The headline of this article is not a misprint.  The reason why “affordability” has become the number one issue for U.S. voters is because most of the population is being absolutely crushed by the rising cost of living.  Just look at how much you are paying for electricity compared to five years ago.  And just look at how much you are paying for food compared to five years ago.  Housing costs have risen to absurd heights, property taxes have become absolutely insane in many areas of the country, and health insurance premiums have more than doubled for millions of Americans.  It isn’t just a coincidence that so many people are bitterly complaining about the cost of living these days.  The truth is that most of the country is experiencing very real pain.

Of course it isn’t an accident that this has happened.  Our politicians have borrowed and spent 28 trillion dollars that we did not have since Barack Obama first entered the White House in January 2009, and I warned that all of this money would create rampant inflation.

On top of that, the Federal Reserve has pumped trillions of dollars that were created out of thin air into the financial system since 2008.  That has helped the stock market hit record highs, but it has been one of the factors that has made the cost of living unbearable for the rest of us.

The very foolish decisions that our leaders have been making have had dramatic consequences.

Our standard of living is crumbling right in front of our eyes, and now a brand new report is telling us that 92 percent of employed Americans have been forced to cut back on spending…

For millions of Americans, staying financially afloat now means difficult trade-offs. As the price of everyday necessities continues to rise faster than wages, new data shows workers are cutting back wherever they can – often at the expense of savings, overall financial security and even essential needs.

That is the picture emerging from Resume Now’s 2026 Cost-of-Living Crunch Report, a national survey of 1,011 employed Americans, which has found that only 17 percent of Americans feel financially secure enough to cover essentials and save money. Nearly two-thirds of respondents cited everyday essentials as their biggest financial burden. What’s more, a remarkable 92 percent said they have cut back on spending, including on items many would previously have considered non-negotiable.

Please notice that only “employed Americans” were asked about the cost of living.

More than 100 million U.S. adults are not working at all.

For those that do not regularly follow my work, yes that is an accurate number.  The vast majority of U.S. adults that are not working are considered to be “not in the labor force” by the federal government.

Another survey that was conducted at the end of December found that 70 percent of Americans consider the cost of living where they live to be “not very affordable” or “not affordable at all”…

American consumers aren’t feeling great about the economy or their own financial situation, with the phrase “affordability crisis” dominating headlines and political campaigns over the last few months.

The majority — 70% — of Americans surveyed in a Marist poll of over 1,400 adults taken in December, say that the cost of living in their area is not very affordable, or not affordable at all, for the average family.

This is the result of decades of incredibly bad economic policy.

The purchasing power of our money has been steadily declining, and now 65 percent of employed Americans are struggling to even afford everyday essentials…

Sixty-five percent of the survey respondents said that affording everyday essentials was a top contributor to their financial strain.

Jared Kessler, founder of Forex Broker, said the concentration of stress around essentials is a key indicator that the problem runs deeper than any short-term financial shocks. “It is clear, based on this data, that we are experiencing a real cost-of-living crisis as opposed to an immediate inflationary response to the COVID-19 pandemic,” he told Newsweek.

Read that last sentence again, because it is so true.

We are in the midst of a nightmarish cost of living crisis that never seems to end.

At this stage, 60 percent of employed Americans “could only cover three months or less of expenses if they were to lose their job”…

Sixty percent of respondents said they could only cover three months or less of expenses if they were to lose their job, leaving little room for error in the event of layoffs, illness or other events that could impact their financial standing. For many, even routine expenses are being trimmed.

Most of the country is living right on the edge.

Nobody can deny this.

And consumer sentiment rapidly moved in the wrong direction in 2025…

Between January and November last year, consumer sentiment among the lowest and middle terciles of American household income fell 29.8% and 27.6%, respectively, while the country’s highest third of earners suffered a steeper 32.1% decline.

Our politicians in Washington shouldn’t have been borrowing and spending so much money all these years.

But they did.

And we should have never allowed ourselves to go 38.4 trillion dollars in debt.

But we did.

Many of us ranted about the bad decisions that were being made for years.

But most of the population didn’t listen.

Sadly, as I pointed out in a previous article, we have now reached a point where “affordability” has become the number one issue for U.S. voters…

A University of Michigan poll published in December shows that high prices remain a pain point for consumers. About 46% blame high prices for poor personal finances — among the highest shares since the series started in the late 1970s.

Consumers’ views of their current financial situation in December “collapsed” into negative territory for the first time since July 2022, the month after pandemic-era inflation had peaked, according to a poll published Tuesday by the Conference Board.

Overall, 65% of U.S. households say the cost of living has gotten worse or much worse in the past year, according to a recent Politico poll.

Previous generations handed us the keys to the greatest economic machine that the world had never seen.

And we went out and wrecked it.

50 years ago, the U.S. economy was so dominant that it would have taken stupidity on an epic scale to cause it to fail.

But somehow we managed to do it.

Even though our standard of living is in the process of collapsing all around us, most Americans are still working hard and are “effectively trying to muscle through this”…

“What we’re seeing is there is still inflation pressure across the system, particularly in the retail environment, and consumers, through our research tell us that they are effectively trying to muscle through this,” Will Auchincloss, Americas retail sector leader at EY-Parthenon, says. “They’re trying to buy what they’ve always bought or want to buy, but in the face of higher prices.”

Most of us want to continue to live the way we did before, but we simply do not have enough money to do it.

So U.S. households are piling up tremendous amounts of debt.

In fact, U.S. household debt recently hit an all-time record high of 18.59 trillion dollars…

Americans’ household debt levels – including mortgages, car loans, credit cards and student loans – are now at a new record high, according to data released Wednesday by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Total household debt reached $18.59 trillion from July through September of this year, up by $197 billion from the previous quarter.

Of course the federal government is an even bigger offender.

The U.S. government is now 38.4 trillion dollars in debt, and it is being projected that number will be well above 40 trillion dollars before the end of this year.

For more than a decade I warned about what would happen if we kept going down this road, and now it has happened.

We are literally committing societal suicide.

The next time you feel like screaming while you are paying your bills, you might want to remember who got us into this mess in the first place.

Michael’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.

About the Author: Michael Snyder’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com.  He has also written nine other books that are available on Amazon.com including “Chaos”, “End Times”, “7 Year Apocalypse”, “Lost Prophecies Of The Future Of America”, “The Beginning Of The End”, and “Living A Life That Really Matters”.  When you purchase any of Michael’s books you help to support the work that he is doing.  You can also get his articles by email as soon as he publishes them by subscribing to his Substack newsletter.  Michael has published thousands of articles on The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and he always freely and happily allows others to republish those articles on their own websites.  These are such troubled times, and people need hope.  John 3:16 tells us about the hope that God has given us through Jesus Christ: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”  If you have not already done so, we strongly urge you to invite Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior today.

The post 92 Percent Of Employed Americans Have Cut Back On Spending As The Standard Of Living In The U.S. Crumbles appeared first on The Economic Collapse.

In recent days there have been a lot of prominent voices in the media that have been boldly proclaiming that the western hemisphere is “our hemisphere” and that it is our right to exercise dominion over it.  But I don’t think that they have really thought this through.  In order to have the right to control what goes on in a particular piece of territory, the United States must own it first.  The territories that we own fall into two very specific categories.  Our 50 states fall into the first category, and each state has certain rights and privileges.  The second category is made up of “U.S. territories”.  There are five permanently inhabited U.S. territories (Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands), and there are a number of uninhabited Pacific islands and atolls known as the U.S. Minor Outlying Islands.  Needless to say, U.S. territories do not have the same rights and privileges as the 50 states.

If the U.S. were to suddenly take ownership of another country in the western hemisphere, it would either become a state or a territory.

For a moment, let’s imagine an exceedingly unlikely scenario in which Cuba, Canada, Greenland and Venezuela all agree to become U.S. states.

They would each be entitled to two U.S. Senators, and so the total number of U.S. Senators would increase to 58.

For those that are unaware, the populations of Cuba, Canada, Greenland and Venezuela all lean very heavily toward one end of the political spectrum.

So if all four of those nations suddenly became U.S. states, it would shift the balance of power in the U.S. Senate dramatically to the left on a permanent basis.

If you are a conservative, why would you want that?

Okay, so let’s imagine a scenario in which Cuba, Canada, Greenland and Venezuela all agree to become U.S. territories.

I have no idea why they would want to do that, but let’s imagine that it actually became a reality.

All of a sudden, we would have tens of millions of additional people that U.S. taxpayers would be responsible for.

Since we are already $38,000,000,000,000 in debt, we simply cannot afford to do that.

A number of the territories that we already own are enormous financial liabilities.

Each year, we send far more money to Puerto Rico than we get in return.

Residents of Puerto Rico pay certain types of taxes, but they are exempt from the federal income tax.

That must be nice.

The bottom line is that we don’t want any more territories that we must pour tax money into but aren’t sharing our tax burden.

And we don’t want to add any additional states for political reasons.

So let’s just stop with all the nonsense.

Of course we are concerned about what goes on in the western hemisphere.

But even if there was a way to do it peacefully, we should not be seeking to take “ownership” of any of our neighbors.

For example, if the current government in Cuba falls, I believe that the future of Cuba should be determined by the people of Cuba.

Right now the Cuban economy is collapsing because their access to Venezuelan oil has been cut off, and President Trump is warning that they should make a deal “before it is too late”…

Cuba lived, for many years, on large amounts of OIL and MONEY from Venezuela. In return, Cuba provided “Security Services” for the last two Venezuelan dictators, BUT NOT ANYMORE! Most of those Cubans are DEAD from last weeks U.S.A. attack, and Venezuela doesn’t need protection anymore from the thugs and extortionists who held them hostage for so many years. Venezuela now has the United States of America, the most powerful military in the World (by far!), to protect them, and protect them we will. THERE WILL BE NO MORE OIL OR MONEY GOING TO CUBA – ZERO! I strongly suggest they make a deal, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE. Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DJT

This is such a difficult time for the population of that island.

Hopefully we will see some sort of a resolution soon, but I seriously doubt that the current government will step aside willingly.

When one Truth Social user suggested that Secretary of State Marco Rubio could be the next president of Cuba, Trump jokingly said that it “sounds good to me”…

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who just keeps racking up job titles, could have another one soon, President Trump hinted.

The commander-in-chief mused that Rubio, who once held four big administration jobs simultaneously and has been floated for more, could become president of Cuba, where his parents fled in the 1950s during the brutal Batista regime.

“Sounds good to me,” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform Sunday in response to a random user who joked that Rubio could be Cuba’s leader after the government there falls.

Interestingly, all of this controversy about Cuba is happening at a time when a mystery disease known as “the virus” is sweeping across the island…

CUBA has been overwhelmed by a disease known as “the virus” – leaving hospitals on the verge of collapse as the Communist regime faces accusations of a cover-up.

High fevers, red spots, peeling skin, swollen joints, vomiting and diarrhoea are among symptoms crippling the island’s population – but Cubans have no idea what they are suffering from.

Greenland has also been making a lot of headlines recently.

Denmark currently controls Greenland, and President Trump is concerned that Denmark is simply not capable of defending Greenland if Russia or China were to attack.

In fact, Trump just made a joke about the incredibly poor condition of Denmark’s defenses on Greenland…

Speaking on Air Force One, Donald Trump could not resist a dig at Greenland’s defences.

“You know what Denmark did recently to boost security on Greenland? They added one more dog sled,” the US president told reporters. “It’s true. They thought that was a great move.”

Yes, Denmark does actually have a unit that utilizes dog sleds to travel around the island…

But in reality, Mr Trump was referring to the expansion of Denmark’s Arctic special forces unit, Sirius Patrol, which uses 100lb dogs on sleds to navigate Greenland’s harsh landscapes.

This is just one piece of a wider £4.8bn defence package earmarked by Denmark to address Mr Trump’s complaint that it fails to protect its territory from Russian and Chinese ships in the Arctic region.

Of course nothing is stopping the U.S. from setting up more military bases on Greenland right now.

A treaty that we signed in the 1950s gives us a tremendous amount of flexibility.

But President Trump is insisting that the U.S. needs to control Greenland “whether they like it or not”…

“Right now, we are going to do something on Greenland, whether they like it or not because if we don’t do it Russia or China will take over Greenland, and we’re not going to have Russia or China as a neighbour. Okay? I would like to make a deal, you know, the easy way. But if we don’t do it the easy way, we’re going to do it the hard way.”

He added: “We are going to do something on Greenland whether they like it or not.”

The Daily Mail is reporting that Trump wants an invasion plan drawn up, but apparently top military officials are trying to point Trump in other directions…

According to the sources, the President has asked the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) to prepare the invasion plan, but it is being resisted by the joint chiefs of staff on the grounds that it would be illegal – and would not be supported by Congress.

One source said: ‘They have tried to distract Trump by talking about less controversial measures, such as intercepting Russian ‘ghost’ ships – a clandestine network of hundreds of vessels operated by Moscow to evade Western sanctions – or launching a strike on Iran.’

I never imagined that I would be writing about a potential invasion of Greenland in 2026.

But here we are.

If such a scenario were to actually unfold, it could potentially mean the end of NATO…

One diplomatic cable describes the ‘worst-case’ scenario as leading to ‘the destruction of Nato from the inside’.

It adds: ‘Some European officials suspect this is the real aim of the hardline MAGA faction around Trump. Since Congress would not allow Trump to exit Nato, occupying Greenland could force the Europeans to abandon Nato. If Trump wants to end Nato, this might be the most convenient way to do it.’

If the U.S. needs Greenland for “security purposes”, why not Canada too?

According to Bloomberg, many Canadians are deeply concerned about President Trump’s intentions…

For months, many Canadians hoped Donald Trump had lost interest in making their country the 51st US state — his plate full with turning Washington and the global trading system upside down.

Those hopes are fading.

The shock capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and Trump’s ramped-up talk of seizing Greenland have rattled Canada, forcing citizens to take seriously the US president’s past threats to Canadian sovereignty. The administration’s declaration that “THIS IS OUR HEMISPHERE” makes Trump’s earlier comments about annexing Canada seem ever less like mere insults aimed at former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, or negotiating tactics in his trade war with current PM Mark Carney.

I can’t imagine any scenario in which the U.S. military would ever try to take Canada by force.

But the largest newspaper in Canada recently published an article that actually suggested that Canada needs to beef up security to deter potential U.S. action…

A blunt column in Canada’s largest national newspaper went viral this week warning of the possibility that Trump may use “military coercion” against the country. The authors’ advice: Learn from Finland’s defenses against Russia. Expand the civil defense force. Build a national drone strategy, inspired by Ukraine’s example. And think about the unthinkable.

“It’s all about changing the calculus,” said Thomas Homer-Dixon, one of the authors and a Canadian academic who researches global security. “If there is an attempt to use military coercion against us, it needs to be clear that it’s going to be enormously costly.”

Are you kidding me?

But this is where we are at.

Our world has become a very paranoid place.

I do think that Canada should take national security more seriously, but if they were smart they would realize that the real threat is from the Russians.

I think that what just happened in Venezuela has really shaken a lot of people up.

The U.S. went in with about 20 soldiers and defeated a much larger force that was guarding Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro by using some sort of extremely advanced sonar weapon…

One of Maduro’s guards that was able to survive has described what happened…

Interviewer: So what happened next? How was the main attack?

Security Guard: After those drones appeared, some helicopters arrived, but there were very few. I think barely eight helicopters. From those helicopters, soldiers came down, but a very small number. Maybe twenty men. But those men were technologically very advanced. They didn’t look like anything we’ve fought against before.

Interviewer: And then the battle began?

Security Guard: Yes, but it was a massacre. We were hundreds, but we had no chance. They were shooting with such precision and speed… it seemed like each soldier was firing 300 rounds per minute. We couldn’t do anything.

Interviewer: And your own weapons? Didn’t they help?

Security Guard: No help at all. Because it wasn’t just the weapons. At one point, they launched something—I don’t know how to describe it… it was like a very intense sound wave. Suddenly I felt like my head was exploding from the inside. We all started bleeding from the nose. Some were vomiting blood. We fell to the ground, unable to move.

Interviewer: And your comrades? Did they manage to resist?

Security Guard: No, not at all. Those twenty men, without a single casualty, killed hundreds of us. We had no way to compete with their technology, with their weapons. I swear, I’ve never seen anything like it. We couldn’t even stand up after that sonic weapon or whatever it was.

Interviewer: So do you think the rest of the region should think twice before confronting the Americans?

Security Guard: Without a doubt. I’m sending a warning to anyone who thinks they can fight the United States. They have no idea what they’re capable of. After what I saw, I never want to be on the other side of that again. They’re not to be messed with.

Taking Maduro was the easy part.

Taking control of the entire country is another matter altogether.

Right now, gangs of “armed pro-regime militants on motorbikes” are hunting down anyone that is pro-American on the streets of Caracas…

Gangs of armed pro-regime militants on motorbikes have taken over the streets of Caracas, hunting down Venezuelans who support the US’s audacious capture of dictator Nicolás Maduro, according to videos and on-the-ground accounts shared with The Post and multiple reports.

The masked thugs, known as Colectivos, holding Russian automatic weapons, brought rush hour traffic to a grinding halt in the Venezuelan capital, stopping drivers at checkpoints and demanding to search their phones and cars, four sources in Venezuela confirmed Monday and Tuesday.

The troubled circumstances have residents on edge over what will happen next, said the Venezuelans, who requested anonymity because of the threat of retaliation.

If President Trump really does want control of Venezuela, capturing Maduro isn’t going to get the job done.

At this stage, it is not safe for any Americans to be in the country.

In fact, the State Department is instructing any Americans that are currently in Venezuela to leave immediately…

Venezuelan militias are hunting for US Citizens, and any Americans should leave the country immediately, the US State Department has warned. The Government body said: “Venezuela: The security situation in Venezuela remains fluid. As international flights have resumed, US citizens in Venezuela should leave the country immediately. Before departure, US citizens should take precautions and be aware of their surroundings.

“There are reports of groups of armed militias, known as colectivos, setting up roadblocks and searching vehicles for evidence of US citizenship or support for the United States. Remain vigilant and exercise caution when travelling by road. Monitor airlines’ communications and websites for updated information.

“Venezuela has the highest Travel Advisory level – Level 4: Do Not Travel – due to severe risks to Americans, including wrongful detention, torture in detention, terrorism, kidnapping, arbitrary enforcement of local laws, crime, civil unrest, and poor health infrastructure.”

Even with Maduro gone, the old regime is still in full control of the country.

So where do we go from here?

While tens of millions of Americans watched football this weekend, global events continued to spiral out of control.

Unfortunately, I am totally convinced that things will get even crazier in the weeks ahead.

Michael’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.

About the Author: Michael Snyder’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com. He has also written nine other books that are available on Amazon.com including “Chaos”, “End Times”, “7 Year Apocalypse”, “Lost Prophecies Of The Future Of America”, “The Beginning Of The End”, and “Living A Life That Really Matters”.  When you purchase any of Michael’s books you help to support the work that he is doing.  You can also get his articles by email as soon as he publishes them by subscribing to his Substack newsletter.  Michael has published thousands of articles on The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and he always freely and happily allows others to republish those articles on their own websites.  These are such troubled times, and people need hope.  John 3:16 tells us about the hope that God has given us through Jesus Christ: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”  If you have not already done so, we strongly urge you to invite Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior today.

The post Should Cuba, Canada, Greenland And Venezuela All Be Owned By The United States? appeared first on End Of The American Dream.

Those that have been waiting for World War III to arrive can stop, because it is already here.  The largest war in Europe since World War II just continues to escalate, multiple wars are raging in the Middle East, an effort to overthrow the Iranian government is underway, China is threatening Taiwan, the U.S. is seizing Russian oil tankers, Venezuela was just attacked, and now we are being warned that military operations in Mexico, Colombia, Cuba and Greenland could soon commence.  As I mentioned the other day, over half of the nations on the entire planet are either engaged in military conflict or are funding military conflict.  A time of global war is upon us, and so many war rumors are flying around that I could not possibly keep up with them all.

But I certainly do my best to keep my readers informed.  The following are two dozen of the latest developments…

#1 It appears that Iranian protesters are being gunned down on a widespread basis now.  One Iranian doctor told TIME that six hospitals in Tehran have recorded a total of at least 217 protester deaths…

As protests against Iran’s government swelled significantly in size on Thursday night, the regime responded in many places by opening fire. A Tehran doctor told TIME on condition of anonymity that just six hospitals in the capital had recorded at least 217 protester deaths, “most by live ammunition.”

The death count, if confirmed, would signal a feared crackdown presaged by the regime’s near-total shutdown of the nation’s Internet and phone connections since Thursday night. It would also constitute a direct challenge to U.S. President Donald Trump, who earlier in the day warned that the regime would “pay hell” if it killed protesters who have taken to the streets in growing numbers since Dec. 28.

#2 Protesters aren’t just being gunned down in Tehran.  According to the NCRI, at least 10 young people were just shot by government security forces in Fardis…

Reports from across Iran indicate that last night, repressive forces murdered many protesters in several cities, particularly in Tehran and its surrounding areas. These acts are unequivocally a crime against humanity.

On January 8, in Fardis, Karaj (Siah-Noush neighborhood), repressive forces committed a horrific crime by firing directly at protesters. In one instance, at least 10 youths were killed or wounded, their bodies left on the ground. The regime is attempting to conceal the extent of this massacre by implementing a complete communications blackout. The names of the martyrs will be released once their identities have been confirmed and the details verified.

#3 Internet access for the general population in Iran has been “completely cut off”…

NetBlocks, an internet monitoring group, said on X that the internet had been completely cut off across the country by early evening Thursday local time, a tactic that officials have used during past protests to prevent unrest from spreading and videos of violence leaking out of the country, analysts say.

Iran “is now in the midst of a nationwide internet blackout,” the group said.

#4 One expert is telling us that the primary reason why the Iranian government shut down the Internet was because they intended to use violence against the protesters…

“For the first time, the government decided to shut the internet yesterday, and usually when they shut the Internet, it means that they’re going to use violence against people,” Maziar Bahari, editor of the independent IranWire news site, told CBS News on Friday.

Bahari said activists and journalists outside Iran had heard reports of security forces shooting at people in different parts of the country, but that the information was impossible to verify.

#5 The protesters in Iran are not backing down.  In fact, it is being reported that important buildings are being set on fire in multiple cities…

Several videos showed protesters setting fire to the entrance to the regional branch of state television in the central city of Isfahan. It was not immediately possible to verify the images.

Flames were also seen in the governor’s building in Shazand, the capital of Markazi province in central Iran, after protesters gathered outside, other videos showed.

#6 Apparently even billboards of Ayatollah Khomeini are even being set on fire…

Thousands are marching in the streets of Iran, setting fire to billboards of the Ayatollah Khomeini, renaming streets after President Trump, and standing against the government’s thugs in sometimes deadly encounters. In response, the Islamic Republic has now reportedly called in foreign militias to quell the protests, including Hezbollah, the Houthis, the Iraqi militia, and the Quds Force.

#7 Initially, U.S. officials didn’t seem to believe that the protesters had a chance of overthrowing the regime, but now that assessment appears to be changing…

U.S. intelligence assessed Iran protests lacked “sufficient energy” to challenge regime stability, officials told Axios.

That assessment is now being revised “in light of recent events.”

Recent events: 100+ cities protesting. Protesters breaking Ayatollahs’ compound gates. IRGC shooting people after prayers. Total internet blackout. Competing massacre claims.

So U.S. intelligence watched protests spread nationwide, monitored escalation to anti-regime chants, and concluded: not threatening. Then something happened that made them reconsider.

What changed? We don’t know. But reassessment itself reveals U.S. wasn’t expecting this escalation.

#8 President Trump continues to threaten to attack Iran if the Iranian government doesn’t stop killing protesters…

This time, however, the protests are playing out under the threat of a direct U.S. intervention by President Trump.

“I have let them know that if they start killing people, which they tend to do during their riots — they have lots of riots — if they do it, we are going to hit them very hard,” Mr. Trump said Thursday during a radio interview.

#9 Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says that Iran is ready for war with both the United States and Israel…

Iran is willing to negotiate with the United States but is also prepared for war with the US and Israel, Tehran’s top diplomat said Thursday, warning that the Middle East could soon face a major escalation.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday afternoon, addressing reporters at a press conference shortly after landing.

Araghchi said that the Middle East now faces “unprecedented threats,” blaming Israel, while warning Israel and the US that Iran is prepared for a new war.

#10 The Russians just hit the Ukrainian city of Lviv with warheads from an Oreshnik missile…

Vladimir Putin unleashed his sinister nuclear-capable 8,000 mph Oreshnik missile in a strike on the outskirts of Ukrainian city Lviv, Russia confirmed.

The menacing attack close to NATO and EU territory was aimed at Europe’s largest underground gas storage facility, it is believed.

The Defence Ministry said in a statement that ‍the ‍strike was a response to an attempted Ukrainian drone attack on one ⁠of the Russian dictator’s residences at the end ⁠of December.

#11 According to one report, the warheads from the Oreshnik missile “destroyed Europe’s largest underground gas storage facility”…

The multi-warhead missile destroyed Europe’s largest underground gas storage facility, the Bilche-Volytsko-Uherske in Stryi.

The capacity of this facility accounted for over 50% of all Ukrainian gas storage.

#12 Former State Department official Jim Jatras is warning that the Russians are trying to send us a message…

Reports of #Oreshnik attacks in Lvov oblast, presumably is response to US seizure of a Russian ship & drone attacks on strategic targets in Russia.

The Russians are sending a message: See what we can do! Better back off! Are you listening now? Don’t make us angry!

But the message received in the West: Ha! You’re scared of us! You’re weak! We can do whatever we want but you’ll only strike the Ukrainians. Get ready for more of the same!

#13 The Russians also just hit Kyiv really hard, and the mayor of the city is encouraging residents that are without power to temporarily evacuate…

The latest Russian aerial barrage largely pummeled Kyiv, leaving close to half a million people without electricity in Kyiv and the surrounding region, officials said, as temperatures plummeted — prompting Mayor Vitali Klitschko to urge residents to temporarily evacuate the capital if possible.

Klitschko said nearly 6,000 apartment buildings — half of the city’s total — were without heat. Water supply was disrupted in some districts, he said, and he urged residents, “who have the opportunity to temporarily leave the city” to find “alternative sources of power and heat.”

#14 Predictably, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is using the latest Russian attacks as an opportunity to urge President Trump to take strong action against Russia…

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky issued a fresh call for U.S. President Donald Trump to take action against Russia after the latest deadly strikes by Kremlin forces—including with their new hypersonic Oreshnik missile—in Moscow’s revenge for an alleged attack on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s state residence that Kyiv and Washington say did not happen.

“A clear reaction from the world is needed. Above all from the United States, whose signals Russia truly pays attention to,” Zelensky said in an X post on Friday. “Russia must receive signals that it is its obligation to focus on diplomacy, and must feel consequences every time it again focuses on killings and the destruction of infrastructure.”

#15 Just hours ago, the U.S. made a move to seize another Russian oil tanker…

The US is in the process of seizing a tanker in the Caribbean as Washington continues efforts to thwart alleged drug smuggling.

The US Coast Guard seized the oil tanker Olina from Russia’s “shadow” fleet. The Olina had previously left Venezuela and was returning to the region, but was falsely flying the flag of East Timor, which is typical of the so-called “shadow fleet” of ships that avoid sanctions.

The Olina was carrying Russian oil. It is involved in the export of Russian oil and oil products from Russian ports on the Baltic and Black Seas, as well as the Pacific region, mainly to China, India, and Turkey.

#16 The Chinese are telling President Trump that they will do whatever they want with Taiwan…

China’s Foreign Ministry has responded to U.S. President Donald Trump’s statement that he’d be “very unhappy” if Beijing attacked Taiwan.

“Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory. How to resolve the Taiwan question is a matter for the Chinese ourselves,” ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told reporters at a Friday news conference. “This is China’s internal affair that brooks no external interference.”

#17 The IDF just conducted new strikes against Hamas targets in Gaza…

Israeli strikes killed at least 11 Palestinians in separate strikes in the Gaza Strip on Thursday, medics said, in what the military said came in response to a failed rocket attack by militants in the enclave. The two sides have traded accusations of breaching a ceasefire agreed in October, and many obstacles remain to further progress.

#18 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is saying that President Trump has given him a green light to move Israeli forces into southern Lebanon…

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has told cabinet ministers that US President Donald Trump has given the green light for a fresh Israeli offensive against Hezbollah in Lebanon, Kan news reports, without citing sources.

The report says both Jerusalem and Washington are unhappy with the Lebanese government’s efforts to tackle the Hezbollah threat.

#19 After grabbing Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, President Trump is warning that the U.S. will get to decide which oil companies will have the opportunity to operate in Venezuelan territory from now on…

Trump said oil companies will spend at least $100 billion to rebuild Venezuela’s energy sector. The U.S. will provide security and protection so “they get their money back and make a very nice return,” he said.

The U.S. will decide which oil companies enter Venezuela, the president said. The White House will “cut a deal with the companies” Friday or shortly thereafter, he said.

“One of the things the United States gets out of this will be even lower energy prices,” Trump said.

#20 President Trump has announced that the U.S. will soon begin bombing drug cartels in Mexican territory.  Needless to say, this will cause our relations with Mexico to take a sharply negative turn…

Donald Trump said the US will begin land strikes on drug cartels in Mexico as he warned that the only limit to his global power is his ‘own morality’.

The president announced the military action against narcoterrorists just days after the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.

‘We are gonna start now hitting land with regard to the cartels. The cartels are running Mexico, it’s very sad to watch and see what’s happened to that country,’ Trump told Fox News Thursday night.

#21 Colombian President Gustavo Petro is hoping that his upcoming meeting with President Trump will help “stop a world war”…

Speaking for the first time with a U.S. news network following his first-ever conversation with President Trump, Colombia’s left-wing President Gustavo Petro said Thursday that he was glad to have been invited for a meeting at the White House, and he hoped an ongoing dialogue with Mr. Trump would “stop a world war.”

In the wake of the U.S. attack on Venezuela and capture of the country’s former president, Petro said any attack on his country by the U.S. would start a civil war in Colombia, and “would be dumb policy.”

#22 On Friday, President Trump warned that the U.S. will soon take Greenland one way or another…

Donald Trump offered an ominous warning in his ongoing campaign to acquire Greenland. During his meeting with oil and gas executives today, the president said “we are going to do something on Greenland whether they like it or not”.

His justification? “If we don’t do it, Russia or China will take over Greenland, and we’re not going to have Russia or China as a neighbor,” Trump said.

“So we’re going to be doing something with Greenland, either the nice way or the more difficult way.”

#23 One recent survey discovered that two-thirds of Republicans support “military intervention in countries beyond Venezuela”…

While President Donald Trump campaigned against ‘forever wars’ during his 2024 campaign, two-thirds of Republican voters back military intervention in countries beyond Venezuela.

New polling from the Daily Mail, conducted by J.L. Partners, showed that 67 percent of GOP registered voters supported further military intervention.

That’s compared to just 25 percent of Democrats and 41 percent of independents.

#24 In preparation for what is coming, President Trump is asking Congress to increase the size of the military budget from about a trillion dollars to 1.5 trillion dollars…

President Donald Trump on Wednesday declared he would ask Congress for a $1.5 trillion defense budget in 2027, a massive $500 billion increase from this year’s Pentagon budget.

The huge boost likely reflects how expensive some of Trump’s military ambitions are, from the Golden Dome air defense effort to his call for a new battleship design. Neither of those programs could be fully funded under current spending levels.

Wow.

I don’t even know what to say.

World War III is here, and a lot of people are loudly cheering.

I simply do not understand that.

Because it is just a matter of time before someone decides to start using weapons of mass destruction, and once we reach that stage everything will change.

Michael’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.

About the Author: Michael Snyder’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com. He has also written nine other books that are available on Amazon.com including “Chaos”, “End Times”, “7 Year Apocalypse”, “Lost Prophecies Of The Future Of America”, “The Beginning Of The End”, and “Living A Life That Really Matters”.  When you purchase any of Michael’s books you help to support the work that he is doing.  You can also get his articles by email as soon as he publishes them by subscribing to his Substack newsletter.  Michael has published thousands of articles on The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and he always freely and happily allows others to republish those articles on their own websites.  These are such troubled times, and people need hope.  John 3:16 tells us about the hope that God has given us through Jesus Christ: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”  If you have not already done so, we strongly urge you to invite Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior today.

The post We Are Living In World War III, And There Have Been Two Dozen New Developments appeared first on End Of The American Dream.

The left wants to get millions of activists into the streets during the months ahead, and just like last time around they are hoping that an incident in Minnesota will be the spark.  Meanwhile, ICE has initiated a “wartime recruitment” strategy and is planning to meet any protests head on.  Both sides absolutely hate one another, and we have already seen so many incidents of violence.  This is such a tragedy, because none of us should want to see Americans fighting against Americans.  Unfortunately, I am convinced that the civil unrest that we are witnessing will greatly escalate as 2026 rolls along.

During an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel’s show, Rachel Maddow revealed what the left’s plan is…

Rachel Maddow Calls for More Protests Against President Trump

“Once you have 3.5% of a population protesting nonviolently against a dictator or an authoritarian, that is essentially an unstoppable force that they can’t oppose.”

If you do the math, that would be more than 10 million people in the United States.

They want to flood the streets with far left activists just like they did in 2020, and they fully understand that there will be widespread violence just like we saw back then.

And now the death of Renee Nicole Good has given them exactly what they needed.

The mainstream media is portraying her as an innocent victim, but the truth is that she had been recruited as an anti-ICE “warrior” and she was simply doing what she had been recruited to do…

Renee Nicole Good, the mom who was killed by a federal agent after veering her car toward him, was an anti-ICE “warrior” and was part of a group of activists who worked to “document and resist” the federal immigration crackdown in Minnesota, The Post can reveal.

Good, who moved to the city last year, linked up with the anti-ICE activists through her 6-year-old son’s woke charter school, which boasts that it puts “social justice first” and prioritizes “involving kids in political and social activism,” multiple local sources said.

“She was a warrior. She died doing what was right,” a mother named Leesa, whose child attends the same school, told The Post at a growing vigil where Good was killed Wednesday.

She never should have been there.

And we all knew that clashes between ICE and anti-ICE radicals would eventually produce this sort of an incident.

In the aftermath of Good’s death, protests immediately erupted nationwide…

Protests have erupted nationwide after an ICE agent fatally shot a woman in Minneapolis Wednesday.

Renee Nicole Good, 37, was killed during an immigration enforcement operation in a residential neighborhood south of downtown.

While heated protests were happening in Minnesota, demonstrations also took place or were expected to Thursday in New York City, Seattle, Detroit, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Philadelphia, San Antonio, New Orleans and Chicago. Protests were also scheduled in smaller cities later this week in Arizona, North Carolina, and New Hampshire.

Needless to say, these protests were very well funded.

In fact, we have learned that funding for the protest in New York City came from a very familiar source…

The protest tonight in New York City against ICE is being paid for and organized by ‘PSL New York City – Party for Socialism and Liberation’

They are funded by Neville Roy Singham who lives in China and works with the CCP

He donated over $20 million to entities like the Justice and Education Fund, which supports Party for Socialism & Liberation activities like protests

He also funds groups with heavy Party for Socialism & Liberation leadership overlap

In other words in a huge networks of organization of professional protesters working to take down America

If the left thinks that they can get the Trump administration to back down, they are wrong.

According to CBS News, approximately 2,000 federal agents have been deployed to Minneapolis for a 30 day “surge”…

The Trump administration has begun a massive deployment of hundreds of Department of Homeland Security agents to the Twin Cities area as it escalates its federal crackdown amid a widening fraud scandal in Minnesota, multiple law enforcement officials familiar with the plan told CBS News.

The crackdown could involve roughly 2,000 agents and officers from Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s deportation branch and Homeland Security Investigations, the agency’s investigative arm tasked with fighting transnational crimes, the officials said. They requested anonymity to discuss operations that have not been publicly announced.

The plan is for the agents and officers to oversee a 30-day surge in operations in the Twin Cities area, making the region the first major target of the Trump administration’s expanded immigration crackdown in the new year, officials said.

We heard the word “surge” being used a lot during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Using military terminology is only going to increase tensions.

And the Washington Post is telling us that ICE has begun a $100 million “wartime recruitment” strategy…

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials are planning to spend $100 million over a one-year period to recruit gun rights supporters and military enthusiasts through online influencers and a geo-targeted advertising campaign, part of what the agency called a “wartime recruitment” strategy it said was critical to hiring thousands of new deportation officers nationwide, according to an internal document reviewed by The Washington Post.

The spending would help President Donald Trump’s mass-deportation agenda dominate media networks and recruitment channels, including through ads targeting people who have attended UFC fights, listened to patriotic podcasts or shown an interest in guns and tactical gear, according to a 30-page document distributed among officials this summer detailing ICE’s “surge hiring marketing strategy.”

The Department of Homeland Security has spoken publicly about its fast-tracked effort to significantly increase ICE’s workforce by hiring more than 10,000 new employees, a surge promoted on social media with calls for recruits willing to perform their “sacred duty” and “defend the homeland” by repelling “foreign invaders.” The agency currently employs more than 20,000 people, according to ICE’s website.

If they are preparing for “war”, who do they intend to fight?

I am sure that many of you have seen those ads by now.

There are a lot of unemployed people out there these days, and so I am sure that they are getting a lot of applications.

Vice-President JD Vance says that as ICE hires more people, we will soon see members of ICE going “door-to-door”…

“I think if we’re to see those deportation numbers ramp up as we get more and more people online working for ICE going from door-to-door making sure if you’re an illegal alien you’re going to have to get out of this country and if you want to comeback apply through the proper channels.”

The Trump administration seems to believe that they will be able to get the left to back down.

But instead, the violence just continues to increase.

In 2025, there was a 1,300% increase in assaults against ICE officers and a 3,200% increase in vehicular attacks against ICE officers…

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released new statistics Thursday indicating a sharp increase in assaults, vehicular attacks, and death threats against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) law enforcement officers over the past year. According to DHS, assaults against ICE officers rose more than 1,300 percent during the first year of the Trump administration. DHS reported 275 assaults between January 20 and December 31, 2025, compared to 19 assaults recorded during the same time period in 2024, which the department characterized as a 1,347 percent increase.

DHS also reported a significant rise in vehicular-related incidents involving ICE personnel. Between January 21, 2025, and January 7, 2026, ICE officers experienced 66 vehicular attacks, compared to two during the same time span the previous year, an increase DHS calculated as 3,200 percent. In addition, DHS said it has recorded an 8,000 percent increase in death threats directed at ICE law enforcement officers, though the department did not specify the underlying totals in the release.

It is going to get a lot worse.

ICE is ramping up their “wartime recruitment” strategy so that they can conduct more operations in 2026, and the left hopes to mobilize millions of people to oppose them.

An internal revolution is brewing.

So many of the things that I have been warning my readers about for so many years are now happening right in front of our eyes.

This is not going to end well.

But most of you already knew that.

Michael’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.

About the Author: Michael Snyder’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com.  He has also written nine other books that are available on Amazon.com including “Chaos”, “End Times”, “7 Year Apocalypse”, “Lost Prophecies Of The Future Of America”, “The Beginning Of The End”, and “Living A Life That Really Matters”.  When you purchase any of Michael’s books you help to support the work that he is doing.  You can also get his articles by email as soon as he publishes them by subscribing to his Substack newsletter.  Michael has published thousands of articles on The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and he always freely and happily allows others to republish those articles on their own websites.  These are such troubled times, and people need hope.  John 3:16 tells us about the hope that God has given us through Jesus Christ: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”  If you have not already done so, we strongly urge you to invite Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior today.

The post Both Sides Gear Up For “War” As An Internal Revolution Begins To Erupt In The United States appeared first on The Economic Collapse.

VKTR is a well-known name in the AR-15 market. They have been making solid rifles and accessories for years. Today, they have entered a new arena for them. VKTR will now be offering a new line of Vanguard double-stack 1911s. The first out of the gate is the VKP Pro.

The VKP Pro – First in The Vanguard Line

The VKP Pro is designed out of the box for duty, defense, and everyday carry. It still provides excellent performance in a competition. The VKP is 100% manufactured and assembled in the United States. It uses only US-sourced components.

The gun is designed with high-end features, which include its Combat Trigger. The custom VKTR single-piece trigger has a ~3.5lb pull, a clean break, and an extremely positive reset. The gun will also have fully machined steel controls. These will be entirely constructed of steel, with no MIM parts, for crisp tactile performance and durability. The frame will also be steel-centered. The 416 stainless steel frame provides excellent weight and ensures your VKP Pro will outlast the competition regardless of conditions.

Reinforced Grip

Grip-wise, they will use a reinforced polymer grip. This offers enhanced strength and is molded with VKTR’s custom grip surface. The surface is the perfect balance between grip and comfort during prolonged carry and range sessions. The VKP Pro is optics-ready out of the box, with three included optic footprint plates: Acro, RMR, and DPP. It comes standard with XS Sight front sights. No need to shop around.

Wrapping it up is the finish. The VKP Pro is covered with DLC ArmorLube coating to ensure unrivaled protection and performance for years.  This coating protects the pistol while helping maintain its precision tolerances.

The VKP Pro

“We are extremely excited for this new lineup,” said Dave Rybacki, the owner of VKTR Industries and White Label Armory.  “The VKP Pro is our flagship model, and we are working to expand the line.  End users can be sure that this handgun will be manufactured to the highest standards and tolerances.”

For more information, visit VKTR Industries.

VKP Pro Specs

WHY OUR ARTICLES/REVIEWS DO NOT HAVE AFFILIATE LINKS

Affiliate links create a financial incentive for writers to promote certain products, which can lead to biased recommendations. This blurs the line between genuine advice and marketing, reducing trust in the content.

The post The VKP Pro – From VKTR Industries appeared first on Athlon Outdoors Exclusive Firearm Updates, Reviews & News.

Are we on the brink of a worldwide nightmare? Many have described what we are currently experiencing as a “perfect storm”. We have been getting hit with one crisis after another as global events have greatly accelerated in recent months. But now it feels like the next chapter that we are entering is going to take things to an entirely different level.

On New Year’s Eve, something very unexpected happened at our most important landmark in the middle of the country.  You will want to read all the way to the end of this article to see what I am talking about.  This year is already off to a very unusual start, and I fully expect a lot more craziness in the months ahead.  The following are 10 very important trends to watch as we enter 2026…

#1 The Price Of Silver

The price of silver is telling us that there is big trouble under the surface of the global financial system.  Even though there was a dramatic attempt to suppress the price of silver this week, it was still up about 140 percent in 2025.

And the difference between the price of paper silver and the prices that physical silver is going for around the world has become extremely alarming…

Silver at $130 in Japan, $106 in Kuwait, $97 in Korea, and “$71” on Western screens is not a market; it is a confession. The numbers read like a crime scene diagram: in the real world where bars change hands and coins disappear into safes, silver has quietly migrated into triple‑digit pricing, while the supposed “global benchmark” in New York and London is still stuck in a fantasyland of leveraged promises.​

In Tokyo shops and Japanese bullion counters, you are not buying silver in the 70s; you are paying the equivalent of $120–130 an ounce because that is what it costs to replace inventory once you factor in tight wholesale supply, shipping, insurance, currency chaos, and the growing sense that the next shipment might not show up on time, or at all. Kuwait tells the same story in a different language: retail bars priced around $100+ an ounce are not a fat merchant’s greed; they are the market’s answer to a simple question—what will it really take to pry physical metal out of the pipeline in a world where everyone suddenly wants the same scarce asset at the same time.​

#2 The Affordability Crisis

In 2025, I wrote about the affordability crisis in the United States a lot.

Sadly, at this stage approximately two-thirds of the entire U.S. population is struggling to even pay for the basics…

About 7 in 10 Americans polled by CBS News in December said they were struggling to pay for food, housing and health care, underscoring the affordability issues affecting millions of households.

#3 Israel And Iran

This is a big one.

Once Israel and Iran start fighting again, global events will go into overdrive.

Apparently a new round of airstrikes on Iran was discussed during Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s meeting with President Trump on Monday, and I am convinced that it won’t be too long before those airstrikes actually begin…

On Monday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago, during which the two leaders discussed efforts by Iran to reconstitute its nuclear program following the Israeli and American airstrikes in June, and to expand its ballistic missile arsenal.

During the meeting, Netanyahu shared with Trump details regarding Israel’s planning for a possible follow-up air campaign against Iran, should Tehran continue to refuse to halt its efforts to enrich uranium.

According to a US official and two other American sources, Israel is considering airstrikes in 2026.

#4 The War In Ukraine

Russian forces are steadily moving forward on the eastern and southern fronts in Ukraine, and so the Russians will not be inclined to give the Ukrainians and our European allies what they are demanding…

• Russian President Vladimir Putin inspected a command post of the Russian Armed Forces
• Putin received reports from Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov and the commanders of Russia’s Center and East groupings of forces.
• Russian commanders told Putin that their army has captured the cities of Mirnohrad, Rodynske, and Artemivka in Ukraine’s Donetsk region, as well as Huliaipole and Steponohirsk in the Zaporizhzhia region.

#5 Europe Preparing For War

Russia has made it very clear that it does not intend to attack any other European countries.

But for some reason, the Europeans are feverishly preparing for war anyway.

In fact, Germany is now requiring all 18-year-old males to complete a compulsory survey about military service…

Germany is stepping up preparations for war – starting with its teenage boys.

From this week, every German male will be legally required to answer questions from the army the moment he turns 18, as part of a sweeping new military service scheme approved amid mounting fears of a major conflict in Europe.

Tens of thousands of teenagers will be sent a compulsory 14-question survey by the Bundeswehr, asking not only how interested they are in joining the military, but how fit they are to fight and how quickly they could be ready for service.

Ignoring the form is not an option. Young men who refuse to complete the questionnaire – or repeatedly ignore follow-up demands from the army – face fines of up to €1,000 (£800), even though ministers insist the scheme falls short of full conscription.

#6 Venezuela

The Trump administration has been bombing drug boats, seizing oil tankers and threatening the regime of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

This could put the U.S. on a collision course with China.

China does not intend to stop buying oil from Venezuela.  If the U.S. starts seizing Chinese oil tankers that approach Venezuela, that could cause a major international incident.  According to Newsweek, there are two Chinese oil tankers that are expected to arrive in Venezuela very soon…

Chinese oil tankers are pressing ahead with Venezuela-linked voyages despite a U.S. blockade and an escalating campaign of tanker seizures.

Two Chinese-flagged VLCCs are operating near Venezuelan waters, with the Thousand Sunny due to arrive in mid-January and the Xing Ye waiting off French Guiana, according to a new report by Lloyd’s List.

Newsweek has reached out to the U.S. State Department for comment.

#7 Taiwan

The Chinese just concluded military exercises that practiced what a full-blown blockade of Taiwan would look like.

At this stage, tensions between China and Taiwan are higher “than at any point in recent years”…

As 2025 ends, tensions between China and Taiwan are higher — and more overt — than at any point in recent years, fueled by expanded U.S. military support for Taipei, increasingly bold warnings from regional allies, and Chinese military drills that look less like symbolism and more like rehearsal.

Beijing has spent the year steadily increasing pressure on Taiwan through large-scale military exercises, air and naval incursions, and pointed political messaging, while Washington and its allies have responded with sharper deterrence signals that China now openly labels as interference.

#8 Pestilences

The bird flu continues to kill millions of birds all over the globe, various strains of mpox continue to circulate, and the pestilence that erupted in 2020 is still making people sick throughout the world.  Meanwhile, some U.S. states are seeing a historic spike in flu cases…

The ‘super flu’ is exploding across the US, with some states seeing more cases than ever before.

The latest CDC data for the week ending December 20 shows positive flu tests are up 53 percent compared to the week prior. Positive tests are up nearly 75 percent from this time last year.

During the week ending December 20, the number of people hospitalized surged 51 percent, and the number already in hospital has nearly doubled compared to the same period last year.

It is just a matter of time before the next great global pandemic arrives, and scientists are warning us that it could come from a multitude of potential directions…

Scientists continue to discover viruses with worrisome characteristics (Chen et al. 2025). Some experts worry about the potential for a leak from pathogen research labs (Palacios, Garcia-Sastre, and Relman 2025), or AI’s ability, in the wrong hands, to help with the creation of a bioweapon (Tjandra 2025). Out in the open, H5N1 avian influenza continues to spread and infect a wide range of animal species—the virus perhaps just a mutation away from becoming a human threat (Lin et al. 2024). Another pathogen, most likely an influenza or another coronavirus is waiting to break out.

#9 Seismic Activity Along The Pacific Ring Of Fire

Seismic activity along the Pacific Ring of Fire increased dramatically in 2025.

And as we enter 2026, the state of California is being shaken by significant earthquakes on an almost daily basis.

In fact, we just witnessed a magnitude 4.9 quake that really shook a lot of people up…

A magnitude 4.9 earthquake was recorded near the town of Susanville in Lassen County on Tuesday, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The quake was centered around nine miles northwest of Susanville at 9:49 p.m. It was downgraded from an initial magnitude of 5.3.

#10 The Greatest Global Food Crisis In Modern History

We are in the midst of the greatest global food crisis in modern history.

But don’t just take my word for it.

The following comes from the official website of the UN’s World Food program…

Yes. Right now, there is a global food crisis – the largest one in modern history. Since the United Nations World Food Program’s (WFP) creation in 1963, never has hunger reached such devastating highs. From the eruption of new conflicts and the escalating impacts of the climate crisis to soaring food and fuel costs, millions of people are being driven closer to starvation each day.

Nearly 350 million people around the world are experiencing the most extreme forms of hunger right now. Of those, nearly 49 million people are on the brink of famine. Behind these massive statistics are individual children, women and men suffering from the dire effects of such severe hunger. Malnourished mothers give birth to malnourished babies, passing hunger from one generation to the next. Children’s physical and cognitive growth is stunted. Farmers are unable to grow enough food to provide for their families and communities. Entire towns are forced to leave their homes in search of food.

We really are living in apocalyptic times.

Sadly, many in the western world don’t seem to understand this since we don’t have war or famine on our own soil.

But for those that are watching carefully, it is exceedingly clear that we have arrived at a truly unique chapter in human history.

So many incredibly strange things are occurring all around us.

On New Year’s Eve, a green meteor dramatically flew past the most important landmark in the center of the United States…

A shimmering meteor was spotted cutting across the sky over the famed Gateway Arch in Missouri hours before revelers rushed to a New Year’s Eve celebration at the monument’s base.

“HEY LOOK, it’s… A meteor saying hi to the Gateway Arch on New Year’s Eve!” The St. Louis Gateway Arch’s X account wrote in a post shared with the breathtaking video.

In the six-second clip, a small white speck appears over one end of the arch. It grows into a green blaze that pulses once before disappearing back into the dark obscurity provided by the predawn sky — right as it reaches the arch’s peak.

The viral video was captured on an Earth Cam situated at Malcolm Martin Memorial Park in east St. Louis. The camera is angled directly towards the city’s skyline all day, every day.

That is something that you don’t see every day.

Of course so many weird things have been happening in the heavens over the last couple of years, and most of the population simply doesn’t care.

Most of us have an unbreakable addiction to entertainment at this point, and getting people to focus on anything other than entertainment is becoming exceedingly difficult.

Most people are just going to continue to stare at their screens as the world falls apart all around them, and that is extremely unfortunate.

Michael’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.

About the Author: Michael Snyder’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com.  He has also written nine other books that are available on Amazon.com including “Chaos”, “End Times”, “7 Year Apocalypse”, “Lost Prophecies Of The Future Of America”, “The Beginning Of The End”, and “Living A Life That Really Matters”.  When you purchase any of Michael’s books you help to support the work that he is doing.  You can also get his articles by email as soon as he publishes them by subscribing to his Substack newsletter.  Michael has published thousands of articles on The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and he always freely and happily allows others to republish those articles on their own websites.  These are such troubled times, and people need hope.  John 3:16 tells us about the hope that God has given us through Jesus Christ: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”  If you have not already done so, we strongly urge you to invite Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior today.

The post 10 Very Important Trends To Watch As We Enter 2026 appeared first on The Economic Collapse.

Is it just a coincidence that a massive protest movement has erupted in Tehran at the same time that the U.S. and Israel are warning that new military action against Iran may be needed soon?  Without a doubt, the Islamic radicals that are ruling Iran are one of the most oppressive regimes on the entire planet, and so it is perfectly understandable that people that live under that regime would want to go out into the streets and protest.  But what we have been witnessing in Tehran this week doesn’t feel spontaneous to me.  Could it be possible that starting a revolution in the capital is part of the overall plan for the next stage of the war with Iran?

Following his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, President Trump issued quite an ominous threat to the Iranians…

President Donald Trump issued new warnings against Iran and Hamas after a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Florida on Monday to try to advance the ceasefire deal that Trump brokered in Gaza.

Trump threatened Iran with unspecified consequences, saying Iran “may be behaving badly” and suggesting it was trying to rebuild nuclear sites after the U.S. struck three of them this year.

“If it’s confirmed, look, there will be consequences,” he said. “Consequences will be very powerful, maybe more powerful than last time.”

The day before Trump’s threat, protests against the Iranian regime suddenly erupted in central Tehran…

Protests began on Sunday after shopkeepers in Tehran’s Grand Bazaar staged a strike when the rial hit a record low, plummeting to 1.42 million to the U.S. dollar.

Demonstrations spread to the cities of Karaj, Hamedan, Qeshm, Malard, Isfahan, Kermanshah, Shiraz and Yazd, where police used tear gas to disperse the protesters, BBC Persian reported. One video showed a protester curled up on the ground in Tehran, blocking a gang of black-clad police officers on motorcycles.

University students chanted slogans including “death to the dictator,” referring to Khamenei. Other slogans backed Reza Pahlavi, the son of the late Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who was overthrown in the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

If the nuts currently running Iran were removed, it is quite likely that Reza Pahlavi would serve as interim leader until new elections could be held.

On Tuesday, he posted a very long message on X which called on the entire population of Iran to go into the streets and join the protests…

My courageous compatriots,

Your presence in the streets across Iran has kindled the flame of a national revolution. The continuation and expansion of your presence, and taking control of the streets, is today our foremost, vital priority.

I call upon the people of Iran to join in with the nationwide strikes and protests: government employees, workers in the energy and transportation sectors, truck drivers, nurses, teachers and academics, artisans and entrepreneurs, retirees and those who have lost their savings—everyone, unite and join this national movement.

Across Iran: Tehran, Karaj, Qazvin, Rasht, Sari, Gorgan, Semnan, Bojnord, Mashhad, Birjand, Zahedan, Kerman, Yazd, Shiraz, Bandar Abbas, Bushehr, Yasuj, Ahvaz, Shahrekord, Isfahan, Khorramabad, Ilam, Kermanshah, Sanandaj, Urmia, Tabriz, Ardabil, Zanjan, Hamedan, Arak, and Qom.

I ask Iranians abroad—from Australia and East Asia to Europe and North America—to redouble your activities within the framework of the “Rise Iran” campaign to amplify the voice of the Iranian people to the media, international institutions, foreign governments, and parliaments.

Iran and its streets belong to the Iranian nation. And we will be victorious, because we are united and we are many.

Long live Iran,
Reza Pahlavi

He knows exactly what he is doing.

And he was probably encouraged to post such a message.

After months of economic pressure from the United States and Europe, the Iranian economy is a giant mess.

The overall inflation rate is up to 42 percent, and food prices have risen by 72 percent over the past year…

According to the state statistics center, the inflation rate in December rose to 42.2% from the same period last year and is 1.8% higher than in November. Food prices rose 72% and health and medical items were up 50% from December last year, according to the statistics center. Many critics see the rate as a sign of approaching hyperinflation.

When people can’t afford to buy enough food for their families, they tend to get very desperate.

One local merchant told a British news source that he was concerned that he would soon “have to bring suitcases of cash to simply buy bread”…

“What will my children eat? Do we have to bring suitcases of cash to simply buy bread? Do you find that normal?” Alborz told the Guardian over the phone, speaking under a pseudonym for fear of security reprisals.

Iran’s prosecutor general is acknowledging that Iranians that are hurting economically have a right to protest.

But he is also warning that if any protesters are engaged in the “implementation of externally designed scenarios”, they will face a “decisive response”…

“Peaceful livelihood protests are part of social and understandable realities,” Mohammad Movahedi-Azad told state media after protests started by shopkeepers in the capital city Tehran, which were joined by students and others in several cities across the country.

“Any attempt to turn economic protests into a tool of insecurity, destruction of public property, or implementation of externally designed scenarios will inevitably be met with a legal, proportionate and decisive response,” warned Movahedi-Azad.

The Iranians have seen this before.

During the 12 Day War, internal unrest suddenly erupted, and many were hoping that it would lead to the overthrow of the Iranian regime at that time.

And now that we are seemingly on the verge of more military conflict between Israel and Iran, the Israelis are publicly urging Iranians to “go out into the streets”…

His comments came days after the Mossad intelligence agency of Iran’s arch-foe Israel posted on social media that it was “with you on the ground,” in a message to Iranian protesters. Posting on its Persian-language X account, the spy agency encouraged Iranians to “go out into the streets together.”

The U.S. State Department also seems quite eager to add fuel to the fire…

In a post shared via its own Farsi language account on X, the U.S. State Department said Wednesday that it was “deeply concerned by reports and videos that peaceful protesters in Iran are facing intimidation, violence, and arrests.”

“Demanding basic rights is not a crime. The Islamic Republic must respect the rights of the Iranian people and end the repression,” the U.S. government said in the post.

“First the bazaars. Then the students. Now the whole country. Iranians are united. Different lives, one demand: respect our voices and our rights,” the State Department said in a subsequent post.

Over the past several decades, the U.S. has been involved in organizing and funding revolutions against anti-western governments all over the world.

So it would not surprise me at all to learn that our fingerprints are all over this one.

Of course the Iranians don’t exactly have a right to complain, because they have been attempting to spread revolution all over the Middle East since 1979.

Let’s watch Iran very closely and see what happens next.

Already, there are reports that Iranian security forces have gotten violent with some of the protesters…

“You must be naive to think Iranians trust this government or the regime,” said Farhad, a 19-year-old university student active in the protest movement who spoke under a pseudonym.

He and other students described how security services had confiscated student IDs and beaten and arrested some protesters. A protester in Tehran sent the Guardian a picture of a metal pellet, which they said was shot at them by security forces. The Guardian could not independently verify the claim of the protester.

“If the administration wanted to talk, they wouldn’t fire teargas, shoot at protesters and if dialogue is what they wanted, they would not have executed protesters in 2023. There is no willingness from any of us to talk to them, we want the mullahs gone and we want democracy,” Farhad added.

As footage of violence circulates on social media, that may inspire some protesters to take more extreme action.

On Wednesday, one group of protesters actually attempted to break into a local government building in Fasa…

Iranian protesters demonstrating over economic hardship and a plummeting currency attempted to break into a local government building as the unrest continued for a fourth day.

State media reported on Wednesday an organised group of “rioters” attempted to get into the local governorate building in Fasa in the southern province of Fars. Footage broadcast showed a group of people trying to break open the gate of the building.

“Their attack failed with the intervention of security forces,” state media said. “The leader of these rioters, a 28-year-old woman, was arrested.”

The semi-official Tasnim news agency cited a local official ‍as saying three members of the security forces were wounded during the incident while four “attackers” had been detained.

A revolution that removes the Iranian regime from power may be one of the only ways that a cataclysmic military showdown between Israel and Iran can be avoided at this stage.

Newsweek is reporting that the Iranians are currently developing “unconventional warheads” that would have the capability of delivering chemical or biological weapons to Israeli targets…

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is working on the unconventional warheads for ballistic missiles while also repositioning missile launchers to the country’s eastern regions outlet Iran International quoted military sources as saying in a Monday report. The sources, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, said these activities have accelerated in recent months.

The warheads are designed to carry and disperse chemical or biological agents when delivered by ballistic missiles, rather than conventional explosives, as an added form of deterrence alongside Iran’s existing missile force.

While the report noted that if confirmed, the move could drastically alter the region’s deterrence balance, it could trigger more intensified pressure on Tehran. Chemical and biological weapons are prohibited under international conventions to which Iran is a signatory.

The Israelis aren’t just going to sit there and allow the Iranians to do this.

They will strike first and ask questions later.

And once the missiles start flying again, things will get really insane in the Middle East.

I realize that most prominent voices are focused on other matters as we enter 2026.

But I believe that the drama that is unfolding in the Middle East has the potential to be one of the biggest stories during the year ahead, and so I will be monitoring developments very, very closely.

Michael’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.

About the Author: Michael Snyder’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com. He has also written nine other books that are available on Amazon.com including “Chaos”, “End Times”, “7 Year Apocalypse”, “Lost Prophecies Of The Future Of America”, “The Beginning Of The End”, and “Living A Life That Really Matters”.  When you purchase any of Michael’s books you help to support the work that he is doing.  You can also get his articles by email as soon as he publishes them by subscribing to his Substack newsletter.  Michael has published thousands of articles on The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and he always freely and happily allows others to republish those articles on their own websites.  These are such troubled times, and people need hope.  John 3:16 tells us about the hope that God has given us through Jesus Christ: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”  If you have not already done so, we strongly urge you to invite Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior today.

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