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The Five Tenets Of The Great Reset: What You Can Do To Reject And Counter The New Normal

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The Five Tenets Of The Great Reset:

What You Can Do To Reject And Counter The New Normal

The famous quote by Winston Churchill, “Never let a good crisis go to waste,” has been used in many contexts. The first context was the creation of the United Nations at the end of World War Two. This quote has been touted quite a few times since the start of the pandemic but has become more evident in the context of the World Economic Forum's (WEF) Great Reset. 

I started researching and writing about this topic from another perspective two years ago when many claimed that it was “nothing but a conspiracy theory,” with the majority of ordinary people oblivious to what was being planned decades ago. 

As it turns out, it isn’t a “theory”; it’s real, with the elites and NGOs conspiring behind closed doors with their plans to implement a global environmental, social and economic shift under the guise of sustainability with a primary focus on Stakeholder Capitalism. Klaus Schwab, the leader of the pack at WEF, has been very open to letting the global population know that “we will own nothing and be happy.”


2020 virtual event in Geneva, Switzerland – Video

It’s all laid out in Agenda 21/30 and based on a 2020 book, The Great Reset, which Klaus Schwab co-authored with a lifelong colleague, Thierry Malleret.  Now that the cat’s out of the bag and the new normal is starting to take shape, many more people are becoming aware of what’s happening, but a growing number of us ordinary folks are not in favor of it. 

What matters now is that we take the steps needed to secure our personal and financial freedom so that no one can infringe upon them. There are ways in which we can effectively resist any pressure to conform to a “new normal” – whatever that may be. So today, we’ll review the Great Reset, discover ways to resist it and determine which cryptocurrencies will withstand the global shift. 

Who Really Created The WEF?

The WEF is an international organization based in Switzerland. It comprises some of the world's most influential individuals and institutions, including current and former presidents, media moguls, big tech CEOs, asset managers, banks, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). As stated on the WEF’s website, the organization's explicit purpose is to “…shape global, regional and industry agendas.” It does this by supporting individuals and institutions that promote its agenda.

The WEF is headed by Klaus Schwab, a German engineer economist and former professor who served as its chairman since it was founded in 1971. Interestingly, the WEF wasn’t simply Klaus Schwab's brainchild but was born out of a CIA-funded Harvard program headed by Henry Kissinger and pushed to fruition by John Kenneth Galbraith and the “real” Dr. Strangelove, Herman Kahn. 

These three powerfully influential men from the American political elite were the driving force behind the European-based globalist organization. They recognized Schwab’s potential and saw a reflection of their own intellectual desires in him. Back in the late 1960s, they recruited and mentored Klaus Schwab, helping him to create the World Economic Forum. You can read this fascinating story here. 

Almost all the WEF’s agendas are based on Klaus and his mentors’ ideas. Today, Klaus and his cohorts consider the pandemic to be on a par with another world war as far as its global disruption goes. It presents an opportunity to replace capitalism with stakeholder capitalism. 

Stakeholder capitalism is one of Schwab’s ideas, and it fundamentally replaces shareholders with so-called stakeholders who basically decide what everyone does. If you're wondering who the stakeholders are, Klaus has made it clear in interviews and at many events that the stakeholders are the individuals and institutions who are a part of the WEF. 

In crypto terms, you can think of stakeholder capitalism as being the total centralization of control in the hands of the world's most powerful people, corporations, and organizations. 

Three Phases Of The Great Reset

According to Klaus, there are three phases to the great reset, and the first two relate to the pandemic. These are “Restrain” (fight the virus), the phase we are in currently. Then, “Recover” is the next phase where the world enters the “new normal.” 

Now, the third and final phase is “The Great Reset” itself, which focuses on the following five points;

  1. Redefining the Social Contract 
  2. Decarbonizing The Economy 
  3. Digitizing Everything 
  4. Implementing Stakeholder Capitalism
  5. Global Rollout of all the above ensures those first four tenets find their way into every country. 

As to how exactly the WEF will roll out the great reset around the world, Klaus states that this will be achieved primarily with the help of the WEF’s network of so-called global shapers and young global leaders who will all push for the great reset in their respective nations. The WEF hopes to have it all in order by 2030.

The WEF’s 2020 virtual event in Geneva, Switzerland, focuses on the great reset and their new book in more depth, and you can hear it straight from the horse's mouth in this video. They blatantly tell you what they want and how they plan to get it, which blows the “conspiracy theory” out of the water. 

So now that we know what the great reset is and how the WEF elites plan on rolling it out, we can prepare for its five points outlined above. It’s worth noting that there seems to be quite a bit of overlap between these five points, and it sounds like they will be implemented simultaneously, not in sequential order. 

It's also important to remember that these points are already slowly being implemented. This means you must bare in mind how a change in one could affect the other when preparing to avoid or resist them. This could become difficult since part of the WEF’s agenda distorts traditional definitions of inflation, well-being, and economic growth. 

This distortion of definitions lies at the core of redefining the social contract, as this involves replacing all of the above with ESG-focused metrics that prioritize diversity and inclusion over actual productivity. 

1: Redefining the Social Contract 

ESG has its roots in an initiative spearheaded by the United Nations and some of the world's largest corporations. As time goes on, the ESG criteria are becoming more aligned with the United Nations sustainable development goals (SDGs). 


Image Source: United Nations

There are 17 SDGs in total, noting a couple of examples mentioned in the great reset virtual event video above of what the WEF wants to see from a few of them. The 4th SDG is quality education, and co-author of the book, The Great Reset, Thierry Malleret, stated at the virtual event that the WEF doesn't like that a science degree from one University is considered more prestigious than a science degree from another University. 

As such, the WEF would like to see all degrees eliminated and replaced with specific skills training that would last until the end of your life. In other words, you'll be in school until you die and never even get a degree. Plus, there’s also the WEF indoctrination you're likely to endure. Now the switch to skills training also ostensibly implies that there will be no more small businesses or entrepreneurs, just mega corporations where everyone is a worker bee. 

This sounds ridiculous until you realize it relates to the 10th SDG, which is reduced inequality. Here, the WEF is willing to do whatever it takes to ensure that economic inequalities do not continue to increase. It includes making sure you’ll own nothing and be happy, as brazenly stipulated in the WEF’s infamous video.

Instead, you'll rent what you use from the stakeholders who will own everything, and remember that these stakeholders are all the folks at the WEF. Historically, attempts at making everyone equal tend to end very badly, as making everyone equal usually translates to making everyone equally poor and miserable except for the select few. The select few in power are subsequently forced to kill anyone who tries to reject that poverty and misery. 

Ironically, the WEFs push for eliminating inequality comes from the fears its constituents have about the riots, revolutions, and migrations that will inevitably occur if inequality continues to increase. A few WEF members have admitted this on stage, including at that Great Reset virtual event. 

Fortunately, there's an easy way to resist this redefining of social contracts, and that's to reject any ESG or SDG-related criteria, especially when it's being used to redefine what a recession means. Instead, stick to tried and true social contracts, and reinforce them with your friends, family, and community. 

Better yet, invest your time, money, and energy in individuals and companies who vocally oppose ESG, SDG, and other top-down decrees coming from technocrats who are out of touch with what life is like for the average person. 

Pro tip – Stay away from companies that force you to pay a subscription service to use a “physical product” that should be entirely in your ownership. The moment you purchase it, your future might just depend on it. 


Image source: The Verge

2: Decarbonizing The Economy 

The second point of focus for the great reset is decarbonizing the economy, and here's where things get a bit complicated and contentious. That's because many would argue that moving away from fossil fuels is a good thing. 

However, there is a right and a wrong way to transition to more renewable energy sources. So telling farmers to stop using fertilizer during a food crisis or shutting down nuclear plants during an energy shortage is not how you decarbonize the economy; It's how you destroy the economy. 

It's also important to remember that many environmental elites see the average person as a form of carbon that should be reduced, if not eliminated. It is why they're eager to implement lifestyles and diets that are objectively unhealthy. Such as constantly living in the metaverse 24/7 and eating insects. 

Another problem with the WEFs green energy agenda is that the energy structures it envisions will result in the hyper-centralization of the electricity grid, probably by design. That's because if everything runs on electricity, it becomes pretty easy to control everything.

Another thing that's probably by design is the focus on wind and solar, and that's because not every country has the ability or resources to create its own wind farms or solar panels. This forces them to trade with other countries for energy, which promotes the globalized world, the WEF wants to see. 

Now, as with redefining social contracts, there’s an easy way to resist the WEFs warped decarbonization doctrine, and that's to advocate for renewable energy solutions that actually make sense. Educate your friends, family, and community about the risks of decarbonizing too quickly. 

Additionally, acquire solar panels and power generators to become as energy independent as possible. Also, learning how to build gasifiers will come in handy when they start making it more and more difficult for the average person to buy petrol and petrol-powered cars. 

On a good note, Bitcoin will not be banned because of its energy use or carbon emissions. That's because even the WEF knows that the energy and carbon emissions associated with crypto mining are a fraction of a percentage of the global total, as explained in this article. 

They're just upset that they can't control BTC like other cryptos, which is why ESG-obsessed asset managers are impelling green energy disclosures from crypto miners. They are also investing in publicly traded crypto mining companies; it's their attempt at taking control, and it will fail. 

3: Digitizing Everything 

Bitcoin relates to the third focus of the great reset, and that's the digitization of everything. Essentially, every asset will be tokenized on a permissioned blockchain that the government and the central bank run. To clarify, the BIS is heavily involved with the WEF, and many of its members are so-called agenda contributors. This means they are directly engaged with the WEF’s great reset plans. 

The tokenization of all real-world assets in such a manner means the government and central bank could turn off your ownership of anything at any given time, for whatever reason it sees fit, including your identity. But having said that, we’re apparently going to own nothing anyway! I go into more detail in this article about the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) and its vision of the future financial system.

Furthermore, the digitization of money, specifically the development of a central bank digital currency (CBDC), is something that just about every central bank is planning on rolling out, courtesy of the BIS.


A Blueprint for Digital Identity | weforum.org.pdf

To complete the CBDC puzzle is the dystopian digital identity. This is a prerequisite for the rollout of a CBDC since you need to be able to identify individuals, and it’s no secret that governments have been working hard on proof of concepts for digital IDs during the pandemic. 

A digital ID is also a prerequisite for widespread internet censorship, which the WEF apparently wants to implement with the help of artificial intelligence. It’s not surprising, given that information about the WEF and its affiliates is spreading like wildfire these days. 

To be candid, resisting the WEFs digitization will be extremely difficult. Of the five focuses of the great reset, it's the most critical pillar because if you control the flow of information and the flow of money, you truly control everything.

Case in point, Klaus Schwab explicitly stated at the great reset virtual event that they need digital infrastructure, such as digital identity, facial recognition, human tracking, etc., to enforce ESG criteria and all the upcoming social contracts the WEF cronies are cooking up in the organization's Ivory Tower. 

That means that it is imperative that you reject any form of digital identity that is not entirely decentralized from top to bottom. It also means you must acquire some form of currency that cannot be easily tracked, censored, or confiscated by a centralized authority. This includes cash, precious metals, and select cryptocurrencies. 

Also, familiarize yourself with decentralized social, video, and broadcasting platforms, like Markethive, where your information and content are free from censorship. It would be impossible for any authority to shut down distributed data centers globally and sovereign servers entirely autonomous. 

Decentralized blockchain technology and cryptocurrency create an entire ecosystem, ultimately free from subjugation, and the solution for entrepreneurs and small businesses to thwart the opposition and continue to thrive.

Other platforms include Odysee for video, Theta for live streaming, and Arweave for uploading information. These cryptocurrencies will be significant as we endure this tyrannical shift being forced upon us. There are many alternative websites popping up; however, it’s good to be aware that many purporting to be for the people are essentially controlled opposition. 

It’s essential to understand the freedom of information and the freedom of money are the ultimate deterrence to the great reset. That's because the truth eventually overcomes indoctrination, no matter how often it's labeled disinformation or misinformation. 

Overcoming this depends on the ability to financially support the individuals and institutions speaking and propagating these truths. So it’s time to abandon the tech giants in favor of a new world order and get behind platforms with your best interests at heart. 

Pro tip: keep physical copies of all your most important records, such as land deeds, home ownership, documents, passports, driver's license, crypto wallet seeds, and the like. Even if expired, they will help preserve your identity if you become persona non grata for opposing the WEF’s ever-expanding agendas. 

And if you think that complying with them will save you, recent events have shown that it will only make things worse for you and everyone else in the end. The only winners in this system will be stakeholders at the WEF, which ties into the 4th factor; the great reset. 

4: Implementing Stakeholder Capitalism

It’s unclear how the WEF will introduce stakeholder capitalism, mainly because it's not entirely evident how its stakeholder capitalism governance structure works. The WEF has over 4,000 individual members and hundreds of institutional partners, with 100 of them labeled as strategic. 

How they all come to a consensus is anyone's guess. Even if we assume, it's just the 100 strategic partners calling the shots, it's hard to imagine that they're all on the same page about every issue. 

It was evident in one of Klaus's speeches from one of the WEF events earlier in the pandemic, where it sounded like he was desperate to keep the interests of these so-called stakeholders aligned. Now you'd think the real stakeholders are governments, but the great reset co-author  Thierry Malleret admitted at the virtual event that the private sector effectively controls the public sector through lobbying. 

In another article, I discussed the enemies of cryptocurrency and that Wall Street is one of the most prominent lobbyists out there. This means that the real stakeholders are the big banks, asset managers, and the central banks, as they ultimately determine how money moves in the economy.

BlackRock and Bank of America have been explicit in their intentions to direct capital to anyone advocating ESG and remove capital from anyone or anything that offends their sensibilities, regardless of ESG status, such as Tesla. So, this is how stakeholder capitalism can be fought, and that's to exacerbate the differences in interests between the different stakeholders at the WEF wherever possible. 


Image source: Twitter 

It's important to point out that centralized power is inherently unstable. That's because, as more power gathers, in one place, the more profit someone stands to gain if they stab the other participants in the back, especially if it earns them the support of the people. 

Arguably, elite figures like Elon Musk fall into this category. He may be seen as benevolent, or maybe because he figured out that he stands to gain much more by siding with “we the people.” He’s already richer than all the other elite figures, so he’s won their hierarchical game.  

So, supporting breakaway figures like Elon might be our best bet at encouraging more of them to defect from the WEF and ruin its stakeholder capitalism. There’s a strong possibility there are more stakeholders who are not happy with being hated by the public and can't stand Klaus and his clown company, who would love the get the same sort of fanfare as Elon Musk. 

5: The Global Rollout

The final factor of the great reset is the export of the WEF’s endgame to every single corner of the earth. Klaus explicitly stated during that virtual conference that the WEF would leverage its network of global shapers and young global leaders to ensure the great reset is implemented in every country. Klaus also specified that over 10,000 of these recruits are slowly slipping into various positions of power worldwide. And he repeatedly stated that the great reset’s success depends on this. 

This makes sense because there's only so much the WEF can achieve from the top down, and the pandemic proved this. Klaus and his cult followers saw the pandemic response as a “test of the great reset philosophy.” But, this top-down test didn't go nearly as well as the WEF had hoped, which seems to be why they are leaning so heavily on the global shapers and young global leaders lately. 

It's an inorganic bottom-up approach that pushes the WEF’s agenda in major social and economic hubs, and it's no coincidence that most of them seem to have been on-boarded during the pandemic. 

Notably, it’s convenient that the global shapers and young global leaders' websites are searchable. The former lets you see which WEF agents are looking to change things in your city, and the latter lets you see which WEF agents are looking to change something in your country or region. 

If you see a global shaper or young global leader running for public office, vote for a different candidate who represents your views but isn't aligned with the WEF. All it takes to double-check is a quick search on the WEF website, the Global Shapers website, and the Global Leaders website. 

Interestingly, the WEF blocked someone on Twitter for commenting on just two posts saying to vote against its young, global leaders. Note that the WEF gets lots of hate on Twitter daily and doesn't block everyone. So it would seem that undermining the WEF’s subverters may well be the organization's Achilles heel.

Klaus Schwab admitted at the end of that virtual event that they might not succeed, so let's ensure they don't. And remember that we only have until 2030. So, make the next eight years count through your selective spending, full attention, directed energy and informed voting. That's really all we need to do to defeat the WEF at the end of the day. 

Once the WEF has been defeated, the next order of business will be to create robust decentralized, autonomous organizations to replace institutions like the WEF and its affiliates. We need to prevent this degree of centralized power from ever happening again so that the average person can finally live in peace. Also, fix the monetary system, which has been the driver of this centralization since the dawn of time. 

 

Reference:
Coin Bureau
World Economic Forum

 

 

Editor and Chief Markethive: Deb Williams. (Australia) I thrive on progress and champion freedom of speech. I embrace "Change" with a passion, and my purpose in life is to enlighten people to accept and move forward with enthusiasm. Find me at my Markethive Profile Page | My Twitter Account | and my LinkedIn Profile.

 

 

 

 

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The Order Of The Knights Of Malta Under Threat

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The Order Of The Knights Of Malta Under Threat

 

A famous order of knights is fighting for survival. The Vatican tightens the noose.

One of the most famous and oldest Christian knightly orders found itself on the verge of a deep crisis. His unique independence crumbles under the pressure of the Vatican. The order was founded in the 11th century in Jerusalem; its abbreviated name refers to its later seat on the island of Malta.

From Wikipedia:

The Order of the Knights of Malta (or commonly the Order of Malta) is the general name of one of the great international spiritual orders of chivalry, which was founded in the 11th century on the territory of the Christian Kingdom of Jerusalem in the Holy Land as the Order of the Knights of the Hospital of St. John in Jerusalem (Latin Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), known as the Order of the Hospitallers (Fraternitas Hospitalaria).

It was headquartered in the Kingdom of Jerusalem until 1291, on the island of Rhodes from 1310 until 1522, in Malta from 1530 until 1798, and in Saint Petersburg from 1799 until 1801. Today several organizations continue the Hospitaller tradition.

 

                Bethlehem, The Holy Family Hospital of Maltese Order

Though originally was the order founded in Jerusalem, instead of waging war against the Muslim conquerors, the Order of Malta has long been concentrating on its second traditional mission, caring for the sick, the elderly, and the homeless. It employs over 40,000 people in 120 countries, including the Czech Republic, and tens of thousands more work for it as volunteers.

Now, more than 900 years after its recognition by the Pope, the order is shaking in its foundations, and there are fears of its possible disintegration. Disputes escalated within the order about its future form and, above all, about the degree of subordination to the Pope. The latter wants to reform the Order of Malta from a position of religious authority and move it towards an ordinary religious order, but in doing so, it interferes quite harshly with its unique legal autonomy.

 

   

Maltese Order around the year 1300                              Official flag

Sovereign Military Hospital Order of St. John in Jerusalem, Rhodes, and Malta, as the official full name sounds, is not just an ecclesiastical Catholic order. It is unique in that it acts as an independent, internationally recognized state department with its own government or ambassador. Authoritative interventions by the Vatican can therefore be interpreted as one state trying to dominate another.

The historical roots

Hospital brothers of St. John of Jerusalem were recognized as a religious order by Pope Paschal II. in 1113. Although they are connected to the Pope as a religious order, they also act as an independent subject of international law.

In this respect, the religious character of the Order coexists with its full sovereignty. The Grand Master is the head of the sovereign state and, at the same time, the highest superior of the religious order community. In this second mission, the Roman Catholic Church grants him the rank of cardinal.

The founder and first Grand Master of the Order, Blessed Gerard, was born around 1040, probably in Scala, a village located a few kilometers from Amalfi in southern Italy. In the second half of the 11th century, he came to Jerusalem, where he began working in a hospital next to the Church of Our Lady of Latin, built by merchants from Amalfi to receive pilgrims and care for the sick.

Legend says that in 1099, during the siege of Jerusalem by the Crusaders, Blessed Gerard threw bread at them from the walls, but when he was arrested for this, the bread miraculously turned into stones, so he escaped punishment from the Muslim rulers of the city.

The Knights of Malta, or the Johanites, were among medieval Christianity's largest and most important knightly orders. Today, it operates worldwide as an internationally recognized medical and humanitarian organization. It is also a significant player in the field of diplomacy. The order acts not only as an ordinary charitable organization and as an actual church order, which it undoubtedly is, but also as a sovereign subject of international law, authorized to negotiate with states at the governmental level.

                                   La Valletta, capital of Malta

Spirituality of the order

The Order of Malta is a religious lay order according to canon law. Some of its members are religious (Professional Knights) and have taken three monastic vows: poverty, chastity, and obedience. The second group of members of the Order took a vow of obedience (obedience knights), while most knights and ladies were laymen. 

The Grand Master of the Order is elected among professional knights with eternal vows. The eight points of the Maltese cross symbolize the eight beatitudes and thus clearly point to the spiritual mission of the Order. According to the Constitution, members of the Order of Malta are required to maintain exemplary Christian behavior in their private and public lives to permanently contribute to maintaining the legacy and traditions of the Order of Malta.

 

                            Maltese Order coat of arms in Florence

Maltese order in the history of the Czech Kingdom and the Czech Republic

In the Czech Kingdom, the first command was established in the 12th century and continues to exist today. During the time of the Habsburg Monarchy, the Czech priory was the most important base of the Johannites (Knights of Malta) in this area.

During communist Czechoslovakia, the activity of the order was crippled, and its activity was fully restored only after 1989. The order is inextricably linked with the so-called Maltese Aid, a voluntary and non-governmental non-profit organization providing social services to the suffering and the needy in the spirit of Christian love for one's neighbor.

The Maltese order is shaking at its foundations, and there are fears of its collapse. Disputes about the degree of subordination to the Pope escalated within the order.

Johannes Lobkowicz, the former chancellor of the Czech Grand Priory, was one of those recalled who did not hide his reservations against the procedure and proposals of the papal legate.

"I sincerely hope that the Vatican is not interested in liquidating the order. But, as in previous decades, some prelates may cast longing glances at the order's property," he said in an interview with Seznam Zprávy.

Johannes Lobkowicz warns of the consequences of the reform proposals of the papal legate Cardinal Tomasi. In an interview for Seznam Zprávy, this descendant of an ancient family explains why, in his opinion, the powers of a narrow group of knights from the highest class should not be strengthened in the order.

In an interview, the journalist asks the former chancellor of the Czech Grand Priory:

“Let's assume that the papal legate implements his idea of reform, and decision-making powers in the order are concentrated in the hands of a small group of knights of the first class. What would that mean for the Order?”

Lobkowicz answers:

“Such a change would have several consequences. The Order would lose its sovereignty and become an entity visibly controlled by the Holy See (Sancta Sedes). Contrary to current developments in the Catholic Church, there would be a massive transfer of responsibility from the lay sphere to the hands of the clergy, the governing authority and responsibility of 13,400 people, mostly lay people, would be placed in the hands of 36 men of the first order. And not because of their abilities or even piety, but simply because they took religious vows. Obviously, members of the first class must fail. This would give the Vatican a pretext to take direct control of the order and all its assets.”

The activity of Maltese Order worldwide

The Czech Grand Priory is one of the six. The others are based in Rome, Naples, Venice, England, and Austria and also have grand priories. In addition to them, order associations operate in 46 states.

Treating neglected diseases across five continents

Malteser International supports long-term and future-oriented development by combining short-term relief measures with a holistic and sustainable approach in the following areas:

 

  • Providing emergency relief after disasters, helping communities rebuild and recover;
  • Establishing and promoting primary health care services and nutrition programs;
  • Ensuring access to drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH);
  • Helping people secure their livelihoods through social programs that reduce vulnerability and poverty;
  • Reducing the risks of disaster, especially at the community level.

Here is more information on international help.

                                                   Mobile clinic

The Sovereign Order of the Knights of Malta has permanent observers at the United Nations and its specialized agencies:

United Nations in New York, Geneve and Vienna, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IFAD, UNHCR, WHO, and many others.

In these words, 8. January 1940 turned Pius XII. to the Knights of the Sovereign Order of St. John of Jerusalem, called first Rhodian and then Maltese. Thus, he summed up the characteristics of the oldest knightly order, the only sovereign state whose banner fluttered on the field of the crusades. An order whose mission has always been to "defend the faith and serve the poor":

"Long before nations arrived at a stable international law, long before they could realize their dream – still unrealized – of a common force for the protection of healthy human freedom, the independence of nations, peace and equality in mutual relations, the Order of St. John united in religious brotherhood and under military discipline people of eight different languages, called to protect the spiritual values that constitute the general prerogative of Christianity: faith, justice, social order, and peace."

In the last years, the situation changed. In the name of papal authority, Francis has already expressed his intention to reform the order. We will see if the Maltese knights have preserved their fighting spirit from the old days and if the Vatican's plan will succeed.

 

Sources:

orderofmalta.int

seznamzpravy.cz

wikipedia.org

Malteser-international

 

About: Markéta Hálová. (Czech Republic) A crypto enthusiast, keen online marketer and passion for photography. I love interacting with the community of Entrepreneurs at Markethive. I believe in free speech, liberty, sovereignty for all. Find me at my Markethive Profile Page | My Twitter Account | and my LinkedIn Profile.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Jump Crypto Promulgate Plans to Develop a New Validator Client for Solana

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Jump Crypto Promulgate Plans to Develop a New Validator Client for Solana

The Solana network has been haunted by outages and slowdowns this year, especially during periods of congestion due to high demand. Still, the Solana Foundation is now trying to revamp the network to make it more stable, with a new open-source validator client to be developed by Jump Crypto.

Creating a new validator client for Solana is long overdue, as the protocol is now out of favor with users due to the attacks and outages it has experienced recently. Jump Crypto's joint venture is being conducted in partnership with the Solana Foundation. Both entities are working to reposition Solana as one of the fastest and most resilient smart contract networks.

The new development is expected to improve the accuracy with which Solana receives blocks and makes the network more resistant to attacks. The new features are designed to provide greater security to Phantom Wallet. It gives users control over reporting spam, which helps block contract addresses and domains. Investors can likewise earn SOL tokens as "rent" by reporting spam NFTs. Given the high risks involved with cryptocurrencies, users should exercise caution when transacting with third-party websites.

The process of building the new validator client will be overseen by Jump Trading's Chief Scientific Officer, Kevin Bowers, who leads a proven team of scientists and engineers developing complex algorithms, software, and Trading systems in the hardware and network space.

The move is significant because Jump Crypto, the Chicago-based subsidiary of Jump Trading, is a major player in the cryptocurrency world with substantial investments across the industry, including some Solana-related projects. Validators play a vital role in proof-of-stake blockchains like Solana by confirming the legitimacy of transactions sent to the chain. Anyone can act as a validator, provided they hold the desired amount of Solana's native currency, SOL, and transact in a way that benefits the network.


Image Source: Jump Crypto

Many Solana validators, including Coinbase Cloud and Jump Crypto itself, also offer "staking" services – allowing smaller users to add their own SOL to the validator pool and receive a portion of the rewards validators receive for providing their services. In response to questions about the relationship between new Validator clients and existing clients, a Solana spokesperson provided the following statement:

“In plain language, Solana Labs has an engineering team that is solely focused on building what has been the only software in the world that is capable of running the Solana network. Now there will be a second entire initiative that will be able to coexist and run the Solana network as well.”

In announcing the new validator client, Jump Crypto said the project would help accelerate Solana adoption, drive further technical improvements, and increase its network's decentralization.

Jump Crypto's assertion that its new project will improve Solana's technical performance will likely prove true, given the company's profound reputation for innovation. His contribution is also likely to be welcomed as the network suffered a series of embarrassing crashes and outages earlier this year.

However, the company's claim that its Validator client will increase decentralization may be causing a stir in some circles. That's because Jump Crypto has invested heavily in Solana and has made several rescues; most notably, it spent $320 million to rescue Solana-related projects from catastrophic hacks. Meanwhile, Solana's founders and executives appear to be working closely at Jump Crypto and its parent company.

Solana's close ties to the Chicago-based trading giant could irritate critics who argue Solana lacks the decentralization of Bitcoin or its rival Ethereum.

“Through Jump’s decades of work in solving some of the most complex networking challenges across traditional financial markets, we have seen firsthand the impact that improving a network’s speed and efficiency can have on an entire financial system,” said Jump Crypto executive and former UC Berkeley researcher Kevin Bowers, who leads the Validator project.

But for now, the infusion of technical know-how from Jump Crypto and the potential of the new validator client to bring more people into the network should prove to be an overall boon for Solana. This will outweigh the criticism of the project's governance structure.

 

 

 

About: Prince Chinwendu. (Nigeria) Rapid and sustainable human growth is my passion, and getting a life-changing opportunity into the hands of people is my calling. Empowering entrepreneurs provides me with enormous gratification. Find me at my Markethive Profile Page | My Twitter Account | and my LinkedIn Profile.

 

 

 

 

 

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Does OFAC Really Know What They’re Doing? A War On Crypto And Privacy

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Does OFAC Really Know What They’re Doing? A War On Crypto And Privacy

This month, we witnessed one of the most significant attacks on crypto privacy in the form of the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioning Tornado Cash. This led to protocols blocking addresses, funds being seized, and one of the Tornado Cash developers being arrested. The action was unprecedented, given that it was the first time we have effectively had sanctions placed on a piece of open-source software – essentially, restrictions on lines of code. 

For those unfamiliar with Tornado Cash, it has long been one of the most well-known mixing protocols on Ethereum. What it would essentially do is obfuscate or camouflage transaction history. This means it would anonymize transactions and remove all traces of where funds originated. Thousands of people used this privacy tool in the Defi space.

Unfortunately, it was also used for laundering the proceeds of cybercrime, which is the use case the Treasury focused on, stating that Tornado was a favorite tool of North Korean hackers and had been used to launder more than $7 billion. 

The moment Tornado was sanctioned, its website was taken down, and the code disappeared from GitHub. Not only that, but one of the contributors had his GitHub account banned. Circle blacklisted any USDC in the affected wallets, and RPC providers such as Infuror and Alchemy started blocking requests to Tornado Cash Smart contracts. 

Additionally, some decentralized applications also began to restrict access to their front ends for wallets that had interacted with the Tornado Cash Smart contract. For example, both Aave and dYdx reported blocking access from wallets that had interacted with Tornado Cash and even those that had received funds from it. Regarding dYdx, users who had insignificant amounts but were associated with Tornado Cash in the past were also blocked.

Dusting Celebrity Wallets Gag

Things were further complicated because someone in the community started dusting several public ETH addresses of celebrities in the space. In other words, they sent many small transactions to hundreds of known wallets associated with ETH addresses and their .ens official addresses. 

The likes of Brian Armstrong, Jimmy Fallon, and Steve Aoki were potentially committing sanctions violations by appearing to be doing business with a sanctioned protocol. What's even crazier than that is that some of those users who were subjected to the dusting found that they could not interact with Aave’s front end. These included the likes of Anthony Cesano and Justin Sun. 

The gag effectively points out the absurdity of such sanctions for users receiving funds from blacklisted addresses that they have no power to decline. The open nature of crypto is designed to cut out intermediaries, unlike the traditional financial sector that would use banks and other financial institutions to act as gatekeepers against such transactions.


Image source: eff.org

Is Code Fundamentally Free Speech? 

Perhaps the most chilling development, at least so far, was the arrest by Dutch police of one of Tornado Cash’s developers. Alexey Pertsev was picked up by the Dutch Fiscal Information and Investigation Service (FIOD) two days after Tornado Cash was sanctioned. The Dutch police have yet to clarify which exact rules Pertsev broke, but if it's just because he wrote some code, this is a dangerous precedent for several reasons. Furthermore, he is still detained and forbidden from communicating with his wife.  

The first thing we need to ask ourselves, however, is whether these actions by the treasury were legal. It is the first time that the treasury has effectively sanctioned a tool, a piece of Open Source Code that exists on the Ethereum Blockchain and which can be used by anyone for any purpose, albeit good or bad. Given that it is open source, that means it is akin to the likes of a public good. 

So that could be comparable to a road or a park; it would be as if OFAC were to sanction the use of an interstate highway because drug dealers drive on it. Or a more relevant example would be the treasury sanctioning the TCP IP protocol because hackers use the internet for hacking: It's impractical.

Moreover, just because a tool is sanctioned does not mean that the criminals will not use it. That's because criminals, by definition, have zero consideration for the law; they're likely to continue using the Smart contract as they see fit. Then there is the fundamental question of whether sanctioning a piece of code violates the First Amendment. 

To put it in perspective, thanks to a 1996 case Bernstein versus the DOJ, it's been established that code should be considered as speech, and if it is indeed speech, then it should be protected by the First Amendment. By sanctioning this tool, the treasury effectively says that speech itself is illegal. 

Now there is a real possibility that should someone want to challenge these sanctions, they could have a strong case in court. The Coin Center lobbying group is doing just that and believes the Treasury has overstepped its legal authority. The group wants to engage with OFAC to share their thoughts and will be exploring with counsel a court challenge. Additionally, they have had inquiries from members of Congress about the situation and are keeping the interested parties briefed on the matter. 

Furthermore, if, indeed, the only thing the developer did was write code, then that could also be seen as a violation of free speech. But if any legal challenges are mounted, they will take a long time to settle. Until then, the sanctions will have to be enforced, which means that specific Defi projects and protocols will continue blacklisting the Smart contract for fear of arrest. 

 

What Are The Practical Issues? 

Apart from the legal aspect, there is a practical consideration for how this will be enforced.  Remember, criminals will be criminals, and they will continue to use it. The code is open source and free to fork. Should that happen, the treasury will ultimately be playing whack-a-mole with a bunch of newly deployed Smart contracts. 

Not only that but those other crypto projects and protocols will also have to monitor not only the funds coming from the original Tornado Cash Smart contract but also from all the forked ones. This could quickly become a logistical impossibility, and projects will always have to worry whether any ETH they handle has gone through a forked version of the original Tornado Cash.

And speaking of which, there's also the broader question around who could technically find themselves violating OFAC rules due to these sanctions. 

If someone sends ETH from the Tornado contract to you, does that mean you are in violation? I mean, it's not like you can refuse to receive it. As we saw with those dusting attacks, protocols themselves have started blocking some of these dusted addresses. Could the Feds start going after any of those wallets that have received Tornado-tainted ETH? Could we soon see Jimmy Fallon dragged away in handcuffs? 

It's not even about addresses that have received funds. What about liquidity providers on a DEX? What happens if they unknowingly convert ETH that has been through Tornado Cash into some other cryptocurrency? Are they thus engaging with sanctioned entities? 

What about Ethereum miners? What liability did they have if they were to propagate a block that included a Tornado Cash transaction? Does that mean that they could also be flirting with illegality? Or how about that ETH that is sent to the ETH2.0 staking contract? What would that mean for Ethereum’s Proof-of-Stake? 

What happens once the transition to proof of stake is complete? Will validators have to decide to censor certain transactions that their jurisdiction deems illegal? Could they get censored? So you can see how quickly this grows out of control. The crypto space has just seen a massive can of worms open up right in front of it. 

Now, of course, there will be some who claim that these actions are justified. Swiped funds from some of the most high-profile crypto hacks of the past two years have gone through Tornado. This was seen in the wake of the $100 million Harmony hack a few weeks ago. 

Why Do We Want Privacy?

Many people have been asking whether there are any legitimate use cases for Tornado Cash, a tool designed specifically for privacy. Essentially this all comes down to the broader question of why someone would want to have financial privacy in the first place. As the old saying goes, “why do you worry if you have nothing to hide?” 

Well, for plenty of reasons; firstly, because blockchains are public and transparent, everyone can see exactly what your wallets are doing and what you could be buying or investing. This is not the case with traditional finance, where your bank account balances and spending habits aren't public. The moment they are public, and someone can attach them to your IRL identity, it opens you up to potential physical harm if criminals ever want access to your crypto. 

Or perhaps you wanted to donate crypto to a cause that may get you into serious trouble in your country. For example, what happens if you were a citizen of Iran or Venezuela who wanted to donate to a journalist or newspaper that the government didn't like? Blockchain is immutable; you’d live in constant fear of being placed on a list of some kind. 

Or how about if you were a Russian who wanted to donate to Ukraine, not something you would like the FSB to know about? On the flip side, you could be a Ukrainian refugee wishing to hide where you are getting your donations from. This is something that Vitalik Buterin himself highlighted earlier this year when he donated to the country. 

Beyond such high stakes implications, it could also just be a situation where you don't want people you interact with on-chain to know what you do with your money. For example, let's assume that you get paid in crypto. That means your employer can see exactly what you do with that money and what you're buying. 

Or perhaps you're buying something from an online Merchant, and you don't want them to know what else you've been spending the money on or how much you have; just imagine the targeted advertising coming your way. Ironically this would be much easier to achieve when paying with a wholly open and permissionless form of money. 

These are reasons why someone would want to anonymize their transaction history. Some might say you could just use a centralized exchange; however, the whole point of the decentralized and censorship-resistant currency is that you don't have to rely on a centralized gatekeeper. Moreover, some people are just not comfortable having others holding their private keys, and can you blame them? 

OFAC’s False Press Release

In its press release, it was also pretty disingenuous for the Treasury to claim that $7 billion was laundered through Tornado Cash. That was the total volume of transactions, many of which would have been for such perfectly legitimate reasons. 

In fact, according to stats from Chain Analysis, only about 17% of the funds that flow through the protocol were tied to sanctioned activity. The vast majority, 50%, was related to DefI activities. That means that these users were thrown into the laundering bucket by the Treasury when all they were really doing was trying to anonymize their funds. 


Image Source: Chain Analysis

First Crypto War Had Net Positive Result

So this raises the question of what all this means for crypto privacy and also privacy in general. It's pretty clear that privacy is under attack, albeit this move by the treasury was prompted by concerns around the North Korean hacking. Still, this radical approach by the Treasury is so nonspecific for what it's trying to achieve that you have to wonder whether the folks at OFAC gave any thought to collateral damage. 

Many have drawn parallels with the early Crypto Wars, for example. For unfamiliar people, this was when the US government arrested Phil Zimmerman, a developer who distributed PGP cryptography online. They accused him of “munitions export, without a license.” 

They contended that his PGP encryption system was a weapon that adversaries could use. Really? It would seem they don’t consider that any citizen wants and has a right to privacy. Only criminals and enemy governments would want to encrypt their communications. 

Well, it turned out that there were many practical uses for encryption online, and various encryption standards have helped power the multibillion-dollar e-commerce revolution we've experienced over the last 20 years. What was initially considered a way to hide state secrets has allowed legal commerce to thrive. 

Many have also wondered why Tornado Cash got hit and not other well-known crypto projects, like Monero. Virtual mixers seem to be viewed with much more suspicion than privacy-by-default currencies. People could see on-chain how the Lazarus group was laundering its funds through the tool. This isn't something that you can easily observe with Monero. 

Moreover, the sheer volume of funds running through Tornado Cash made it a prime target, but this doesn't mean Monero isn't being studied and tracked. There may well be a robust state-backed effort to crack the ring signature technology for which Monero is famous. This is perhaps one of the reasons why the Monero developers pushed through some new upgrades to the protocol only recently. 

Crypto And Congress Take A Stand

There has been a genuine outcry from the crypto industry arguing that the Treasury Department’s actions to shut the Tornado Cash could be “unconstitutional” as people have a right to privacy. 

Abraham Piha, co-founder, and CEO of Web3-focused firm Tomi, told Cointelegraph, 

“Tornado existed only because most blockchains were not private enough. If successive updates of Ethereum or Bitcoin include protocol integrations like Mimblewimble, will the next step be to block them as well? This act is yet another reason to push for Web3, a free web, controlled by users and not by some big brother governments.”

Kenny Li, co-founder and core developer for Manta Network, a privacy-preservation protocol, said that the Treasury’s decision to sanction Tornado Cash is far-fetched and extreme, even though, in the past, specific individual crypto wallet addresses have been subject to the same treatment. But in most cases, he said, there was a clear case of fraud, hacks, or a Ponzi scheme:

“In this case, smart contract addresses are being blacklisted. Smart contracts aren’t people. Not only that, but people forget that Tornado Cash is a protocol, not a person or an entity, which means it will continue to run regardless of the sanctions. It is time that we realize privacy and anonymity aren’t the same, and Web3 is all about privacy.”

Additionally, some Congress members are standing up, demanding an explanation from OFAC. Specifically, United States Congressman Tom Emmer sent a four-page letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen regarding the unprecedented sanctioning of Tornado Cash. 

He posed a series of questions that sought to clarify the position of the Treasury Department’s OFAC. They were practical questions noting that Tornado Cash is a collection of several Ethereum Smart contract addresses that are not controlled by an individual or entity. 

Emmer asked what persons could be associated with those addresses and:

“Given that the Tornado Cash back-end will operate unchanged […] as long as the Ethereum network continues to operate, who or what entity did OFAC believe was reasonably responsible for imposing controls on the Tornado Cash blockchain contracts?”

Emmer posted the full letter on Twitter, stating that the growing adoption of decentralized technology would certainly raise new challenges for OFAC. Nonetheless, technology is neutral, and the expectation of privacy is normal.

Closing Thoughts

Firstly, I dare say we can all agree that those who engage in criminality should be brought down. The laundering of ill-gotten gains, be it through a bank account or a Defi protocol, should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. 

Those wallets linked to criminal activity should also be sanctioned and flagged. This is precisely what the treasury did before the Tornado Cash sanctions were imposed. And it's not as though this approach wasn't enjoying some success. Thanks to some pretty advanced tools and tracking services, law enforcement can catch such miscreants more effectively than they could in the past. 

They also have the power of subpoenas and search warrants. They simply didn't need to take this action against Tornado Cash. The collateral damage resulted in a loss of privacy for some and a massive disruption for all in the Defi space. 

As for those North Korean hackers, they'll switch to one of the other 100 or so laundering techniques they were using long before Tornado started operating. Moreover, given that tornado cash is nothing but code, it'll be hard to outlaw permanently; it'll be a game of whack-a-mole. It won't have the desired effect. And the collateral damage is already permeating the crypto industry. 

These actions also raise legal questions. Is this a breach of the First Amendment, and what happens to any citizens who have used it in the past? Or anyone that interacts with it? It's a legal quandary, to say the least. 

With legal challenges brewing, this could turn into a new crypto war. One, with a positive long-term impact, as we saw with the first crypto war. Or maybe the large centralized institutions will conform, and we’ll have a more amenable but less free crypto space. It does demonstrate how some developers will continue to embrace decentralization, and many of us as individuals will fight for our right to freedom and privacy. 

Reference:
Coin Bureau
Cointelegraph

 

 

 

Editor and Chief Markethive: Deb Williams. (Australia) I thrive on progress and champion freedom of speech. I embrace "Change" with a passion, and my purpose in life is to enlighten people to accept and move forward with enthusiasm. Find me at my Markethive Profile Page | My Twitter Account | and my LinkedIn Profile.

 

 

 

 

 

Also published @ BeforeIt’sNews.com; Steemit.com

 

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Is Gold A Sleeping Giant? The Basel Accord

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Is Gold A Sleeping Giant? The Basel Accord

In the light of much focus on cryptocurrency this article examines whether gold will make a comeback and establish its true value and status in our economy.

History is Prelude

From time immemorial precious metals have been recognised for their stored value as tangible assets, including silver and gold. A key reason for paper notes becoming used commercially was because it was cumbersome to carry gold and precious metals around in any major quantity for purposes of trade.

Paper notes would be denominated with an inscription pointing to the value of that note in terms of gold and silver. In simple terms they were a bit like coupons. Two particular landmarks in history changed the nature of money. Firstly, things fundamentally changed with the confiscation of gold from the people in the 1930’s by executive order of President Roosevelt.

Then in 1971 gold and silver was removed as backing altogether, courtesy of President Nixon. From that moment the populace had the form of money but not the substance of money, which I referenced in another article. Here in the UK the gold standard was suspended during the Napoleonic War, and brought back for a while from 1821 to 1914.

Image Source: Gold

Inflation

Gold’s restorative impact on the economy and hedge against inflation was well known. In 1914,  £0.95 could buy what £1 pound could buy in 1821, meaning that Britain’s economy strengthened with gold as the key factor. Also Elizabeth I used it to counter inflation during her reign between 1558 and1603.

So, gold has shown itself to be real money and has been the consistent answer to inflation. Based on its track record in history this is one indicator that gold will make a comeback. In the meantime the value of money has been in significant decline for approximately 100 years due to money existing in form alone. Right now as I write this article the UK has now surpassed 10% inflation though I suspect the number is higher. Why?

Mario Innecco is a financial markets and macro economics analyst who recently discovered and reported that the Bank of England had been manipulating data on inflation, to make inflation look better than it really is. The bottom line to curbing inflation is to restore money of substance, in other words to bring back the likes of gold and silver.

The second reason that gold could become resurgent picks up on the theme of manipulation of data. The only reason to manipulate data is when you want it to fit a certain narrative, and to control perception. The conflated numbers cited during the so-called pandemic, show this is a common strategy used by the establishment. If you take a look at the summary gold chart, you will notice that since 2012, when gold was near 1800 per ounce, it declined thereafter to an all time low in 2016.

Image source: Gold Chart

It was not until 2020 during the so-called pandemic that it broke the 2012 record. Again it correlates to rising inflation and yet, the graph resembles a picture of suppression, rather than reflecting its true value according to many commentators. Gold has a history of being stolen, suppressed, and manipulated as far as its data is concerned. This tells its own story of how precious and valuable it is, otherwise you would not see so much energy going into destroying its true worth to the public.

What Happened to All That Gold?

I have always wondered what happened to the abundant supply of gold that used to be? Is it going extinct like the dinosaurs?  Gold has not disappeared but it has transferred from the many to the few through asset stripping and theft.

Recall in history when gold was confiscated with such extreme measures and touted as being in the interests of the economy, only to be sold at a higher price by the American government. It revealed the truth and betrayal of the people by the government. It was a form of asset stripping by theft, designed to enrich the few and enslave the many.

You may also recall Karen Hudes, former World Bank employee who blew the whistle and expanded on the fraud, and the theft of gold which was taking place at the higher echelons of the bank. These thefts mean that gold simply got transferred by force to a few global oligarchs. 

As it stands today, the World Gold Council reports that the Central Banks hold one fifth of all the existing , with the USA leading the way, although China and Russia are the two biggest producers of gold. While you can buy gold today,  the asset stripping strategy is showing up in more subtle forms, as the following case underlines.

Insider Trading

According to the dictionary, insider trading is defined as ‘the illegal practice of trading on the stock exchange to one's own advantage through having access to confidential information’. This has been shown to be going on in the stock market in general, and among those implicated are high ranking officials such as Nancy Pelosi, USA speaker of the house, and Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell. The following case highlights the connections at the highest level.

The Court Hearing of JP Morgan

Recently In Chicago the trial of certain officials of JP Morgan took place. The court discovery revealed what many suspected – insider trading of gold, which involved spoofing and market manipulation. What’s more the court discovery was able to ascertain that JP Morgan were effectively agents for the BIS, and also the Federal Reserve. At one point the label ‘criminal enterprise’ was used to describe the organized theft.

Certain individuals were charged with fraud. It’s interesting that the trial took place in Chicago. COMEX is a division of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, and is the primary futures and options market for trading metals such as gold, silver, copper, and aluminum. 

One of the other fraudulent activities that takes place within these exchanges by insiders is fooling people into thinking they own real physical gold [allocated gold] when in fact they only hold the form of it.  ETF stands for exchange traded fund, and is an example of such a paper asset.

The challenge with fraud charges is that so much money is made in fraudulent activities, that many banks think they can simply buy their way out of the consequences. However, that may be stopped in its tracks sooner rather than later.

The Basel Accord 

The Basel Accord, sometimes referred to as Basel IV, comprises Basel III with its three pillars, Basel I, II and III. This is a series of international banking reforms designed to strengthen banking through different economic challenges. It can be summed up in this diagram. 

Image Source: Basel III

This series of regulatory changes are designed to introduce highly disciplined practices to increase safety and to minimize risk in the banking sector. Basel started back in 1974 as a collaborative committee comprising 10 countries including the United Kingdom and USA. Its focus was on quality, safety and efficiency in banking. In 2009 the first version of Basel III came out in response to the financial crisis. Common themes of the accord is the requirement for banks to have greater capital reserves and show liquidity.

Within this comes the monitoring and reporting of key data demonstrating that the bank balance sheets add up. This potentially puts the banks in the headlights where paper versus physical allocated gold is concerned. Now they have to show proper reconciliation. The minimum requirements of Basel III took effect from Jan 2022, and must be fully in play by 2027. The big banks appear to be panicking because they have to report and  submit the relevant documents. It seems that they are using this transition to buy up physical gold in huge quantities in order to plug the gaps they created.  

Alongside this you have Russia who are now charging in gold for its energy, This has resulted in the G7 banning imports of gold from Russia. This has not stopped Russia. Russia is one of the BRIC countries [including Brazil, India and China], and it is being muted that they may come out with their own gold standard, which would threaten the dominance of the USD further.

Elsewhere, Zimbabwe is now offering gold coins as legal tender to curb inflation, and Lithuania is going down a similar path. Many financial commentators such as Robert Kiyosaki and Jim Rickards are predicting a surge in both gold and silver as a result of the pressure of inflation, Basel III, and the activity around the purchase and use of gold.

Gold With Greater Functionality

If you are wondering if gold is still for the long term as simply a store of value, the good news is that its functionality now goes beyond that. You can buy, trade, save and own gold more easily.

For example the Glint App allows you to buy gold through their app using EUR, USD and GBP. The gold you purchase is physical allocated gold, and is stored in a non government brinks vault in Switzerland. You own it. Furthermore you can digitize what you own through their debit mastercard, meaning you can then spend it on everyday things. I have found the purchase of gold through the app to be seamless, and am looking forward to buying something effectively with gold. Check if GLINT is in use in your country.

Another company that has done something similar is Kinesis. The problem they solve is explained in Gresham’s Law, which is where good money is saved and bad money spent historically. They are creating a banking ecosystem around this concept which allows you to buy gold and silver on their exchange, using fiat or select cryptocurrencies, and then you can store it in your own wallet, as well as to be able to send and receive to other participants in the ecosystem.

They are coming out with a VISA debit card too, both virtual and offline. With their own built in exchange, you can trade gold and silver, and you get yields on different activities such as minting, buying, holding and referring. Off course if you are new to this concept, and simply want to buy physical gold you may wish to look up Mike Maloney on YouTube for educational input and recommendation. If gold backed cryptocurrency appeals to you here is a guide as a starting point for exploration.

I have developed a mini ecosystem within my portfolio which allows me to accept payment for my businesses in gold, as well as to save and make purchases. I also have some gold backed cryptocurrency and related company shares based around gold. It certainly feels more empowering to be working with real money, which surpasses what my traditional bank can do.

Much attention has been focussed on cryptocurrencies as the emerging new ‘money’ especially since bitcoin came into being around 2009. In fact many commentaries refer to bitcoin as the new digital gold, since one of the assertions is that it cannot be confiscated. Confiscation is one consideration but anything that deters access to your money is another, as we saw in a previous article which looked at regulation. The volatility of cryptocurrency does not help with the immediate threat of inflation.

With rampant inflation, the intense suppression of gold through market manipulation, and the imminent full implementation of Basel III, these trends suggest that gold will make a comeback and find its true value. Gold may well be the sleeping giant, as it has an inherent and powerful ability to restore an economy that has gone out of control.

Whatever else you do, consider adding this to your resources to stave off the decline in purchasing power of your local currency. Now you know the game that is being played by the establishment, it is up to we the people, the majority, to protect our assets, in order to create and pass on generational wealth to bless ‘we the people’ ad infinitum.

 

 

About: Anita Narayan. (United Kingdom) My life's work is about helping individuals to greater freedom through joy and purpose without self-sabotage, so that inspirational legacy can serve generations to come. Find me at my Markethive Profile Page | My Twitter Account | and my LinkedIn Profile.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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2022 Q1 Survey Reveals Over Half of South Africans Know Little or Nothing About Cryptocurrency

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2022 Q1 Survey Reveals Over Half of South Africans Know Little or Nothing About Cryptocurrency

In many countries, years of ultralow interest rates coupled with the government stimulus unleashed during the pandemic sent cash flows into riskier investments, like tech stocks and crypto. Now some of those initiatives are winding down, and the potential for inflation to weigh on economic growth has many exploring safer investments than they'd gone for in the past.

Over the years, cryptocurrencies have become a viable way of conducting transactions anytime and anywhere. This is possible through users' ability to transact with each other directly without any intermediaries. Based on the value of their virtual money, cryptocurrencies are also referred to as money. South Africans use cryptocurrencies, but many still don't know much about them. The cryptocurrency space has been left to develop organically in South Africa, with no clear-cut awareness to encourage maximum adoption.

The Merchant Consumer Survey revealed that 53% of South African participants knew little about cryptocurrencies. Interestingly, nearly half of respondents said they would be more open to the cryptocurrency space if local banks offered such services. The report noted a considerable growth opportunity for crypto trading platforms on the African Continent. In South Africa, local exchanges lead the way, in stark contrast to the rest of the continent, where global exchanges lead in market share.

According to the report from Merchant, a global telemarketing firm:

  • Only 14% of South Africans have any significant knowledge of the cryptocurrency industry.
  • 23% of participants remained neutral.
  • The vast majority (53%) said they had limited or no knowledge of the matter.
  • 18-24-year-olds have higher literacy rates than any other demographic group, including 25-42-year-olds.

The survey also noted that cryptocurrency adoption in South Africa could be boosted if domestic banks embrace the asset class and offer educational programs to users.

Due to technological advancement, cryptocurrency is being used to a certain extent in South Africa. Businesses can accept and pay their employees using cryptocurrency without affecting their current cash flow. Additionally, some South Africans use cryptocurrency as a hedge against inflation. By purchasing cryptocurrencies when prices are low and selling them when prices rise, users earn more money than they spent on their investments. Through this strategy, they become financially independent from traditional banks that charge high-interest rates on loans.

“There is a real opportunity for banks to get involved in cryptocurrency as it begins to really take off on the continent, rather than waiting until it is more established – by when consumers are likely to have a preferred platform or partner who they have built that trust with.”

– Group CRO, Merchants

Another recent report by Bitget Exchange, Boston Consulting Group, and Foresight Ventures found that South Africa has the continent’s most significant cryptocurrency market, as evidenced by its more advanced financial infrastructure and fiat-to-crypto payment rails.


Source: BCG, Bitget and Foresight Ventures Report File

The report noted a considerable growth opportunity for crypto trading platforms on the African Continent.

On-platform exchange services, such as Coinbase and Gemini, have been less competitive in the African market. However, with few existing exchanges offering access to fiat currencies or local payment methods, it might be challenging for them to thrive in that market.

In Summary 

Despite the benefits that cryptocurrencies offer users, including lower transaction fees, increased financial security, and uncomplicated business operations, few people know much about them in South Africa at present. As awareness rises among local users, more will start investing in cryptocurrency and allowing themselves greater economic freedom over time.

Cryptocurrency transactions help to remove the procedural bottlenecks that plague traditional banking and financial services. Fearing a collapse of the banking industry or arbitrary appropriation of money by the government, Africans who live in politically unstable countries could be attracted to cryptocurrency.

Generally, it is expected that there will be an increase in cryptocurrency awareness amongst users in Sub-Saharan Africa over the coming years. This would drive the adoption of cryptocurrencies within the region.

 

 

 

About: Prince Chinwendu. (Nigeria) Rapid and sustainable human growth is my passion, and getting a life-changing opportunity into the hands of people is my calling. Empowering entrepreneurs provides me with enormous gratification. Find me at my Markethive Profile Page | My Twitter Account | and my LinkedIn Profile.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The Truth About Climate Change: There Is NO Climate Emergency

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The Truth About Climate Change: 
There Is NO Climate Emergency

Large frameworks of science that don’t fit the narrative on climate change or global warming have been ignored by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the Conference of the Parties (COP), and self-interested scientists paid by taxpayers. A formidable industry has been subsidized, creating intermittent, unreliable wind and solar electricity based on unsubstantiated science. 

The same charlatans now want subsidized hydrogen, costly inefficient electric vehicles, subsidized mega-batteries, and other appallingly expensive tried and failed schemes that impoverish people, create unemployment, transfer wealth and enrich China. Many parts of the world like Germany, Texas, California, and the UK have already had a glimpse of the Net-Zero CO2 by 2050 policy with blackouts, astronomically high electricity costs, and hundreds of deaths. 

The sentiments above are from Professor Ian Plimer, a geologist and author in earth science who edifies his thoughts in his latest book, “Green Murder.” He’s part of the global network Climate Intelligence (CLINTEL), an independent foundation that operates in the fields of climate change and climate policy. It consists of over 1100 scientists and professionals that want to get the message out that there is no climate emergency. 

Furthermore, in 2019, the unelected, unaccountable, transnational World Economic Forum (WEF), which is also the main driver behind The Great Reset,  gave 16-year-old student Greta Thunberg a public stage, rendering her a poster child for climate change. Greta’s comments such as “I want you to panic”… “Our house is on fire,” terrified millions of children and adults worldwide. 

But in a testimony to the US Congress on April 21, 2021, Greta stated that there is “no science” behind her comment; it was just a metaphor. At no point has WEF or its media-mogul trustees apologized for foisting fear on world citizens. 

“Crickets” From WEF

CLINTEL, the climate intelligence think tank based in The Netherlands, sent a letter to Borge Brende, President of the WEF, in January 2020, calling for engagement on the issue of the claimed “climate emergency,” writing:

“Despite heated political rhetoric, we urge all world leaders to accept the reality that there is no climate emergency. There is ample time to use scientific advances to continue improving our society. Meanwhile, we should go for adaptation; it works whatever the causes [of climate change] are.”

“We also invite you to organize with us a constructive, open meeting between world-class scientists on both sides of the climate debate. Such an event complies with the sound and ancient principle that all pertinent parties should be fully heard.”

There has been no response from the WEF to date. The WEF’s unwillingness to engage with CLINTEL in an open scientific debate on climate change suggests the WEF is not acting with “moral and intellectual integrity is at the heart of everything it does,” as it claims.

On Dec. 24, 2021, CLINTEL also issued a letter to the President of Switzerland, concerned about the ‘host state’ status that Switzerland had bestowed on the World Economic Forum in January 2015. The Paris Agreement was signed that year, and it appears that WEF has adopted the mission to push the Club of Rome’s Planetary Emergency agenda.

The WEF’s 2006 Global Risks report.pdf featured oil price shock and pandemic as two severe global risks. However, by the 2020 report, WEF had removed both from the list of risks and replaced them with climate change.

Now the world is experiencing a global oil price shock, an energy crisis, and is struggling to recover from a pandemic. Millions of people face energy poverty and famine due to skewed energy investment markets, much of it driven by WEF trustees like Mark Carney demonizing vital energy.

Good vs. Evil

According to CLINTEL, climate science should be less political, while climate policies should be more scientific. In particular, scientists should emphasize that their modeling output is not the result of magic: computer models are human-made. What comes out depends entirely on what theoreticians and programmers have put in: hypotheses, assumptions, relationships, parameterizations, stability constraints, etc. Unfortunately, in mainstream climate science, most of this input is undeclared.

To believe the outcome of a climate model is to believe what the model makers have put in.  This is precisely the problem of today’s climate discussion to which climate models are central. Climate science has degenerated into a discussion based on beliefs, not on sound self-critical science. We should free ourselves from the naïve belief in immature climate models. In the future, climate research must give significantly more emphasis to empirical science.  

Below is the World Climate Declaration (WCD) CLINTEL has published that fall on deaf ears as far as the bureaucrats are concerned. This declaration is based on scientific fact and must be disseminated worldwide so that people are aware and not deceived by evil rhetoric, trickery, alarmist literature, and the greedy agenda of the elite few. 

There Is No Climate Emergency

A global network of over 1100 scientists and professionals has prepared this urgent message. Climate science should be less political, while climate policies should be more scientific. Scientists should openly address uncertainties and exaggerations in their predictions of global warming, while politicians should dispassionately count the real costs as well as the imagined benefits of their policy measures.

Natural as well as anthropogenic factors cause warming
The geological archive reveals that Earth’s climate has varied as long as the planet has existed, with natural cold and warm phases. The Little Ice Age ended as recently as 1850. Therefore, it is no surprise that we are now experiencing a period of warming.

Warming is far slower than predicted
The world has warmed significantly less than predicted by IPCC on the basis of modeled anthropogenic forcing. The gap between the real world and the modeled world tells us that we are far from understanding climate change.

Climate policy relies on inadequate models
Climate models have many shortcomings and are not remotely plausible as global policy tools. They blow up the effect of greenhouse gases such as CO2. In addition, they ignore the fact that enriching the atmosphere with CO2 is beneficial.

CO2 is plant food, the basis of all life on Earth
CO2 is not a pollutant. It is essential to all life on Earth. Photosynthesis is a blessing. More CO2 is beneficial for nature, greening the Earth: additional CO2 in the air has promoted growth in global plant biomass. It is also good for agriculture, increasing the yields of crops worldwide.

Global warming has not increased natural disasters
There is no statistical evidence that global warming is intensifying hurricanes, floods, droughts, and suchlike natural disasters or making them more frequent. However, there is ample evidence that CO2-mitigation measures are as damaging as they are costly.

Climate policy must respect scientific and economic realities
There is no climate emergency. Therefore, there is no cause for panic and alarm. We strongly oppose the harmful and unrealistic net-zero CO2 policy proposed for 2050. If better approaches emerge, and they certainly will, we have ample time to reflect and re-adapt. The aim of global policy should be “prosperity for all” by providing reliable and affordable energy at all times. In a prosperous society, men and women are well educated, birth rates are low, and people care about their environment.

Epilogue
The World Climate Declaration (WCD) has brought a large variety of competent scientists together from all over the world*. The considerable knowledge and experience of this group are indispensable in reaching a balanced, dispassionate, and competent view of climate change.

From now onward, the group is going to function as the “Global Climate Intelligence Group.” The CLINTEL Group will give solicited and unsolicited advice on climate change and energy transition to governments and companies worldwide.

* It is not the number of experts but the quality of arguments that counts.

World Climate Declaration plus all signatories in pdf

World Climate Declaration AMBASSADORS
NOBEL LAUREATE PROFESSOR IVAR GIAEVER NORWAY/USA
PROFESSOR GUUS BERKHOUT / THE NETHERLANDS
DR. CORNELIS LE PAIR / THE NETHERLANDS
PROFESSOR REYNALD DU BERGER / FRENCH-SPEAKING CANADA
BARRY BRILL / NEW ZEALAND
VIV FORBES / AUSTRALIA
PROFESSOR JEFFREY FOSS † / ENGLISH SPEAKING CANADA
JENS MORTON HANSEN / DENMARK
PROFESSOR LÁSZIÓ SZARKA / HUNGARY
PROFESSOR SEOK SOON PARK / SOUTH KOREA
PROFESSOR JAN-ERIK SOLHEIM / NORWAY
SOTIRIS KAMENOPOULOS / GREECE
FERDINAND MEEUS / DUTCH-SPEAKING BELGIUM
PROFESSOR RICHARD LINDZEN / USA
HENRI A. MASSON / FRENCH-SPEAKING BELGIUM
PROFESSOR INGEMAR NORDIN / SWEDEN
JIM O’BRIEN / REPUBLIC OF IRELAND
PROFESSOR IAN PLIMER / AUSTRALIA
DOUGLAS POLLOCK / CHILE
DR. BLANCA PARGA LANDA / SPAIN
PROFESSOR ALBERTO PRESTININZI / ITALY
PROFESSOR BENOÎT RITTAUD / FRANCE
DR. THIAGO MAIA / BRAZIL
PROFESSOR FRITZ VAHRENHOLT / GERMANY
THE VISCOUNT MONCKTON OF BRENCHLEY / UNITED KINGDOM
DUŠAN BIŽIĆ / CROATIA, BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA, SERBIA, AND MONTE NEGRO

 

Source and Research: 
https://clintel.org/world-climate-declaration/ 
https://clintel.org/
https://friendsofscience.org/

 

 

Editor and Chief Markethive: Deb Williams. (Australia) I thrive on progress and champion freedom of speech. I embrace "Change" with a passion, and my purpose in life is to enlighten people to accept and move forward with enthusiasm. Find me at my Markethive Profile Page | My Twitter Account | and my LinkedIn Profile.

 

 

 

 

 

Also published @ BeforeIt’sNews.com

 

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The Reason Why Entrepreneurs Are Closer to God

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A Direct Line Upstairs

34% of entrepreneurs pray several times a day, compared with 27% of non-entrepreneurs.

Entrepreneurs Feel Closer to God Than the Rest of Us Do

The study: Mitchell J. Neubert and three colleagues at Baylor University investigated the connection between faith and the propensity to start a business, by examining data from a survey that queried 1,714 U.S. adults about their religious habits. They found that entrepreneurs prayed more frequently than other people and were more likely to believe that God was personally responsive to them.

The challenge: Do people who launch companies really feel a deeper connection to their deity than non-entrepreneurs? Professor Neubert, defend your research.

Neubert: Entrepreneurs seem to be more religious in a couple of small—but statistically significant—ways. They pray more—several times a week, on average—and are more likely to believe in an engaged, responsive God who takes a personal interest in them. You can see how the two might be related: If you think God cares about you, you’re more likely to talk to him. Entrepreneurs also are more apt to worship with a congregation that encourages business activity. On other measures—church affiliation, belief in God, and service attendance—they seem to be as religious as everyone else: Nearly nine out of 10 are affiliated with some religion. They attend church monthly, on average, and two-thirds say they have no doubt that God exists. But even those findings might surprise people who assume that hard-driving businesspeople are too busy or greedy to make time for religion.

HBR: Are you studying this because Baylor is a Christian university?
My colleagues, associate professors Kevin Dougherty and Jerry Park and graduate student Jenna Griebel, and I are studying it because entrepreneurs play a critical role in the American economy, so it’s crucial to understand what drives them. Yet research on their religious practices has been pretty sparse. A 2004 study of 44 Brooklyn entrepreneurs found that religiosity was positively correlated to personal ambition and innovation, and a 1985 study on first-generation Japanese-American men linked self-employment to family religious tradition and participation. But those were small samples, and other research, on workers in the UK and entrepreneurs in Colorado, has yielded contradictory findings.

We wanted to examine a random national sample—using the Baylor Religion Survey—and to look beyond affiliation and attendance into beliefs and behaviors. Just because someone goes to church doesn’t mean it’s salient in their lives. This was part of a multiphase project on religion and entrepreneurship supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation.

Did you look at Judaism, Islam, and other faiths too?
Our sample included respondents from all major religions. But in the U.S., even with a national sample, you’re talking about Christians predominantly, since the numbers of Muslims, Jews, and people of other religions, as well as atheists and agnostics, are so small.

So what do these entrepreneurs pray for?
Unfortunately, we don’t know the content of their prayers. Are they asking for energy, insight, success? They’re exposed to a lot more uncertainty and risk than the rest of us, so maybe they feel a need to pray more. Perhaps the pressure of starting and running a business to put food on the table heightens their spiritual leanings.

Or maybe people with greater faith in God are more willing to take risks.
Yes, I think there’s a confidence that can come from your religious beliefs. And maybe the individualism and autonomy associated with entrepreneurship are reflected in the idea of a more personal, direct relationship with God.

Your findings on congregations present another chicken-or-egg question: Do entrepreneurs gravitate to churches that are pro-business, or do those churches spur people to start companies?
We don’t know the direction of the relationship. Maybe entrepreneurs find a place where their mind-set is affirmed. Or maybe they’re influenced by their church peers and leaders. A community of faith surely provides social capital; it can be a source of customers, investors, employees, and encouragement and ideas. And some of these congregations really emphasize the integration of work and worship and financial planning, as well as running their churches in more innovative, businesslike ways. But, all that said, when we’ve asked entrepreneurs in follow-up interviews why they chose their churches, most have said location or friends and family. They haven’t said, “This is the most pro-­business congregation in the area.”

Perhaps your findings explain the growing popularity of social entrepreneurship.
Well, we know social entrepreneurs have a purpose beyond profit, and that could certainly come from spiritual beliefs. But among the 28.6% of people in our sample who had started or were trying to start a business, the vast majority had traditional motives: They wanted to work for themselves or sell a product or service that would earn them a good living.

You’ve shown a link between faith and entrepreneurial activity. But what about entrepreneurial success?
We did include some open-ended questions about profitability and other performance measures in a follow-up national survey, but a lot of people left those blank. Still, I think the issue merits further investigation, and we’ll explore it in future research. In another study that Baylor assistant professor Steve Bradley and I did on participants in microfinance programs in Africa and Indonesia, we found that the value people placed on their relationship with God and the way they treated others as a result—what we dubbed their “spiritual capital”—was associated with more innovation, higher revenues, and more employees in their businesses, even when controlling for skill sets and connections. We have another paper under review that delves a bit deeper into congregation characteristics and shows that members of groups that emphasize integrating faith into work are more entrepreneurial in, satisfied with, and committed to their jobs. Clearly, those sorts of employees contribute to the success of organizations.

So your findings hold true not just for entrepreneurs but also for entrepreneurial thinkers in established organizations?
Yes, we have found that people with religious beliefs are more engaged and entrepreneurial at work. Yet we don’t know specifically how this plays out. In the latest phase of our research, we’ve spent time with churchgoers in four areas of the U.S.: black Protestants in Texas, mainline Protestants in New Jersey, evangelicals in Michigan, and Catholics in California. Targeting two churches (one pro-business, one less so) in each locale, we interviewed 10 entrepreneurs and 10 full-time working professionals from all eight congregations, asking more specific questions about the impact that faith has on their work: Does it contribute to their success? How does it affect their behavior? Although we’re only starting our analyses, we have some confidence that people’s religious beliefs do play a role in how they work. The tendency for business leaders might be to ignore, dismiss, or discourage religion at the office. But that could mean missing out on a significant source of employee engagement and dedication. The challenge is to tap into people’s spirituality while still being inclusive of everyone.

A version of this article appeared in the October 2013 issue of Harvard Business Review.

Mitchell J. Neubert is the Chavanne Chair of
Christian Ethics in Business and an associate
professor of management and
entrepreneurship at Baylor University.

 

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Tips and Remedies For Natural Antidepressants: Let Nature Take Its Course

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Tips and Remedies For Natural Antidepressants: Let Nature Take Its Course

 

It's still a beautiful summer in the northern hemisphere, but there's a hint of autumn in the early morning air. In turn, politicians not only hint but openly talk about what awaits us in the winter. And there is nothing cheerful about this; an energy crisis is expected. 

The temperature in offices and apartments it's supposed to be heavily regulated. Gasoline and diesel prices still hold extremely high, and what other complications will cause the conflict in Ukraine better not to think about.

Before we feel an extraordinary strain on our psyche and before the summer stocks of optimism and good mood are exhausted, it is good to turn for help to nature. There are many herbs that can help us, and some are processed even into tablets and capsules.

At home, herbs can be used in a variety of forms, such as infusion (infusium), decoction (decoctum), infusion (macerate), tincture, syrup, and extract (extracta), but also as a compress or bath.

Herbs usually do not act as quickly as chemical drugs. Many are suitable for longer use. However, for some, we must be careful when combined with chemical medications.

 

Stress, especially nowadays, is the lot of many people, and its impact is often underestimated. It acts not only on the organism but also on each person's personality.

Which herbal remedies can positively influence mental and nervous problems?

Among the best herbal harmonizers is Eleutherococcus spiny, or devil's root, devil's bush, Siberian ginseng, eleuthero – Eleutherococcus (Eleutherococcus senticosus). The devil's root, or " Siberian ginseng," is a shrub about two meters tall with densely thorny branches and folded five-pointed, long petiolate leaves. 

Small flowers form spherical inflorescences with purple (powdery) and yellow (pistillate) petals. The fruit is a spherical ovoid with a diameter of about 8 mm, containing 2 to 7 ovules. It blooms in late June and July, and the fruits ripen in late August and September.

It acts as an adaptogen and harmonizer; that is, it increases the body's defenses against the effects of stress. It improves cerebral circulation and affects the manifestations of neurasthenia, and conduction of impulses through nerve fibers. It is used for overwork, states of weakness, and exhaustion.

Another effective remedy is Small-leaved Bacopa: A  plant found in the tropics and subtropics. It is a powerful antioxidant that helps improve memory and learning ability. It increases mental performance and strengthens brain activity. It is used for insomnia, fatigue, restlessness, stress, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease, and nervous exhaustion.

Mild Climate Herbs

We can use St. John's wort, one of the herbs growing in a mild climate. It is the first choice herb for anxiety, restlessness, mental stress, neurasthenia, panic syndrome, or mild depression. It is suitable for rehabilitation after strokes and is also a primary herb in treating multiple sclerosis. But we must remember that often it can not be used simultaneously with antidepressants, and in the summer months, it can provoke skin redness when exposed to sunlight.

St. John's wort undoubtedly has the ability to improve your mood, but its effects do not appear immediately – it is necessary to take it for about 3 to 4 weeks before you know if it helps you.

To support the activity of the nerve and brain centers, we can use great globe-thistle (Carduus), which helps the organism in the regeneration of the nerve fiber. 

Valerian is another well-known herb often used for a sedative effect on the body. It suppresses states of excitement, nervousness, anxiety, and mental tension. In higher doses, it acts as a hypnotic. It affects cardiac neurosis and also acts as a spasmolytic. The nervous system not only calms but also strengthens. 

The best means of sedative action is gemmoterapeuticum from the Linden tree (tilia). It's an excellent sedative. It acts as an anxiolytic against anxiety and psychological tension. It also reduces feelings of itching and pain of nervous origin. It strengthens the nervous system best in combination with thistle.

Willowherb (It is known in North America as fireweed, in some parts of Canada as great willowherb, in Britain and Ireland as rosebay willowherb)

 

The flower can be up to two meters high, which you will most likely find on forest glades or uncut bows. It is easy to grow even in the garden. Mainly leaves are used, both fresh and dried, for the preparation of teas.

Willowherb removes the feeling of psychological tension, relaxes, soothes, helps in falling asleep, and increases the quality of sleep. It is effective against headaches (especially of nervous origin).

Not only Herbal Teas but also Special Baths

One of the healing remedies from nature, which people have been using since ancient times, was baths from herbs. The advantage of this therapy is the fact that the action of water as such and, at the same time, the healing properties of the herbs are used here together. 

An excellent remedy for soothing is a bath, which is composed of herbs with a soothing effect – St. John's wort, lavender, lemon balm, hops, and others. It helps the body to calm down, cope with stress and energize to cope with today's challenging times. It is excellent before sleep, as it helps to induce them.

Where to find some of these herbs in the temperate climatic belt

Small-leaved Bacopa (Bacopa monnieri)

Bacopa is a 10-30 cm tall, creeping and perennial herb. In conditions of the mild climate, Bacopa is a small-leaved annual or houseplant with the possibility of putting outside during summer.

St. John's wort (Hypericum perforatum)

St. John's wort is a perennial that occurs abundantly on sunny slopes, meadows, pastures, and forest glades, from the Lowland to the mountains.

Valerian (Valeriana officinalis)

Valerian is a not very abundant plant in wet meadows, forests, river banks, and ditches. For medicinal purposes, it is grown. Valerian acts primarily as a mild but effective sedative. It suppresses states of excitement, nervousness, anxiety, and mental tension. In higher doses, it works as a hypnotic.

Lime (Linden) (Tilia vulgaris)

Linden is a widely cultivated tree, widespread throughout Europe. The lime blossom is collected at the beginning of flowering. It is best to gather it in the afternoon between two and four o´clock. In folk medicine, as well as official medicine, the lime blossom has been used since ancient times to the present day.

Catnip (Nepeta cataria)

It is nicknamed "cat cocaine" because cats like to roll in it and then fall asleep.

 

Stir a teaspoon of dried catnip flowers in 250 ml of cold water, bring to a boil and let stand for 15 minutes. Drink during anxiety, fussiness, and nervousness. You can also sew a dried Shanta into a canvas bag, attach a pompom or a jingle bell, and give it to your cat to play with. She'll be thrilled.

You can find it in clumps in damp places and around water. It is collected both flowering and non-flowering nasturtium or just flowers, which are used to prepare infusions, baths, and the like after drying.

Ruta graveolens, commonly known as rue, common rue, or herb-of-grace, is a species of Ruta grown as an ornamental plant and herb. It is native to the Balkan Peninsula. It was nicknamed the" herb of grace " because it allegedly helped both judges and prisoners, probably against stress.

Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis)

It is an effective first aid for stress, nervousness, and fatigue; a pleasant lemon scent quickly washes away all worries. Its sedative effect is used for insomnia.

Licorice root

Licorice root has a long history of medical use. As a herbal remedy, it helps people in many different ways. One of the valuable properties of licorice root is its ability to help the body cope with stressful situations. Licorice root provides a natural hormone, an alternative to cortisone, which can be very helpful in managing anxiety situations.

Herbal Teas And Baths Against Depression

# 1. Pour one teaspoon of lemon balm into 150 ml of boiling water. Leave to infuse for 10 minutes, strain, and drink three times a day. This tea can also be used for a long time.

# 2. Prepare a mixture of equal parts of lemon balm and common oregano: Pour 100 ml of boiling water into one teaspoon of the mix. Leave to infuse for 10 minutes and strain. Tea is recommended to drink mainly for the night, for a quiet falling asleep and restful sleep.

# 3. Pour one heaped tablespoon of St. John's wort with boiling water and drink throughout the day in cups. St. John's wort is rightly called the "herb of nerves". It’s most beneficial when the tea from this herb is taken for a long time, i.e., at least 25 days or more. Only then will its antidepressant effects begin to manifest. However, do not take it for more than two months. 

Bath relieving depression

Baths with sea salt or with essential oils of Lemon balm, Mandarin, and Sage are very beneficial. The bath time should be 20 minutes. After the bath, do not wipe, just wrap the body in a terry toweling dressing gown, lie down for another 20 minutes, and cover yourself warmly.

Finally, something for milk and sleep lovers

Galium odoratum – also called the sweet woodruff or sweet-scented bedstraw (Asperula odorata) sleep milk:

# 1. Heat a quarter liter of milk in the evening, but do not boil it. Stir in it one teaspoon of dried herb and one teaspoon of honey. Allow to stand for 2 hours, then strain, drink slowly, and non-jumpily jump into bed!

Herbs Preservation

Not only can you use fresh herbs, but you can keep them “for a rainy day” by preserving them. There are several ways to process them so that you can use them later. 

One of the oldest is drying, which is suitable for example, bay leaf, thyme, oregano, mint, marjoram, or Rosmarinus. The basis is to pre-clean the herbs well, then leave them dry in ventilated places protected from the sun and heat. You can also use a dryer.

You can also put herbs (for example, parsley, basil, thyme, marjoram, or rosemary) in oil. Wash them well, dry them, and put them in glass jars. Squeeze them well and stack them in layers. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and seal tightly. 

The oil will acquire an aroma, and the herbs will be well preserved. You can also store them in the freezer for a long time. Do not forget to always carefully wash and dry the shoots and leaves. Then put them in ice compartments or freezer bags. You can freeze sage, parsley, oregano, mint, marjoram, and basil. 

 

“Praised be You, my Lord, through our Sister, Mother Earth, who sustains and governs us, producing varied fruits with coloured flowers and herbs.” 

                                                                  Francis of Assisi

 

Sources:

 

 

About: Markéta Hálová. (Czech Republic) A crypto enthusiast, keen online marketer and passion for photography. I love interacting with the community of Entrepreneurs at Markethive. I believe in free speech, liberty, sovereignty for all. Find me at my Markethive Profile Page | My Twitter Account | and my LinkedIn Profile.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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A Beginners Quick Start Guide To The Customer Journey

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If you are new to business and online marketing, welcome! I know from experience that it can feel both exciting, yet overwhelming to know where to start. This article shows you how to get off the mark with the customer journey to your first few clients. It will address three core reasons why businesses fail as it relates to the customer journey. The three areas are, no product to market match, no compelling offer, and lack of funding. It will also cover some free and low cost assistive tools for online deployment.

Business Failure: No Market to Product Match

Before looking at all the bells and whistles that might comprise your marketing resources and essential toolkit, it's important to take inventory of what you are looking to bring to the table through your gifts and talents by way of a product or service. Having determined that, who is your target avatar and how does your product or service fit with the market? 

Research

Since a no product to market match is one of the cited reasons a business fails in the first few years, it is important to avoid the temptation to second guess the market. Let the market give you the feedback.

Step 1 – Collate

Compile research on your topic area from both a market data and educational perspective. Look at opposing viewpoints too. A simple free tool to start is to use your google browser to type in a buyer keyword to see what people are predisposed to buying in your category. Artificial Intelligence has also developed free tools such as SIRI and Google Voice. Google Keep and Evernote are valuable tools for capturing information.

You could also use social media sites such as facebook, linked in and google ads, or you could use special interest forums. Alternatively you can use sites like Fiverr or Upwork as a low cost way to get your research off the mark.

Step 2 – Engage

It's important to speak to your target market, in order to further test how your product or service will meet their needs. This will help you develop and refine your offer as you customize for an optimal fit. You can use typeform or google forms as a free tool to compile a brief survey. You could also print your form off and do this informally in your community or at your local business event. If you want to gather survey data on a more global basis, you might want to consider survey monkey as a more specific alternative to social media ads. This is a paid service.

Bear in mind that any data and research will form part of your marketing collateral later. Here is a free guide on how to create a lean canvas, which is a streamlined one page diagrammatic layout for your business model with research tips, by Ash Maurya. Keep it simple.

The Customer Journey

The whole process of sales and profits is not simply about how good your product is but also about the prospect you foresee becoming your customer. So it pays to understand the journey of sales from their perspective, not just yours.

Source Image: Customer Journey

For example there are various models which give out a structural formula from your perspective, and the most common one I see is the AIDA formula, which stands for Awareness or Attention, Interest, Desire and Action. That is client acquisition from your perspective, so you may wish to consider a more expansive process that covers the relationship from initial awareness to what it would be like to have a long term customer who is happy to espouse your services to others.

It is worth taking the time to profile your client as that will give you a depth of understanding which will enable effective communication as you create touch points. Psychographics is the term often used to describe this activity, where you examine attitudes, buying behaviours, desires etc.

Touchpoints

Touch points are the various ways in which you will communicate and educate your prospect throughout the customer journey. This may include email, direct messaging, business events and phone conversations. They will take on board the demographic profile of your prospective customer too. Demographics are to do with location, job, income for example.

If your solution is solving a problem a potential client does not even know they have, education is going to be a key part of your communication process. Bear this in mind as you move forward. Touchpoints should be a secondary consideration to building on the foundation of understanding your customer, as Mckinsey & Company conclude.

“We found that a company’s performance on journeys is 35 percent more predictive of customer satisfaction and 32 percent more predictive of customer churn than performance on individual touchpoints. Since a customer journey often touches different parts of the organization, companies need to rewire themselves to create teams that are responsible for the end-to-end customer journey across functions.” 
McKinsey & Company

You can create a visual template that maps out the customer journey using free tools such as mural. Or you could use microsoft dynamics. Here is an example of a simple design overview.

Source Image: Customer Journey Template

Education

This is an important factor and needs to be done in a way that rather than simply persuade, will help your prospect make an informed decision. This means including the benefits but also the downsides, or who this is not for. This approach helps to build trust, which is at an all time low in general. So be willing to take the time to build trust. An automated way to educate your prospects in a drip feed manner is by the use of an autoresponder. This way you can pre-sequence and deliver content at a reasonable pace.

Autoresponders do not come cheap and increase as your audience grows. The only exception to that which I found is trafficwave.net which keeps a consistent low price regardless of audience size. Better still is Markethive’s free autoresponder which has a one click sign up facility and great deliverability. For a walk through on the setup of this autoresponder watch this video tutorial.

You can combine that with a medium to educate your prospects such as live events or video. You can use audio too if you are camera shy but video is best in a world where trust is at an all time low. Education is where you get to showcase your expertise as to how your offer will significantly benefit your prospect. This may happen in an experiential online or offline event. 

The more you can show rather than just tell, the better.  You want your prospect to be able to experience a different future as a result of purchasing from you. Assistive free tools you can use are zoom’s video conferencing tool to interact, which is free to use for 40 minutes for a maximum of 100. You can also record videos too. OBS is a free video and live broadcasting tool which you can download to your computer and create educational content too. Markethive will shortly be coming out with its own inbuilt video conferencing in due course as it comes out of beta. So watch this space.

Business Failure: No Compelling Offer

When you offer your product it is important that it is a compelling offer, otherwise you will fail on execution. This is where proof of concept comes in.

Proof of Concept

Proof of concept is where you get to test the viability of your product or service through confirmed sales, prior to a full launch. This may come in a break even or beta form, where you give a discount in return for your prospects trial of your offer, and their video feedback for example.

The results can become part of your marketing on a bigger scale later. In the meantime, it is important to bring clarity and confidence to the prospect if they are to buy from you. While it is possible to conduct sales manually, you will also need to consider an online website and payment structure. 

When it comes to websites, your choice will depend on your business model. You could use a simple lead capture page to start with, which will allow you to integrate your chosen autoresponder. Markethive also offers free capture pages. WordPress is a popular free drag and drop website platform with free themes which shape the look and feel of your site. 

You will need a domain name and hosting for your website if you choose this route. You also may need to acquire a bit of technical knowledge to put it together. Here’s a tutorial. A less usual but cheaper and faster alternative is amazon S3 web buckets. Canva is also a great free resource where you can use templates to build websites and create graphics to get started.

For a cottage industry, you might prefer to start with a low key way to test the water and build community so one option might be Buy Me A Coffee, which has less of a corporate feel, and where you can connect to a payment provider called Stripe. For payments in general, you can always use paypal, stripe or wise, both of which have an invoice feature, and are global providers.

Business Failure: Insufficient Funding or Lack of Capital

This is a common reason for business failure and many funding attempts fail and are unable to compete with global corporations. However, If you construct your business plan in the manner described in this article, you will stand a better chance because you will have demonstrated a compelling offer to market match.

New funding sources are emerging all the time yet many of the conventional ways still are not working for entrepreneurs. Creativity is needed and it may be that you start simple with a self-liquidating approach where you use a skill as a side hustle to acquire cashflow for your business.

Another consideration that has serious merit is Markethive. Markethive is an example of an innovative ecosystem which has overcome the product to market match, has a compelling offer and a funding solution for the new and existing entrepreneur, in action.

Firstly, Markethive is meeting a demand in the markethive place with a compelling suite of offers in both free and paid membership. Built from the ground up, it is now powered by the blockchain as a social network and inbound marketing ecosystem combined, with free and cost-effective tools to help level the playing field for the entrepreneur just starting out. 

If you need to acquire marketing tools to reduce costs, you get at least $2000 worth of that in the free membership alone, including an autoresponder and lead capture pages to name a couple. You also get rewarded for contribution to the platform. When it comes to cash flow its unique ILP offer [initial loan procurement] provides a paid subscription which gives you even more tools while sharing in the profits of the company as the company grows. 

This unique offer is shortly to expire, so check out all this ecosystem has to offer and see where it might fit your needs. It was built for you. Consider how it will help you future proof your business.

Launch Party

When you finally launch your offer, celebrate! Consider having a launch party where you create a special offer for first time customers.  It is no mean feat to have created an offer to market match and one that is compelling. You have set your business up for success! Although this article has addressed how to get off the mark, the sale is just the start, and it will bode well to remember that. 

How you nurture your client, so that they become a returning customer, where appropriate, is going to be down to how you nurture and support that relationship, as well as the value-added improvements you make to your offer. You will also need to consider how to scale and automate key parts of your business, such as social media content sharing so you can focus on your expertise.  

Also remember to continue to communicate with those who did not purchase. Many buy later in time. Lack of follow through is also responsible for lost sales. According to one report 60% of customers reject offers four times prior to an eventual purchase.

On a final note, the beauty of surveying prospects is that they too can become a part of the journey of your compelling offer, helping you to craft the perfect offer through their feedback. This makes them more than a purchaser, someone who has become part of the creative journey and solution. They are your community, the ones that are likely to act like your marketing arm or ambassador in the future. Look after them and your business success will increase.

 

 

About: Anita Narayan. (United Kingdom) My life's work is about helping individuals to greater freedom through joy and purpose without self-sabotage, so that inspirational legacy can serve generations to come. Find me at my Markethive Profile Page | My Twitter Account | and my LinkedIn Profile.