State Department Admits Obama Lied - $400 Million Payment To Iran Was Contingent On Prisoner Release...

If you define "ransom" as "a payment exchanged contingent on the release of a hostage" then you find yourself forced to admit that President Obama lied last week when he aggressively denied (and was irked at the question) that he paid Iran a $400 million ransom for the return of 4 hostages.  Today, The State Department's spokesperson John Kirby told the truth that the Iran payment was contingent on the prisoner release... but of course spun this 'ransom' payment as masterful diplomacy "deliberately leveraging the moment."

Brazilian Police Recommends Charging US Swimmers With Vandalism, False Testimony

Brazilian police are considering charging a group of U.S. Olympic swimmers with vandalism and giving false testimony, Rio's police chief said on Thursday, accusing them of lying about an incident that has marred South America's first Games

Why The Average American Is Angry (In 6 Simple Charts)

The last 20 years have brought great wealth to a few while most of the population was lucky to break even. Whether you’re a member of the elite/protected class or one of the unprotected, it’s hard to deny this reality. Globalization has created divisions between skilled and unskilled workers. Too few of the gains from growing trade are going to the unprotected class. They’re angry. We’re seeing this backlash now in people’s attraction to Trump, who promise to bring jobs back.

Crude 'Crashes' Up To Bull Market, Dollar Dumps To Brexit Lows

Paul Singer Says "Everyone Is In The Dark"; Warns Of "Sudden, Intense Market Breakdown"

"This is the biggest bond bubble in world history... Everyone is in the dark... the ultimate breakdown from this environment is likely to be surprising, sudden, intense, and large."

Another Market Descends Into Chaos: "It’s Madness. The Market Makes Major Moves For No Reason"

Trading of physical cattle has become so scant that the futures market can’t get the signals it needs to set prices

Bill Gross Warns "Central Bankers Are Destroying The Engine Of The Real Economy"

In the US the year-on-year trend for productivity has turned negative . Most central bankers dismiss this fact as a short-term aberration. But the Japanese economy provides an example of what interest rates at or near zero can do to a large, developed economy. The answer is not much: not much real growth; not much inflation - and, together, not enough nominal GDP growth to repay historic debt should yields on sovereign debt ever return to normal.

Caption Contest: Awkward Hug Of The Day

Did Biden find the on/off switch?

On The Impossibility Of Helicopter Money And Why The Casino Will Crash

Will the boys and girls still in the casino after the current election gong show is over patiently wait for their next fix from a beltway governance process that is in sheer pandemonium and stalemate? We think the odds are between slim and none. As we indicated previously, if Trump is elected the fiscal process will lapse into confrontation and paralysis for an indefinite spell. And if Hillary is elected, the Republican House will become a killing field for almost anything she proposes, and most especially the rank Keynesian apostasy of outright and massive debt monetization...

US Corporate Debt Has Doubled To $6 Trillion Since The Crisis: This Is Who Bought It

The US investment grade corporate bond market has more than doubled in size since the financial crisis while that expansion was bought by just two investors – mutual funds/ETF and foreigners.

Is a Second Passport Only for the Ultra-Wealthy?

by Simon Black, Sovereign Man:
When you think about ‘insurance’, chances are you probably think about term life, home insurance, or liability insurance.
But one of the best insurance policies you could ever get your hands on is a second passport.
Like most types of insurance, it’s one you hope you never have to use.
No one wakes up in the morning and thinks “I hope my house burns down today so I can cash in on that homeowners policy…”
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10 Orwellian Moments Found in the Newly Leaked Private NSA Newsletters

by Jake Anderson, The Anti Media:
The Intercept recently began releasing batches of top secret internal newsletters from the most important division of the NSA, the Signals Intelligence Directorate, or SIGINT. This is basically the spy division. The internal newsletter, SIDtoday, was never meant to be read by anyone outside of the agency, but it trickled out with the Snowden leak and has been waiting for proper publication. The Intercept will release nine years worth of articles in batches. So far there have been two, and they contain hundreds of articles. They start in the very early stages of the Iraq war, with the first one dated March 31st, 2003.
The articles range in content from a veteran NSA agent nostalgically remembering when there was a beer machine in the cafeteria to the SIGINT director telling everyone the emotions he felt after a top Iraqi leader was killed.
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How The Globalists Will Attempt To Control Populations Post-Collapse

by Brandon Smith, Alt Market:
There is an interesting disconnect with some people when discussing the concept of global centralization. Naturally, the mind reels in horror at the very idea, because many of us know, deep down at our core, that centralization is the root of tyranny. We know that when absolute power is granted into the hands of an elite few over the lives of the masses, very bad things happen. No small group of people has ever shown itself trustworthy, rational, empathic or wise enough to handle such a responsibility. They ALWAYS screw it up, or, they deliberately take advantage of their extreme position of influence to force a particular ideology on everyone else.
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The Ugliest Economic Data I’ve Ever Seen, Part 2

by Andy Hoffman, Miles Franklin:
It’s Thursday, and there are nearly a dozen “PM bullish, everything-else-bearish” headlines worthy of distinct articles.  Such as…

1. This shocking, and hilarious, segment of the John Oliver show, depicting how subprime auto lending has officially reached the destructive lunacy of the 2007-08 subprime mortgage market. Not to mention, subprime student lending, as a whopping 37% of the $1+ trillion, government-underwritten student loan “market” is now delinquent.

2. Obamacare is literally on the brink of collapse, with insurers losing $2 billion in 2015 alone, and pulling out of the program en masse

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