End of the World or End of the Month?

All politicians are engaged in this pernicious game and are equally caught into its vicious web.

President Erdogan talks about Turkey’s growing hemisphere of influence in the Middle East, North Africa the Western Balkans, and lest we forget in the EU over parts of Cyprus and the immigrant population in Germany. His grandiose plans saw Turkey on the cusp of reviving its Sultanate and becoming the leading light for people lost in the darkness of their local labyrinths. Such people, according to Erdogan’s rhetoric, are waiting for the torch of faith, held by the Caliph in Istanbul,to be their beacon for hope. According to recent economic reports, the Turkish economy slowed sharply in Q3 caused by high debt,currency volatility, and inflation. Annual retail sales were flat, industrial production was patchy and the unemployment rate increased significantly in July and August of 2018.

 President Rouhani and his puppeteers promised the creation of a Shia Crescent that would shine on the dispossessed masses of this sect from Tehran to Tartus. The Islamic Republic of Iran would bring them pride, a sense of belonging, and salvation into their wretched lives and, their after-lives too. According to the Financial Tribute, an Iranian economic daily,the rise in 2018 of the retail prices of goods that used the government’s subsidized foreign currency at a rate of 42,000 rials per US dollar (about three times cheaper than the market rate) was no less than in other consumer goods.  Mohammad Baqer Nobakht, the head of Plan and Budget Organization of Iran, announced that "as much as $14 billion will be spent on subsidizing the imports of essential goods as per the budget bill of next year[2019]". 

[President] Nassrallah of Lebanon has offered his community -and as a collateral effect – to all the Lebanese, the gifts of repelling terrorists on the Northern border,intimidating Israel on the Southern border, freeing Yemen from the yoke of the Saudis, and lend a helping hand to the Iraqis in  their war on terror. As per actual reports activity in the economy remained sluggish in 2018, against a backdrop of prolonged political deadlock. The real estate sector—a cornerstone of the economy—seems to have performed poorly in the period, with cement deliveries contracting year-on-year and construction permits dropping significantly, while the merchandise trade balance widened despite robust export growth. According to the World Bank, such difficult economic conditions in the medium term are likely to adversely impact poverty rates.

 Even President Macron promised a “European economic government”, a "European Army" in the face of Russia, China and ...the US (?), total adherence to the Paris Climate Agreement, continued cooperation with Iran despite the US exit from the Nuclear Deal, and all that rich international agenda coupled with higher taxes on fuel for all motorists to enjoy. The latest protests in Paris by the angry Yellow Vests have caused economic havoc. According to the FT food retailers are expected to take a hit of about 1 per cent this quarter, with hypermarkets down4 to 5 per cent. And, this week, the French central bank slashed its forecast for economic growth for the fourth quarter from 0.4 per cent to 0.2 per cent.

  Atthe far opposite of this spectrum, President Trump promised to ‘Make America Great Again!” but through economic nationalism (not nationalization). He scrapped the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement because he judged it not in US consumers’ interests, re-negotiated the NAFTA deal to redress inequities that put US products and services at a disadvantage, is waging a tariff war on China, which has caused many US factories to de-localize  to catch up with cheaper labor and a manipulated Chinese currency; and has threatened the EU with severe consequences if the imbalances in trade -especially with Germany- are not tackled. He told NATO and the US’ Asian and Arab allies (not protectorates) that they should sh...

All politicians are engaged in this pernicious game and are equally caught into its vicious web.

President Erdogan talks about Turkey’s growing hemisphere of influence in the Middle East, North Africa the Western Balkans, and lest we forget in the EU over parts of Cyprus and the immigrant population in Germany. His grandiose plans saw Turkey on the cusp of reviving its Sultanate and becoming the leading light for people lost in the darkness of their local labyrinths. Such people, according to Erdogan’s rhetoric, are waiting for the torch of faith, held by the Caliph in Istanbul,to be their beacon for hope. According to recent economic reports, the Turkish economy slowed sharply in Q3 caused by high debt,currency volatility, and inflation. Annual retail sales were flat, industrial production was patchy and the unemployment rate increased significantly in July and August of 2018.

 President Rouhani and his puppeteers promised the creation of a Shia Crescent that would shine on the dispossessed masses of this sect from Tehran to Tartus. The Islamic Republic of Iran would bring them pride, a sense of belonging, and salvation into their wretched lives and, their after-lives too. According to the Financial Tribute, an Iranian economic daily,the rise in 2018 of the retail prices of goods that used the government’s subsidized foreign currency at a rate of 42,000 rials per US dollar (about three times cheaper than the market rate) was no less than in other consumer goods.  Mohammad Baqer Nobakht, the head of Plan and Budget Organization of Iran, announced that “as much as $14 billion will be spent on subsidizing the imports of essential goods as per the budget bill of next year[2019]”. 

[President] Nassrallah of Lebanon has offered his community -and as a collateral effect – to all the Lebanese, the gifts of repelling terrorists on the Northern border,intimidating Israel on the Southern border, freeing Yemen from the yoke of the Saudis, and lend a helping hand to the Iraqis in  their war on terror. As per actual reports activity in the economy remained sluggish in 2018, against a backdrop of prolonged political deadlock. The real estate sector—a cornerstone of the economy—seems to have performed poorly in the period, with cement deliveries contracting year-on-year and construction permits dropping significantly, while the merchandise trade balance widened despite robust export growth. According to the World Bank, such difficult economic conditions in the medium term are likely to adversely impact poverty rates.

 Even President Macron promised a “European economic government”, a “European Army” in the face of Russia, China and …the US (?), total adherence to the Paris Climate Agreement, continued cooperation with Iran despite the US exit from the Nuclear Deal, and all that rich international agenda coupled with higher taxes on fuel for all motorists to enjoy. The latest protests in Paris by the angry Yellow Vests have caused economic havoc. According to the FT food retailers are expected to take a hit of about 1 per cent this quarter, with hypermarkets down4 to 5 per cent. And, this week, the French central bank slashed its forecast for economic growth for the fourth quarter from 0.4 per cent to 0.2 per cent.

  Atthe far opposite of this spectrum, President Trump promised to ‘Make America Great Again!” but through economic nationalism (not nationalization). He scrapped the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement because he judged it not in US consumers’ interests, re-negotiated the NAFTA deal to redress inequities that put US products and services at a disadvantage, is waging a tariff war on China, which has caused many US factories to de-localize  to catch up with cheaper labor and a manipulated Chinese currency; and has threatened the EU with severe consequences if the imbalances in trade -especially with Germany- are not tackled. He told NATO and the US’ Asian and Arab allies (not protectorates) that they should shoulder a larger portion of their security burden whose tab was mostly left for America to pick up in the last 50 years. The US economy advanced an annualized 3.5 percent on quarter in the third quarter of 2018, in line with earlier figures, the second estimate showed. It follows a 4.2 percent growth in the previous period which was the highest since the third quarter of 2014. Upward revisions to nonresidential fixed investment and private inventory investment were offset by downward revisions to personal consumption expenditures (PCE) and state and local government spending. GDP Growth Rate in the United States averaged 3.22 percent from 1947 until 2018, reaching an all time high of 16.70 percent in the first quarter of 1950 and a record low of -10 percent in the first quarter of 1958.

 So,can politicians save the planet and stay in their place? Yes, if they get their priorities right, and they start at home.