O tem sem pisal prejšnji teden (Pomen mineralov redke zemlje in globalna strateška odvisnost od Kitajske) – medtem ko se Trump petelini, dviguje, pavzira in spet aktivira carine v obupanem donkihotskem boju proti celemu svetu, so kitajski politiki tiho, vendar zelo učinkoviti. Kitajska vlada je na Trumpovo petelinjenje uvedla zelo preprost, vendar za zahodne države smrtonosen ukrep – uvedla je sistem dovoljenj za izvoz komponent, ki temeljijo na mineralih redkih zemelj. Kitajska kontrolira 90 % globalne ponudbe teh mineralov. Za vsak nakup morajo tuja podjetja natančno specificirati, za katere namene se bodo te komponente uporabljale (predvsem se uporabljajo v električnih motorjih (npr. z neodimom in disprozijem), LED zaslonih in optiki (z europijem, terbijem), pa tudi v katalizatorjih in medicinski diagnostiki (z gadolinijem) ter za zlitine pri ceveh in granatah. Njihova uporaba je nepogrešljiva v zelenih tehnologijah, obrambni in vojaški industriji ter digitalni infrastrukturi).

Če gre za civilno uporabo teh komponent, izvozni posli dobijo zeleno luč. Kitajska vlada pa je eksplicitno prepovedala izvoz teh komponent za uporabo v vojaški industriji. To pomeni, da je zahodna vojaška industrija praktično mrtva, ko bodo pošle zaloge teh komponent. Ni resne alternative zanje, obstaja samo kitajska proizvodnja (90 %). Enako se lahko zgodi ostalim industrijam, če se bo Kitajska prisiljena maščevati na morebitno uvedbo visokih carin s strani ZDA in drugih zahodnih držav. Kot so povedali nekateri ameriški direktorji, imajo podjetja z največjimi zalogami teh komponent zalog le za 2 do 3 mesece.

No, zdaj so to – z grozo – ugotovili tudi v Wall Street Journalu.

China’s long term planning has allowed it to acquire some serious advantages which it now uses to counter economic and other attacks on it.

The refining of rare earth metals and the production of magnets from them is only one of several advantages it gained. These metals are not really rare. They are usually byproducts of large extractions of other minerals. But their refinement was considered to be environmentally dirty. It is only profitable at a large scale. Over the last two decades China has managed to create a near monopoly in it.

Rare earth magnets, while small in size, end up in a myriad of products. They are cheap but essential and difficult to replace.

As soon as the Trump administration tried to put high tariffs on China the country hit back. The export of rare earth products were stopped until a licensing process had been put into place.

The products are now considered to be dual-use items. China will allow the export of them for civilian purposes but it denies their use for the production of weapons. It wants to prevent to be hit by U.S. missiles which have ‘Made in China’ labeled parts in them. It is difficult to blame it for that.

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Če anglosaksonci kaj obvladajo, so to inscenirane sabotaže velikega obsega, nad katerimi so vsi  presenečeni.

The Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) reported a planned terrorist attack in international waters

According to information received by the SVR, the British intelligence services are planning to involve NATO allies in launching a mass raid on the “shadow fleet”.

According to London’s plan, such a campaign should be triggered by a high-profile incident involving one or more tankers. The plan calls for organizing a major act of sabotage, the damage from which will make it possible to declare the transportation of Russian oil a threat to all international shipping.

This will free up the West’s hands in choosing methods of counteraction. Ultimately, this could involve detaining any “suspicious” vessels in international waters and escorting them to the ports of NATO states.

The British are working on two potential casus belli:

1️. The first is to stage an accident with an “unwanted” tanker in one of the narrow points of sea communications (for example, in a strait). An oil spill and blocking of the fairway, as London believes, will provide NATO countries with “sufficient” grounds to create a precedent of an “emergency inspection” of a vessel allegedly for compliance with maritime safety requirements and environmental standards.

2. The second scenario involves setting fire to a tanker during loading in a port of a state friendly to Russia. It is assumed that the fire will cause significant damage to the port infrastructure and spread to other vessels, which will require an international investigation.

👉 London intends to entrust the execution of both terrorist attacks to Ukrainian security forces. Their predictably dirty work and inability to “cover their tracks” are seen by the British as a guarantee of their own impunity

The UK intends to choose the moment for the attack in order to use the media effect from it to put pressure on the Trump administration. The goal is to force Washington, contrary to its national interests, to adopt the most severe secondary sanctions against buyers of Russian energy resources, who will appear to be “indirect culprits of the tragedy.”

Vir: Levan Gudadze

Še enkrat – EU je v drugem desetletju stagnacije. Medtem ko je rasla počasneje od drugih že prej, pa zadnjih 17 let stojimo na mestu, medtem ko drugi rastejo.

Vse, kar Donald Trump ni. Čeprav je 2-krat nategnil pol Amerike, da se bori za interese delavcev, ki so zaradi globalizacije izgubili službe. Nato pa jih nategnil tako, da je znižal davke za premožne, za preostale pa uvedel nov prodajni davek v obliki carin, s čimer bo pokrival izpad davčnih prilivov.

P.S.

V tej verziji so mi všeč predvsem kitare v drugem delu pesmi. Sicer pa je moja favorite verzija pesmi ena izmed izvedb od Marianne Faithful.

Res je bizarno, kako Trump in nejgovi najbližji svetovalci in sodelavci, ki zasedajo ključne položaje v njegovi administraciji (Navarro, Bessent, Luttnick), nimajo pojma o osnovah makroekonomije in mednarodne trgovine. Jeffrey Sachs jim je ameriški trgovinski deficit na zelo plastičen način razložil s primerom deficita na kreditnih karticah. Bolje in lepše je skoraj nemogoče razložiti.

Tudi v najbolj zmešanem, najbolj  ortodoksnem, najbolj libertarnem, najbolj proizraelskem taboru lahko pride do upora. Proti še bolj zmešanemu, bolj ortodoksnemu, bolj libertarnemu in bolj proizraelskemu predsedniku. Pa ne zato, ker bi bil preveč zmešan, preveč ortodoksen, preveč libertaren in preveč proizraelski, pač pa, ker je preveč – avtoritaren. Tokratni enoglasni upor (brez glasu proti) v republikanskem taboru je upor proti temu, da bi v času počitnic Donald Trump imenoval preveč sebi podobnih sociopatov na ključne položaje brez senatne potrditve.

Vendar ne upajte preveč, sociopatska senatna združba  se bo še naprej perfektno skladala  s sociopatskim predsednikom glede vseh ostalih ukrepov.  Enaki tiči so se našli na kupu.  In zdaj vladajo.

Senate GOP Blocks Trump’s Recess Appointments in Stunning Rebuke — MAGA Cracks Widen

In a rare show of quiet defiance, the U.S. Senate—including every Republican—agreed on August 2, 2025, to a procedural maneuver that blocks President Trump from making recess appointments during the August break. The move, pushed forward by Senate Majority Leader John Thune, was adopted by unanimous consent—a clear sign that cracks in Trump’s grip on the GOP are spreading to the very heart of the Senate.

By scheduling pro forma sessions every three days, the Senate technically remains “in session,” thereby preventing Trump from bypassing confirmation votes to fill executive and judicial vacancies—a tactic he has hinted at using amid standoffs over controversial nominees.

The Supreme Court has previously ruled that such sessions are sufficient to deny the president recess appointment power, meaning Trump can’t shove through loyalists while Congress is away. And make no mistake—this was aimed directly at Trump.

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Praktično vsi evropski politiki in komentatorji se strinajo, da je dogovor Ursule von der Leyen z Donaldom Trumpom o trgovini in investicijah, sklenjen na škotskem golf turnirju v Turnberryju, je ponižujoč in škodljiv za Evropsko unijo. Dogovor slabi mednarodno verodostojnost EU, saj ne ščiti načel recipročnosti in pravične trgovine, temveč se uklanja ameriškemu pritisku. Gospodarsko je enostranski: EU izgublja dostop do ameriškega trga, medtem ko ZDA pridobivajo prednost na evropskem. Von der Leyen je brez mandata obljubila 600 milijard evrov investicij v ZDA, kar krepi kapitalski odtok iz Evrope. K dogovoru so prispevale notranje razpoke med članicami, zlasti Nemčijo in Irsko, ki sta podlegli interesom avtomobilske industrije in tehnoloških velikanov.

Vendar dogovor še ni potrjen, saj niso dorečeni vsi detajli, parlamentarna in vladna ratifikacija pa utegneta povzročiti odpor.  EU bi morala izkoristiti še odprto priložnost za spremembo pogojev in preprečiti dolgoročno škodo.

Ursula von der Leyen’s Turnberry golf course deal has been rightly called a capitulation and a humiliation for Europe. Assuming such an accord would put an end to Donald Trump’s coercion and bullying was either naive or the result of a miserable delusion. The EU should now steel itself and reject the terms imposed by Trump.

Is this deal really as bad as it sounds? Unfortunately, it is, for at least three reasons.

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Če bo koncert dopuščen oziroma če ne bo pod izraelskim pritiskom odpovedan, od še aktivnih glasbenikov med nastopajočimi zelo očitno ne bo skupine U2, katere skupna vrednost premoženja znaša okoli 1,8 milijarde US in ki se je iz nekih njej znanih razlogov odločila za podporo Izraelu. Bo pa zanimivo, če bo nastopila skupina Bonotovega sina Elijaha Hewsona. Hewson mlajši je nedavno igral na britanskem festivalu Glastonbury kot član skupine Inhaler, kjer je javno podprl Palestince s posvetitvijo pesmi “It Won’t Always Be Like This” ljudem v Palestini.

Legendary musician and producer Brian Eno has announced Together for Palestine, a major benefit concert to be held at London’s Wembley Arena — a call for global artists to break their silence and show solidarity with Gaza.

The event will take place on Wednesday, September 17, 2025, with all proceeds going to Choose Love, a charity providing urgent humanitarian aid to Gaza.

Likened to Live Aid, it follows the model of the iconic 1985 famine-relief concerts, which drew 72,000 people in London and reached 1.5 billion viewers worldwide.

Eno describes the evening as “a night of music, reflection and hope,” inviting artists to participate by performing or lending their voices through recorded messages.

Tickets go on sale at 5 a.m. ET on August 4, starting at £35 (approx. $45). Lineup details to be announced soon.