ISRAEL - Those who fantasize that ‘Israel’ is against Russia and/or China are irredeemably delusional. Israel’s Foreign Minister Yair Lapid commented on the New Cold War’s Western Eurasian theater in exclusive comments to Axios on Wednesday. In his words, “At the moment, the [Israeli] assessment is that we don’t see a violent confrontation soon. I also don’t think a world war is about to start there… We have a duty to act with caution about the Russia-Ukraine crisis that no other country has.” The Ukrainian Ambassador to Israel promptly responded with fury, even going as far as to ridiculously imply that his hosts are Russian puppets when writing on Facebook that “Mr Minister reiterates rhetoric of Russian propaganda and ignores the disturbing messages from his own strongest allies – USA, Britain and EU regarding the high possibility of full scale Russian military invasion into Ukraine in coming weeks.” It’s simply enough for the reader to know that Israel isn’t an American puppet but is fiercely independent in terms of its foreign policy and that the US’ two top rivals have successfully cultivated excellent ties with it that are mutually beneficial. Those who fantasize that “Israel” is against Russia and/or China are irredeemably delusional.

UK - Yesterday, the United Kingdom announced that it was adding itself as a party to a World Trade Organisation (WTO) dispute between the European Union and China, as part of a growing row between Beijing and Lithuania over the launch of a Taiwan representative office in the Baltic country. She accused China of “economic coercion” – a buzz phrase which has gained currency among the media and political classes to describe Beijing’s retaliation towards countries hostile to it, such as Australia. Since the end of World War II, the story of Britain’s foreign policy is one of contradiction, to put it mildly. It is the tale of a declining empire, which has repeatedly failed to be realistic about its place in the world, and this has manifested itself in its constant tilting between the US and Europe. The so-called “special relationship” with America embodies the nostalgia of empire, the belief in the supremacy of Anglophone capitalism, clashing with the more mundane reality of Britain being in Europe. This has created longstanding disorientation, ranging from Charles de Gaulle’s rejection of Britain’s entry to the bloc on the basis of its relationship with the US, to Euroscepticism and Brexit itself.

USA - In a joint press conference from the White House on Monday, Germany’s recently installed left-wing chancellor, Olaf Scholz refused to confirm his country’s position on the controversial (Nord Stream 2) pipeline should Russian forces cross into Ukraine. Despite lifting sanctions on the pipeline put in place by Donald Trump, President Joe Biden said per a White House readout: “If Germany — if Russia invades — that means tanks or troops crossing the — the border of Ukraine again — then there will be — we — there will be no longer a Nord Stream 2. We will bring an end to it.” Though American sanctions could hinder the project, the construction is basically complete and opening of the pipeline is ultimately in the hands of Germany, with approval required from the country’s Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagentur). The German chancellor promised to act with “one voice” on the Ukrainian issue with the United States, yet he failed to support the threat to shut down Nord Stream 2.

USA - 30 Trillion in debt and what do you get? Another day older and deeper in debt. What else do we get? Rising inflation and rising interest rates. Mortgage rates are rising rapidly as The Federal Reserve contemplates 5-7 rate increases over the next year and removing their balance sheet stimulus. Yes, I want to see how The Federal Reserve will navigate the rising rate scenario in the face of $30 trillion … and growing … Federal debt load. Instead of Tennessee Ernie Ford, I want to hear Delaware Joe Biden explain this to us.

USA - It's probably not the endorsement Biden's flailing administration wanted. In a time when social networks have been swamped with photos of empty shelves from across the nation, Goldman's head commodity strategist and one of the closest-followed analysts on Wall Street, said he’s never seen commodity markets pricing in the shortages they are right now. “I’ve been doing this 30 years and I’ve never seen markets like this,” Currie told Bloomberg TV in an interview on Monday. “This is a molecule crisis. We’re out of everything, I don’t care if it’s oil, gas, coal, copper, aluminum, you name it we’re out of it.” The shortage of, well, everything has translated into record prices of virtually all commodities: the Bloomberg Commodity Spot Index, which tracks 23 energy, metals and crop futures, has touched a record this year. That has been driven in part by surging oil prices, which have hit their highest level since 2014 and earlier today Brent rose as high as $94, assuring even more pain at the pump.

USA - Supplies of diesel and heating oil in the United States have dwindled as refiners are having trouble replenishing the domestic fuel supply this winter, which may keep oil prices elevated for months. Heating oil futures reached $2.83 per gallon at the market’s close on February 4, the highest price in seven years. US and global benchmarks for crude-oil futures hit above $90 a barrel, as a harsh winter storm affected large portions of the country, adding to existing supply concerns. The latest national average price for diesel was at $3.78 per gallon, the highest since September 2014.

USA - President Joe Biden will welcome German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to the White House on Monday to discuss Russian aggression against the Ukraine and the Nord Stream 2 pipeline as tensions mount in Eastern Europe. Scholz's visit comes as both Democrats and Republicans - along with American allies in Western Europe - have accused Germany of being 'missing in action' on Ukraine and expressed frustration Berlin hasn't done more to help its fellow NATO members in Eastern Europe as Russia builds up its military force on the Ukraine border. Scholz has said that Moscow would pay a 'high price' if it attacks. But concerns have been raised about his government's refusal to supply lethal weapons to Ukraine, to increase Germany's troop presence in Eastern Europe or to clarify which sanctions it would support should Russia act.

CHINA - The president of Argentina, Alberto Fernandez, recently attended the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics in Beijing. The next day, he met with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in the Great Hall of the People, where he signed Argentina up to the Belt and Road Initiative, while also penning an $8 billion nuclear power plant deal to be financed and built by Chinese firms. In a joint statement, both countries also affirmed Argentina's sovereign claims over the disputed Malvinas/Falkland Islands – a gesture which, while not a new position for either country, drew the ire of UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss on Twitter. In tandem with this, the president of Ecuador, Guillermo Lasso, was also in town, and, despite his government traditionally being a more US-aligned administration, he later announced talks on a bilateral free trade agreement with China. While the Winter Games go on, so do the political games. In the space of just a few days, it seems clear where the gold medal for seizing the diplomatic initiative is heading.

USA - The lack of critical thinking that we see in the world of journalism today is absolutely frightening. Way too often, the mainstream media simply takes the information that it is being fed and packages it as “truth” for an unsuspecting public. And since the general public does so little critical thinking at this point, most of the time the misinformation that is being foisted upon us goes virtually unchallenged. On Friday, NPR was thrilled to report that the US economy “added 467,000 jobs last month”… But the US economy did not add 467,000 jobs last month. It actually lost 2.8 million jobs. So how does a loss of 2.8 million jobs become a gain of 467,000 jobs? That is where “seasonal adjustments” come in, and as one expert quoted by Zero Hedge noted, “there has never been a January Seasonal Adjustment of this magnitude”… I would recommend examining all of the evidence and coming to your own conclusions. Things just keep getting worse, and at this point it is hard to imagine how anyone can be optimistic about the months ahead.

USA - In order to understand how far we have fallen as a society, we need to take a look back at how Americans once lived. Because the way that we live today would be unrecognizable to those that inhabited our cities in the middle of the last century. We like to think of ourselves as the most advanced and most sophisticated generation that the United States has ever produced, but the truth is that we are filthy, disgusting “pig people” compared to the generations that have come before us. Today, we take great pride in being as informal as possible. Or, putting it another way, we have become a nation of complete slobs. Sometimes we like to laugh at “People of Walmart”, but the truth is that the entire country is filled with “People of Walmart” at this point. From coast to coast, our nation is degenerating at a pace that is absolutely breathtaking. If you walk down the streets of any of our major cities today, you aren’t going to encounter highly civilized people... Instead, you may run into some “woke” young adults that our rapidly decaying system of education has recently produced.

USA - Scientists at MIT have developed a material that is as light as plastic — but stronger than steel. They believe the material could revolutionize the car, mobile phone and building industries. The easily manufactured substance – up to six times more difficult to break than bulletproof glass – is the result of an engineering feat previously thought to be impossible. It is a two-dimensional polymer that self-assembles into sheets, unlike all other polymers, which form one-dimensional, spaghetti-like chains. Until now, scientists believed it was impossible to induce polymers to form 2D sheets. Now, its developers hope the material could be used as a lightweight, durable coating for car parts or mobile phones. It could also serve as a worthy candidate for the construction of office buildings, bridges or other structures.

UK - Now we learn that one of our leading universities is demanding recognition for people who identify as cats. Beam me up, Scotty.

GERMANY - The power struggle that the West is waging against Russia is provoking a long-term hike in natural gas prices in Germany as well as a tendency toward unreliable supplies. This results from the German government’s plans to rely more on liquefied gas imports in the future. Liquefied gas is more expensive than pipeline gas, and is also more unreliable, in the current situation. Liquefied gas tankers can be diverted to another destination at any time, if higher prices can be obtained. In addition, liquefied gas is “nearly as harmful to the climate as coal,” an expert at Germany’s Federal Environment Agency explains. Industry representatives confirm that the Nord Stream 2 pipeline will still not be commissioned, even though it could remedy Germany’s current gas shortage, which is taking on serious proportions. Gas is more expensive than ever. Germany’s gas storage facilities’ levels are lower than they have ever been at this time of the year. The supply would collapse, if there were a cold spell for only a week. Berlin is insisting on importing gas from Groningen – preventing the shutdown of that gas field in spite of the risk of earthquakes.

USA - In these tough financial times, a new study finds it’s getting harder and harder for people to save any of their money. In fact, seven in 10 Americans say they’re living paycheck to paycheck. A recent survey of 2,007 adults found that 63 percent don’t see themselves reaching a level of financial security that will allow them to live the lifestyle they want. Lack of financial education and resources may be to blame, particularly for women, who were less likely to say they had access to these tools in comparison to men (65% vs 84%). On average, respondents feel they’d need $686 of disposable income per month to feel financially comfortable.

TAIWAN - With Russia massing troops along Ukraine’s borders, President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan felt compelled to act. She ordered the creation of a task force to study how the confrontation thousands of miles away in Europe could affect Taiwan’s longstanding conflict with its larger, vastly more powerful neighbor. “Taiwan has faced military threats and intimidation from China for a long time,” Ms Tsai told a gathering of her national security advisers late last month, according to a statement by her office. Perhaps more than people in any other place in the world, Taiwanese know what it is like to live in the shadow of an overbearing power, with China claiming the island as its own. Ms Tsai added, “we empathize with Ukraine’s situation.”