Augustine of Hippo, City of God, Book XIV, AD 420
"For these are a rebellious people, deceitful children, children who refuse to listen to the commandments of the Lord. They say to the seers, “Do not see”; and to the prophets, “Do not tell the truth; speak only what we wish to hear - prophesy illusions."
Isaiah 30:9-10
"The powers of financial capitalism had another far-reaching aim, nothing less than to create a world system of financial control in private hands able to dominate the political system of each country and the economy of the world as a whole. This system was to be controlled in a feudalist fashion by the central banks of the world acting in concert, by secret agreements arrived at in frequent private meetings and conferences."
Carroll Quigley, Tragedy and Hope, 1966
"Why is surprise the permanent condition of the U.S. political and economic elite? In 2008, when the global financial system imploded, the cry that no one could have seen this coming was heard everywhere, despite the existence of numerous analyses showing that a crisis was unavoidable. It is no surprise that one hears precisely the same response today regarding the current turmoil in the Middle East. The critical issue in both cases is the artificial suppression of volatility—the ups and downs of life—in the name of stability.
As Seneca wrote in De clementia, 'Repeated punishment, while it crushes the hatred of a few, stirs the hatred of all.' In the realm of economics, price controls are designed to constrain volatility on the grounds that stable prices are a good thing. But although these controls might work in some rare situations, the long-term effect of any such system is an eventual and extremely costly blowup whose cleanup costs can far exceed the benefits accrued."
Nassim Taleb, The Black Swan of Cairo, Foreign Affairs, 1 June 2011
"A day after Moscow pummeled the Kyiv region with hundreds of drones — and a powerful new hypersonic missile — Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on May 25 to advise him to pull American diplomatic staff and US citizens out of Kyiv. Russia has justified its increasing threats citing an attack on a school dormitory in the Russian region of Luhansk last week. Local officials said more than 20 people [students] were killed in the town of Starobilsk."
Mike Eckel, Lavrov Warns US to Evacuate Kyiv, Radio Free Europe 26 May 2026
Today was an option expiration for gold and silver on the Comex. The June contract is much more significant for gold.
And so gold was sold down, but bounced back a bit into the close. We might expect another 'gut punch' to test the resolve of those who held in the money calls, for which they are rewarded with active futures.
Stocks rallied hard on the latest announcement of 'a deal' by the wheeler-dealer-in-chief.
The substance of the 'deal' is vague and varying. Its intent was to pump the stock market bubble higher.
But it provides an excuse for the stock insiders pool to push prices even higher.
VIX is coiling.
The Dollar is chopping in a channel.
What went largely unnoticed over the holiday weekend is the warning that the Russian Foreign Minister gave to Marco Rubio to evacuate US diplomats and civilians from Kyiv. A warning like this is required by international law, and is often followed by major military action 24 to 48 hours later.
"Some men want war for sordid, others for idealistic, reasons; some for personal gain, others for impersonal principle. But most of those who consciously want war and accept it, and so help to create its 'inevitability,' want it in order to shift the locus of their problems." C. Wright Mills, The Causes of World War III, 1960From Iran to the Ukraine, highly unpopular Western leaders seem determined to push the envelope of war. And they may well get their wish, although I think most of their citizens want no part of it, but will be carried along with the tide of war and fog of lies.
Have a pleasant evening.
