XPost: sci.military.naval

<https://archive.is/T167X> bloomberg.com

Russia appears on track for a much shallower recession than many
forecasters initially expected this year .. Economists from
JPMorgan Chase & Co., Citigroup Inc. and other big banks are
slashing their outlooks for the drop in output this year to as
little as 3.5% .. Officials in Moscow, some of whom saw a
contraction of as much as 12%, are now preparing to improve
forecasts to less than half that .. "Russia is tracking a far
milder recession than had been feared when the invasion began,"
JPMorgan economists wrote this week, cutting their expected
contraction to 3.5% this year from the 7% they expected in March
.. Consumer confidence has picked up and unemployment remains at
record lows. Data from cash registers show purchases in late
June picked up to pre-war levels ..

* * *

<https://tinyurl.com/2p5r2jgw> thehill.com

With the Russian invasion of Ukraine now in its fifth month, Western
leaders are beginning to recognize, if not openly acknowledge, that
their unprecedented sanctions against Moscow are hurting their own
countries' economies without significantly crimping the Kremlin's war
machine ..

In fact, the fallout from the U.S.-led sanctions on Russia has ended
the era of cheap oil and gas and contributed to surging inflation,
supply-chain disruptions and a looming recession in the West ..

The sanctions have delivered Russia a windfall from high-price
energy exports that no Western-sponsored price cap can significantly
roll back ..

The Western discourse is finally beginning to face up to the
unpalatable realities .. The West's economic pain from sanctions ..
classic example of cutting off one's nose to spite one's face ..

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<https://tinyurl.com/22vq227o> nationalinterest.org

American Grand Strategy: Disguising Decline
The United States is in retreat, defeat, or stalemate everywhere, whether
in the military arena or in the realm of trade and industrial production ..

On a global level, the U.S. campaign to get other nations to sanction
Russia to punish it for invading Ukraine has been a flop .. Most countries
.. have refused to go along ..

While Congress votes to deliver arms to bleed Russia in a proxy war in
Ukraine, everywhere else in the world the United States is staggering from
a series of humiliating strategic defeats. After two decades of fighting
in Afghanistan, Washington abruptly abandoned it .. In post-Saddam Iraq,
the remaining U.S. presence is opposed by many Iraqis .. In Syria, Bashar al-Assad has survived .. The overthrow of Muammar el-Qaddafi in Libya by
the United States and NATO has produced chaos and disintegration .. The military is back in charge in Egypt .. Meanwhile, China is pushing the
United States and its allies out of one global market after another ..

Wherever we look, then, we see the United States in retreat or in defeat
or in stalemate, whether in the military arena or in the realm of trade
and industrial production .. The United States is a declining force in
global commerce and global diplomacy, but in its remaining North American
and European spheres of influence, it can still play the hegemon ..

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<https://archive.is/RAgFU> quora.com

Q. Is the US considered a third world country?

A1. It kind of already is. We don't have universal healthcare ..

A2. They are a third world country, when you have prime living in
tents on the streets with no fresh water, no toilets, no electricity,
no access to fresh food ...

A3. In many ways, America is fast becoming a developing country,
simply because it has not moved forward in any significant area
(that matters to the people) for over a decade now. If you live in
America and have not been entirely brainwashed by the theology of the
American Dream, you will notice something: that nothing has changed
in the USA for the past 15 years. Absolutly nothing has happened in a
positive direction here in the United States ..

<https://youtu.be/nHRio__nhtc>

How The US Became A Third World Country

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<https://tinyurl.com/28meweaq> belmarrahealth.com

Alcoholic Liver Disease Skyrockets in America

A new study suggests that America has a collective drinking problem
that is made worse by obesity .. Deaths from alcoholic cirrhosis have
more than tripled in 20 years ..

<https://tinyurl.com/drug-overdose-pindos> <https://tinyurl.com/drug-overdose-europe>
America the leprosarium.

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<https://tinyurl.com/23g9lthv> spiked-online.com

America's great cities are gripped by decline and disorder .. Today,
as US cities reel from collapsed economies, rising crime and pervasive corruption, there's something of a revolt brewing .. Equally troubling
is that some of these cities have also become centres for homelessness,
open drug markets and incubators of all sorts of diseases. Los Angeles
city workers have been infected with typhus - which has begun to
resurge in California .. There are already increased cases of leprosy
in Los Angeles .. Thanks to the resurgence of rats, the return of
bubonic plague may be imminent ..

...

<https://archive.is/fjPkr>

.. America's sense of well-being slipping away ..

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<https://tinyurl.com/y932okfl> spiked-online.com

Between the stupid and the evil ..

We have two parties here, and only two. One is the evil party, and the
other is the stupid party .. Occasionally, the two parties get together
to do something that's both evil and stupid .. Bipartisanship ..

<https://archive.is/4kVpi>

Decadence and hubris have finally brought down the American Empire
The US is in retreat on all fronts, and its incompetent politicians
are incapable of reversing the decline ..

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<https://tinyurl.com/22cbavj9> pmnewsnigeria.com

Mass shootings .. are a sign of social collapse ..

The signs of American collapse are everywhere you look. From its
sclerotic politics, where nothing ever gets done .. To its economy -
in which the average American struggles to make ends meet .. while the
ultra rich grow ever richer. To its society, in which young people have
little to no chance of a decent life .. Right down to its culture ..

<https://tinyurl.com/yeuukoas>

.. U.S. is in irreversible decline ..

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<https://tinyurl.com/268shvfl> heritage.org

.. The stunning decline of the globe's sinking superpower.
The United States is in free fall, its economy heading
towards recession, with soaring inflation, skyrocketing
prices for petrol and consumer goods, and a plummeting
stock market erasing trillions of dollars from the value
of American retirement accounts .. The sense of malaise
across the United States is palpable ..

...

<https://tinyurl.com/yd656q86>

Why America is failing

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<https://archive.is/f9B2M> theaustralian.com.au

United States, no more. It is a failed state

Once upon a time there was a .. magic republic. Proud of its constitution
and believing in manifest destiny. Then something went wrong .. To be more accurate, a lot of things went wrong ..

The United States no more. It is a failed state ..

Welcome to the age of Failed States ..

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<https://archive.is/2MSEl> bloomberg.com

US Hypersonic Missile Fails in Test in Fresh Setback for Program

A flight test of a hypersonic missile system in Hawaii ended in
failure due to a problem .. delivering a fresh blow to a program
that has suffered stumbles ..

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<https://tinyurl.com/ycy82q67> amgreatness.com

Future Misery .. By 2024, America will be poorer, sicker, more
terrorized .. Dismal numbers .. Many families cannot afford
rent, food, or the basics and it is only going to get worse ..

...

<https://tinyurl.com/swfszthp>

.. Americans are showing their misery in their behavior ..

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XPost: sci.military.naval

On 7/7/2022 9:40 AM, Oleg Smirnov wrote:

<https://archive.is/T167X> bloomberg.com

Russia appears on track for a much shallower recession than many
forecasters initially expected this year .. Economists from
JPMorgan Chase & Co., Citigroup Inc. and other big banks are slashing
their outlooks for the drop in output this year to as little as 3.5% .. Officials in Moscow, some of whom saw a contraction of as much as 12%,
are now preparing to improve forecasts to less than half that .. "Russia
is tracking a far
milder recession than had been feared when the invasion began,"
JPMorgan economists wrote this week, cutting their expected contraction
to 3.5% this year from the 7% they expected in March .. Consumer
confidence has picked up and unemployment remains at
record lows. Data from cash registers show purchases in late June picked
up to pre-war levels ..

* * *

<https://tinyurl.com/2p5r2jgw> thehill.com

With the Russian invasion of Ukraine now in its fifth month, Western
leaders are beginning to recognize, if not openly acknowledge, that
their unprecedented sanctions against Moscow are hurting their own
countries' economies without significantly crimping the Kremlin's war
machine ..

In fact, the fallout from the U.S.-led sanctions on Russia has ended the
era of cheap oil and gas and contributed to surging inflation,
supply-chain disruptions and a looming recession in the West ..

The sanctions have delivered Russia a windfall from high-price energy
exports that no Western-sponsored price cap can significantly roll back ..

The Western discourse is finally  beginning to face up to the
unpalatable realities .. The West's economic pain from sanctions ..
classic example of cutting off one's nose to spite one's face ..

As to the next above paragraph,
mostly valid, except for the word "unpalatable".

I think we can tolerate it.
I think the general population's view of Russia has
really declined.
Russia had no valid reason to decide to cause death
and destruction.

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
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XPost: sci.military.naval

<https://tinyurl.com/2nxrqkr3> voanews.com

Polls Show Americans Downcast About State of the Country

Two recent polls .. show a United States in which trust in major
institutions has fallen to all-time lows .. These two surveys - both
conducted by the Gallup organization - paint a picture of a country that
seems to have lost some of its confidence not just in specific institutions
but in itself more broadly ..

<https://tinyurl.com/y8ymtd7m>

The pessimism is overwhelming ..

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<https://tinyurl.com/2nu8fzma> bostonherald.com

Undeterred, Joe presses buttons and flips switches.
The plane goes into a nosedive.
Which is where we are today. You don't put a guy like this in control.
He is President Doom. Everything he touches goes bad.
And nothing is his fault ..
.. And the American people suffer.
But it is not Biden's fault ..

...

<https://tinyurl.com/2jkd6z8a>

Biden's border crisis is about to get a lot worse

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<https://tinyurl.com/2phdgttt> forbes.com

Want To Move Out Of The US? How To Get A Second Passport

.. More and more North Americans have become disillusioned .. says Eric
Major, CEO of Latitude, a company that helps individuals and families find
the right options for pursuing an additional passport ..

Indeed, Americans are more disgruntled than ever, according to Nuri Katz, founder of Apex Capital Partners, .. specializing in advising international individuals on second citizenship .. "High net worth individuals think the situation is so bad in America right now that it actually sounds worse than
it is in Russia," says Katz ..

Get Golden Visa recently issued a whitepaper called "The Great American
Exodus" .. The company found that more and more Americans are opting to
leave the country for social and political reasons ..

<https://tinyurl.com/y4yx5kyv>

A final dispatch of American political decline ..

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<https://tinyurl.com/2pzu5eke> thehill.com

A little more than 1 in 3 Americans currently believe the U.S. system
of government is sound, a figure that has declined significantly over
the past few years .. The combined 36 percent is a decline from when
the pollster previously asked the question in February 2020 .. The
newest measure comes as inflation has reached a 40-year high with the
vast majority of the public polled consistently indicating they believe
the country is on the wrong track ..

...

<https://tinyurl.com/2baorblm>

American "Democracy" as a Dead Parrot ..

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<https://tinyurl.com/2kkusnw5> foxnews.com

Biden's presidency looks 'out of control,' ..

The Fourth of July weekend began with #ImpeachJoeBiden trending on Twitter .. Americans are furious, despondent, and fed up with President Joe Biden .. The country has gone off the rails and the president seems utterly incapable ..

.. Can it get even worse? Yes, unfortunately, it can. The economy is slumping, COVID confusion reigns, high energy prices are raising the cost of everything, air travel is a disaster, the chaos at the border is about to escalate and crime is surging. And, we remain disastrously low on baby formula .. Americans are getting poorer, and losses are likely to continue ..

...

<https://tinyurl.com/y7nrak4b>

Carjackings spiral out of control ..

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<https://archive.is/xHgFO> theepochtimes.com

Today's America: An Economy of Shortages

For the first time in over 40 years, the U.S. economy is dealing with widespread shortages. Parts are unavailable for manufacturers when they
need them. Airlines abruptly cancel flights. Railroads and trucks are
cutting shipments. Food shelves in some areas are depleted with some areas reporting a lack of meat supplies, milk, or other essential food items.

What's going on? ..

Read more <https://archive.is/xHgFO>

<https://tinyurl.com/y5b8sbp6>

Life is Harder for Americans ..

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<https://archive.is/qpjCP> washingtonpost.com

Inflation is even worse than the official numbers suggest

.. Americans who enjoyed a Fourth of July cookout on Monday paid 17 percent more for their food than last year .. That's a perfect illustration of a
poorly understood aspect of inflation: For most Americans, the inflation
they actually experience is often much worse than the 8.6 percent headline
rate ..

Prices for the goods that people regularly purchase are rising much faster
than those for things they don't. Food used at home, for example, rose by almost 12 percent over the past year, while gasoline prices jumped by
nearly 50 percent. Prices for eggs skyrocketed by more than 32 percent in
the last year ..

These facts explain why Americans are furious about inflation. Both big-
ticket items they purchase infrequently and the everyday items they buy
every week are skyrocketing in price ..

The administration's efforts to combat these hikes are laughably inept or tone-deaf .. President Biden has issued silly tweets .. His tone-deafness on gas prices is especially troubling ..

America's decades-long low inflation adds to the political impact of double- digit price hikes .. For most Americans, it's the shock of a lifetime. No wonder they are furious ..

<https://tinyurl.com/mstyn2fk>

America is in a series of crises that are rapidly compounding ..

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<https://tinyurl.com/2m6avv2o> theatlantic.com

.. The Murder Clearance Rate Is at an All-Time Low
For the past 60 years, U.S. detectives have gotten worse at one of the
most basic jobs of law enforcement ..

American violence is resurgent. Gun murders rose to their highest
figure on record in 2020, the last year for which we have complete data.
While violent crime is rising .. about half of all murders in the United
States today go unsolved .. Police agencies are reporting fewer and
fewer murders being cleared each year ..

<https://tinyurl.com/23g9lthv>

America's great cities are gripped by decline and disorder ..

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<https://archive.is/PN4P6> nytimes.com

It's Time to Stop Living the American Scam

People are enervated not just by the Sisyphean pointlessness of their individual labors but also by the fact that they're working in and for a society in which, increasingly, they have zero faith or investment ..

More young people are opting not to have kids not only because they can't afford them but also because they assume they'll have only a scorched or
sodden wasteland to grow up in ..

The oligarchs have realized they can work everyone harder, pay them less, eliminate benefits, turn every human institution from medicine to
corrections into a racket, charge far more for basic rights and services
than people in any other nation would stand for without revolting .. In
the past few decades, capitalism has exponentially increased the
creation of wealth for the already incredibly wealthy at the negligible
expense of the well-being, dignity and happiness of most of humanity ..

<https://archive.is/WXhli>

.. 2022: Bad-Moon Rising ..

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<https://tinyurl.com/2lg8trcd> computerworld.com

As Intel, Samsung, TSMC, and others move ahead with plans for new computer
chip development and manufacturing plants in the US, those efforts are
running into a new headwind: there aren't enough people with the skills
needed to run the facilities .. The skills gap is exacerbating a chip supply shortage ..

The US share of global semiconductor fabrication capacity has been on a
steady decline for decades .. US semiconductor production represented about
40% of the market in 1990; that dropped to around 12% in 2020 ..

"This will take years and decades," ..

...

<https://tinyurl.com/y8t2ydpo>

.. America increasingly faltering and lagging global competitors ..

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<https://tinyurl.com/23w46fmc> politico.com

The Southwest is bone dry .. Climate change and worsening drought have
driven water stores to dangerous lows. Now the federal government is
telling states to drastically cut back ..

A federal Bureau of Reclamation ultimatum last month, prompted by an
extreme climate-change-induced drop in water levels at the nation's
largest reservoirs, reopens years of complicated agreements and
political feuds .. Must now swiftly reckon with a problem that has been
decades in the making ..

Regional drought has only made things worse. Last month, the water got
so low it revealed submerged human remains that had been dumped in the
lake ..

...

<https://tinyurl.com/28zkqaeu>

.. Get ready for the blackouts ..

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<https://tinyurl.com/2mjqty3q> politico.com

.. The nation's ongoing malaise .. Americans' confidence in the country's institutions continues to drop to record lows .. The presidency and the
Supreme Court suffered the most precipitous declines ..

An eye-popping 10% of Americans say the country is headed in the right direction, compared to 88% who think it's on the wrong track .. That's a
record low going back to 2013 ..

<https://tinyurl.com/268shvfl>

.. The United States is in free fall ..

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