Open Thread 2017-01
News & views ...
Posted by b on January 5, 2017 at 19:22 UTC | Permalink
next page »While all your emails and the websites you visit are 'suspected' in advance, terrorists roam freely through train stations emptied of any employees to be replaced by machines
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-38516691
Posted by: Mina | Jan 5 2017 19:34 utc | 2
Robert Gerard Sands, commonly known as Bobby Sands, was an Irish member of the Provisional Irish Republican Army who died on hunger strike while imprisoned at HM Prison Maze.
"Our revenge will be the laughter of our children."
"They have nothing in their whole imperial arsenal that can break the spirit of one Irishman who doesn't want to be broken."
"Everyone, Republican or otherwise, has their own particular part to play. No part is too great or too small; no one is too old or too young to do something."
Posted by: ALberto | Jan 5 2017 19:46 utc | 3
U.S. Department of Homeland Security claims that the DNC was hacked using the "Russian" malware tool they have named Grizzly Steppe or "PAS tool PHP web kit".
My investigation suggests that the Russian hacker who created the Grizzly Steppe malware was in fact a Ukrainian IT student from Poltava National Technical University (ПолтНТУ). The analysis is partly based on cryptographic proof; he signs his work with a SSL certificate with direct links to his internet and social media presence.
Did a Ukrainian University Student Create Grizzly Steppe?
In the article you will find his alias (aazzz), false name, VK account, photograph and likely real name. There is no reason to believe he was involved in the alleged hacking of the DNC, but he gives a human face to the "Russian" advanced persistent threat APT28.
Posted by: Petri Krohn | Jan 5 2017 19:59 utc | 5
b was true on Turkey and NATO
https://www.rt.com/news/372721-us-jets-incirlik-syria/
Posted by: Mina | Jan 5 2017 20:05 utc | 6
Anyone see this
Barack Obama’s Shaky Legacy on Human Rights:http://foreignpolicy.com/2017/01/04/barack-obamas-shaky-legacy-on-human-rights/
Posted by: rawdawgbugfalo | Jan 5 2017 20:20 utc | 7
@ Mina | Jan 5, 2017 3:05:48 PM | 6
Indeed. The break away may yet come to pass ...
From a previous post:
JFK, the wunderkind, darling (Triumph Forsaken - Vietnam War, Moyar, 2006), actioning the coup to overthrow President Ngô Ðình Diem of the Republic of South Vietnam, late 1963:
Kennedy sent cables to Lodge (US Ambassador, Vietnam) and Harkins on the evening of August 27 asking for their opinions on the coup’s prospects. Above all else, the President wanted to make sure that if a coup were attempted it would succeed, for a failed coup could poison relations with Diem irrevocably ...
The coup against Erdogan ... failed ...
Posted by: Outraged | Jan 5 2017 20:27 utc | 8
b, sorrie repost again. Latest news from Aleppo, Vanessa Beeley reporting. She was in Syria when Headchoppers contaminated the water supply there and also UK channel 4...
UK Column News - 5th January 2016
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNdTM5WvrW8
Published on Jan 5, 2017
Mike Robinson and Vanessa Beeley discuss the latest news from Syria, including a critique of continuing mainstream media coverage, witness testimony from Aleppo and the disruption of water supplied to five million people in Damascus.
Posted by: The Original Jack Smith | Jan 5 2017 20:31 utc | 9
Petri Krohn@5 - Great work, Petri. Every time the U.S. government chokes out one of their Russian Hacker conspiracy theories, the IT community just rolls their eyes.
It doesn't surprise me that the U.S. government is making their feeble attempts to finger Russia for everything. What is REALLY disturbing is that they don't think anyone else on earth understands how ridiculous their claims are from an IT perspective.
If the U.S. government accusations are a reflection of their actual IT knowledge and they think that nobody will notice (because it's so complicated), then the U.S. is totally screwed. Luddite politicians and third-world contractors are running 'cybersecurity' for the U.S. - it would be funny if it wasn't so sad.
Posted by: PavewayIV | Jan 5 2017 20:38 utc | 10
Swedish peace researcher and photographer Jan Oberg visits East Aleppo to speak to residents there after the area's liberation by the SAA:
https://janoberg.exposure.co/humans-in-liberated-aleppo
He confirms other on-the-ground reports that the besieged residents had not seen any activity by the Syrian White Helmets during the whole time they were trapped. He also reports that schools in the area had been virtually shut down for two years and children had not had any education.
Posted by: Jen | Jan 5 2017 20:45 utc | 11
@ PavewayIV | Jan 5, 2017 3:38:14 PM | 10
If the U.S. government accusations are a reflection of their actual IT knowledge and they think that nobody will notice (because it's so complicated), then the U.S. is totally screwed.
They aren't ... the collective resources and extent of the No Such Agency and 5/9-eyes partners are almost incomprehensible ... we along with UK GCHQ have ruled Terra re virtually every aspect of SIGINT since the big WWII ... that doesn't mean the pulpy dross they serve up for the sheeple represents their actual capabilities, resources, competencies or reach ... our own HUMINT has always been correspondingly well below par tho ...
Have enjoyed your work for quite a while. Bravo.
Posted by: Outraged | Jan 5 2017 20:48 utc | 12
PW @10--
During the 1980s, I worked for an EW/SIGINT USAR Co constantly tasked as Soviet forces in field ops because we were so adept at discovering RA COMMINT mistakes that revealed nothing learned from the Vietnam debacle. RA always had the latest gizmos while we were using older, clunky equipment, but in ops we always outperformed because we were much better disciplined. Now that was awhile ago, but it seems little has changed regarding the underlying psychology that made RA overconfident in its abilities yet lax in using proper security protocols. The same can be said of the various agencies operating under the NSA umbrella, which we were certainly a part of back then. Your hypothesis of LPs in the mountains surrounding Wadi Barada posted at Southfront makes eminent sense. Overconfidence leads to laxity and ultimately defeat--lessons still unlearned by the Zionists and their Outlaw US Empire ally.
Posted by: karlof1 | Jan 5 2017 21:33 utc | 13
PavewayIV
It doesn't surprise me that the U.S. government is making their feeble attempts to finger Russia for everything. What is REALLY disturbing is that they don't think anyone else on earth understands how ridiculous their claims are from an IT perspective.
Well does it matter? I am sure some 95% buy the russian-did-it!11!!1! accusations. And thats how easy propaganda fool people today - that is - Russia is very bad.
Posted by: Anonymous | Jan 5 2017 21:37 utc | 14
What could go wrong...
http://theduran.com/confirmed-us-deploys-troops-russias-border/
Posted by: pubumwei | Jan 5 2017 22:06 utc | 15
@5petri/ @10 paveway / 12 outraged.. thanks petri.. i agree with paveway - everytime they trot something out, it makes them look worse, thinking people are complete fools who will believe the bs.
@6 mina.. it was on hurriyet yesterday as well..
@11 jen.. i saw those on ssr a few days ago.. they are quite good and i like the commentary.. glad you are sharing them.
@13 karlof1. thanks for your insights.
@14 anonymous.. what do you suggest then? roll over and forgot about addressing all the bs? i am truly curious..
Posted by: james | Jan 5 2017 22:11 utc | 16
meanwhile, not sure if you all have been following this, but the leader of the opposition in turkey has been told there are some concerns for his safety, so he has been offered some options to help.. meanwhile he is ramping up his view that erdogan and the akp are responsible for much of the mayhem engulfing turkey at present ( mentioned in a story yesterday on hurriyet.. here is the latest on this unfolding story, with the referendum for the change to a presidency set for sometime this year - feb, march or april..
Posted by: james | Jan 5 2017 22:15 utc | 17
more on turkeys referendum in one of the columnists today as well for anyone interested..
titled 'A referendum under these circumstances?'
Posted by: james | Jan 5 2017 22:20 utc | 18
could have just as easily been said by assad..
"“There is a reason behind the fact that those who accused us of not fighting against ISIL and bore down on us internationally have started to tell us not to go further into Syria after we attacked ISIL. The plays and excuses of those who support another terrorist group against ISIL were distorted after Turkey has progressed in the field. It has become apparent that they do not want to eliminate ISIL and other terrorist organizations from the region, but rather to transform the region into an endless sea of blood and fire. As you can see, those who cannot confront us are planning to make us kneel down and hurt us with the help of terrorist organizations,” he said...
Posted by: james | Jan 5 2017 22:23 utc | 19
James
I am not sure there is a cure, as i said some 95% of the western populations believe any claims against russians. 95% that is hundreds of millions just to put a perspective
on this issue. Our views here are not represented in any msm so how could we change the masses?
Sometimes i feel there is no point, where do you even start? People just get mad if you try to tell them that msm is wrong etc?
Posted by: Anonymous | Jan 5 2017 22:30 utc | 20
@ karlof1 | Jan 5, 2017 4:33:35 PM | 13
Comms OPSEC has always been an issue, primarily because your average operator comes from a pool of the lowest common denominator (just the way it is), especially when dealing with large militaries, re personnel. Indeed, comms operator discipline is crucial and must be constantly monitored, corrected and re-inforced. We've always been sloppy.
Regardless of encryption, etc, you'd be well aware of the valuable intelligence to be obtained in conjunction and corroboration with other sources from just the most basic traffic analysis of monitored transmissions.
We've always been too focused on our oh so clever technology, whilst being patchy re personnel, and other areas too ...
As an aside, secure burst transmissions from SF and covert Ops using the neatest gadgets is so Hollywood cool. Arrugar! Yet, guess what indicator you're giving when such comms transmissions are detected by the opposing State actor forces with the capability to do so.
Almost certainly (currently) can't discover what was transmitted ... but boy oh boy, do you now have the highest priority target (having lit up a huge flashing NEON lighted Bullseye) to locate/take-out/cut-off by whatever means available.
Cheers Karlof1
Pesky VC were excellent at recording, dicing & splicing voice transmissions and then replaying it on the right frequency at the crucial moment during ops in Vietnam, using the most primitive, limited & basic equipment ... cassette deck tape-recorder and a mike ...
An example of faith in technology versus human ingenuity/discipline:
The People Sniffer vs. the bucketDuring the Vietnam War, the Allied forces needed a way to “sniff out” the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army troops hiding below the triple canopy jungle. The Navy had used a similar technique during WWII to locate submerged German submarines emitting an invisible diesel exhaust trail into the air. Using high-tech methods, a number of “people sniffers” were invented that allowed a machine to find organic smells and point out where the enemy might be hiding. The General Electric detection method used by people sniffers depended on effluents unique to human beings; such as the ammonia found in urine and sweat. The system was designed to be used by individual soldiers using a man-pack, and helicopters using large suction systems.
The man-pack systems were very risky because if the wind was from your back you might walk into an enemy position, or get multiple false readings from your own squad walking behind you.
The “Snoopy” helicopters had two large air scoops that led to a console with a visor over it so that an operator could stick his head in there and read what was being smelled even in bright light. Since the choppers had to fly low and slow to sniff, it was a very dangerous mission. This operation was mentioned in the formerly secret United States Military Assistant Command Vietnam Command History Volume II 1967. In a section entitled “Novel Ideas and Innovations” we find the following comments.
In November the 9th Infantry Division developed a hard-hitting PSYOP plan to be used with the “People Sniffer,” a human detection device mounted on a helicopter. Once the enemy elements are located by the people sniffer, leaflets were dropped and loudspeakers were used to warn the enemy that an air or artillery attack was eminent. Following the offensive action, the enemy was reminded again by leaflets and loudspeakers of the destruction that could be brought upon them, and urged to rally to the Government of Viet Nam. Maximum psychological impact could be gained by locating the enemy in an area he thought was safe, by warning him of the destruction that was going to be brought to bear, and by following up with an appeal to him to rally to avoid future attacks.
This all sounds very nice and one might ask, “Where is the deception?” The Viet Cong were not stupid. The quickly learned about the high-tech system and used what might be considered the lowest-tech system possible to defeat it. Since the sniffers were looking for ammonia and other organic smells from human sweat and waste, the Viet Cong hung buckets of mud with urine or feces in trees, urinated on, and “marked” trees, and then moved to another area. These very basic and almost primitive tactics essentially rendered people sniffers ineffective in jungle terrain, but they remained useful in open areas, such as those found in the Mekong Delta.
DECEPTION AND DISINFORMATION & PSYCHOLOGICAL OPERATIONS
Posted by: Outraged | Jan 5 2017 22:42 utc | 21
Anonymous @20--
Polling reveals a constant downslide in US citizenry's trust in MSM, with Republicans being the most skeptical, so it really shouldn't be too much of a problem to engage people in conversation--unless they are democrat/"liberals", a group seemingly unable to think critically, http://www.gallup.com/poll/195542/americans-trust-mass-media-sinks-new-low.aspx
I'd begin with a domestic issue getting zero coverage, like the ongoing Flint saga and the many unknown towns suffering similarly, or some other subject where the object of your discourse ought to have some degree of prior knowledge.
Posted by: karlof1 | Jan 5 2017 22:51 utc | 22
Orig Jack 9 and Jen 11
always good to get alt news view from Syria. Vanessa Beeley has done the good service for us all. In that video the shameless questioning with an obvious biased agenda by Jack Snow reminds me of the method of questioning that all media here in the US do. Shameless, offensive.
Posted by: Curtis | Jan 5 2017 23:02 utc | 23
@22 I find it increasingly difficult to have any kind of conversation without being called a conspiracy theorist, a fascist or a 'Putin-lover'. Either that or it quickly turns into identity politics and you get called racist or sexist. I don't know if it's a permanent condition or if humanity will find its way through.
Posted by: dh | Jan 5 2017 23:11 utc | 24
Anonymous @ 20
some 95% of the western populations believe any claims against russians.
I think the average citizen may be starting to get suspicious. Google "71% of Americans don't believe Russians hacked" and take your pick of sources. No matter what, it seems like nearly 3 out of 4 Americans aren't buying it.
I'd even go so far as say that many of the other 29% feel they have a vested interest in selling that lie and probably don't really believe it themselves.
Posted by: Ken Nari | Jan 5 2017 23:13 utc | 25
Outraged @21--
Thanks for your reply and excellent examples. My unit was based in Mountain View, CA, in the heart of Silicon Valley, and was almost entirely male, manned by E-7 SFC Nam-vets, who prided themselves in their abilities to use their clunky equipment to consistently best frontline RA units. It was a great club to be a part of for 3 years as it taught many lessons. The best contemporary example I can think of are the Houthis beating the Saudis and their terrorist proxies. Two more weeks until Trump. Will he do his job and arrest the Obama administration for the crimes they committed, or will he become an abettor of them as has every president since FDR?
Posted by: karlof1 | Jan 5 2017 23:59 utc | 26
@22 karlof, 'a constant downslide in US citizenry's trust in MSM -- unless they are democrat/"liberals"'
i think that's the answer karlof. the folks who are making money from the present state of affairs are strongly disinclined to question it.
I used to say to our audiences: "It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends upon his not understanding it!"
it's not a question of rational argument, it's a question of a meal ticket.
Posted by: jfl | Jan 6 2017 0:17 utc | 28
@27 On airplanes, over dinner, even with my kids. I'm a real misfit but I don't quit.
Posted by: dh | Jan 6 2017 0:19 utc | 29
i never follow nmb's links because they are always bit.ly ... but pasting the link titles into a search brings them up.
they've always been to failed evolution blog spot dot com, in my experience ... from the diction i assume its a russian operation. a line in the midst of today's caught my eye ...
The ruthless neo-colonialists of 21st century
Note that, both Germany and Turkey are medium powers that, historically, always trying to expand and create their own spheres of influence, seeking independence from the traditional big powers.
... coupled with one of james' links above ...
The package grants broad executive power to the president by transferring all authorities of the prime ministry and the cabinet to the president while limiting parliament’s supervisory and legislative authorities.The proposal restricts the functions and powers of parliament, while the principle that stipulates the legislature’s duty to supervise the executive has been removed from the constitution. Parliament will only have authority to acquire and monitor information through general discussions, parliamentary investigations and written questions.
... things look to go from bad to worse in turkey. perhaps, too, in germany, if AfD gets its hands on power.
i suppose that's what up in 2017, though. the ascent of the right across the board.
Posted by: jfl | Jan 6 2017 0:51 utc | 30
Senator Richard Black sent this inspiring message to us:
Zaid: (sic)
I can’t thank you enough for the constant up-to-date news feed throughout the war. I’ve read your site constantly for years now. You’ve done a great deal to expose the tsunami of state-sponsored propaganda.
The small array of true reports like yours, coming out of Syria, have bedeviled the CIA, MI6, MIT and all the rest. Increasingly, Americans, Brits,....
OJS -> The Original Jack Smith
Posted by: OJS | Jan 6 2017 0:51 utc | 31
@20
There is something I have wanted to say for awhile and I guess now is the time.
95% Americans believing the US propaganda is not an accurate figure. I am not going to go into a long detailed explanation, but this figure is an extreme exaggeration. A more accurate number would be 40% and the reason being is because 50% of US does not see anything beyond the windshields of their cars. 57% of eligible voters voted in 2016. While Armageddon won the popular vote, Trump triumphed where it counted. I still believe we are in a better position due to that.
Now what is important is that it is WE that made the difference. We being people like b, who refuse to be indoctrinated. Not only do we seek the truth, we spread the truth despite the ramifications and vilification of doing so. I wanted to thank b and his comment board and urge you all to take a moment to congratulate yourselves on this success, which is not being recognized.
How do I know this is true? Go to any MSM website which is still allowing comments on their "stories". That is where the blood of America flows. Generally, the comments directly contradict the premises laid forth in 'stories' being perpetrated by the MSM. So let me say this, Not only is it always darkest before the dawn, it is also coldest before the dawn. And the sun rises to a new day.
Do not succumb to despair, recognize our achievement. We prevented Hillary and that achievement has turned the world and our future on an as yet unknown course. It is because we (in our various ways) did not buy into the bullshit they wished spread and voiced what we knew to be true along with links to validate what we were saying. I can tell you, when you contradict someone's reality, they are going to discredit you, but in seeking to discredit us, they found the truth. Not all of them accepted this, but enough did, and the crabgrass continues to grow.
I wanted to wait until after the 20th to celebrate, should Trump make it to the inauguration because there is a high probability they will kill him. To let you know a truth, I was not a Trump supporter, I was on the ABC team, Anybody But Clinton. I am still in Ron Paul's corner, but am an anarchist at heart. Trump is an enigma, but he may be what America needs right now, an outsider, beholden to no one, free to make his mistakes, but I believe they will be honest mistakes. It is really worthwhile to visit his early interviews and positions, they have not changed much, which gives me some small reason to hope.
So closing that thought, pat yourselves on the back next time you are in front of a beer or drink. Toast OUR success and continue doing what we have been doing, which is seeing through the bullshit and telling our neighbors, friends, relatives and strangers we meet while pumping gas what we have discovered. It has and will make a difference. ^5 (That is a high five for those of you who did not have computers before AOL. :)
Moving on, there are two issue which I think are of major importance in our current circumstance. One being Victoria Nuland and her last two weeks in office and her goals with regards to Cyprus. There is much danger here. Erdogan is not trustworthy. I am prejudiced against Turks, I readily admit that. I was once involved in...let's say 'underworld activities' in Germany and Turks were the ones not to be trusted. I dealt with many different nationalities and even though everyone involved was trying to get the best of everyone else, it was the Turks who were most dangerous to deal with. Just the way it is and even though I have dealt with Turks in other circumstances and they acted appropriately, the stigma had already stuck. I don't understand it, it is a culture thing maybe, but we have seen what Erdogan is capable of. If Vicki is able to get Turkey into the EU, things will change again. This is a subject I hope b takes a look at and puts the pieces together as only he seems able to do.
The second is the war inside the US. I listened to the senate hearings this morning with regard to the "Russian hacking". Both demo and repubs were on board with the "Russia is our enemy " meme. They are going to try and tie Trump's hand in regard to Russia. Their goal is easy to see, but the law of unintended consequences is always in effect, just like gravity...
Our house and senate is going to try and use the Russia hacking to pass some new laws to protect their communications, so they can freely use emails and even if hacked or leaked, the proceeds will not be available to the public. Simple, self serving, to be expected from people of their mindset. I am a literal person and the scheming is beyond me. I really can't see repercussions the way others do. I fear that in the midst of covering their asses there is great risk to all. While this is outside of b's purview, I hope someone with different abilities than I gets on top of this.
I truly feel that we dodged a bullet with Trumps' election, but we have only bought ourselves time. There is an unrecognized advantage that we have and I will share this with you. Trump likes to win, he likes to be right. It is incumbent on us to get the facts to him. Everyone of us who is on twitter should be on his feed, feeding him truths. He is not stupid, (matter of fact none of them are, it is their value systems that bring us distress) and if we can give him truths he will proceed accordingly because he wants to be a hero. There is no doubt he has misconceptions at this point, but no one can process information that they do not have. It is incumbent upon those of us with this information to make it available to him. It is his nature that we must use to gain desired actions. He wants to be right 100% and if we give him factual information he will act accordingly. He does not want to go down in history as a failure, he does not need any more money, he sure doesn't need any more power. There is an old interview he did with Op rah, I think it was in the 80's, but as I said earlier, as stupid as he sounds sometimes, he is not dense. We can use this.
This is a pretty long post for me, (apologies for those reading with no interest) but while I am cleaning out my closet, there are a couple more things I want to address.
B, I truly appreciate the forum you provide and it bothers me that I have been unable to contribute to MOA. You have one of the best, if not the best comment board on the net and I will hate to see it go. I've been here forever, don't talk much but boy do I learn a lot. I'm not going to ever be able to repay you for what I have gained by hanging out here. Maybe something will change and I will be able to relieve myself of this guilt.
RG and Jack Smith.... RG you are truly fatalistic and scary. Why are you still here if we are so doomed? Have you no hope that the best of us cannot make a difference and put us on a sustainable path? Jack Smith seems to be your cheerleader? Something seems strange with you two and I know how long Mr. Smith has been here so I try to give you the benefit of the doubt...but the pattern continues. FYI RG, it is not us Americans that are the problem, it is the people who seek positions of power in our government. Like I said above, 57% of the people eligible to vote, did. I am guilty of wishing a nuclear on CONUS myself, but not total annihilation as your posts too frequently wish upon us.
One more box, way back in the corner....okay.. here it is..
B, that cdrake guy you had to ban awhile back was testing an AI auto comment bot. I think it was Israeli, but can't confirm. I've seen them tested at other places and it has gotten much better but is not deployable yet. You are going to have your hands full maintaining order here over the next 2 (TWO) (did I say two?) years and while I know you won't hesitate to shut it down if it gets out of control, (everybody loses that way) it might be worthwhile to skip a post and look at comment moderating options. I love this place and hope you can keep it real.
That's it, I'll post again when bothered or I find something unique.
be good and don't forget to congratulate yourselves.
b4real
Posted by: b4real | Jan 6 2017 1:01 utc | 32
- Conn Hallinan talked about the nuclear tensions between India & Pakistan. And those tensions received more fuel as a result of policies of the Bush administration.
http://fpif.org/global-nuclear-winter-avoiding-unthinkable-india-pakistan/
https://www.libertarianinstitute.org/scotthortonshow/121616-conn-hallinan-avoiding-nuclear-war-india-pakistan/
Conn Hallinan also talked about how one Samantha Power "re-defined" a number of definitions of a few words in the english language.
https://www.libertarianinstitute.org/scotthortonshow/101016-conn-hallinan/
http://fpif.org/u-s-diplomacy-dangerous-proposal/
Posted by: Willy2 | Jan 6 2017 1:19 utc | 33
Forgot to mention something,
There is another commenter here who goes by the name of 'b real'. I do not wish to take credit for his posts, (he is admirable) and I do not wish him to be blamed for mine. There have been a couple of instances of someone posting under my nick, but I DO NOT feed trolls and let them pass unnoticed. I don't know if b real was here before me and it doesn't matter, but FYI there are almost two of us.
thanks
b4real not b real
Posted by: b4real | Jan 6 2017 1:22 utc | 34
Interesting comparison between Vietnam war and the Obama democrats
http://wsenmw.blogspot.com/2017/01/the-elephant-grass-of-democratic-party.html
Posted by: rawdawgbugfalo | Jan 6 2017 1:40 utc | 35
Did anyone witness 3 stooges McCain, Graham and Clapper stink the room up at the Senate inquiry into Russian hacking yesterday in the blanket attempt at delegitimising Trumps win...? Russian boogeyman beat up again, without any evidence...and Cruz came out looking sane for once apparently. Would like some feedback on how it looked on CSpan if anyone was watching.
Link from Sputnik
http://sptnkne.ws/djBM
Posted by: MadMax2 | Jan 6 2017 2:07 utc | 36
@ b4real | Jan 5, 2017 8:22:12 PM | 34
To our digital internet version of Samizdat! Virtual drinks at the Bar are on me ;)
Posted by: Outraged | Jan 6 2017 2:14 utc | 37
25 petri
thanks for your work on the grizzly steppe. really very good and illuminating.
here's what i noticed about your site though, no-script blocked about 25 files right off and i had to enable software from 3 urls to see anything there. when i'd done that, eff's privacy badger still said ... 'Privacy Badger detected 11 potential trackers on this page.'
i note that nmb's sight, also hosted by blogspot.com, shows up without my having to enable any software ... and privacy badger only identifies 7 potential trackers on his page ;)
i copied your page and make it available - no pictures, they didn't add anything and the first one is a tracker - to any others who, like myself, may be averse to blogspot.com sites that don't show up without opening the barn door. if nmb can do it, so can you?
Posted by: jfl | Jan 6 2017 2:17 utc | 38
>>>> karlof1 | Jan 5, 2017 7:02:09 PM | 27
Where do you try to have your conversations?
Try the comments at Lawyers, Guns and Money. Ask for evidence of any of the DNC claims concerning Russia and you're accused of being a Putinbot. Just got banned for questioning why they hadn't blamed Putin for a 1970 coal mining disaster since they seemed to blame him for everything else.
The Guardian comments are the same at certain times of the day - mostly seems to be Americans.
Posted by: Ghostship | Jan 6 2017 2:21 utc | 39
Willy2
Difficult to see where things will go until we see POTUS Trump's actions, but India is/maybe is the game changer for the full spectrum dominance crowd. Materials there for an IED on the world scene.
Posted by: Peter AU | Jan 6 2017 2:27 utc | 40
James Woolsey quits Trump transition team, doesn't like its direction. Hopefully good news that that Neocon warmonger is unhappy w our next President.
Posted by: fairleft | Jan 6 2017 2:33 utc | 41
@b4real ' I listened to the senate hearings this morning with regard to the "Russian hacking" ... Their goal is easy to see, but the law of unintended consequences is always in effect, just like gravity...'
@mm2 'anyone witness 3 stooges McCain, Graham and Clapper ... in the blanket attempt at delegitimising Trumps win...?'
i think that anyone who did listen in either case shares your feelings. i did not listen/watch but of course i do share your feelings. i think the political class and the tnc msm are both below 20% in 'approval' ratings, and that no one gives a damn what they think/say any longer. i think that people are waiting for some action from tee-rump, and that if he can do anything constructive ... kill/maim the cia/nsa ... shut-down the proxy wars in syria and ukraine ... that he will be seen as a hero ... until the carnage he's likely to cause to the domestic economic situation of ordinary americans becomes apparent.
i don't think the one will wash the other, although - unfortunately - most americans seem to go along with anything done to abet israel, and won't say a thing on that score if tee-rump delivers on throttling the us' proxy wars, and eases up on russia. no one is afraid of russia any more, certainly they know russia could be a very formidable opponent ... but people understand that the 'troubles' between the us and russia are all the us' doing. i'm talking 'real people' not those whose paychecks come from trouble and strife ... whose numbers, unfortunately, have been growing steadily since the onset of the new american century. see @28 above.
Posted by: jfl | Jan 6 2017 2:44 utc | 42
15
Operation Fortitude Two, a diversion in preparation for storming the beaches of Theodosiya, high tide, 12 March, to recapture Crimea for the Khazarim. It's a' comin'!
Posted by: chipnik | Jan 6 2017 3:02 utc | 43
32
"Rsoes are red, vletois are bule,
sgaur is sewet...
and dnig dnog the wtcih is daed!"
How'd my AI auto-comment bot do?
Posted by: chipnik | Jan 6 2017 3:19 utc | 44
Posted by: MadMax2 | Jan 5, 2017 9:07:08 PM | 36
Haven't seen the 3 stooges on CSpan but have seen them on Qz (virtual) News. They're already talking about a Report of "evidence" that's so secret that they'll only release a de-classified (redacted) version. Meanwhile, in the absence of a shred of evidence they'll continue to wax rhetorical with the propaganda.
Not unrelated to the above is the reaction of the gaggle of dimwits, led by Chuck Schumer, whingeing about Trump's government by Twitter habit. That is scaring the crap out of the Neolibracons because true Democracy is about Open Government, and just when the Neolibracons had gotten The People used to being told what to think by their politicians who don't listen, along comes Trump who tells The People what He's thinking, as soon as He thinks it, and is just as curious to learn what they're thinking. And He's available 24/7.
That's a Revolution, right there.
Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Jan 6 2017 3:36 utc | 46
JFL "until the carnage he's likely to cause to the domestic economic situation of ordinary americans becomes apparent."
I'm not sure about other aspects but Americans may be a bit grumpy while they're being weaned of the Chinese teat, if Trump has his way.
I have two views on the US China balance of trade.
1) I cheer china because they are screwing the US to the tune of 20 to 30 billion per each and every month.
2) Trump, if he is any sort of US patriot, rather than a globalist, will try to turn this around. But if he does, the US will go through some Chinese import withdrawal symptoms.
Being Australian I have never seen a wallmart store, but I believe they would be mightily pissed if imports from China were stopped or tariffed..
Posted by: Peter AU | Jan 6 2017 3:49 utc | 47
Posted by: b4real | Jan 5, 2017 8:01:15 PM | 32
Turks... Erdogan.. Take a look at the way Russia are handling the wannabe sultan. Turkey shoots down Russian plane. Russia warns Erdo of coup. Erdo believes US (NATO partner) behind coup. Most likely correct. Gulenist is Erdo speak for CIA.
Erdo's supporters, going off twitter accounts are pro Syrian "rebel" anti US. Erdo has made noises in the past that AQ are not terrorists.
As Erdo believes US tried to topple him, he has to turn to Russia
In Syria Russia is fighting Erdo's support base. Between Russia helping him, and fighting his support base, Erdo has his balls in a vice.
He may break free, but maybe just a lot of high pitched talk?
Posted by: Peter AU | Jan 6 2017 4:18 utc | 48
jfl @42:
... until the carnage he's likely to cause to the domestic economic situation of ordinary americans becomes apparent.Much of that "carnage" stems from Obama's:
>> faux recovery (except for 2009, most new jobs created have been low-skilled, part-time, and/or temporary);>> failed health plan (Obamacare);
>> failure to reign in Banks/Wall Street;
>> bloated spending on military and security services;
>> record inequality (Bush tax cuts made permanent) coupled with austerity
(comforting the comfortable and afflicting the afflicted);>> $20 Trillion deficit (an increase of $8 trillion - nearly 70% more than when he started)
What could justify such a huge increase? Were we at war? Well yes: Obama made 'war' on whistle-blowers, civil rights; and the poor, as well as Iraq (he wanted to stay), Afghanistan, Pakistan (which he invaded to get ObL), Syria, Yemen, Ukraine, and other countries;
>> and more.
Posted by: Jackrabbit | Jan 6 2017 4:19 utc | 49
b4real@32 - Nice post - thanks for sharing your thoughts. They all make perfect sense.
karlof1@13 - What kind of equipment would they use for listening posts nowdays, karlof1? I'm guessing they don't have radio trailers and generator trucks anymore, but could something backpack-able work on batteries for a week or so? Receiving isn't an issue, but I assume they're not sticking some poor intel chump up there for a week with headphones, binoculars and a generator. I would figure operators somewhere in the valley would remotely control and relay everything they're listening for, so there would just be a (or several) remotely tunable receivers and some kind of link to a more comfortable lair. Does that even sound practical?
I'm military from your vintage, and it took four guys just to haul around a full set of 'portable' aircraft radios. I'm sure they have much smaller rigs today and the Israelis would have little interest in anything but UHF and cell phones.
Posted by: PavewayIV | Jan 6 2017 4:29 utc | 50
Spent the day reading this:
https://daliamaelachlan.files.wordpress.com/2017/01/boston-ail-book-jan-5-9.pdf
It is by Mary Maxwell, and she writes in an ironic style (which many find off putting). The title is: Marathon Bombing: Indicting the Players.
Paul Craig Roberts also recommends the book.
Finally, if Americans cannot take back their country from self-serving oligarchs, Americans are doomed.
Well, I guess then, we're doomed ... too bad it's taken so long.
Posted by: rg the lg | Jan 6 2017 4:31 utc | 51
Fascinating events and strange power-plays throughout the power structure. Trump is making alliances as fast as he can with a variety of factions--he's shown me he knows what Washington is about which is mainly just power and not ideology. The easiest way to assert power is through "creating" a "threat" in order to throw funding your way. This is why U.S. power and prestige in the world is rapidly declining--most people know that and are waiting for the house of cards to collapse--hopefully Trump will provide the push--we'll see. Whether he's a good guy or not he has balls.
@9 ojs
not too much on damascus' water but a very good show on syria and tnc msm media ... lying, defense of terrorists, and terrorist propaganda. the governments of the us/uk ... of fukus, as they say, france is right in there as well, are ongoing criminal operations. no other way to describe them.
Posted by: jfl | Jan 6 2017 6:30 utc | 53
@ 20 Anonymous.. thanks anonymous. i see it differently, but appreciate your perspective. the way i see it, it is typically a small few that have a big influence on a larger group. we need leaders, not followers.. the folks here who have managed to cut thru the bullshit then to be more leadership material, then followers. i maintain it is these same small few that make a much bigger difference, and as @32 b4real points out - we do make a difference.
@32 b4real. thanks man. great post and i thank you for taking up @20s response in such a positive upbeat manner. i agree with much of what you say, and find myself relating very well to @48 peter au's comments here.. erdogan as i said a few days ago, is between a rock and a hard place.. he is kinda fucked no matter what he does, but then i personally believe he put himself in this position.. he would have taken a very adept and extremely capable leader to avoid what has befallen turkey at this moment in time.. mind you, turning a blind eye to the gcc's emptying their jails (so long as they go to syria) and using turkey as a bypass zone certainly didn't help him or turkey any.. i would say his presidency referendum is now in jeopardy of not passing.. it is hard to read the turks here, but i can't say i share your view on them. i have had very limited interaction with them, and i certainly wouldn't want to cross them. but then i feel that way about most folks from other cultures that i am not as familiar with.. thanks for your thoughtful input here.
@48 peter au.. as i see it, the potential danger connected with where turkey is at doesn't help for peace in the whole region.. it is anyone's guess how things unfold as we move forward here.. these isis, wahabbi, takafiri whack jobs seem to be pretty good at gaining recruits.. the money must be pretty good? - sure as fuck has nothing to do with religion or they are all more brain-dead then i realize.. at any rate, as the mercenary group de jour of the west, it remains to be seen how long they can go on.. life is hell for many folks in libya, iraq and syria, with turkey also becoming a part of this too... it is nice to think trump will make a difference, but like i and others have said, if he goes off script ( wall st/mil complex script) too much, he is a dead man as i see it..
Posted by: james | Jan 6 2017 7:28 utc | 54
LOL,Smooth Move
http://www.npr.org/2017/01/05/508417418/trump-picks-ex-senator-banned-from-russia-as-his-intelligence-chief?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=news
Posted by: okie farmer | Jan 6 2017 8:06 utc | 55
Theoretical physicist Verlinde is able to DERIVE Modified Newtonian Dynamics equations (which had no theoretical basis), using (amongst other things) a type of entropy dependent on quantum entanglement - and perhaps kill so-far-undiscovered "dark matter", in the process. "The Case Against Dark Matter" https://www.quantamagazine.org/20161129-verlinde-gravity-dark-matter/
"You can't discover dark matter if it doesn't exist", says I. Which is about the extent of my contributions to theoretical physics. :-)
We noted a stinging comment by Jasper von Altenbockum in FAZ this morning, in which he hyperventilates about the fact that the terrorist was able to amass 14 identity documents and travel freely through Schengen-Land. He said the real tragedy of the Berlin massacre is that the police had correctly identified him as a potential danger, but failed to draw the right conclusions.
The details of this case suggest that Germany, unlike France, is ill-prepared for such attacks. The details of this case suggest that Germany, unlike France, is ill-prepared for such attacks.
Posted by: okie farmer | Jan 6 2017 8:49 utc | 57
49
[Hollywood Insider] - Disney Productions Michael Eisner has announced signing scriptwriters David Benioff and D.B.Weiss, along with executive producers David Sondheim and Steven Spielberg, for a political thriller docu-drama about the 2017 USAryan Transition of Power, with a working title '100 Days', perhaps alluding to Jack Kennedy (and the Rwandan Massacre?).
Will Smith to play the younger Kenyan Senator in flashbacks to 2007, then be age-masked to play the older Kenyan as POTUS through the 2017 handover. A digitally-recreated avatar Bob Bellwill be CGI-skinned over Vince McMahon, playing the starring role of 'The Donald', as he battles with Washington insiders and the Pentagon over the Cold War 2 runaway arms buildup, with Goldman advisors and entrenched Wall Street mafia over the collapsing USAryan economy, and with AIPAC and CFR on the quagmire of metastasizing Greater Levant.
'100 Days' will shows at the end how Trump at last comes to appreciate Marter Luther King's great strength of character, as a 100,000,000 Human Rights Protest March on Washington DC threatens to overshadow his hoped-for legacy, of Making A Grand Aristocracy.
No date was announced for the release.
Posted by: chipnik | Jan 6 2017 8:51 utc | 58
56
Interesting stories going around under the rubric of 'hydrinos', about reducing hydrogen ions, the stuff of intersteller plasma, to their lowest ground-state, so it may just be these clouds of ground-state hydrinos are absorbing the photons in deep space, and accounting for the discrepancy between observed 'visible' universe and its theoretical calculated mass.
Then you have to ask yourself, how many hydrinos can dance on the head of a piñon, if NASA can fund a cohort of astro-biologists, when there is nothing living in space, yes, even funding a cadre of astro-ontologists to decipher what might motivate space aliens, beyond the biology of survival, and writing cook books?
Whether the fundamental state of dark matter has any true significance will likely be solved in the next six months, as we set forth on an apartheid voyage of discovery to an all-white planet of WADC NOVA, and might even answer the question whether Star N-eil DeGrasse Tyson is a dark hydrino mass itself, absorbing all light and humor pouring out of companion Star N-Bill Nye, the Psyop Guy.
Posted by: chipnik | Jan 6 2017 9:20 utc | 59
ISIS corpses litter east Aleppo battlefield as another offensive flops
ISIS attempted to enter both Nasrallah and Rasm Al-Harmal yesterday, but were repelled at all axes near these depopulated villages in the Deir Hafer Plains.An estimated 45 Islamic State terrorists were killed during their failed advance on Thursday, marking the bitter end of their offensive operations at the villages of Rasm Al-Harmal and Nasrallah in the eastern countryside of Aleppo.
The Syrian Arab Army is planning to storm the key city of Deir Hafer in east Aleppo, as they take advantage of the terrorist group's decrepit defenses in northern Syria.
Syrian Army kills many terrorists in Deir Ezzor as ISIS fails to advance at key airport
ISIS began the assault at 8 A.M. on Thursday morning, when a large number of their fighters stormed many military sites in Deir Ezzor, resulting in a long battle that lasted for several hours.Despite the intensity and size of the attack, the Syrian Arab Army was able to foil the terrorist offensive in Deir Ezzr on Thursday, killing and wounding several terrorists in the process.
In the coming days, the Islamic State is expected to launch more attacks in the Deir Ezzor Governorate, as their forces look to close-in on the provincial capital and military airport.
Syria, Iraq to strengthen military cooperation
Al-Fayad conveyed to President al-Assad a message from al-Abadi, in which he affirmed the importance of cooperation and coordination between Syria and Iraq in their war against the terrorist organizations and the need to enhance this cooperation in the coming period.
it's hard to feel sorry for the us/turkey/ksa/gcc mercenaries and dupes who have been killed as a result of their attacks against the syrian people.
there have been a series of attacks and successful defenses in dier ez-zor in recent days. i hope the saa continues to defeat the us/turkey/ksa/gcc mercenaries and dupes sent against them.
it is heartening to read of meetings between syrian and iraqi officials. these two countries have borne the brunt of the death, devastation, and destruction visited on the region over the past sixteen years brutal, us neocon war party crimes and agressions.
the nations of the regions have, in the end, only themselves to rely upon.
Posted by: jfl | Jan 6 2017 10:03 utc | 60
60
Meanwhile, back in reality land, the price of one gallon of gasoline in Mexico is now equal to the daily minimum wage for 122,000,000 citizens of the southern free capitalist democracy:
It's not an economic war by the globalists! We're all amigos here! Just like Greece, home of democracy. No, my friend, MENA is the 'war' on 'terror' (sic), and MAGA our only salvation. Pay no attention to anything other than crISIS, and the need for more WehrMacht Dollares!
Posted by: chipnik | Jan 6 2017 10:17 utc | 61
... really, Obama is ridiculing himself. Not only does it give the sense of being the bad loser (on the side of the Obama-Clinton clan) but, worse, the President, in doing so, puts peace at risk: the remaining three weeks of his mandate would suffice to trigger further escalation insofar as he has major administrations behind him: the State Department, the Pentagon, and the CIA -- all held by hawks who only want to do battle with Russia.There is such bitterness among those who, on the 20th of January, when Trump takes office, will no longer be anything, that some of them are no doubt ready for anything.
if he doesn't succeed in starting THE war, it won't be for lack of effort ... or laissez faire,
'the State Department, the Pentagon, and the CIA ... who only want to do battle with Russia' have already proved themselves truly to be loose cannons on deck with their stint as the isaf and massacre of more than 100 of the syrian arab army at the onset of kerry's negotiated ceasefire.
it seems they didn't run that one by their 'commander in chief', or has obama been working against kerry, as well?
it's the 6th where i am. 14 more days, waiting to be shattered by the nobel peace prize laureate's final betrayal. are all us carrier groups still in port? i'd feel better if the war-mongers felt they, personally, had something to lose. certainly they care not one whit about the rest of us.
Posted by: jfl | Jan 6 2017 10:23 utc | 62
“Yep. That’s it. The US is now the USSR. It’s all over. Trump is a Communist who took orders from Putin. Trump is a Red. That was his game all along. He’s a billionaire Commie.”
who knew ...
China tops US in numbers of billionaires
China's annual rich list has indicated that, once again, the country has more dollar billionaires than the US, and the gap is widening.Property magnate Wang Jianlin of Dalian Wanda tops the list of 594 billionaires in the country, ahead of 535 billionaires in the US.
... the us has one billionaire commie, but the plutocrats' republic has 594 commie billionaires.
Posted by: jfl | Jan 6 2017 10:38 utc | 63
@b4real
nice contributions - pipe in more often
my handle goes back to the whiskey bar days - actually started commenting as 'b' before b joined on in billmon's place, at which point i upgraded to a nick some of my acquaintances had been addressing me as offline - works on several levels of interpretation
appreciate your considerate words - peace
Posted by: b real | Jan 6 2017 10:57 utc | 64
... the US has one billionaire commie, but the plutocrats' republic has 594 commie billionaires.
LOL :))
Posted by: Outraged | Jan 6 2017 11:00 utc | 65
Trump Splits With 'Senior Advisor' Former CIA Chief Woolsey
"Effective immediately, Ambassador Woolsey is no longer a Senior Adviser to President-elect Trump or the transition," Woolsey's spokesman, Jonathan Franks, wrote in a statement that was first reported by CNN's Jeremy Diamond."He wishes the President-elect and his Administration great success in their time in office."
made a point of saying 'time' rather than 'term', didn't he?
Posted by: jfl | Jan 6 2017 11:10 utc | 66
@ b real | Jan 6, 2017 5:57:22 AM | 64
Reality checking, new insights & a little morale boosting every now and then, especially for worn down old Moonbats, never goes a amiss. B4real and any similar definitely should make the jump and dare to chime in more often, methinks.
@ jfl | Jan 6, 2017 6:10:41 AM | 66
"He (Woolsey) wishes the President-elect and his Administration great success in their time in office."
made a point of saying 'time' rather than 'term', didn't he?
Astute catch ;)
Posted by: Outraged | Jan 6 2017 11:37 utc | 67
Nazi Germany had 3600 tanks on the Russian border when it invaded in June 1941.
Of course, it also had 3.2 million German troops and 600,000 troops from vassal states, too.
But I'm sure this brings back the memories for Russians. They also make a nice target, too.
Political Insanity: Outgoing President Obama’s “Operation Atlantic Resolve” against Russia: US Sends 3,600 Tanks Against Russia – Massive NATO Deployment Underway
By Donbass International News Agency and Prof Michel Chossudovsky
Global Research, January 05, 2017
Introductory Note by Michel Chossudovsky:
Dangerous crossroads: Is Obama intent upon waging a military operation on Russia’s border prior to the end of his presidential mandate?
This military onslaught could potentially create a fait accompli.
Are these deployments of US tanks and troops part of Obama’s “act of retribution” against Russia in response to Moscow’s alleged hacking of the US elections, which according to the director of National Intelligence James Clapper constitute an “Existential Threat” to the Security of the US.
As we recall Obama on December 29th “ordered a series of retaliatory steps against Russia”.
Is this a “fast-track” procedure on the part of the outgoing president, with the support of US intelligence to create chaos prior to the inception of the Trump administration on January 20th?
According to Donbass International News Agency Service, “A Massive US military deployment should be ready by January 20.”
Political Insanity prevails.
And insanity could potentially unleash World War III.
Meanwhile none of this is front page news. The mainstream media is not covering it.
Below is the report of the Donbass International News Agency report.
Michel Chossudovsky, Global Research, January 5, 2016
* * *
Donbass International News Agency 4 January 2017
https://dninews.com/article/us-sends-3600-tanks-against-russia-massive-nato-deployment-underway
The NATO war preparation against Russia, ‘Operation Atlantic Resolve’, is in full swing. 2,000 US tanks will be sent in coming days from Germany to Eastern Europe, and 1,600 US tanks is deployed to storage facilities in the Netherlands. At the same time, NATO countries are sending thousands of soldiers in to Russian borders.
According to US Army Europe, 4,000 troops and 2,000 tanks will arrive in three US transport ships to Germany next weekend. From Bremerhaven, US troops and huge amount of military material, will be transported to Poland and other countries in Central and Eastern Europe.
USA is sending to Russian borders 3rd Brigade of the 4th Infantry Division. Overall, more than 2,500 pieces of cargo are shipped to Germany, where those will be unloaded in the period January 6-8. US military material and troops will continue to Poland by rail and military convoy’s. Massive US military deployment should be ready by January 20.
“Some 900 cars with military materiel will be transported by train from Bremerhaven to Poland. There are also about 600 pieces of freight that will be transported by train to Poland from the military training ground at Bergen-Hohne. Nearly 40 vehicles will travel directly by road from Bremerhaven to Poland,” told Bundeswehr press office.
“Three years after the last American tanks left the continent, we need to get them back,” said Lieutenant General Frederick “Ben” Hodges, commander of US forces in Europe.
He made the statement during a visit to the Logistics School of the Bundeswehr in Garlstedt, Lower Saxony. He told journalists that the measures were a “response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the illegal annexation of Crimea.”
While NATO is preparing for war against Russia, Hodges turned everything upside down and accused Russia of preparing for war. “This does not mean that there necessarily has to be a war, none of this is inevitable, but Moscow is preparing for the possibility,” Hodges said.
In the dangerous escalation against nuclear-armed Russia, which poses the danger of a third world war, the German Bundeswehr is playing a central role. “Without the support of the [German] Army, we can go nowhere,” Hodges said during an appearance at the Joint Support Service of the Bundeswehr.
Germany, which rolled over Eastern Europe in its war of extermination 75 years ago, is preparing to send combat troops to the Baltics. In January, 26 tanks, 100 other vehicles and 120 containers will be transported by train to Lithuania. Germany will send the 122nd Infantry Battalion.
At the same time total of 1,600 US fighting vehicles are due to be stored at a six-warehouse complex in the southeastern village of Eygelshoven, near the Belgian and German borders. The Eygelshoven facility was originally opened in 1985 during the Cold War, when it was used by US troops to practice drills in case of a possible Soviet attack, wrote RT News.
Abrams Tanks, Bradley Fighting Vehicles and Paladin artillery have already started arriving in what is part of a $3.4 billion Congress-approved scheme to increase NATO military capability in Europe. Storage sites are also planned to be reopened in Poland, Belgium and Germany.
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/u-s-army-returns-tanks-europe-nato-eyes-assertive-russia-n696436
Posted by: Perimetr | Jan 6 2017 11:44 utc | 68
@b real, b4real, outraged, et al.
i used to follow billmon, back in the day, and b and the moon for a good while thereafter, although i did fall by the wayside for a number of years twixt now and then. it is good to see you all chiming in ... annie, ALberto, ruralito, all the rest.
rather than an emergency ... an 'aberration' someone said the other day ... the full catastrophe has moved in with us, long since. good morning heartache, sit down. so it's not entirely pleasant that the site still exists, in the sense that it's still required. that the 'aberration' is unrelenting, or that it's now recognized as a chronic phenomenon, but it is pleasant that the site has evolved and improved ... certainly on b's side. billie holiday was resigned, finally, to the recurrent disasters that, strung together, made up her life. she managed to polish them and to string them like pearls. sixteen years of bush-obama are not the same, but not completely unlike, either. recurrent disaster. b's strung pearls of acute observation and relation of one to another over that time, as have many of his commentators. it's good to see you all back on occasion. good to have heard from rgiap a few weeks ago! life goes on, cresting the continuous wave of disaster. after sixteen years, i have to wonder, has it ever been thus? was what i think of as the good ole days the aberration?
Posted by: jfl | Jan 6 2017 12:11 utc | 69
@ Perimetr | Jan 6, 2017 6:44:53 AM | 68
Oh FFS ! These dangerous fucking neocon chickenhawk warmongers are still apparently having wet dreams over their previous Cold War V1.0, Tom Clancy like, fantasies and delusions re the Fulda Gap.
Fulda - The Lovely Little Town That Would Have Been Absolutely Screwed by World War III.
At what cost, $Billions upon $Billions... and at what risk of triggering WWIII ?!
Treasonous inhuman bastards, one and all.
Posted by: Outraged | Jan 6 2017 12:14 utc | 70
@ jfl | Jan 6, 2017 7:11:07 AM | 69
after sixteen years, i have to wonder, has it ever been thus? was what i think of as the good ole days the aberration?
I hear you 5x5 loud and clear, my friend, ... oh, how I hear you. Depressingly, it's the same as it ever was, ever since Plymouth Rock ... the pitch and intensity has certainly magnified & accelerated these last ~4 years ...
Oh, how R'Giap's voice is sorely, personally, missed ... his ability to succintly express the cruel absurd inhumanity of events and certain 'posts', was piercing ... and he took ... no prisoners.
We would have been ... at real risk, diametrically ideologically opposed, in our early lives ... We were Soldiers once and Young (catchy title for a movie), huh :(
Vale, pax tecum, R'Giap, wherever you may be, Tovarishch!
Posted by: Outraged | Jan 6 2017 12:37 utc | 71
I checked out the Wed edition of the "local" paper (only 3/week) and they wasted most of a page for Garry Kasparov:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2017/01/03/the-u-s-doesnt-have-a-problem-with-russia-it-has-a-problem-with-vladimir-putin/?utm_term=.e82ce00b1766
A lot of the gist I got from his view was that Obama blew his chance because he's weak and Trump has teamed up with Putin. Also, the wrong oligarchs won. Kasparov disparages "the transparency and openness of Western media and political systems" that Putin takes advantage of. And what option to that is there? A closed system? And Putin's hacking is the problem NOT the vulnerable operating systems or the stupidity that connects important data to them (or the fact that many are doing this including US, other governments like China, organized crime, and independent hackers).
And they created an abbreviated version over at Newsmax:
http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/Garry-Kasparov-Putin-Real-Problem-Russia/2017/01/03/id/766533/
Posted by: Curtis | Jan 6 2017 15:15 utc | 72
This comment in the Intercept [sorry cannot remember name] is so good I must reproduce it here, hope he/she does not mind.
"Since WW11, a large part of the American raison d'etre has been to stop Russia, fight Russia-even, 'destroy Russia'. I'm talking about the media, education system, it's political machinery, and of course, it's vast war machine, aka the Military Industrial Complex.
America spent 5 decades focusing on this battle with the Soviet Union, and when the USSR actually collapsed; I saw dismay and confusion, not happiness.
"We have no enemy now! No threat! No purpose in life!" The tears were real.
They tried terrorism, as the 'threat'- but their 'enemy' was laughably weak, ineffectual, and perhaps worst of all, hardly required the construction of nuclear powered aircraft carriers, or missile subs to defeat.
So for a time Russia was 'okay' as long as it was red misting Chetchen's, but when Putin reared his head over Palin's back yard and began to make Russia strong again? Game on!
Cold war is back and this is on purpose. Hot war very possible, by accident, but also because there are those [See: General Buck Turgidson] who fervently wish for the final battle. These are people who genuinely believe that a nuclear exchange that destroys Russia and only kills 30% of Americans and half their industrial capacity is a "win".
Posted by: harrylaw | Jan 6 2017 15:26 utc | 73
binney and mcgovern:
> Hack: When someone in a remote location electronically penetrates operating systems, firewalls or other cyber-protection systems and then extracts data. Our own considerable experience, plus the rich detail revealed by Edward Snowden, persuades us that, with NSA's formidable trace capability, it can identify both sender and recipient of any and all data crossing the network.
>
> Leak: When someone physically takes data out of an organization — on a thumb drive, for example — and gives it to someone else, as Edward Snowden and Chelsea Manning did. Leaking is the only way such data can be copied and removed with no electronic trace.
>
> Because NSA can trace exactly where and how any "hacked" emails from the Democratic National Committee or other servers were routed through the network, it is puzzling why NSA cannot produce hard evidence implicating the Russian government and WikiLeaks. Unless we are dealing with a leak from an insider, not a hack, as other reporting suggests. From a technical perspective alone, we are convinced that this is what happened.
>
> Lastly, the CIA is almost totally dependent on NSA for ground truth in this electronic arena. Given Mr. Clapper's checkered record for accuracy in describing NSA activities, it is to be hoped that the director of NSA will join him for the briefing with Mr. Trump.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/oped/bs-ed-hacking-intelligence-20170105-story.html
Posted by: mauisurfer | Jan 6 2017 15:26 utc | 74
Drudge pushed a story about our Nobel Peace prize winning president O-Bomba who had a lot of bombs dropped last year.
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/article124842824.html
"The U.S. also dropped more bombs in Libya in 2016 than it did in 2015." We're still at war in/with Libya? Which of the three governments are we supporting there? I guess we're still enforcing that UN resolution for Hillary's no-fly zone.
Posted by: Curtis | Jan 6 2017 15:29 utc | 75
The Jerusalem Post claims that an Israeli spy sat has found a large stash of Iskander missiles in Latakia Provence.
Posted by: Wwinsti | Jan 6 2017 15:41 utc | 76
Deputy leader of Libya's U.N.-backed government resigns
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-libya-security-politics-idUSKBN14M13A
"I announce my resignation due the failure of the Presidential Council, because it holds responsibility for the killing, kidnapping, and rape that happened over the past year," Koni told a press conference in Tripoli on Monday.
Killing, kidnapping, rape?
Another Killary success story.
We came, we saw, we destroyed another state.
Posted by: Curtis | Jan 6 2017 15:44 utc | 77
Anna News have released a video with new information on the White Helmets. It shows what appears to be abandoned White Helmet training bases on the same sites used by ISIS, possibly in Aleppo. There is a spoken reference to al Zinki. There are interviews with captured(?)/ex(?) White Helment members - difficult to be sertain as it has only Russian captions. This video deserves to have English subtitles. Any takers?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90ACRoCzeL8
Posted by: Yonatan | Jan 6 2017 15:46 utc | 78
Wwinsti @76
Iskanders were photographed at Hymeim shortly after the S-400s arrived there. This looks like another attempt by the Whiny State to show it is still relevant.
Posted by: Yonatan | Jan 6 2017 15:51 utc | 79
@ harrylaw 73
This very true ... The USSR collapse was so quick and unforeseen that colleagues, but especially the brass and directors were visibly having conniptions ... confronted with imminent sudden loss of power, status, budgets, bribes, gravy train ... no future stepping into MIC corporations .. the imminent end of lucrative lobbying ... some of the earliest justifications to maintain the status quo and avoid a Peace dividend were just ludicrous
Posted by: Outraged | Jan 6 2017 15:52 utc | 80
Wwinsti@76. So. The US has supplied the 'Robed Dictators' and head chopper supporters well over 100 billion dollars worth of sophisticated weaponry over the last couple of years. Also Israel is well tooled up, care of Uncle Sam. Fair's fair.
Posted by: harrylaw | Jan 6 2017 15:54 utc | 81
Yes, I am negative.
Simply put, people are evil. The rest of the animal kingdom may live by tooth and claw, but only humans kill for no reason. Religion is not a cause of evil, but rather an excuse for evil: a rationalization. The whole 'peace' movement is nothing more than a plea for the status quo. Politics is little more than an excuse for domination ... getting ones way. Democracy isn't ... except as a facade for fraud. Hope is a veiled threat to accept the status quo for me and mine ... and f**k the rest.
Someone said: "FYI RG, it is not us Americans that are the problem, it is the people who seek positions of power in our government. Like I said above, 57% of the people eligible to vote, did. I am guilty of wishing a nuclear on CONUS myself, but not total annihilation as your posts too frequently wish upon us." Well, there are a few who may not be evil, rotten to the core, but I challenge you to come up with one thing Americans do that is not exploitative or twisted to eventually justify either their position in the greed game, or created to acquire ... .
Regarding Jack Smith ... he and I actually disagree as much as we agree. The one thing we have in common is that both of us see humans as evil and thus worthy of annihilation. Maybe, then a similar non-greed based, rapacious species can come to the fore ... but not until human kind is eradicated.
Posted by: rg the lg | Jan 6 2017 15:59 utc | 82
re: usa bombing of syrian army at deir ezzor
another in depth masterpiece by gareth porter
read the whole story if you have time
The report contains the incriminating revelation that the authorities at CAOC had plenty of intelligence warning that its identification was flat wrong. Before the strike, the regional station of the Distributed Common Ground System, which is the Air Force’s primary intelligence organ for interpreting data from aerial surveillance, contested the original identification of the units, sending its own assessment that they could not possibly be Islamic State. Another pre-strike intelligence report, moreover, pointed to what appeared to be a flag at one of the two sites. And a map of the area that was available to intelligence analysts at CAOC clearly showed that the sites were occupied by the Syrian army. Harrigan and his command apparently claimed, implausibly, that they were unaware of any of this information.
Further evidence that Harrigan meant to strike Syrian army targets was the haste with which the strike was carried out, the day after the initial intelligence assessment was made. The investigation summary acknowledges that the decision to go ahead with a strike so soon after the target had been initially assessed was a violation of Air Force regulations.
It had started out as a “deliberate target development” process—one that did not require an immediate decision and could therefore allow for a more careful analysis of intelligence. That was because the targets were clearly fixed ground positions, so there was no need for an immediate strike. Nevertheless, the decision was made to change it to a “dynamic targeting process,” normally reserved for situations in which the target is moving, to justify an immediate strike on Sept. 17.
No one in Harrigan’s command, including the commander himself, would acknowledge having made that decision. That would have been a tacit admission that the attack was far more than an innocent mistake.
The Deir Ezzor strike appears to have been timed to provoke a breakdown of the cease-fire before the JIC could be formed, which was originally to be after seven days of effective truce—meaning Sept. 19. Obama added a requirement for the completion of humanitarian shipments from the Turkish border, but the opponents of the JIC could not count on the Syrian government continuing to hold up the truck convoys. That meant that Harrigan would need to move urgently to carry out the strike.
Perhaps the single most damaging piece of evidence that the strike was knowingly targeting Syrian army bases is the fact that Harrigan’s command sent the Russians very specific misleading information on the targets of the operation. It informed its Russian contact under the deconfliction agreement that the two targets were nine kilometers south of Deir Ezzor airfield, but in fact they were only three and six kilometers away, respectively, according to the summary. Accurate information about the locations would have set off alarm bells among the Russians, because they would have known immediately that Syrian army bases were being targeted, as the U.S. co-author of the investigation report, Gen. Richard Coe, acknowledged to reporters.
“Who is in charge in Washington?”
Gen. Harrigan’s strike worked like a charm in terms of the interests of those behind it. The hope of provoking a Syrian-Russian decision to end the cease-fire and thus the plan for the JIC was apparently based on the assumption that it would be perceived by both Russians and Syrians as evidence that Obama was not in control of U.S. policy and therefore could not be trusted as a partner in managing the conflict. That assumption proved correct. When Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations, Vitaly Churkin, spoke to reporters at a press briefing outside a U.N. Security Council emergency meeting on the U.S. attack on Syrian troops, he asked rhetorically, “Who is in charge in Washington? The White House or the Pentagon?”
Seemingly no longer convinced that Obama was in control of his own military in Syria, Russian President Vladimir Putin pulled the plug on his U.S. strategy. Two days after the attacks, Syria announced, with obvious Russian support, that the cease-fire was no longer in effect.
Posted by: mauisurfer | Jan 6 2017 16:08 utc | 83
AlJazeera says Sarah Palin has apologised to Assange, on FaceBorg, for maligning him in the past, adding a recommendation that he watch the Snowden movie if he gets the chance.
Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Jan 6 2017 16:25 utc | 84
@Yonatan and harrylaw 79,81
No question that fair was certainly fair, especially when several US politicians/ sec. of state were threatening military action against Syria. A single TEL was photographed several months ago, I remember, but the number of missiles was something of a mystery, and the fact that they have only now been located says something of the ability of the Russians to hide such weapons.
Posted by: Wwinsti | Jan 6 2017 16:33 utc | 85
@James + @jfl
Erdogan's trump cards - 1) MHP's Bahceli has sworn allegiance ans supports the changes to the constitution and the referendum which gives Erdogan an easy majority. 2) 'The People shall decide and they will not be prevented from exercising their democratic rights by terrorism!'
Unlesa the is a massive shift i politoxal allegiances and political courage Erdogan will keep his course.
This is the man who kicked off a civil war to ensure that the 're-election' gave him the rest he wanted!
@James
The Hurriyet article differes from other nws outlets, NTV, for one, whicb claim that the terrorist was Ughur. This would make sense given that Ughurs were handed free Turkish passports and free passage to Turkey to go and fight in Syria. Seems that they are returning to Turkey ...
Assad said openly to Erdogan in 2012 - "Of you carry a scorpion in your pocket, it will one day bite you" ... despite all his dancing and prancing Erdogan seems unable to avoid this truth.
Posted by: AtaBrit | Jan 6 2017 16:34 utc | 86
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-intercepts-capture-senior-russian-officials-celebrating-trump-win/
With no evidence.
Posted by: okie farmer | Jan 6 2017 17:21 utc | 87
@77 curtis.. john kirby - usa state dept daily spokesperson has been lately pushing how everyone has to get behind the gna so they can do their work.. i am sure no one will challenge him on this little bit of news you've shared.. not sure if you've been around moa for a while, but over the past year b has had a guest poster R. Galustian (on Libya) who has made a few posts on this topic. if you haven't read them - check them out.. they are on the left side panel.. he gives a broad scope on the political games being played by the west and more.. would be good to get an update.
here are kirbys comments on libya from wednesday - 2 days ago..
"Just one opening set of comments here on Libya. We note with deep concern today renewed fighting between Libyans in the central region of the country, fighting which we believe will only benefit Daesh and other violent extremists there. Obviously, we urge all parties to exercise some restraint here. The truth is that to date, Libyan forces have made progress against Daesh in Sirte and in eastern Libya, and that’s what makes this renewed fighting here of concern.
So we continue to encourage all parties to support the Government of National Accord – the GNA as it’s known – as it works to address the country’s critical challenges, to preserve its unity, and oversee a transition to a new government through peaceful elections that are stipulated in the Libyan Political Agreement, otherwise known as the LPA.
So obviously, we also urge all parties to renew efforts for national reconciliation through political dialogue, and we reiterate our strong support for the GNA and the LPA. This is, as we have said before, the time for all Libyans throughout the country to come together for the benefit of their nation and their fellow citizens."
@86 atabrit.. some of the mhp members have been speaking out against it and resigning.. you may be correct though about erdogans ability to push his agenda thru.. regarding the identity of the nightclub murderer, i had read ughur as well and think it was on hurriyet yesterday, but can't find the article now...unfortunately for erdogan, i think a lot of folks in turkey must be able to connect the dots here, no matter if they aren't being told so by their leader.. just reading a few of the opinion pieces leads over the past week leads me to believe my position here..
Posted by: james | Jan 6 2017 17:29 utc | 88
good news for a change
https://twitter.com/EHSANI22/status/817460126600884224
hope it works out
Posted by: Mina | Jan 6 2017 20:53 utc | 89
Thanks Yonatan
the Arabic piece is too short to make something out of it; but the visit of some Aleppo buildings shared between al Nusra and WH is certainly interesting. They probably went to Idlib, as for the Syrians among them. They had at least 3-4 spots, Hanano and other places. They probably spent most of the days doing fake videos, and once in a while used real footage. The Brits/US PR specialists were doing the editing obviously.
Let's wait until it is translated somewhere.
OT: only in Syria
https://twitter.com/EHSANI22/status/817057953119436800
Posted by: Mina | Jan 6 2017 21:07 utc | 90
These guys are so obsessed with self-promotion it is sickening
https://twitter.com/EHSANI22/status/815279258641768448
Posted by: Mina | Jan 6 2017 21:15 utc | 91
Daraa, next door to Golan heights and Jordan, has an interesting "daesh-linked" group ruling it.
And the US/Jordan/Israelis all around can't do anything about it?
http://www.aymennjawad.org/2017/01/who-in-a-photo-identifying-jaysh-khalid-bin-al
Posted by: Mina | Jan 6 2017 21:20 utc | 92
RE:The shooting today.
Estaban Santiago sounds latino, and unless a phony ID, he's a soldier?
Unless premeditated, perhapes he cracked after one too many insulting experiences with the TSA.. ?
Posted by: bbbb | Jan 6 2017 22:16 utc | 93
@James
"connectimg the dots" - without doubt. People are completely aware of what is and has been happening. But there's a big diffrrence between recognising it and admitting it. I simply don't see any movement anywhere that leads me to believe that Erdogan will not get his own way.
At every step he consolidates his position by defining and defining again the truth that every word against him and his path is treachery. Look at the way Barbaros Sansal was treated! To get access to the runway security forces must have colluded with the lynch mob - this is military law Turkey! The Okmeydan secularist kids that were arrested for treason have led one AKP minister to openly declare that secularists are kafir; mosques are declaring all HDP supporters kafir, thousands of twitter users have been rounded up - most released quietly, but the point was to terrorise social media, and the diyanet screaming that celebrating New Year is a sin - until the bombing! - it has worked ... And this is only the first week of 2017!
And watch Erdogan turning on the spot ... watch him change his spots once more as he divorces himself from the jihadists that he nurtured - even if in word only, he has started this already in response to the terrorist acts he has already atarted talking about people having no right to attack pthers because of their 'lifestyle choices' - the sheer gaul of the guy! But pure Erdogan - On the one hand he terrorises, while with the other presenting himself as the solution.
But the economy is his achilles heel ...
On another note, what do you make of this closing Incirlik move? It's not as cut and dry as Erdogan would like it to be, firstly. But might it be enough to get the US to change pokicy on Kurds? That must be what is driving the threats. He doesnt want the Kurds at the table.
Posted by: AtaBrit | Jan 6 2017 22:17 utc | 94
@ mina - thanks for those updates.
@ atabrit - my sense is the number of folks he has rounded up for numerous reasons, in combo with the media silencing or closings, shutting down social networks in emergencies and everything else is motivating turkish 'thinking types' to question where he and turkey are headed with all this.. once he started down this slippery slope supporting 'moderate head choppers' in his grand caliph dream, i think he and others know how difficult it is to get the genie back in the bottle.. i see tourism is down significantly in the past year in turkey.. economically they are hurting and the turkish lira continues to go down. i recall reading an editorial opinion on how turkey is becoming like a 3rd world country.. i don't think it is a stretch to believe the turks are increasingly uncomfortable with erdogan and will not opt for the presidency concept in the referendum.. but i could be wrong too!
incirlik... at this point it is all talk and conjecture.. might be a con job to give russia the impression turkey is absolving itself of the usa.. i don't know... until it happens, i see it as talk and nothing more.. i think erdogan might have finally woken up to the idea of the usa/israels plans to divide syria up and realizes how it won't be along the lines of his greater caliphate.. indeed the usa will use the kurds until they don't, just like they have openly stated they thought leaving isis in place would help get rid of assad.. there is a slight chance erdogan realizes there are more then a few players in the room that can and do play his kind of game... who he has to watch out for is russia, because to my way of thinking he is messing with the wrong amigo if he thinks he can two time russia..
Posted by: james | Jan 6 2017 23:13 utc | 95
https://twitter.com/Dwarfpoo/status/811139242860617728
Israeli Mossad training Turkish FSA...
Posted by: David | Jan 6 2017 23:16 utc | 96
@77 curtis @88 james
Libya Asks Russia to Help in Reconciliation
Libya is ready to accept any Russian initiative to establish political dialogue in the country, since Moscow has contacts with each of the parties of the conflict, and has a balanced position on the situation, said Deputy Prime Minister of the national unity government Akhmed Maetig."The presidential council welcomes any Russian initiative for national reconciliation in Libya, as Russia has a balanced position and good relations with all parties", - reports RIA Novosti.
looks like the gna-play has run its course.
Posted by: jfl | Jan 7 2017 1:08 utc | 97
@97 jfl... actually i think it means there is another power play over libya, just like the one in syria with usa siding with the self created gna in libya and the 'moderate head-chopper' union in syria.. russia is on the opposing side.. the usa thru the msm will do everything to make folks think not being a part of the gna is going off script and for syria, a political solution is the only solution while the usa continues to give military goodies to the moderate head choppers..
Posted by: james | Jan 7 2017 2:34 utc | 99
i enjoyed reading this Why Trump believes in Julian Assenge from indian punchline...
Posted by: james | Jan 7 2017 2:37 utc | 100
The comments to this entry are closed.
Ok, we are on our kids so don't mess up. Please try and be polite if possible.
Links anyone?
Thanks b
Posted by: jo6pac | Jan 5 2017 19:25 utc | 1