News, Rumors and Opinions Saturday Morning 10-31-2020
TNT:
Shybaby: Iraq reopens Tahrir Square, epicentre of revolt in Baghdad
Iraqi authorities reopened Baghdad's Tahrir Square and Al-Jumhuriyah bridge on Saturday, symbolically ending more than a year of demonstrations in epicentres of an anti-government protest movement.
Sabah ARAR Iraq's Lieutenant General Qais al-Muhammadawi (C) oversaw the reopening of Al-Jumhuriya bridge in Baghdad after it had been blocked off during anti-government protests
Protester tents have been dismantled at the Tahrir roundabout, now again circled by cars, and the towering concrete walls used to close off the Al-Jumhuriyah bridge across the Tigris River have been removed.
Tahrir Square and its massive Freedom Monument was at the heart of the movement that brought together hundreds of thousands of Iraqis in October 2019, paralysing the capital and southern Iraq for months.
The Al-Jumhuriyah bridge leading to the highly fortified Green Zone -- where government offices, parliament and the US embassy are housed -- was a hotspot of clashes during the protests.
Clashes with security forces during the revolt left around 600 people dead and 30,000 wounded, the vast majority demonstrators.
"The reopening of these places does not mean the revolt is over," said Kamal Jabar, one of the figures of the movement dubbed the "October Revolution"
Video: Iraqis in Baghdad rally to revive year-old revolt against the system (AFP)
"The protesters have lost a battle, but the movement endures and is now working to set up political organisations," he told AFP.
The movement had called for jobs, basic services, a total overhaul of the ruling class and an end to corruption.
But it lost momentum and then ground to a halt in the spring due to an outbreak of tensions between arch-foes the United States and Iran on Iraqi soil and the Covid-19 pandemic.
The protests helped usher in Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhemi in May, but he has yet to deliver on any major reforms.
Lockdown measures imposed to stem the virus and the fall in oil prices precipitated Iraq's tumble into its worst economic downturn and doubled the country's poverty rate to 40 percent.
Amid the crisis, public pressure mounted to reopen Tahrir Square and Al-Jumhuriyah bridge to ease traffic in Baghdad -- a city of 10 million inhabitants -- and to revive trade in the centre of the Arab world's second most populated capital.
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Courtesy of Dinar Guru:
Delta THESE ARE MESSAGES FROM IRAQI SOCIAL MEDIA TO THE NEW CBI GOV... "We hope that the value of Iraqi cash will be strengthened and that we can eliminate the zeros and return in a strong currency not necessarily at its previous value..."; "Once the zeros are removed from the local currency, poverty and debt will be eliminated and the mortgage stake is lifted. Then the value of the Iraqi dinar will return to the equivalent of $3.3778 as in 1971 and 1973..."; "with a return to the circulation of small coins, such as the rest of the countries, to preserve people's rights to buy and sell..." THAT WAS JUST A FEW FROM THOUSANDS OF MESSAGES TO NEW CBI GOV...ALL ASKING THE SAME...RAISE THE VALUE AND COME OUT WITH NEW LDS...OVER A WEEK OR SO AND IT'S NOT STOPPING…THEY WANT THE CBI TO TAKE THEM BACK TO 3.22…
Keiser Report | Keiser Report was right, Jamie Dimon was wrong | E1613
Oct 31, 2020
In this episode of the Keiser Report, Max and Stacy look at headlines from 2014 when JP Morgan’s CEO, Jamie Dimon, was predicting bitcoin’s downfall to headlines this week in which the bank is arguing that bitcoin is the new gold.
In the second half, Max continues his conversation with entrepreneur, Dan Collins, who has recently returned to the United States after 20 years in China. They discuss the V-shaped recovery in China and whether or not this is a post-WWII-style transition of economic power and what happens if a New Bretton Woods is held as the IMF is calling for. Will China have a seat at the table?
Tech Meltdown Hits APPL, MSFT, FB, AMZN As Reality Doesn't Match BULL Story, CN iPhone Sales Plummet
Silver Report Uncut: Oct 30, 2020
iPhone sales have collapsed in Greater China falling 28.6% as the tech struggle continues. APPL stock retreated after the company was unable to give forward guidance due to excessive uncertainty and the collapse of a critical part of their vision to keep the company profitable moving forward.
The iPhone is the single most critical product produced by apple and they have been losing a lot of ground in this area throughout the past several years.
In fact, a couple of the top-performing stocks have made moving into the consumer market in China a critical part of their business plan TSLA, for example, has invested a lot of money to move production to China and begin access to the Chinese consumer market but just like Apple they have been caught in the crossfire of international trade competition and consumers are voting with their wallets.
A couple recent surveys suggested the rise of defensive if not patriotic shopping preference growing among nations and Americans and Chinese citizens are purchasing a lot less of each other's products.
Huwaii was the center of a power struggle and was set to surpass Apple insignificance and the US addressed the company as a matter of national security but that doesn't mean there aren't consequences.
Chinese consumers are essentially boycotting American products and the Apple iPhone is near the top of the list of products many feel it is their duty not to buy because of who produced it.
Many prominent EV makers have also risen in the past several years in China and though Musk was in good standing with Xi the Chinese consumers are beginning to ignore foreign brands at a time when so much has been spent in the transition.
Apple has also moved production which has caused a backlash among the ex iPhone customers and with that Earnings season holds a few more surprises yet with the other top stocks following suit.