We've discussed a new approach to thinking about how modern warfare is conducted. Instead of using traditional armaments such as fighters, nukes and submarines, war is now conducted through use of such diverse means as financial, economic, trade, cyberspace and terrorism http://www.youtube.com/markostaketv#p/u/1/0fPfJNERJSQ.
But that's hardly all. It is now possible to use really high-tech approaches as triggering forces of nature such as earthquakes and weather to create damage to crops or structures or even generate tsunamis. It is possible to use pyschological tactics, known as psy-ops, to instill debilitating emotions to your enemy. If that doesn't do the trick, then how about inflicting massive environmental damage to your opponent? (http://markostake.blogspot.com/2010/10/world-war-iii-continues.html).
But, the use of information is yet another technique for financing, as opposed to conducting, war. Of course, excellent intelligence and reconnaissance is critical to execution of a battle plan. But information has another use: surreptiously financing a war, without disclosure to Congress or the American people.
Fortunately, for the first time, Marko's Take will reveal a bona-fide true story of how this medium was actually employed in some of the major foreign operations of the last half century.
We had the privilege of being provided with the opportunity of speaking with Dr. Julio Antonio del Marmol, PhD. Dr. del Marmol has been an incredibly active member of the international intelligence community for nearly half a decade and tells stories that would make Jason Bourne look like a couch potato. He has had no less than 56 separate attempts on his life, and obviously, survived each one. He will be revealing each of these attempts and how he escaped, in an upcoming documentary called "One More Attempt".
Beginning at age 13, del Marmol began trasmitting data about Castro's Cuba from within to the international intelligence community. In 1971, his cover was blown, and he fled his home country to then be recruited for a new assignment: to cooperate with agents against Cuba.
His operations are even more secret than Animal House's "Double Secret Probation". For del Marmol to have been able to conduct his operations, naturally, required very large sums of money. The environment in that time frame was extremely unconducive to any official monetary support. Vietnam was a growingly unpopular boondoggle and the flower generation was making known its message of love and peace. Supporting covert operations would be about as popular as Herman Munster at a House of Mirrors.
So, the entities working with del Marmol began to provide him with the ultimate in insider information: They gave him advance notice of expected increases in prices of certain assets and other tips on important events which had extreme value to an investor or businessman. We're not talking about the an advance copy of the crop reports as in "Trading Places", either.
In 1971, as del Marmol began to build his non-conventional army, he was provided with the strong suggestion that the price of oil was going up. About 6 months later, the Arab Oil Embargo happened, generating tens of millions of dollars. Subsequently, he was given other "forecasts" such as the breakup of the Bell monopoly which he used to begin a very successful and lucrative business in payphones.
Of course, today, he would have Marko's Take to accurately forecast the future, but the good doctor is now retired and living what looks to be a very productive life.
Del Marmol's role was to provide what he refers to as his "services". Those spanned the gamut, from real spy stuff such as facillitating a regime change. Thankfully, it was not his idea to eliminate Castro with the exploding cigar, but we anxiously await hearing about that one. His other activities included setting up a sting by purchasing large amounts of cocaine from Columbian drug lords in order to expose the connection with Cuba. He also used money, often obtained from other sources, for many benign purposes such as building roads, schools, hospitals, airfields and bridges to instill goodwill among native populations that were suffering from oppression. They also provided badly needed food and medicine.
Del Marmol's forces were involved in some very major operations including Panama, Grenada, Congo and Ethiopia. They were peripherally involved in supporting insurgents in Afghanistan during the Russian occupation. They had some, but limited, involvement in Europe. The end game, in each case was regime change or preservation of a friendly regime under seige. The various administrations in power feared the "domino effect", especially in South and Central America. It was particularly feared that Mexico would become a Cuban satellite and a very hostile enemy with whom we'd would share a very long border.
As del Marmol's scale of operations grew, information alone was not enough to generate sufficient funds. Each tip could only produce so much. Market limitations capped the amount of profit each tidbit could earn. It was important to not score a gain so huge that it attracted attention and perhaps some sort of inquiry by regulators, the IRS or the media.
So, in 1988, it was agreed to by folks at the very top that del Marmol should be able to actually print genuine U.S. Currency. Yes, del Marmol was given a printing press, in effect creating a personal Federal Reserve and Department of Treasury. He had dies, plates, magnetic ink and the special paper used to print currency. Del Marmol's plates included Twenties, Fifties and Hundreds.
In order to make the currency genuine and indistinguishable from the ones produced at the mint, del Marmol engaged in some trial runs, using standard copier paper. With the benefit of multiple attempts, they were able to achieve a pretty accurate reproduction.
The "beta" bills were voluminous and required a virtual 24-7 destruction process. Unfortunately, not all were elinimated. Del Marmol then made a grave mistake. He gave an employee permission to use some phony currency, but warned against using more than a single $100 bill at a time. If the counterfeits were then discovered, the bearer could always claim that it was found or received in change somewhere. Del Marmol's employee, apparently no threat to Albert Einstein, decided to go shopping at Nordstrom's with a fistfull of monopoly money.
A blue collar worker with $20,000 in walking CASH? Needless to say, it drew the attention of the Secret Service and del Marmol was arrested for counterfeiting. Without much detail, the seizure was reported in the Los Angeles Times http://articles.latimes.com/1988-09-27/news/mn-2759_1_santa-ana-man.
At the time it was broken, the story was so significant that it interrupted the 1988 Olympics. Del Marmol was released by executive order after 5 months. Reportedly, the case has been completely wiped clean from all records and remains under Federal Seal. Took a few buckets of white out and some instuction from Russian historians to get the job done.
Cover blown, del Marmol has since retired. Somehow, despite more cardiac moments than the bomb squad, del Marmol is still in incredible condition, looking much younger and fit that his 63 years. He landed in the United States at age 23 knowing little English. Now he speaks with nary an accent. Not once did he have to 'splain anything to me!
Del Marmol is coming forth to advise the American people and the world on the, as of yet, undisclosed truth. Still a patriot with Libertarian leanings, he is using information that he possesses as his OWN form of currency and financing to get the message out, therby assisting the creation of a more transaparent government.
We will begin a series of pieces chronicling del Marmol's amazing life and activities. For the first time, answers to many questions historians have had will be answered in this blog. Wanna know about "Bay of Pigs", the "Cuban Missile Crisis", the Kennedy Assassination, Watergate or even 9-11? Guess what? You're in luck! Marko's Take is on the job, doing it what we set out to do. Bring you the unvarnished truth, bypassing our "watchdogs" (cough, cough) in the lamestream media.
Marko's Take
Showing posts with label Department of Treasury. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Department of Treasury. Show all posts
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Mutually Assured Economic Destruction
The concept of Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD), developed during the Cold War, is a doctrine of military strategy in which two opponents possessed the ability to destroy each other. As nuclear arsenals within the United States and the old Soviet Union grew during the arms race, it was understood that neither side could "win" a nuclear war, regardless of the relative amount of weaponry built.
If either side were to launch missiles, the other side would still have a deadly capacity to virtually completely destroy the other. Thus, this precarious balance kept the peace in that neither side could actually "win". In fact, the radioactive fallout from any type of strike would prove so injurious to the global environment, that nuclear war was believed to be impossible.
MAD was applicable when there were relatively few world nuclear powers. However, the number of nuclear-capable nations has expanded significantly, thus the doctrine is vastly more complicated. Additionally, the concept of defense systems such as anti-ballistic missiles, hardened silos and guided lasers ("Star Wars") makes it possible, although highly unlikely, that a first-strike could be defended.
MAD is now more applicable to the subtle economic war between the United States and China. Washington is a major importer of Chinese goods while Beijing holds vast amounts of dollar-denominated American debt.
China needs the vast U.S. consumer market to keep its poverty-stricken populace employed, while America needs a willing lender to purchase and hold is mounting external debt. Beijing has become such a large holder of Treasury Bonds that reducing its position would cost it dearly if it tried to dispose of a significant portion.
China is at risk of the enactment of trade barriers by the American political constituency which plays up to trade unions and enterprises crying foul over losses of jobs and business to "subsidized" Chinese manufacturers. In turn, the United States is at risk that Beijing will opt to reduce its holding of Dollars and put pressure on interest rates and the value of our currency. Mutually Assured Economic Destruction.
According to newly released data from the U.S. Department of Treasury, total external debt is now nearly $4 trillion, up more than 20% in the last year alone, as Washington has engaged on a spending orgy to stimulate the moribund economy. Of this total, China holds $900 billion followed by Japan with nearly $800 billion. In total, Asian exporters hold more than half. No other nation has in excess of 10%.
China's Treasury holdings represent nearly 20% of her annual Gross Domestic Product which is approximately $5 trillion. Mutually Assured Economic Destruction.
Curiously, the United Kingdom has recently moved into 3rd place as its holding of Treasuries has tripled in the last 6 months from about $100 million to more than $300 million. The total of all oil exporting nations is 4th at $240 million.
Mutually Assured Economic Destruction is merely another facet of World War III, a concept posited here that future wars will be waged not with cannons and bazookas, but economically and financially, through terrorism, cyber-hacking, ecological destruction and trade sanctions. For a brief background, click here http://markostake.blogspot.com/2010/02/world-war-iii-has-begun.html.
Marko's Take
Some sites we like and hope you visit and patronize: http://www.lemetropolecafe.com/, http://www.aegeancapital.com/, http://marketviews.tv/, and, last but not least, our most informative You Tube channel at http://www.youtube.com/markostaketv.
If either side were to launch missiles, the other side would still have a deadly capacity to virtually completely destroy the other. Thus, this precarious balance kept the peace in that neither side could actually "win". In fact, the radioactive fallout from any type of strike would prove so injurious to the global environment, that nuclear war was believed to be impossible.
MAD was applicable when there were relatively few world nuclear powers. However, the number of nuclear-capable nations has expanded significantly, thus the doctrine is vastly more complicated. Additionally, the concept of defense systems such as anti-ballistic missiles, hardened silos and guided lasers ("Star Wars") makes it possible, although highly unlikely, that a first-strike could be defended.
MAD is now more applicable to the subtle economic war between the United States and China. Washington is a major importer of Chinese goods while Beijing holds vast amounts of dollar-denominated American debt.
China needs the vast U.S. consumer market to keep its poverty-stricken populace employed, while America needs a willing lender to purchase and hold is mounting external debt. Beijing has become such a large holder of Treasury Bonds that reducing its position would cost it dearly if it tried to dispose of a significant portion.
China is at risk of the enactment of trade barriers by the American political constituency which plays up to trade unions and enterprises crying foul over losses of jobs and business to "subsidized" Chinese manufacturers. In turn, the United States is at risk that Beijing will opt to reduce its holding of Dollars and put pressure on interest rates and the value of our currency. Mutually Assured Economic Destruction.
According to newly released data from the U.S. Department of Treasury, total external debt is now nearly $4 trillion, up more than 20% in the last year alone, as Washington has engaged on a spending orgy to stimulate the moribund economy. Of this total, China holds $900 billion followed by Japan with nearly $800 billion. In total, Asian exporters hold more than half. No other nation has in excess of 10%.
China's Treasury holdings represent nearly 20% of her annual Gross Domestic Product which is approximately $5 trillion. Mutually Assured Economic Destruction.
Curiously, the United Kingdom has recently moved into 3rd place as its holding of Treasuries has tripled in the last 6 months from about $100 million to more than $300 million. The total of all oil exporting nations is 4th at $240 million.
Mutually Assured Economic Destruction is merely another facet of World War III, a concept posited here that future wars will be waged not with cannons and bazookas, but economically and financially, through terrorism, cyber-hacking, ecological destruction and trade sanctions. For a brief background, click here http://markostake.blogspot.com/2010/02/world-war-iii-has-begun.html.
Marko's Take
Some sites we like and hope you visit and patronize: http://www.lemetropolecafe.com/, http://www.aegeancapital.com/, http://marketviews.tv/, and, last but not least, our most informative You Tube channel at http://www.youtube.com/markostaketv.
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Producer Prices Producing Signs Of Inflation
The recently released Producer Price Index (PPI) is beginning to show signs of the inevitable wave of hyper-inflation (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/ppi_04222010.pdf).
The PPI for Finished Goods rose 0.7% from February to March, seasonally-adjusted, following a 0.6% decline in February and a 1.4% increase in January.
In March, more than 70% of the increase in the finished goods index can be attributed to a 2.4% jump in prices for consumer foods. The index for finished energy goods advanced 0.7% and prices for finished goods, other than foods and energy, edged up 0.1%.
Excluding seasonal adjustments, the March PPI rose by 1.1%. On a year-to-year basis, March’s annual PPI rose to 6.0%, up from the 4.4% annual inflation reported for February. The March 2010 annual inflation rate was the highest since the 8.8% annual rate in September 2008, when the systemic solvency/financial crisis reached its peak.
Rising prices of commodities is the driver. Of 15 major commodity price indexes, 13 were higher month-to-month (data are reported not seasonally adjusted). The PPI All Commodities Price Index was up year-to-year in March 2010 by 9.0%, versus a 6.9% annual gain in February and was at its highest growth rate since September 2008. Similarly, the March Purchasing Managers survey had shown its highest "Prices-Paid" index readings since August 2008 for manufacturing and since September 2008 for non-manufacturing industries.
Obviously, the inflation-creep is bullish for Gold and Silver. Recent auctions for Treasuries have become more problematic as the result of poor yields. The Federal Reserve has no choice but to keep rates low as long as possible, especially as the non-existent "economic recovery" sputters. This leaves no choice but for the Washington cabal to monetize our debt and fan the flames of inflation.
As we've mentioned in prior blogs, inflation has a lag effect and, once started, is incredibly difficult to thwart. The only solution is to endure a sustained period of economic hardship. Paul Volcker, former head of the Federal Reserve, resorted to raising interest rates to nearly 20%. This was followed by a severe recession until the Reagan tax cuts provided enough economic stimulus to set the stage for a prolonged period of sustained growth.
Marko's Take
Please visit us on YouTube. Our latest video blog on the Legality of the Personal Income Tax can be accessed by clicking here (http://www.youtube.com/markostaketv#p/u/0/1TInKnCIikg). In addition, if you have any interest in 3D applications for your cell phone, visit our new website at (http://www.e3dlabs.com/).
The PPI for Finished Goods rose 0.7% from February to March, seasonally-adjusted, following a 0.6% decline in February and a 1.4% increase in January.
In March, more than 70% of the increase in the finished goods index can be attributed to a 2.4% jump in prices for consumer foods. The index for finished energy goods advanced 0.7% and prices for finished goods, other than foods and energy, edged up 0.1%.
Excluding seasonal adjustments, the March PPI rose by 1.1%. On a year-to-year basis, March’s annual PPI rose to 6.0%, up from the 4.4% annual inflation reported for February. The March 2010 annual inflation rate was the highest since the 8.8% annual rate in September 2008, when the systemic solvency/financial crisis reached its peak.
Rising prices of commodities is the driver. Of 15 major commodity price indexes, 13 were higher month-to-month (data are reported not seasonally adjusted). The PPI All Commodities Price Index was up year-to-year in March 2010 by 9.0%, versus a 6.9% annual gain in February and was at its highest growth rate since September 2008. Similarly, the March Purchasing Managers survey had shown its highest "Prices-Paid" index readings since August 2008 for manufacturing and since September 2008 for non-manufacturing industries.
Obviously, the inflation-creep is bullish for Gold and Silver. Recent auctions for Treasuries have become more problematic as the result of poor yields. The Federal Reserve has no choice but to keep rates low as long as possible, especially as the non-existent "economic recovery" sputters. This leaves no choice but for the Washington cabal to monetize our debt and fan the flames of inflation.
As we've mentioned in prior blogs, inflation has a lag effect and, once started, is incredibly difficult to thwart. The only solution is to endure a sustained period of economic hardship. Paul Volcker, former head of the Federal Reserve, resorted to raising interest rates to nearly 20%. This was followed by a severe recession until the Reagan tax cuts provided enough economic stimulus to set the stage for a prolonged period of sustained growth.
Marko's Take
Please visit us on YouTube. Our latest video blog on the Legality of the Personal Income Tax can be accessed by clicking here (http://www.youtube.com/markostaketv#p/u/0/1TInKnCIikg). In addition, if you have any interest in 3D applications for your cell phone, visit our new website at (http://www.e3dlabs.com/).
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Why Is The Federal Reserve So Frightened Of An Audit?
Despite overwhelming bi-partisan support, the Federal Reserve (FED) continues to fight an audit "tooth and nail".
For some background on the FED you can watch the latest episode of our YouTube series (http://www.youtube.com/markostaketv#p/u/0/JiGA8XeZbUo).
It's not too hard to speculate as to why... maybe they have something to hide? Maybe they've got a HELLUVA LOT to hide!
According to an article in the Huffington Post, which has been covering the ongoing battle to force an audit, the Treasury Department is vehemently opposed to a House-passed measure that would open the Federal Reserve (FED) to an audit by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), a senior Treasury official said yesterday. The House version has more than 300 co-sponsors.
Instead, the official said the Treasury prefers a preposterously watered-down substitute offered by Rep. Mel Watt and would like to see it enacted as part of the Senate bill.
Watt, a Democrat from North Carolina, has introduced an amendment intended as an alternative to the measure to audit the Federal Reserve introduced by Reps. Ron Paul (R-Texas) and Alan Grayson's (D-Fla.) . But instead of increasing transparency, as the amendment claims to do, Watt's measure would instead make the institution more opaque.
Under the "Watt Amendment, an auditor could not look at loans or liquidity arrangements the FED enters into, the terms of those arrangements, or the effect of those loans and other liquidity deals on "reserves, the balance sheet or financial condition of a Federal reserve bank or the Federal Reserve System."
I guess the FED, like Garth Brooks, has friends in LOW PLACES!
Asked whether he supports the House-passed measure to open the FED to an audit, which was co-sponsored by Reps. Grayson and Paul, a senior Treasury official stated he is intensely opposed to it.
The official said the measure would undermine the independence of monetary policy and could restrict the ability of the Fed to act in times of crisis. Ironically, the FED is much better at CREATING crises than solving them! He said that the GAO already has audit authority and that the chairman routinely testifies before Congress.
Love the FED? Hate the FED? TAKE ME ON!
Marko's Take
For some background on the FED you can watch the latest episode of our YouTube series (http://www.youtube.com/markostaketv#p/u/0/JiGA8XeZbUo).
It's not too hard to speculate as to why... maybe they have something to hide? Maybe they've got a HELLUVA LOT to hide!
According to an article in the Huffington Post, which has been covering the ongoing battle to force an audit, the Treasury Department is vehemently opposed to a House-passed measure that would open the Federal Reserve (FED) to an audit by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), a senior Treasury official said yesterday. The House version has more than 300 co-sponsors.
Instead, the official said the Treasury prefers a preposterously watered-down substitute offered by Rep. Mel Watt and would like to see it enacted as part of the Senate bill.
Watt, a Democrat from North Carolina, has introduced an amendment intended as an alternative to the measure to audit the Federal Reserve introduced by Reps. Ron Paul (R-Texas) and Alan Grayson's (D-Fla.) . But instead of increasing transparency, as the amendment claims to do, Watt's measure would instead make the institution more opaque.
Under the "Watt Amendment, an auditor could not look at loans or liquidity arrangements the FED enters into, the terms of those arrangements, or the effect of those loans and other liquidity deals on "reserves, the balance sheet or financial condition of a Federal reserve bank or the Federal Reserve System."
I guess the FED, like Garth Brooks, has friends in LOW PLACES!
Asked whether he supports the House-passed measure to open the FED to an audit, which was co-sponsored by Reps. Grayson and Paul, a senior Treasury official stated he is intensely opposed to it.
The official said the measure would undermine the independence of monetary policy and could restrict the ability of the Fed to act in times of crisis. Ironically, the FED is much better at CREATING crises than solving them! He said that the GAO already has audit authority and that the chairman routinely testifies before Congress.
Love the FED? Hate the FED? TAKE ME ON!
Marko's Take
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