“Money is the oil fueling the economy’s engine. If the amount of oil needed is not supplied, it breaks down.”More
First Peru, Now Ecuador: US Southern Command Escalates Its “War on Drugs” in South America
In 2009, Ecuadorians voted in a referendum to remove all US military presence from the country. Now, thanks to an agreement signed in the dying days of Guillermo Lasso’s corruption-tainted government, US troops are coming back.More
Is a Revolt Finally Brewing in US Against Exorbitant Credit and Debit Card Swipe Fees?
“The reason this battle is so hard fought is that it pits two big spending constituencies against each other: banks versus retailers.”More
As India-Five Eyes Relations Sour, US Ratings Agency Moody’s Takes Aim at India’s Aadhaar Digital ID System
The report calls into question key aspects of India’s digital ID program, including its heavily centralised nature, the reliability of its biometric identification systems and its vulnerability to data breaches.More
Back to Business As Usual: The US Is Once Again Vigorously Stirring the Pot in Its Own “Backyard”
From Peru to Uruguay, to Ecuador and Guyana, the US is seeking to rebuild its strategic influence in Latin America, one gun at a time. Last week, the head of U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), Army Gen. Laura Richardson, visited Peru, a country that is in the grip of arguably its worst political crisis of this still-fledgling century.…More
A Valuable Lesson from Mexico: AMLO Government Cancels Extortionate Public-Private Partnerships for 9 Public Hospitals
This will probably not have gone down well with the World Economic Forum, which describes itself as “the international organization for public private cooperation.”More
Ukrainian Ambassador to Mexico Loses Plot After Russian Military Takes Part in Mexico’s Independence Day Parade
Other countries that took part include China, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Cuba and Brazil. Conspicuously absent was any country from NATO, including Mexico’s USMCA trade partners, the US and Canada.More
Good News in War FOR Cash: Use of Cash in UK Grows for First Time in 10 years
The long-term decline in cash use in the UK appears to have reached its limit, at least for now.More
G20 and World Bank Reaffirm Their Commitment to Harnessing Power of “Digital Public Infrastructure” (DPI)
“Everybody should have a digital ID; everybody should have a bank account; everybody should have a smartphone. Then, anything can be done. Everything else is built on that.”More
IBM Reneges On Its Post-George Floyd Pledge to Abandon Facial Recognition Business
The US tech firm could not have found a better partner with whom to get back into the facial recognition market than the current UK government.More
Nick Corbishley 