By: Trevor Loudon | The Epoch Times

It’s been this author’s experience that most American journalists, politicians, police officers, and even intelligence officers have minimal understanding of America’s contemporary communist movement.

The average American voter, naturally, has very few outlets available that acknowledge the continued existence and influence of contemporary communism. Yet, communism is currently the single most important political and cultural influence in the country. Therefore, thumbnail sketches are provided here that outline the more significant domestic communist organizations currently working to undermine the Constitution and impose socialism on the American people.

A word on communism versus socialism: Socialism is a euphemism for communism. They are two peas in the same pod and all lead to tyranny. Communism is socialism, and those who want you to believe otherwise are attempting to indoctrinate you. Period.

There are two American “lefts”: Communists willing to work with and inside the Democratic Party to achieve their goals; and communists who regard the Democrats as a hopelessly “bourgeois” “capitalist” party.

By: Trevor Loudon | The Epoch Times

In the 2018 election cycle, a Marxist-led organization claiming more than 100,000 members in 50 states helped elect one U.S. senator, 10 members of Congress, around 70 state, county, and municipal officials, and contributed to the victory of more than 20 left-wing state and county ballot measures.

Our Revolution, the vehicle organized in 2016 to carry on the Bernie Sanders movement, endorsed several hundred candidates and ballot measures. Most fell short of victory, but six new leftist members of Congress, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), and a slew of socialist state representatives, county commissioners, and school board members have encouraged a U.S. left that had been long disillusioned with electoral politics.

Other beneficiaries of Our Revolution included incumbents Sen. Bernie Sanders and Reps. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI), Jamie Raskin (D-MD), Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), and Raul Grijalva (D-AZ).  

Our Revolution’s goal is no less than the revolutionary transformation of the United States.

By: Kent Engelke | Capitol Securities

As widely noted many hedge funds and quantitative investors are on the sidelines because of market volatility. This pessimism has also spread to ETF investors for they have yanked about $4 billion from funds thus far this year. Bloomberg writes that this is unusual given that asset flows for the group have not moved in opposition to the market in more than a decade.

Can we suggest that geopolitical issues are finally taking their toll upon this huge cadre of investors?

Speaking of politics, what words can I use to describe Washington? Life is indeed stranger than fiction. Regardless of one’s political views, the dysfunctionalism in Washington is horrific and is perhaps now beginning to impact investor psychology.

Bloomberg writes that since the beginning of the year approximately 90% of the volume is the result of algorithmic and technology-based trading; trading based upon momentum and capitalization, not any macroeconomic or geopolitical thought. Wow!

Speaking of volatility, yesterday was again volatile with all averages opening higher by 1%, because of earnings. Mid-day the indices declined over 1% on growth fears and the 50-day moving average for the S & P 500 was breached as selling accelerated. However, just as quickly as shares fell, the S & P rallied. At the close, the NASDAQ was flat, the S & P 500 up 0.22% and the Dow up about 0.70%.

Commenting about the annual economic forum in Davos, it appears all participants are defending the global order. This should not be a surprise given the billions spent and legislation passed to ensure perpetuity.  However, democracy is intervening. Economic nationalism is surging in most western democracies, democracies that represent about 70% of global production.  President Trump is a symptom of today’s environment, not the cause.

The cause in my view is income inequality and the heavy burden of the bureaucratic state that believes their views are omnipotent and omniscient to that of their constituents.

Wow! We are living in tectonic times!

What will happen today?

Last night the foreign markets were mixed. London was down 0.09%, Paris was up 0.84% and Frankfurt was up 0.55%. China was up 0.42%, Japan was down 0.09% and Hang Sang was up 0.42%.

The Dow should open flat ahead of downbeat comments from Davos where the world’s elite are gathered defending the current economic order, an order that appears in global disarray. The ultimate reality show in Washington is continuing. And then there are earnings and trade, the view of each radically changes in a five-word tweet. The 10-year is up 5/32 to yield 2.73%.