Geopolitics & Empire

Journalist and author Ioan Grillo speaks on the situation in Mexico including: the relationship between the cartels and the government, how the level of violence skyrocketed in the 2000s, why beheadings became a modus operandi, what it's like to live in Mexico, his new book on gun trafficking, solutions which include drug & gun policy reform/rule of law, and the future for AMLO and Mexico as he sees it.

Watch on BitChute / Rumble

Geopolitics & Empire · Ioan Grillo: Mexico, Drug Cartels, Solutions, & the Future #125

*Support Geopolitics & Empire!

Become a Member https://geopoliticsandempire.substack.com

Donate https://geopoliticsandempire.com/donations

Consult https://geopoliticsandempire.com/consultation

**Visit Our Affiliates & Sponsors!

Above Phone https://abovephone.com/?above=geopolitics

easyDNS (use code GEOPOLITICS for 15% off!) https://easydns.com

Escape The Technocracy course (15% discount using link) https://escapethetechnocracy.com/geopolitics

PassVult https://passvult.com

Sociatates Civis (CitizenHR, CitizenIT, CitizenPL) https://societates-civis.com

Wise Wolf Gold https://www.wolfpack.gold/?ref=geopolitics

Websites

http://www.ioangrillo.com

https://www.twitter.com/ioangrillo

Show Notes

What Trump Didn’t Say About the Massacre in Mexico https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/06/opinion/mormons-mexico.html

About the Guest

I’m a journalist and writer based in Mexico City. I’ve been covering Latin America since 2001 for news media including Time Magazine, CNN, Reuters, The Houston Chronicle, The Associated Press, GlobalPost, France 24, CBC, The Sunday Telegraph, Letras Libres and many others. My work has also appeared in The New York Times, BBC and Guardian. I am author of the books Gangster Warlords: Drug Dollars, Killing Fields and the New Politics of Latin America (released 2016) and El Narco: Inside Mexico’s Criminal Insurgency (released 2011).

I started covering drug cartels from my early days here. I was always fascinated by the riddle of these ghost like figures who made $30 billion a year, were idolized in popular songs and miraculously escaped the Mexican army and DEA. Over the decade I followed the mystery to endless murder scenes on bullet-ridden streets, mountains where drugs are born as pretty flowers, and scarred criminals from prison cells to luxury condos.

During the same time, Mexico’s drug war morphed into a horrific conflict with brutal beheadings, massacres and mass graves. Journalists here found ourselves reporting on a human tragedy of epic proportions – with a never-ending trail of grieving parents and atrocities comparable to brutal civil wars. The need for better understanding to help find a way out of this hole has become more important than ever.

We foreign journalists all have to turn to our homelands for part of that solution. I grew up in sunny England, near the seaside city of Brighton – famous for its pink candy, pebble beaches, colleges and bubbling night clubs. It is also one of Britain’s top places for drug consumption, switching with the fashions from Moroccan hashish to Turkish heroin to Colombian cocaine. Few there ever think about where the mind-bending substances come from or what they might give or takeaway from those countries. In Europe and the United States a hard discussion on our drug habits and policy is long overdue.

As well as following drug trafficking empires, I cover the other major issues of Latin America such as natural disasters (including the Haiti earthquake), the battle between left and right (including the Honduras coup), and the vast human wave of emigration to El Norte. I was a consultant for the International Crisis Group for its first two reports on Mexico. I also love music and cover it whenever I get a chance. I co-directed a series of three short films with John Dickie, which all include a good dose of Latin American hip hop. They are Barrios Beats and Blood, Bajamar Ballad, and The Gangsters’ Granny.

*Podcast intro music is from the song "The Queens Jig" by "Musicke & Mirth" from their album "Music for Two Lyra Viols": http://musicke-mirth.de/en/recordings.html (available on iTunes or Amazon)

Professor and CEO of GnSEconomics.com Tuomas Malinen discusses why he thinks what's coming is the first-ever truly global economic crisis. We look at flashpoints in Europe, the United States, and China. He also gives a glimpse into what the aftermath might look like and what people can do to protect themselves.

Watch on BitChute / Rumble

Geopolitics & Empire · Tuomas Malinen: The First-Ever Truly Global Economic Crisis & Depression #124

*Support Geopolitics & Empire!

Become a Member https://geopoliticsandempire.substack.com

Donate https://geopoliticsandempire.com/donations

Consult https://geopoliticsandempire.com/consultation

**Visit Our Affiliates & Sponsors!

Above Phone https://abovephone.com/?above=geopolitics

easyDNS (use code GEOPOLITICS for 15% off!) https://easydns.com

Escape The Technocracy course (15% discount using link) https://escapethetechnocracy.com/geopolitics

PassVult https://passvult.com

Sociatates Civis (CitizenHR, CitizenIT, CitizenPL) https://societates-civis.com

Wise Wolf Gold https://www.wolfpack.gold/?ref=geopolitics

Websites

https://gnseconomics.com/en_US

Twitter https://www.twitter.com/mtmalinen

About the Guest

PhD (econ.) Tuomas Malinen is a CEO and Chief Economist of GnS Economics. He is also an Adjunct Professor of Economics at the University of Helsinki. He has studied economics in the University of Helsinki and in the New York University. He specializes in economic growth, economic crises, central banks and the business cycle. Tuomas is currently writing a book on Forecasting Financial Crises.

The five other partners of GnS Economics have years long experience in econometric forecasting, economic modelling, financial markets and business-to-business consulting and marketing.

*Podcast intro music is from the song "The Queens Jig" by "Musicke & Mirth" from their album "Music for Two Lyra Viols": http://musicke-mirth.de/en/recordings.html (available on iTunes or Amazon)

Former Chatham House director Dr. Victor Bulmer-Thomas discusses his book "Empire in Retreat" which explains that the U.S. became an empire from its very inception and how it developed a new form of semi-global empire through institutions which it used to manage the world (e.g. UN & Bretton Woods). He believes the retreat of U.S. Empire is accelerating under the Trump administration due to inherent internal problems such as a declining economy (e.g. crumbling infrastructure, deteriorating quality of education), social inequality, and a consequent growth of anti-exceptionalism and anti-militarism among its own citizenry.

Watch on BitChute / Rumble

Geopolitics & Empire · Victor Bulmer-Thomas: The U.S. Empire is in Retreat #123

*Support Geopolitics & Empire!

Become a Member https://geopoliticsandempire.substack.com

Donate https://geopoliticsandempire.com/donations

Consult https://geopoliticsandempire.com/consultation

**Visit Our Affiliates & Sponsors!

Above Phone https://abovephone.com/?above=geopolitics

easyDNS (use code GEOPOLITICS for 15% off!) https://easydns.com

Escape The Technocracy course (15% discount using link) https://escapethetechnocracy.com/geopolitics

PassVult https://passvult.com

Sociatates Civis (CitizenHR, CitizenIT, CitizenPL) https://societates-civis.com

Wise Wolf Gold https://www.wolfpack.gold/?ref=geopolitics

Websites

https://www.chathamhouse.org/expert/professor-victor-bulmer-thomas-cmg-obe

Books

https://www.amazon.com/Empire-Retreat-Present-Future-United/dp/0300210000/ref=sr_1_2?qid=1573298491&refinements=p_27%3AVictor+Bulmer-Thomas&s=books&sr=1-2&text=Victor+Bulmer-Thomas

About the Guest

Victor Bulmer-Thomas is Associate Fellow in the US and the Americas Programme at Chatham House, Honorary Professor at the Institute of the Americas, University College London and Emeritus Professor of Economics at London University. From 2001 to 2006 he was Director of Chatham House and from 1992 to 1998 he was Director of the Institute of Latin American Studies at London University. He edited the Journal of Latin American Studies from 1986 to 1997 and has authored or edited more than 20 books on Latin America and the Caribbean, including The Economic History of Latin America since Independence (3rd edition, 2014) and The Economic History of the Caribbean since the Napoleonic Wars (2012). His new book, Empire in Retreat: the Past, Present and Future of the United States, will be published in March 2018. He is a non-executive director of the JP Morgan Brazil Investment Trust. He has received honours from the governments of Brazil, Colombia and the UK.

*Podcast intro music is from the song "The Queens Jig" by "Musicke & Mirth" from their album "Music for Two Lyra Viols": http://musicke-mirth.de/en/recordings.html (available on iTunes or Amazon)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocYuncDf6zk

Taco Dankers is the editor of the global analysis bulletin GEFIRA and he discusses his views on how the rapidly declining global demographic situation is threatening to implode the economy and how mass migration will create social tensions that threaten different societies which in turn will exacerbate the economic crisis.

*Support/Donate to Geopolitics & Empire:

Patreon https://www.patreon.com/empiregeopolitics

PayPal https://www.paypal.me/geopolitics

Bitcoin http://geopoliticsandempire.com/bitcoin-donate

Websites

https://gefira.org/en

Show Notes

The Global Fertility Crash https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2019-global-fertility-crash

Europe and the Great Migration https://www.spiked-online.com/2019/11/01/europe-and-the-great-migration

About the Guest

Taco Dankers has been co-owner of Gefira.org and author for Gefira.org since 2015. In 2009 he was on the election list for European elections for the list Newropeans: the first Trans European Party. Dankers graduated in physics and philosophy, both at the University of Amsterdam.

The Gefira Bulletin is intended for investors. The analyses that we make and the trends that we predict deal primarily with economic and financial matters related to geopolitical events. The bulletin appears ten times a year at an annual price of 225 euros/250 dollars. We are also developing the Gefira website, accessible to users worldwide, where we explore political, social and demographic topics.

The Gefira Team do not shy away from controversial issues and do not let themselves be dictated to by political correctness. We are doing our best to follow the truth wherever it leads. Demographics, trade, finance, and modern history are among our most discussed problems.

In the Gefira Bulletin we cover such subjects as:

Demographics

The profound demographic changes have an impact on economy at large. The European nations, once the world’s dominant driving force, are now in a steady numerical decline. It is not only the ageing of the population that Europe is struggling with, but also, with a fertility of 1.5, the extinction of the indigenous peoples. Demographic growth is coupled with economic growth, which in turn increases the value of financial assets while the current demographic decline will have the opposite effect. Investors are not only passive actors, but some also take matters in their hand promoting legal as well as illegal migration to maximise their profit and increase their influence.

Trade

The trade imbalance between major economies has led to many crises, and many others, such as currency, trade, cyber and eventually real wars, will follow. Germany, China, and Japan are running a structural trade balance surplus, while the USA, Turkey and UK have structurally unsustainable trade deficits. In the Gefira we are keeping track on the world’s trade policies and how they create winners and losers.

Central Banks and central bank policies

Central Banks are the financial centres of states and their bankers prove to be better able to create economic growth than free markets. Yet, with the current Central Banking policy came cheap credit and with cheap credit came financial bubbles. The central banks, taking decisions who gets the loans i.e. who will blossom or go bust, are pulling the strings of the economy or are the hidden hand behind the seemingly free markets. . In the Gefira we are trying to find out which sector and which companies profit from central bank policies.

Currencies

The euro is in a deep crisis. The Treaty of Lisbon prevents the bail-out of Greece. In the absence of fundamental political reforms, the currency will not survive another ten years. The dollar is still the world’s largest reserve currency, giving the US its dominant position. Not only are the euro, yuan and gold a rival to the dollar: so are digital systems. We have entered the digital era, and countries can relatively easily build alternative payment systems, rendering them less dependent on the Western financial centres. In the Gefira we are looking at how politics influences the value of currencies and how the value of currencies affects policy making.

*Podcast intro music is from the song "The Queens Jig" by "Musicke & Mirth" from their album "Music for Two Lyra Viols": http://musicke-mirth.de/en/recordings.html (available on iTunes or Amazon)

Geopolitics & Empire · Sourabh Gupta: Xi, Modi, & India as a Leading Power in the Indo-Pacific #121

Sourabh Gupta discusses the Xi Jinping-Narendra Modi talks and why India is not a fan of BRI or CPEC. He explains India's role in the Indo-Pacific which seeks to become not a 'balancing power' but a leading power in the region, yet wishes to remain friendly with both the U.S. and China.

*Support/Donate to Geopolitics & Empire:

Patreon https://www.patreon.com/empiregeopolitics

PayPal https://www.paypal.me/geopolitics

Bitcoin http://geopoliticsandempire.com/bitcoin-donate

Websites

https://chinaus-icas.org/about-icas/our-team/sourabh-gupta

Show Notes

Restoring maritime commons https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/restoring-maritime-commons/article29717186.ece

About the Guest

Sourabh Gupta is a senior Asia-Pacific international relations policy specialist with 15 years of Washington, D.C.-based experience in a think tank and political risk research and advisory capacity.

His areas of specialization include: analysis of key major power relationships in the Asia-Pacific region (China-U.S, China-Japan, China-India, U.S.-Japan, U.S.-India, Japan-India relations); political, security, and economic risk evaluation of key states in the Asia-Pacific region; territorial disputes and maritime law-related developments in the Asia-Pacific region; and analysis of developments in Asian economic regionalism, and World Trade Organization and Asia-Pacific-related trade policy, politics and negotiations.

He is a member of the United States Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific (USCSCAP) and was a 2012 East Asia Forum Distinguished Fellow. Prior to joining ICAS, he was a Senior Research Associate at Samuels International Associates, Inc, a diversified international consulting firm specializing in government relations, business, and trade and investment matters.

He holds master’s degrees in international security studies and international relations from Georgetown University and Syracuse University, respectively, and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Mumbai.

*Podcast intro music is from the song "The Queens Jig" by "Musicke & Mirth" from their album "Music for Two Lyra Viols": http://musicke-mirth.de/en/recordings.html (available on iTunes or Amazon)

Geopolitics & Empire · Daniel McAdams: Media & Censorship in the National Security State #120

Daniel McAdams discusses the state of censorship in Western media and how his Twitter account was terminated for criticizing Sean Hannity and the CIA. We also discuss the nexus between Big Tech and the Military-Industrial-Complex as well as Trump's 'Ukrainegate' and how the political assassination of the president bears echoes of JFK.

*Support/Donate to Geopolitics & Empire:

Patreon https://www.patreon.com/empiregeopolitics

PayPal https://www.paypal.me/geopolitics

Bitcoin http://geopoliticsandempire.com/bitcoin-donate

Websites

http://ronpaulinstitute.org

https://www.youtube.com/user/RonPaulInstitute

Show Notes

“So You Write Propaganda, Right?”: Journalist Files Complaint Against Customs and Border Protection

CIA Coup? US IC's Fingerprints All Over Trump Impeachment Op & JFK Assassination – RPI Director

How About Donald Trump Hires Tulsi Gabbard, Rand Paul, and Daniel McAdams?

About the Guest

Daniel served as the foreign affairs, civil liberties, and defense  policy advisor to U.S. Congressman Ron Paul, MD (R-Texas) from 2001 until Dr. Paul’s retirement at the end of 2012. From 1993-1999 he worked as a journalist based in Budapest, Hungary, and traveled through the former communist bloc as a human rights monitor and election observer.

*Podcast intro music is from the song "The Queens Jig" by "Musicke & Mirth" from their album "Music for Two Lyra Viols": http://musicke-mirth.de/en/recordings.html (available on iTunes or Amazon)

Daniel Faggella discusses the state of the artificial intelligence arms race between the U.S. and China and how all other players such as the EU and Russia are way behind. He explains how the real battle is for the "computational human substrate that houses human experience and artificial intelligence" and that whoever controls the virtual ecosystem will control the world.

*Support/Donate to Geopolitics & Empire:

Patreon https://www.patreon.com/empiregeopolitics

PayPal https://www.paypal.me/geopolitics

Bitcoin http://geopoliticsandempire.com/bitcoin-donate

Websites

https://emerj.com

https://twitter.com/danfaggella

Show Notes

The International Governance of AI – We Unite or We Fight https://emerj.com/ai-power/international-governance-ai

The USA-China AI Race – 7 Weaknesses of the West https://emerj.com/ai-power/the-usa-china-ai-race

Ensuring a Positive Posthuman Transition – Perspectives from Jaan Tallinn https://emerj.com/ai-podcast-interviews/positive-posthuman-transition-jaan-tallin

Artificial Intelligence in the US Army – Current Initiatives https://emerj.com/ai-sector-overviews/artificial-intelligence-in-the-us-army

Artificial Intelligence in the Chinese Military – Current Initiatives https://emerj.com/ai-sector-overviews/artificial-intelligence-china-military

About the Guest

Daniel Faggella is CEO and Founder of Emerj Artificial Intelligence Research.

Called upon by organizations like the World Bank, the United Nations, INTERPOL, and global pharmaceutical and banking companies, Daniel helps business and government leaders navigate the competitive landscape of AI capabilities, and build strategies that win. Daniel is of the belief that the most important ethical consideration of the coming thirty years will be the creation or expansion of sentience and intelligence in technology. Emerj is intended first as a vehicle to proliferate an open-minded conversation about the implications and applications of AI. The business model came later, purpose was, and is, first (see “the cause“).

At entrepreneur since the age of 20, Daniel has founded and sold two previous companies (a martial arts academy he started to pay for grad school, and an Inc5000 eCommerce business) in order to gather the funds needed to focus fully on Emerj. Daniel is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt, winning the title of 2011 national champion (IBJJF Pan America Games). Daniel graduated with a masters degree in Positive Psychology, focusing his thesis research on the science of skill development.

*Podcast intro music is from the song "The Queens Jig" by "Musicke & Mirth" from their album "Music for Two Lyra Viols": http://musicke-mirth.de/en/recordings.html (available on iTunes or Amazon)

Geopolitics & Empire · Daniel Faggella: The US-China AI Arms Race Toward a Post-Human Future #119

Daniel Faggella discusses the state of the artificial intelligence arms race between the U.S. and China and how all other players such as the EU and Russia are way behind. He explains how the real battle is for the "computational human substrate that houses human experience and artificial intelligence" and that whoever controls the virtual ecosystem will control the world.

*Support/Donate to Geopolitics & Empire:

Patreon https://www.patreon.com/empiregeopolitics

PayPal https://www.paypal.me/geopolitics

Bitcoin http://geopoliticsandempire.com/bitcoin-donate

Websites

https://emerj.com

https://twitter.com/danfaggella

Show Notes

The International Governance of AI – We Unite or We Fight https://emerj.com/ai-power/international-governance-ai

The USA-China AI Race – 7 Weaknesses of the West https://emerj.com/ai-power/the-usa-china-ai-race

Ensuring a Positive Posthuman Transition – Perspectives from Jaan Tallinn https://emerj.com/ai-podcast-interviews/positive-posthuman-transition-jaan-tallin

Artificial Intelligence in the US Army – Current Initiatives https://emerj.com/ai-sector-overviews/artificial-intelligence-in-the-us-army

Artificial Intelligence in the Chinese Military – Current Initiatives https://emerj.com/ai-sector-overviews/artificial-intelligence-china-military

About the Guest

Daniel Faggella is CEO and Founder of Emerj Artificial Intelligence Research.

Called upon by organizations like the World Bank, the United Nations, INTERPOL, and global pharmaceutical and banking companies, Daniel helps business and government leaders navigate the competitive landscape of AI capabilities, and build strategies that win.

Daniel is of the belief that the most important ethical consideration of the coming thirty years will be the creation or expansion of sentience and intelligence in technology. Emerj is intended first as a vehicle to proliferate an open-minded conversation about the implications and applications of AI. The business model came later, purpose was, and is, first (see “the cause“).

At entrepreneur since the age of 20, Daniel has founded and sold two previous companies (a martial arts academy he started to pay for grad school, and an Inc5000 eCommerce business) in order to gather the funds needed to focus fully on Emerj.

Daniel is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt, winning the title of 2011 national champion (IBJJF Pan America Games).

Daniel graduated with a masters degree in Positive Psychology, focusing his thesis research on the science of skill development.

*Podcast intro music is from the song "The Queens Jig" by "Musicke & Mirth" from their album "Music for Two Lyra Viols": http://musicke-mirth.de/en/recordings.html (available on iTunes or Amazon)

Major Danny Sjursen ponders 9/11 and how the Global War On Terror has become far removed from its original purpose. He comments on the removal of John Bolton, the possibility of President Trump pulling troops out of Afghanistan, the future of the wars in Syria and Yemen, the potential consequences of an invasion of Iran, and media censorship and propaganda.

*Support/Donate to Geopolitics & Empire:

Patreon https://www.patreon.com/empiregeopolitics

PayPal https://www.paypal.me/geopolitics

Bitcoin http://geopoliticsandempire.com/bitcoin-donate

Websites

https://www.fortressonahill.com

https://twitter.com/skepticalvet

Book

Ghostriders of Baghdad: Soldiers, Civilians, and the Myth of the Surge.

Show Notes

How the U.S. Shattered the Middle East https://www.truthdig.com/articles/how-the-u-s-shattered-the-middle-east

How America’s Wars End (Messily) And the Afghan War Will Be No Exception https://www.tomdispatch.com/blog/176590/tomgram%3A_danny_sjursen%2C_could_donald_trump_end_the_afghan_war

America Is Exceptional—in All the Wrong Ways https://www.commondreams.org/views/2019/03/22/america-exceptional-all-wrong-ways

An American Soldier’s Dissent https://www.thenation.com/article/danny-sjursen-us-army-military-war-soldier-dissent

About the Guest

Major Danny Sjursen is a US Army strategist and former history instructor at West Point. He served tours with reconnaissance units in Iraq and Afghanistan. He has written a memoir and critical analysis of the Iraq War, Ghostriders of Baghdad: Soldiers, Civilians, and the Myth of the Surge. He lives with his wife and four sons near Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.  Follow him on Twitter @SkepticalVet.  Email him at [email protected]

*Podcast intro music is from the song "The Queens Jig" by "Musicke & Mirth" from their album "Music for Two Lyra Viols": http://musicke-mirth.de/en/recordings.html (available on iTunes or Amazon)

Geopolitics & Empire · Major Danny Sjursen: The Prospects of Pulling Out of Afghanistan & War with Iran #118

Major Danny Sjursen ponders 9/11 and how the Global War On Terror has become far removed from its original purpose. He comments on the removal of John Bolton, the possibility of President Trump pulling troops out of Afghanistan, the future of the wars in Syria and Yemen, the potential consequences of an invasion of Iran, and media censorship and propaganda.

*Support/Donate to Geopolitics & Empire:

Patreon https://www.patreon.com/empiregeopolitics

PayPal https://www.paypal.me/geopolitics

Bitcoin http://geopoliticsandempire.com/bitcoin-donate

Websites

https://www.fortressonahill.com

https://twitter.com/skepticalvet

Book

Ghostriders of Baghdad: Soldiers, Civilians, and the Myth of the Surge.

Show Notes

How the U.S. Shattered the Middle East https://www.truthdig.com/articles/how-the-u-s-shattered-the-middle-east

How America’s Wars End (Messily) And the Afghan War Will Be No Exception https://www.tomdispatch.com/blog/176590/tomgram%3A_danny_sjursen%2C_could_donald_trump_end_the_afghan_war

America Is Exceptional—in All the Wrong Ways https://www.commondreams.org/views/2019/03/22/america-exceptional-all-wrong-ways

An American Soldier’s Dissent https://www.thenation.com/article/danny-sjursen-us-army-military-war-soldier-dissent

About the Guest

Major Danny Sjursen is a US Army strategist and former history instructor at West Point. He served tours with reconnaissance units in Iraq and Afghanistan. He has written a memoir and critical analysis of the Iraq War, Ghostriders of Baghdad: Soldiers, Civilians, and the Myth of the Surge. He lives with his wife and four sons near Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.  Follow him on Twitter @SkepticalVet.  Email him at [email protected]

*Podcast intro music is from the song "The Queens Jig" by "Musicke & Mirth" from their album "Music for Two Lyra Viols": http://musicke-mirth.de/en/recordings.html (available on iTunes or Amazon)