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WHAT IS THE POPE AFRAID OF?


Why are people so afraid of technological progress?

Pope Francis complains in his new encyclical about "a blind confidence in technical solutions", of "irrational confidence in progress" and the drawbacks of the "technocratic paradigm."

He is reflecting a popular view, held across the political spectrum, from the Unabomber to Russell Brand, that technology, consumerism and progress have been bad for people, by making them more selfish and unhappy.

But however thoroughly you search the papal encyclical, you will find no data to support the claim that as people have got richer they have got nastier and more miserable.

That is because the data points the other way. The past five decades have seen people becoming on average wealthier, healthier, happier, better fed, cleverer, kinder, more peaceful and more equal.

Global inequality has been plummeting for years as people in poor countries get rich faster than people in rich countries. The vast preponderance of these improvements has come about as a result of innovation in technology and society.

So what precisely is the problem with technology that the Pope is complaining about? What is he afraid of?

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HOW AMERICA’S GREECE COULD BECOME AMERICA’S HONG KONG


America's Greece is Puerto Rico. 

Like Greece, the Puerto Rican government has more debt than it can service, and some are calling for a bailout by U.S. taxpayers. The major Puerto Rican state-owned or controlled enterprises are all losing money, including the power authority which is insolvent.

Puerto Rico is an American territory that was acquired from Spain in 1898 during the Spanish-American War. The island has a population of about 3.6 million, which is declining as many Puerto Ricans emigrate to the U.S. mainland or elsewhere because of the continuing economic stagnation.

Hong Kong was a small British territory, with the British legal system but no self-government. Yet, it has become rich -- having more than twice the per capita income of the average American -- without receiving aid and subsidies from Britain which the United States has and continues to provide to Puerto Rico.

The operative question is why has Hong Kong become so much more successful than Puerto Rico?

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WE NEED A SENSE OF AWE


[Note:  TTP is happy to congratulate Joel Wade as the goalie of the Santa Barbara Masters Water Polo team which just won the US National Championship on June 14.  Here's the team after their victory - Joel is standing 3rd on the right.]

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After my workout this morning, I stopped at the cliffs above Capitola, overlooking the Monterey Bay.

The five minutes or so I spend gazing out at the protected expanse of the largest ocean on Earth gives me something I need -- something we all need, a fundamental requirement for our happiness and well-being actually... and something that is all too easy to be oblivious to in these days of iPhones, Kindles and 24-hour news cycles.

A sense of awe.

Awesome is a word that's now used promiscuously. If something's good, it's awesome! If something's enjoyable, it's awesome! If something's mildly impressive, it's awesome!

But awe is not such a mundane experience. Webster's dictionary defines awe as "An emotion variously combining dread, veneration, and wonder that is inspired by authority or by the sacred or sublime."

What is it about awe that's so important?

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WHERE CHICOMS MUST STOP BEING CHILDREN


The past several days have seen much commemoration of the most heroic episode of liberation in modern history:  that of D-Day, June 6, 1944. 

By contrast, we've seen very little media comment about another pivot point of history that also took place in early June years ago.  The complete moral opposite of D-Day, it was the Chicom slaughter of thousands in cold blood on Tiananmen Square, June 4, 1989.

The Chicoms then proceeded to consolidate their power, allowing crony capitalists aligned with them to become immensely rich while ruthlessly suppressing any objection to their rule. The explicit goal of the Chicom PLA (Peoples Liberation Army) has today become to replace the US as the world's premier military power.  The strategy to do so they call The China Dream.

There is a specific place in the world where the PLA is focusing their China Dream efforts.  Stop them there and their dream is gone.  So - here is what needs to be done.  And here is the man to do it.

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FATWA, FEAR, AND FAILURE IN IRAN


Serious undertakings by the Mullah Regime in Tehran require specific authorization from the supreme leader, Obama's pen pal Ali Khamenei. 

An excellent Iranian source, with an excellent track record on such matters, informs me that the supreme leader issued a fatwa on April 14th to two of Iran's most powerful killers, Generals Mohammad Ali Jafari (head of the Revolutionary Guards), and Qassem Suleimani (head of the Quds Force), authorizing them to take any and all actions to destroy the Saudi royal family and its regime.

It's a big deal.  Khamenei's move against the royal family is quite audacious,  and could bespeak several very different convictions.  He might believe that the strategic tide is running in his favor, and hence the moment favors a dramatic push against the Sunni king. 

Contrariwise, Khamenei might be concerned that things are going badly, and thus that  he needs some spectacular victory to rally his own people and the turbulent jihadis in the region.

For even though things are going swimmingly with Washington thanks to Obama, dark clouds are looming over the supreme leader's downtown palace.  The seemingly relentless march of the Iranian hegemon across the Middle East and big chunks of Africa is stalled, blocked, or actually losing. Here's what's going on.

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CINCO DE VERDAD


Today, May 5th, is known as Cinco de Drunko among college kids these days.  They know it's nothing more than an excuse to get wasted on Jose Cuervo.

Cinco de Mayo is a phony tradition, a joke on los gringos, then exploited as a marketing gimmick by Mexican restaurant chains.  So at TTP, our tradition on May 5th is to explain la verdad, the truth.

Which is, to begin with: Nobody in Mexico cares about May 5th.  Only we, us gringos, pretend to.  For if you ask just about any reveler at the nearest Pancho Villa's Cantina or some such Mexican-themed bar anywhere in the US, just what is being celebrated on May 5th, you'll get either a blank stare or "It's their July 4th " ignorance.

So first the true history of Mexico.  You'll learn more about Mexico's history in ten minutes than you ever did in school or anywhere else.

Then the reality today -- the horrific truth of how treasonous Dem fascists and their useful idiot Rino masochists are using Mexico to destroy their own country.

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CRUISING THE INSIDER PASSAGE


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One of our planet's most enjoyable voyages is sailing through Alaska's Inside Passage on a luxury cruiseship.  Even better, however, would be converting it into an Insider Passage, where in addition to the stupendous scenery and sumptuous onboard living, you gain a financial insider's knowledge on how to best protect your assets from government pickpockets.

This would be my friend Brian Jensen, CPA and president of Legacy Global Financial Group.  Brian is a featured speaker at The Platinum Vegas Rendezvous April 24-26 - and the extreme practical value of his advice on asset protection, advanced estate planning, and wealth transfer (passing your assets on to your family and loved ones) is a persuasive reason for you to be in Vegas with us.

Yet the Rendezvous lasts but a weekend.  An entire week with Brian would be vastly more valuable.  He's the only guy I know who has an optimistic positive attitude towards taxes - that's because he knows all the legal loopholes.  How much would it mean to you if you knew them too?

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HIDDEN CHINA III


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Last February, we had our adventure to Hidden China II.  Like Hidden China I the previous September, it was absolutely extraordinary.  Breathtakingly memorable. 

So much so that Hidden China III is similar to its predecessor - similar, but not the same.  It's been upgraded, and includes a visit to the tribal peoples of North Vietnam - the young ladies above are Red Zao - plus a luxury overnight cruise in the World Heritage Site of Vietnam's spectacular Ha Long Bay.  In fact, all told we go to six World Heritage Sites.

Our primary focus is China's most stunning and fascinating region, Yunnan.  It has a multitude of incredibly colorful ethnic cultures who are not Han Chinese and have preserved their traditions.  And it has places that will completely blow you away - like Tiger Leaping Gorge, the Luoping Rapeseed Fields, or the thousand year-old Hani Rice Terraces pictured above, clearly one of the great wonders of the world.

We go in early March, the best time to see them in 2015, when the crowds from China's National Holiday have vanished and the weather is perfect. Note, however, this is an adventure.  We stay in the best hotels and dine in the best restaurants when we can - but that's not always.  We're going to places where tourists aren't.  And our schedule is demanding so we can see them all in two weeks.  Let's get started.  And yes, the pictures are real.

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HERE’S HOW PUBS CAN GO POSITIVE WITH VOTERS


If you were a campaign manager for Republicans running for the Senate or House in November, what policy positions would you advise them to take?

The Republican Party has been under a lot of criticism for running a campaign of "Not Obama" rather than presenting a positive agenda -- and much of this criticism is valid. That being said, it is far easier for those of us who are with policy organizations to give advice about what a candidate ought to say -- because we don't take the direct hit if our policy ideas don't resonate with a majority of voters.

As a result, too many candidates resort to the banal -- "I am in favor of a strong national defense, lower government spending, and tax reform."

Years ago, I occasionally advised political candidates from the congressional to the presidential level, and so I have some understanding of why candidates are less policy-pure and specific than we would like them to be.

So here's how GOP candidates can run a positive issues-oriented campaign that a majority of voters can agree with, yet can substantially advance freedom and prosperity.

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MOSLEMS ARE LOSING THEIR WAR ON FUN


We all know the Moslem world is a political and cultural disaster zone.

All you need to know is the spectacularly low level of book sales in the Arab world, and a similarly miserable record in winning Nobel prizes, whether in literature or hard science. 

A dozen years ago, a group of Arab scholars did a report for the United Nations that ascribed the failure of Arab society to a lack of freedom, knowledge and womenpower.  And things have gotten considerably worse since 2002;  the authors could write that there were no ethnic conflicts then.  That's long gone.

Never mind failed states -  we're talking about a failed civilization, even in the most culturally advanced Moslem domain, the Islamic Republic of Iran.  The root of their failure is the War Against Fun.  They're not only failures, but grim, humorless failures.  This is the miserable common denominator of the Moslem world.

But it is a war that is being lost.

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THE TTP PORTUGAL RETREAT

 

THE TTP PORTUGAL RETREAT Thursday, March 20 - Tuesday, March 25
Last week (01/10), we learned about the history of Portugal in California in Europe.  We also learned that's where the first TTP International Retreat will be.

Again, this is different than a Rendezvous, where a lot of us gather to enjoy each other's company and to hear our speakers.  This is an intimate get together of no more than a dozen TTPers to discuss the world in depth.  And I might as well give you a warning up front.

In addition to learning more about the world than you thought possible over a long weekend, you run the risk of falling head over heels in love with Portugal.  I describe it as utterly captivating, and once you are there you'll easily understand why. Actually, you'll understand just with the pictures below. Here's our schedule.

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IS OBAMA USING BIRTHERS TO DISTRACT FROM HIS REAL ILLEGALITY AS PRESIDENT?


The birth certificate provided by Barack Obama is an obviously altered document, according to multiple digital forensics experts.  Have you ever wondered why such a blatant forgery was presented? 

Were the Obama handlers that incompetent?  Didn't anybody in the White House care that such a shoddy piece of photoshop work was made public?

The answer lies within our legal system. Obama and his DNC and Holder Justice lawyers are notorious for using the mechanisms of the system to gain power and abuse it, thwarting the law in the process. This is a part of their strategy.

In fact, the ongoing furor over the place of birth is exactly what Obama wants. It is a red herring, a distraction.  Here's why.

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WHY LOBBYISTS LOVE JOHN ROBERTS


Lobbyists tend to see opportunity in what others view as calamity. I know, because I did.

During the decade I was a lobbyist in Washington, I would often examine legislation to discover hidden business opportunities. When Congress forbade an activity, some businesses would inevitably prosper providing an alternative service.

Sometimes, ambiguity in legislative language would create loophole advantages for entrepreneurs. As a lobbyist, one of my jobs was to be one step ahead of the game; to discover the opportunities created, sometimes by congressional error, and provide that valuable information to those in the business or foundation sector that could benefit.

Usually, the opportunities were minor and somewhat ambiguous, but sometimes a lobbyist would strike gold.  Last week, Chief Justice John Roberts published the lobbyist equivalent of an El Dorado treasure map.  He is now the hero of K Street.

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HOW A COUNTRY CAN GET OUT OF A DEBT ABYSS FOR REAL


San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, Belize. The world financial and debt crisis can, at times, be better understood by looking at a small entity that is suffering from the same diseases as the major countries.

The small Central American-Caribbean nation of Belize (the former British Honduras, so it's English-speaking) is, in many ways, a microcosm of Europe and the United States in that its debt has grown to a level where it cannot be serviced without doing great damage to the rest of its economy.

Also, the courts in Belize, like those in the U.S., give too much deference to government, which is undermining civil liberties, the rule of law and property rights. All too many judges succumb to the pressures of the political branches of government.

I am here in Belize to discuss with representatives of the government and business community changes in policy that should lead to higher rates of economic growth.  They are in a very deep hole,  There's only one way to get out of it for real.

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Chapter V: RADICAL ISLAM RESURGENT


The Main Enemy:  Islamism
Chapter V: Radical Islam Resurgent

When did Radical Islam or Islamism first come into being as a significant phenomenon internationally?

It is well-known that several strands of Moslem radicalism have existed independently in a number of geographic areas since the early decades of the twentieth century. These include:

*the Egyptian Moslem Brotherhood (Ikhwan al Moslemin) founded in 1928 as a reaction to Mustafa Kemal Ataturk's abolishment of the Caliphate in 1924.

*the Deobandi Islamic school in India and its proselytizing arm, the Islamic missionary movement of Tablighi Jamaat.

*the preservation and growth of the Wahhabi extremist creed under the protection of the Saudi Kingdom in Arabia in the 1930s and beyond. 

This chapter will focus primarily on Wahhabism as the primary driver of present-day Islamism, made possible by Saudi oil money.

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