April), however, imports from EM countries mostly moderated from April to May.
So how has China's economy not yet collapse if it has lost about 40% of its US export markets? Simple: transshipments. To fill the hole from exports lost to the US, China is ramping up exports to other countries... that then go on to re-export to the US!
So far there are no real signs that I can see that Trump's go-it-alone tariffs have tamed China's export juggernaut
— Brad Setser (@Brad_Setser) June 9, 2025
6/6 pic.twitter.com/AOW25L65ncAnd to make it abudnantly clear that all the trade war has so far achieved is boosted transshipments is the following Setser chart showing that whatever export volume has been given up by China, has been more than made up by ASEAN (mostly Vietnam) + Taiwan, i.e. filling the hole with transshipments.
Some more interesting (and likely more important) things happening right now, but still wanted to highlight a couple of the details of the US trade data.
— Brad Setser (@Brad_Setser) June 6, 2025
Seems pretty clear what is happening here
1/ pic.twitter.com/gllUggBwuIThe bottom line, as everyone who is familiar with China's economy knows, and as Brad Setser repeats this morning, is that "net exports are still driving China's economy", and is why not just the US - but also Europe - is expressing outrage with Beijing's relentless mercantilist model, which exports deflation - and economic pain - to every market targeted by China's sweatshops.
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Site: Zero HedgeTrump Did It: Executives & Administrators Are Increasingly Using TDI To Fight DEITyler Durden Mon, 06/09/2025 - 12:05
“Trump made me do it.”
Across the country, this is a virtual mantra being mouthed everywhere from businesses to higher education. Corporations are eliminating woke programs. Why? Trump did it. Universities are eliminating DEI offices and cracking down on campus extremism. Trump did it. Democratic politicians are abandoning far-left policies. Trump did it.
For those who lack both courage or conviction, the claim of coercion is often the next best thing. The “TDI defense” is born.
Of course, they did not invent Trump, but they needed him. For years, schools like Harvard and Columbia ignored warnings about the rising antisemitism on campuses. They refused to punish students engaged in criminal conduct, including occupying and trashing buildings. These administrators did not want to risk being tagged by the far-left mob for taking meaningful action.
Then the election occurred, and suddenly they were able to blame Trump for doing what they should have been doing all along.
Administrators are now cracking down on extreme elements on campuses.
At the same time, hundreds of schools are closing DEI offices around the country. Again, most are not challenging the Trump administration’s orders on DEI or seeking to adopt more limited responses. They are all in with the move, while professing that they have little choice.
In other words, schools are increasingly turning to TDI to end DEI.
The legal landscape has changed with an administration committed to opposing many DEI programs as discriminatory and unlawful. However, it is the speed and general lack of resistance that is so notable. In most cases, the Trump administration did not have to ask twice. Trump seemed to “have them at hello,” as if they were longing for a reason to reverse these trends.
Many will continue to fight this fight surreptitiously. For example, shortly before the Trump election, the University of North Carolina System Board of Governors voted to ban DEI and focus on “institutional neutrality.” Yet, even Administrators emboldened by the TDI defense are finding resistance in their ranks. For exsmple, UNC Asheville Dean of Students Megan Pugh was caught on videotape, saying that eliminating these offices means nothing: “I mean we probably still do anyway… but you gotta keep it quiet.” She added, “I love breaking rules.”
The Board, perhaps not feeling the same thrill, reportedly responded by firing her.
The same pattern is playing out in businesses. Over the last few weeks, companies ranging from Amazon to IBM have removed references to DEI programs or policies. Bank of America explained, “We evaluate and adjust our programs in light of new laws, court decisions, and, more recently, executive orders from the new administration.”
Once established, these DEI offices tended to expand as an irresistible force within their institutions and companies. Full-time diversity experts demanded additional hirings and policies on hiring, promotion, and public campaigns. Since these experts were tasked with finding areas for “reform,” their proposals were treated as extensions of that mandate. To oppose the reforms was to oppose the cause.
While some executives and administrators supported such efforts, others simply lacked the courage to oppose them. No one wanted to be accused of being opposed to “equity” or being racist, sexist, or homophobic. The results were continually expanding programs impacting every level of businesses and institutions.
Then Trump showed up. Suddenly, these executives and administrators had an excuse to reverse this trend. They could also rely on court decisions that have undermined long-standing claims of advocates that favoring certain groups at the expense of others was entirely lawful.
This week, the Supreme Court added to these cases with its unanimous ruling in Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services, to remove impediments to lawsuits by members of majority groups who are discriminated against.
For many years, lower courts have required members of majority groups (white, male, or heterosexual) to shoulder an added burden before they could establish claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. In a decision written by Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, the court rejected that additional burden and ordered that everyone must be treated similarly under the law.
Many commentators noted that the ruling further undermined the rationales for disparate treatment based on race or other criteria within DEI.
In other words, more of these programs are likely to be the subject of federal investigations and lawsuits. Of course, if these executives and administrators were truly committed to the programs in principle, they could resolve to fight in the courts. The alternative is just to blame Trump and restore prior policies that enforce federal standards against all discriminatory or preferred treatment given to employees based on race, sex, religion, or other classifications.
Former Vice President Hubert Humphrey once observed that “to err is human. To blame someone else is politics.” That is evident among politicians. For years, many moderate Democrats voted to support far-left agendas during the Biden administration, lacking the courage or principles to oppose the radical wing of the Democratic Party. Now, some are coming forward to say that the party has “lost touch with voters.”
Rather than admit that their years of supporting these policies were wrong, they blame Trump and argue that the party must move toward the center to survive.
The calculus is simple: You never act on principle when you can blame a villain instead. It is not a profile of courage but one of simple convenience. No need for admissions or responsibility — just TDI and done.
Jonathan Turley is the Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington University and the author of “The Indispensable Right: Free Speech in an Age of Rage.”
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Site: Novus Motus LiturgicusAs noted last month, the first part of the Nicodemus Gospel, John 3, 1-15 or 16, was said at two other Masses before it was assigned to the Finding of the Cross. On the other hand, the second part, verses 16-21, is found in the very oldest Roman lectionaries on Pentecost Monday, and remains there to this day. This may seem an odd choice, given that it speaks entirely about the mission of the SonGregory DiPippohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13295638279418781125noreply@blogger.com0
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Site: LifeNews
Texas will erect the Texas Life Monument, a statue honoring mothers and the sanctity of life, after Republican Gov. Greg Abbott signed a resolution Tuesday authorizing the monument be built. The legislation passed with a large majority of support in the Texas Legislature.
According Tim Van Dohlen, co-founder of the St. John Paul II Life Center and Vitae Clinic in Austin who helped devise the project, Abbott’s signature made Texas the first state to approve of a pro-life statue honoring mother and child on Capitol grounds.
State Rep. Caroline Harris Davila, co-author of the resolution, said, “The eight-foot bronze sculpture is modeled after the National Life Monument, which depicts a mother with her child in her womb—a powerful image honoring motherhood and the miracle of life.”
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“The monument provides a communal space for honoring the dignity of human life and the role of mothers—values that resonate deeply with many, many Texans,” the resolution’s other co-author, state Sen. Tan Parker, said.
While the resolution failed to pass in the Texas House in 2023, it passed last month with overwhelming majorities in the Texas Senate (22-9) and the House (94-47).
“The viewers of the sculpture literally see themselves in the center of the work, symbolizing their connection to this creative source,” said Timothy Schmalz, the statue’s sculptor.
“[The resolution] recognizes the great significance of a woman and the importance of a mother to every family,” said Van Dohlen in his committee testimony advocating for the project. “The family has been and continues to be the integral foundation for the stability of Texas and American society.”
LifeNews Note: Quinn Delamater is an intern for The Daily Signal, where this column originally appeared.
The post Texas Will Construct Pro-Life Monument Honoring Mothers and Unborn Children appeared first on LifeNews.com.
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Site: Zero HedgeBritish Gov't: Western Cultural Concerns Are Signs Of "Right-Wing Terrorist Ideology"Tyler Durden Mon, 06/09/2025 - 11:25
Free speech in the United Kingdom has long been in free fall, with expanding criminalization and regulation of speech. Much of this effort is carried out to combat disinformation or radicalism.
The subjectivity of such “Prevent” standards is evident in a new media report that officers are being trained to look for “cultural nationalism,” including those people who are concerned that Western culture is under threat from mass migration.
Such concerns are now viewed as indicative of “right-wing terrorist ideology.”
Europe, like the United States, is showing a surge in political support for politicians seeking to limit and reverse mass immigration into their countries. That includes Great Britain.
The material is part of an online training course for British hospitals, schools, universities, and other public institutions that are expected to identify and report extremists to the government.
The training would subject a large number of British citizens to potential investigation as right-wing extremists. In 2023, a government report by William Shawcross concluded “populist conservative voices who have nothing to do with violent extremism” are often identified by investigators even though the overwhelming number of attacks committed in the UK were “Islamist in nature.”
There have also been warnings that by classifying “cultural nationalism” as an indication of extremism, the anti-terror scheme could be used to stifle public debate.
A Home Office spokesman insisted, however, that “Prevent is not about restricting debate or free speech, but about protecting those susceptible to radicalisation.”
That is a rationale already used in the UK to arrest those with dangerous thoughts or viewpoints.
For years, I have been writing about the decline of free speech in the United Kingdom and the steady stream of arrests, including in my book, The Indispensable Right: Free Speech in an Age of Rage.
A man was convicted of sending a tweet while drunk, referring to dead soldiers. Another was arrested for wearing an anti-police t-shirt. Another was arrested for calling the Irish boyfriend of his ex-girlfriend a “leprechaun.” Yet another was arrested for singing “Kung Fu Fighting.” A teenager was arrested for protesting outside of a Scientology center with a sign calling the religion a “cult.”
Nicholas Brock, 52, was convicted of a thought crime in Maidenhead, Berkshire. The neo-Nazi was given a four-year sentence for what the court called his “toxic ideology” based on the contents of the home he shared with his mother in Maidenhead, Berkshire. Judge Peter Lodder QC dismissed free speech or free thought concerns with a truly Orwellian statement:
“I do not sentence you for your political views, but the extremity of those views informs the assessment of dangerousness.”
Lodder lambasted Brock for holding Nazi and other hateful values:
“[i]t is clear that you are a right-wing extremist, your enthusiasm for this repulsive and toxic ideology is demonstrated by the graphic and racist iconography which you have studied and appeared to share with others…”
Recently, the UK effectively resumed blasphemy prosecutions and previously arrested a woman for silently praying to herself near an abortion clinic.
The training captures the potential chilling effect on speech where any publicly stated concerns over immigration and Western Civilization could lead to your being reported to the police. It reflects the cavalier approach to such speech regulations in not just the UK but throughout Europe. However, this European model is being promoted by many in the United States, including some who are calling on the European Union to challenge the United States over the regulation of speech.
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Site: Euthanasia Prevention Coalition
Alex Schadenberg
Executive Director, Euthanasia Prevention Coalition
Roger Foley, London Health Sciences Centre
Yesterday I published an article titled: Roger Foley has served more than 9 years in hospital care. He deserves to be sent home with self directed care.
James Reinl wrote an article titled: I've been trapped in a hospital for NINE YEARS and staff tell me the way out is killing myself that was published in the Daily Mail on June 8, 2025. Reinl explains Roger Foley's dilemma:A disabled Canadian man has told the Daily Mail about his living hell of nine years in a hospital where he says caregivers badger him to end his life by lethal injection.Roger Foley is stuck in a room in the London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) in London, Ontario, where staff repeatedly drop hints about euthanasia, he says.He suffers from spinocerebellar ataxia, an incurable brain disease that makes it difficult to move. He needs to be lifted so he can eat, drink, and take medication.Last month the hospital switched out the amber lights in his room for bright bulbs that leave Foley, who is light sensitive, in pain and unable to be lifted for meals, he says.The 49-year-old ate his last mouthful of food on May 6 and has since received sustenance through a drip.Now, his strained veins are collapsing, and he is at risk of a heart attack or other health crisis, he adds.Last week, I visited Roger Foley at the hospital. During the visit we discussed that he has not received any food since May 6, which was more than a month. Roger is receiving fluids with some sustenance through an IV tube, but that does not provide the necessary nutrition to sustain him.
His state-funded at-home caregivers were negligent, dragging him across floors and banging him into walls, he says.He ended up in hospital with food poisoning in February 2016 and he has been there ever since.Foley says he will only go home once he can choose his own caregivers, in what is called 'self-directed' care — a rarity in the province's tax-funded healthcare system.
Yesterday I wrote that Roger, who I have been communicating with for several years, does not want to live in the hospital. Roger has served his time and deserves to be sent home. The catch is that based on his disability he needs significant care.
Roger proposed, from the beginning, that he be sent home with self-directed care, meaning that Roger would hire the care team to provide for his needs. Self-directed care is a program that exists in Ontario, but Roger has been denied access to the program.
Reinl reports Roger as stating:Reinl explains the stand-off that Foley has with the London Health Sciences Centre:
Last month, hospital bosses took away the soft amber lighting Foley needs in favor of the regular blue lights that hurt his disease-ravaged eyes, he says.As a result, he cannot be lifted to eat and has since been fed through a drip, he says.That raises the risks of heart attacks, infections and blood clots, he says.'They know that my body can only last so long without access to food, medicine, and water, and they know that my eyes can't tolerate the light,' he said.
'They would be more than happy if I died of a heart attack.Foley wants to leave the hospital and go home, Reinl writes:He says he yearns to get back to his one-bedroom apartment on Highbury, where he can compose music and carry out voluntary work for disability rights charities.Foley's home has an accessible shower and gym. If he is granted self-directed care, he could also see his mom, two brothers, and niece more often, he says.
'That's my light at the end of the tunnel,' he says.An online fundraiser for his legal battle has so far raised nearly $3,000.As I stated in my article yesterday when you do the math, self-directed care is the least expensive and preferable option for care.
The hospital is an incredibly expensive place to care for Roger and he does not want to be there. "Care agencies" bill the government for the cost of the care and the costs associated with the agency.
Self-directed care, whereby Roger would hire his own care team, is the least expensive and the preferable option since most of the cost is limited to the cost of the care team.
It is time to release Roger from the confinement of the hospital room and send him home with self-directed care. Roger has already created a proposed model of care that outlines the requirements of his team and the cost associated with his care.
Roger deserves to be sent home and be approved for self-directed care. -
Site: Zero HedgeAdvance Into Central Ukrainian Region Is Part Of Putin's 'Buffer-Zone': KremlinTyler Durden Mon, 06/09/2025 - 11:05
We detailed Sunday that Russian forces have begun advancing into Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk region for the first time in the three-year-plus long war, marking a significant territorial escalation amid stalled peace talks. The Kremlin on Monday described the expanded offensive as key to establishing President Vladimir Putin's buffer zone in a fresh statement.
The recent advance into Dnepropetrovsk Region, which borders Donetsk to the West, is part of the push establish a "buffer zone" on the front line, Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
War Memorial Dnipropetrovsk, Wikimedia Commons
"It is one of the goals, of course, but if we talk about the nuances of the military actions themselves, then your questions should be addressed to the Defense Ministry," Peskov said.
The defense ministry has confirmed that tank division of the battle group 'Center group' - the 90th Armored Division - reached the western border of Donetsk as of Sunday, and was advancing into the Dnepropetrovsk oblast.
In late May, Putin had announced before ministers and Kremlin officials that he's ordered a big buffer zone along Russia's southern border to protect the towns and populations there from cross-border strikes from Ukraine.
"We have approved the creation of a necessary security buffer zone along our borders. Our armed forces are actively working to accomplish this task," the Russian leader had stated.
April, May, and early June have seen thousands of drones launched from Ukraine onto southern oblasts, with some drones targeting as far as Moscow, which has resulted in commercial flight stoppages at several area airports.
The timing of Putin's buffer zone plan was very significant, given that President Trump is increasingly being perceived as 'stepping back' from pursuit of a final peace settlement, perhaps content to 'let them fight it out'.
The NY Times last month described that Trump is ready to throw his hands up in the air and say 'not my problem' as neither side is ready to compromise:
For months, President Trump has been threatening to simply walk away from the frustrating negotiations for a cease-fire between Russia and Ukraine.
After a phone call on Monday between Mr. Trump and President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, that appears to be exactly what the American president is doing. The deeper question now is whether he is also abandoning America’s three-year-long project to support Ukraine, a nascent democracy that he has frequently blamed for being illegally invaded.
The Times concluded, "In a reversal, President Trump appears to have backed off joining a European push for new sanctions on Russia, seemingly eager to move on to doing business deals with it."
Also last month, hawkish top national security official Dmitry Medvedev warned that Russia could eventually extend the buffer zone across almost the whole of Ukraine.
Former Russian president Medvedev was being threatening and perhaps hyperbolic, given Russia has struggled to slowly solidify its hold over the Donbass, yet Putin has still held back on a full declaration of war and mobilization of the whole of society.
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Site: Ron Paul Institute - Featured Articles
Last week’s dramatic blowout between President Trump and his one-time top collaborator Elon Musk was shocking yet predictable. According to media reports, a cold war had been brewing between Musk’s people and Trump’s appointees and it was bound to break out into the open. It was only a matter of time.
On the campaign trail, Musk provided much energy and helped ramp up enthusiasm for Donald Trump. His support for Trump made him a lightning rod for Trump-haters and he saw his personal wealth take a hit for his troubles.
After Trump’s victory, Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency project was truly revolutionary. Americans were able to see up close and in real time just how government operates. Not only did the billions and trillions of dollars spent by the federal government not achieve the stated goals, but much of the spending actually harmed the United States.
Americans were able to see that the “aid” they send overseas does not provide food and relief for those suffering through disasters but is actually used to create a global US empire encompassing everything from the media to military spending to non-profits.
Once USAID was targeted by DOGE, for example, we learned that 90 percent of the “independent” media in Ukraine was US government controlled. Other countries chimed in to say that much of their own “independent” media is propped up by the US government.
Foreign “journalists” paid by the US government are going to publish what the US government wants to be published. That is one reason Americans to this day are so ill-informed about Ukraine and what started the war. For example, how many Americans know that their own government staged a coup in Ukraine in 2014 that directly led to the disaster we have seen these past three years?
The message was there for anyone who wanted to see it: The United States is being undermined by a government that demands the right to intervene in every aspect of our lives – and of the lives of everyone on the planet. It is not sustainable.
In the end it was Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” that broke it all apart.
The US House served up a massive funding bill that, as usual, blew up the national debt with more spending and promised that sometime down the road spending cuts would kick in and we would start saving money. We’ve seen this movie many times before.
In a post seen by over a hundred million people on his social media platform X, Elon Musk finally could hold his tongue no longer. “This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination,” he wrote. Within hours this break escalated seemingly beyond the point of no return and the Trump/Musk split was seemingly finalized.
Musk was no-doubt frustrated that despite all of the work he and his team did to uncover government waste, he hit a brick wall in a Washington that recoils from any attempt to shrink its size and level of interference in our lives.
Can Trump and Musk “make up” and find a way to work together in the future? After the smoke has cleared we can only hope for a return to the principles of DOGE and the idea that current levels of spending and debt are unsustainable. Surely both men can agree on that.
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Site: Fr. Z's BlogSaturday Vigil of Pentecost, at The Parish™, Card. Müller administered the Sacrament of Confirmation. Here are some moments. Please remember me when shopping online and use my affiliate links. US HERE – WHY? This helps to pay for health insurance (massively hiked … Read More →
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Site: Zero HedgeTether USDT Stablecoin Seen On Bolivian Store Price-TagsTyler Durden Mon, 06/09/2025 - 10:45
Authored by Adrian Zmudzinski via CoinTelegraph.com,
Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino has shared photos of goods in a Bolivian airport shop priced in the company’s stablecoin, USDt, suggesting growing unofficial use of the cryptocurrency amid the country’s ailing economy.
In a Saturday X post, Ardoino shared images of items being priced in USDt in Bolivia, including sunglasses and sweets. One photo showed a notice to customers that prices were set in USDT:
“Our products are priced in USDT (Tether), a stable cryptocurrency with a reference price informed daily by the Central Bank of Bolivia, based on the rate from Binance (a cryptocurrency trading platform),” the notice read.
The notice said customers could pay in either local fiat currency, Bolivianos, or US dollars. USDT was used to establish the dollar-Bolivianos exchange rate.
Source: Paolo Ardoino
USDt making waves in Bolivia
The notice and the items were photographed at Duty Fly, an airport shop offering duty-free items to its customers. Neither Duty Fly nor Tether responded to Cointelegraph’s request for comment.
It’s unclear how widespread the use of USDT is as a pricing benchmark across Bolivia, but other reports suggest that the stablecoin is gaining considerable popularity in the country. In late October 2024, major local bank Banco Bisa began offering a custody service for USDT, stating that it would enable its clients to buy, sell and transfer the asset through the bank.
Bolivia’s economy crumbles
Bolivia’s economy has been in steep decline. The country’s usable foreign reserves fell from $15 billion in 2014 to $1.98 billion in December 2024, equivalent to only 2.9 months of imports. Of that amount, less than $50 million was in cash, and the rest was in gold.
Bolivia has a thriving black market for dollars, with the street rate reaching about 10 Bolivianos per dollar as of mid-2024. The current official exchange rate is approaching 7 Bolivianos per US dollar.
USD/BOB exchange rate chart. Source: Google Finance
The Bolivian government also spends about $56 million per week importing diesel and gasoline, yet it still faces nationwide shortages. The local Consumer Price Index inflation stood at 14.6% as of March 2025.
One of the photos shared by Ardoino showed a pack of Oreos priced between 15 and 22 USDT, underscoring the rapid erosion of the local currency’s purchasing power.
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Site: Fr. Z's BlogLet’s have a look at the Collect for today’s Mass of Pentecost Monday. COLLECT (1962MR): Deus, qui Apostolis tuis Sanctum dedisti Spiritum: concede plebi tuae piae petitionis effectum; ut, quibus dedisti fidem, largiaris et pacem. I found this prayer in … Read More →
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Site: AsiaNews.itThe body of Nattapong Pinta, a Thai farm worker who died soon after he was captured, was recovered over the weekend. In Thailand, the authorities expressed their sadness over the death. The sister of another hostage, Bipin Joshi, from Nepal, issued an appeal for his release, but his fate remains uncertain. In Israel, the Israeli parliament (Knesset) is set to vote on Wednesday on a motion to dissolve it over the issue of military service for Haredi Jews.
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Site: LifeNews
Last Saturday, the Indiana Department of Health released its “Terminated Pregnancy Report” for the first quarter of 2025, revealing alarming developments.
First, we can’t stress enough how shocking this data is…
Out of 22 abortions reported in the first quarter, only 2 individual Terminated Pregnancy Reports (TPRs) were completed and submitted as required by Indiana state law.
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The Hoosier State’s abortionists are largely ignoring Indiana’s reporting requirements, obscuring their activities in a dark shroud of secrecy.
Our legal team is in the middle of a legal battle against two abortionists who have sued our client, abortion industry watchdog Voices for Life. These abortionists are trying to keep individual TPRs hidden from public review—and this new report reveals that they don’t even bother to follow the law when the public doesn’t hold them accountable.
Second, it’s clear that those reported numbers don’t come close to the true number of abortions happening…
The state’s just-released Complications Report for the first quarter documented 20 complications from abortions in just three months. Of these, 13 were from chemical abortions, with 9 directly linked to the lethal abortion drugs mifepristone and misoprostol.
The most common complications? Incomplete abortions, accounting for 12 cases, alongside infections, bleeding, and inflammatory diseases… all side effects of chemical abortion pill.
This report dropped just days after Indy 500 race spectators were bombarded with “Abortion Pills By Mail” flyover ads during Memorial Day weekend, promoting the drugs responsible for these horrible complications with the coldness of an insurance agency or ice cream brand advertisement…
These findings underscore the importance of our fight to defend Indiana-based Voices for Life, a courageous nonprofit fighting to restore public access to TPRs—non-patient identifying records that keep women and children safe by keeping the abortion industry in check.
A win for Voices for Life is critical to ensuring accountability and safety, but we face fierce opposition…
A preliminary injunction, secured by two Indiana abortionists in March 2025, currently blocks release of TPRs—and women and children are suffering as a result, and the public is being left in the dark…
As our case grows more urgent, I’m eternally grateful for the support and prayers of pro-life Americans like you, Steven. You fuel our fight against the well-funded abortion industry and its foot soldiers, like the abortionists we’re currently battling in court.
Our legal team is appealing on behalf of Voices for Life to restore transparency through TPRs, but this new report just boosted the stakes even higher in this fight.
Losing isn’t an option, and we won’t stop fighting until the public is once again able to access the public records that they have a right to see. The abortion industry is not above the law.
The post Indiana Abortionists are Breaking the Law to Justify Killing Babies appeared first on LifeNews.com.
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Site: LES FEMMES - THE TRUTH
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Site: Fr. Z's BlogORIGINAL NOTES: Today is Monday in the Octave of Pentecost, or at least it ought to be in in the Novus Ordo as it is in the older, Traditional Roman Calendar. I dig in to what a liturgical Octave, is … Read More →
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Site: Steyn OnlineAs I was saying just the other day: In the end, it's all demography.
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Site: PeakProsperityAll the news that didn't fit. It's the misfit news of the week, condensed for your reading pleasure. Let's get caught up...
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Site: Zero HedgeGreta Thunberg Claims She's Been 'Kidnapped' By Israeli ForcesTyler Durden Mon, 06/09/2025 - 09:25
Authored by Ken Silva via Headline USA,
Climate alarmist turned humanitarian activist Greta Thunberg said Sunday that she’s been “kidnapped” after she and the rest of the crew aboard the The Madleen, a sailboat that’s trying to break Israel’s starvation blockade on Gaza, was intercepted and boarded by Israeli forces.
‘My name is Greta Thunberg and I am from Sweden. If you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped in international waters by the Israeli occupational forces, or forces that support Israel,” she said. “I urge all my friends, family and colleagues to put pressure on the Swedish government to release me as soon as possible. ”
"My name is Greta Thunberg and I am from Sweden. If you see this video, we have been intercepted and kidnapped in international waters by the Israeli occupational forces, or forces that support Israel." pic.twitter.com/Ku7QILHpfd
— Prem Thakker (@prem_thakker) June 9, 2025According to antiwar.com’s Dave Decamp, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz ordered the IDF to intercept the Madleen earlier on Sunday. DeCamp reported that the boat is carrying 12 civilian activists who are traveling unarmed, including Thunberg.
“I have instructed the IDF to act to ensure that the hate flotilla ‘Madleen’ does not reach the shores of Gaza—and to take all necessary measures to achieve this,” Katz wrote on X, as reported by DeCamp.
“A senior Israeli official told Israel’s Channel 12 that if the boat doesn’t turn around, it would be boarded by Israeli Navy commandos and brought to the port of Ashdod,” DeCamp reported.
Israel supporters in the U.S. have suggested Israel should sink the Madleen, including sports gambling mogul Dave Portnoy and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC).
“Hope Greta and her friends can swim!” Graham said in a post on X.
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Site: Rorate CaeliSunday June 8, 2025Les Courlis Bishop Athanasius Schneider In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen “Come Holy Ghost, fill the hearts of Thy faithful, and kindle in them the fire of Thy love”. Pentecost is the day when the Church first manifested Herself to mankind in a startling way. She showed Herself to be Catholic because there is only New Catholichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04118576661605931910noreply@blogger.com
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Site: Zero HedgeKey Events This Week: CPI, US-China Trade Talks, Treasury AuctionsTyler Durden Mon, 06/09/2025 - 09:16
The highlight this week will be US CPI on Wednesday and a resumption of trade talks between the US and China today in London. Bessent, Lutnick and Greer are set to meet Chinese representatives at the meeting today. So it's all the big guns from the US administration. DB's Jim Reid reminds us that the monthly 30-yr UST auction on Thursday will also be a heavy focus with all the attention on the long-end in recent weeks. There's a 10yr auction the day before as well. So a good test of demand as the fiscal bill meanders its way through Congress.
Before we preview the CPI release the other main highlights this week are the NY Fed 1-yr inflation expectations today; US NFIB small business optimism, UK employment data and Danish and Norwegian CPI tomorrow; that CPI, the 10yr UST auction and the UK Spending Review on Wednesday; US PPI, US jobless claims, UK monthly GDP, the 30yr UST auction and my birthday on Thursday; and the UoM consumer sentiment (including inflation expectations) on Friday. A fuller day-by-day diary of events is at the end as usual.
With regards to US CPI, DB's US economists expect weak seasonally adjusted gas prices to again keep the headline rate (+0.20% forecast vs. +0.22% previous) gain below that of core (+0.31% vs. +0.24%). This should help the YoY rate for both headline and core to rise two-tenths to 2.5% and 3.0%, respectively. Shorter-term trends for core would be mixed with the three-month annualized rate rising by three-tenths to 2.4% while the six-month rate would remain steady at 3.0%. DB's economists do expect tariffs to begin to impact core goods prices, especially in categories like household furnishings and supplies where we saw potential preliminary tariff impacts in the April data. On the services side, economists will be most attuned to the volatile categories like lodging away and airline fares that have been a meaningful drag of late. For PPI the following day, our economists expect a +0.27% increase in May which would reduce the YoY rate by a couple of tenths. As ever, how the subcomponents that feed into core PCE come out will be the most interesting part of the release. Note that the Fed are now on media blackout ahead of next Wednesday's (18th) FOMC.
It's not clear that the Fed will have learnt too much more than they already knew from Friday's payrolls data. May headline (+139k vs. 147k) and private (140k vs. 146k) payrolls were slightly above the 126k consensus but -95k of net revisions to the two previous months softened the beat. We now have very stable private sector hiring trends over the past three (133k), six (146k) and twelve (122k) months. However the narrow breadth in job growth as health care / social assistance (+78k) and leisure / hospitality (+48k) continued to drive the majority of private sector job gains in May and have accounted for 75% of private job growth over the past twelve months.
Staying on employment there will be increased attention on claims this week given the recent tick up. It's not clear whether its seasonals or evidence that there is some real time slipping in employment trends.
Courtesy of DB, here is a day-by-day calendar of events
Monday June 9
- Data: US May NY Fed 1-yr inflation expectations, April wholesale trade sales, China May CPI, PPI, trade balance, Japan May Economy Watchers survey, bank lending, April BoP current account balance, BoP trade balance
- Central banks: ECB's Elderson speaks
Tuesday June 10
- Data: US May NFIB small business optimism, UK April average weekly earnings, unemployment rate, May jobless claims change, Japan May M2, M3, machine tool orders, Italy April industrial production, Sweden April GDP indicator, Norway and Denmark May CPI
- Central banks: ECB's Villeroy, Holzmann and Rehn speak
- Auctions: US 3-yr Notes ($58bn)
Wednesday June 11
- Data: US May CPI, federal budget balance, Japan May PPI, Canada April building permits
- Central banks: ECB’s Lane and Cipollone speak
- Earnings: Oracle, Inditex
- Auctions: US 10-yr Notes (reopening, $39bn)
- Other: UK Spending Review
Thursday June 12
- Data: US May PPI, Q1 household change in net worth, initial jobless claims, UK May RICS house price balance, April monthly GDP, Germany April current account balance, Italy Q1 unemployment rate
- Central banks: ECB's Muller, Escriva, Knot, Guindos and Schnabel speak
- Earnings: Adobe
- Auctions: US 30-yr Bond (reopening, $22bn)
Friday June 13
- Data: US June University of Michigan survey, Japan April capacity utilisation, Tertiary industry index, Germany May wholesale price index, Italy April trade balance, Eurozone April trade balance, industrial production, Canada April manufacturing sales, Q1 capacity utilisation rate
* * *
Finally, looking at the US, Goldman notes that the key economic data releases this week are the CPI report on Wednesday and the University of Michigan report on Friday. Fed officials are not expected to comment on monetary policy this week, reflecting the blackout period ahead of the June FOMC meeting.
Monday, June 9
- 11:00 AM New York Fed 1-year inflation expectations, May (last 3.6%)
Tuesday, June 10
- There are no major data releases scheduled.
Wednesday, June 11
- 08:30 AM CPI (MoM), May (GS +0.17%, consensus +0.2%, last +0.2%); Core CPI (MoM), May (GS +0.25%, consensus +0.3%, last +0.2%); CPI (YoY), May (GS +2.47%, consensus +2.5%, last +2.3%); Core CPI (YoY), May (GS +2.89%, consensus +2.9%, last +2.8%): We estimate a 0.25% increase in May core CPI (month-over-month SA), which would raise the year-over-year rate by 0.1pp to 2.9%. Our forecast reflects a decline in used car prices (-0.5%) reflecting a decline in auction prices, a slight increase in new car prices (+0.1%), and a more moderate increase in the car insurance category (+0.4%) based on premiums in our online dataset. We expect another soft month of travel services inflation based on higher frequency prices measures: we forecast unchanged hotel prices and unchanged airfares. We have penciled in moderate upward pressure from tariffs on categories that are particularly exposed (such as apparel, recreation, and communication) worth +0.05pp on core inflation. We expect the shelter components to decelerate on net (OER +0.31% vs. +0.36% in April; primary rent +0.31% vs. +0.34%). We estimate a 0.17% rise in headline CPI, reflecting higher food prices (+0.4%) but sharply lower energy prices (-1.2%).
Thursday, June 12
- 08:30 AM PPI final demand, May (GS +0.3%, consensus +0.2%, last -0.5%); PPI ex-food and energy, May (GS +0.3%, consensus +0.3%, last -0.4%) ;PPI ex-food, energy, and trade, May (GS +0.3%, consensus +0.3%, last -0.1%);
- 08:30 AM Initial jobless claims, week ended June 7 (GS 260k, consensus 241k, last 247k); Continuing jobless claims, week ended May 31 (consensus 1,910k, last 1,904k): We estimate that initial claims rose a further 13k to 260k in the week ended June 7, reflecting a boost from residual seasonality related to the timing of the Memorial Day holiday.
Friday, June 13
- 10:00 AM University of Michigan consumer sentiment, June preliminary (GS 53.6, consensus 53.5, last 52.2); University of Michigan 5-10-year inflation expectations, June preliminary (GS 4.1%, consensus 4.2%, last 4.2%)
Source: DB, Goldman
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Site: LifeNews
On Sunday night, the Justice for Victims of Abortion Drug Dealers Act (HB 575) and the Stop Coerced Abortion Act (HB 425) passed through the Louisiana Senate.
HB 575 by Reps. Lauren Ventrella and Julie Emerson empowers Louisiana citizens harmed by abortion to file lawsuits against abortion drug dealers who unlawfully sell abortion services, including predators and abusers.
SUPPORT LIFENEWS! If you want to help fight abortion, please donate to LifeNews.com!
HB 425 by Rep. Josh Carlson broadens the current definition of coercion in RS: 87:6 to encompass tactics often employed by abusers, like control or intimidation, that force a woman to undergo an abortion against her will.
Executive Director for Louisiana Right to Life, Benjamin Clapper, said the following after the Senate passage:
We applaud the Louisiana Senate for passing these two pro-life bills that continue Louisiana’s legacy of defending life and protecting women from the abortion industry. The reckless sale of abortion pills by out-of-state businesses have led to increased instances of women being coerced to have abortions. HB 575 and HB 425 strengthen laws to prevent coerced abortion and allow women hurt by abortion to seek justice.
Contrary to Senator Duplessis’ statements on the Senate floor, the word “promoting” was removed from HB 575 in a Senate committee amendment. Therefore, a lawsuit brought under HB 575 cannot be for brought against someone “promoting” the availability of an abortion.
We are grateful for the dedication of Senator Rick Edmonds who boldly defended HB 575 from pro-abortion attacks and Senator Brach Myers for promoting HB 425.
Louisiana Right to Life is committed to a future where women and girls are safe from the predatory tactics of the abortion industry and can pursue justice for themselves and their families.
The post Louisiana Senate Passes Bill Targeting Illegal Abortion Pill Sellers appeared first on LifeNews.com.
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Site: PaulCraigRoberts.org
THE CAMP OF THE SAINTS
I have never understood why rioters, protestors, whatever you want to call them, burn people’s cars. Insurance seldom covers such events. Violent protests harm innocents.
I also don’t understand why the National Guard is called out as they are not permitted to use their weapons. Try to imagine the National Guard using deadly force to break up looting and burning of property. In America the defense of property and livelihood plays second fiddle to the lives of criminals. Property can be protected only as long as the criminals stealing and damaging it are not harmed.
It seems to me that Hispanics have taken back California. We might as well cede the state back to Mexico. America, or what is left of it, would be better off as California is a main source of Woke, left-wing, anti-white influence. America would be much better off without California. The Democrat governor of California says that the immigrant-invaders are “his people, his community.” https://x.com/DOGE__news/status/1931911364487876934
Indeed, the argument can be made that immigrant-invaders who have been permitted to live in the US for a number of years now have roots in America and squatters’ rights to citizenship. Squatters’ rights–the legal term is adverse possession–has long been a legitimate legal concept. Adverse possession is a legal doctrine that allows a person to acquire title to real property by continuously occupying it without the owner’s permission for a statutorily defined period. The non-enforcement of borders creates squatters’ rights. There is little doubt that courts would include citizenship as a right of adverse possession.
Without a border a country is just an open area to which anyone can come. Other states and cities under Democrat control want citizenship given to whoever walks across the non-existing border.
For now the forces rising to the defense of immigrant-invaders are limited to a small area of Los Angeles. If the deportation attempts continue, the opposition can spread and become more violent. White Democrats will join the rising simply because they oppose Trump.
Decades ago President Reagan faced the problem caused by the need by agribusiness and California fruit and vegetable growers and US chicken processors for labor that US citizens did not want to undertake. Agri-business interests persuaded the Reagan administration to amnesty millions of illegals. But nothing was done about the border. Consequently, now the problem is much worse.
It is impossible to have a nation without borders as the nation dissolves into a Tower of Babel, the ever-closer fate of all Western countries. The US no longer consists of European ethnicities and enculturated American blacks. Today there are large and growing populations of Hispanics, Asians, Arabs. The language and religious base of the country is decaying. There is no doubt that the United States is transforming into a Tower of Babel.
When you look at the news photos and videos, it is interesting that so many white Americans are in the streets claiming California for immigrant-invaders.
It is likely that America is already lost. Deportation of millions of illegals is impossible. Israel can’t get rid of 2 million Palestinians with bombs and bullets and is having to impose starvation and disease. America’s illegals will end up with amnesty. As soon as the Establishment gets rid of Trump, the border will be reopened. Jean Raspail’s prediction for the fate of the Western World is locked into place. European ethnicities have pissed away their existence. All Western ethnicities should be labeled “endangered species.”
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Site: LifeNews
A majority of the British public opposes attempts to decriminalise abortion and believes that the criminal law provides “clear boundaries” and protects “everyone involved” finds a major new poll from Whitestone Insight.
Asked if “Having an illegal abortion should continue to be a criminal offence to protect both the unborn and vulnerable women who could be coerced into losing a baby they may have wanted, for example by an abusive partner”, more than six in 10 (62 per cent) agreed, while less than one in five (17 per cent) disagreed.
A similar number (64 per cent) agreed with the statement that “Abortion is a matter of life and death and it is therefore appropriate that the criminal law provides a clear boundary to protect everyone involved”. Just 14 per cent of those surveyed disagreed.
The poll of more than 2,000 members of the public, commissioned by the pro-life group SPUC, is the first test of public opinion since plans to decriminalise abortion were put forward as amendments to the Crime and Policing Bill, which is currently in Parliament.
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It found the public massively under-estimates the number of terminations carried out in the UK each year with one in three (33 per cent) saying fewer than 50,000 and fully one-half (50 per cent) fewer than 100,000, nearly two-thirds of those questioned supported the idea of extending criminal sanctions to abortion providers. Asked if they agreed with the following statement: “It is unjust that pregnant women alone, and not those who prescribe or dispense women abortion pills, are liable for any misuse of those pills” 64 per cent agreed with just 17 per cent disagreeing.
Michael Robinson, Executive Director of SPUC, said the poll shows that the British public, has a better understanding of the complexities around abortion than those “championing abortion on demand”. He said: “The polling, the first since the publication of proposed amendments to the Crime and Policing Bill, clearly shows that the British public doesn’t support abortion on demand and rejects the deeply flawed arguments from the abortion lobby that it should be removed from the criminal law. While believing that the law should be rarely applied, the public recognises that criminal sanction should be applied in some cases and wants the law extended to cover those abortion providers who act in a reckless fashion endangering the lives of mothers and their babies.”
Asked: “The criminal law should continue to be applied in cases of illegal abortion, but only where a woman could not reasonably have known how far through the pregnancy she was when the abortion pills were taken”, half (49 per cent) agreed with one in seven (15 per cent) disagreeing and one third (34 per cent) unsure or not answering.
Testing public opinion further, the survey asked: “Seeking an illegal abortion should not be a criminal offence”. Of those who expressed an opinion nearly six in 10 (58 per cent) disagreed and four in 10 agreed.
Mr Robinson concluded: “While the Great British public massively underestimates the number of abortions each year with half of those surveyed wrongly thinking it’s 100,000 or less, the true figure is nearly 300,000, they recognise a baby’s life is precious and abortion is not like having a bunion removed, it’s the termination of a baby’s life. This is why there must be reserve powers in the criminal law that protect both mother and child. Those peddling abortion on demand and without consequences are step with public opinion and I would urge MPs to reject these amendments and instead look at ways to extend criminal responsibility to those providers who recklessly endanger the health and lives of vulnerable women.”
Poll Methodology:
Methodology note: Whitestone interviewed 2109 UK adults on 28-29 May 2025. Data were weighted to be representative of all adults. Whitestone is a member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules.
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Site: LifeNews
The FBI has yet to solve at least five cases it opened into arson attacks targeting pro-life pregnancy centers in 2022, according to an investigation by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
The Biden FBI offered cash rewards in 2022 for information on suspects responsible for firebombings around the country, mainly directed at pro-life facilities, after the preemptive May 2 leak of a Supreme Court ruling that overturned the abortion precedent established by Roe v. Wade. Five local FBI field offices told the DCNF that the bureau is still offering the incentive for cases in Colorado, North Carolina, Washington state, Oregon and New York, indicating suspects were never found or convicted.
The FBI’s Seattle field office told the DCNF that it’s typical for the bureau to update or delete the bulletins asking the public for information if suspects are caught, and if they’re on the website, the FBI is still looking for answers. The FBI’s national press office did not respond to a request for comment.
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‘Enforce The Law Equally’
One targeted facility’s CEO, Jim Harden, told the DCNF he got a phone call from an employee around two in the morning on June 7, 2022, that changed his life. The Amherst, New York, building that was home to his organization CompassCare was set ablaze in what was eventually determined to be arson. The FBI released footage showing what it said were two suspects arriving in a car at night and throwing Molotov cocktails at the building.
Harden’s team had been on high alert that summer, having already contacted the FBI over concerns about a heightened risk of violence. Soon after the fire, he moved with his wife and children to flee an onslaught of threats against them as extremists lashed out at CompassCare, a Christian nonprofit providing free medical care to pregnant mothers to steer them away from abortion.
“Our lives are very different now,” he said in an interview with the DCNF. “We had to relocate our family … we had people riding past our house pointing guns at our kids.”
Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon said in April that there were more than 200 cases of pregnancy resource centers “violently attacked by activists with no action by law enforcement, federal or state” in the past several years. Family Research Council documented almost 50 instances of vandalism and other attacks on pregnancy centers and pro-life organization buildings from May through June 2022.
“I can say we are taking them seriously now and will be for the duration,” Dhillon told the DCNF about such cases. Dillon declined to comment about any specific prosecutions that may be ongoing or forthcoming.
“This Department of Justice is committed to protecting crisis pregnancy centers, pro-life organizations and places of worship from targeted acts of violence and will work to ensure justice is served to criminals who engage in this unlawful behavior,” a DOJ spokesperson said in response to questions about the unsolved cases.
The spree of violence even resulted in arson at a Portland pregnancy center run by a self-professed pro-choice woman in July 2022. As in the five cases involving pro-life groups, the FBI told the DCNF it is still offering a reward for information. The Dobbs opinion leak, which was investigated but never solved, also inspired an assassination attempt on Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh near his home.
The Portland facility did not respond to multiple requests for comment. The other pregnancy centers with unsolved cases in Longmont, Colorado and Portland did not respond to multiple requests for comment, while one in Seattle declined to comment.
Harden, the CompassCare CEO, said the pro-abortion Biden administration seemed apathetic about solving the cases, despite the FBI interviewing him about the Amherst bombing. He recalled reaching out and asking urgently for updates, leading to a moment when he said an FBI agent “was screaming” over the phone that the bureau was not required to update him.
“Their job was to enforce the law equally, and it did not appear as if they were doing so,” Harden said.
‘Mountain Of Evidence’
While announcements about pro-abortion vandalism cases were scarce, the Biden administration boasted in press releases about several prosecutions of pro-life activists under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act for protesting at abortion clinics. On his first week in office, President Donald Trump pardoned nearly two dozen pro-lifers accused of federal crimes.
Former Attorney General Merrick Garland explained the discrepancy in March 2023 by telling Congress that “it is quite easy” to identify and charge pro-lifers protesting in daylight.
“Those who are attacking the pregnancy resources centers, which is a hard thing to do, are doing this at night in the dark,” Garland said.
Harden did not — and does not — buy Garland’s explanation whatsoever.
“There’s a mountain of evidence,” Harden said of the vandals, noting that the authorities can search for license plate numbers, body mechanic imagery and cell phone IP addresses. “It’s just not possible they don’t know who they are. The FBI [is] the most technically advanced law enforcement agency on the planet.”
Some attacks on pro-life centers in 2022 were linked to a leftist group called Jane’s Revenge, with activists posting online threats in response to news about the leaked Dobbs decision. The FBI said the CompassCare vandals left the spray-painted message, “Jane was here.”
Harden told the DCNF his Amherst building was repaired at “miraculous” speed in 52 days thanks in part to volunteer workers, but the damage cost millions of dollars.
The attack inspired Harden to become more outspoken about political issues via media interviews. He also launched a campaign on a pro-life platform to fill Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik’s House seat in a New York special election. Stefanik announced she would remain in her role in April after Trump pulled her nomination to represent the U.S. in the United Nations.
‘Heart Problem’
Paula McSwain, executive director of the Crisis Pregnancy Center in Lincolnton, North Carolina, told the DCNF she received a letter from the FBI in August 2024 saying its investigation into arson at her building in June 2022 was closed. Surveillance footage showed someone at nighttime throwing what the FBI said was a Molotov cocktail.
The Lincolnton case is one of several for which the FBI is still offering a reward for information on any suspects, according to the bureau’s Charlotte field office.
McSwain said she was fortunate enough to get the pregnancy center up and running fairly easily.
“If they wanted to destroy the building, they could have done a better job,” McSwain told the DCNF.
The pro-life leader decided to respond to her ordeal by limiting public outcry.
“That’s what they were seeking, was attention,” McSwain said of the vandals.
Harden and McSwain said that if they could give any message to their attackers, it would be one of forgiveness through Jesus Christ.
“If you throw fire at any building, you’ve got a heart problem and there’s something not right with your life … We don’t seek revenge, we just pray for them,” McSwain said.
“The only reason I can forgive you is because forgiveness has been made available to me, and so I would encourage you to come out of the darkness and into the light,” Harden said his words to the criminals would be.
“Nothing is going to go unpunished if it’s sin,” Harden said.
LifeNews Note: Hudson Crozier writes for Daily Caller. Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience.
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Site: LifeNews
A growing number of young men are turning away from the Democratic Party, citing perceptions that it is weak, out of touch, and dismissive of their concerns, according to new findings from a major research initiative reported by Politico.
The “Speaking with American Men” (SAM) project, a two-year, $20 million effort, released its first wave of findings June 4, drawing from 30 focus groups and a national media consumption survey.
According to Politico, “Participants described the Democratic Party as overly-scripted and cautious, while Republicans are seen as confident and unafraid to offend.”
“Democrats are seen as weak, whereas Republicans are seen as strong,” Ilyse Hogue, co-founder of the SAM project, told Politico. “Young men also spoke of being invisible to the Democratic coalition, and so you’ve got this weak problem and then you’ve got this, ‘I don’t think they care about me’ problem, and I think the combination is kind of a killer.”
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SAM’s national survey also revealed just 27% of young men view the Democratic Party favorably, while 43% hold a positive view of Republicans — a stark indicator of the ongoing political shift among younger male voters.
Focus groups also revealed deeper frustrations with how Democrats frame masculinity. One participant noted that Democrats promote “fluid masculinity,” while Republicans embrace “traditional masculinity of a provider.”
Others criticized Democratic campaigns for prioritizing celebrity appearances over real policy solutions. One Latino man from Las Vegas pointed to former Vice President Kamala Harris’ 2024 campaign, which featured appearances with Beyoncé and Lady Gaga.
“It just kind of felt like, what does that have to do with me? I’m trying to move up in life,” the participant said, according to Politico.
By contrast, President Donald Trump’s direct policy promises — such as eliminating taxes on tips and overtime — reportedly resonated with voters as practical and action-oriented.
The SAM findings align with broader national trends. A CNN poll released June 1 found that 40% of Americans identify Republicans as the party of strong leadership, compared to just 16% for Democrats. Republicans also led by wide margins as the party that “gets things done” and drives “change.”
Additional polling underscores growing Democratic disillusionment. A survey last month found that only one-third of Democratic voters felt optimistic about the future of their party — a sharp drop from nearly 60% in July 2024.
LifeNews Note: Elise DeGeeter writes for CatholicVote, where this column originally appeared.
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Site: LifeNews
A 32-year-old man from the state of Washington has been charged with materially supporting the man who bombed a fertility clinic in California on May 17, federal authorities announced June 4. He faces up to 15 years in federal prison.
Daniel Jongyon Park, of Kent, was arrested June 3 and charged with providing and attempting to provide material support to terrorists, according to a DOJ news release. He appeared in court June 4 in the Eastern District of New York.
The release said, citing an affidavit filed with the federal criminal complaint, that Park shipped and paid for about 270 pounds of ammonium nitrate — an explosive precursor — for Guy Edward Bartkus the 25-year-old man from Twentynine Palms, California, who drove a car that contained a bomb to a clinic in Palm Springs.
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According to a May 23 press release from FBI Los Angeles’ office, Bartkus’ vehicle, a silver 2010 Ford Fusion sedan, exploded in front of the American Reproductive Centers, killing one person who was in or near the vehicle and causing non-life-threatening injuries to four people who were nearby. Power was restored quickly and no embryos were lost in the attack, the release said.
American Reproductive Centers does not perform abortions, the release said. According to the clinic’s website, its services include in vitro fertilization (IVF), intrauterine insemination (IUI), pre-implantation genetic testing (PGT), in-house egg donation, surrogacy, fertility evaluations, egg freezing, elective single embryo transfer, “LGBTQ family building,” and endoscopic surgery.
The DOJ release confirmed that Bartkus killed himself, injured people, destroyed the building, and damaged nearby buildings in the bombing.
“Bartkus’s attack was motivated by his pro-mortalism, anti-natalism, and anti-pro-life ideology, which is the belief that individuals should not be born without their consent and that non-existence is best,” the release said. “Park — who shares Bartkus’s extremist views — shipped large quantities of explosive precursor materials to Bartkus.”
Park flew to Europe a few days after Bartkus bombed the facility, according to the release. He was detained in Poland on May 30 and later was deported to the US. Law enforcement picked him up shortly after he flew into John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City.
Park and Bartkus spent time at Bartkus’ residence and its garage “running experiments,” the affidavit said, according to the release. Law enforcement found in the garage chemicals commonly used in the creation of homemade bombs.
“This defendant is charged with facilitating the horrific attack on a fertility center in California. Bringing chaos and violence to a facility that exists to help women and mothers is a particularly cruel, disgusting crime that strikes at the very heart of our shared humanity,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in the release. “We are grateful to our partners in Poland who helped get this man back to America and we will prosecute him to the fullest extent of the law.”
The FBI’s Inland Empire Joint Terrorism Task Force is investigating. The Palm Springs Police Department; the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department; the FBI’s legal attaché in Warsaw, Poland; officials in Poland; and FBI field office personnel in Seattle, New York, San Diego, Las Vegas, and Portland assisted.
Sarah E. Gerdes and Anna P. Boylan, who are assistant US attorneys for the Central District of California, and Patrick J. Cashman, a trial attorney for the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section, are prosecuting the case.
LifeNews Note: Mary Stroka writes for CatholicVote, a pro-life group.
The post Man Charged With Helping Abortion Activist Who Bombed Fertility Clinic, Faces 15 years in Prison appeared first on LifeNews.com.
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Site: PaulCraigRoberts.org
Putin’s Non-response to Provocations Is a Direct Road to Nuclear War
PCR On Target with Larry Sparano
Putin avoided the dire consequences mandated by Russian war doctrine by labeling the attack on Russia’s strategic triad a “terrorist act,” not an act of war. This has delayed, but not prevented a wider and more dangerous war, because what Putin has actually done is to eviscerate Russian war doctrine. If the President of Russia can refuse to acknowledge acts of war against Russia, the country has no defense. What can Putin do now to restore deterrence?
It is extraordinary that the US foreign policy community, the Trump administration, every European government, and Putin himself have zero comprehension of the seriousness of the attack on Russian strategic forces. Putin saved the day by denying any such attack. But the consequence is that the next attack on Russia will be even more provocative. At some point Putin will be forced to stop denying reality.
It is increasingly likely that Putin’s unwillingness to use sufficient force to terminate the conflict with the West in Ukraine will result in nuclear war.
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Site: Zero HedgeFutures Rise Ahead Of US-China TalksTyler Durden Mon, 06/09/2025 - 08:16
US equity futures reverse earlier losses and trade near session highs, with small cap/Russell outperformance pointing to a further potential squeeze in high-beta names as investors monitor talks between the US and China in London to defuse tensions over rare-earth minerals and advanced technology. As of 8:00AM, S&P futures rose 0.2% after the main gauge broke through the 6,000 level for the first time since February at the end of last week. Nasdaq 100 futs gained 0.1%, with Mag7 names mixed premarket, Semis are higher, and cyclicals poised to outperform Defensives. Chinese shares trading in Hong Kong entered a bull market. European stocks barely budged, while a gauge for emerging-market equities was set for its highest close in more than three years. Bond yields are lower, and USD is weaker as commodities are led by Energy and precious metals; silver continues to close the gap to gold, although today it is platinum and palladium's turn to shine. Today’s focus is the US/China trade mtg in London: overnight, HK and HSTECH performed well into the summit. Macro data prints include NY Fed’s 1-year inflation expectations (3.63% prior print) which could affect the yield curve as the Fed is in its blackout window.
In premarket trading, Mag 7 were mostly higher with the exception of Tesla which isdown 2.3% after Baird downgraded the stock to neutral, noting that the recent share price rally followed a fundamentally poor quarter for the EV maker. Other names traded flat to up: Nvidia +0.4%, Apple +0.6%, Alphabet +0.6%, Amazon +0.4%, Meta Platforms +0.04%, Microsoft -0.1%. Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) rose 4% after saying it will separate the company into two publicly traded businesses, splitting its streaming and studios business and its TV networks operations by the middle of next year. Here are some other notable premarket movers:
- Air mobility stocks are set to extend gains after President Donald Trump signed an executive action establishing an electric “Vertical Takeoff and Landing” integration pilot program, according to a White House fact sheet.
- Archer Aviation (ACHR) +9%, Joby Aviation (JOBY) +9%, Vertical Aerospace (EVTL) +7%
- EchoStar (SATS) falls 9% after the Wall Street Journal reported the company is weighing a potential chapter 11 bankruptcy filing amid a Federal Communications Commission review of certain of its wireless and satellite spectrum rights, citing people familiar with the matter.
- Etoro Group (ETOR) rises 3.3% after Mizuho, Jefferies and Citizens initiate the investment platform with a buy-equivalent rating, citing a growing retail-investor client base and potential for further growth in Europe and the US.
- Grab Holdings Ltd. (GRAB) inches 1% lower after the company said it isn’t in talks to acquire Southeast Asia internet peer GoTo Group “at this time,” signaling it’s halting or at least pausing a planned $7 billion acquisition of its Southeast Asia internet peer.
- Opendoor Technologies (OPEN) drops 13% after the company announced plans to seek holder permission for a reverse stock split between 1-for-10 and 1-for-50 at its special meeting on July 28.
- Robinhood (HOOD) falls 4% and AppLovin (APP) is down 4% after S&P Dow Jones Indices left the S&P 500 unchanged in its latest round of quarterly rebalancing on Friday.
- Sunnova Energy International Inc. (NOVA), one of the largest US rooftop solar companies, falls 33% after filing for bankruptcy in Texas following struggles with mounting debt and diminishing sales prospects.
As if the past two months never happened, the S&P is nearing all-time highs after shaking off the volatility that followed President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff announcements in early April. Still, traders are searching for catalysts for sustained advances, as the full economic impact of the trade war has yet to fully manifest and key trade-related questions remain unresolved.
“We will break to new highs eventually,” Keith Lerner, co-chief investment officer at Truist Advisory Services, told Bloomberg TV. “The market is dealing with uncertainty around tariffs, it matters but it’s not the only thing that matters. Technology is back at the forefront.”
At a time when global investors are pushing back against long-term government debt, a $22 billion auction of 30-year bonds on Thursday is bound to be one of Wall Street’s most anticipated events this week. Traders will also focus on Wednesday’s US inflation report for May. Consumers probably saw a slightly faster pace of price increases as companies gradually pass along higher import duties, according to a Bloomberg survey of economists.
“In May, when the 30-year went above 5%, we have seen buyers buying the dip,” Vasiliki Pachatouridi, head of BlackRock’s iShares fixed-income product strategy for EMEA, told Bloomberg TV. “We are underweight the long end of the curve, but there are people out there that still see value in US Treasuries at the right price.”
In Europe, the Stoxx 600 is little changed as stocks tread water with gains in real estate, leisure and travel being offset by losses in technology and banks. The DAX falls 0.5% as SAP shares provide a notable drag on the index. Among individual movers, Alphawave advances after Qualcomm agreed to buy the semiconductor company for about $2.4 billion in cash. Markets in Denmark, Switzerland, Turkey, Hungary and Norway are closed for a holiday. Here are the most notable European movers:
- Alphawave shares gain as much as 23.3% to reach 183.9 pence, after the semiconductor firm said US chipmaker Qualcomm agreed to take over the company for a price equating to 183p per share.
- The Blockchain Group rises as much as 25% after the company launched a €300m capital increase in a deal with asset management firm TOBAM.
- M&G shares rises as much as 2.8% as UBS raises its recommendation to buy from neutral, saying it expects the company to continue to deliver growth within asset management.
- Ageas shares gain as much as 3.2% to the highest since October 2008 after BofA raised its rating on the life insurance firm to buy.
- Carel shares rise as much as 5.5% to the highest since February 2024 after UBS initiated coverage on the HVAC and humidification manufacturercndes with a buy rating.
- European defense stocks are losing ground on Monday, dropping for a second consecutive session, as they fall further from recent record highs.
- Trustpilot Group’s shares fall as much as 8.9%, their biggest drop in two months, after Panmure Liberum resumed coverage with a sell recommendation, noting the consumer-review site faces high execution risk amid a complex multi-year business transition.
- Gaztransport et Technigaz shares drop as much as 9.5% after being given a new underweight rating from Morgan Stanley, while SBM Offshore gains as much as 2.3% after being initiated at overweight.
- Dunelm drops as much as 6.3%, the most in almost three months, as RBC downgrades to sector perform and says the homeware retailer’s qualities now seem reflected in the stock.
In FX, the dollar dropped 0.3%, pushing the currency to fresh two-year lows. New Zealand, Australian dollars led G10 gains; NZD/USD rose 0.8% to 0.6063, AUD/USD rose 0.6% to 0.6532; Australian financial market was closed on holiday. GBP/USD rose 0.3% to 1.3572, EUR/USD rose 0.3% to 1.1426. USD/JPY fell 0.5% to 144.07 before recouping losses to rise back to 144.50.
In rates, treasury yields are slightly lower across the curve, unwinding a small portion of Friday’s steep losses caused by May jobs report, ahead of the sale of 3-, 10- and 30-year Treasuries later this week. US front-end yields are richer by about 2bp, outperforming longer maturities and steepening 5s30s curve by about 1bp; 10-year around 4.49% is about 1bp lower on the day, German counterpart about 2bp lower. Italian government bonds are leading gains in European debt, with Italian 10-year borrowing costs falling 6 bps and further narrowing the spread with Germany to around 92 bps. Treasury auctions include $58 billion 3-year new issue Tuesday and $39 billion 10-year and $22 billion 30-year reopenings Wednesday and Thursday. This week’s focal points include May CPI data on Wednesday and Treasury auction cycle starting Tuesday. Fed officials are in an external communications blackout ahead of the June 18 policy announcement.
In commodities, spot gold rises $8 to around $3,318/oz, while platinum breaks out to multi-year highs. Oil prices are steady with WTI near $64.60 a barrel.
Looking at today's calendar, we have April wholesale inventories (10am) and May NY Fed 1-year inflation expectations (11am). Also ahead this week are May CPI. PPI and the grotesquely laughable University of Michigan sentiment (of democrats).
Market Snapshot
- S&P 500 mini little changed
- Nasdaq 100 mini little changed
- Russell 2000 mini +0.8%
- Stoxx Europe 600 little changed
- DAX -0.5%, CAC 40 little changed
- 10-year Treasury yield -2 basis points at 4.48%
- VIX +0.8 points at 17.61
- Bloomberg Dollar Index -0.3% at 1207.96
- euro +0.4% at $1.1437
- WTI crude little changed at $64.64/barrel
Top Overnight News
- The US and China will resume trade talks today in London, with tariffs, rare-earth minerals and advanced technology at the top of the agenda. Each country has accused the other of reneging on a deal made in Geneva in May. BBG
- US President Trump thinks support has solidified for the tax bill over the last 24 hours and will take a look at Elon Musk’s government contracts, while he has no plans to speak to Musk and noted that DOGE helped a lot. Trump stated he is thinking about the next Fed Chair and it is coming out very soon, as well as suggested a good Fed Chair would lower rates.
- Trump warned Elon Musk of serious consequences if he backs Democrats who oppose the Republican tax bill. The president told NBC he’s “very confident” the bill will pass by July 4. BBG
- US Defense Secretary Hegseth said active-duty troops will be mobilised if violence continues in Los Angeles, while President Trump deployed the National Guard to LA immigration ‘riots’ after claiming state officials cannot do their jobs, according to Sky News. Furthermore, reports noted that as many as 500 Marines are “in a prepared-to-deploy status” should they be needed to protect federal property and personnel and US President Trump posted on Truth Social "Looking really bad in L.A. BRING IN THE TROOPS!!!"
- China’s trade numbers for May fall a bit short, including exports +4.8% (vs. the Street +6%) and imports -3.4% (vs. the Street -0.8%), w/exports to the US slumping by the most since the start of COVID. FT
- China's producer deflation deepened to its worst level in almost two years in May while consumer prices extended declines, as the economy grappled with trade tensions and a prolonged housing downturn. PPI (-3.3% vs. the Street -3.2% and vs. -2.7% in Apr) and CPI (-0.1% vs. the Street -0.2% and vs. -0.1% in Apr). RTRS
- Japan is considering buying back some super-long government bonds issued in the past at low interest rates, two sources with direct knowledge of the plan said on Monday, underscoring its focus on reining in any abrupt rise in bond yields. The move would come on top of an expected government plan to trim issuance of super-long bonds -- such as those with 20-, 30- or 40-year maturities -- in the wake of sharp rises in their yields. RTRS
- A US trade team currently in India for trade discussions has extended its stay, a sign talks are progressing ahead of a July deadline. BBG
- Iran will send a counteroffer “in the coming days” via Oman in response to a US proposal on Tehran’s nuclear program, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said. BBG
- Canadian PM Carney is to announce Canada's national defence spending will meet the 2% of GDP NATO goal: Globe & Mail.
- US state and local governments are selling municipal bonds at a record pace on fears that Congress could partially pay for President Trump’s “big beautiful bill” by cutting a tax break for airports, hospitals, and affordable housing projects. FT
- Apple’s WWDC gets underway today, with a focus on new software interfaces for the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV and Watch. But only minor AI changes are expected, offering little to investors worried it’s lagging behind in that space. BBG
- Citi expects the Fed to deliver 75bps of rate cuts this year, 25bps in September, October and December, comes after Friday's NFP data; expects Fed to deliver 50bps in 2026, via 25bps in Jan and March.
- Fed’s Musalem (voter) said he sees a 50-50 chance that Trump tariffs could either boost inflation for a quarter or two, or cause sustained inflation, according to an FT interview. Musalem said this means the Fed will likely face uncertainty right through the summer and political interference could make it harder for the Fed to lower interest rates.
A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk
APAC stocks traded mostly higher following last Friday's gains on Wall St, but with trade somewhat quietened amid the holiday closure in Australia and as participants digested mixed Chinese data. Nikkei 225 reclaimed the 38,000 level after last week's currency weakness and with upward revisions to Japanese GDP data. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp gained amid some trade-related optimism with officials from the US and China set to meet in London today, although the gains in the mainland are capped as participants also digested key data releases which showed a continued deflation and mostly softer trade data.
Top Asian News
- BoJ Deputy Governor Uchida said central banks are shrinking their balance sheet but many of them are unlikely to return to conventional monetary adjustment methods, while he added that many central banks are likely to use interest payment on reserves to guide short-term interest rates while maintaining the balance sheet size that meets market demand.
- China sold 1.96mln passenger cars in May, +13.9% Y/Y, according to China's auto industry body CPCA.
- China to raise minimum wage standard and expand coverage of social insurance, via Xinhua.
European bourses (STOXX600 -0.1%) are broadly modestly lower across the board and with price action fairly muted, given parts of Europe are off today on account of Whit Monday. European sectors mixed and with the breadth of the market exceptionally narrow, given the holiday-thinned conditions for some parts of Europe. Real Estate leads given the relatively lower yield environment in Europe; Travel & Leisure follows closely behind.
Top European News
- NATO Secretary General Rutte will reportedly call for a 400% increase in air and missile defence in his London speech.
- UK Chancellor Reeves is to announce a transformative GBP 86bln in the Spending Review to turbo-charge the fastest growing sectors, from tech and life sciences to advanced manufacturing and defence, as part of the government’s plan to invest in Britain’s renewal through the Modern Industrial Strategy.
- BoE’s Greene said the disinflation process is ongoing and expects inflation to continue to come down to the target over the medium-term, while she noted their view is they can look through it but added there is a pretty big risk.
- ECB's Kazimir says he thinks the bank is nearly done with, if not already at the end of the easing cycle; sees clear downside risks to growth but would be a mistake to ignore upside inflation risks. Need to keep all options open. Data over the summer will indicate whether additional fine-tuning is required.
- ECB President Lagarde reiterated that the central bank is in a good position on rates and to deal with uncertainties ahead.
- ECB’s Escriva said the path of monetary policy easing in the eurozone could require further adjustments if the current macroeconomic and inflation outlooks are confirmed, while he added the central scenario of GDP growth around 1% and inflation of 2% could require some fine-tuning, according to Reuters.
- ECB’s Nagel said the ECB can take its time on interest rates with monetary policy now set at a neutral level that is no longer restrictive and that the central bank has maximum flexibility on rates.
- ECB’s Schnabel said do not expect a sustained decoupling between the ECB and the Fed, while she expects the trade conflict to play out as a global shock that’s working through both lower demand and supply.
- ECB’s Vujcic said a small deviation on either side of the 2% inflation target is not a problem and the central bank should not overreact to inflation edging below the target, while he added the bar for QE will be higher in light of past experience.
- EU was urged to exempt more companies from supply chain law although rules on curbing environmental and rights abuses should not be scrapped, according to Swedish conservative MEP Warborn cited by FT.
- Fitch cut Austria’s sovereign rating from AA+ to AA; Outlook Stable, while it affirmed Hungary at BBB: Outlook Stable, while S&P raised Slovenia’s rating from AA- to AA; Outlook Stable.
FX
- DXY has kicked the week off on the backfoot after being boosted on Friday post-NFP. Focus at the start of the week has been on the trade front ahead of an anticipated meeting between US-China officials in London to discuss the trade situation; note, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman avoided a question on the matter at a briefing today. Elsewhere, whilst the Fed is in its blackout period, US President Trump has teased over a potential imminent decision on who will replace Fed Chair Powell when his term expires next year. DXY has delved as low as 98.81 but is holding above Friday's trough at 98.65.
- EUR/USD has moved back onto a 1.14 handle following last Friday's NFP-induced selling. Fresh macro drivers for the Eurozone are lacking following the hawkish reaction to last week's ECB policy announcement. We have seen further commentary from Bank officials over the weekend with Nagel noting that the central bank has maximum flexibility on rates, whilst Schnabel stated we should not expect a sustained decoupling between the ECB and the Fed. EUR/USD has ventured as high as 1.1429 but is yet to approach Friday's 1.1457 peak.
- JPY is firmer vs. the USD and towards the top of the G10 leaderboard after suffering in the wake of last Friday's US jobs report. Newsflow out of Japan has been on the light side aside from an upwards revision to Q1 GDP and Japanese Economy Minister Akazawa continuing to urge the US again to reconsider tariff measures, whilst suggesting that further progress has been made in trade talks with the US. USD/JPY has crossed back below its 50DMA at 144.43 and is currently holding above the 144 mark.
- As is the case across G10 FX, GBP is firmer vs. the USD in a reversal of the price action seen post-NFP on Friday. Over the weekend, BoE's Greene remarked that the disinflation process is ongoing and expects inflation to continue to come down to the target over the medium-term. Cable remains on a 1.35 handle but sub-Friday's 1.3585 peak.
- Antipodeans are both firmer vs. the USD and towards the top of the G10 leaderboard. Newsflow for Australia and New Zealand has been light over the weekend, with the former away from market. Of note for both however, was the latest round of Chinese trade which saw both imports and exports fall short of expectations on account of the trade war.
Fixed Income
- US paper is attempting to atone for Friday's losses which were brought about by the firmer-than-expected US jobs report, which avoided the soft outcome that some in the market had been positioning for. Quiet schedule today, but focus will be on the US-China meeting in London today; time still not disclosed. Sep'25 UST contract has been as high as 110.05+ but is some way off Friday's peak at 110.29+.
- Bunds have very much started the week off on the front foot and are leading global fixed income markets higher. From a fundamental perspective, fresh macro drivers for the Eurozone are lacking following the hawkish reaction to last week's ECB policy announcement. We have seen further commentary from Bank officials over the weekend with Nagel noting that the central bank has maximum flexibility on rates, whilst Schnabel stated we should not expect a sustained decoupling between the ECB and the Fed. Sep'25 Bunds have eclipsed Friday's best at 130.77 with focus on a test of 131.00.
- Gilts are higher, being dragged up by the moves in German paper with fresh UK drivers lacking. Over the weekend, BoE's Greene remarked that the disinflation process is ongoing and expects inflation to continue to come down to the target over the medium-term. UK docket today is light, more focus on Wednesday's UK spending review. Sep'25 Gilts have moved back onto a 92 handle but thus far are respecting Friday's peak at 92.36.
- Japanese government is considering buying back some super-long JGBs issued in the past, according to Reuters sources.
Commodities
- Crude benchmarks are flat, with price action fairly muted in catalyst thin trade thus far. Some modest upticks on commentary out of Iran, which noted that Tehran will be proposing a counter offer to the US nuclear proposal by tomorrow (Tuesday). WTI and Brent reside within tight USD 64.20-64.86 and 66.07-66.69/bbl ranges respectively, and currently rest within the middle of these bounds.
- Spot gold is firmer, and benefitting from the softer dollar (DXY -0.3%), and subdued risk environment. The yellow-metal saw fleeting support on the aforementioned news from Iran, which pushed the metal towards session highs of USD 3,328/oz, before it faced resistance at this level.
- Copper is on the front foot, shrugging off mixed Chinese data, which showed Y/Y CPI remaining in deflationary territory. Elsewhere, LME data showed copper stocks fell 10k. The industrial metal was choppy on this update, though ultimately rose after ten minutes. 3M LME copper trades within a range of USD 9,670.75-9,738.1/t.
- Venezuela is planning to increase gasoline prices by 50% as it braces for a decline in oil revenue following the suspension of operations by Chevron (CVX) and other foreign energy firms, according to Bloomberg citing people familiar with the decision.
Geopolitics: Middle East
- Iran will reportedly propose a counter offer to the US nuclear proposal soon, according to state TV; will be sent by tomorrow.
- Israel’s military said it struck a Hamas member in southern Syria.
- US-based Gaza Humanitarian Foundation said it did not distribute aid on Saturday because Hamas made direct threats against its operations, while a Hamas official said he had no knowledge of alleged threats to the US-backed aid group in Gaza. Furthermore, Al Jazeera reported that Israeli attacks killed more than 40 in Gaza as aid seekers were shot dead.
- Israeli Defence Minister Katz threatened to “take all necessary measures” to prevent a humanitarian ship carrying climate campaigner Greta Thunberg from reaching Gaza, according to The Guardian. It was later reported that the Freedom Flotilla Coalition said it ship was 'under assault' and the Israeli Army had boarded the Gaza-bound ship.
Geopolitics: Ukraine
- Russian forces captured Zoria in Ukraine’s Donetsk region and reached the Dnipropetrovsk region in Ukraine, according to TASS and Interfax. However, it was later reported that Ukrainian General Staff spokesman Kovalev denied claims by the Russian Defence Ministry that its forces advanced into Ukraine’s eastern Dnipropetrovsk region for the first time since it launched its full-scale invasion.
- Head of the Russian delegation at talks with Ukraine in Istanbul said Russia handed over to Ukraine the first list of 640 POWs for exchange, according to TASS. Furthermore, the Russian Defence Ministry said Russia launched a large-scale humanitarian operation to repatriate more than 6,000 bodies of deceased Ukrainian military personnel and exchange prisoners of war, while Ukrainian officials rejected Russian claims that Ukraine was delaying the exchange of soldiers’ bodies.
- Ukrainian drone attack sparked a short-lived fire at the Azot chemical plant in Russia’s Tula region, although there was no threat to air quality near the plant, according to the regional governor.
- US believes Russian retaliation for Ukraine’s drone attack is not over yet and it expects a multi-pronged strike.
- Poland scrambled aircraft to ensure airspace security after Russia launches strikes on Ukraine.
Geopolitics: Other
- US expressed concern to the UK government about allowing China to build a large embassy in London that security officials believe would pose a risk to sensitive communications infrastructure serving the City, according to FT. It was also reported that the UK government promised to assess any security concerns related to the construction of a Chinese embassy near the City of London, which is an issue that could potentially complicate trade talks with the US, according to Bloomberg.
- Thai army said provocations by Cambodia and buildup of military forces show a clear intent to use force, and the Thai army is to control the opening and closing of all border checkpoints along the Thailand-Cambodia border, while it added that Cambodia enforced its military presence, equipment and constructed fortifications.
US Event Calendar
- 10:00 am: Apr F Wholesale Inventories MoM, est. 0%, prior 0%
DB's Jim Reid concludes the overnight wrap
This morning we've just published our latest annual default study, a document I first published in 1999. Over the years, it has evolved into a framework for presenting our structural, multi-year view on the default outlook. For over a decade until 2022, that structural view held that—aside from cyclical spikes—we were living in an ultra-low default environment. This was driven by factors such as low nominal and real yields, aggressive monetary intervention (e.g., QE), and a persistent global savings glut.
However, our 2022 edition marked a turning point. We argued that the ultra-low default world was ending, as inflation and term premia were pushing nominal and real yields structurally higher. While we haven’t yet seen a cyclical spike in defaults—largely due to the avoidance of a US recession—there are clear signs that higher-for-longer funding costs, especially in the U.S., are taking a toll. Leveraged loan issuer-weighted default rates are not far off COVID-era levels, and issuer-weighted defaults in the B and CCC rating buckets are now running above their post-2004 averages, even after two years of solid economic growth. In short, regardless of the cyclical backdrop, we believe the ultra-low default era that characterised much of this study’s first 25 years is now behind us.
After leading this report since its inception, I’ve handed the reins to Steve Caprio and his team, who have compiled this year’s edition. While the authorship has changed, the structural conclusions remain consistent. Marrying these with a cyclical view, Steve’s team projects that US spec-grade default rates should decline modestly from 4.7% today to 4.4% by year-end 2025, before rising again to an above consensus 4.8% by Q2 2026—with potential upside risk toward 5–5.5%. While Europe’s outlook is more benign, the region will not be immune to the structural shift underway. See the full report here including all the usual charts and tables showing how credit spreads compare to that required to compensate for default risk.
The highlight this week will be US CPI on Wednesday and a resumption of trade talks between the US and China today in London. Bessent, Lutnick and Greer are set to meet Chinese representatives at the meeting today. So it's all the big guns from the US administration. The monthly 30-yr UST auction on Thursday will also be a heavy focus with all the attention on the long-end in recent weeks. There's a 10yr auction the day before as well. So a good test of demand as the fiscal bill meanders its way through Congress. Before we preview the CPI release the other main highlights this week are the NY Fed 1-yr inflation expectations today; US NFIB small business optimism, UK employment data and Danish and Norwegian CPI tomorrow; that CPI, the 10yr UST auction and the UK Spending Review on Wednesday; US PPI, US jobless claims, UK monthly GDP, the 30yr UST auction and my birthday on Thursday; and the UoM consumer sentiment (including inflation expectations) on Friday. A fuller day-by-day diary of events is at the end as usual.
With regards to US CPI, our US economists expect weak seasonally adjusted gas prices to again keep the headline rate (+0.20% forecast vs. +0.22% previous) gain below that of core (+0.31% vs. +0.24%). This should help the YoY rate for both headline and core to rise two-tenths to 2.5% and 3.0%, respectively. Shorter-term trends for core would be mixed with the three-month annualised rate rising by three-tenths to 2.4% while the six-month rate would remain steady at 3.0%. Our economists do expect tariffs to begin to impact core goods prices, especially in categories like household furnishings and supplies where we saw potential preliminary tariff impacts in the April data. On the services side, our economists will be most attuned to the volatile categories like lodging away and airline fares that have been a meaningful drag of late. For PPI the following day, our economists expect a +0.27% increase in May which would reduce the YoY rate by a couple of tenths. As ever, how the subcomponents that feed into core PCE come out will be the most interesting part of the release. Note that the Fed are now on media blackout ahead of next Wednesday's (18th) FOMC.
It's not clear that the Fed will have learnt too much more than they already knew from Friday's payrolls data. May headline (+139k vs. 147k) and private (140k vs. 146k) payrolls were slightly above the 126k consensus but -95k of net revisions to the two previous months softened the beat. Our economists point out that we now have very stable private sector hiring trends over the past three (133k), six (146k) and twelve (122k) months. However they also point out the narrow breadth in job growth as health care / social assistance (+78k) and leisure / hospitality (+48k) continued to drive the majority of private sector job gains in May and have accounted for 75% of private job growth over the past twelve months. See our economists US employment chart book here that came out after the report on Friday for much more. Staying on employment there will be increased attention on claims this week given the recent tick up. It's not clear whether its seasonals or evidence that there is some real time slipping in employment trends.
Asian equity markets are building on Friday’s gains on Wall Street driven by optimism surrounding high-level trade discussions between China and the United States scheduled for later today. The lack of major weakness in payrolls is also helping. Across the region, the KOSPI (+1.51%) is outpacing its regional peers, extending last week’s rally after the Liberal Party won the presidential election. The Nikkei (+1.05%) is also strong after a positive revision in Q1 GDP data. Elsewhere, the Hang Seng (+1.02%) is also trading noticeably higher, driven by gains in technology shares, particularly following Meta's weekend announcement of plans to invest $10 billion in startup Scale AI, which focuses on data labeling to support the expansion of AI models as part of its broader AI development strategy. Elsewhere, Chinese stocks are more subdued after soft inflation data (more below), with the CSI (+0.22%) and the Shanghai Composite (+0.23%) both underperforming. S&P 500 (-0.22%) and NASDAQ 100 (-0.25%) futures are reversing some of Friday's gains though.
Coming back to China, consumer prices have decreased for the fourth consecutive month in May, registering a decline of -0.1% y/y (compared to an expected -0.2% and -0.1% in April). This trend might suggest that Beijing's stimulus measures have not yet been sufficient to enhance domestic consumption amid ongoing trade tensions. Furthermore, deflationary pressures are intensifying on some measures as the PPI fell by -3.3% year-on-year in May, surpassing the expected -3.2% and marking the most significant drop in nearly two years, exceeding April’s decline of -2.7%.
Interestingly Chinese exports to the US fell -34.4% in May whilst rising 11% to the RoW, showing that exports didn't recover that well to the US after the trade truce and also that China are finding other avenues to export goods.
In FX, the Japanese yen (+0.25%) is strengthening, trading at 144.49 against the dollar, recovering after two days of losses in response to an upward revision of Japan's Q1 GDP figures. 30yr JGBs are +4bps higher.Recapping last week now and the risk-on move continued as the news of further US-China talks and a decent US jobs report boosted investor optimism. So that helped to outweigh the weak data from earlier in the week, and meant the S&P 500 rose +1.50% (+1.03% Friday), whilst Europe’s STOXX 600 was up +0.91% (+0.32% Friday). In fact, the Friday move took the S&P into technical bull market territory, having now gained +20.42% since its closing low on April 8. The jobs report contrasted with the ADP report on Wednesday, which hit a two-year low, as well as the contractionary ISM services print. And even though nonfarm payrolls saw downward revisions of -95k to the previous two months, those were mostly in March, before Liberation Day occurred.
The jobs report meant investors priced out the likelihood of Fed rate cuts this year, with just 44bps now priced in by December, down -10.6bps on the week (-9.4bps Friday). That’s the fewest cuts priced since February (we'd priced 60bps immediately after the weak claims data the day before), and it triggered a significant flattening in the US Treasury curve. For instance, the 2yr Treasury yield was up +13.9bps (+11.6bps Friday) to 4.04%, whilst the 30yr yield was only up +3.7bps (+9.0bps Friday) to 4.97%. The 10-year Treasury yield also rose +10.5bps (+11.5bps Friday) to 4.51%. Similar movements were echoed in Europe, as the 10-year Bund yield ended the week up +7.4bps (-0.6bps) at 2.57%. That also came as ECB President Lagarde indicated on Thursday that they were approaching the end of their easing cycle.
Elsewhere, oil prices performed strongly last week, as OPEC+ announced a production increase of 411,000 barrels per day, which was less than some had expected. This led to a rally in crude oil, with WTI posting its biggest weekly gain of 2025, up +6.23% (+1.91% Friday) to $64.58/bbl, whilst Brent crude was up +4.02% (+1.73% Friday) to $66.47/bbl.
Meanwhile, US credit spreads ended the week tighter, with IG tightening -3bps (-3bps Friday) to 85bps, its tightest in 3 months. And HY spreads tightened -15bps (-9bps Friday) to 300bps. European sovereign bond spreads also tightened, with the 10yr Italian-German spread down -5.4bps (-1.8bps Friday) to just 93bps, the tightest since February 2021.
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Site: AsiaNews.itIndonesia has temporarily blocked activities in a natural paradise in West Papua after protests from local communities and environmentalists. Greenpeace reports serious violations and irreversible damage to the legally protected ecosystems of the small islands. The area is home to 75 per cent of the world's coral reefs and relies on ecotourism.
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Site: Novus Motus LiturgicusChant Camp for Singers Ages 8-17, August 4-8, at St. Patrick’s Seminary in Menlo Park, California.Early bird pricing through June 25th | Discounts available for multiple children from the same family.More information and registration available here. Discover the joy of singing the Church’s sacred music!The Catholic Institute of Sacred Music launches its choral program for young singers with an Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0
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Site: Zero HedgeUS, China Gear Up For High-Stakes Meeting In LondonTyler Durden Mon, 06/09/2025 - 07:45
U.S. and Chinese delegations have arrived in the U.K. for talks aimed at patching up a fraying truce in an ongoing trade war between the world's two biggest economies. The US team leby The U.S. team led by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer are due to meet with a Chinese delegation led by Vice Premier He Lifeng in London in a renewed effort to break the deadlock after last month’s Geneva talks failed to produce meaningful results.
The high-stakes meeting follows President Donald Trump’s call with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on June 5, after which Trump announced that the dispute over China’s rare earth export restrictions—a key obstacle in trade talks—had been resolved.
“There should no longer be any questions respecting the complexity of Rare Earth products,” Trump said on Truth Social following the call. “Our respective teams will be meeting shortly at a location to be determined.”
The hour-and-a-half-long conversation came after Trump publicly expressed frustration over Beijing’s negotiating tactics, calling Xi “very tough” and “extremely hard to make a deal with” in a Truth Social post the day before.
As Emel Akan reports for The Epoch Times, according to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, the U.S. trade officials will press their Chinese counterparts to fully comply with the terms of the May 12 trade agreement reached in Geneva, which included reciprocal tariff reductions. Under the deal, both countries agreed to reduce tariffs by 115 percent while maintaining an additional 10 percent levy.
“The administration has been monitoring China’s compliance with the deal, and we hope that this will move forward to have more comprehensive trade talks,” Leavitt told Fox News on June 8.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer will lead the American delegation in London.
Rare Earths Still in Focus
Despite Trump’s declaration that the rare earths dispute has been resolved, his officials remain cautious.
According to National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett, while rare earth exports have resumed, they are still below the levels previously agreed upon.
“Those exports of critical minerals have been getting released at a rate that is higher than it was but not as high as we believe we agreed to in Geneva,” he told CBS’ “Face the Nation” on June 8.
“We want the rare earths, the magnets that are crucial for cell phones and everything else, to flow just as they did before the week of April, and we don’t want any technical details to slow that down, and that’s clear to them.”
In response to Trump’s Liberation Day tariffs, Beijing introduced export restrictions on critical rare earth elements, metals, and magnets effective April 4. Beijing has tightened export controls on seven rare earth elements—samarium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, lutetium, scandium, and yttrium—straining supply chains critical to America’s defense, aerospace, and automotive sectors.
The latest restrictions follow a December 2024 export ban on three key minerals—antimony, gallium, and germanium—imposed in retaliation for former President Joe Biden’s technology curbs targeting the Chinese communist regime.
China dominates global rare earths supply chains, accounting for nearly 60 percent of worldwide production and almost 85 percent of processing capacity. The Chinese regime has turned that dominance into a strategic weapon against other countries in recent years.
While the terms of the deal are still being worked out, Hassett expressed optimism about the London meeting.
“I’m very comfortable that this deal is about to be closed,” he said.
Deeper trade issues continue to loom over the talks.
China’s Longstanding Trade Violations
In May, the U.S. Commerce Department issued a new rule banning the use of Huawei Technologies’ Ascend computer chips worldwide, arguing they were developed in violation of American export controls.
The move drew backlash from Beijing, which urged the U.S. government to undo the action.
The recent dispute reflected broader U.S. concerns over Beijing’s long-standing abusive trade practices that disadvantage American businesses and workers.
Communist China’s rise since joining the World Trade Organization in 2001 has been mainly fueled by such controversial trade policies, which include stealing intellectual property, attacking foreign firms operating in the country, manipulating its currency, and massively subsidizing domestic companies.
Some China hawks in Washington believe that Beijing is determined to maintain these mercantilist trade practices.
Even if Beijing comes to the negotiation table, it’s unwilling to bargain on these core problems that the United States wants resolved, according to Robert Atkinson, president of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, a science and technology think tank.
“They’ve never been willing to even acknowledge that these are problems,” he told The Epoch Times in an April interview.
It remains unclear to what extent Beijing’s unfair trade practices will be addressed or resolved during the London talks.
Beijing initially denied having violated the Geneva trade agreement on May 30. The regime escalated its rhetoric on June 2, when a spokesperson for the Chinese Commerce Ministry issued a statement through state media attacking Washington’s decision to revoke visas for Chinese students with ties to the Chinese Communist Party.
“The United States and China have strategic interests in one another’s markets, and the President is always going to put American workers and industries first,” Leavitt said during the Fox News interview. “And the talks in Geneva really set the table for that, but we need China to comply with their side of the deal. And so that’s what the trade team will be discussing tomorrow.”
The U.S. team will issue a readout after the meeting, she said.
The Contemplation of Justice statue at the U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington on May 19, 2025. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times
War Memorial Dnipropetrovsk, Wikimedia Commons
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