Morning.

This week followed one of my study themes - by understanding the patterns in history and foreign affairs - reflections on local matters become more comprehensive.

Please feel free to bring up any subject.

Oligarchies RULE "Democracies": Rome's Ruin to Russia's Rebirth (The Hidden Collapse Cycle)! (28.29 min)

Prefer to read the information check out these two articles

West under oligarchs Alex Krainer Feb 1, 2026

Modern industrial economies are extraordinarily productive, so how come we aren’t concerned about overabundance or anxious about how to properly enjoy all the blessings? Furthermore, given that all sane people around the world detest war, where does this state of permanent warfare come from? Is it from the democratic will of the people? Clearly not, since ordinary people almost always vote for anti-war candidates. Chomsky was right: we really are up against intractable problems.
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The struggle between two systems of governance
To mitigate them, we need to explore where they originate from. To do that, we must start with the broadest possible context within which the otherwise perplexing day-to-day events are unfolding. In his speech to the World Economic Forum gathering in Davos in May 2021, George Soros offered an important clue. He said that, “the world is increasingly engaged in a struggle between two systems of governance.” He contrasted the two systems as the open societies vs. closed societies. The same view has been affirmed by other Western officials including the former US Ambassador to NATO, Kurt Volker. He characterized the conflict as one between democracies and autocratic regimes or dictatorships.

However, in praising liberal democracies and demonizing dictatorships, people like Walker and Soros misrepresent the two systems, claiming that it is the autocratic regimes and dictatorships that are a threat to peace and liberty around the world. By contrast, experience shows that it is the crisis-prone Western democracies fomenting perpetual warfare around the world while increasingly embracing repressions and censorship at home. They have done so, not only over the last few decades, but since the birth of democracy, more than 2,500 years ago.

West under oligarchs - part 2 Alex Krainer Feb 4, 2026

In modern times, the full pathogenicity of oligarchic rule was exemplified in Russia during the 1990s. When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, Russia began its transition from a communist dictatorship to a western-style democracy. But behind the façade of democracy, the real power was usurped by a small group of oligarchs, most powerful of whom was the Sembankirschina, the gang of seven bankers, all of whom were trustees of western financial interests.
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Russia’s long depression

Death rate in Russia soared by 60% to a level only experienced by countries at war. Western and Russian demographers agreed that from 1992 to 2000, Russia sustained between five and six million excess deaths that couldn’t be explained by normal population trends. That figure represented between 3.4% and 4% of Russia’s total population. For perspective, during the whole of World War II, Britain lost 0.94% of its population, France lost 1.35%, China lost 1.89% and the US lost 0.32%.

As in 1990s Russia, the dominant oligarchies throughout history consisted of moneylenders and bankers. An example was one of Julius Caesar’s assassins, Brutus. Far from being a devoted guardian of Rome’s Republican traditions, he was an oligarch and a rapacious usurer.
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Today, many of these same symptoms of oligarchic rule are increasingly discernible across Western democracies, including chronic crises, gradual disappearance of smallhold farmers and affluent middle classes, decay of infrastructure and public administration, metastasizing censorship and an escalating political repression, including through lawfare.

Where does the Epstein saga fit in the picture? Following the trails of communication and travel leads to the better hidden oligarchs and their minions in Democracies around the world. Foreign media is leading on publishing the connections.

Epstein Invested in Major US Tech Start-Ups, Had Ties to Silicon Valley - Reports Sputnik International Feb 5, 2026

Tech billionaire Peter Thiel advised Epstein on potential investments, including audio streaming Spotify and Thiel's own software company Palantir. While it remains unclear whether Epstein ultimately invested in Palantir, he did invest $40 million in another Thiel's company, Valar Ventures, the report said.
Epstein also financed several other technology and cryptocurrency-related projects, including nearly $12 million in US tech company Jawbone. Additionally, he maintained connections with Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, Google co-founder Sergey Brin, and US entrepreneur and venture capitalist Reid Hoffman. Epstein's financial adviser was also pitched on backing Elon Musk's SpaceX, the report said.

Epstein–Barak recording exposes multimillion-dollar fees paid to Tony Blair PressTV Feb 4, 2026

An audio recording released by the US Department of Justice, part of a trove of more than three million files disclosed last week, features convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and former Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak discussing “gigantic” sums paid to former UK prime minister Tony Blair for “consulting work.”

Brad Karp, Chairman Of Top Law Firm Paul Weiss, Resigns Over Epstein Ties ZeroHedge Feb 4, 2026

The chairman of one of the nation's top law firms suddenly resigned Wednesday evening after a series of embarrassing emails emerged between him and Jeffrey Epstein became public in recent days.

Brad Karp, who has been at the helm of law firm Paul Weiss for 18 years, gave no explanation for his decision

Was Epstein a Mossad spy, or did he just look like one? Russia Times Feb 4, 2026

While no smoking-gun has emerged, the tranche includes emails amplifying Israeli political entanglements, self-aggrandizing claims of Jewish global control, and ties to figures like Ehud Barak and the Rothschilds.

Journalist Whitney Webb and former Israeli intel officer Ari Ben-Menashe argue Epstein’s sex-trafficking ring doubled as a blackmail honeypot for foreign powers, with Israel at the center.

Opinion The Epstein Files: Blackmail, power, and geopolitical shadows Middle East Monitor Feb 3, 2026

Across the Atlantic, U.S. senators have demanded clarity. In 2019, Minority Leader of the United States Senate Chuck Schumer remarked, “The Epstein case shows how wealth and connections can warp justice. We need full disclosure of everyone involved.” His words underscored the bipartisan recognition that Epstein’s influence was a social malignancy. Bill Gates, Donald Trump, and Bill Clinton have all faced scrutiny for their ties to Epstein, though each has denied wrongdoing. Yet the very fact that such figures appear in the files illustrates how Epstein positioned himself as a broker of influence, not merely a predator.

Based on the millions of documents in their possession, DOJ’s investigators know the scale of the scandal. They know that this was not just about abuse, but leverage. Epstein collected secrets, and secrets are currency.

Norwegian Parliament Votes to Retain Monarchy Despite Crown Princess' Epstein Links Sputnik International Feb 3, 2026

Norwegian newspaper VG reported on Monday that Mette-Marit was mentioned more than a thousand times in the Epstein files released by the US Department of Justice. NRK reported that Epstein had invited the Norwegian crown princess to his private island on two occasions, although it remains unclear whether she ever visited.

Epstein and Ukraine: A match made in hell Russia Times Feb 3, 2026

At the time, these Bond villain schemes were portrayed as just twisted fantasies. However, Epstein was already involved in a human cloning initiative taking shape in Ukraine, far from the prying eyes of US regulators.

Designer babies

In July 2018, self-described “transhumanist” Brian Bishop reached out to Epstein seeking funding for what he called a “designer baby project,” according to emails released by the US Justice Department last week.
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For men like Epstein, Ukraine was a potentially lucrative nexus of poverty, corruption, and amorality. Epstein’s interest in the country developed long before Bishop’s mouse experiments, with passports of several Ukrainian women found on his estate after his death, and multiple emails suggesting he trafficked Ukrainian girls to wealthy clients.

Prosecutors investigating Epstein files after claims Turkish girls were trafficked Middle East Eye Feb 3, 2026

According to DW Turkish, the Ankara Public Prosecutor's Office launched the investigation in December after an opposition Iyi Party MP highlighted a reference in Epstein's 2008 civil case. The case alleged that he had "transported minor girls from Turkey, the Czech Republic, Asia, and numerous other countries, many of whom spoke no English".

Sources said the prosecutor's office was now examining the approximately three million documents that were released by the US Department of Justice on Friday for more evidence, as calls have continued to mount from Turkish politicians for a broader inquiry.

Jeffrey Epstein played key role fostering UAE–Israel ties: Report The Cradle Jan 15, 2026

Convicted pedophile, sex-trafficker, financier, and intelligence asset, Jeffrey Epstein, developed a close personal relationship with Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, the powerful head of the Dubai Ports World (DP World) financial empire, which helped foster economic and security ties between Israel and the UAE that have led to the signing of the Abraham Accords and the push for independence for Somaliland, Drop Site News reported on 15 January.