Here is an article that looks at recent comments by Secretary of State Michael Pompeo about the role of Israel in the Middle East:

https://viableopposition.blogspot.com/2018/10/washingtons-chosen-template-for-middle.html

Unfortunately for the world, the current administration believes that Israel is the template for democracy that should be emulated around the globe.

Posted by: Sally Snyder | Mar 22 2019 16:41 utc | 1

"The people who paid for Trump's election campaign, foremost casino magnate and zionist Sheldon Adelson, want to keep the Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahoo in office. ...... Trump needs money for his re-election campaign and is willing to do anything to get it"

Zoinists, Israel-firster, and Israeli/Amecian dual citizens... these are the people Trump has and continues to collude with. That's why the Dems, the Dem-sheeple and all those with TDS (Trump derangement syndrome) are investigating Russia collusion.

Posted by: Nathan Mulcahy | Mar 22 2019 16:48 utc | 2

The Heights are Syrian lands that were occupied by Israel during its 1967 war of aggression against Egypt and Syria.

Maybe Im wrong, but wasn't it the Israelis who were surprised by an attack by Egypt and Syria?

Posted by: Jerry Bosch | Mar 22 2019 17:00 utc | 3

What's comical about this debacle is the Zionist's declaring Trump's meddling in their politics:

"Yet many people are saying that this is in response to Prime Minister Netanyahu's request that many leaders, especially the US President, help him in the coming elections, which we are going to have in two weeks' time. And this is seen, by some at least, as an intervention in the Israeli political process."

The article covers other aspects of the situation in Palestine, but the meddling aspect brought about lots of laughter.

Posted by: karlof1 | Mar 22 2019 17:06 utc | 4

Jerry Bosch @3--

No, that's known as the Yom Kipper War in October 1973.

Posted by: karlof1 | Mar 22 2019 17:08 utc | 5

What can you say? Corruption begets corruption.

Anyone surprised?

Posted by: ken | Mar 22 2019 17:19 utc | 6

In the old musical "The Sound of Musice" was this line:

A Spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down

Since I'm increasingly convinced that Trump is being blackmailed on account of videos taken in the airplane of the billionaire Epstein (maybe stuff involving 13-year-old-girls), he might be soothed by headlines like this:

" Trump chosen by God as savior of Jewish people? Pompeo thinks it’s ‘certainly possible’ ... 22 Mar, 2019

There have been all the crazy happenings with Venezuela. This current bit of generousity with the Golan awarded to the apartheid Jewish State. And quite recently there was more coddling of that pissant nation:

Pompeo at Western Wall With Netanyahu Likely to Stir Arab Anger

Until now, top-ranking U.S. officials spent time at the wall unaccompanied by Israeli officials, to avoid appearing to recognize Israel’s rule over the area.

The very latest I've seen was this this headline today:

Trump Admin Will Reportedly Approve Sale Of New F-16s To Taiwan And China Will Absolutely Freak

China has long said it draws a "red line" at the U.S. furnishing new-build advanced F-16 to Taiwan. If the deal is approved, it is sure to infuriate Beijing at a particularly contentious moment in U.S.-Chinese relations history.

Pompeo, Pence, and the rest clearly do not give a solitary damn about the prospect of provoking a huge war - nuclear or otherwise. In fact they'd welcome this as yet another step towards their dream of forcing The Rapture of the Second Coming.

Religious fanatics with nukes were the official thing to worry about with the prospect of Iran acquiring nuclear weapons. Turns out it's a reality right here in the US of A.

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Mar 22 2019 17:19 utc | 7

Semi-OT item of interest about the emerging Turkey-Qatar-Iranian Alliance. An excerpt:

"According to Russian think tank Katehon, the new Qatar-Iran-Turkey axis is already well underway and has the power to control Asia, west India and Pakistan and challenge the 'demonic trio' of the US, Israel, and Saudi Arabia."

Posted by: karlof1 | Mar 22 2019 17:39 utc | 8

OT--FYI--OT

Russia's PM meets with Ukrainian presidential candidate Boyko and discuss many items of interest. I wonder if Boyko will be arrested upon his return? TASS has several additional short items related to this meeting and the upcoming election in Ukraine of March 31. IMO, if Boyko wins, the Outlaw US Empire's Ukrainian project will be concluded. What he discussed with Medvedev and Gazprom's Miller is of extreme importance to Ukraine's economy and are important election issues.

Posted by: karlof1 | Mar 22 2019 18:02 utc | 9

@ ken | Mar 22, 2019 1:19:31 PM | 6

Which wasn't a surprise attack either. Anwar as-Sadat warned Israel for about 3 years prior to the 1973 event that he would use military force to regain control over Egyptian territory - Sinai - occupied by Israel.
What surprised Israel was the level of military prowess of the Egyptian forces when the attack was launched.

Posted by: Hmpf | Mar 22 2019 18:05 utc | 10

Oops, meant to address karlof1 | Mar 22, 2019 1:08:34 PM | 5

Posted by: Hmpf | Mar 22 2019 18:10 utc | 11

US Duplicity over Golan Demolishes Posturing on Crimea:

If Washington confirms its recent indications of recognizing the Golan as officially part of Israel, the development would mark an egregious flouting of international law.

. . .

Claims by Washington and the European Union of “illegal annexation” of Crimea by Russia are the central basis for five years of economic sanctions imposed on Moscow. Those sanctions have contributed to ever-worsening tensions with Russia and the build-up of NATO forces along Russia’s borders.

<> <> <> <> <> <> <> <> <>

There's always the possibility that after the Israeli election Trump will reneg on his own declaration like he did with the pull-out from Syria. But that seems unlikely as it brings a whole different set of problems for Trump and would be inconsistent with Trump's whole-hearted support for Israel/Netanyahu: cutting humanitarian aid to Palestinians; moving US Embassy to Jerusalem; keeping troops in Syria; etc.

PS: Reposting my comment from Open Thread @235.

Posted by: Jackrabbit | Mar 22 2019 18:15 utc | 12

thanks b... makes sense trumps string is being pulled for netanyahu... this is another minus point for usa-israel, as they sink further into pariah status.. either this 'rules based' order is going to hit a wall, or some of the players trying to maintain a semblance of international order are going to realize a few players could give a shit about international laws or organizations, or only in so far as they serve them..

i always knew money was a corrupting force.. good to get another window into the process.. money trumps religion.. all this talk of religion is so much bullshit.. money is their god - plain and clear..

Posted by: james | Mar 22 2019 18:15 utc | 13

Now we see the hand of some of those that REALLY meddled in the 2016 US Presidential election.

Props to Circe!

Posted by: Jackrabbit | Mar 22 2019 18:37 utc | 14

Hey FBI, hey Democrats: Will Trump investigated for selling out to a foreign power? Is this offensive (to US enemies and allies alike) and embarrassing act an impeachable offense?

Hello ... HELLO!

Posted by: Jackrabbit | Mar 22 2019 18:39 utc | 15

karlof1 @5, Hmpf @10:

Right. Thanks for the clarification. So the 1973 war was just an attempt by Egypt and Syria to get the land back.

Posted by: Jerry Bosch | Mar 22 2019 18:49 utc | 16

>>>>> Hmpf | Mar 22, 2019 2:05:55 PM | 10

Nah, any military prowess was down to planning by the Soviet Union which provided Egypt with the ATGMs and SAMs to fight the war designed to encourage the Israelis to get out of Sinai. The Egyptians got carried away by their initial success and went further than the plan envisaged by launching an offensive attack on the Israeli which outran the area defended by the SAMs at which point it went from victory into defeat in military terms. In political terms, the only one that really matters, the Egyptians persuaded the Israelis, that it would only be a matter of time before the Egyptians were successful and the Israelis left Sinai. And the Palestinians were shafted as usual.

Posted by: Ghost Ship | Mar 22 2019 18:55 utc | 17

"...foremost....Sheldon Adelson, want to keep the Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahoo in office."

Trump's son-in-law is a personal friend of Bibi's and probably has more influence over Trump.

Israel gets a lot of its fresh water from the Sea of Galilee which is fed by the Jordan River, an international watershed. Israel is also taking more that it is entitled to and, yet, the 'sea' is still drying up. All Syria has to do is start taking its fair share and it's big trouble for Israel's water supply and economy. As doing so might bring war, Syria could issue permits to Russian companies that do irrigation.

Additionally, Lebanon could take more water from the Hasbani river and Wassani Springs.

Posted by: David Wooten | Mar 22 2019 18:56 utc | 18

Nobody seems to have brought up a possible consequence of Trump recognizing the annexation of the Golan Heights. After this, Trump doesn't really have the legs left to stand on when it comes opposing the Crimea asking to re-join Russia after the referendum. We'll see if the Europeans really oppose this by their response. Do they tell Trump that if he does this they'll recognise Crimea as part of Russia and drop the sanctions. Nah!

BTW, SST has a post up written by TTG about a presentation given by Sergei Shoigu to the Duma committee on Defense of the State of the Russian Federation. The short of it is that the Russian army has been dramatically enhanced but as a defensive force, although whether or not the deep battle doctrine of the past still applies is difficult to make out.

Among the defensive systems touted by Shoigu are 20 S-400 missile regiments with 8 to 12 launchers/regiment, 23 Pantsir-S divisions (regiments?) with 18 launchers/regiment, 17 battalions Bal and Bastion antiship coastal defense systems with 12 launchers/battalion. Note these are defensive systems. Sure they can provide a defensive umbrella for deployed forces as in Syria, but they are still defensive systems. They are primarily deployed on Russian territory to defend Russia from sea and air attacks.

Posted by: Ghost Ship | Mar 22 2019 18:57 utc | 19

@14 jr... that's been very obvious to many including our one trick pony circe! getting the usa to jump out of bed with israel, would be like trying to get the msm, dem-repub party to comment on the elephant in the room.. ain't gonna happen..

Posted by: james | Mar 22 2019 19:00 utc | 20

@21 ghostship... usa-israel excel at hypocrisy... you actually think it is going to stop? at this point, thats their claim to fame!

Posted by: james | Mar 22 2019 19:01 utc | 21

smoothie has a post up addressing some of this craziness here.

Posted by: james | Mar 22 2019 19:03 utc | 22

Draining the swamp, 6 or 8 D chess, yup, plain as the nose on your face it is, yup.

Posted by: arby | Mar 22 2019 19:03 utc | 23

>>>>>: Jackrabbit | Mar 22, 2019 2:15:17 PM | 12

Apologies about my opening to the comment at 2:57:51 PM | 19 not recognizing your comment but I started writing before your comment became public and was then interrupted by a neighbour wanting to talk about parking.

Posted by: Ghost Ship | Mar 22 2019 19:06 utc | 24

So it * IS * about the Benjamin's!

Benjamin's self interest ($$$),

Benjamin's wife & kids,

Benjamin's friends & associates

Benjamin's city and state,

Benjamin's religion & politics,

Benjamin's leadership & hard-line vision,

etc.

Posted by: Jackrabbit | Mar 22 2019 19:13 utc | 25

Thanks for the posting about this b

We are all just waiting for the timely butterfly wing flap to bring the Babel tower of lies down.

I do hope it encourages other nations to further tighten the noose around dying empire and the concepts/narratives that it forces all of us to live.

Posted by: psychohistorian | Mar 22 2019 19:13 utc | 26

I do think this action was prompted by Jared's relationship with Bibi probably wasn't even run by Pence,Pompeo nor Bolton; all of whom would love this sort of thing anyway.
Despite this latest idiotic move I don't think the US will be treated as a pariah for quite a while, no matter the private thoughts of govts. I think Trump is viewed as a diplomatic aberration that will disappear possibly sooner than later, his actions erased and forgotten to be replaced by some sort of somewhat more predictable DS groomed nightmare.

Posted by: frances | Mar 22 2019 19:24 utc | 27

Doctor Smith @7:

"A Spoonful of Sugar" is from "Mary Poppins", not "The Sound of Music". (Julie Andrews did star in the movie versions of both musicals, though. And the situation we're discussing here does suggest an outlook based on magical [un]realism.)

Posted by: John Anthony La Pietra | Mar 22 2019 19:31 utc | 28

@ John Anthony La Pietra #28

It's been a very long time since I watched either show. Thanks for the correction.

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Mar 22 2019 19:44 utc | 29

@ Ghost Ship #19

I saw a version of what you posted earlier today.

Moscow Increasingly Ready for Major Military Confrontation.

Key part to me:

Of course, forming and maintaining 136 standing BTGs is costly and makes military sense only if a major armed encounter of continental proportions seems imminent and could begin without much prior notice or mobilization.

My link ought to be read with caution, for it comes from a site I label "neocon and dishonest", but even they notice Russia is preparing for any confrontation initiated by the increasingly unstable US "administration". That they're doing this despite the "expense" is something to worry about, IMO.

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Mar 22 2019 19:54 utc | 30

james @20: one trick pony

Your succinct description didn't occur to me (kudos!) and I didn't want to write (yet another) paragraph describing how my views differ with Circe's.

Posted by: Jackrabbit | Mar 22 2019 20:03 utc | 31

b - Genie abandon their oil exploration efforts in Israel over a year ago and is no longer doing any oil exploration there. Their main business is now selling residential gas in New Jersey and the UK (Orbit). That's not the REAL story here, though. Sorry for the long post - links to the Trump administration/Kushner info at the end.

Genie Energy Suspends Exploratory Oil and Gas Drilling Program in Northern Israel
Company Plans to Accelerate Growth of Its Retail Energy Provider Business

Five exploratory wells drilled, four were dry or not economical to frack, and they never said anything about the last well (Ness 10). They were 'awaiting results' last year. FWIW, geologists have pretty much laughed at their efforts all along. Their drilling company in Israel, Afek, is now part of what Genie reports as their money-losing GOGAS business segment (tax avoidance). No exploration or drilling activity since Afek.

Afek apparently sold the drilling rig to yet another Genie subsidiary, Atid, which is planning to either drill for water or take over the exploratory wells in 'northern Israel'. That's really important to Israel - the Sea of Galilee has been sucked so dry that the aquifer feeding it is being permanently damaged. Might as well steal some Syrian water to fill it up again. I have to wonder if this wasn't the scheme all along.

From the Genie 2018 Annual Report PR in March:

Genie Oil and Gas (GOGAS)

Genie Energy's GOGAS segment includes its Afek oil and gas exploration project, several dormant exploration operations and a minority position in a drilling services company in Israel. Afek is currently awaiting the permits required for final testing on an existing well. In 3Q18, GOGAS divested a majority stake in a drilling services company. For periods prior to the divestiture, results include the full impact of that company's operations, and for subsequent periods, results include only Genie Energy's portion of results.

In 4Q18, GOGAS incurred $778 thousand in SG&A expense. In 4Q17, GOGAS incurred $524 thousand in SG&A expense, $2.3 million in exploration expense, and a $6.5 million write-off of capitalized exploration costs.

I would characterize Genie as the usual, run-of-the-mill oil exploration penny stock scam - selling the promise of some mythical oil deposit in Israel. It did not start with Afek/Golan. Their previous attempt via a sub called Israeli Energy Initiatives found another worthless shale deposit somewhere between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem and wanted to do in situ thermal recovery. Environmentalists got that filthy scheme axed in 2014. But why let a good stock scam/money-laundering/tax-avoidance scheme go to waste? Thus: Afek and the criminal Golan drilling license.

Drilling license area map I got from somewhere shown my tweet (if it's not still shadow-banned):

https://twitter.com/PavewayIV/status/1105691077107961856

And the REAL story here thanks to the research of @Zanting (account deleted from Twitter) from a year ago:

Ira Greenstein: Jared Kushner‘s Criminal Deal With Israel Behind U.S. Involvement In Syria For Genie Energy’s Control of the Golan Heights
A major conflict of interest looms over the Rose Garden, whether it spells the end of the Trump administration, has yet to be determined.

My tweet links to @Zanting's article on Medium from Feb. of 2018, but that has some formatting issues. For whatever reason (probably to avoid censorship), @Zanting originally published this on AnimeRightNews at the end of 2017. Yes, anime... don't be put off by it - the article is filled with detail. In fact, there's an overwhelming amount of it considering how well it's been ignored by the MSM. I see Zanting has a lot of other articles on that site, but I haven't had time...

Bonus: The article also pointed out the connection to IDT Corp (Genie parent) - a shady New Jersey telecom company I recognize linked to Israli Intelligence and suspected of siphoning up data for israel years ago. IDT bought up huge chunks of (wait for it...) the then-planned 5G spectrum in the US back in the day. They sold it to Verizon a year ago after additional frequency bands were added, making their license monopoly far less valuable. Gosh, I wonder why an Israeli Intel-linked company would be so interested in dominating the (then) planned 5G service in the US? Are they still involved and is this somehow influencing the Huawei jihad?

Posted by: PavewayIV | Mar 22 2019 20:29 utc | 32

Sheesh.... sorry. Zanting's article from last year with proper formatting:

https://animeright.news/zanting/ira-greenstein-jared-kushners-criminal-deal-with-israel-behind-u-s-involvement-in-syria-for-genie-energys-control-of-the-golan-heights/

Posted by: PavewayIV | Mar 22 2019 20:36 utc | 33

@20 james

Oh please! Go back and read comments from 2017! You couldn't say a negative word about Trump around here, especially, predicting he would turn out to be a Neocon and fake populist as I was doing then. I commented on many other issues, although, yes, for good reason, I'm stressing the fact that democracy in the U.S. is non-existant as in Israel and that it's no coincidence but a continuing cullusion between both parties to rig the system to protect Zionism and no one has colluded in this regard more than Trump even while he was still President-elect.

So, according to you, I'm a one-trick pony, huh, and even if that were the case; at least I have the courage of my convictions. It's better than being the blog WEATHER VANE, as yourself, turning in circles to whichever side the popular opinion blows around here. When I was swimming against the current with my conviction here and getting hammered, you were taking it easy going with the flow noding @@@ I agree, fanning a misguided echo or a deluded direction. How does that further awareness?

Posted by: Circe | Mar 22 2019 20:42 utc | 34

>>>> Zachary Smith | Mar 22, 2019 3:54:41 PM | 30

My link ought to be read with caution, for it comes from a site I label "neocon and dishonest"

Quite agree with the dishonest bit.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), in contrast, has deployed four multinational BTG-type units across the Baltic republics and in Poland to deter the Russian military.

Poor, weak NATO. LOL. They are forgetting all the BTG-equivalents that individual NATO countries have. For example, according to Wikipedia, for the United Kingdom:

The Infantry of the British Army, part of the structure of the British Army, comprises 49 infantry battalions, from 19 regiments. Of these, 33 battalions are part of the Regular army and the remaining 16 a part of the Army Reserve.

A British infantry battalion is between 500 and 1000 men so roughly equivalent to a BTG. Add in armour, artillery and the various corps and you probably have a total of betwwen 70 and 80 BTG equivalents. This is for a country with ~40% of the population and 1.4% of the land area of Russia.

As for the rest of NATO, Germany's army is quite a bit smaller than the UK, while France and Poland are about the same size as the UK, so Russia would probably face over 250 BTG equivalents if it got into a shooting match with German, France, Poland and the UK. Pure guess work but NATO probably has about 400 BTG equivalents from Europe alone. And don't forget the United States.

History would suggest that Russia would need ~800-1200 BTG equivalents if it wanted to attack Europe with any hope of success and could keep the United States out, while NATO already has enough forces to attack Russia.

Looking at the author's (Pavel Felgenhauer) Wikipedia entry makes everything clear.

Felgenhauer correctly predicted in June 2008 that Vladimir Putin would start a war against Georgia in Abkhazia and South Ossetia in August 2008.

Even the EU recognizes that it was Mikheil Saakashvili who started it. The Wikipedia entry for that police action was probably written by a Saakashvili fan.

Posted by: Ghost Ship | Mar 22 2019 20:46 utc | 35

Stratfor:

Because Israel took the Golan Heights by military means for strategic purposes, a U.S. recognition could create a precedent for future governments to claim they can seize territory they see as strategically vital to their security.

U.S., Israel: With a Tweet About the Golan Heights, Trump Upends Decades of U.S. Policy

Posted by: John Doe | Mar 22 2019 20:48 utc | 36

Israeli defense officials oppose US bill on Golan Heights

[...] Israeli defense officials stationed in the United States have conveyed messages to American senators expressing their reservations over proposed legislation to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.

[...] Despite the bipartisan support, Israel Hayom has learned that representatives of Israel’s defense establishment have told senior senators that passing the bill into law, at least at the present time, was not ideal.

Posted by: John Doe | Mar 22 2019 20:59 utc | 37

The late kerfuffle regarding Circe, James, Donald Trump, etc. ha ha ha ha ha ha! Long in the planning stages, can't come to any good for sure!

Posted by: Geoff | Mar 22 2019 21:03 utc | 38

@32 paveway... thanks.. here's the article at medium as well.

@34 circe... just calling it like i see it.. you were too busy ranting to notice whether someone agreed with you or not.. cheers -

Posted by: james | Mar 22 2019 21:06 utc | 39

"The 'deal of the century' for peace between Arabs and the Zionists that Trump's son in law Jared Kushner was supposed to arrange is now dead."
I hope you are right b, I am growing very concerned with Trump's new puppet friend at Bolsonaro, yesterday Brazil voted against Palestine and UNHR findings, and abstained for the 1st time on the Golan Heights annual vote.
No matter what, the UN and the countries willing to stand by the international law should start sanctioning Israel and the US for the abuses against the International Law and UN resolutions, either that or close down this useless UN.

Posted by: Canthama | Mar 22 2019 21:09 utc | 40

Zachary Smith @29:

You're welcome -- and thank you for the chance to practice self-control. I didn't ace the test, but at least I resisted the temptation to phrase the comment as an all-out "Lost in Space" reference.

Posted by: John Anthony La Pietra | Mar 22 2019 21:15 utc | 41

Like b said , no run of the mill oil company has an advisory board composed of: Dick Cheney (former vice president of the United States), Rupert Murdoch (media mogul and chairman of News Corp), James Woolsey (former CIA director), Larry Summers (former head of the US Treasury), Bill Richardson, former Governor of New Mexico, an ex-ambassador to the United Nations and United States Energy Secretary, Michael Steinhardt, Lord Jacob Rothschild, etc ....

Some movers and shakers there.

Posted by: Pft | Mar 22 2019 21:25 utc | 42

Thanks Paveway for those deep digs into what's really going on behind the scenes with Genie.

The United States can recognise whatever they like but it doesn't validate the Israeli claims. Unlike Crimea where the native population had not been driven out and where there was a free referendum and historical record casts that land as Russian, Israel's claims on the Golan Heights are very shallow.

Hasn't stopped Great Britain from holding onto Gibraltar but they are always one conflict away from having Gibraltar taken away from them. Living precariously.

Posted by: Uncoy | Mar 22 2019 21:33 utc | 43

Its not just the US. Despite Russias condemnation it is Russian troops are enforcing an anti-Iranian “buffer zone” there . Moscow itself has indirectly suggested that Damascus surrender this territory via the Russian-written “draft constitution” it has proposed.

It strikes me US and Russia playing Good Cop-Bad Cop in Syria on behalf of Israel who seems to have extraordinary control/influence over both countries

Posted by: Pft | Mar 22 2019 21:41 utc | 44

reply to Canthama 40
"I am growing very concerned with Trump's new puppet friend at Bolsonaro, ..."
I don't know that he will remain in charge, assuming he is even in charge now, for when he attempted to "help out" the US with Venezuela his VP a former, or maybe not so former, General shut him down. I think that will happen more and more often.

Posted by: frances | Mar 22 2019 21:43 utc | 45

We'll see if the Europeans really oppose this by their response. Do they tell Trump that if he does this they'll recognise Crimea as part of Russia and drop the sanctions. Nah!

Posted by: Ghost Ship | Mar 22, 2019 2:57:51 PM | 19

Sanctions against Russia have a profound reason that Trump announcement will not change: Russia.

Annexations occurred in many instances and usually, with some tut-tuts, and sometimes even without that.

Without going so far back like annexations during Indian partition, Morocco annexed former Spanish colony where inhabitants wished to be independent, Western Sahara, Israel annexed Golan and quite a swath of West Bank, Turkey practically annexed northern Cyprus and Armenia, Arzakh (a.k.a. Nagorno-Karabagh).

Posted by: Piotr Berman | Mar 22 2019 21:59 utc | 46

Canthama @40--

The reason no UNSC sanctions exist regarding the USA or Zionistan is that any proposal for implementation would be vetoed by USA or one of its vassals. Indeed, the only reason the UN got involved in the Korean War was due to the absence--boycott actually--of the USSR's representative on the day the vote was taken. ALL non-UNSC sanctions enacted are illegal under International Law; and those enacted by the Outlaw US Empire are Unconstitutional as well. It puzzles me as to why sanctions haven't been challenged within the US legal system, although there is a court case involving a Russian company that's announced its intention to do so.

Posted by: karlof1 | Mar 22 2019 22:00 utc | 47

Max Blumenthal
‏Verified account @MaxBlumenthal
Mar 21

Max Blumenthal Retweeted Donald J. Trump

Israel had hoped to usurp the Golan Heights once and for all by fueling a 7-year-long Syrian proxy war through its funding and supplying of Al Qaeda and ISIS-aligned "moderate rebels." That failed and now it depends on Trump's illegal decree.

Posted by: arby | Mar 22 2019 22:23 utc | 48

@32 Paveway IV; thanks for posting this. Interesting and it fits in with some of Israels abiding concerns, including their geographical lack of strategic depth and regional issues re a limited supply of fresh water resources. I've read on multiple occasions that much of Israels interest in Lebanon is linked to a desire to secure the Latani River and surrounding watershed/water basin.

With a nod to James in the previous Brexit discussions, the name I use for posting is linked to an ancient and long extinct species of plant that was distributed across the Gondwanaland super-continent. I find it fascinating how continental movements, geography and mineral resources layed down millions of years in the past exert influence on modern-day geopolitics. Fresh water and river access slots into this milieu, even if modern river systems are not necessarily as ancient as the lands they cut across.

Water access has seemingly been a strategic pressure on Israel since its inception in the late 1940s.

Posted by: Glossopteris | Mar 22 2019 22:46 utc | 49

@49 Glossopteris.. thanks for responding to my ot question! that is quite fascinating!

Posted by: james | Mar 22 2019 22:53 utc | 50

Glossopteris @49--

If Palestine had remained Palestine, then "strategic pressure" to water access wouldn't have arisen. If Palestine were to become Palestine again, the water issue would likely wane as the region would more likely collaborate by sharing instead of hoarding.

Posted by: karlof1 | Mar 22 2019 23:07 utc | 51

The American Conservative tears Trump a new one:

"There is absolutely no upside for the United States in endorsing illegal Israeli claims to the Golan Heights. It is a cynical political stunt intended to boost Netanyahu and Likud’s fortunes in the upcoming election, and it is also a cynical stunt aimed at shoring up Trump’s support from Republican 'pro-Israel' voters and donors. Whatever short-term benefit Israel gains from it, the U.S. gains nothing and stands to lose quite a bit in terms of our international standing. There has been no consideration of the costs and problems this will create for the U.S. in its relations with other regional states and beyond because Trump couldn’t care less about the long-term effects that his decisions have on the country. Once again, Trump has put narrow political ambitions and the interests of a foreign government ahead of the interests of the United States. That seems to be the inevitable result of electing a narcissist who conducts foreign policy based on which leaders flatter and praise him."

Although as with b, the author goes on to lay the fundamental blame at Bolton's feet. But if that's the case, shouldn't Bolton be the one getting blasted?

Posted by: karlof1 | Mar 22 2019 23:17 utc | 52

Pft @44

Moscow has to take Israel's core interests into account if it wants to be the new hegemon of the Middle East. Putin and Netanyahu have talked quite a few time in recent months, coordinating their respective 'red lines'. So far, both sides seem to stick to the script - which involves ending the Iranian military presence in Syria, unacceptable to Tel Aviv. Netanyahu is a Machiavellian power guy, but he isn't stupid, knows how far he can go. He won't let go of Golan, for fear of it becoming militarized by Syria. Which may go against intl law, but can't be changed.

Posted by: smuks | Mar 22 2019 23:45 utc | 53

@ Glossopteris | Mar 22, 2019 6:46:04 PM | 49

Water access has seemingly been a strategic pressure on Israel since its inception in the late 1940s.

Primarily because the Europeans squander it “Making the Desert Bloom”. Similar to Phoenix, AZ with swimming pools, green grassy laws, and non-native planting to make the arid land seem like “home”.

Good historical – 1981 – documentary film on this if you’re interested.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ifSKXIC03w8

Posted by: Desolation Row | Mar 22 2019 23:46 utc | 54

@48 arby

Max Blumenthal has it right on, but the proxy war in Syria was also about stopping a gas pipeline from Iran through Syria as a shortcut to EU market to compete with the Levant Israeli gas route.

I disagree with any analogy drawn between the Golan Heights and Crimea for various reasons. It's wrong and counterproductive to draw such analogy. If anything sanctions should have been imposed on Israel for usurping and settling that land which is a war crime under the Geneva Conventions. Crimea went back and forth changing hands throughout history. Finally when Catherine the Great defeated the Ottoman Empire, Crimea was traded in a treaty to Russia. So technically, legally it was always Russian territory and merely went back to its lawful owner with the present inhabitants of Crimea totally in agreement.

The Golan Heights were throughout history mostly under Arab control and later also part of the Ottoman Empire until it was under French control and then became part of Syria, so Israel has no legitimate claim whatsoever and sanctions should have been imposed on Israel for its illegal occupation of the Golan Heights and not on Russia for taking back what was legitimately Russian territory for centuries minus the brief blunder by the Soviet Presidium of 1954 which transfer decree violated the Russian Constitution of 1937. So in essence it was an illegal transfer and now that error has been rectified, therefore sanctions on Russia are illegal.

◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

The nothing-burger Mueller Report is done and arrived at the Justice Dept. What will be missing from the report is how Trump colluded with Zionists to become President. Zionist oligarchs funded Trump at various stages of his campaign and were involved in influencing American public perception funding Cambridge Analytica and other cyber outfits. Facebook's Zionist owner also helped in the operation to get Trump elected. Once the fingerprints and bread crumbs led away from Russia to Israel, and Netanyahoo and his oligarch friends, Mueller stopped looking further as the writing on the wall became clear. Mueller stopped following the money the moment he realized it was all leading back to Israel. Manafort was the fall guy for Trump. Originally, I thought Flynn was the fall guy and in a way he was because he quit and lied for him (I don't believe he was fired) to save Trump's neck at the time. Trump was never in jeopardy because his Zionist masters ensured there were others around him they knew were compromised and would end up having to take the fall for their Chosen one.

This investgation was a convenient sham to cover for the real collusion and Trump was the Zionist 1 percenters choice and nothing was going to foil that and many of you here fell for the entire charade hook, line and sinker believing Trump was a poor victim all along.

Posted by: Circe | Mar 22 2019 23:48 utc | 55

@51 karlof1; Yes I generally agree. Water hoarding and theft has gone hand in hand with the erasure of Palestinian sovereignty and the real-world ethnic cleasing of Palestinian populations. Collaboration does not seem to be an option in the Zionist playbook. And just to be clear, I have no desire to see Jewish people in the Levant or elsewhere ethnically cleansed either.

I would submit that relative water scarcity is endemic to significant areas of the Middle East (and North Africa for that matter). It is something that could lead to serious interstate and intrastate tensions in the coming decades...if not today.

Posted by: Glossopteris | Mar 22 2019 23:58 utc | 56

>>>>> David Wooten | Mar 22, 2019 2:56:24 PM | 18

Additionally, Lebanon could take more water from the Hasbani river and Wassani Springs.

Nah, the United States has already decided that Israel is fully entitled to what it already takes and any attempt to reduce that by Lebanon removing any water is a crime. They are applying the principles adopted for the Colorado River to the rest of the world. Try googling lebanon water war for more information

Posted by: Ghost Ship | Mar 22 2019 23:58 utc | 57

I wanted to add: of course, the many gifts Trump has given to Israel, and now this gift, recognizing the Golan Heights as Israeli Territory before the Israeli elections, to Netanyahoo who was asking Trump to do this now, and who probably coordinated the whole effort to get Trump elected proves the point I've been making from day one 100%. Quid pro quo. It's all come full circle.

Posted by: Circe | Mar 23 2019 0:02 utc | 58

@54 Desolation Row; Good point. Something else to add into the mosaic. I read more and more about water stress in some of the western states of the US.

Thanks for the link, much appreciated.

Posted by: Glossopteris | Mar 23 2019 0:11 utc | 59

>>>> Pft | Mar 22, 2019 5:41:32 PM | 44

Moscow itself has indirectly suggested that Damascus surrender this territory via the Russian-written “draft constitution” it has proposed.

Your source for this is what?

Can't be MEMRI as it reports on Lavrov meeting with the Syrian opposition in Moscow:

The proposed constitution posits that Syria's borders can be changed only via a referendum: "Syrian territory is inalienable. State borders can be modified only via a general referendum conducted amongst all Syria's citizens and on the basis of the Syrian people's manifest will."

It then goes on:

Draft Constitution Of The Syrian Republic

The People of Syria, continuing their generations-long traditions of statehood, understanding its responsibility to the past, current and future generations, fully determined to strengthen freedom and equity, assuring their adherence to the Charter of the United Nations, Charter of the Arab League, Charter of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities, solemnly proclaim their following intentions:

- To guarantee the state's security, independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity;
]...........
............

Article 9:

2) Syrian territory is inalienable. State borders can be modified only via a general referendum con

Posted by: Ghost Ship | Mar 23 2019 0:23 utc | 60

@Circe

Oh yes, I remember the discussions about Trump we had in the day.
Funny enough, while I always saw him as a threat to global peace, today I judge his foreign policy more positively than most. But the Neocons are trying to drive him into a corner, until he sees no option other than a military one. And his economic policy in favour of the 1% doesn't help.

Still completely disagree on the Israel/ "zion1sm" (definition?) bit.
The dog wags its tail, not vice versa.
Trump's victory was thanks to right-wing billionaires' support (Cambridge A.), who use(d) Israel as a tool to control the Middle East. Without this, the $ would be toast.

Posted by: smuks | Mar 23 2019 0:28 utc | 61

The man is simply an idiot with no understanding of what damage he does - trampling international law, ignoring the views of allies, and legitimizing armed conquest as a means for national growth - a mighty dangerous set of precedents.

And by what conceivable authority is an American president granted power to set boundaries for other states?

Isn’t that just slightly presumptuous, to say the least?

I do wish a gang of Mexican illegal migrants would seize Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida and proclaim it as eternally theirs.

It would make every bit as much sense as what Israel has done in Golan.

Posted by: JOHN CHUCKMAN | Mar 23 2019 0:31 utc | 62

Those sanctions the EU imposed on Russia because of Ukraine, hurt the European farmers most when Russia imported fruit and vegetables from elsewhere or became self sufficient, how will those traders with Russia feel now that Trump has kicked the legs from under EU states with this illegal recognition of the Golan as Israeli territory. J Kushner's Israel/Palestinian peace plan is to be unveiled shortly after the Israeli elections, I predict the US will offer the Palestinians a series of Bantustans with funding mostly coming from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states, these Bantustans will have no sovereignty and the Palestinians will have no representation in the Knesset [that would solve Israels demographic problem], this was set out in a NYT article several years ago by Naftali Bennett who hinted that this offer could be forced onto them. https://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/06/opinion/naftali-bennett-for-israel-two-state-is-no-solution.html The US continually shoot themselves in both feet in the Middle East, they will lose major influence there by supporting all Israels objectives.

Posted by: Harry Law | Mar 23 2019 0:36 utc | 63

Surprising to absolutely no one

Discussion about Golan is effectively terminated by this news that broke late today:

Mueller Delivers Findings on Trump-Russia Inquiry

Trump Reverses North Korea Sanctions, Breaking With the State Dept.

The White Houses Says That the Last Territory Held by ISIS in Syria fell

USA MSM is now focusing on these stories, which are all front-page news on NYTimes website right now.

Mueller's report has been rumored to be complete for weeks. How convenient that he delivered it one day after Trump's tweet about recognizing Golan./sarc The media had ONE DAY to blast the Golan news (how good it is!) along with interviews with Pompeo in Israel (with both US and Israeli flags behind him) before the conversation was effected ended by delivery of the Mueller Report.

Posted by: Jackrabbit | Mar 23 2019 0:43 utc | 64

Trump also put in a lot of effort saving MBS. Now recognizing Golan Heights as Israel in an attempt to save Netanyahu...

In between or in the background from Trump's moves in relation to Israel, Iran and Venezuela is the constant build up of weapons for nuclear war. US about to test an anti ICBM missile, new tactical nuke warheads in production and I think the medium range missile to carry them are in production.

Posted by: Peter AU 1 | Mar 23 2019 0:46 utc | 65

Regarding the Golan oil (or lack thereof), I'm going completely by Genie financial statements and whatever passes as 'news' on Google. J Burrel @JBurrel47549198 rightly pointed out that the people involved in Genie are not known for truth-telling. Maybe there is recoverable oil there and they just don't want anyone to know. Reasonable suspicion. Anything is possible with this bunch.

https://twitter.com/PavewayIV/status/1082006483653537800

The above was in reply to @BarakRavid's Jan. 6th tweet that Israeli officials told him that Netanyahu was going to ask Trump to recognize the Golan as Israeli territory.

Re: Israel and Litani River - there was a plan (maybe 1950's?) to divert much of the river into Israel. The Litani was a pristine mountain and spring-fed river at the time. Today, it's heavily-polluted kind of an open sewer for the refugee camps upstream. Lebanon is trying to crack down on polluters and clean the river up. Flow is still low due to the years-long drought.

Here's the original diversion plans. Take note of diversion tunnel #3 and it's coincidental proximity to where the Lebanese 'Terror Tunnels' were discovered. My snarky comment was meant to suggest the possibility that Israel was tunneling into the nearby Lebanese aquifers (to steal water) and was using the terror tunnel excuse to explain its strange digging and drilling activity in the area. Some of the long-abandoned Lebanese tunnels were really there. Others? Maybe new, but not all the way to the Litani, of course. But maybe long enough to let Israel siphon off the Lebanon's Western South Hermoun or Anti-Lebanon aquifers.

https://twitter.com/PavewayIV/status/1072374138621313025

Posted by: PavewayIV | Mar 23 2019 0:49 utc | 66

@Jackrabbit

I agree with you in that a lot of distraction is badly needed.
But not because of Golan. Trump's tweet doesn't change anything - it may be Syrian territory, but the IDF is there to stay. The real news this week is the Fed.

Posted by: smuks | Mar 23 2019 0:52 utc | 67

Over at Dailykos everyone is crying in their soup because the fact that there are no more indictments presages the Mueller report will be a nothing burger, and Trump will be gloating from now to 2020. Today, before Trump left for Mar a Lago he slammed the Democrats for being anti-Israel and anti-Jewish, yet another gift for Netanyahoo who was snubbed and undermined by Obama and the Dems (except Schumer and other rabid Zios in the party) . Trump is vindicating Netanyahoo with this rebuke of the Dems. Again, quid pro quo.

However, try and tell those fools at Dk that the collusion was with Israel, Netanyahoo and Zionist oligarchs...oh me, oh my they'll pounce on you! There is rabid Zionism on the Democratic side and they're just jealous one of their own wasn't Chosen. Imagine the thought that Hillary wasn't Chosen and that Zionists are the ones that exposed the dirty schemes being used against Sanders? That fact would cause mass hysteria among Dems. The revelation that Hillary was betrayed by Zionists would be like a stake through the heart of the Democratic Party.

FYI, Pelosi and Schumer will be at the Aipac Convention next week no doubt grovelling for crumbs from their masters while some Dem hopefuls for the Presidency are boycotting.

By the way, Trump's man on Venezuela, Elliott Abrams, will be a guest speaker at Aipac. I wonder what he'll say, hmmm🤔: We successfully Zionized Brazil thanks to Netayahoo's efforts there, and Venezuela is coming along thanks to Donald J. Trump!

Trump is the best Zionist asset ever and proven he's a great return on Israel's investment. Now, let's see...what has Trump done for Russia lately? Bupkis.

Posted by: Circe | Mar 23 2019 1:08 utc | 68

Circe @58:

This investgation was a convenient sham to cover for the real collusion and Trump was the Zionist 1 percenters choice and nothing was going to foil that and many of you here fell for the entire charade hook, line and sinker believing Trump was a poor victim all along.

I think you're mostly right but there's more to it, like:

>> Complicity of Christian Zionists and other enablers and hangers on;

>> Deep-State CYA after the lost war in Syria;

>> New Cold War as AZ Empire re-orients to respond to Russia-China challenge.

AIPAC/Israel's power in US politics is well known. And they have great influence on BOTH Parties. Your focus on as the embodiment of this evil suggest that you think that if he were not elected in 2016 then Zionist influence would be eliminated or greatly diminished. That is certainly not the true.

What strikes me about the 2016 Presidential election is not that wealthy Jews donated to Trump but that the election was manipulated in numerous ways. Highlights:

>> Trump was the only Republican populist (out of 19 contenders!);

>> Sanders and Trump were both long-time friends of the Clintons;

>> Sanders was a sheepdog that prevented progressives from breaking with the Democratic Party;

>> Hillary didn't need to collude with DNC - that added very very little to the money she raised for her campaign - but it did allow her to treat Sanders and his supporters shabbily;

>> Hillary also alienated other important groups, like blacks and white conservatives ("deplorables");

>> Trump played along by bringing on Manafort, asking Russia to find Hillary's emails, and breaking his campaign promise to investigate Hillary within days of the election;

>> Trump has brought allies of his supposed enemies into his Administration: VP Pence was close to McCain (as was Lindsey Graham who was anti-Trump during the election); Gina Haspel is Brennan's gal at CIA; Bolton and Abrams are neocons (neocons were 'Never Trump'); Attorney General William Barr is close with Robert Mueller; etc.

Posted by: Jackrabbit | Mar 23 2019 1:17 utc | 69

Circe @68--

Trump the best Zionistan asset? Nah, IMO the Clinton's, Obama, and the Bushes all pretty much tie with Trump as they're all outstanding assets. But let's not forget about the US Congress and its massive appropriations in support of Zionistan! Remember, it wasn't too long ago--1981--that the US used its UNSC vote to disallow Zionistan's annexation of Golan. That changed with the CIA's total takeover of the Executive with DCI/VEEP GHW Bush running the criminal Reagan administration.

Probably the best accusation is to indict the entire Political Class of the Outlaw US Empire and then weed out the very few exceptions to the rule. IMO, the failure of Russiagate's goals provide an opening to attack the real foreign manipulators of US politics--Zionistan and its numerous lobbies as AIPAC isn't the only one.

Posted by: karlof1 | Mar 23 2019 1:26 utc | 70

Thanks b, for the time invested in winkling out many of the peripheral issues relevant to Trump's Golan gambit.
As usual with Trump, there's enough ambiguity to confuse/ annoy/ bamboozle everyone. And, as usual, it's working. It's hard not to notice that although "Israel" is no closer to 'owning' Golan than it was was last week, the notional strengthening and expansion of the axis of resistance will have very real consequences. And we still don't know which self-indulgent episode of bloodletting the "Israelis" will launch to mark their 'victory' with a gloat-fest.

From a Palestinian point of view it probably doesn't matter whether Bibi or someone else wins the election. It's not as though there's a shortage of psychopaths/ fruitcakes to fill his shoes. So from that perspective, Trump doing something perceived as helping Bibi is an exercise in oxymoronic pointlessness.

Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Mar 23 2019 1:36 utc | 71

The rich and powerful, the elites, that are in charge don't care if you see what they are doing.

They are laughing all the way to the bank.

Posted by: jal | Mar 23 2019 2:07 utc | 72

Hoarsewhisperer

And what of the brewing conflict between Syria and Israel which would likely draw in other countries (like Iran and USA)?

Posted by: Jackrabbit | Mar 23 2019 2:07 utc | 73

Thanks b

Posted by: mourning dove | Mar 23 2019 2:11 utc | 74

Ghost Ship @60

This article, indirect as it may be

https://www.globalresearch.ca/so-what-if-trump-recognizes-israels-annexation-of-the-golan/5672319

Posted by: Pft | Mar 23 2019 2:12 utc | 75

jal @72:

... the elites, that are in charge don't care if you see what they are doing.

Wrong! They care a great deal.

That's why they create media circuses to entertain us, conduct psyops and propaganda campaigns, and cower behind gated communities.

Posted by: Jackrabbit | Mar 23 2019 2:14 utc | 76

@76

And conduct a war on whistle-blowers and other truth-tellers.

Posted by: Jackrabbit | Mar 23 2019 2:16 utc | 77

The business of Trump giving away something he doesn't own is insane. But insanity has been the theme of most everything else him and his neocon helpers have been doing of late.
I believe it's time to start paying attention to the truly nutty stories. The crazier sounding ones ought to get the most attention. After all, who would have conceived the Trumpies declaring a genuine nobody to be the true President of Venezuela? Early finds:

U.S., Taiwan: Washington Ponders a Military Presence on a Taiwanese Island (Nov 5, 2018)

A US military base on Taiwan. New weapons to Taiwan. More high-level contacts with that nation. All proposed by the Trumpies. Who benefits most from a small or large war with China?

Headline from the neocon york times:

Israel Is on the Brink of Disaster. Trump Just Made Things Worse. (March 22, 2019)

On Twitter on Thursday, he wrote that “it is time for the United States to fully recognize Israel’s Sovereignty over the Golan Heights, which is of critical strategic and security importance to the State of Israel and Regional Stability!” It is the latest, and most important, signal from Washington that Mr. Trump is ready to acknowledge Israeli control of the Golan Heights.

But those signals are also being read by the Israeli right wing as an encouragement to pursue annexation of territory in the West Bank — a far more dangerous step that would present Israel with an unparalleled existential threat to its Jewish and democratic character.

I'd ask if there is any reason for the murdering and stealing rightwingnut settlers not to celebrate? Trump has been doing their bidding at every turn, even when it does direct harm to the US. Are there any indications the Trumpies have something planned for the subhuman Palestinians. As a matter of fact, YES.

Jordan-Saudi Arabia land exchange appeared in draft of Jared Kushner’s Middle East peace plan (March 19, 2019)

The are much better 'Kushner, boy wonder' articles than this one floating around, but I want to focus on a single part:

Kushner said in February the White House was poised to unveil the peace plan after Israel’s election in April. While in Warsaw, Kushner said the plan will impact the entire Middle East region and is “really about establishing border and resolving final-status issues," according to Sky News Arabia.

Change "final-status" to Final Solution and that would be just about right. Death-March time, Baby, and to the exultant Republican & End-Timers chant of "they had their chance, but blew it".

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Mar 23 2019 2:31 utc | 78

And what of the brewing conflict between Syria and Israel which would likely draw in other countries (like Iran and USA)?
Posted by: Jackrabbit | Mar 22, 2019 10:07:45 PM | 73

Although it's an appealing concept, the "unprovoked" hazard tells me that it's baseless. The only sensible way for Syria to prepare the ground for an attack on Israel would be to respond to an "Israeli" threat, or attack, by drawing a red line and waiting for "Israel" to cross it.

Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Mar 23 2019 2:46 utc | 79

Opinion time about the Golan:

Syria isn't going to get that strip of land back unless the apartheid Jewish state suddenly gets all caught up in a fit of morality. Something I believe the Fundies call "finding God". The entire area has almost certainly been thoroughly riddled with Atomic Demolition Munitions. Nuclear Land mines. These would be a small part of the Samson Option.

Still an opinion, but I'd expect Syria will have to content itself with continually smashing radars and observation points and other military targets. A ground invasion would be very costly, and in the end quite pointless.

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Mar 23 2019 2:50 utc | 80

According to PBS Newshour, UK has joined the gaggle of countries and alliances irritated by, and opposed to, Trump's Golan gambit.

Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Mar 23 2019 3:05 utc | 81

http://www.unz.com/article/uks-labour-antisemitism-split/#comments i think link to the video in this comment says a lot..
a very big lot.. Professor unz is a recognized quality researcher ... and this appeared on his site. very revealing..

Posted by: snake | Mar 23 2019 3:21 utc | 82

@67smuks

Sorry I ain't buying. The Zionist tugboat is leading the U.S. Titanic, but then you'll never admit that. Israel may be a speck in the universe but the Zionist Chosen have come to rule it and their biggest flaw is that they no longer conceal that fact and are pretty much flaunting their weight and influence. All your comments are not so subtly sympathetic to Zionism so I won't bother further.

Jackrabbit

How do I have to convince you that I see both parties as infected to the same degree, and rigging democracy, except with a few minor exceptions? I know we differ in that you believe Hillary was in on Trump's win and Sanders was her sheepdog, and you could be right on the former but I'm still not fully convinced on the latter. You made points regarding things Hillary did that are hard to explain for a women who is as calculating in every detail of her ambition, as she was. However, if that was the case, not everyone was aware of what was happening. Who was and who wasn't is a complex discussion for another time. I still agree however that the majority are compromised.

@70Karlof1

Although I'd lump them together as being all in for Zionistan, I wouldn't consider their service to the Zionist cause viewed from Zionists' pov as being of equal fealty. Zionists didn't like the fact that Obama made a deal with Iran and that he wouldn't put boots on the ground in Syria, and that he didn't cut off funding to Palestinians, or vote NO on the Resolution condemning settlement expansion at the end of his Presidency. Although I think Obama did what he did more to spite Netanyahoo, who he personally couldn't stand, he didn't really advance the cause of Palestinians either. On the whole however his foreign policy sucked. In regards to Russia, after the "on" Mic moment with Putin it was all downhill. I agree, Hillary would have done anything to please Zionists, and did while she was SoS, but the reason she's not President is clear; she wouldn't deliver what Trump is delivering, unless she changed parties first. I'd put Bush Sr. on the level of Obama in regards to Israel and Bush jr. more on Trump's level, but so far Trump has delivered on a lot, and after he gets another term, nothing will hold him back from moving in on Iran. He took on Venezuela first, because it's a safer bet for his 1st term, but Bolton is there for a reason and Abrams is now in not just to handle Venezuela. Also, watch for Trump to hire a hawk to replace his acting SOD. Again, that might happen only at the start of his 2nd term, but I doubt the Boeing guy remains.

On the second part, I totally agree and will add. Yes, the report opens the door for everyone to see who Trump really colluded with. Just the fact that nothing was pinned on him, Don Jr., or Kushner is proof that he's protected, was the choice and Zionists will pull another one to get him re-elected, and if he weren't old, they'd get him to change term limits, but they're probably already prepping someone for 2024.

Posted by: Circe | Mar 23 2019 3:27 utc | 83

@76,77 Jackrabbit

I agree with both, but they're getting sloppier and more people are getting wiser. There's still hope.

Posted by: Circe | Mar 23 2019 3:36 utc | 84

I have to say - I'm such a hypocrite. I can't stand gender based insults but when I read that bit about premature ejaculation, I smirked. Maybe the patriarchy is fair game, or maybe it just goes against the current, but it seems different to me. Men, and boys, have this culture-wide "safe space" around their vulnerability -Below The Belt- that is generally respected not only in action but also in word as off-limits. Meanwhile, female genitalia, and even the female essence, are routinely used as derogatory insults despite their being a much less apt metaphor for weakness, and vulnerabilities which are not testicular in origin are subject to derision. Me, I kinda wear my bleeding heart on my sleeve and, as a result, it's sometimes easily bruised. I'm not a snowflake, I melted a Long Time Ago, now I claim the whole cycle - sometimes water, sometimes vapor. Sometimes a Storm! Lol😉
An off topic thought I know, aplolgies. Just something that's been percolating for a while.

Genie -wtf? That's got to be a front for something. Right?
Another corruption charge?! What a piece of work... or a piece of something.

Posted by: mourning dove | Mar 23 2019 3:40 utc | 85

Circe #34

I remember the sometimes abusive crossposting from a couple of years ago.

You have been proven to be correct in your assertions - kudos

Posted by: m | Mar 23 2019 3:40 utc | 86

>>>> Circe | Mar 22, 2019 9:08:55 PM | 68

You have my sympathy. It's surprising how illiberal liberal blogs are particularly when you give one of their shibboleths a good kicking

Posted by: Ghost Ship | Mar 23 2019 3:44 utc | 87

Perhaps now the Democrats will get on with doing what the opposition should do. Oppose Donald Trump instead of pissing away the period before the next election on that complete waste of time and space called Russia-gate.
I suppose I should feel sorry for the hardcore Russiagaters. First they never moved on from the denial stage of Trump winning the election. Yeah, I know he didn't win the popular vote but that's irrelevant, Now they're straight into the denial stage for Mueller closing down his investigation with Donald Trump still president. It's time for them to recognize the source of their grief, Hillary Clinton, a bad candidate who ran a bad campaign with bad policies and compounded it by failing to accept that she was responsible for putting a supposedly un-electable idiot in the White House, meanwhile blaming it all on whatever came to mind.

I said "supposedly" of Donald Trump because he's the clever one by getting the Democrats to run round in circles for nothing and getting himself elected.

Any Democrat who think it's going to be easy for the Democrat to win in 2020 is a moron and when it comes to selecting the candidate they should forget everything but one question, "can she/he defeat Trump". At the moment the only two who might do it are Sanders and Gabbard.

Posted by: Ghost Ship | Mar 23 2019 3:44 utc | 88

@78 ZS

Pretty crazy, depressing stuff. Trump is advancing domination everywhere, but would be really mad to provoke China that way. Everyone's f#cked. That's why everyone else is already preparing for the worst. Putin's been unveiling the latest hardware and has turned pretty serious lately. NK isn't buying the Trump good cop routine, and Iran isn't budging from Syria, and is setting the terrain for an eventual wider conflict. When bombers start flying over Tehran it's more practical to strike back from Syria. For Iran and Hezbollah, Syria was a training ground for what they believe is inevitable. This isn't over and Trump sent Assad and the other parties a message with the Golan Heights statement.

Posted by: Circe | Mar 23 2019 4:00 utc | 89

Posted by: JOHN CHUCKMAN | Mar 22, 2019 8:31:11 PM | 62

The man is simply an idiot

That's a dangerous assumption. He won the real election and supposedly beat the best prepared candidate ever (at least according to certain liberals), and he's managed to keep the Democrats running round like headless chickens for more than two years. I know there are some who claim that is their natural state which is a concern.

... with no understanding of what damage he does

Is he any worse than his predecessors? At least he has't started any wars which cannot be said of Obama, Bush fils, Clinton, Bush pere, Reagan or Carter.

As for the Golan Heights, what was so easily done can be just as easily undone, particularly if it's by executive order. Maybe he's going to stick it to Saban, Adelson and Netanyahu once he's been re-elected. Trump is unpredictable in some ways which makes it difficult to get a clear understanding of what he's up to.

Posted by: Ghost Ship | Mar 23 2019 4:10 utc | 90

@ Circe #89

This isn't over and Trump sent Assad and the other parties a message with the Golan Heights statement.

I don't know the mechanism for a nation to 'officially' change its policy, but here is what most of the apartheid Zionist state's sites is saying in one form or another:

White House officials are currently drafting an official US declaration recognizing Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights, with President Donald Trump set to sign it when he hosts Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington next week, Israeli TV reports said Friday.

If the zionists feel it useful to have Congress to once again perform like a well-trained bunch of seals, they can add another Declaration validating Trump's action. Unless Trump backs down (highly unlikely, IMO) I fear it really is "over" so far as the US of wag-the-dogdom is concerned.

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Mar 23 2019 4:25 utc | 91

Darn it! I wish there was a 5-minute edit window. What looks good enough in "preview" turns out to have hideous grammar or spelling errors after it's too late to change anything.

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Mar 23 2019 4:28 utc | 92

Ghost Ship @90:

At least he has't started any wars ...

Not for lack of trying! Several Trump Administration actions have been acts of war or could be considered an act of war, such as:

>> Bombing Syria based on false flags (twice);

>> Illegally occupying Syria (any pretense of legal occupation is gone with the demise of ISIS);

>> Supporting the illegal occupation of Syria by other countries (Turkey in Idlib, Israel in Golan Heights);

>> Stealing Venezuelan government assets;

>> Continued occupation of Afghanistan (17+ years now);

>> Supporting KSA and UAE war on Yemen (genocidal);

>> Virtual embargo of Russia and Iran;

>> Militarizing space.

Posted by: Jackrabbit | Mar 23 2019 4:33 utc | 93

Circe @89
I think you are spot on.

Posted by: mourning dove | Mar 23 2019 4:58 utc | 94

love two quotes from Elijah M's most recent article/analysis on US policy failures in the middle east since 2003 and the disastrous Iraq war - and these quotes apply to everything which Trump, Kushner, and John "the devil himself' Bolton have done to date, now including this nonsensical and counter-productive bird brain stuff over Golan.

(I hate the ayatollahs, but Khamenei got that one right: imbeciles!)

https://ejmagnier.com/2019/03/21/us-policy-failure-reopens-iraqi-syrian-borders-and-the-iran-beirut-road/

"A dinosaur with a bird’s brain". This is how the ex-President of Iran Hashemi Rafsanjani described the United States of America, evoking its great military strength but lack of strategic intelligence in foreign policy.

....At a recent Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps – Quds brigade event celebrating Commander Major General Qassem Soleimani’s success in Iraq and Syria, the leader of the revolution Sayyed Ali Khamenei said, with reference to the US (and Saudi Arabia): “we thank Allah, who rendered our enemies imbeciles”.

Posted by: michaelj72 | Mar 23 2019 5:07 utc | 95

Pompeo Suggests God May Have Sent Trump to Protect Israel

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo suggested in an interview on March 21 that it’s very possible God sent President Donald Trump to protect and defend Israel from the Iranian regime.

In an interview with Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) during his trip in Israel, Pompeo was asked whether the president “has been sort of raised for such a time as this, just like Queen Esther, to help save the Jewish people from the Iranian menace” while on the topic of the Islamic regime’s aggression in the Middle East. Queen Esther is a biblical heroine who rescued the Jewish people from genocide.

Pompeo replied, “as a Christian, I certainly believe that’s possible.” He added that “to see the remarkable history of the faith in this place and the work that our administration’s done to make sure that this democracy in the Middle East, that this Jewish state remains. I am confident that the Lord is at work here.”
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Is Trump the Messenger of G-d?

No more and no less ... And it is quite serious. Who are those who are suckers, continue to believe this circus performance?

Posted by: John Smith | Mar 23 2019 6:43 utc | 96

Posted by: michaelj72 | Mar 23, 2019 1:07:38 AM | 95

When she got out of jail, David Letterman invited Paris Hilton onto the Late Show as the celebrity guest and introduced her as The Bird Brain of Alcatraz. She laughed along too, which probably wasn't easy...

Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Mar 23 2019 6:55 utc | 97

Trump Calls Democrats ‘Anti-Israel’ For Not Attending Pro-Israel Conference

President Donald Trump took aim at Democrats for being “anti-Israel” on March 21 when asked about his attendance at the annual pro-Israel conference, AIPAC.

“The Democrats have very much proven to be anti-Israel, there’s no question about that, and it’s a disgrace,” Trump said. “I mean, I don’t know what’s happened to them but they are totally anti-Israel. Frankly, I think they’re anti-Jewish.”

His remarks come after the progressive advocacy group MoveOn urged presidential candidates to boycott the conference, which is being headlined by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

MoveOn said in a Twitter post dated March 20 it is promoting the boycott because AIPAC, which stands for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, lobbied for the United States to withdraw from an Iran Deal, peddled “anti-Muslim and anti-Arab rhetoric,” and refused to condemn the “anti-Semitism of Republicans.”
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In short, the Democrats are anti-Semites.

Posted by: John Smith | Mar 23 2019 6:57 utc | 98

ANNOUNCE: @WikiLeaks launches $1m goal for the full publication of the 'Mueller report'. All contributions to over the next seven days (from now until Friday 29 March 23:59 GMT) will be exclusively used to facilitate the full publication of the report.

https://shop.wikileaks.org/donate

Whistleblowing website WikiLeaks has launched a fundraiser to “facilitate the full publication” of the long-awaited Russiagate report, as many wonder: why pay for a nothingburger that’s poised to be released to the public anyway?

While some wondered if the WikiLeaks’ twitter account was ‘hacked’ by the Democrats, many wondered why the whistleblowers’ website would seek to raise so much money to publish ‘literally nothing.’

Most netizens, however, seemed puzzled by the initiative, with reactions ranging from accusations of trying to ‘bribe’ Robert Mueller to the idea that WikiLeaks is trying to get hold of the report to release a ‘redacted’ version of it.

Posted by: John Smith | Mar 23 2019 7:11 utc | 99

Report from the Special Counsel Investigation into Russian Interference During and Before the 2016 Presidential Election

https://ru.scribd.com/document/402800029/Report-from-the-Special-Counsel-Investigation-into-Russian-Interference-During-and-Before-the-2016-Presidential-Election

Posted by: John Smith | Mar 23 2019 7:13 utc | 100