Ripped From The Headlines, March 28, 2023
#SBF Tried To Bribe Chinese, Small Businesses Weigh Banking Options, AI - A Bigger Problem Than It Trying To Kill You - Read, Share, & Subscribe - SherlocExposes.com
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“Former cryptocurrency mogul Sam Bankman-Fried has been hit with another federal charge: bribery.
In a superseding indictment unsealed Tuesday, federal prosecutors accused Bankman-Fried of bribing a government official in China.
According to the new indictment, Bankman-Fried successfully bribed at least one Chinese government official with a $40 million payment in 2021.
Bankman-Fried is currently awaiting trial after being charged with a host of crimes related to the mismanagement and collapse of FTX, previously one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency firms, which he co-founded, as well as his hedge fund, Alameda Research.
After Chinese authorities froze several Alameda accounts worth more than $1 billion, Bankman-Fried directed an employee to make bribery payments to at least one government official there, the indictment says. The Alameda accounts were held in two major Chinese cryptocurrency exchanges.
‘After confirmation that the Accounts were unfrozen, BANKMAN-FRIED authorized the transfer of additional tens of millions of dollars in cryptocurrency to complete the bribe,’ it says.”
“Sarah Walker, owner of Nuance Interior Design Showroom in Bellevue, Washington, thought she had her banking arrangements fairly well protected. She kept deposits at Wells Fargo and a brokerage account at Fidelity under the federal insurance cap of $250,000.
But after the recent banking turmoil, she moved about 5% of her total savings into Certificate of Deposits, or CDs, at Barclays. They offer 5% interest rates on deposits, much higher than traditional accounts, if a customers keeps money in the CDs for a year. She also invested more in Treasury bonds.
‘Those are two very stable things, we didn’t put a ton of money in them, but it’s more than a rainy day fund, it would cover us for a year,’ she said. ‘I do feel better about having diversification. The unfortunate thing is there is only so much you can do.’
The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, and the bailout of First Republic, was a jolt for small businesses of all stripes, spurring many to scrutinize their banking services and mull whether or not they should make changes to ensure their money is safe. The turmoil in the banking sector just added to the uncertainty already caused by stubborn inflation and higher interest rates.
Nidah Barber-Raymond, owner of chemical peel company The Peel Connection in Beverly Hills, California, and New York, doesn’t plan on making any immediate changes to her banking at Bank of America, but said the bank collapses were a wake-up call.
‘It’s really scary,’ she said. ‘It just opened up my eyes to the possibilities of things going very wrong in this country.’
After the collapse, she initially considered putting her money in bonds because she thought that might be safer. But she consulted with her financial adviser who told her Bank of America was not at risk.
Still, she worries that pressure on smaller banks might make it harder to get loans in the future.
‘It would be a shame not to be able to go to smaller banks should my business need capital in the future,’ she said.”
“Geoffrey Hinton, a British computer scientist, is best known as the ‘godfather of artificial intelligence.’
And now, in a lengthy interview with CBS News, Hinton shared his thoughts on the current state of AI, which he fashions to be in a ‘pivotal moment,’ with the advent of artificial general intelligence (AGI) looming closer than we'd think.
‘Until quite recently, I thought it was going to be like 20 to 50 years before we have general purpose AI,’ Hinton said. ‘And now I think it may be 20 years or less.’
AGI is the term that describes a potential AI that could exhibit human or superhuman levels of intelligence. Rather than being overtly specialized, an AGI would be capable of learning and thinking on its own to solve a vast array of problems.
But regardless of the industry bluster hailing its arrival or how long it might really be before AGI dawns on us, Hinton says we should be carefully considering its consequences now — which may include the minor issue of it trying to wipe out humanity.
‘It's not inconceivable, that's all I'll say,’ Hinton told CBS.
Still, Hinton maintains that the real issue on the horizon is how AI technology that we already have — AGI or not — could be monopolized by power-hungry governments and corporations (see: the former non-profit and now for-profit OpenAI).
‘I think it's very reasonable for people to be worrying about these issues now, even though it's not going to happen in the next year or two,’ Hinton said in the interview. ‘People should be thinking about those issues.’"
Just Another Tuesday, (Complete With More Fraud), Ripped From The Headlines. Things To Ponder:
“Nothing To See Here, Just Bribing People!”
Ladies and Gentlemen, Scam Bankman-Fraud is back in the headlines…
Just in case you thought things couldn’t get any more bizarre…
They just did.
It looks like #SBF managed to tick off the Chinese government, and they froze accounts (could it have been because he was running a scam?)
So, what did he do?
Try and run a bigger scam to get the money back…
Wow.
This sums it up pretty well. From CNBC:
Bankman-Fried and his associates considered and tried “numerous methods” to unfreeze the accounts, which contained around $1 billion worth of cryptocurrency, prosecutors allege. Ultimately, after both legal and personal efforts failed, Bankman-Fried agreed to and directed a multimillion-dollar bribe to have the frozen accounts unlocked, prosecutors alleged.
Bankman-Fried’s hedge fund used the unfrozen assets to continue to fund Alameda’s loss-generating trades, continuing on what the government says was a fraud upon customers and investors for another year. FTX and Alameda imploded in November 2022 after concerns about their balance sheet turned into a veritable bank run. Bankman-Fried now faces a federal indictment and civil charges from both the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
If you think it’s just crypto that’s running scams, just a reminder for you…
Deutsche Bank, THE German megabank is now having issues getting affordable insurance for its super-risky use of credit-default swaps.
If those sound familiar to you, they should.
Those credit default swaps were a big part of the 2008 financial crisis…
It’s banks too… and they aren’t done yet.
Brace. For. Impact.
“Dear Small Businesses, You’re Screwed, But We’re Not Going To Tell You Just Yet…”
Small businesses tend to get the short end of the stick…
Even though they provide over 90% of all of the jobs in the UNITED STATES, the current structure and system make life difficult for them…
And now, the banking crisis makes it even worse…
Why? Because these days, doing anything with a big bank is nearly impossible…
Including building a relationship with a human being…
And it just so happens, fear is being spread that local banks, regional banks, and credit unions aren’t stable, and people should put their money in the “big banks.”
What a crock…
Just like for individuals, getting businesses into the “big bank kill box” would effectively kill your freedom… they would lock the door behind you, and never open it again.
Know. Your. Foe.
“AI… It’s Not Just About Killing You!”
Just when you thought all you had to worry about with Artificial Intelligence was that it was going to become self-aware and try to kill you…
Not so much.
Now, there’s the issue of “corporate or government AI overlords” using the technology to monitor or control you…
Oh wait, that’s already happening!
And it’s not the only issue…
Depending on how the AI is trained, its responses can warp minds to the point where there’s no critical thought left…
We had this experience over the weekend with our sister publication, Watchmen On The Wall Weekly, where we got into a religious conversation where OpenAI appeared to be offended when we questioned its thinking. You can see that exchange by Clicking Here and scrolling down.
In an intense information war, tools like Chat GPT without the proper guardrails are extremely dangerous.
Know. Your. Foe.
What does this mean?
Things continue to deteriorate at a more rapid pace economically. Every warning bell is ringing, but many aren’t listening.
Things are actually worse than you were thinking.
This is one of the big reasons we chose to do Ripped From The Headlines… so you can be out in front of what’s coming.
Note the perfect storm of issues, combined with ongoing infrastructure challenges, supply shortages, high prices, and “climate activism” looking to kill natural gas.
None of this is good.
Why should I care?
This stuff is accelerating, fast, and you stand to lose a lot, quickly.
We’re noticing a rapid spike in scams of all kinds. Be vigilant.
You should REALLY care.
They are after you... and everything you have.
What should I do?
Think about the basics that people need, and look at those things as potential avenues to protect yourself.
Do you know why Berkshire Hathaway’s stock is so expensive?
They touch 90% of your life every day, and you don’t even realize it.
You should also tell as many people as you can about what’s happening. Don’t leave people behind, while we still have a window to help them.
A quick way to do that: Share this newsletter… heck, take from it, and do your own. We give you permission…
Take the time to learn more about Parallel Economies, and find alternatives to the things you use today… food, money, and transportation.
GET MOVING ASAP.
James Wesley, Rawles, publisher of SurvivalBlog.com has put together a “bookshelf” list of key things you should have. CLICK HERE to access the list.
Plus a recap of the 50 things you should have handy to barter.
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