57 • More than 8,000 Store Closures were An- nounced in 2017 – List Another indication of this shift was increased in- tegration of robotics and artificial intelligence in numerous industries. The competition in electric and self-driving cars as well as innovation in en- ergy technology, were two of numerous examples where these changes made it challenging to assess risks to current and future market valuations. Trump Purges With a shift in leadership comes purges. Out go the old guys, in come the new guys. In some cas- es new guys also get purged by an establishment and various factions fighting back. The transi- tion from Global 2.0 to Global 3.0 will not be bloodless nor will the real reasons for the changes be made public. The purges began with the Trump purges – purges of the people who helped Trump win the election but were challenged running the White House under a President with no government management experience. The Trump purges also included more than a few people in the media and think tanks that had been crucial in helping Trump get elected. • Loved and loathed, Roger Ailes transformed U.S. media landscape • Roger Ailes, Former Fox CEO, Dead at 77 • The Political Assassination of Michael Flynn • Bill O’Reilly is Fired by Fox News • Steve Bannon Declares ‘Trump Presidency is Over’ after Being Ousted as White House Chief Strategist • The Trump Casualties Sex Purges With the Trump purges well underway (some relying on sex allegations), the sex purges launched with resignations, investigations and prosecutions throughout Hollywood, Washington and the Arts. Famous targets included former Congressman Anthony Weiner, movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, Congressman John Conyers, conductor James Levine, Senator Al Franken and many more. There are three important points worth noting about the sex purges of 2017. First, what has been disclosed to date is the tip of the iceberg. The pedophilia problem has to be addressed if we are going to make any progress as a society. • UnAnswered Questions: Sex Accusations as Political Weapons Second, a reading of the stories of the leaders of the #MeToo movement demonstrates that con- fronting a person that has seriously harassed you is a more intelligent response to the debasement of our civilization than keeping your mouth shut and voting for a female Presidential candidate with a significant criminal history. In this sense, #MeToo represents progress. • Twitter: #METOO • Time Person of the Year: Silence Breakers of #MeToo Third, many of the sex purges are happening not to address harassment, but to re-engineer old leadership out. Corporations are saving money on expensive contracts – while younger people are being moved in. Angry constituencies re- ceive attention, buying into the new Global 3.0 leadership. Ultimately this is reengineering away from the “middle management” who had power during the financial coup d’état. The fundamen- tal governance structure remains in place. Different skills are required for the next phase. Shakedown Purges This brings us to shakedown purges. With the financial coup over and a turn to reinvestment in the real economy, including integration of new technologies, Global 2.0 leadership with big egos and big bank accounts is on the way out – espe- cially where money is tight. Saudi Arabia led in shakedown purges in 2017. These purges were designed to shift billions out of private hands and back into state or syndicate coffers. • The Dog That Didn’t Bark: Imprisoning and Torturing Billionaire Oligarchs • Anatomy of a purge: MBS’s actions, Saudi Arabia’s crisis, and its coming collapse Our prediction is that shakedown purges in Saudi Arabia are a prelude. President Trump issued PLEASE NOTE: All the news articles listed in this section can be accessed by going to the online version of this Wrap Up at: www.Solari.com then use the search func- tion to locate the items.