“Judy has agreed to an in-person interview!”

“Seriously?” I replied.

“Yes,” Alex excitedly laughed into the phone. “And she wants to do it at her home!”

“Wow…”

Judy Shelton is one of the most compelling and controversial figures in Washington, D.C. She’s the economist who predicted the Soviet Union’s collapse years before it happened; wrote the book Richard Nixon couldn’t put down; and has spent decades fighting for “sound money”—a U.S. dollar backed by gold so politicians can’t crank up the printing press to fund promises while stealing purchasing power through inflation.

It was Shelton’s strong support for a dollar backed by gold that got her brutally attacked during her 2020 Senate confirmation for the Federal Reserve. Senators called her ideas “nutty,” claimed she wasn’t an economist, and labeled her a “gold bug.” It seemed clear at the time that Washington insiders killed her nomination to protect their addiction to endless government spending.

Fast forward to today: gold prices have skyrocketed, inflation is still hammering families, and the de-dollarization trend has gone global. Shelton’s warnings now look like pure prophecy.

Alex Deluce is the talented publisher and editor of Gold Telegraph, one of the world’s most influential finance and commodities news platforms. I have been producing monthly interviews for him for nearly two years with folks like NATO commander General Wesley Clark, mining billionaire Pierre Lassonde, and former U.S. congressman Ron Paul (be sure to subscribe here or follow here to catch the latest ones).

So, when he called in mid-February to tell me Shelton had agreed to an in-person interview at her history-filled home, I jumped at the opportunity to produce the project. The result is a nearly 50-minute documentary covering:

• Nixon’s 1971 decision to close the gold window despite later telling Shelton that he knew “very little about monetary policy”

• What former Fed chairman Paul Volcker admitted to Shelton about what America lost when it ditched dollars backed by gold

• The painful controversy and “humiliation” of her failed 2020 Federal Reserve nomination

• What causes monetary resets (hint: WAR!)

• Who really owns the Federal Reserve

• And much more…

Producing, writing and editing this film was extremely rewarding. And Alex did a fantastic job asking the right questions. The ideas espoused by Shelton, despite their seeming complexity, really matter to everyday people.

Money should serve as a reliable measure of the true worth of goods, services, and wages. If the government can slowly steal the value of that money via inflation then, as Shelton asserts, that’s theft…and morally wrong.

Watch the full documentary now on YouTube (embedded above) or check out the embedded version below on X.

A massive global war is raging over the future of artificial intelligence, information flows, and whose corporations will control it all. France is currently losing this war badly. One of the last cards they have to play was used yesterday…an act of revenge.

French cybercrime units stormed X’s Paris offices in a dramatic swoop, seizing devices and grilling staff as part of a sprawling probe they claim is looking into algorithm manipulation, fraudulent data grabs, and the spread of deepfakes and child abuse material. Prosecutors have summoned X owner billionaire Elon Musk for questioning in April.

X is branding the whole thing as an attempt to crush free speech, while Elon himself says it is a blatant “political attack.”

WHAT’S REALLY GOING ON? A HISTORY OF U.S. PRESSURE ON FRENCH COMPANIES

At 8pm on April 14, 2013, French citizen Frédéric Pierucci arrived at New York’s JFK airport for a routine business trip on a Cathay Pacific flight from Singapore. Pierucci was working at the time as a top executive at the jewel of France’s nuclear industry, Alstom.

The moment he stepped out of the Boeing 777 and onto the jet bridge he was arrested by FBI agents. Pierucci was brought before a judge and charged with bribery under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act related to a giant Alstom $375 million energy deal in Indonesia.

He was was denied bail and held in a high-security U.S. prison for over two years. While detained, Pierucci claims the U.S. used the ongoing investigation and massive potential fines to pressure Alstom into selling its power and grid businesses (including nuclear assets) at a discount to American company General Electric in a $17 billion deal announced in 2014 and completed in 2015.

Alstom eventually paid a record $772 million fine in late 2014 to settle the corruption case, and Pierucci pleaded guilty in 2013 but served most of his time pretrial before being sentenced in 2017 to 30 months (effectively time served plus release).

To win the lucrative Indonesian energy contracts Alstom admitted it paid millions in bribes to Indonesian officials, including a high-ranking member of Parliament and senior PLN executives (PLN is Indonesia’s state-owned electricity utility). Interestingly, no U.S. firms had bid on the Indonesian energy contracts in question.

In his blockbuster book detailing what happened to him called The American Trap: My Battle To Expose America’s Secret Economic War Against The Rest Of The World, Pierucci describes the ordeal as “economic hostage-taking.” He argued the U.S. weaponized its anti-bribery laws to help GE acquire a key French strategic asset rather than purely pursuing justice.

French politicians agreed.

Arnaud Montebourg was the Economy Minister when Pierucci was nabbed by the FBI in 2013. He strongly opposed GE’s takeover of Alstom, viewing it as a loss of French industrial sovereignty in strategic sectors. Montebourg described what happened as a “national wound.”

Current French president Emmanuel Macron was Economy Minister when the deal was finally approved. He acknowledged there was a “causal link” between the U.S. investigation/fines and the sale.

NUCLEAR WASN’T FRANCE’S ONLY STRATEGIC INDUSTRY TARGETED BY AMERICA

Back in 2009 U.S. law enforcement began an investigation targeting France’s largest bank, BNP Paribas. At the time the bank was the fifth-largest in the world by total assets. It was also larger than any of its U.S. competitors.

The U.S. accused BNP Paribas of sanctions violations involving Sudan, Iran and Cuba. Ultimately in 2014 the bank was hit with a record fine of $8.97 billion. It remains the largest penalty for sanctions violations in American history.

Today BNP Paribas is ranked eighth in the world by total assets, sliding down from fifth. Two U.S. banks—JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America—are now slotted ahead, in fifth and sixth places respectively.

To add insult to injury, since 2014 U.S. investors (companies or funds) have acquired or gained control of 1,600+ French companies. This represents more than $130 billion-worth of transactions. Corporate France is dying.

FRANCE IS IN A REVOLUTIONARY MOMENT

All of this corporate upheaval is taking place while France is in the midst of a revolutionary moment.

France is trapped in a never-ending political dumpster fire.

In just the last two years, three entire national governments have spectacularly collapsed (Barnier in December 2024, Bayrou in September 2025, and Lecornu in October 2025) because nobody can agree on how to stop the country from hemorrhaging money with massive debt and reckless spending.

Meanwhile Marine Le Pen, the leader of National Rally, France’s most popular political party, is facing a potential five-year ban from holding public office due to an embezzlement conviction. She says it’s a “witch hunt” designed to prevent her from running in 2027. Her party has long been labeled “far right” by establishment media while Le Pen herself describes it as “nationalist” and “populist right.” Echoes of Trump’s political messaging.

Demographically the country is in very serious trouble. Last year its native birth rate plummeted to a historic low. There were more deaths than births for the first time since 1945. This means population growth now depends entirely on migration, fueling intense cultural and racial debates. What does it mean to be French now?

France is proudly secular, and yet Islam is growing ever more strident. Can the two systems cooperate, along with the 50% of the population who remain Christian?

The societal problems are serious enough that in 2021 about 1,000 active military and 20 retired generals signed an open letter warning President Emmanuel Macron of a "deadly civil war" due to "Islamism and the hordes of the banlieue"—the poor immigrant suburbs that surround French cities.

FRANCE WAS WAITING TO HIT THE U.S. BACK; MUSK PROVIDED THE OPPORTUNITY

It is with the backdrop of these economic and societal storms that the raid on X in Paris took place yesterday. For years French media outlets have lamented the lack of serious pushback by France against the U.S.

That all changed yesterday.

There are plenty of genuine rationales for the raid on X’s Paris HQ—online safety concerns, Big Tech regulation, personal data protections—but you cannot rule out the most base of human motivations:

REVENGE.

Last year, at 49,000 feet above the west coast of North America, I heard first-hand confirmation of Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro’s treachery against the United States.

By mid-2024, Donald Trump had spent years warning that enemies of the United States were emptying their prisons and forcing convicted murderers and rapists to cross illegally into the U.S.

As massive migrant caravans moved north from South America, through Central America and Mexico, and across the U.S. southern border, the mainstream media’s silence was striking. Something was clearly happening. Several colleagues told me tens of thousands of migrants were crossing each month—often with what appeared to be the blessing of U.S. Border Patrol.

Privately, a former high-ranking CIA official told me that millions had crossed illegally. He said it was Biden administration policy, arguing that the influx helped prop up a struggling post-COVID economy.

Today, we know that at least 10 million people crossed the southern U.S. border illegally during Biden’s presidency. And those unprecedented numbers helped fuel Trump’s election win.

In May 2024, I was aboard a private jet, seated across from one of South America’s most powerful entertainment executives—a Hollywood legend with deep personal ties to Venezuela. Family members still lived there, and he had recently returned from Caracas.

He told me that Maduro’s military had gone prison to prison across Venezuela. Prisoners were forcibly removed, transported to the Colombian border, and ordered to join migrant caravans heading north. They were warned that if they ever returned to Venezuela, they would be executed.

I was stunned. Could what Trump had been saying actually be true?

The executive insisted it was—and added that Caracas had become safer than almost any major city in the Western Hemisphere. The reason, he said, was simple: the regime had cleared the streets by exporting its criminals.

Yesterday morning, when news broke that Maduro had been abducted by U.S. Special Forces, I immediately thought back to that conversation. By dumping his prison population into the United States, Maduro had crossed a dangerous line.

Whether it was his involvement in drug trafficking, his alliances with China and Russia, or his mismanagement of Venezuela’s vast oil reserves, one thing was clear: flooding the U.S. with criminals would not go unanswered.

And yesterday, it wasn’t.

Interestingly, in 1980, Cuban communist leader Fidel Castro sent more than 20,000 criminals to Florida during the Mariel boatlift, unleashing chaos in Miami.

Following Maduro’s capture yesterday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a pointed message to Cuba’s leadership:

“If I lived in Havana and I was in the government, I’d be concerned… at least a little bit.”

In my opinion, Jacob is one of the world’s top geopolitical analysts. I first met him ten years ago when I started working with Dr. George Friedman at Geopolitical Futures. Jacob had just left Stratfor—the private intelligence firm George founded—where he had served as Director of the Operations Center. He was now joining George once again to help launch GPF as Director of Analysis. He has since been featured on TV and print in places like the New York Times, Fox News, CNBC and MSNBC. Today, he is Director of Research at Bespoke Group, a Colorado-based company providing solutions to high net worth families and individuals.

Jacob has kindly agreed to allow ResourceWars to reprint his fantastic analysis of this war that’s broken out between Israel and Iran. I cannot recommend his Substack Intersubjectively Transmissible enough; please go subscribe for free NOW!

So, without further ado…

THE FIRST ISRAEL-IRAN WAR

Where things might go from here…

By Jacob Shapiro

I’ve been writing about Iran and Israel for almost two decades. (That’s crazy!) I’ve argued that Iran is one of the most important geopolitical actors in the world, a civilization-state with strategic depth, historical resilience, and latent power far greater than its present situation suggests. I’ve also argued that Israel, for all its triumphs, is entering a dangerous phase of overconfidence, buoyed by superior technology and a nuclear deterrent—but internally fractured in ways that have historically brought Jewish polities to ruin. What we’ve just witnessed over the last 24 hours confirms both of those views—and raises serious questions about what comes next.

Let’s state the obvious: Israel has just carried out a stunningly broad and effective series of strikes inside Iran. Reports vary, but by all accounts, Israel didn’t just hit symbolic targets. They hit air defenses in Tabriz and Hamadan. They hit underground nuclear facilities near Natanz. They hit missile sites. They assassinated key commanders. They may have taken out scientists involved in Iran’s nuclear program. They degraded Iran’s capacity to respond, at least in the short term. And they did it over multiple waves, with clarity of purpose and chilling tactical sophistication.

If you’re Iran, how do you respond to that?

There are two broad schools of thought. One says Iran is overmatched. Its air defenses were already weak, and now they’re in shambles. Its proxies—Hezbollah, the Houthis, even groups in Iraq—are either exhausted, unwilling, or under too much domestic pressure to escalate. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is fractured, and the regime is isolated both internally and diplomatically. The strikes might even be part of an intentional Israeli campaign to push Iran over the edge—forcing it to retaliate clumsily and justifying an even more devastating follow-on assault, or pushing the IRGC into accelerating nuclear weaponization under impossible conditions. That path leads to disaster.

The second school of thought is darker: Iran has no choice but to escalate. Not just to save face, but to preserve the regime. Israel has just demonstrated that it can reach anywhere, kill anyone, and destroy strategic infrastructure at will. That isn’t just a military defeat—it’s a psychological one. If the regime doesn’t respond, it looks impotent. But if it does respond and fails, it risks full-scale war. It's a classic Catch-22. And when ideologues feel cornered, they often lash out with more force than they otherwise would.

A Moment of Strategic Ambiguity

In the U.S., the political class can’t seem to decide what to say. Some officials insist the United States had no prior knowledge. Others, quoting anonymous sources, suggest the U.S. helped plan the attack by creating a false sense of calm and exploiting backchannel diplomacy in Oman. President Trump, true to form, said he knew what was up the entire time and urged Iran to come back to the negotiating table and make a deal. And meanwhile, American bases across the Persian Gulf are on high alert, worried that Tehran might not distinguish between Tel Aviv and Tampa.

Whether the U.S. was involved or not is almost beside the point. Iran will (must?) assume it was. And that assumption changes everything. If Iran believes that the U.S. and Israel are coordinating a campaign to collapse the regime—if it views these strikes not as a deterrent signal but as phase one of a decapitation effort—it has to act. That logic is what worries me most.

In that scenario, Iran may strike U.S. bases in Iraq, Bahrain, or Qatar. It may launch asymmetric attacks on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz or encourage the Houthis to strike deeper into the Gulf. If Iran is truly close to assembling a nuclear weapon and has any capacity left to do so after the Israeli attacks, perhaps it does so and uses it as a deterrent. Maybe it transfers nuclear technology to proxies. If Iran fears for the regime’s survival, what won’t Iran do?

The Regime vs. Itself

One of the most important—and underappreciated—elements of this crisis is the internal power struggle within Iran. We often talk about “Iran” as if it’s a unified state with a single strategy, but that’s never been the case. Especially not now. What makes the current moment so dangerous is not just that Israel is attacking Iran, but that Iran is fighting with itself.

This has been building for years. The Supreme Leader is in his mid-80s and reportedly ill. His son, Mojtaba, has been quietly positioned as a possible successor—a move that would upend the very logic of the 1979 Revolution, which overthrew a hereditary monarchy and replaced it with clerical consensus. There is no consensus now. The IRGC, long the regime’s enforcer and economic powerhouse, has become a sprawling, unaccountable oligarchy. And within the IRGC itself, multiple factions are emerging—some still hardline, others willing to consider tactical reforms, especially on economic integration.

The Iranian people know this. The regime’s legitimacy is collapsing not just because of foreign pressure or a poor economy, but because its internal contradictions are too obvious to ignore. The same system that demands women cover their hair now sees its own daughters on the front lines of protest. The same elite that chants about martyrdom is busy laundering money and sending its children abroad. The Islamic Republic, for all its revolutionary rhetoric, is bleeding out through corruption, incoherence, and generational exhaustion.

And yet, it still rules. The protests that followed Mahsa Amini’s death were the most significant since 1979—but they didn’t break the regime. Why? Because the regime still holds the security services. Because the protest movement, while brave, was diffuse. And because, in moments of foreign attack, even unpopular regimes can benefit from nationalist rallying effects.

That’s the real risk here. If Israel thinks it can provoke regime change by assassinating a few key figures, it may be misreading how Iranian authoritarianism works. Conversely, if the regime believes it can deflect internal dissent by escalating with Israel or the U.S., it may be underestimating how hollow its domestic base really is.

And in the middle of all this is a terrifying possibility: that no one is actually in control. That decision-making has fragmented so thoroughly that strategic coherence is gone. That the IRGC, or a rogue commander, or even a local air defense officer, could escalate this conflict by accident or desperation. Khamenei is still alive—but the system he presides over may no longer be capable of rational action. Which means that deterrence, diplomacy, even escalation management—all the tools we use to stabilize great-power confrontation—may not apply here.

Israel’s Gamble

If this sounds like escalation, that’s because it is. And from Israel’s perspective, it is a calculated escalation. Israel has always drawn a hard red line around Iran’s nuclear program, and since October, it has increasingly viewed Iran’s support for Hamas and Hezbollah as a direct existential threat. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech, which called on the Iranian people to rise up against their leaders, felt less like strategic signaling and more like a deliberate invitation to regime change. The precision of the strikes—targeting command centers, nuclear experts, even those involved in negotiation—suggests that this may be more than just a counter-proliferation campaign. It may be an attempt to set the clock back on Iran's geopolitical rise by 20 years or more.

But here’s the problem: Israel’s strategy may succeed militarily and still backfire historically.

Israel’s biggest advantage over its neighbors is not just technology, or U.S. support, or even its nuclear deterrent. It’s internal cohesion—a shared mission, a strong sense of national unity, one that allows Israelis to put aside differences for a common good. That is part of what the Israeli government is clearly betting on – telling Israelis to prepare for a long campaign and betting that their threshold for pain is greater than Iran’s. A week ago, far-right religious parties were threatening to bring down the government. Now major rabbinic figures are telling their followers not to go to synagogue until the IDF says it is safe to do so.

October 7^th and now this assault on Iran have papered over an increasingly disturbing reality: Israel’s unity is fraying. When it is not bombing Israel’s enemies, the Netanyahu government is deeply unpopular. Ultra-Orthodox draft exemptions are being debated in the streets. Relations with the U.S. are strained. And a growing cohort of Israeli citizens—especially younger ones—are questioning the permanent war footing that has defined their country since birth.

Meanwhile, Israel's enemies—especially Iran—are learning. They're watching. They understand that the lesson of modern warfare is not to outgun your enemy, but to outlast them. Iran doesn’t need to “win” a war against Israel. It just needs to make Israel bleed and cast doubt on the future. And what happens when Israel is no longer the only actor with drones, cyber capabilities, or AI-enhanced battlefield awareness? Israel’s technological edge is real, but it is also ephemeral.

The Long Arc of the Region

Israel has faced existential threats since its founding, and it has prevailed in ways that are genuinely awe-inspiring and geopolitics-defying. But Jewish history also teaches humility. The ancient Kingdom of Israel (aka the Davidic monarchy) was not destroyed solely by foreign conquest—it fell because of internal division and the inability to hold power together.

The danger now is not that Iran will strike back and topple Israel. The danger is that Israel will misread the moment, assume it has achieved deterrence, and then fail to prepare for the next phase—when deterrence doesn’t work, when enemies are stronger, when domestic consensus is gone, and when the U.S. may not be there to pick up the pieces.

What happens when Turkey decides it wants a drone network equal to Israel’s? What happens when Saudi Arabia, spooked by Iran's weakness and Israel’s strength, decides that its own security requires nuclear weapons? What happens when Egypt’s political sclerosis collapses and a populist regime turns hostile? We are still living in the shadow of the U.S. invasion of Iraq, the Arab Spring, and the Syrian Civil War. And the system is far from stable.

The belief that Israel can permanently shape the region by force, without cost, is a fantasy.

A Scary but Contained War

There’s a strange paradox to this moment. On the surface, it feels like the Middle East is on the brink of a region-wide conflagration. Israel is striking deep into Iran. Proxies are stirring. U.S. bases are on alert. Iran is whispering about nuclear red lines. And yet—this will almost certainly be a contained conflict.

Why?

Because, frankly, the Middle East no longer matters to the global system the way it once did.

This isn’t the Cold War. Iran isn’t a Chinese client state. The U.S. isn’t trying to hold a fragile anti-communist alliance together through petrodollar diplomacy. The Middle East’s centrality to global energy markets is waning—not overnight, but measurably. The U.S. is energy independent. China is building redundancies. The EU is pivoting to non-Russian sources. Oil still matters — but less than it used to, and less with every solar panel, wind farm, nuclear reactor, and geo-thermal project completed.

In other words: Israel and Iran can pound the shit out of each other, and the world will watch with alarm, but it won’t have much impact, market or otherwise.

That’s a grim observation, not a comforting one. It means that, like the Russia-Ukraine war, or India-Pakistan skirmishes, or even the slow-motion collapse of Syria, the Iran-Israel confrontation is likely to smolder within its own geography. There will be casualties. There may be proxy attacks. There might even be a dramatic escalation if someone overreaches. But no one is going to invade. No one is going to send peacekeepers. There will be outrage, diplomacy, maybe sanctions—but not intervention.

This is what multipolarity looks like.

A world where there’s no single enforcer of global norms. Where the hegemon still thinks it’s in charge—but in practice, can’t stop the chaos. Where countries act according to their own logic, not Washington’s frameworks. Where deterrence is localized, alliances are fragmented, and conflicts are managed, not resolved.

From Washington’s perspective, that’s a dangerous world. But from a geopolitical perspective, it’s just reality catching up.

And it means we need new frameworks. Because if we keep viewing every crisis through the lens of Cold War precedents or unipolar assumptions, we’re going to miss the shape of the world we’re actually living in. One where Israel and Iran might go to war—not as proxies, but as peers. And where the U.S. may still have influence, but no longer has control.

A Final Thought

Let me end where I began—with a sense of humility. We don’t yet know the full scope of Israel’s strikes, or what Iran will do in response. The news cycle will be full of updates, contradictions, retractions, and noise. (I’ve pasted below some of the more striking tidbits I’ve come across today—but even those may be overtaken by events.)

Still, moments like this force clarity. And they raise uncomfortable questions—especially for Israel.

For all its strength, Israel remains a small state, surrounded by adversaries, reliant on shifting alliances, and increasingly torn apart by internal divisions. It has a formidable military, cutting-edge technology, and an impressive history of survival against long odds. But geopolitical success isn't the same as strategic wisdom.

I said something similar back when Israel launched its offensive against Hezbollah. At the time, I thought it might be a mistake. I was wrong—at least in the short term. Israel decimated Hezbollah’s top leadership and temporarily restored deterrence. But in the long term, the jury is still out. Did Israel destroy Hezbollah—or did it sow the seeds of the next version, more radical, more decentralized, and more dangerous?

That’s the pattern. Tactical brilliance, long-term uncertainty. And that’s why Iran matters—not because of what it is today, but because of what it can become. Iran, however weakened, still has geopolitics on its side. It is a large, resource-rich, civilizational state at the heart of Eurasia, with deep historical roots and regional influence. Israel, by contrast, exists in spite of geopolitics—not because of it. Its survival depends on remaining exceptional: more united, more innovative, more disciplined than the countries around it.

Cunning, bravery, and superior technology are formidable advantages—but they are not permanent. Nor are ineptitude, internal division, or authoritarian stagnation. Israel seems certain that the Islamic Republic must be destroyed to secure its future. But what if, in dismantling this version of Iran, it inadvertently helps forge the next one—more unified, more adaptive, and fueled by a generational memory of what Israel began? Or what if, in demonstrating its reach, Israel convinces other potential rivals—from Turkey to Saudi Arabia—that they too must build the capabilities to ensure Israel can never do to them what it just did to Iran? Of course, it’s also possible that Israel is right, and will continue proving my doubts misplaced. But the line between strategic success and dangerous hubris is thinner than it appears—and history is not kind to those who forget where it lies.

Frank wrote the following op/ed below late last week and sent it over for me to read. Immediately I asked him if I could distribute it to the ResourceWars audience and he graciously agreed. It does a terrific job of summarizing the existential crossroads Western Civilization finds itself at.

Faith, Fabrication & the Future: Spring 2025 in Rome

By Frank Holmes

In April 2025, a synchronistic convergence in Rome revealed the evolving interplay of faith, politics, and digital culture. What began as a solemn moment became a prism through which we witnessed the competing forces shaping leadership in our age.

Vice President J.D. Vance arrived in Rome to visit a dying Pope Francis—a gesture of reverence steeped in historical symbolism. A Catholic convert and champion of ordered moral responsibility, Vance’s presence signaled a conservative resurgence. It was a quiet but strategic handoff, suggesting that the battles of conscience and policy are far from over.

Days later, Donald Trump detonated a cultural moment of a different kind. On social media, he posted an AI-generated image of himself dressed as the pope—viral, jarring, and calculated. It was more than a meme; it was a declaration. In a world where attention is currency, Trump claimed symbolic supremacy not through tradition, but through traction.

Then came the unprecedented: the election of Cardinal Robert Prevost of Chicago as Pope Leo XIV—the first American to ascend to the papacy. His rise marked a westward shift in the Church’s center of gravity. The Vatican, long anchored in old-world tradition, now found itself infused with new-world dynamism. For the Catholic Church, this was not merely a change in leadership; it was a reorientation of identity.

Three moments—Vance’s reverence, Trump’s spectacle, Leo XIV’s ascent—offered three distinct models of influence: the strategic, the performative, and the institutional. Together, they reflect the ways power operates today: through physical presence, digital image, and narrative control.

Even within the Church, these tensions were evident. Pope Francis’ final message, invoking the parable of the Good Samaritan, urged the world toward institutional compassion and care for the vulnerable. Vance, by contrast, has long emphasized moral order, personal duty, and the rebuilding of family and nation. Their philosophies clashed at the very edge of the papal deathbed—two versions of faith in public life, standing respectfully apart.

Trump’s AI papacy, meanwhile, underscored a deeper crisis: in the digital arena, authenticity is optional—virality is victory. When a synthetic image can command more engagement than sacred ritual, we are reminded that truth no longer has a monopoly on influence.

Steve Jobs once said, “You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward.” That week in Rome was more than a religious transition. It was a snapshot of a civilization at a crossroads—grappling with belief, leadership, and reality itself.

A Church reimagined. A politics of symbols. A new pope—American, human—tasked with navigating a world where the sacred must now contend with the synthetic.

The dots were always there. We just had to see them.

Today, U.S. President Donald Trump said America “will take over” the Gaza Strip, while the Palestinians who live there should be relocated to Jordan or Egypt.

One of the most crucial yet overlooked reasons behind this decision is energy.

Both Israel and Gaza have massive offshore natural gas reserves. Developing these resources could help fund Gaza's reconstruction.

But Trump needs to move fast to capitalize on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. There is a mad scramble to push Russian natural gas out of Europe. New suppliers are being lined up. This is go time.

Let's break it down...

ISRAEL'S NATURAL GAS RESERVES

Israel's major offshore gas fields—Leviathan, Tamar, and Dalit—are already in operation and/or being explored by Chevron & several other midsized Israeli oil firms.

Just yesterday, Azerbaijan's state energy firm SOCAR acquired a 10% stake in the Tamar gas field. Did they know today's Gaza announcement was coming?

GAZA'S NATURAL GAS RESERVES

Three months BEFORE the Oct 7, 2023 attacks, Hamas made a U.S.-brokered deal to allow development of a potentially significant gas field off the coast of Gaza.

Then three months AFTER Oct 7 Israel controversially granted exploration rights to Eni (Italy), Dana Energy (UK) & Ratio Petroleum (Israel) to explore within Palestine's maritime boundaries.

While the war in Gaza has been raging major energy developments in the region have been progressing rapidly.

QATAR-TURKEY PIPELINE

The Qatar-Turkey pipeline was planned to transport gas from Qatar through Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Syria to Turkey and Europe.

In 2009, Syria’s then-leader Bashar al-Assad rejected the project.

Now that Assad is gone?

Turkey's Energy Minister has publicly stated the plan could be revived if "Syria achieves its territorial integrity and stability." Plus, Qatar wants to diversify its export routes beyond LNG shipments to pipelines.

And now these fast-moving developments:

>Five days ago Qatar's Emir was the first head of state to visit Syria since Assad's fall.

>Yesterday Syria's leader, Ahmad al-Sharaa was in Saudi Arabia for his first official foreign trip.

>Today al-Sharaa was in Turkey meeting with President Erdogan.

Hmmm...

PERSIAN PIPELINE

Iran also has a plan to build a gas pipeline to Europe via Iraq and Syria. Called the Persian Pipeline project, there have been no development updates since 2016. Given Syria's new leadership and Iran's fast-growing political isolation, that deal won't happen any time soon.

LIBYA

Libya has been in an ongoing civil war/political crisis since the removal of dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

But things are looking up.

Two weeks ago a major oil conference was held in Tripoli with many Americans and Europeans in attendance. Today Libya's Minister of Economy & Trade went public with plans to hold a reconstruction conference ASAP.

With some of the world's largest reserves of hydrocarbons, Libya is hoping to jump back into the game in a big way.

THE PRIZE IS EUROPE

Why are all of these countries—Israel, Qatar, Libya, Syria and Turkey—moving quickly to potentially develop their gas supplies and/or pipeline capacities?

Because Europe is desperate to replace Russian energy, and whoever supplies that gas will gain significant economic and geopolitical power.

All of these players know they need to move quickly before the war in Ukraine is forgotten and Russia swoops back in.

The U.S. and EU want Russia OUT of Europe's energy supply chain. The solution? Multiple gas suppliers such as Israel, Qatar & Libya.

NOW is the time for all the gas players in the region to move.

TRUMP'S GAZA DECISION

How does relocating Palestinians from Gaza to Jordan and/or Egypt help sell gas to Europe?

1) It removes a key political obstacle. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has long been a roadblock to regional economic development.

2) Privately several Arab states told the U.S. they were in favor of hammering Hamas. By removing the Palestinians completely from Gaza this problem is solved. Plus: no terror attacks on reconstruction crews; no acts of terrorism in Israel (inviting yet another Israeli response); and no chance onshore gas facilities are sabotaged.

3) This will fast-track gas development. With U.S. backing, Gaza’s gas fields can be quickly developed without outside interference. Pipelines can be built without the constant threat of terrorism and/or civil war getting in the way.

4) Divide and conquer. Make no mistake, if the bulk of the population of Gaza stays there it will be nearly impossible to accomplish anything. Dividing them up and sending some to Egypt and the rest to Jordan will sap any remaining kinetic energy, especially as the new Gaza is rebuilt and the promise of economic development materializes.

5) According to Bloomberg rebuilding Gaza could cost more than $80 billion. Someone has to pay for it and it won't be American taxpayers. Revenue from natural gas is the obvious solution.

IT WON'T BE EASY

None of this will be easy. There are still enormous challenges. But they are solvable:

>Dangle pipeline transit fees and/or offtake agreements with Jordan and Egypt to help settle Gaza's population...

>Trump leans on Qatar to pay Syria extra transit fees to help quickly rebuild that war-torn country...

>Massive infrastructure projects could provide jobs for young men in the region, reducing unrest. Gas flowing uninterrupted to Europe will bring untold riches to places that haven't seen real economic development in decades.

THE REWARDS

If this strategy works, the rewards for Trump—and U.S. foreign policy—could be huge:

Would it be a stretch to see a Trump-brokered Saudi-Israel normalization?

What about a broader Middle East accord that integrates Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Jordan, Saudi, the UAE and Qatar into a regional economic pact?

Plus, this would lock Russia out of Europe's energy matrix for a generation - an enormous win for America.

Selling gas to Europe could facilitate all of this.

CONCLUSION

Trump’s decision to remove Palestinians from Gaza may seem extreme. But when viewed through the lens of energy strategy, it makes more sense.

Now we’ll see if his administration can pull off one of the most complicated foreign policy moves in U.S. history.

Starting Saturday, U.S. President Donald Trump plans to impose a 25% tariff on all Canadian imports. The rationale, outlined yesterday during the Senate confirmation hearing for Commerce Secretary nominee Howard Lutnick: “Shut your border and stop allowing fentanyl into our country, killing our people.”

Many Canadians are puzzled by Trump’s move, as most believe the bulk of illegal drugs enter the U.S. from the southern border, not Canada. However, the situation is far more complex.

Canada has become a hub for Chinese intelligence and organized crime groups, particularly in Vancouver and Toronto. These groups are running massive drug money laundering operations and producing fentanyl on an industrial scale. The Canadian-made fentanyl is then trafficked across the U.S. and worldwide.

American officials are well aware of this and want it stopped immediately.

, Canada’s top investigative journalist, has uncovered deep corruption in the country. As a reporter for The Vancouver Sun and Global News, he broke the story on how government-run casinos in British Columbia launder drug money with minimal oversight. He also exposed China’s interference in Canadian elections.

Sam’s reporting has put him in danger. In 2023, an RCMP national security unit warned him of a “serious threat” to his safety, forcing him to take extra security measures.

I introduced Sam to financial journalist Daniela Cambone a couple of weeks ago and this half-hour interview released yesterday is the result. It is absolutely worth your time. Trump’s tariff threat will come into much sharper focus.

The second inauguration of Donald Trump yesterday has ushered in a new era of U.S. foreign policy. Or has it?

As the esteemed British Prime Minister Lord Palmerston once declared: in international relations there are no permanent friends or permanent enemies, only permanent interests.

America’s interest in Greenland didn’t start with Trump. Declassified documents released after the end of the Cold War revealed a U.S. offer made to the Danish government in 1946 of $100 million-worth of gold bars for Greenland. In 1947 TIME magazine, clearly tipped off about the Greenland bid, wrote the following:

TIME also published this map of Greenland, betraying better than any spy could American interest in the territory.

Clearly the U.S. has been eyeing Greenland for some time. And maybe Trump is just the president America needs to extract that territory from Danish hands? He most certainly is the American leader who will finally bring Canada back to living in the world the way it is, as opposed to the way Canada’s Laurentian elites wish it could be.

Canada is undergoing major domestic challenges. 1 in 4 Canadians are living in poverty; more than half of Canadians are $200 away from not being able to pay their bills; productivity growth is the second-worst of the G7; the entire federal debt has doubled under Trudeau; and social cohesion is being called into question due to an immigration system that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau himself declared back in November has allowed too many newcomers into the country ("We made some mistakes.”).

All of this while Canada has yet to reach the U.S./NATO expectation of spending at least 2% of GDP on its military and an alarming increase in potential terrorists encountered at the U.S.-Canada border. Back in November CBS reported the following:

Then there are the concerns of foreign interference at the highest levels of Canada’s political system by China and India. And I didn’t even mention the real-life impact of Canada’s reputation as the destination of choice to launder money; namely ever-growing real estate prices.

No wonder Trump and his national security team have their eye on Canada.

A few days ago long-time friend Frank Holmes reached out to me. Frank is the CEO/CIO of U.S. Global Investors, a Texas-based boutique investment management firm with $1.5 billion under management. He had just launched the U.S. Global Technology and Aerospace & Defense ETF (NYSE: WAR). Frank wanted to discuss the growing trend of what he is describing as the New Red Cold War: China and Russia’s efforts to expand control over strategic minerals like lithium, cobalt and nickel. Our conversation is above/below. Enjoy!

Finally, as inauguration festivities wrap up in Washington DC I cannot help but pass along the following short 45-second video I cut yesterday. It highlights the differences between what I personally experienced during Trump’s 2017 inauguration versus what transpired yesterday. Click the image below to visit X and view it.

I hope all of you have enjoyed a festive last few days and that the rest of the week brings some well-deserved relaxation.

Amidst the ongoing political turmoil in Canada, which has been partly fueled by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s repeated suggestions that Canada should become the 51st state, I was interviewed by Mauldin Economics' Global Macro Update earlier this week. Ed D'Agostino adeptly explored the underlying reasons for this provocative stance by the incoming U.S. administration towards Canada and its Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau.

HINT: There's a personal friction between Trump and Trudeau, but the core issue is U.S. frustration with Canada's military readiness, especially in the Arctic. This region is believed to hold vast reserves of oil & gas, rare earth minerals, and other precious resources like gold and silver, potentially worth trillions of dollars.

Watch the full interview above or here:

There was a knock at the door.  I opened it and there stood billionaire Kyle Bass.

The next day another knock.  This time it was Harvard historian Niall Ferguson. 

Then superstar economist David Rosenberg came by.

It was May 2013, and this was my very first Strategic Investment Conference (SIC).  These were some of the first people I met at John Mauldin’s legendary annual event.  They were coming up to John’s suite at the swanky Park Hyatt Aviara in Carlsbad, California to be interviewed on-camera.

I was blown away.  Who WAS this John Mauldin guy I had just begun working for?!  How could he be THIS connected?!

Ever since the SIC has been on my calendar each year.  It is the A-list of business, economics, geopolitics, tech and science.  I have had so many amazing experiences and learned so much.  For example…

HUMBLED BY A FINANCE LEGEND

It was spring 2017 and I was sitting across the table from one of the biggest finance legends to emerge out of the 2008 financial crisis.  Mark Hart was partners with Kyle Bass when their bet against the U.S. subprime mortgage market paid out handsomely; they sextupled their money in little more than a year.  Nearly a decade later, here he was speaking at the SIC and our shared dinner table was heatedly discussing the markets.

The topic of Bitcoin came up and I flippantly shot my mouth off.  In late 2014 I had been the executive producer of a mini-documentary covering the rise of Bitcoin for Mauldin Economics.  The film featured some of the better-known names in the space; folks like Barry Silbert – the CEO of Digital Currency Group, futurist George Gilder and hedge fund manager Mark Yusko.  At the time of the film’s production the Bitcoin price was around $600, but there was a lot of skepticism.  By the time the doc launched in early 2015 the price was below $300 and dropping.  Luckily - I thought at the time - I had dodged a bullet by not purchasing any.

I related that story to Hart, not realizing Bitcoin had eventually rallied (a year-and-a-half later) and was, at that point, north of $2K.  Needless to say, I was put in my place. From the SIC stage Hart would go on to publicly predict that with Bitcoin, “I do think you have the seeds of the greatest mania humanity has ever seen.” 

Seven years later, with Bitcoin at $63K, it turns out Hart was right.  And SIC was where he said it.

A STORY THE U.S. NAVY DIDN’T WANT YOU TO HEAR

During that same SIC I moderated the geopolitical panel featuring Pippa Malmgren, Ian Bremmer, George Friedman and Ambassador Harald Malmgren.  It was a good discussion that rapidly became unforgettable when Ambassador Malmgren – an advisor to U.S. Presidents JFK, LBJ, Nixon and Ford – relayed intel that seemed so sci-fi it couldn’t possibly be true. But the source - the man Nixon sent to Europe in 1971 to tell the French and Germans the U.S. was going off the gold standard - was hard to argue with.

The Ambassador described a U.S. Navy missile frigate sailing in 2014 through the Black Sea.  The ship was overflown by two Russian military aircraft with slings visible underneath, carrying some sort of equipment.  Suddenly the American vessel’s Aegis Combat System – the integrated naval weapons system of the ship – shut down.  Then the engines turned off and the boat was adrift.   In Ambassador Malmgren’s words, “The Navy has never wanted this to be published…” 

But, if you were at the SIC that year you knew about it.

FORMER CIA DIRECTOR KICKS THINGS OFF MONDAY

We are about half-way through this year’s SIC.  In 2020 Covid-19 relegated it to a virtual event and it remains one today, meaning you can attend. 

The great part about it being virtual?  The guest list is better than ever; no one has a rolodex better than John Mauldin. 

Four billionaires over the first three days: Leon Cooperman, Ron Baron, Felix Zulauf and Mario Gabelli.  Geopolitical experts George Friedman and Peter Turchin.  The Fourth Turning’s Neil Howe.  Pippa Malmgren.  Louis Gave.  Peter Boockvar.  Lacy Hunt…the guest list goes on and on. 

Tomorrow morning former CIA Director General David Petraeus will kick things off.  On Wednesday tech titan Joe Lonsdale and billionaire investor Howard Marks are the headliners.

Eight hours every day for five days.  It is a firehose of information designed to help you be a smarter investor and figure out where the world is going.

Me and my team have been producing the live video event and it has been a real eye-opener so far. Unfortunately I can’t tell you the specifics around what’s been shared so far, as that’s for those who pay for the privilege.  But what I can tell you is you won’t regret signing up for the remaining couple of days. 

Our world hasn’t been in turmoil like it is right now since 1945.  You cannot find a better source of up-to-date intel on what’s happening than the SIC.  Check it out: https://www.mauldineconomics.com/sic-2024.

PS – If attending the SIC doesn’t fit your schedule, I would recommend two things instead:

·        Sign up for John Mauldin’s Thoughts from the Frontline newsletter.  It arrives every Saturday morning and is a must for serious investors.  The best part?  It’s FREE. Click HERE to check it out.

·        Subscribe to Ed D’Agostino’s Global Macro Update.  Ed is the host of the SIC, the publisher of Mauldin Economics, and is a great friend.  He has become a major league interviewer and you will learn a ton listening to him each week. Check it out on YouTube HERE.

“If there is a mining opportunity and it’s impeded by a blind frog, goodbye Freddy!”

This controversial statement was made recently in New Zealand’s parliament by Shane Jones, the country’s Minister Responsible for Mining.  The first time I saw the clip I honestly couldn’t believe what I’d heard!  A politician unequivocally saying that developing resources would take precedence over trivial environmental concerns?!

Jones’ fresh approach to resource extraction in New Zealand – and tongue in cheek rhetoric - follows nearly four years of bewildering decisions made by former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s now-defeated government.  A supposed political superstar lauded by the international mainstream press for her approach to Covid-19, Ardern’s domestic natural resource policies seemed more designed to hurt the country she was leading.  For example, her government closed New Zealand’s only oil refinery and banned oil exploration.  This means the island nation is now completely at the mercy of other countries for diesel and gasoline in the event of a natural disaster or war.  Given the current state of the world, it’s a decision that could have terrible long-term consequences. 

New Zealand’s new government led by Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is laser focused on putting the economy back on track and securing the future via mining, developing more infrastructure, and oil & gas projects.

Stepping into this opportunity is a new publicly-traded mining company called RUA GOLD. The firm is exploring the country for gold – and has already made a gold discovery – while being backed by a very accomplished group of mining financiers and geologists.  They are responsible for founding companies including K92 ($1.5 billion market cap from an initial $2 million investment) and selling others like Fronteer Gold (sold to Newmont for $2.3 billion) and Roxgold ($1.1 billion merger with Fortuna Silver). 

RUA GOLD is led by 36-year-old CEO Robert Eckford.  A Kiwi himself, he has an incredible pedigree for someone his age, having begun his career working in the Congo followed by stints with BHP (the world’s largest mining company) and Barrick (third-largest gold miner).  Eckford then joined forces with mining and Hollywood legends Neil Woodyer and Frank Giustra at Leagold before the company merged with billionaire Ross Beaty-backed Equinox in 2020 for nearly $600 million.  Eckford took two weeks before teaming up with Woodyer and Giustra again to launch Aris Mining, where he most recently was Head of Finance before exiting for the RUA GOLD opportunity.

Most intriguing for me was why Eckford would leave Woodyer and Giustra to work for a small gold explorer?  I put the question to him directly during a recent interview and his answer was very direct.

“It’s quite simple,” Eckford explained.  “We’re coming in at the ground floor.  It’s significantly undervalued…we know there’s high grade gold in the area and we’re going to create something very valuable.”

Where that value is going to come from is why I was recently in New Zealand.  I joined the RUA GOLD team at their project sites on both the north and south islands of the country, making the documentary above about their efforts.

They have assembled a series of projects that show remarkable promise.  In the south RUA GOLD’s permitted lands include 39 historical gold mines that returned 690,000 ounces of gold at an average grade of 25 grams per tonne.  All of the mining stopped in the 1950’s.  They’re now actively drilling and applying modern mining methods to see what the old-timers may have left behind.  According to RUA GOLD’s incredibly impressive COO, Simon Henderson, they have already made a completely new gold discovery.  The challenge is whether that discovery can translate into something economically viable, which they are working on now.

On the north island RUA GOLD’s Glamorgan project sits 2.8 km north of OceanaGold’s Wharekirauponga (WKP) project.  WKP is considered one of the richest gold finds globally in the last 30 years.  It is believed to be part of the same geological system that includes OceanaGold’s Waihi Mine, located just 10 km south.  The Waihi Mine has produced 10 million ounces of gold, worth $20 billion+ at today’s gold price.

At one time OceanaGold also owned the Glamorgan project.  However, they made the logical decision to explore WKP first due to its closer proximity to the Waihi Mine.  New Zealand’s mining rules say you must convert an exploration permit to a mining permit by proving up a resource within a decade.  If you don’t, the land goes back to the government.  OceanaGold didn’t have the bandwidth to explore both WKP and Glamorgan, so Henderson - having been part of the team that originally fingered both projects as potential gold finds - was able to secure Glamorgan for RUA GOLD.

Now the trick is to see if all that potential can translate into something real.

Full disclosure: RUA GOLD paid the travel costs associated with me and my crew heading to New Zealand.  However, my crew and I were not compensated by the company or any third party to produce the documentary.  I was a long-time shareholder of the public shell company that became RUA GOLD.  When I heard their story I was immediately sold…as I think you may be, as well.

I hope you enjoy it!

DISCLAIMER:

All statements in this article and video, other than statements of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements. These statements relate to future events or future performance. Forward-looking statements are often, but not always identified by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate", "plan", "continue", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "project", "predict", "potential", "targeting", "intend", "could", "might", "should", "believe" and similar expressions. Much of this video is comprised of statements of projection. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements.  Risks and uncertainties respecting mining, exploration, and/or natural resource companies are generally disclosed in the annual financial or other filing documents of those and similar companies as filed with the relevant securities commissions, and should be reviewed by any viewer of this video.

Jonathan Roth is an online video producer and journalist. He is focused on researching and marketing resource and other public companies, and analyzing current economic and geopolitical events and trends. Nothing in this video should be construed as a solicitation to buy or sell any securities mentioned anywhere in this video. This video is intended for informational and entertainment purposes only!

Be advised, Jonathan Roth is not a registered broker-dealer or financial advisor. Before investing in any securities, you should consult with your financial advisor and a registered broker-dealer.

Never, ever, make an investment based solely on what you watch in an online video, including Jonathan Roth’s online video, especially if the investment involves a small, thinly-traded company that isn't well known.

Jonathan Roth's past performance is not indicative of future results and should not be used as a reason to purchase any stocks mentioned in his videos or on this website.

In many cases Jonathan Roth owns shares in the companies he features, and that is the case with respect to RUA GOLD. For those reasons, please be aware that Jonathan Roth can be considered extremely biased in regards to the companies he produces videos about and features in his videos, including RUA GOLD.  Because Jonathan Roth owns shares of RUA GOLD, there is an inherent conflict of interest involved that may influence his perspective on RUA GOLD. This is why you should conduct extensive due diligence as well as seek the advice of your financial advisor and a registered broker-dealer before investing in any securities.  Jonathan Roth may purchase more shares of RUA GOLD for the purpose of selling them for his own profit.  Jonathan Roth may sell his currently-owned shares of RUA GOLD at any time without notice to anyone, including viewers of this video.

Jonathan Roth, Roth Multimedia Inc. and all related video production staff hired by Roth Multimedia Inc. for this video were not compensated by RUA GOLD or any third party to produce this video.  RUA GOLD covered all travel expenses to, from, and in New Zealand for Jonathan Roth and the Roth Multimedia Inc. camera crew.

Jonathan Roth shall not be liable for any damages, losses, or costs of any kind or type arising out of or in any way connected with the use of this video. You should independently investigate and fully understand all risks before investing. When investing in speculative stocks, it is possible to lose your entire investment.    

Any decision to purchase or sell as a result of the opinions expressed in this video will be the full responsibility of the person authorizing such transaction, and should only be made after such person has consulted a registered financial advisor and conducted thorough due diligence. Information in this report has been obtained from sources considered to be reliable, but we do not guarantee that they are accurate or complete. Our views and opinions in this video are our own views and are based on information that we have received, which we assumed to be reliable. We do not guarantee that any of the companies mentioned in this video (specifically RUA GOLD) will perform as we expect, and any comparisons we have made to other companies may not be valid or come into effect.

Jonathan Roth does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any statements made in this article or video.

Both New Zealand and Australia were built into two of the leading nations on earth by exploiting their natural resources.  New Zealand was powered to prosperity via a huge gold rush in the mid to late 1800’s, while Australia has been a powerhouse exporter of iron ore, coal, aluminum and now LNG for multiple generations. 

However, like most nations in the West, both are in the midst of massive political and socio-economic campaigns that, at their heart, seek to end responsible natural resource development in the name of “saving the environment.”  In it’s place some sort of utopian society will undoubtedly emerge…or at least that’s the assumed result.  Will human beings be able to flourish in this progressive heaven?  The question is never asked.   

Anecdotally, my experiences, particularly in Australia, were a bit jarring.  It felt many are locked in an echo chamber, oblivious to reality.

Just a few moments after climbing back aboard a dive boat off the grid in a remote area of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef the dive master proceeded to harangue me and my fellow divers on the evils of fossil fuels and the necessity of “walking instead of using a car.”  Then he demanded we not stop at “the little things,” but “divest of fossil fuel companies” in our personal portfolios.  Of course, the dual outboard motors pushing out a combined 500 horsepower affixed to the back of the dive boat that made his job possible that day never came up.

His resort, undoubtedly one of the most beautiful spots on the planet – albeit a bit rustic - went out of their way to show off their solar power system.  On a huge monitor prominently setup in the reception area real-time power generation stats flickered across the screen.  But I was surprised as I took time to analyze the data.  The four batteries of solar panels were generating roughly 40 kilowatt hours of electricity…and the diesel generator?  240+.  Hmmmm.

Upon leaving the small remote island resort aboard a large, impressive catamaran powered by – you guessed it – a couple of diesel engines, I struck up a conversation with two members of the crew.  They said the plan is to add air conditioning throughout the resort soon, but they’re already maxed out with the generators they are using now.  And solar only goes so far.

Not long after the discussion turned to the higher-than-normal temperatures, reportedly 2 degrees hotter than normal, that are heating some of the waters surrounding the reefs.  Man-made climate change, it was explained earnestly to me, was behind it all.  And all that coal moving from the port of Gladstone, Australia – our destination – the likely culprit.

While in New Zealand I learned the country’s only oil refinery was closed in 2022 under Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s left-leaning government.  Today the country is 100% dependent upon imports of fuels – ranging from diesel and regular petrol to jet fuel from other nations.  In the event of a hot war or a natural disaster, New Zealand would quickly be brought to its knees. 

Potentially even worse, the dean of New Zealand’s broadcast journalism corps Leighton Smith told me the fuel line supplying Auckland’s airport with jet fuel was also destroyed by the Ardern government, all in the name of climate change.  Shades of Germany’s decision to close down their nuclear reactors and import electricity from France – electricity produced in French nuclear reactors.

Not all is lost, however.  New Zealand’s government recently changed, as Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern resigned and is now ensconced as a professor at Harvard.  The country’s new resource minister is a man named Shane Jones.  In a barn burner of a speech, he announced a complete reversal in government policy, one that would fast-track mining, energy and infrastructure with the goal to “boost productivity and resilience for New Zealand.”  And he’s set to follow through, with legislation pending. Watch it all…the good stuff begins at 5 minutes in:

The truth is the world needs resources.  Human flourishing is impossible without the base metals and energy required to build our modern way of life.  Any planetary crises we face as a race I am confident we can overcome, the same way those who came before us did.  But eliminating pipelines, refineries, coal ports and the like, all in the name of climate change, is a ticket to poverty…and as anyone who has spent any time in the poorest places on earth like I have can attest, poverty is far worse a curse than that which I’m confident human ingenuity will overcome.

So, keep your eyes on this space, as I’ll be releasing a film within the next couple of weeks that will illustrate the opportunity the new attitude in New Zealand is offering to investors.

Until then…

You can listen to my interview with Leighton Smith by clicking on the image below:

The podcast can also be accessed by clicking the link below or cutting and pasting the address into your browser:

https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1049-the-leighton-smith-podcas-30246213/episode/leighton-smith-podcast-228-february-154680784/

Be sure to subscribe to Leighton Smith’s Newstalk ZB podcast by clicking HERE

Subscribe now

ResourceWars.com presents REGIME CHANGE: HAMAS, ISRAEL & THE WORLD’S FUTURE. The film features the candid and sometimes shocking insights of Efraim Halevy, the former director of Israel’s intelligence agency, Mossad.  These include:

• Mr. Halevy’s hope for “regime change in Israel” and belief that the end of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s government would be “beneficial, not only to the people of Israel, but also to mankind as a whole.”

• “Something has happened to (Netanyahu),” the Prime Minister who tapped Mr. Halevy to run Mossad in 1998. “I don’t think that the man I knew then is the man I see today” and “his health is not what it should be.”

• It was a mistake for Israel to enter Gaza militarily on the ground, as it has led to “agony on both sides.”

• Netanyahu’s desire to “destroy Hamas entirely” will not be achieved.

• Prior to Hamas’ October 7^th attacks on Israel, Israeli military commanders “shouted down” soldiers who were warning “something was happening” in Gaza, close to Israel’s border.  In some cases, “they were threatened they would be court martialed if they continued to report in the way they were reporting.”

• Israel has a "major responsibility" to offer the Palestinians "a viable form existence."

• On the world stage, China does not want World War III and Iran is not seeking a war with Israel. “It’s clearly seen by us that the Iranians are not keen that this should develop into a major confrontation between Iran and Israel.”

• “Intelligence chiefs have been playing a very, very important role in history of the world in the last 40, 50 years.” William Burns is “one of the most brilliant CIA chiefs in the history of the CIA.”

The 20-minute film captures the highlights from an intimate conversation taped recently with the 89-year-old former spymaster at his home in Tel Aviv. It is a timely follow-up to an interview with Mr. Halevy that I produced 15 years ago for OMNI Television.

WATCH THE FILM ABOVE OR ON TWITTER AND THEN SHARE IT ON SOCIAL MEDIA.

Subscribe for free to ResourceWars.com for more similar content coming soon.

Subscribe now

Jonathan Roth breaks down the rapidly changing geopolitical chessboard in our modern era and explains why the crisis we're seeing on multiple fronts could lead to increased global conflict and perhaps even the start of World War 3.

00:00 Introduction

01:41 Global Conflict Not Being Reported

08:13 Philippines and the United States

12:45 Hypersonic Missiles

15:18 Russian and Chinese Technological Advantage

20:13 Catalyst for World War 3

26:20 Space War is Happening Now

31:27 Insurgency Warfare

33:51 Lessons From World War 2

35:54 UFOs Making Headlines

38:43 Unknown Warfare Technology

42:57 What Could Prevent World War 3?

Acclaimed journalist Jonathan Roth breaks down the emerging war between Israel and Hamas in the Middle East and helps separate media hyperbole and a multitude of opinions on social media from the facts on the ground. Jonathan explains why he thinks this conflict is part of a larger war that has the end of U.S. hegemony at its core.

00:00 Introduction

02:14 What We Know So Far on the Conflict

06:03 Is Iran Involved?

11:09 How Did Hamas Infiltrate Iran?

19:28 What Was the Purpose of the Attack?

27:11 How Will the U.S. Respond?

29:39 How Does This Impact Ukraine?

33:26 Is This the Start of World War 3?

41:09 Eastern Vs. Western Leadership

46:57 What Does the Future Hold?

54:33 Need For Spirituality

“Mr. Roth?   He is ready now.  You can come in.”

With those words I was welcomed into the inner sanctum of one of the world’s most infamous dictators. ​

It was 2006 and Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe had spent the last half-decade destroying his country’s agricultural sector, plunging the “breadbasket of Africa” into famine.  He was also on the verge of kicking off one of the worst bouts of hyperinflation in history.  After 4+ years shunning the media, I was to be the first Western journalist granted an exclusive sit-down TV interview with him at his presidential office in downtown Harare.  Our exchange made news around the globe.

My name is Jonathan Roth and I have spent the better part of the last two decades conducting and/or producing interviews with the men and women shaping our world: prime ministers, presidents, royalty, business moguls, military commanders, geopolitical strategists and superstar economists.  Cross examining them about their decisions, why they made them and what the future holds has taught me a lot about how the world really works.

For example, one of the first interviews I ever produced on network television was with billionaire Jimmy Pattison.  He taught me a very valuable lesson that day: success is earned.  “Invested capital must produce!” he bellowed.  This was a few moments after he admitted to firing the lowest-performing sales rep at his car dealerships each month.  The gasps from the live studio audience ricocheted off the walls.  But, the message was clear.  Real success can never be gifted; it must be earned.

Nothing could prepare me for Lt. General Roméo Dallaire.  He was the United Nations military commander on the ground during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.  The General described his downward spiral into a suicidal depression due to guilt and shame.  He believed he could have prevented the worst of the killings, but the dithering of top UN and European officials conspired against him.  It was an interview that earned me and my team a Gemini Award, Canada’s equivalent of an Emmy Award.

And then there was Mossad Director Efraim Halevy.  He explained a truth that gains more relevance every day: “9/11 began World War 3…it is going to be the longest war in modern times.”

But, after being a journalist, producer and executive for major television outlets CTV, OMNI Television and Biography Channel for over a decade, in 2012 I changed focus.  I launched my own production company and began working for Mauldin Economics.  It is one of America’s premiere financial publishing firms and has given me a front row seat to the heated economic and investing debates engulfing our world.  I have questioned everyone from central bankers and billionaire investors to financial and geopolitical forecasters and major CEO’s.  It has been a PhD in the study of money.

All of this has taken me to nearly 40 countries, spanning the globe.  

I have toured oil wells in Patagonia; explored one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency mining farms in Iceland; witnessed heavily armed U.S. troops offloading from a transport at a clandestine airstrip in the Sahara Desert; talked strategy with the Vice-Chairman of one of the world's largest mobile companies at their HQ in New Delhi; dodged protestors at U.S. President Donald Trump’s Inauguration in Washington DC; and ventured through shuttered pre-World War II gold mines in Japan.

These are the experiences and opportunities I want to bring you here at ResourceWars. I will introduce you to perspectives on investing, politics and the future you won't see anywhere else. 

ResourceWars: The Global Contest For The World's Wealth

Carson Seabolt was a commercial fisherman who clawed out of bankruptcy to build a $50 million fortune in the stock market before age 40.

A fearless investor and entrepreneur, Carson makes concentrated bets on the highest-risk companies. The results have been extraordinary, such as:

Co-founding K92 Mining, a $2 billion gold producer from an initial $2 million investment

Raising $43 million from billionaire @Chamath Palihapitiya, one of the world’s most recognized investors, for a biotech company Carson is involved in, from a cold email

Befriending and betting big on billionaire mining legend Robert Friedland, who helped Carson double his fortune

On Carson’s outrageous Instagram channel, he shares a stream of consciousness about life and markets that is like a Kardashian version of CNBC.

Today is Carson’s 42nd birthday. On this day 8 years ago he received the call that changed his life. Now, he shares his incredible life story for the first time.

CEO.CA proudly presents “Bankruptcy to $50 Million: Confessions of a Stock Operator,” streaming now on YouTube.

Grab your popcorn and enjoy this BIG story, worthy of the biggest screen in your house. Because BIG is how Carson does everything.

Enjoy the film? Please like, comment and share. Thanks for watching!

Skeena Resources (TSXV:SKE) Corporate Doc

Cautionary note regarding forward-looking statements

Certain statements made, and information contained herein may constitute “forward looking information” and “forward looking statements” within the meaning of applicable Canadian and United States securities legislation. These statements and information are based on facts currently available to the Company and there is no assurance that actual results will meet management’s expectations. Forward-looking statements and information may be identified by such terms as “anticipates”, “believes”, “targets”, “estimates”, “plans”, “expects”, “may”, “will”, “could” or “would”. Forward-looking statements and information contained herein are based on certain factors and assumptions regarding, among other things, the estimation of mineral resources and reserves, the realization of resource and reserve estimates, metal prices, taxation, the estimation, timing and amount of future exploration and development, capital and operating costs, the availability of financing, the receipt of regulatory approvals, environmental risks, title disputes and other matters. While the Company considers its assumptions to be reasonable as of the date hereof, forward-looking statements and information are not guarantees of future performance and readers should not place undue importance on such statements as actual events and results may differ materially from those described herein. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements or information except as may be required by applicable securities laws.

Qualified Persons

In accordance with National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, Paul Geddes, P.Geo. Vice President Exploration and Resource Development, is the Qualified Person for the Company and has validated and approved the technical and scientific content of this video. The Company strictly adheres to CIM Best Practices Guidelines in conducting, documenting, and reporting its activities on its various exploration projects. Disclaimer This is an advertising supplement to CEO.CA. Pacific Website Company Inc. ("Pacific"), the CEO.CA owner, has been compensated US $27,800 by Skeena Resources for a six month online advertising campaign.

Cryptocurrency Revolution: On The Frontlines Of The World's Hottest Tech Opportunity

A film by Jonathan Roth | http://www.rothmultimedia.com

Disclaimer: All statements in this video, other than statements of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements. These statements relate to future events or future performance. Forward-looking statements are often, but not always identified by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate", "plan", "continue", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "project", "predict", "potential", "targeting", "intend", "could", "might", "should", "believe" and similar expressions. Much of this video is comprised of statements of projection. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements. Risks and uncertainties respecting cryptocurrency mining and blockchain companies are generally disclosed in the annual financial or other filing documents of those and similar companies as filed with the relevant securities commissions, and should be reviewed by any viewer of this video.

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