Jack Ma-Backed Ant Slashes AI Training Costs With Chinese Chips

Jack Ma-Backed Ant Slashes AI Training Costs With Chinese Chips

Asian stocks traded mixed to flat overnight as investors digested the potential for a less severe tariff announcement on April 2—also known as President Trump’s “Liberation Day”—alongside news that Alibaba-affiliate Ant Group has been using Chinese-made chips to reduce the cost of training artificial intelligence models. 

Bloomberg reported that Jack Ma-backed Ant Group used both Chinese and U.S.-made semiconductors to train AI models that were more efficient and reduced costs by 20%. According to sources, the domestic chips included those from Alibaba Group Holding and Huawei Technologies. They noted that the results were similar to Nvidia H800 chips. The models relied on a technique known as the “Mixture of Experts” (MoE) machine learning approach, which allows AI training with significantly less computing power. 

Here’s more color: 

It got results similar to those from Nvidia Corp. chips like the H800, they said, asking not to be named as the information isn’t public.

Hangzhou-based Ant is still using Nvidia for AI development but is now relying mostly on alternatives including from Advanced Micro Devices Inc. and Chinese chips for its latest models, one of the people said.

Two weeks ago, Ant published a paper on MoE titled “EVERY FLOP COUNTS: SCALING A 300B MIXTURE-OF-EXPERTS LING LLM WITHOUT PREMIUM GPUS,” focusing on overcoming cost inefficiencies and resource limitations in training AI models. 

Ant’s move to enter the AI race comes nearly two months after China launched DeepSeek – its answer to GPT, Llama 3.1, etc, that demonstrated significantly lower costs in training and computing power requirements versus models trained in the West (AI’s Sputnik Moment). This also comes as the US has restricted China’s AI development by limiting AI chip procurement. 

“As companies pour significant money into AI, MoE models have emerged as a popular option, gaining recognition for their use by Google and Hangzhou startup DeepSeek, among others,” Bloomberg noted, adding, “That technique divides tasks into smaller sets of data, very much like having a team of specialists who each focus on a segment of a job, making the process more efficient.” 

Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Robert Lea noted: “Ant Group’s paper highlights the rising innovation and accelerating pace of technological progress in China’s AI sector. The firm’s claim, if confirmed, highlights China is well on the way to becoming self-sufficient in AI as the country turns to lower-cost, computationally efficient models, to work around the export controls on Nvidia chips.” 

On Monday, Ant announced “major upgrades” to its healthcare AI offerings as it plans to leverage its low-cost AI model. 

China has shown that it can produce low-cost AI models far less than the tens of billions invested by OpenAI and Alphabet.

Let’s hope note…

Refresh read: “Goldman Asks If China’s DeepSeek is AI’s Sputnik Moment.” 

Tyler Durden
Mon, 03/24/2025 – 07:45

via ZeroHedge News https://ift.tt/fXzx7H2 Tyler Durden

Ed Dowd Fears A ‘Short, But Deep’ Recession Coming As DOGE Exposes ‘Mind-Shocking’ Fraud That Propped Up Biden’s Economy

Ed Dowd Fears A ‘Short, But Deep’ Recession Coming As DOGE Exposes ‘Mind-Shocking’ Fraud That Propped Up Biden’s Economy

Via Greg Hunter’s USAWatchdog.com,

Former Wall Street money manager and financial analyst Ed Dowd of PhinanceTechnologies.com is back with an update of a report on “Danger of Deep Worldwide Recession in 2025.”  

It was not just heavy government spending on illegal immigration, but “mind shocking” fraud that has been revealed with DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency).  

Investigators have uncovered $115 billion so far with many hundreds of billions more to be exposed.   Dowd says, “Both sides of the aisle are probably going to have problems…”

“The DOGE revelations are mind shocking.  The clear way in which the government was spending money through NGOs (non-governmental organizations) and people taking kickbacks and profits along the way is going to come out.  There may have been theft along the way.  What business does Stacy Abrams have getting $2 billion for an NGO?  This doesn’t make any sense.  It’s going to be shocking, even shocking to me.  I knew there was rot in the system, but the mind blowing way the NGOs were used to facilitate the illegal immigration just blows my mind.  The 10 million plus illegals that came in over the last four years, you just don’t wake up one day in Central America and say I am going to the Darien Gap, and go to the Mexican border and then meander my way into the interior of the US without a tremendous amount of aid along the way.  

NGOs facilitated that and probably took their cut.  What was the all-in economic cost of the goodies they got once they got here?  Plus, the NGOs spent and what the government spent themselves to facilitate this, it’s not hard to imagine $50,000 to $100,000 all-in cost per illegal. . . . This is the all-in cost up and down the entire economic food chain. . . . It was anywhere between $500 billion to $1.5 trillion depending on the illegals.  It was an illegal project funded purposely, and it was very logistical.  It was not something that just happened overnight.”

The result, says Dowd, was the US economy was propped up when it should have already tanked.  Now, all this spending on this illegal invasion is going away.  Dowd says, 

When we wrote our report, we were surprised on how fast DOGE would get to work. . . . This is why our thesis is playing out a little quicker than we thought. . . . The housing market was on fragile ground the last year or so.  It was held up by illegal immigrants supporting rent prices.  So, as that unwinds, we think there will be a mini 2008–2009 housing issue.  Housing prices are going to come down, and that is a big driver of consumption in the economy.  That needs to happen because home affordability is off the charts.”

Dowd also see a recession coming as the government downsizes, illegal alien funding gets cut and illegals continue to self-deport.  Dowd says, 

“Consumer confidence has taken a nosedive recently, and you can see why.  There are 10 million to 15 million illegal immigrants worried about their gravy train coming to an end.  So, they may be holding back on their spending.  There are millions of government employees worried about their jobs. 

Then, you have the NGO networks that employ about 6 million people.  So, you have about 20 million to 25 million people that are in the workforce . . . worried about where their money is going to come from, and that can cause consumer spending to slow down.”

There is good news with the spending cuts, according to Dowd, and that will come in the form of lower interest rates in the bond market.  

Dowd still likes gold as a core asset and does not see Trump tariffs as inflationary.  

Dowd says the problems with tariffs are “overblown” and are a negotiation tool to get fair trade for America around the world. 

Dowd sees “deflation” and possibly a short but “deep recession” coming before inflation.  

A possible black swan event is an intensified war in Ukraine and no peace deal along with the EU getting deeply involved in a war with Russia.  

This could be a plus for the US if it stays out of the conflict.  Dowd says,

“There seems to be war drums beating in Europe, and capital will flee to the US.  Martin Armstrong says all the gold movement coming to the US is because of a coming war, and of all the theories on this, that makes the most sense to me.  I am not predicting war, but that is a geopolitical risk out there.  That is one of those ‘black swan’ events.  Another ‘black swan’ event is a Bank of Japan currency crisis and, also, something going on with Iran and the Middle East. . . . Black swan events add to the risk, and those are hard to predict.”

There is much more in the 50-minute interview.

Join Greg Hunter of USAWatchdog.com as he goes One-on-One with money manager and investment expert Ed Dowd, as he talks about massive crime and fraud that President Trump will stop and give way to a “Danger of Deep Worldwide Recession in 2025” for 3.22.25.

*  *  *

If you want a copy of Dowd’s new report called “Danger of Deep Worldwide Recession in 2025,” click here. There is lots of free information on Dowd’s website called PhinanceTechnologies.com. You can order Dowd’s updated book called “Cause Unknown” by clicking here.

Tyler Durden
Mon, 03/24/2025 – 07:20

via ZeroHedge News https://ift.tt/m49V7yw Tyler Durden

Family Of Dead Boeing Whistleblower Sues Over Suicide

Family Of Dead Boeing Whistleblower Sues Over Suicide

The family of John Barnett, a former Boeing quality control manager who became a prominent whistleblower over aviation safety concerns, has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the aerospace giant, accusing it of a campaign of harassment and intimidation that they allege led directly to his suicide.

Mr. Barnett, 62, was found dead in his truck in what was determined to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound on March 9, 2024, in Charleston, South Carolina, according to local police reports. At the time of his death, he resided in Louisiana. The tragic incident followed days of intense questioning by attorneys regarding allegations he made against Boeing related to aircraft safety defects, according to court documents.

The lawsuit, filed Thursday in federal court in South Carolina, claims that Boeing orchestrated a systematic “campaign of harassment, abuse, and intimidation intended to discourage, discredit, and humiliate him until he would either give up or be discredited.”

John Barnett

A Boeing spokesperson released a statement this week addressing the situation: “We are saddened by John Barnett’s death and extend our condolences to his family.”

Mr. Barnett retired from Boeing in 2017, having served many years as a quality control manager. Following his retirement, he publicly voiced serious safety concerns regarding Boeing aircraft. He notably warned about discarded metal shavings near critical wiring for flight controls—debris that could potentially sever wires and lead to catastrophic failure mid-flight. Mr. Barnett also raised alarms about oxygen systems aboard Boeing’s 787 aircraft, estimating that up to a quarter of these systems were defective.

The lawsuit asserts that Mr. Barnett repeatedly informed his supervisors of these safety issues while still employed, but instead of addressing them, the company allegedly retaliated. His family contends that Boeing management deliberately provided him inaccurate negative performance reviews, assigned him unfavorable work shifts, and publicly blamed him for delays, resulting in workplace hostility and preventing internal transfers.

This prolonged and intense workplace pressure reportedly led Mr. Barnett to develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), his family argues. The lawsuit details how his mental health deteriorated progressively under what the family’s attorneys described as relentless humiliation inflicted by Boeing, leading to severe depression and anxiety attacks, ultimately culminating in his suicide.

Boeing had threatened to break John, and break him it did,” attorneys representing Mr. Barnett’s family wrote in their court filing.

The family seeks unspecified financial damages for emotional distress and mental anguish, compensation for lost wages—including back pay and projected future earnings—and reimbursement for medical expenses related to Mr. Barnett’s deteriorating mental health. They are also requesting recovery of life insurance benefits lost due to the circumstances of his death.

In court filings, attorneys for Mr. Barnett’s family assert, “Whether or not Boeing intended to drive John to his death or merely destroy his ability to function, it was absolutely foreseeable that PTSD and John’s unbearable depression, panic attacks, and anxiety would elevate the risk of suicide. Boeing may not have pulled the trigger, but Boeing’s conduct was the clear cause—and the clear foreseeable cause—of John’s death.”

The case continues to highlight ongoing concerns about workplace treatment of whistleblowers and aviation safety practices at one of the world’s largest aerospace manufacturers. Boeing, which has faced intense scrutiny in recent years over aircraft safety issues, now confronts fresh legal and reputational challenges stemming from these grave allegations.

As James Lavish pointed out on Twitter, the company has been awash with controversy last year, including the following separate incidents:

  • Passenger door blown out, mid-air
  • cockpit window cracked, take-off
  • oxygen leak, pre-flight (Blinken incident)
  • passenger notices bolts missing on wing, pre-flight
  • lost wheel during take-off, wobbled off
  • lost wheel after take-off, mid-air
  • plane arrived with cargo door open
  • landing gear malfunction
  • engine failure mid-flight
  • engine fire, mid-flight

And now they’re going to build the next-gen fighter jet.

Tyler Durden
Mon, 03/24/2025 – 06:55

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NYC’s Congestion Toll Might Not Be Going Away After All

NYC’s Congestion Toll Might Not Be Going Away After All

All of a sudden, it looks like New York City’s congestion pricing may not be going away after all…

That’s because with just a day left before the Trump administration’s March 21 deadline for New York to scrap its congestion pricing toll, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced a 30-day extension on Thursday, according to Yahoo Finance.

Though he reiterated the demand for Gov. Kathy Hochul to end the $9 daily fee for most drivers entering Manhattan below 60th Street, Duffy cited ongoing talks as reason for the delay.

Duffy said on X: “The federal government and @POTUS are putting New York on notice. Your refusal to end cordon pricing and your open disrespect towards the federal government is unacceptable.”

“We will provide New York with a 30-day extension as discussions continue. Know that the billions of dollars the federal government sends to New York are not a blank check. Continued noncompliance will not be taken lightly,” he added.

Rep. Jerry Nadler responded on Thursday: “Let me be clear, these attacks on congestion pricing are an attack on New York’s sovereignty. New York has the right to govern itself, to implement policies that improve the lives of its residents, and to make decisions that benefit our infrastructure and our economy.”

The Yahoo Finance article says that MTA CEO Janno Lieber has said the toll will stay unless a judge says otherwise.

Meant to ease traffic and fund MTA projects, the $9 fee was approved last year and began in January.

In February, Duffy claimed to revoke a key federal approval—granted under his predecessor—sparking Trump to call himself “king” online. The MTA sued, calling Duffy’s move unconstitutional; the Trump administration hasn’t responded in court.

This isn’t the first time the feds have threatened transit funds. In a recent letter, Duffy demanded crime stats—most already public—and warned of “redirecting or withholding funding” if unmet by March 31.

MTA says it’s happy to help find the data.

Tyler Durden
Mon, 03/24/2025 – 05:45

via ZeroHedge News https://ift.tt/gJzlO5r Tyler Durden

Researchers Claim To Have Discovered ‘Vast City’ Underneath Egypt’s Pyramids

Researchers Claim To Have Discovered ‘Vast City’ Underneath Egypt’s Pyramids

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

Two Researchers from Italy and Scotland claim to have discovered a sprawling underground city beneath the pyramids in Egypt.

The Daily Mail reports that the researchers say they’ve found eight vertical cylinder-shaped structures extending more than 2,100 feet below the pyramid and more unknown structures 4,000 feet deeper.

Corrado Malanga, from Italy’s University of Pisa, and Filippo Biondi with the University of Strathclyde in Scotland Say they used radar pulses to create high-resolution images deep into the ground beneath the three Pyramids and observed massive structures 10 times larger than the pyramids themselves.

To put this into perspective, the World Trade Center Freedom Tower is 541 meters high. These supposed shafts are 100m taller and there are eight of them.

They claim to have seen spiral structures on the sides of the shafts.

Nicole Ciccolo, the project’s spokesperson stated that the cylinder structures were found underneath each of the three pyramids and appeared “to serve as access points to this underground system.”

The study has not been peer reviewed or published yet, and predictably already faces ridicule from archeologists and scientists who are, let’s say, less than open to the history of ancient world being turned upside down.

“The existence of vast chambers beneath the earth’s surface, comparable in size to the pyramids themselves, which have a remarkably strong correlation between the legendary Halls of Amenti,” Ciccolo further claimed.

“These new archaeological findings could redefine our understanding of the sacred topography of ancient Egypt, providing spatial coordinates for previously unknown and unexplored subterranean structures,” she added. 

Professor Lawrence Conyers, a radar expert at the University of Denver Asserts that it is not possible to scan that deep into the ground and while he concedes there may be tunnels and shafts under the pyramids dating back further than the ancient Egyptian civilisation, calling it a ‘city’ is a “huge exaggeration.”

Conyers further noted that the only way to prove the structures are really there would be “targeted excavations.”

“My take is that as long as authors are not making things up and that their basic methods are correct, their interpretations should be given a look by all who care about the site,” he explained.

“We can quibble about interpretations, and that is called science. But the basic methods need to be solid,” the professor added.

Another reason the claim has been rubbished is that Malanga is also a long time UFOlogist, studying sightings in Italy. 

He and Biondi previously published a separate peer-reviewed paper in October 2022 in the scientific journal Remote Sensing which claimed to have found hidden rooms and ramps inside Khafre, along with evidence of a thermal anomaly near the pyramid’s base.

The latest claims have fuelled more speculation that the pyramids were some sort of ancient power plants or giant energy transmitters.

*  *  *

Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

Tyler Durden
Mon, 03/24/2025 – 05:00

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NORTHCOM Deploys Second Guided-Missile Destroyer For US Southern Border Operations

NORTHCOM Deploys Second Guided-Missile Destroyer For US Southern Border Operations

U.S. Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) has deployed a second Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer to support operations along the southern border as the Trump administration moves to strengthen hemispheric defense.

The US Navy wrote in a press release Saturday that USS Spruance, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, departed the Naval Base San Diego to support NORTHCOM’s “mission to restore territorial integrity at the U.S. southern border” and “reinforce the nation’s commitment to border security by enhancing maritime efforts and supporting interagency collaboration.” 

“USS Spruance’s deployment as part of NORTHCOM’s southern border mission brings additional capability and expands the geography of unique military capabilities working with the Department of Homeland Security,” Gen. Gregory Guillot, Commander of NORTHCOM, stated, adding, “With Spruance off the West Coast and USS Gravely in the Gulf of America, our maritime presence contributes to the all-domain, coordinated DOD response to the Presidential Executive Order and demonstrates our resolve to achieve operational control of the border.”

The move comes one week after NORTHCOM deployed the USS Gravely to the Gulf of America to operate its advanced radar and electronic warfare systems that allow the US military to track multiple drug cartels—now designated as foreign terrorist organizations—threats simultaneously, including aircraft, missiles, and surface vessels.

As we’ve been detailing, the US government has been conducting round after round of signals intelligence (SIGINT) operations near the US-Mexico border and over Mexico using spy planes and CIA drones… 

What you see above is part of the preliminary work to disrupt, dismantle, and eliminate the command and control structures of drug cartels that kill 100,000 American lives per year. 

Remember, the Chinese are heavily involved as well… 

Democrats have melted down over NORTHCOM’s move to ramp up hemispheric defense in the Trump era.

A broader theme for readers to understand: “Making Sense Of Hemispheric Defense In the Trump Era.”

Tyler Durden
Mon, 03/24/2025 – 04:15

via ZeroHedge News https://ift.tt/kOwSUco Tyler Durden

Sugar Stores In The Body May Fuel Common Lung Cancer Progression: Study

Sugar Stores In The Body May Fuel Common Lung Cancer Progression: Study

Authored by George Citroner via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

A recent study from researchers at the University of Kentucky has identified glycogen, a stored form of glucose, as a significant factor in the progression of lung adenocarcinoma, a particularly aggressive form of lung cancer.

David A Litman/Shutterstock

High Fat and Sugar Diet Worsens Cancer

The findings, recently published in Nature Metabolism, suggest that heightened levels of glycogen are linked with increased lung adenocarcinoma tumor aggressiveness and poorer survival rates.

Researchers tested the effects of glycogen in mice and humans. Researchers increased glycogen levels in mice through dietary changes and gene modification. This dual approach allowed them to examine the effects of glycogen from different angles.

The mice were fed different types of diets to see how they affected their bodies. The diets included water (as a control), high-fructose corn syrup (a type of sugar), corn oil (a fat), and a mix of high-fructose corn syrup and corn oil.

While both corn oil and high-fructose corn syrup increased glycogen levels in the lungs, after two weeks, the mice receiving the mixed diet (high-fructose corn syrup + corn oil) had much higher glycogen levels and longer glycogen chains in their lungs. Both of which was linked to more aggressive lung tumors when the mice were induced to have lung adenocarcinoma.

These findings indicated that “higher glycogen promotes increased tumour progression,” the researchers wrote.

In parallel with the dietary models, the team also used genetic mouse models predisposed to accumulate glycogen in the lungs.

By disabling the enzyme responsible for glycogen production, they found that tumors grew much smaller and were less aggressive. This suggests that targeting glycogen production could be a potential strategy for treating lung adenocarcinoma.

“This integrated approach allows the discovery and validation of key metabolic drivers” necessary for improving treatments for lung adenocarcinoma, the researchers wrote. Through these experiments, they were able to demonstrate that disrupting glycogen production resulted in reduced tumor growth in these mice.

Glycogen Linked to Worse Prognosis in Humans

The study also involved a comprehensive cohort of 276 patients with lung adenocarcinoma, where spatial analysis revealed significant glycogen accumulation, particularly in tumor regions compared to surrounding healthy tissue and in other types of lung cancer.

The findings suggest that heightened levels of glycogen are linked with increased tumor aggressiveness and poorer survival rates among patients.

“These findings raise the possibilities of metabolic vulnerabilities associated with diet that should be intriguing avenues for future research, such as studying the impact of dietary patterns on lung cancer survival in human populations,” the study authors wrote.

High Glycemic Index Foods and Cancer Risk

People should be aware that regularly taking foods with a high glycemic index such as sugary drinks, white bread, processed snacks, and candies can do them more harm than just increasing blood sugar, food scientist Ken Tobby told The Epoch Times.

Such foods usually bring about sharp increases in glucose and insulin levels,” he said. “This may, over time, result in hormonal imbalances and chronic inflammation in the body.” Chronic inflammation can contribute to cancer development by causing DNA damage, promoting cell growth and division, and creating an environment that favors tumor growth and metastasis.

When the body is constantly filled with insulin or insulin-like growth factors from intake of sugars, it will develop an environment where abnormal cell growth is more likely to happen, Tobby noted. “This is a major aspect of how cancers can develop.”

Tobby added that people should also be aware that blood sugar surges from eating these foods also contribute to oxidative stress. “This is a condition where harmful chemicals known as free radicals develop and attack healthy cells, triggering mutations which result in cancer.”

Limiting added sugar, if not avoiding it completely, is the best way to reduce cancer risk, Catherine Gervacio, registered dietitian and certified exercise nutrition coach, told The Epoch Times.

“We need more research to fully understand the relationship between high-GI foods and cancer,” she said. “So focus on a balanced diet to ensure you’re body is getting the right nutrients to reduce cancer risk.”

Tyler Durden
Mon, 03/24/2025 – 03:30

via ZeroHedge News https://ift.tt/Xo3pQS9 Tyler Durden

“The Science” May Have Miscalculated The Number Of People On Earth…By Billions

“The Science” May Have Miscalculated The Number Of People On Earth…By Billions

Chalk up another potential lowlight for “the science”…

While global population estimates sit around 8.2 billion, lead author Josias Láng-Ritter of Aalto University argues rural populations may be significantly undercounted, according to Yahoo News and Popular Mechanics.

“We were surprised to find that the actual population living in rural areas is much higher than the global population data indicates—depending on the dataset, rural populations have been underestimated by between 53 percent to 84 percent over the period studied,” he said in a press statement.

“The results are remarkable, as these datasets have been used in thousands of studies and extensively support decision-making, yet their accuracy has not been systematically evaluated.”

“When dams are built, large areas are flooded and people need to be relocated,” he continued.

“The relocated population is usually counted precisely because dam companies pay compensation to those affected. Unlike global population datasets, such local impact statements provide comprehensive, on-the-ground population counts that are not skewed by administrative boundaries. We then combined these with spatial information from satellite imagery.”

The article states that to test global population estimates, Láng-Ritter turned to his background in water management, analyzing data from 300 rural dam projects across 35 countries between 1975 and 2010. These figures offered a reliable benchmark to compare against estimates from groups like WorldPop, GRUMP, LandScan, and others included in the study.

The gap in population data likely comes from limited resources and the challenge of reaching remote rural areas, leading to undercounts that can affect how resources are distributed.

Still, not everyone is sold. Stuart Gietel-Basten of Hong Kong University of Science and Technology told New Scientist that while better rural data is welcome, the idea Earth holds billions more people is “extremely unlikely,” calling it a claim that defies decades of research.

Missing a few thousand is expected—but millions or billions would require far more proof to rewrite what we know about global population.

Tyler Durden
Mon, 03/24/2025 – 02:45

via ZeroHedge News https://ift.tt/EjdnZiA Tyler Durden

Is The EU’s New Army The Final Nail In The Project’s Coffin?

Is The EU’s New Army The Final Nail In The Project’s Coffin?

Authored by Martin Jay,

The EU army idea is actually more complicated than you might think…

It used to be quite a common thing for people in polite society to say “imagine if women ran the world…we would certainly have less wars, right?”. Wrong. Women are running the world, well, at least the EU world. Three women to be precise. Ursula von der Leyen, EU commission boss, Annalena Baerbock, Germany’s foreign minister and of course, last but not least, the EU’s own foreign affairs chief, Kaja Kallas. And what do all three of these women have in common, apart from having names which sound like sexually transmitted diseases? They all want war.

In line with spectacularly poor decision making right from the beginning of the Ukraine war, with probably Russian sanctions at the top of the list of stupid ideas, the EU has only one way forward in Ukraine. At whatever cost, it must come out at least not looking like it lost. The EU project is very much like an old man on a bike moving very slowly along a Dutch cyclists’ path. The fear from the elites in the EU is that if he falls off the bike, he will never get back on. The constant worry from top EU figures is that if the EU loses its momentum with press coverage and relevance in general, then a pause – any pause – could be devastating. This, you might be surprised to hear, is what EU officials themselves confided in me when I was based in the Belgian capital. Such an expression gives you an idea of how little confidence the EU has in itself as a worthy, stable long-term project.

And so the madness escalates now to such a point where we are actually looking at draining the wallets and purses of our own very poorest people to fund the ultimate EU sex toy going: an EU army.

The idea of an EU army is not new. As a notion, it’s as old as the hills as hard core federalists in Brussels have been arguing for the EU to have its own army for at least twenty years, but until now failed. The main reason for the idea not getting off the ground is that it created too many new, worrying political problems for the EU to wrangle with. In a nutshell, there was always a risk of a new political crisis that an EU army would create as member states argue over which country gets to run it, which nationality is its head, where it would be based and how politically would it be run, based on what decision making structure? (existing EU council, EU commission, member states themselves in a new set up via defence ministries). The concern was always that Germany would have too much power and then this would open an old wound about the country re-arming and rekindling memories of 1939. And we all know where that led.

The EU army idea is actually more complicated than you might think. One of the reasons why it never got off the ground despite several serious attempts is that both the EU and member states are both confused and lack confidence about such a bold plan. They are literally concerned the idea could blow up in their faces. It’s what Americans call ‘blowback’. No, that’s nothing to do with the German foreign minister or even innuendo. It’s a military term for when a gun throws back energy in your face when it discharges and wounds whoever is holding the weapon.

For a long time the EU itself wanted the army to be very much controlled by Brussels but knew that the big guns would not wear that. And so, for them, like those in the European Commission it was about giving power away to a new body, a new layer of EU power, as though there aren’t enough institutions in Brussels which already sap away power from member states. The attitude was somewhat self-defeating. ‘If we (the commission) don’t create this entity, then Germany may well do it on their own anyway, and then we will lose the power’ is the mentality in Brussels. Indeed, Germany for at least a decade has been toying with the idea of having its own EU army, which creates a real headache for Brussels as it gives crucial power to one member state who many would argue already wields quite enough in the first place. The German parliament a few years ago leaked a document suggesting a new international army which Germany would run, which would be sent to troubled hotspots around the world and would be joined by a few allies who would play a supporting role. 

The problem with this is twofold.

One, a good number of Germans would be very unhappy about his and believe that Germany should never be allowed to return to its former military power of the 1930s. 

Secondly, under such a set-up, the EU would suffer considerably as it would throw a spotlight on its own weakness and underline how ineffective Brussels is, given that it has no military edge and that one member state has gone rogue with a geo-military policy. 

And so two scenarios present themselves: 

  1. Germany being the main player in an EU army created and apparently run from Brussels – at least in appearance; or

  2. Berlin running its own EU army which isn’t called an EU army but the rest of the world will consider it to be one. 

Neither of these scenarios really does the EU any favours.

But it would seem this is what these three ladies have their eye on.

Which is why they have put so much emphasis on 800 billion euros being found among EU member states contributions, so that it will have an EU badge and its centre of power would be Brussels. France, Germany, Italy, Poland and the UK would be part of such a new, shiny EU pillar of NATO. And yet, it is Britain’s role, considered crucial, which will dilute the EU dream of it being entirely a Brussels wet dream project. In many ways, the reaction from these three women follows last year’s conference set up by Macron to create a coalition of EU member states, plus the UK, for big foreign policy ideas which would run parallel to the EU’s foreign thingy in Brussels. Defence spending and sending an EU army – which included the UK and Turkey – to places where the EU felt it could confidently flex its muscles was part of the whole plan.

For these three wicked witches to conjure up such a Macbethian plan to slay Macron and his big idea is worrying on a Shakespearian level, to say the least. It’s hard to say at the moment of writing whether it’s a real plan, as it’s already been blocked by the Netherlands, or it’s a plan on paper designed to impress Trump at a critical moment of negotiations. Does the EU believe that these talks could go on for months, perhaps even a year or more and so therefore to send a few hundred tanks to Kiev would only bolster both Zelenksy’s and the EU’s credibility as players when neither are actually even sitting on the reserves’ bench? Possibly. Have the tanks even been built? Nope.

One witty pundit for RT, a former anchor, opined quite amusingly about the role of the UK, suggesting that London’s ability to be a global military player is out of touch with reality.

“The British defense secretary claims that the need for a weapons shopping spree actually comes from a place of deep, inner hippie-ness” Rachel Marsden wrote. 

“The Ukrainians want peace. We all want peace. And as defense ministers, we have been discussing and we are working to strengthen the push for peace, John Healey said, probably itching to get back home to squeeze into some bell bottoms and smash the bongo drums”.

It reminded me of the 1980s satire puppet show in the UK called ‘Spitting Images’ which cruelly depicted Ronald Reagan muttering “We want peace…a piece of Nicaragua, a piece of El Salvador”.

And what’s wrong with bell bottoms?

Tyler Durden
Mon, 03/24/2025 – 02:00

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The Dissolution Of The US Agency For Global Media Could Lead To A Revival Of American Soft Power

The Dissolution Of The US Agency For Global Media Could Lead To A Revival Of American Soft Power

Authored by Andrew Korybko via substack,

American soft power operations in this new era that’ll likely follow USAID and USAGM’s far-reaching reforms under Trump 2.0 will be more creative, appealing, and effective than all that came before.

Trump’s Executive Order last week eliminating the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM), the rationale of which was explained here as regards to stopping the state’s funding of ideologically radical propaganda, has been condemned by critics as a deathblow to American soft power. 

That body is responsible for Voice of America, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, and Radio Free Asia, among several other foreign-focused outlets. 

It’s therefore understandable why some are concerned about the consequences.

The reality though is that their operations will probably resume after some time, albeit through what’ll likely be public-private partnerships abroad instead of purely state-run enterprises inside the US, and only with like-minded partners that share Trump 2.0’s populist-nationalist worldview. To elaborate, the $950 million that the USAGM requested for this year could be put to more effective use funding foreign experts, influencers, media, etc. who are from the places whose public the US wants to influence.

That was already happening through USAID, which is also being gutted and transformed as was explained here in early February, so it’ll either return to its original focus on physical development projects or divide information warfare responsibilities with whatever remains of USAGM. In any case, the point is that USAGM’s influence operations and USAID’s more direct meddling ones are expected to be less centralized than before and outsourced to a much greater degree as a result of Trump 2.0’s reforms.

They’ll also be optimized by replacing their ideologically radical agenda with his team’s much more pragmatic one, which resonates with a much wider audience, and relying a lot more on informed figures abroad who have a better sense of the local pulse than DC-based bureaucrats do. The end result is that American soft power will be less visibly connected to the US, more effectively fine-tuned for targeted audiences, and promoted by what can be described as many more “agents of influence” than before.

It’s this final point that captures the essence of Trump’s reforms. As a successful businessman, Trump appreciates the free market, ergo why he envisages liberating the so-called “marketplace of ideas” from what he considers to be USAID and USAGM’s overbearing influence. Instead of keeping that marketplace “unfree” by letting them continue dictating editorial preferences, he wants to reduce their roles mostly to funding and supervising like-minded foreign contractors who’ll then function as “agents of influence”.

The problem though is that their host countries could replicate the US’ FARA like Georgia recently did to identify which broadcasters, influencers, media, etc. are receiving foreign funding and then obligate them to inform their audience of this so that they can keep it in mind when consuming their content. Additional responsibilities could also be mandated to make such arrangements too onerous for many to agree to, such as regular and detailed reporting of their activities, thus hamstringing this plan.

It’s here where the Georgian precedent is one again relevant since this example shows how aggressively the US will push back against even friendly governments that use the US’ own FARA as the model for their respective foreign agents legislation. Of course, it goes without saying that such a reaction strongly suggests that America is indeed guilty of intending to clandestinely fund foreign figures for influencing their societies, but not all targeted governments are as strong as Georgia’s to resist this pressure.

Moreover, USAID and USAGM’s ties to the CIA can lead to their successors indirectly funneling money to these same figures to help them evade scrutiny if they live in countries that have their own version of FARA, which can occur via crowdfunding as well as ad revenue from US platforms like YouTube and X. Governments could legislate that crowdfunding sites restrict foreign donations for their nationals if they want to still operate in their jurisdiction, however, and produce the names of donors upon court order.

By contrast, cracking down on US funding that might be indirectly funneled to foreign figures by the CIA via YouTube and X ad revenue at USAID and/or USAGM’s behest is more difficult, with the only realistic option being to legally treat all influencers above a certain number of followers as foreign agents. Under those circumstances, the US might encourage its “agents of influence” to flee abroad on the pretext that this infringes on their freedoms, after which they’ll continue producing their content with impunity.

The aforesaid pretext might be sufficient for the targeted audience not to negatively judge the figures who leave to avoid complying with their government’s FARA-like legislation, thus ensuring that they still retain most of their supporters despite living abroad and therefore saving the influence operation. In that case, it wouldn’t matter if the authorities requested that YouTube or X ban those figures’ accounts from being accessed within their jurisdiction since their audience could then just use free VPNs instead.

By hook or by crook, the US’ “agents of influence” – some of whom might even operate as such without their knowledge if the CIA indirectly funnels funds to them via YouTube or X to financially incentivize them to continue creating their content – are expected to expand their audience and sway. American soft power operations in this new era that’ll likely follow USAID and USAGM’s far-reaching reforms under Trump 2.0 will therefore be more creative, appealing, and effective than all that came before.

Tyler Durden
Sun, 03/23/2025 – 23:55

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