(End of the American Dream)—Most people don’t realize this, but all of our lives are about to change. We are moving into a time of global war, and the death and destruction that we will witness will be off the charts. World War I was supposed to be “the war to end all wars”, and it resulted in approximately 20 million deaths. It was a truly nightmarish conflict, and those living at the time thought that we would never see anything like it again. But then World War II erupted, and it resulted in approximately 75 million deaths. Sadly, global leaders seem to have forgotten the lessons of World War II, because now the stage is being set for the biggest war in human history so far. During World War III, billions of people could die. Unfortunately, it appears that there will be no turning back now.
It is my personal opinion that the war in the Middle East will be the first conflict to rise to an apocalyptic level.
On Wednesday, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant warned the media that he feels that there is “an obligation to change the situation in the north”…
Israeli officials on Wednesday escalated threats against Lebanon’s Hezbollah amidst escalating cross-border exchanges of fire between the two sides.
“We are completing the land and air preparedness, strengthening the intelligence systems, and preparing for any possibility,” Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told the press before meeting with military chief Herzi Halevi and senior commanders in the Northern Command headquarters in the city of Safed.
“We have an obligation to change the situation in the north,” he stressed.
In other words, Gallant fully intends to push Hezbollah back so that approximately 100,000 Israeli citizens can safely return to their homes in northern Israel.
Another Israeli official has issued an even more ominous warning…
Meanwhile, the Israeli Ynet news site reported that an anonymous “senior Israeli government official” told the news outlet that “if Hezbollah continues to attack Israel, southern Lebanon will look like Gaza. Beirut will not be immune.”
Those are very strong words.
This week the Biden administration has been trying desperately to find a diplomatic solution that will satisfy both sides, but that endeavor was never going to succeed.
Meanwhile, Israeli officials have been making preparations for a ground invasion of southern Lebanon, and it is being reported that “operational plans for an offensive in Lebanon” have been officially approved…
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Tuesday announced that plans to launch an offensive in Lebanon against Hezbollah have been formally approved.
The IDF statement further said it is preparing to “accelerate readiness in the field” at a moment the situation is deteriorating, given the Lebanese paramilitary group backed by Iran has in the last days sent hundreds of drones and missiles into northern Israel. The statement spelled out that “operational plans for an offensive in Lebanon were approved.”
I was stunned when I read that.
I knew that this was coming, but I didn’t think it was coming quite so quickly.
When the IDF enters southern Lebanon, it will mean all-out war.
On Wednesday, the leader of Hezbollah warned vaguely of “new weapons and intelligence capabilities” that his organization now possesses…
Lebanon’s Hezbollah has new weapons and intelligence capabilities that could help it target more critical positions deeper inside Israel in case of an all-out war, the militant group’s leader warned on Wednesday.
Hassan Nasrallah’s comments came as the monthslong cross-border conflict simmering between Hezbollah and Israel appears to be reaching a boiling point and a day after a top U.S. envoy met Lebanese officials in his latest attempt to ease tensions.
And this week Hezbollah also released some very alarming footage…
The Hezbollah terror group published footage on Tuesday from what it said was one of its reconnaissance drones flying over northern Israel, including the Haifa port, as Israel said it struck down more suspected drones over the Western Galilee.
It was unclear when the roughly 10 minutes of footage released by Hezbollah were captured, and the Israel Defense Forces did not immediately comment on the video.
Iran has provided Hezbollah with a vast arsenal of very sophisticated missiles, and once an all-out war erupts tens of thousands of those missiles will rain down on Israeli cities.
There will not be a single city in all of Israel that will be out of range. How do you think Israel might choose to respond in such a scenario? You might want to start thinking about that.
Elsewhere, it looks like any chance for peace in Ukraine is gone.
Apparently the Russians are now saying that the next proposal that they will offer to Ukraine will be an offer to surrender…
The Kremlin now says that the next formal proposal on the horizon will be a document of the Ukrainian government’s surrender. This was stated by Russia’s chief delegate to the Vienna talks on military security and arms control, Konstantin Gavrilov, in a Rossiya-24 television interview.
“There are points of no return. The next thing that Russia will have to offer will be the document about [the Kiev government’s] surrender,” he said. He called last week’s proposals by Putin “realistic” and said they could end the war if they were embraced.
The Russians are steadily gaining ground, and so they feel like they have all the leverage that they need.
But western leaders are absolutely obsessed with winning this conflict, and they insist that they will keep ramping up their efforts for as long as it takes.
In the end, it appears that both sides are willing to keep escalating matters until someone pushes things a little bit too far. Let us hope that day does not arrive any time soon.
Unfortunately, when we do find ourselves in a direct war with Russia we could also find ourselves in a direct war with North Korea at the same time because those two nations just signed a mutual defense pact…
Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un signed a new pact Wednesday that includes a pledge of mutual defense if either is attacked.
The agreement was sealed at a summit in Pyongyang during a rare visit by Putin to the reclusive nuclear-armed state as both countries face growing confrontations with the West.
This is really big news.
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I don’t know why it isn’t getting more coverage by the western media.
The Russians have been making all sorts of unusual moves lately. For example, it is being reported that Vladimir Putin just picked his niece to be Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation…
Putin’s niece Anna Tsivileva has been appointed as Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, as stated in the official decree published on Russia’s legal acts portal. Pavel Fradkov, the youngest son of Mikhail Fradkov, Director of the Russian Institute for Strategic Studies and former Prime Minister and chief of foreign intelligence, has also been appointed as Deputy Minister of Defense.
Anna Tsivileva is married to Sergey Tsivilyev, Russia’s Minister of Energy, who assumed office in May after leading the Kemerovo Region. Tsivileva, formerly Anna Putina, has been previously reported by Agentstvo to be President Putin’s second cousin.
Even for Putin, I thought that this was a rather bizarre thing to do.
But I guess they do things differently over there.
Before I close this article, I also wanted to discuss a couple of new developments regarding China.
A new weapons package for Taiwan that is worth approximately 360 million dollars has been approved, and this isn’t going to make the Chinese happy at all…
The US State Department has approved a new weapons sale to Taiwan involving hundreds of armed drones and missiles worth $360 million, the Pentagon’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) has said.
Under the deal that was concluded on Tuesday, Taiwan will receive Altius-600M systems, which are unmanned aerial vehicles equipped with warheads, and related equipment at an estimated cost of $300 million, the agency said.
Of course the Chinese have been preparing for war as well, and those preparations have included expanding the size of their nuclear arsenal faster than anyone else…
China is expanding its nuclear arsenal faster than any other major superpower, and is in command of 500, a top European think tank has warned.
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute wrote in a report published on Monday that Xi Xinping has increased his nation’s nuclear stockpile from 410 to 500 in a single year.
The increase in nuclear weapons meant ‘China is expanding its nuclear arsenal faster than any other country’ in absolute terms, WMD expert Hans M Kristensen told Insider.
Most people don’t like to think about nuclear war, because it will mean the end of our society as we know it today.
Someday when the U.S. finds itself in such a conflict, it will be relying on an ICBM fleet that first went into service many decades ago and that is constantly needing to be repaired. The following is a brief excerpt from an excellent Time Magazine article…
If a piece of equipment breaks inside Captain Kaz “Dexter” Moffett’s underground command center at the Alpha-01 Missile Alert Facility, it’s marked with a paper tag that reads either “warning” or “danger.” A few of those are hanging in this cramped capsule buried about 70 ft. below the high plains of eastern Wyoming. One is stuck to the shut-off valves that control water flow in the event of an emergency. There’s another one on a ventilation hatch. The entire command capsule itself is jury-rigged on top of steel stilts because the shock-absorber system, which was first installed in 1963 to survive a thermonuclear blast, is now inoperative. So there’s a tag for Air Force maintenance teams to fix that too.
Then there are malfunctions that aren’t marked. Moffett’s computer monitor—the one that enables him to keep watch on a fleet of 10 nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs)—has a flashing glitch on the bottom of the screen. His classified phone line has such a weak connection that he can barely hear fellow Air Force officers who are commanding more than 100 other nuclear missiles spread across 9,600 sq. mi. “You can hear them pretty clearly if you stand on an angle, on one leg, and jump up and down,” Moffett says, smiling. “It’s all part of the job. We spend a lot of time saying to ourselves, ‘Hey, how are we going to make this work today?’”
Most Americans don’t realize that our strategic nuclear forces are in horrendous shape.
In many cases, those running the system are forced to use rotary phones and 8 inch floppy disks.
Meanwhile, the Russians have introduced a new line of ultra-advanced intercontinental ballistic missiles, and the S-500 is the best anti-missile system on the entire planet by a very wide margin.
I have written about all of this a lot, but I don’t think that it is sinking in for most people.
Over the past decade or so, the balance of power has shifted dramatically.
I would highly recommend that our leaders pursue peace while they still can, because we are simply not prepared for the type of war that is now staring us in the face.
Michael’s new book entitled “Chaos” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.
Five Things New “Preppers” Forget When Getting Ready for Bad Times Ahead
The preparedness community is growing faster than it has in decades. Even during peak times such as Y2K, the economic downturn of 2008, and Covid, the vast majority of Americans made sure they had plenty of toilet paper but didn’t really stockpile anything else.
Things have changed. There’s a growing anxiety in this presidential election year that has prompted more Americans to get prepared for crazy events in the future. Some of it is being driven by fearmongers, but there are valid concerns with the economy, food supply, pharmaceuticals, the energy grid, and mass rioting that have pushed average Americans into “prepper” mode.
There are degrees of preparedness. One does not have to be a full-blown “doomsday prepper” living off-grid in a secure Montana bunker in order to be ahead of the curve. In many ways, preparedness isn’t about being able to perfectly handle every conceivable situation. It’s about being less dependent on government for as long as possible. Those who have proper “preps” will not be waiting for FEMA to distribute emergency supplies to the desperate masses.
Below are five things people new to preparedness (and sometimes even those with experience) often forget as they get ready. All five are common sense notions that do not rely on doomsday in order to be useful. It may be nice to own a tank during the apocalypse but there’s not much you can do with it until things get really crazy. The recommendations below can have places in the lives of average Americans whether doomsday comes or not.
Note: The information provided by this publication or any related communications is for informational purposes only and should not be considered as financial advice. We do not provide personalized investment, financial, or legal advice.
Secured Wealth
Whether in the bank or held in a retirement account, most Americans feel that their life’s savings is relatively secure. At least they did until the last couple of years when de-banking, geopolitical turmoil, and the threat of Central Bank Digital Currencies reared their ugly heads.
It behooves Americans to diversify their holdings. If there’s a triggering event or series of events that cripple the financial systems or devalue the U.S. Dollar, wealth can evaporate quickly. To hedge against potential turmoil, many Americans are looking in two directions: Crypto and physical precious metals.
There are huge advantages to cryptocurrencies, but there are also inherent risks because “virtual” money can become challenging to spend. Add in the push by central banks and governments to regulate or even replace cryptocurrencies with their own versions they control and the risks amplify. There’s nothing wrong with cryptocurrencies today but things can change rapidly.
As for physical precious metals, many Americans pay cash to keep plenty on hand in their safe. Rolling over or transferring retirement accounts into self-directed IRAs is also a popular option, but there are caveats. It can often take weeks or even months to get the gold and silver shipped if the owner chooses to close their account. This is why Genesis Gold Group stands out. Their relationship with the depositories allows for rapid closure and shipping, often in less than 10 days from the time the account holder makes their move. This can come in handy if things appear to be heading south.
Lots of Potable Water
One of the biggest shocks that hit new preppers is understanding how much potable water they need in order to survive. Experts claim one gallon of water per person per day is necessary. Even the most conservative estimates put it at over half-a-gallon. That means that for a family of four, they’ll need around 120 gallons of water to survive for a month if the taps turn off and the stores empty out.
Being near a fresh water source, whether it’s a river, lake, or well, is a best practice among experienced preppers. It’s necessary to have a water filter as well, even if the taps are still working. Many refuse to drink tap water even when there is no emergency. Berkey was our previous favorite but they’re under attack from regulators so the Alexapure systems are solid replacements.
For those in the city or away from fresh water sources, storage is the best option. This can be challenging because proper water storage containers take up a lot of room and are difficult to move if the need arises. For “bug in” situations, having a larger container that stores hundreds or even thousands of gallons is better than stacking 1-5 gallon containers. Unfortunately, they won’t be easily transportable and they can cost a lot to install.
Water is critical. If chaos erupts and water infrastructure is compromised, having a large backup supply can be lifesaving.
Pharmaceuticals and Medical Supplies
There are multiple threats specific to the medical supply chain. With Chinese and Indian imports accounting for over 90% of pharmaceutical ingredients in the United States, deteriorating relations could make it impossible to get the medicines and antibiotics many of us need.
Stocking up many prescription medications can be hard. Doctors generally do not like to prescribe large batches of drugs even if they are shelf-stable for extended periods of time. It is a best practice to ask your doctor if they can prescribe a larger amount. Today, some are sympathetic to concerns about pharmacies running out or becoming inaccessible. Tell them your concerns. It’s worth a shot. The worst they can do is say no.
If your doctor is unwilling to help you stock up on medicines, then Jase Medical is a good alternative. Through telehealth, they can prescribe daily meds or antibiotics that are shipped to your door. As proponents of medical freedom, they empathize with those who want to have enough medical supplies on hand in case things go wrong.
Energy Sources
The vast majority of Americans are locked into the grid. This has proven to be a massive liability when the grid goes down. Unfortunately, there are no inexpensive remedies.
Those living off-grid had to either spend a lot of money or effort (or both) to get their alternative energy sources like solar set up. For those who do not want to go so far, it’s still a best practice to have backup power sources. Diesel generators and portable solar panels are the two most popular, and while they’re not inexpensive they are not out of reach of most Americans who are concerned about being without power for extended periods of time.
Natural gas is another necessity for many, but that’s far more challenging to replace. Having alternatives for heating and cooking that can be powered if gas and electric grids go down is important. Have a backup for items that require power such as manual can openers. If you’re stuck eating canned foods for a while and all you have is an electric opener, you’ll have problems.
Don’t Forget the Protein
When most think about “prepping,” they think about their food supply. More Americans are turning to gardening and homesteading as ways to produce their own food. Others are working with local farmers and ranchers to purchase directly from the sources. This is a good idea whether doomsday comes or not, but it’s particularly important if the food supply chain is broken.
Most grocery stores have about one to two weeks worth of food, as do most American households. Grocers rely heavily on truckers to receive their ongoing shipments. In a crisis, the current process can fail. It behooves Americans for multiple reasons to localize their food purchases as much as possible.
Long-term storage is another popular option. Canned foods, MREs, and freeze dried meals are selling out quickly even as prices rise. But one component that is conspicuously absent in shelf-stable food is high-quality protein. Most survival food companies offer low quality “protein buckets” or cans of meat, but they are often barely edible.
Prepper All-Naturals offers premium cuts of steak that have been cooked sous vide and freeze dried to give them a 25-year shelf life. They offer Ribeye, NY Strip, and Tenderloin among others.
Having buckets of beans and rice is a good start, but keeping a solid supply of high-quality protein isn’t just healthier. It can help a family maintain normalcy through crises.
Prepare Without Fear
With all the challenges we face as Americans today, it can be emotionally draining. Citizens are scared and there’s nothing irrational about their concerns. Being prepared and making lifestyle changes to secure necessities can go a long way toward overcoming the fears that plague us. We should hope and pray for the best but prepare for the worst. And if the worst does come, then knowing we did what we could to be ready for it will help us face those challenges with confidence.
