Mysterious Outbreak in Wisconsin Infects 44, 18 Die(Source newser.com) A mysterious blood infection is spreading in Wisconsin, and officials don’t know how or why. Members of the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are now on the ground alongside state investigators hoping to find exactly what is causing the spread of the bacteria Elizabethkingia, which has so far infected 44 people, most of them older than 65, reports the  HYPERLINK “https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/disease/elizabethkingia.htm” \t “_blank” Wisconsin Department of Health Services. Though these bacteria typically don’t cause illness in humans, symptoms can range from fever and shortness of breath to rash and cellulitis—but in this unusual outbreak, 18 of the patients have died, reports the  HYPERLINK “http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/midwest/ct-bacterial-infection-wisconsin-deaths-20160303-story.html” \t “_blank” Chicago Tribune. “We are keeping every possibility on the table, but it does not seem to be [spread] from person to person,” state health officer Karen McKeown says. Six cases of the infection were initially recorded between Dec. 29, 2015, and Jan. 4, 2016, and when state health officials notified local partners the number grew and was found to date back to a case in November of 2015. Everyone affected already had serious underlying health conditions or compromised immune systems, and none are children. And while Elizabethkingia (named after Elizabeth King, who discovered the bacterium in 1959, reports  HYPERLINK “http://www.cnn.com/2016/03/03/health/wisconsin-elizabethkingia-outbreak/” \t “_blank” CNN) is abundant in our environment, including water and soil, infections are rare. So far none of the possible sources the CDC has investigated, including health care products and water, have proven to be the common link.

Chinese foreign ministry opposing ZTE trade restrictions (Source zdnet.com) The Chinese Foreign Ministry has said it opposes the decision by the United States Department of Commerce to restrict US equipment exports to Chinese telecommunications hardware manufacturer ZTE after allegations of contravening US export controls on Iran. According to Reuters, the trade restrictions will be in place from Tuesday, and will require companies wanting to ship US-made equipment or parts to ZTE to apply for a licence, with most  HYPERLINK “http://www.zdnet.com/article/zte-facing-us-export-restrictions-after-us-kit-sales-to-iran-report/” \t “_blank” applications expected to be declined. “China is opposed to the US, citing domestic laws to place sanctions on Chinese enterprises,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei said. “We hope the US stops this erroneous action, and avoids damaging Sino-US trade cooperation and bilateral relations.” Along with ZTE, the export restrictions also apply to two Chinese affiliates — ZTE Kangxun Telecommunications and Beijing 8-Star — as well as Iranian company ZTE Parsian. ZTE shares were suspended from trading on the stock markets in Hong Kong and Shenzhen on Monday. The US Department of Commerce Bureau of Industry and Security explained that despite a deal reached between Iran and the United States, China, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Russia in 2015 to lift sanctions in return for Iran  HYPERLINK “https://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/foreign-policy/iran-deal” not developing a nuclear weapon, its export controls over Iran were not amended.

Russia has a chance to control 73% of the world’s oil (Source businessinsider.com) Russia has played a master stroke in the current oil crisis by taking the lead in forming a new cartel, but it’s a move that could spell geopolitical disaster. The meeting between Russia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela on 16 February 2016 was the first step. During the next meeting in mid-March, which is with a larger group of participants, if Russia manages to build a consensus—however small—it will further strengthen its leadership position. Until the current oil crisis, Saudi Arabia called the crude oil price shots; however, its clout has been weakening in the aftermath of the massive price drop with the emergence of US shale. The smaller OPEC nations have been calling for a production cut to support prices, but the last OPEC meeting in December 2015 ended without any agreement. Now, with Russia stepping in to negotiate with OPEC nations, a new picture is emerging. With its military might, Russia can assume de facto leadership of the oil-producing nations in the name of stabilizing oil prices. Russia has been in the forefront of plans to move away from Petrodollars, and Moscow has formed pacts with various nations to trade oil in local currencies. With this new cartel of ROPEC (Russia and OPEC nations), a move away from petrodollars will become a reality sooner rather than later. Russia is smart. Vladimir Putin is genius. Moscow senses the opportunity that is almost tangibly floating about in the low crude price environment and appears to be ready to capitalize on it in a way that would reshape the geopolitical landscape exponentially. Though a solution in Syria is welcome, a large cartel of major oil producing nations of the world with Russia as the head would be a major upset to the current balance of power. With this potential in mind, the mid-march meeting should be very interesting for the global oil patch well beyond talk of production cuts and supply gluts.

Trump’s rise spooks Europe as sideshow turns serious (Source AFP) Europe’s bemusement at the rise of Donald Trump has switched to concern as his presidential campaign has gained ground in what observers said was a warning to traditional parties about ignoring populists. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier this week spoke about the “politics of fear” in the US campaign in a thinly-veiled reference to Trump and drew parallels to the rise of European demagogues. “In Germany and in Europe, something is gaining momentum in our domestic politics. And to be honest, I am also seeing it here in the United States during the campaign: it’s the politics of fear,” he told university students during a visit to Washington. European commentators have also issued increasingly stark warnings in recent days as the once-improbable prospect of the billionaire clinching the Republican presidential nomination is looking ever more likely.

The Suddenly Poor Life: Millions Will Lose Their Pensions (Source thetrumpet.com) Four hundred thousand Americans just found out they are not going to get the pensions they were promised. It is part of a trend sweeping the nation—it’s called the suddenly poor life. The Central States Pension Fund told its members on February 16 that they needed to take a massive cut in benefits—or  HYPERLINK “http://www.kansascity.com/news/business/article60760061.html” \t “_blank” the fund would be completely empty in 10 years. Members face a 40 to 61 percent cut in benefits depending on age, what company they worked for, and various other factors. The average loss appears to be approximately $1,400 per month. If the pension plan goes bankrupt and falls back on the government-backed Pension Benefit Guarantee Corp., people will get even less. The result is that many retired people are back out looking for jobs—not to support their lifestyles but themselves. “What’s happening to us is a microcosm of what’s going to happen to the rest of the pensions in the United States,” said Jay Perry, a longtime Teamsters member. Perry is probably correct. Public-sector pension funds are grossly underfunded all across America. Tens of millions of Americans are not going to get the benefits they are planning on! This is an underappreciated trend that will have a profound effect on America’s economy. Consider this: In Chicago, a recent report found that the city’s unfunded pension liabilities totaled 10 times the entire city’s revenues. According to analysts, this means that the city will soon be paying 50 percent of its revenue just to cover pension costs. New York City now spends more money paying pensions to retired police officers than it does to active ones. Philadelphia, Boston, Houston, New York—virtually every major city in America—face the same pension crisis. States are as well. Illinois’s pension burden has brought the state to its knees financially speaking.  HYPERLINK “http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2015/12/illinois-pension-reform-three-wrongs-do-not-make-a-right” \t “_blank” Ninety-three percent of the state’s retirement systems are underfunded, according to Wilshire Consulting’s 2015 report. 

Brazil on course for worst recession in century (Source AFP)  Brazil’s economy shrank by 3.8 percent in 2015 with the biggest contraction in 25 years set to push the Latin American giant into its worst recession for more than a century. The latest gloomy news from Brazil was no surprise, but the severity underlined the depth of problems facing President Dilma Rousseff’s government as it battles both declining economic output and 10.67 percent inflation. The state statistics office said 2015 registered the worst single annual fall in GDP since 1990, a year when the economy dipped 4.3 percent. With the International Monetary Fund predicting a further 3.5 percent shrinkage this year, Brazil appears to be well into a recession that would be worse than any on government record going back to 1901.

China Has Taken Over Another Disputed Territory in the South China Sea (Source Yahoo)

China has seized a disputed atoll off the coast of the Philippines in the South China Sea,  HYPERLINK “http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2016/03/02/1558682/china-takes-philippine-atoll” \t “_blank” Philippine media reported on Wednesday, with at least five Chinese ships denying access to Filipino fishermen. The ships now effectively control Quirino Atoll–also known as Jackson Atoll–a spot heavily frequented by fishermen from the nearby Palawan province and several other parts of the country, the Philippine Star newspaper reported.

Local fishermen, requesting anonymity, told the Philippine Star that they were chased away from the area by Chinese boats last week, while the mayor of the northern city of Kalayaan said China has had vessels stationed there for over a month. The Philippines is one of several countries–along with Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan–disputing China’s control of the Spratly island chain in the South China Sea and its claim that the water body is its sovereign territory.  HYPERLINK “http://fortune.com/2016/02/17/china-just-upped-the-stakes-in-the-south-china-sea/” \t “_blank” China appears to have stepped up its ever-increasing military presence in the region recently, with its deployment of missiles and fighter jets on yet another disputed island last month drawing the ire of the U.S.

Underwater and Underhanded: Russian Submarines Come to the Mideast (Source observer.com)

Russia is upping the ante in the power game they are playing in the Middle East. Russians have deployed a fleet of submarines off the coast of Syria. And not just any subs. These are the quietest subs in the world. NATO has termed these Russian subs “Black Hole.” They are diesel electric powered and fire Tomahawk-style rockets from the sea. The subs are also known as Rostov -on- Don and the Russians have already used them against ISIS and al Qaeda. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu with Russia President Vladimir Putin recently held a televised meeting, and broadcast footage of the submarines striking at ISIS targets. One of the secret weapons of great powers is their submarine fleet. Very little time is spent analyzing the power and strength of these underwater vessels, but conventional wisdom has it that the greater the submarines fleet the more powerful the navy. This explains why the actual size of almost every nation’s submarine fleets is a top secret and the best analysts can do is speculate as to the numbers involved. An advanced sub fleet can and will be much more powerful than any aircraft carrier. In other words—the greater the sub fleet, the more powerful the military. And if a set of subs can go undetected for weeks at a time the weapon becomes enormously effective both as a defensive and offensive weapon. This Russian sub can remain submerged for forty-five days. Weighing in at 4,000 tons, it is very small and very fast and can cruise at an underwater speed of 20 knots. Because of its small size, it is able to get into shallow water. Because it is so quiet, it leaves no sound signature. It becomes invisible.

“Black Hole” is one of Russia’s secret weapons and it is now taking up residence just off the coast of Syria, Lebanon, Turkey and Israel. How many are there? Best intel guesses say that Russia has twenty “Black Holes.” There are probably six of seven of these subs now submerged in the Mediterranean Sea. The airspace above Syria is also very crowded. There are air forces from fourteen countries bumping shoulders in the sky. Russia has exercised control over the airspace with its anti-air missile program and it controls the sky patrols thru an AWACS type plane. At this point, any country that wants to fly above Syria—and they all do, must get clearance from Russia. Russia wants to do in the sea what they are doing in the air. And they want to do it through intimidation. With their submarine presence now powerfully established off the coast of Syria, Russia has created what has been termed an Arc of Steel. The arc goes from the Arctic Circle through the Baltic Sea to Crimea to the Mediterranean Sea. The game plan is to challenge and confront NATO and the West. In this game, the Middle East is just one connecting link in a chain of naval influence, power and intimidation.

German Chancellor Merkel’s Refugee Policy and the Call for a European Army (Source globalresearch.ca) Two leading representatives of economic think tanks, Michael Hüther (Cologne Institute of Economic Research) and Hans-Werner Sinn (longtime president of the Ifo Institute for Economic Research in Munich), demanded the construction of a “joint, European army”. The refugee crisis made clear how deep the crisis of leadership in Europe was. A leading European power was missing. “The leading power in Europe in practice, Germany”, could no longer evade its responsibility. It was wrong to rely upon the borders being secured by Turkey. Instead, the creation of a “comprehensive European defence community” had to be adopted as a clear goal. Hüther and Sinn wrote, “Faced with the military flash-points in Europe’s environs, we consider it an unsustainable anachronism that the 28 EU states control 25 separate armies with their own general staffs, even though they are bound together in emergencies via NATO”. Europe needed a new project to maintain its unity. “Before the euro zone states involve themselves even more in a union of financial liabilities”, the Schengen zone states or the euro zone should come together to form a kind of “European defence community”. “A new, sustainable pillar of European cooperation [would be] based” on joint units and a command structure, “which gives the political union a solid basis and has a logic of political order”. With Merkel’s refugee policy increasingly assuming the form of sealing off Europe militarily, and with conflicts growing in NATO over the war in Syria, the demand is being raised for a European army under German leadership.

Nuke test: The missile is the message, the Pentagon hopes (Source businessinsider.com) Like a giant pen stroke in the sky, an unarmed Minuteman 3 nuclear missile roared out of its underground bunker on the California coastline Thursday and soared over the Pacific, inscribing the signature of American power amid growing worry about North Korea’s pursuit of nuclear weapons capable of reaching US soil. When it comes to deterring an attack by North Korea or other potential adversaries, the missile is the message. At 11:01 p.m. PST on Thursday, the Minuteman missile, toting a payload of test instruments rather than a nuclear warhead, leaped into the darkness in an explosion of flame. It arced toward its test range in the waters of the Kwajalein Atoll, an island chain about 2,500 miles southwest of Honolulu. About 30 minutes later the reentry vehicle that carries the missile’s payload reached its target, Col. Craig Ramsey, commander of the 576th Flight Test Squadron, told an assembled group of observers, including Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Work and Adm. Cecil Haney, the top nuclear war-fighting commander. The missile test, dubbed “Glory Trip 218,” was the second this month and the latest in a series designed to confirm the reliability of the Cold War-era missile and all its components.