"Truth is proper and beautiful in all times and in all places.: -- Frederick Douglass
"All men recognize the right of revolution; that is, the right to refuse allegiance to, and to resist, the government, when its tyranny or its inefficiency are great and unendurable." -- Henry David Thoreau (1942). "Civil Disobedience"

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In congressional testimony Wednesday, Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel unabashedly defended the company's plans to raise the US list price of its COVID-19 vaccines by more than 400 percent—despite creating the vaccine in partnership with the National Institutes of Health, receiving $1.7 billion in federal grant money for clinical development, and making 

This Is What A Banking Crisis Looks Like MikeRivero Thu, 03/23/2023 - 09:21
"We Are Headed For Another Train Wreck": Bill Ackman Blames Janet Yellen For Restarting The Bank Run MikeRivero Thu, 03/23/2023 - 09:16

Silicon Valley Bank dished out $219 million worth of loans to officers, directors and principal shareholders in the months before it collapsed.

The money was handed it out in the final quarter of 2022 and was three times higher than the amount borrowed by insiders in the three months before, marking a two-decade record high.

Silicon Valley Bank's loans to officers, directors and principal shareholders TRIPLED to $219 million - the highest in two decades - just months before its collapse as San Francisco Federal Reserve boss blasted for missing signs MikeRivero Thu, 03/23/2023 - 09:15

Silicon Valley Bank dished out $219 million worth of loans to officers, directors and principal shareholders in the months before it collapsed.

The money was handed it out in the final quarter of 2022 and was three times higher than the amount borrowed by insiders in the three months before, marking a two-decade record high.

Cooking Oil Shortage Looms As Biofuel Demand Surges Due To 'Climate Solution' MikeRivero Thu, 03/23/2023 - 09:14

A key ingredient commonly found in kitchens could face a shortage in the coming months as global biofuel consumption surges due to climate change initiatives. 

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Distressed Debt Soars By 29%, Or $66 Billion, In One Week Amid Surge In Bankruptcies MikeRivero Thu, 03/23/2023 - 09:13

The cascade of defaulted regional US banks is blowing out the circulating inventory of distressed debt which expanded by about $65.9 billion last week as US insolvency courts saw six new, large bankruptcy filings, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The heap of dollar-denominated corporate bonds and loans in the Americas trading at distressed levels rose to $295.4 billion in the week ended Fridaya 28.7% increase from $229.5 billion a week earlier, Bloomberg-compiled data show.

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They actually did it.  The Federal Reserve just raised interest rates by another 25 basis points right in the middle of a major banking crisis.  I honestly do not understand what Fed officials are thinking.  They had already blown a 620 billion dollar black hole in the balance sheets of U.S. banks by raising rates so aggressively, and that resulted in the second and third largest bank failures in U.S.

A full guarantee of all bank deposits would spell the end of moral hazard and mark the final chapter of the dollar’s multi-decade debasement.

It’s said the cover-up is worse than the crime. With the latest banking crisis in the US, it’s the clean-up that could end up doing far more lasting damage. The failure of SVB et al prompted the FDIC to guarantee that all depositors will be made whole, whether insured or not.

We never thought we’d write that headline. But on Sunday the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. announced that New York Community Bancorp’s Flagstar Bank will assume all of Signature Bank’s cash deposits except for those of crypto companies. This confirms Mr. Frank’s suspicions—and ours—that Signature’s seizure was motivated by regulators’ hostility toward crypto.

Mr. Frank alleged last week that regulators seized Signature, whose board he served on, “to send a message to get people away from crypto.” 

Soaring demand for biodiesel, renewable diesel, and biojet fuel has primarily been concentrated in the US, Europe, Brazil, and Indonesia. 

However, the global palm oil market could struggle to meet demand. Their production levels stagnate, with Indonesia and Malaysia responsible for 85% of global supply. 

"In periods of supply shortages, the necessary rationing of demand must not take place only on the shoulders of the food consumers.

"This is a lesson we have to learn from last year," Mielke said.