Some random items of interest:
- The shadow banking system is still alive and growing. According to a new paper (PDF) by the Levy Economics Institute of U Miss, the derivative exposure of Goldman Sachs was 33,823% of its assets in 2009 (as compared to 25,284% in 2008). They are still leveraged to the hilt and the US government is the backstop.
- Nigeria. MEND's open source insurgency is ramping back up. It gave 30 minutes advance warning (to avoid casualties) of several car bombs placed in a Niger Delta's government compound. The objective was to discredit claims by the government that the insurgency was defunct and to disrupt what was left of the failed amnesty program. As MEND begins its campaign of disruption again, higher oil prices will follow. Note to the big oil companies: negotiate directly with MEND to build prototypes of resilient communities that can spread rapidly across the Delta. In my contacts alone, there's a line out the door of very smart people ready to build these communities in a way that provides very rapid and self-managed improvements in living standards. My guess is that the first company that does this gets a pass on the next couple of years of disruption. At a likely price of
- Mexico's insurgency is now targeting the US government. Not sure this attempt at expansion of the insurgency will attract a swarm.
- MI5: "Britain is four meals away from anarchy." A belief that systems disruption can cause a complete breakdown.
- New Scientist. Nice (particularly the bit with Tainter) round-up of theories on social collapse.
- Film. "Local Solutions for Global Disorder" in French. In short, the collapse of the middle class in the US is being replicated in Europe.
- The industrial education system in the US continues to collapse. Soon, in order to get any semblance of an education, you will need to home school online.
- More later.