MoA Week In Review – Various Issues – OT 2019-31

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June 2, 2019

Last week's posts at Moon of Alabama:

May 27 – New York Times Supports False Trump Claims About An "Iranian Nuclear Weapons Program" That Does Not Exist
May 28 – U.S. Government Seeks NGO Help For Removing Iran From Syria

May 29 – Mueller Punts On Obstruction Charges – Impeachment Would Hurt The Democrats

May 31 – Death And Resurrection In North Korea

June 1 – Blog Housekeeping And Minor Renovations

June 2 – CNN Sees Saudi Success In Disunited Gulf Summits That Made No New Statements

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Other issues:

Reuters headlined today: U.S. prepared to engage with Iran without pre-conditions: Pompeo

Reading the very first sentence one immediately learns that the headline is lie:

BELLINZONA, Switzerland (Reuters) – The United States is prepared to engage with Iran without pre-conditions about its nuclear program but needs to see the country behaving like “a normal nation”, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Sunday.

What does Pompeo mean when he uses the phrase "a normal nation"? We can discern that by reading his May 2018 speech, After the Deal: A New Iran Strategy. In it Pompeo lays out twelve "requirements" that the U.S. wants Iran to fulfill. Together they are a demand to Iran to 'regime change' itself, to lay down and play dead. Pompeo then goes on to say:

So we’re not asking anything other than that Iranian behavior be consistent with global norms, …

"A normal nation" is one that behaves "consistent with global norms". Pompeo will only talk with Iran after it fulfills all the "requirements" he set out a year ago. How Reuters can sells that as "without pre-condition" is a mystery.

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The New York Times has a long new piece on the Boeing 737 MAX: Boeing Built Deadly Assumptions Into 737 Max, Blind to a Late Design Change

Apart from some new quotes I find no fact in there that was not mentioned in on of the 737 pieces on this site. Meanwhile not one mainstream outlet has written about the safety problems of the 737 NG trim which we extensively discussed here. That piece also noted that it will take quite some time for the 737 MAX to be allowed back into the air. Other agencies than the FAA will want to check it out and that will take some time. The president of Emirates Airline agrees with that view:

Boeing Co.’s 737 Max will likely not be back in the skies before the end of this year because of a fall-out in cooperation between the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and other national regulators, according to Tim Clark, president of Emirates.

“You’re going to have a bit of a delay in terms of regulators, Canada, Europe, China,” Clark told reporters at the IATA annual meeting in Seoul. “It’s going to take time to get this aircraft back in the air. If it’s in the air by Christmas I’ll be surprised.”

The proven FAA failure to appropriately check Boeing's designs will have additional consequences:

Clark also said regulators are now set to take a more stringent view on Boeing’s next plane, the 777X, which is targeted to begin commercial flights in 2020. Boeing is seeking regulatory approval for the jet which, just like the 737 Max, is an update of an existing model.

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The Trump administration wants to discourage all those nasty foreigners who want to spend their vacation money in the United States:

The State Department is now requiring nearly all applicants for U.S. visas to submit their social media usernames, previous email addresses and phone numbers. … In addition to their social media histories, visa applicants are now asked for five years of previously used telephone numbers, email addresses, international travel and deportation status …

The new rule will affect some 15 million visa per year. That is a lot of new data for the NSA to crosscheck.

—

Use as open thread …

Posted by b on June 2, 2019 at 16:15 UTC | Permalink

Comments

since most people who have social media accounts reuse the same passwords for multiple different accounts (including personal files, bank accounts, etc…) I imagine the NSA will have a field day identifying valuable personal financial information for future use. I’m not sure if it will ever be confirmed, but I’ve always suspected that individuals and elements of the US government exploited the NSA spying mandate to pass along valuable, confidential business information to select US and Western companies in order to undermine competing companies (both foreign and domestic)

Posted by: Kadath | Jun 2 2019 16:25 utc | 1

U.S. Color revolution: Chickens coming home to roost
We have spent decades developing a playbook identifying overseas threats and tactics on how to overthrow rogue regimes and an internal infrastructure on how to do it. So why wouldn’t this infrastructure look to internal U.S. politicians and use the same playbook on them?
So I disagree with MoA, an impeachment against Trump will not just be ruinous against Democrats but against the U.S. in general. In fact, we will eventually disintegrate into the same mess that we impose on other countries.
One of the ironic points of the playbook is to find a scapegoat when things go badly for the regime that we overthrow (which is the usual outcome), we always find someone to blame such as Russia or Iran. In the Trump impeachment charade, they are pinning it on Russia again 🙂
I have basically said what has been stated much more succinctly, ‘He who digs a pit for others will fall into that same pit’

Posted by: Christian Chuba | Jun 2 2019 17:34 utc | 2

Data mining and revelation of proprietary data would be an insiders’ game subject to pay-to-play and corrupt methodologies. Like you, IMHO, this has been in existence and ongoing and there is no security for anyone. Trade secrets, inventions, patents, none of these are safe from the governments data mining, storage and selective dissemination.
Major Violation of this:
Amendment IV
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Posted by: Kristan hinton | Jun 2 2019 17:45 utc | 3

Some Latin American briefs:
El Salvador has a new president today. (…) Also in attendance at the event were foreign dignitaries including the presidents of Costa Rica, Guatemala, Bolivia, Panama, and the Dominican Republic. The US delegation was headed by Secretary of Commerce, Wilbur Ross. (…) What type of president will El Salvador’s youngest leader be? In an interview with AJ+ Español published last night, Bukele described some of his plans as the Millennial President… [Me – one ominous sign] Bukele … decided to make his first public appearance at the conservative Heritage Foundation in Washington, D.C., a think tank which backed Ronald Reagan’s policies during El Salvador’s civil war. His next public appearance was also in Washington, where he has steadfastly refused to speak against the anti-immigrant rhetoric of Donald Trump despite the fact that one fourth of Salvadorans live in the US.
Colombia: A court decision to overturn the Senate president’s decision to reject a vote upholding the powers of Colombia’s war crimes tribunal has revived hopes that conflict victims will be allowed in Congress. The Constitutional Court overturned the decision of far-right Senate president Ernesto Macias (Democratic Center) to declare the vote invalid, claiming that the “pro-peace” coalition was one vote short of an absolute majority.
Spanish Xinhuanet (Buenos Aires) – In a white paper published today by the Information Office of the State Council of China provides “deep clarity and fundamentals” to the comprehensive panorama of economic and trade consultations between Beijing and Washington, Argentine analyst Gonzalo Tordini said. “In contradistinction to the ‘great noise’ in the communication generated by the United States, where threats prevail, with short and violent messages through social networks, we have the formal agreements reached by the parties in the negotiations,” he emphasized. in an interview with Xinhua.

Posted by: Maracatu | Jun 2 2019 17:52 utc | 4

The following article, from the Fort Russ News website, puts forward a very plausible theory of what the calls for impeachment of Donald Trump may actually be leading to the US being at war with Russia in Europe:
How Mueller + Barr = Trump’s Reelection
(I also posted this link on the “Mueller Punts On Obstruction Charges – Impeachment Would Hurt The Democrats” thread of 29th May; sorry for repeating myself but I really think the author of the article, Ronald Thomas West, is on to something.)

Posted by: ADKC | Jun 2 2019 17:58 utc | 5

Caitlin Johnstone has been doing an excellent job in getting information out about Assange.
https://medium.com/@caityjohnstone
Sad that coverage of Assange’s treatment is getting very limited coverage. Perhaps some people here can help get the word out?
BBC, Sky News Have Hidden Their Interviews With UN Expert On The Torture Of Assange
https://medium.com/@caityjohnstone/bbc-sky-news-have-hidden-their-interviews-with-un-expert-on-the-torture-of-assange-4cb155aaf313
“UN Special Rapporteur on torture Nils Melzer has said that on the 31st of May he gave video interviews with both Sky News and the BBC on his findings that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is the victim of psychological torture. As of this writing, footage of those interviews is nowhere to be found.”
“Julian Assange has been tortured. His health has been declining dangerously. The US, UK, Sweden, Ecuador and Australia are responsible for this. They did this to him because he published inconvenient facts about the powerful. These are truths. They are uncomfortable truths, but they are truths we all must ingest, process, and respond to.”

Posted by: Stever | Jun 2 2019 18:01 utc | 6

Another week and the empire carrousel is still spinning madly keeping all the plates of obfuscation from falling.
I look at all the headlines and the trajectory they represent and keep looking for the seminal event that brings it all to a halt. It is interesting to note that all the hooting and hollering is happening in the MSM and not at the UN.
When is someone going to call BS on all the code words like “normal” and “rules based” and cut to the chase of the public/private financial control war we are in?
I vote for some group from Haiti, that has and continues to be screwed by the West, to acquire the tools necessary to disable an empire warship…….. which might bring the crazies to the table.
Hey empire, they don’t hate you for your freedoms, the rest of the world hates you for your fealty to the global private finance god.

Posted by: psychohistorian | Jun 2 2019 19:41 utc | 7

https://www.rt.com/news/460854-snowden-surveillance-social-control/ <=Snowden at Dalhousie University.. Robert Thibault, Att, HK Canada, (I think) Snowden's lawyer explained the law protecting whistle blowers. Describes the incredible pressure governments are applying on anyone who steps forward to help a whistle blower. Said Mr. Snowden was at risk for extra ordinary rendition.. qualified him for application under refuge law. said to claim refugee status Art. 33 of the refugee humanitarian grounds application is Intl Refuge Law, that those in control of governments are working to eliminate this long standing intl understanding. Explained the constitution of Equador was the most complex constitution on planet its due process rights solid due process safeguard, has a very high threshold but. Morales decision was arbitrary to strip Mr. Assange of his asylum Said HK angry at Germany over two whistle blowers Snowden then speaks .. excellent talk.. 1st point.. progress in science has been unprecedented, especially nuclear science, but the nation states are using that new knowledge to make nuclear weapons.. called the progress an "Atomic Moment" in Science evolution. . said we are experiencing the greatest and fastest and most pervasive redistribution of power since the Industrial revolution. Highly concerned that very few are going to benefit. 2nd point Platforms and Algorithms are being used by those in power to "shift our behaviors" accomplished covertly by user contracts people are required to sign when joining something on line (<=he said no one reads these things, but they are dangerous Talked about Conspiracy , a group called 5 eyes (USA, Canada, Australia, NZ, and UK) and prism.. explained how it worked. basically a collaboration between big corporations and government explained how these corporations and government (mostly government) could intercept web page request between user at home or in office and the target server, and replace generate a blank page that has surveillance hidden in the page, then blend hidden with the legitimate page delivered by the innocent server to the unknowing user. said it goes beyond collaboration and moves to proactive surveillance. said the legal means to spy on the populations existed long before 9/11, but it could not find daylight to be adopted until 9/11. Basically the government and massive in size corporations have all of the data on every single person on the earth because they gather it everywhere all of the time. discussed warrant_less wire tap, explained why whistle blower fair trial in he USA not likely, Said everything single call or electronic communication made by citizens is captured suggested monitoring calls was a felony many corporations committed before the FISA Act was enacted to protect the listener. Mentioned Signal by Open Whisper <= for encryption?? Said law is needed to criminalize companies and governments that make useful network devices that people buy, into evil spyware. mentioned the NSO group can remember why?. .. classified "trade in hidden exploits". as evil relayed story about how such devices were used in Mexico to defeat political opposition. But the big thing I got out of it, was how website contract agreements are not innocent. Such agreements prey on human desire to [interact, connect, share and cooperate] these desires have been modelled into a platform that allows government or private commercial enterprises to manipulate, exploit and prey-on any human "interacting with a such websites. Questions and answers.

Posted by: snake | Jun 2 2019 19:41 utc | 8

The Trump administration wants to discourage all those nasty foreigners who want to spend their vacation money in the United States

We have a fair number of RNC trolls here, and it’ll be interesting if they embrace this one. More likely they’ll hunker down and pretend it’s not happening.
The Trumpies have already had some success in other areas:

Sharp drop in international student visas worries some US colleges
by Parija Kavilanz @CNNMoney
March 14, 2018: 10:16 AM ET

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Jun 2 2019 19:50 utc | 9

normal coming off the lips of pompeo…. actually it’s presently a usa state dept mantra at present as well.. sort of like the cia marketing lingo to sell an angle… they are all in cahoots.. normal… the new normal… trump is normal? the usa is normal? give me a friggin break.. they are so far whacked out not normal, they ought to be embarrassed to market the word normal, rules based lingo, but they have no shame..
@5 adkc.. i don’t think the author is saying anything unusual or insightful… the cia-deep state have been gunning for war with russia for quite some time.. they want to keep that russia-gate bs on the front burner 24/7..it works on a lot of otherwise sane people..
@7 psychohistorian… things take time… you ought to be able to at least laugh at the concept of pompeo/usa talking about other countries being normal.. that is a good joke for a sunday!
@8 snake… peter au was very focused on the 5 eyes gang and i think that is a good characterization – a platform that allows government / private commercial enterprises to manipulate, exploit and prey-on any humans… since no one cares about privacy anymore – this is what we get…
i refuse to travel to the usa for a number of reasons since 9-11.. i just can’t get into that type of normal anymore..

Posted by: james | Jun 2 2019 19:57 utc | 10

The NY Times article misses the whole point of why two 737 Max(s) crashed: 1) Boeing’s self-certification of the safety of their airplanes and 2) the corporate drive to increase shareholder value and C-Suite Bonuses. Both assured that there was no oversight. There was no person who didn’t risk losing their job and livelihood if they pointed out that MCAS violated the federal commercial flight regulations which prohibits a single sensor on flight critical systems. This is the same as the restart of the Cold War due to “Russian Aggression” or the use of proxy radical forces to instigate regime change. If corporate media does not report factual news but regurgitates propaganda endlessly then nothing will ever be fixed. Out of control systems kill people.

Posted by: VietnamVet | Jun 2 2019 20:07 utc | 11

>>>>> snake | Jun 2, 2019 3:41:49 PM | 8

Morales decision was arbitrary to strip Mr. Assange of his asylum

Bollocks! It wasn’t ex-president Evo Morales who cancelled Assange’s asylum, it was his shit-for-brains successor Lenin Moreno who did so. Are you a CIA troll?

Posted by: Ghost Ship | Jun 2 2019 20:08 utc | 12

I know exactly one state that certainly does not adhere to normal international norms and rules…

Posted by: Pnyx | Jun 2 2019 20:11 utc | 13

Regarding the 737 MAX, today’s news stories are filled with stuff like this:

SEOUL, June 2 (Reuters) – Airlines urged regulators on Sunday to coordinate on software changes to the Boeing 737 MAX in a bid to avoid damaging splits over safety seen when the aircraft was grounded in March.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA), whose 290 carriers account for 80 percent of world flying, said trust in the certification system had been damaged by a wave of separate decisions to ground the jet, with the U.S. last to act.
Airlines are worried further differences between regulators over safety could confuse passengers and cause disruption.

Lot of double-talk there. “Confuse passengers” is another way of saying that if the US lets the airplane fly before anybody else does, hardly anyone will believe the thing is safe. Crazy Trumpies + wet-noodle FAA + indifferent Boeing — that’s not a comforting situation at all.
I won’t be surprised if the EU and China aren’t VERY late with their approvals of the 737 ‘fixes’. They’re probably getting tired of being kicked around by the Trumpies and this is a no-brainer way of getting some revenge. Who can quarrel with wanting to keep airplane passengers as safe as possible?

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Jun 2 2019 20:11 utc | 14

@ james | Jun 2, 2019 3:57:20 PM #10
I refuse to travel OUT of the US since 9/11 because of the potential for meeting a gang of goons at the border.
Ditto for the airports – I doubt if I’ll ever again board an airplane. Just too many verifiable TSA horror stories.

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Jun 2 2019 20:15 utc | 15

Headline

Trump denies calling Meghan Markle ‘nasty’ despite comments being recorded

Perhaps one of the Trump groupies will explain this aspect of being a Stable Genius.

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Jun 2 2019 20:24 utc | 16

Yet another reason to turn off that damned 737 spotlight:

Some Boeing 737 MAX planes may have faulty parts: FAA
June 2, 2019 / 3:20 PM

Whistleblower tales describe how this sort of thing has been going on for a long time. For now though, the FAA has to pretend to be a real regulatory agency.

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Jun 2 2019 21:00 utc | 17

Brilliant comments above !
I’v just been joining a few dots ! Should I be worried ? What do you think – – –
So there’s been a major conference of middle-east country’s organised by Saudi Arabia.
A meeting of Putin/Russia , Turkey and Israel,
Tomorrow Trump starts his vist to U.K.! Dispite our govenment disintegrated, our politics in total melt-down ! Our public confused ! Who is Trump visiting ? Answer – The crown, the establishment, The 1% puppet master bankers. That’s who.
What do the above ‘facts’ add up to ? What’s going on ?
My guess is Iran and or Venezuela!
This will be the carve up ! All the main players getting a slice of the cake. How would Russia play ? I don’t know. I hope he can’t be bought!!
What do us public get ? A pat on the head and told not to worry our pretty little heads.

Posted by: Mark2 | Jun 2 2019 21:12 utc | 18

One needs visas to get in, and one needs passports to get out.
Person’s US passport application is over-pending. Person is a former anti-war/civil-rights/union organizer and a merry former pot smuggler. (The detestable DEA know’s Person’s middle name and how he takes his coffee.) Person logs-into no social media platform. Person’s history of reading anti-establishment alt-news sites is as long as a CVS receipt, which is as long as an umbilical cord. Person has been quietly working on under-throwing the US regime for 50 years.
Should A. Person be paranoid about his passport application?

Posted by: A. Person | Jun 2 2019 21:15 utc | 19

Posted by: A. Person | Jun 2, 2019 5:15:56 PM | 18
That is amazing. I never though a country could refuse its citizens a passport. In the US they can.

Posted by: somebody | Jun 2 2019 21:42 utc | 20

add to 19
I wonder what people do who have no social media accounts – are they suspicious?

Posted by: somebody | Jun 2 2019 22:13 utc | 21

A. Person @18–
Paranoid, no; worried, yes. If your passport application’s denied, you can apply to another nation, Russia for example. But re-entry into the USA would then be a problem.

Posted by: karlof1 | Jun 2 2019 22:35 utc | 22

Two big speeches at the annual Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore. The first was by acting SecDef Shanahan with the usual Washington claptrap, I won’t waste your time on the threats etc. Then a speech from his China counterpart General Wei Fenghe — I’ll just hit the highlights because the MSM isn’t doing so.

>First, which should we choose, peace and development or conflict and confrontation? Peace and development remain the call of our times and the trend of history. However, global and regional hotspots flare up one after another and the risk of conflict and war persists. What is the cause for regional wars and conflicts, the spread of terrorism, the chaos in the Middle East and the refugee crisis in Europe? Who are behind all these and what is the root cause?
>Second, which should we choose, openness and inclusiveness or isolation and exclusiveness? See the world with an open and inclusive mind, and there will be friends and partners everywhere. See the world with a narrow and exclusive mind, and there are only enemies and adversaries. This is a self-fulfilling prophecy
>Third, which should we choose, win-win cooperation or zero-sum game? Win-win cooperation makes the pie bigger and brings more benefits to all. However, zero-sum game makes no winner and harms the interests of both sides. Currently, over 150 countries and international organizations have proactively joined China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Not long ago, over 6,000 delegates from 150 countries and 92 international organizations gathered in Beijing for the second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation. People can tell what is right.
>Fourth, which should we choose, mutual learning among civilizations or arrogance and prejudice? A few days ago, China successfully hosted the Conference on Dialogue of Asian Civilizations. We believe that human civilizations are and should be colorful, equal, inclusive and willing to learn from each other. Not a single civilization should be worshiped or belittled. There are scars and tragedies in the history of human civilization which do not go away, to name only a few, the enslavement of Africans, the expulsion of native American Indians, the colonization in Asia, Africa and Latin America, and the killing of Jewish people.
>on Taiwan: …we make no promise to renounce the use of force. Safeguarding national unity is a sacred duty of the PLA. If the PLA cannot even safeguard the unity of our motherland, what do we need it for? . .here

Posted by: Don Bacon | Jun 2 2019 22:54 utc | 23

Snake @ 8, Ghost Ship @ 12:
Rafael Correa was President of Ecuador before Lenin Moreno.
Evo Morales has been President of Bolivia since 2006.

Posted by: Jen | Jun 2 2019 23:01 utc | 24

James @10
Probably, my fault for emphasising the part of leading to war with Russia.
I know that many people (on this blog) suspect that the US is moving towards war with Russia (I have said so myself on a number of occasions) and that many believe that Trump will be vindicated in any impeachment, but the insightful part (of the article) is the process (described by the author) by which this would be achieved (I have not read this anywhere else and no-one on this blog has described this process AFAIR). For example, that Mueller and Barr are actually working in concert. From the article:
“The Democrats will pursue impeachment, as Barr ‘grudgingly’ declassifies titillating pieces of ‘the evil Russians did it’ investigative documents, sucking the Democrats in further & further until the critical portions are finally unveiled, vindicating Trump, making the pro-impeachment forces look like the small and vindictive idiots they actually are, emphasizing idiots. This will, no doubt be played to timing around the 2020 election cycle.”
In the scenario described by the author anyone calling for Trump to be impeached, anyone supporting Trump, anyone saying that Trump shouldn’t be impeached and anyone opposed to Trump are all being manipulated.

Posted by: ADKC | Jun 2 2019 23:02 utc | 25

@ zachary 16
C’mon, we all know that Trump is perfectly capable of making those kinds of remarks even without being goaded into them.
In this case, Markle made suggestions during Trump’s run in 2016 that he was misogynistic and divisive. And Trump always repays those remarks by giving people the whatfor. It’s a nothing-burger but of course the MSM is going to take the Royals side, a bleeding Monarchy, over a duly-elected President.
Typical of them, but let’s play up to snuff around here and disregard this kind of “throw anything at the guy and see if it sticks” stuff.
I don’t even know why I got roped into commenting on this.

Posted by: NemesisCalling | Jun 2 2019 23:04 utc | 26

I took the NYT’s article as being the first step by Boeing to set up their chief test pilot as the fall-guy for the entire 737Max fiasco.
It certainly reads that way: the feature was initially intended only for high-speed, high-end. Then the test pilot found low-speed handling was iffy, so he decided that it should always be active.
And everyone at Boeing just…. agreed…. without really understanding what they were agreeing to.
Because, you know, nobody dares to argue with a test pilot…

Posted by: Yeah, Right | Jun 2 2019 23:05 utc | 27

@ NemesisCalling | Jun 2, 2019 7:04:39 PM #25
I think you missed my point. Yes, we all know Trump is a vulgar lout. It was denying a quote he made on video tape in front of (presumably) dozens or hundreds of witnesses which I found rather amazing.

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Jun 2 2019 23:12 utc | 28

Somebody@19
Not only can they deny you a passport but they can revoke it at anytime. So even you have a valid visa and enter a country with said visa on a valid passport, once the passport is revoked you are immediately deported by the host country back to the US.
If you have wish a visa to the US and claim no social media account or email address you will likely be denied a visa. Email addresses can be linked to social media accounts, and telephone numbers are linked to physical addresses which can yield your IP address from which all email and social media accounts can traced. If you omit telephone numbers and email addresses on your application your physical address as listed on the application can be used to collect IP history and telephone numbers that will yield the missing email and social media accounts
All of this information is on a massive database with information from social media giants, Big Telecom and cooperating countries. Citizens of Countries that dont cooperate with information sharing will have difficulty getting visas which can disrupt business and inconvenience that countries elites
The net being spread is not limited to visas but also banking and taxes. Dont pay your US taxes thinking you are safe in a 3rd country and you may find your passport revoked and you get deported. Understate your income and they can see this from your foreign bank accounts which are shared
And of course, back to visas , what goes around comes around. This information will soon be required of US citizens applying for visas to other countries, including non Americans to non US destinations.
Border walls being put up are not to curb illegal immigration, but future illegal emigration
Globalization means free trade for corporations, and restricted freedom of movement for non corporate individuals unless they are willing to work for poverty wages in the host country for corporations. The so called anti-globalization or nationalist movement has been captured by the corporate elite and controlled by manufactured dissent (controlled opposition). Trump being a perfect example. Fake wrestling anytime, all the time, subject to geographical restrictions of course.

Posted by: Pft | Jun 2 2019 23:16 utc | 29

@ Yeah, Right | Jun 2, 2019 7:05:06 PM #26
Good post! Boeing has already tried to crucify the ignorant/untrained “third world” pilots of the airplanes which went down. Why not try again with another pilot patsy? It might work. If it doesn’t, wonder what plan “C” will be?

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Jun 2 2019 23:17 utc | 30

Domestic airliners may be endangered. China’s getting its 600km/h train set for 2020 test run.

At least that’s the speed engineers at the state-owned rolling stock manufacturer CRRC are aiming for with the super magnetic levitation trains. This means passengers aboard these bullet trains that float at a thumb’s width from the track will be whisked from Beijing to Shanghai – a distance of roughly 1,200 kilometers – in a little more than two hours.
That speed will be more than twice the take-off speed of a Boeing 737 jet, and currently a direct flight between the two cities takes 2.5 hours. . . the new prototype has no moving parts . . .here

Posted by: Don Bacon | Jun 2 2019 23:30 utc | 31

N0 8 and 12
Evo Morales is the President of Bolivia, an ally to Chavez and the only remaining leftist president is South America besides Maduro. He has nothing to do with the Assange case.
The new President of Ecuador, Lenin Moreno who succeeded Mr Correa, is the
author of the expulsion of Julian Assange from the Ecuadorian Embassy in London.
He will go down in History as a vile snake.

Posted by: CarlD | Jun 2 2019 23:32 utc | 32

re: New US visa requirements, including old phone numbers etc etc
Benjamin Franklin: “Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.”

Posted by: Don Bacon | Jun 2 2019 23:57 utc | 33

CC @ 2 opined;”So I disagree with MoA, an impeachment against Trump will not just be ruinous against Democrats but against the U.S. in general.”
I disagree with that statement totally, as a matter of fact, IMO, I think that having an impeachment hearing, if it’s televised, is the only thing that MIGHT lead to the DJT regime being ousted in 2020.
Getting relevant information to the American public is critical. As it stands now, that isn’t happening. The obstruction of justice charge against DJT is a no-brainer, he commits it daily, having his minions refuse legal requests to testify.
Impeaching DJT is not the object, showing his illegality is, and that only happens by having televised hearings.
Pelosi and Schumer know this, that’s why they refuse to show the American people televised hearings. It’s the only chance Americans have to see, in real time, the ugly
face of the DJT regime.
Pelosi, Schumer, and many other Dems are worthless hacks working for corporate America, in stead of the American people.

Posted by: ben | Jun 2 2019 23:59 utc | 34

P.S. The reality “show” of impeachment hearings, is the only vehicle that can counter the reality “show” that is the DJT regime…

Posted by: ben | Jun 3 2019 0:03 utc | 35

@27 zachary
And we also know that his moral and ethical standards aren’t up to par, so why would we bat an eye when like a child he tells white lies? It’s not even a juicy lie.
IMHO he was justified in voicing his displeasure with Markle and that part of him is actually the endearing side of his personality as a politician. His supporters could care less about him being candid and then haphazardly walking it back.
Again…nothing burger.

Posted by: NemesisCalling | Jun 3 2019 0:14 utc | 36

One reason some Congress-critters love impeachment is that it takes the pressure off them to actually do anything about real US problems: war, health care, human rights, education, homelessness, economic disparity, etc. So the US “democracy” sinks even lower into the social morass. Congressional job approval is about 20% here and sure to go even lower with impeachment. Given also the foreign effect, it’s a great route to make things even worse than they are just to satisfy some mistaken holier-than-thous.

Posted by: Don Bacon | Jun 3 2019 0:17 utc | 37

GS @ 12 stated;”Bollocks! It wasn’t ex-president Evo Morales who cancelled Assange’s asylum, it was his shit-for-brains successor Lenin Moreno who did so.”
Thanks for that blast of reality…

Posted by: ben | Jun 3 2019 0:18 utc | 38

@ Don Bacon | Jun 2, 2019 7:30:25 PM #30
So mag-lev transport hasn’t gone away. The Chinese have something in mind with this project, but I don’t understand what it is. If the company named wasn’t state-owned I’d have said it was some kind of fleece-the-investors scam.
The economic and safety factors just don’t seem to compute when compared with high-speed rail.

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Jun 3 2019 0:44 utc | 39

@ ben | Jun 2, 2019 7:59:51 PM #33

Pelosi and Schumer know this, that’s why they refuse to show the American people televised hearings. It’s the only chance Americans have to see, in real time, the ugly face of the DJT regime.

Recently I came to the same conclusion. Public hearings would expose what the Trumpies have been doing, and IMO Pelosi et. al. are generally satisfied with what he has done and and has proposed to do. Possibly the main reason they’re so adamant against impeachement is because “public hearings” are a built-in part of that process.

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Jun 3 2019 0:50 utc | 40

N. Korea’s Kim Yong-chol Seen with Kim Jong-un Following Rumor of Purge
“North Korean senior official and former nuclear envoy Kim Yong-chol has been pictured with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un following a South Korean media report that he had been purged.”
KBS
US ready for unconditional talks with Iran: Pompeo
“U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in Switzerland on Sunday that Washington is ready for unconditional talks with Tehran, according to a press release issued by the State Department.
China.org

Posted by: Bemildred | Jun 3 2019 0:53 utc | 41

I just read on Reuters, no link but FT article anyway, that Facebook in May set up a financial technology company in Switzerland focusing on blockchain and payments as well as data analytics and investing.
They are now reportedly talking with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), over the social media company’s plans for a digital currency, the Financial Times reported on Sunday.
Who would want to buy money from Facebook? They can’t be trusted any more than any of the private banking system so I guess that’s the point.
And because of the God of Mammon religion, Facebook will be allowed to make money but governments by and for the people cannot. I continue to think this is bad social policy and hold out hope that the challenge we are seeing to it succeeds.

Posted by: psychohistorian | Jun 3 2019 0:56 utc | 42

Posted by: Pft | Jun 2, 2019 7:16:39 PM | 28
Sounds bad enough, but
“and telephone numbers are linked to physical addresses which can yield your IP address from which all email and social media accounts can traced.”
is dubious as – at least in this country – most people don’t use the internet with a fixed IP address.
Most people’s mobile phone and credit card numbers though would allow to track all their movements.
The US would have to employ a huge mass of highly trained people speaking multiple languages though to make sense of all the data. So I am optimistic shear sloth will kill any useful application of the rule.

Posted by: somebody | Jun 3 2019 1:16 utc | 43

Posted by: Bemildred | Jun 2, 2019 8:53:04 PM | 40
Iran stated they would talk to the US once the US stopped violating the terms of the Iran Nuclear Deal ie sanctions.

Posted by: somebody | Jun 3 2019 1:19 utc | 44

Below is a link from Xinhuanet about US/China trade
China publishes white paper on trade consultations, revealing U.S. backtracking
The take away quote
”
Besides a preface and a conclusion, the 8,300-character white paper devotes three sections to elaborate on the damages of the trade frictions provoked by the United States, the U.S. backtracking on its commitment in the consultations, and China’s commitment to credible consultations based on equality and mutual benefit.
”
When do we get to define normal nations?

Posted by: psychohistorian | Jun 3 2019 2:06 utc | 45

From President McKinley in 1899:

“And one night late it came to me this way – I don’t know how it was, but it came: (1) That we could not give them back to Spain – that would be cowardly and dishonorable; (2) that we could not turn them over to France or Germany – our commercial rivals in the Orient – that would be bad business and discreditable; (3) that we could not leave them to themselves – they were unfit for self-government – and they would soon have anarchy and misrule over there worse than Spain’s was; and (4) that there was nothing left for us to do but to take them all, and to educate the Filipinos, and uplift and civilize and Christianize them, and by God’s grace do the very best we could by them, as our fellow men for whom Christ also died. And then I went to bed and went to sleep and slept soundly.”

I’d invite people to compare that kind of ‘reasoning’ to the justifications the Southern States used for retaining slavery. Unfit for Self government! White Man’s burden. Bring them Jesus and Civilization.
Next I’d suggest you type “Jared Kushner” and “Palestinians” into a search engine window. You’ll find headlines like this: “Exclusive: Kushner uncertain Palestinians are capable of governing themselves”. Or how the pitiful sub-humans have “gotten more aid than any group of people in history, and what we have to show for it is really not much at this point, unfortunately.”
Also see Mondoweiss site’s “Jared Kushner’s ignorant incitement against Palestinians”.

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Jun 3 2019 2:14 utc | 46

Another quote from the China White paper linked to in my last comment and my thoughts
”
Mutual respect means that each should respect the other’s social system, economic system, development path and rights, core interests, and major concerns. It also means that one side should not cross the other’s “red lines”. The right to development cannot be sacrificed, still the less can sovereignty be undermined, according to the white paper.
”
Geo-political mutual respect between nations means the end of centuries of private finance empire as evidenced by the required first two points of social and economic system sovereignty.
We are going to see it start to happen here/now or ???? The gauntlet has been thrown down by China and they offer a better future for society than Western private finance empire.
I wonder how long empire can hold onto the core Western nations before the realities of the social contract contrast is obvious to the Western nation’s public….we may be getting to that quickly stage of decline….I certainly hope so for the suffering millions in Yemen, etc.

Posted by: psychohistorian | Jun 3 2019 2:26 utc | 47

@ 45; Thanks for the Mckinley quote. The same exceptionalist drivel has been the mantra of our latest empire to this very day…

Posted by: ben | Jun 3 2019 2:27 utc | 48

Considering b is German, I wonder why he so rarely comments on European matters?
There’s so much happening there – EU elections, Farage & the Brexit Party, Salvini’s rise in Italy, Gilets Jaunes in the 25th week of protests in France, SPD party chief’s resignation in Germany, the collapse of the Austrian ruling coalition, EU arms sales to Saudi’s and so on.

Posted by: ab initio | Jun 3 2019 2:50 utc | 49

The prolific commenter, Larchonter445, who in 2014 wrote an outstanding analysis of the China and Russia collaboration in a paper called The Double Helix, has now published an essay, again at the Saker, describing the current position of China with regard to the US:
Special China SITREP & Analysis by Larchmonter445
@44 psychohistorian – you will enjoy this, if you haven’t already. It begins with the White Paper you discuss and adds three other important events and milestones as well. Combined, they show China proceeding from its latest quickening of resolve: to decouple from the US and to build a world that can survive the demise of the Hegemon in a civilized fashion.
It is the Party that rules China, and this time it overruled Xi, and instead of engaging Trump it stepped back to think what to make of his trade-war challenges. It took the sober and self-possessed view, and decided not to play. Instead, it would pursue its own destiny, but at an accelerated pace.
Thus, the trade deal left on the table to fester. And subsequently, the White Paper explaining what China proposes – actually – to do. This was preceded by the first of the milestones, a speech in Singapore by General Wei Fenghe, drawing the absolute red lines of China in the South China Sea and with regard to Taiwan. Bottom line, China will go to war for Taiwan: no bluff, no apology.
The Conference on Dialogue of Asian Civilizations, in Beijing in May, as you know was the arrival into the world of Asia, to take over the world’s work in the spirit of win-win. Zero-sum is dead forever on this Earth now.
And the fourth milestone will be the annual St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, which I think is this week or next. We will have much to witness, and much of the back story is available to us though your link and especially through Larchmonter’s superb appreciation of the context.
Escobar too, is straining to write some pieces up about all this – he’s in the wine country in France right now, taking a break, but his blood flows to Asian rhythms and he’s well aware of what moves. There’s gonna be some great reading. We are watching a pivot of history.

Posted by: Grieved | Jun 3 2019 4:14 utc | 50

@ Grieved | Jun 3, 2019 12:14:52 AM #49
The link essay sort of fell to pieces in the last five paragraphs, but I’ll still rate it an A+ for the rest.

The demands by the Americans touched the nerve center of CCP power as rulers of PRC. It demanded laws be written (dictated by US in the deal) which would have been the weapons of enforcement triggering penalties for any backsliding by China. These laws would act the way the US dictates to the Yeltsin-Gorbachev administrations acted on the Russian economy and society. Those US advisements crippled the domestic development, led to the wealth rape by oligarchs and set in place the plethora of NGOs that have torn up the educational and scientific sectors of Russia, and they bought time and space for the Liberals to share power and operate as a Fifth Column, largely through the Media that massaged the masses into dreams of European splendor, US freedom and democracy, while drugging with alcohol and hard opiates the nation’s manpower into morbidity and stupor.

The part about demanding the special ‘subservience’ laws was astonishing reading, and I wouldn’t believe it except for 1) the havoc the US wreaked on Russia, and 2) that the apartheid Jewish state is successfully getting US States to do basically the same thing.
No wonder the Chinese are modernizing their military forces by leaps and bounds.

What the Chinese do have is anti-ship missile capacity ever since 2010 when DF-21 was demonstrated. One missile ends one carrier.

Maybe not quite that good a ratio, but aircraft carriers in range of a competent opponent are now floating death traps.
Thanks again for the amazing link.

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Jun 3 2019 4:45 utc | 51

Thanks for the heads-up Grieved, I’ve been waiting a while to hear Larchmonter’s update on the China situation. A very knowledgeable and credible observer.

Posted by: Anon2 | Jun 3 2019 4:48 utc | 52

@ Grieved with the Larchmonter445 link….thanks
I agree that we are watching a pivot (or not) in history. I worry about the (or not) part given the current leadership of the empire countries…very hurt humans forced with accepting defeat that can’t end well for them.
How does the blink happen? China is all about providing ability to save face but for real sickos that may not seem like an option….we will see…….who gets to write this “history”?
History is a lie commonly agreed to…Voltaire

Posted by: psychohistorian | Jun 3 2019 5:14 utc | 53

psychohistorian @44&46–
Twenty years ago we witnessed the Battle in Seattle–the massive protest against the WTO Summit. Now WTO rules forced on all by the Outlaw US Empire are used against it as it looks to escape its own trap, but few nations are willing to enter into a deal with the devil. Last count I saw was 130+ nations signed onto the BRI/EAEU development scheme, including some from NATO. The Outlaw US Empire only offers Zero-sum bondage, proven over 40+ years of Neoliberal polices known as Structural Adjustment. The only way for the Empire to continue its dominance is to somehow derail the effort of those 130+ nations to build something quite different. So far, it’s used a mixture of what power it retains, but all that’s done is reveal its weaknesses–aside from its nuclear arsenal, the Outlaw US Empire is mostly a Paper Tiger. Sure, it’s still deadly and can destroy, but it can’t gain its policy goal of Full Spectrum Dominance and is faced with a Multipolar future. Escobar, Hudson and others see TrumpCo’s actions as hastening this process.
It’s far too early to judge if/when private finance will finally succumb to social-finance–perhaps with Chinese Characteristics; perhaps not. Such a change will require new institutions and new thinking to drive them. IMO, the only act that will prevent that from occurring is full scale nuclear war. Soon, only neoliberalcons will remain at their Monopoly Board fighting amongst themselves for the remaining Zero-sum crumbs, which will have dire consequences for the citizenry of the nations they control. The upcoming G-20 will showcase the above dynamics. And given Trump’s ego, he may walk-out halfway.

Posted by: karlof1 | Jun 3 2019 5:14 utc | 54

Replying to Zachary Smith | Jun 2, 2019 4:24:21 PM | 16
If you read the transcript in context AND are a native speaker of English AND have a reasonably open mind, you should see that Trump was basically saying he had not previously known that during the campaign Meghan Markel said nasty things about him.

Posted by: Procopius | Jun 3 2019 5:26 utc | 55

Grieved @50–
Thanks for that Heads-up! The proof appears to reside at the links, although it agrees with what I wrote above. Such is the Big Picture. June 2019 will be a very busy, important month. Note that Trump’s pulled the Outlaw US Empire’s official delegation from the St. Petersburg Forum.

Posted by: karlof1 | Jun 3 2019 5:58 utc | 56

@somebody | Jun 2, 2019 9:16:23 PM | 43
I suspect the purpose (value) is more in attitude checking at the pre-entry stage. Compliance vs non-compliance, and compliance with valid data vs compliance with BS data etc. The latter a trap if needed etc. So, it’s intent is likely self censorship etc. Now it is likely safer to have some FB account and dribble crap (cats and dogs etc) on a regular guy basis than to be an outlier and have none. An intelligence test basically.
Btw, I enjoyed a few weeks in Hawaii around New Year 2018-19 and the fireworks really were a buzz. However, with all the pre-entry admin hassles and the cost of many items (for non-usd$ currency holders) including very average food (Fructose +++) I would not bother returning any time soon.

Posted by: imo | Jun 3 2019 6:01 utc | 57

Grieved’s comment about the rhythms of Asia sparked my desire to start the sharing process about healing the rhythms in my body. Since b has upgraded his web site to allow reference to specific comments in history I think it makes sense to approach my task in pieces that I can link together at the end
My first effort needs to define some of the terms and base concepts
I want to share what I have learned along my healing path because it represents a major paradigm shift for the provision of mental health away from talk/drugs and toward talk/neuromodulation….simply stated the new paradigm is that mental health problems are mostly caused by the dysregulation of neural networks
What is neuromodulation? Neuromodulation is an umbrella term for therapies that provide rhythmic stimulation of some sort….like music for example.
Before we discuss rhythms directly we have to set the historical context of the study of human rhythms and to do that we have to discuss a bit about basic neuron structure and operation. Neurons/nerves form the wiring backbone of our bodies and their connection to each other has been studied to find ways to effect mental states….we will look in detail about our networks in another comment
Birth of Big Pharma
The Soups and the Sparks controversy was the dispute between the pharmacologists, who had uncovered the first evidence that nerves communicate by releasing chemicals (neurotransmitters), and the neurophysiologists, experts on the nervous system, who dismissed the evidence and remained committed to electrical explanations.
One of the most important experiments in neurophysiology in the twentieth century took place in the physiology laboratories at the University of Otago, New Zealand, in August 1951. The group of researchers led by John Eccles convincingly established that synaptic transmission in the central nervous system was a chemical process. This work was the culmination of a long debate between advocates of electrical and chemical transmission. The conclusions overturned Eccles’s previous theories of an electrical “Golgi-cell” mechanism and represent a pivotal moment in the history of neuroscience.
Hence the justification for all those drugs to jamb into the synaptic cleft between the ends of these neurons to effect mental states.
Science marches on though and come to find out there is this other actor present at each synaptic event, called an astrocyte. Interestingly enough, the astrocyte set up the synaptic junction and cleans it out after the bio-chemical part has taken place. Let me repeat that part about that the astrocyte sets up the synaptic junction and it does not bio-chemically happen if it is not set up so no amount of chemicals are gong to effect an event that doesn’t happen. And, getting back to that rhythm part, while those astrocytes are playing controllers for neuronal synapses they are also communicating bio-electrically with their neighbors in wave forms that we are struggling to measure but know are there. But we do know about the stronger rhythms and that is what neuromodulation techniques mostly focus on and we will define and study those more later.
Chew well

Posted by: psychohistorian | Jun 3 2019 6:08 utc | 58

Posted by: Procopius | Jun 3, 2019 1:26:53 AM #55
I think the other guy’s “trivial lie by a moral leper” defense works better.
The problem for the US of A is that nobody in their right mind would want to “negotiate” with such a person. I hear rumors that Iran may go through the motions, but IMO they’ll just be running out the clock till 2020. After reading the link provided by Grieved I wonder if the Chinese will bother to do even that much. But then, what I know about the Chinese could be written on one side of a 4×5 index card with a dull pencil.

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Jun 3 2019 6:11 utc | 59

@ Zachary Smith who wrote
”
But then, what I know about the Chinese could be written on one side of a 4×5 index card with a dull pencil.
”
What is important to see as different is that China has elite like the West but their elite does not own global finance and bully others with it. China has been serial victims of Western private finance empire and are good at playing the long game (see the game Go).

Posted by: psychohistorian | Jun 3 2019 6:45 utc | 60

Newsweek, June 1, 2019:
Silicon Valley in Switzerland: Bilderberg 2019 and the High-Tech Future of Transatlantic Power
<...>
A crisis is looming for Bilderberg, and not merely because of the rise in anti-globalization movements and a creeping loss of faith in the EU project. It’s a crisis of leadership. With the Brexit, Frexit, Grexit and even Polexit dominoes threatening to fall, Bilderberg needs to gird its loins for the long haul if it wants the transatlantic alliance to thrive and its beloved EU to survive. But who’s going to be doing the girding?
The problem Bilderberg faces is a loss of quality, of intellectual backbone. With David Rockefeller tucked away since 2017 in his cryogenic pod, and Henry Kissinger knocking on hell’s door, you realize that Bilderberg is facing a generational crisis. You might not like or admire Henry Kissinger, you might want him strung up for war crimes, but you have to admit he’s a heavyweight statesman and historian. He’s a psychopath with vision. Where will Bilderberg find the serious ideologues to lead them into the 2020s?
<...>

Posted by: John Smith | Jun 3 2019 7:20 utc | 61

Posted by: ab initio | Jun 2, 2019 10:50:30 PM | 49
It is of no international even national consequence.
European elections – the traditional “Left” is losing to Greens, the conservative “Right” to populists, but the line between the two blocks holds where the liberals are.
Majorities – politics – are more difficult and have to be more inclusive.
Salvini’s rise in Italy – Lega Nord has ruled Italy since Berlusconi ie the last century.
Gilets Jaunes in the 25th week of protests in France – Alliance Jaune got 0.54 percent in the European elections. They have enough people to be in the streets. Not enough to translate into anything political. If necessary anybody from left to right can wear a yellow vest.
SPD party chief’s resignation in Germany – they are bleeding to the Green party. Next coalition will be Green Conservative.
The collapse of the Austrian ruling coalition – does not change anything in the makeup of the electorate. There continues to be a FPÖ/ÖVP majority with ÖVP having gained votes from FPÖ.
Europe has become more or less meaningless politically. Which is a nice feeling I have to confess. The less geopolitics the better The perspective for the continent is to integrate with Russia the way Gorbachev envisioned. Britain may integrate with the US though most people there might not like it.
EU arms sales to Saudi’s and so on – this is business as usual.

Posted by: somebody | Jun 3 2019 7:37 utc | 62

From Russia With Love

Bloomberg, May 21, 2019:
Russian Oil Sales to U.S. ‘on Steroids’ Amid Venezuela Sanctions
Petroleum exports from Russia to the U.S. are growing rapidly as the supplier takes advantage of lost deliveries from sanctions-hit Venezuela and supply cuts by OPEC members.
In the first half of May, 13 ships from Russia delivered almost 5 million barrels of crude and oil products, according to a report by Caracas Capital Markets managing partner Russ Dallen. More supplies are en route, with American refiners set to triple their monthly intake of Russian crude, the largest foreign producer outside of OPEC. “Lately, Russian shipments coming to the U.S. seem to be on steroids.”
<...>

Tom Luongo, May 22, 2019:
Sanctions Are a Bitch – U.S. Refiners Importing Russian Oil Like Mad
<...>
The market needs to be fed. And refiners will buy whoever has the best cargo at the best price. It is only politicians who don’t understand that you can’t dictate to the markets.
<...>
This is simply normal market action that a bunch of clueless morons in D.C. can’t control. Refiners need feedstock to refine or they go out of business.
<...>
[…] it’s no surprise to me to see it being a direct substitute for Venezuelan crude while the U.S. embargoes it. If the Russians gain the market share lost by Venezuela while, at the same time, providing the financial infrastructure — payment clearing, insurance, etc. — for Venezuela to sell their oil to other markets, like India, what, in the end is the net effect of all this sanctioning and war-mongering?
Nothing, of course. But you can’t tell that to insane authoritarians like John Bolton. These are men who can only think in terms of primary effects and overly-discount the market’s ability to overcome obstacles. And so, they get frustrated by secondary effects, like the simple substitution of Russian oil for Venezuelan oil by domestic refiners.
<...>
You can’t reason with insane people. And the longer they are in power the more they force sane people to act stupidly to do rational business. We’ll see more stories like this as Trump’s war on markets continues until he either breaks them or they break him.

Posted by: John Smith | Jun 3 2019 7:41 utc | 63

Does anyone really wonder if it turns out that Russia is selling to the USA not Russian, but Venezuelan oil?

Posted by: John Smith | Jun 3 2019 7:53 utc | 64

>>>> Bemildred | Jun 2, 2019 8:53:04 PM | 41

US ready for unconditional talks with Iran: Pompeo

Pompeo’s definition of “unconditional” is very different to anyone else’s. It’s along the lines of the US can demand conditions but the other country can’t. I think he uses the official Israeli government definition of “unconditional”.

Posted by: Ghost Ship | Jun 3 2019 8:04 utc | 65

A. Person @18–Paranoid, no; worried, yes. If your passport application’s denied, you can apply to another nation, Russia for example. But re-entry into the USA would then be a problem.
Posted by: karlof1 | Jun 2, 2019 6:35:28 PM | 22
If A. Person receives a Russian passport, would they be able to get OUT of the US without a US visa? Sometimes a visa is required to get out, not only to get in.
He/she might also need a direct flight from the US to Russia, otherwise an intervening stop might create problems claiming that The. Person had left the US illegally as they didn’t have an exit visa.
[A. Person: my appologies for changing your first name above from A. to The., which was required for grammatical reasons.]

Posted by: BM | Jun 3 2019 10:39 utc | 66

@64 john s.. that is what i had heard…

Posted by: james | Jun 3 2019 15:08 utc | 67

Cruel, depraved, sick, thought nothing could shock me
US Warplanes Destroy Three Oil Tankers in Syria, Killing Four
Tankers were violating Syria oil embargo
https://news.antiwar.com/2019/06/02/us-warplanes-destroy-three-oil-tankers-in-syria-killing-four/
My beloved country killed civilians delivering oil to other civilians. This is a war crime. The embargo preventing Syria from using their own oil is already illegal but even if you accept that insult, a blockade requires an effort to stop smuggling with non-lethal force. People in the U.S. would be in shock if Mexico or even the U.S. decided to use their air to attack cartels in the Southern border because our territory is sacred but we will shoot up other peoples territory and moralize about it.
This is sick and depraved behavior. God must love psychotic killers because He is blessing us with power and wealth that has never been seen before.

Posted by: Christian J Chuba | Jun 3 2019 16:13 utc | 68

Some Massacres are More Equal than Others

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Jun 3 2019 16:37 utc | 69

@ Posted by: John Smith | Jun 3, 2019 3:20:40 AM | 61
Elites everywhere seem less and less competent all the time (and their children that have only ever known such an environment are completely worthless). Ultimately it hasn’t mattered yet due to their control of institutions, but it’s true, the “best and brightest” are total mediocrities.

Posted by: Ash | Jun 3 2019 16:54 utc | 70

Ash @70
It fits in with the idea that hard times bring out our strength and cunning, whereas the easy times make us fat and stupid. The End of an Era/Empire.

Posted by: Featherless | Jun 3 2019 18:06 utc | 71

Ghost Ship@65:
Pompeo is just painting with words, he wants to project an image, not convey meaning. The Trumpoids have figured out that this diplomacy stuff the Russians and Chinese do WORKS, since it has thwarted their efforts on various fronts, so they try to imitate it, but not very convincingly.
I take that story mainly as an indication that the Trumpoids know they are losing the argument with Iran.

Posted by: Bemildred | Jun 3 2019 18:25 utc | 72

BM @66–
Admittedly, A. Person’s situation may be complex or perhaps not–the problem might be related to some financial issue as it was with me in 1998–I was behind in child support payments and needed to get current, which I did. Most travel requires some sort of visa, but not always–I didn’t need one to travel to Greece & Turkey via UK in 1998. But rules change as they have massively with Trump.
psychohistorian @58–
Science still has lots to learn about a great many things, which ought to put a damper on the arrogance of some humans when it comes to Nature. There was certainty amongst those trying to deal with dementias, particularly Alzheimer’s, that the “bug” had to have DNA; but, it turns out the prion has none, that Alzheimer’s onset is 100% random, which is scary.

Posted by: karlof1 | Jun 3 2019 18:34 utc | 73

Stephen F Cohen says:
quote
But all the surface information suggests that this originated with Brennan and the CIA. Long before it hit America—maybe as early as late 2015. One of the problems we have today is everybody is hitting on the FBI. Lovers who sent emails. But the FBI is a squishy organization, nobody is afraid of the FBI. It’s not what it used to be under J. Edgar Hoover. Look at James Comey, for God’s sake. He’s a patsy. Brennan and Clapper played Comey. They dumped this stuff on him. Comey couldn’t even handle Mrs. Clinton’s emails. He made a mess of everything. Who were the cunning guys? They were Brennan and Clapper. [Brennan,] the head of the CIA. Clapper, the head of the Office of [the Director of] National Intelligence, who is supposed to oversee these agencies.”
“Is there any reality to these Russiagate allegations against Trump and Putin?” he asked. “Was this dreamed up by our intelligence services? Today investigations are being promised, including by the attorney general of the United States. They all want to investigate the FBI. But they need to investigate what Brennan and the CIA did. This is the worst scandal in American history. It’s the worst, at least since the Civil War. We need to know how this began. If our intelligence services are way off the reservation, to the point that they can try to first destroy a presidential candidate and then a president, and I don’t care that it’s Trump, it may be Harry Smith next time, or a woman; if they can do this, we need to know it.”
endquote
a lot more here:
https://www.commondreams.org/views/2019/06/03/manufacturing-war-russia-0

Posted by: mauisurfer | Jun 3 2019 18:53 utc | 74

Amazing news snippet and short vid:
“SaudiArabia: after power cut in Jazan the hospital was forced to put patients in ambulances as the hospital lacked power generators. Some patients in intensive care died.”
Collateral damage from war on Yemen? Whatever the cause of the power outage, not having emergency generators on hand ready to go is perhaps the epitome of idiocy.
mauisurfer @74–
No, it’s not even close to “the worst scandal in American history.” JFK Assassination and Cover-up ranks in the top 2, with the ongoing failure by Congress to uphold the constitution by declaring numerous acts by the Executive unconstitutional and thus illegal being #1 in my book. Cohen is generally a good guy, but his attribution is just plain wrong.

Posted by: karlof1 | Jun 3 2019 19:20 utc | 75

John Smith “You might not like or admire Henry Kissinger, you might want him strung up for war crimes, but you have to admit he’s a heavyweight statesman and historian. He’s a psychopath with vision.”
That is my thought on Kissinger. It was a worry when he was meeting and scheming with Trump then heading off to Moscow as Trump’s envoy, but team Trump simply does not have the class to carry out Kissinger strategy.

Posted by: Peter AU 1 | Jun 3 2019 19:41 utc | 76

What’s good for the goose—-
“Bolivia declares Israel a ‘terrorist state'”
“Bolivian President Evo Morales declared Israel a “terrorist state,” Wednesday, because of the ongoing offensive in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli citizens will now be required to obtain a visa before traveling to Bolivia. Previously, under a 1972 agreement, which Morales denounced for being “signed under a dictatorial regime,” Israelis could travel freely into Bolivia without having to obtain a visa, according to La Razón.
Israel is now considered a “group 3” country, meaning visa applications must be reviewed by the National Migration Administration.
“In other words we are declaring (Israel) a terrorist state,” Página Siete reported Morales as saying.”
on USA today

Posted by: arby | Jun 3 2019 20:10 utc | 77

@77 arby… time for regime change in bolivia, lol… when we traveled to malaysia a few years ago, we were made aware of a similar situation that malaysia has adopted towards israel.. for the wikipedia slant – see link.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel%E2%80%93Malaysia_relations

Posted by: james | Jun 3 2019 20:23 utc | 78

B
Would be interested in your take on the visit to Sydney of 3 chinese warships given the situation currently playing out in the south china sea

Posted by: m | Jun 3 2019 21:28 utc | 79

James ,
Yes. It has crossed my mind a few times the fact that Bolivia has so far not fallen into one of the Axis’s or Triumverates, or Trios of evildoers.

Posted by: arby | Jun 3 2019 21:54 utc | 80

@ arby
Is Bolivia evil?. . .Perhaps nobody has asked the expert, who is now in Switzerland being interviewed.
QUESTION: In a recent interview, you spoke of, quote, the “evil” that emanates from the Islamic Republic. Do you regard Iran as an evil regime?
SECRETARY POMPEO: Yes. . . .here
There you have it from the expert. In fact he described it earlier:
SECRETARY POMPEO: For many months now President Trump has said he was prepared to negotiate. Remember, we have some basic requirements for Iran. We want them to cease their nuclear weapons programs and put a permanent halt to them. We want them to stop building up their missile systems in ways that present a threat to places like Switzerland. We want them to cease their terror campaign around the world that has displaced millions of people and killed hundreds of thousands of people. This is what we’re asking from Iran.

Posted by: Don Bacon | Jun 3 2019 22:10 utc | 81

Pompeo on Iran (…displaced millions of people, etc….) reminds me of a remark made by General Bogdan some time ago, talking about some claim in the F-35 program.
Bogdan said: “That doesn’t pass the giggle test.”

Posted by: Don Bacon | Jun 3 2019 22:17 utc | 82

Globalization
Following the money across the globe and back in time.
By Lewis H. Lapham
https://www.laphamsquarterly.org/trade/globalization

Posted by: mauisurfer | Jun 3 2019 23:28 utc | 83

james and other MoA Canadians, specifically, and others generally–
If you’re unaware of this report, I suggest you make it your business to learn what Canadian government’s been doing to the First Peoples living within what’s now Canada. And given what I know of their experience within the Outlaw US Empire, a similar judgment could be served, except that Imperial authorities aren’t as honest as Canadians.

Posted by: karlof1 | Jun 4 2019 1:41 utc | 84

Sorry for duplicate. Made HTML error when imbedding link that caused preview to not show properly.
james and other MoA Canadians, specifically, and others generally–
If you’re unaware of this report, I suggest you make it your business to learn what Canadian government’s been doing to the First Peoples living within what’s now Canada. And given what I know of their experience within the Outlaw US Empire, a similar judgment could be served, except that Imperial authorities aren’t as honest as Canadians.

Posted by: karlof1 | Jun 4 2019 1:49 utc | 85

Hello MoA barflies. This is the 2nd in a series of comment I am writing about mental health and neuromodulation techniques. Before I get into writing about neuromodulation techniques and such I need to establish a knowledge base for the efforts and the last and this are parts of that base
The next subject related to my sharing of neuromodulation mental health therapy is an evolutionary digression in support of the bio-electric paradigm of dysregulation of neural networks instead of the bio-chemical one.
This comment is basically a focused book report of “The Polyvagal Theory” medical text written by by Steven Porges. Mr. Porges has been studying infancy trauma since 1970 and has developed a theory around the evolution of our vegus nerve (early brain) and mental health implications.
The Porges Polyvagal Theory describes how when we were reptiles our vegus nerve gave us the ability to communicate with gill flapping and mouth contorting but our trauma response was limited to freeze/shit because we had no respiratory system to excite at that time. Porges goes on the describe how our vegus nerve nuclei (control center) evolved when we were reptiles to have a more sophisticated trauma response of fight/flight. The important point here is that while fight/flight was the evolved capability our systems still have the fallback response of freeze/shit when fight/flight fails.
When describing the human vegus nerve context, Porges goes into detail about the development of the two nuclei of the vegus nerve, the lower (everything below diaphragm) Dorsal and the upper (everything above diaphragm) Ambiguus nuclei. I want to report about the development and role of the nucleus Ambiguus because of its effects on mental health. The nucleus Ambiguus does not fully form in humans until a period between the last trimester in the womb and the first year out of the womb. The emotional control role of the nucleus Ambiguus is significant as it has THE (autonomic nervous system) pacemaker control line to the sinoatrial node of the heart. According to Porges the nucleus Ambiguus in that development period sets the default pre-cortextual mammilian/reptilian response mode to everything we encounter that is then passed up to the cortextual level to handle if fight/flight or freeze/shit is not enabled. And while we are discussing how animal we still really are let me share another data point about our internal processing sequencing and timing.
Your Stupid Brain quote from “Technical Foundations of Neurofeedback” by Thomas Collura.
“
There is a tendency in Western society to think of human actions in terms of “voluntary”, in the sense that we first create a desire to do something and then instruct our brain to take care of the details. The reality is that this is somewhat backwards. As we have seen in our earlier example of the movement-related potential, the brain activity that leads to a voluntary movement precedes the movement by up to 1 1/2 seconds. That means that the very idea of the desire to perform the movement comes after the brain activity. As would seem necessary, the very desire to perform the action is a brain event, and hence is the result of brain processes. This challenges the idea that the conscious mind is “in charge” of the brain, and puts the cart on quite the other side of the horse……
The driving force for thought and action consists in the dynamic instability of the brain and its proclivity to always seek novelty, fulfillment, stimulation, safety, power, and other goals that it percieves.
“
Getting back to Porges let me finish by reporting his summary of the impacts of poor nucleus Ambiguus development. He writes that without a sufficiently developed vegus it is difficult to regulate behavioral state and to use the features of the social engagement system (i.e. fascial expression, vocal prosody) for social learning/bonding.
In summary let me add that this theory conflicts with the bio-chemical (Big Pharma) view and so is not getting the exposure and follow on research it deserves except with the neuromodulation world. This is important because Porges gives scientific detail underlying developmental issues like epilepsy, autism, OCD, ADD/ADHD, etc. which neuromodulation therapies are now healing and Big Pharma struggling with.
Chew well.

Posted by: psychohistorian | Jun 4 2019 1:59 utc | 86

@ 83; Thanks for the Lapham article, he’s one of the very best.
An excerpt;
“Up and running at always accelerating speeds over the past 140 years, the remorseless process of dehumanized moneymaking is the globalized economy believed these days to possess the power of divinity. The $73 trillion trading on the world’s computer screens is human energy and desire concentrated as lifeless abstraction, moving at the speed of light in a moral and intellectual vacuum, praying like Aristotle’s “Midas in the fable” for a miracle.”

Posted by: ben | Jun 4 2019 2:08 utc | 87

@25 adkc… thanks for explaining that further.. i think i see what you are getting at… in that regard it is an original idea.. sorry for the delay in responding to you!..
@85 karlof1… this has been in the news the past week here – cbc and etc.. so are they blaming the canuck gov’t for the murders or disappearance of the indigenous women?? i see they are saying in the article this – “Beyond defining the level of violence against these women as a “Canadian genocide,” recommending official language status for Indigenous languages and calling for “a guaranteed annual livable income for all Canadians,” the commissioners are also recommending sweeping reforms to the justice system and policing in this country, including stiffer penalties for men who carry out spousal or partner abuse.” i am down with a few of these ideas… i don’t want to say that you would have to live in canada to appreciate the situation with regard to indigenous people, and i don’t want to stereotype either… i live in a community with a large number of them..

Posted by: james | Jun 4 2019 2:46 utc | 88

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Jun 3, 2019 12:37:06 PM | 69
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/wikileaks/8555142/Wikileaks-no-bloodshed-inside-Tiananmen-Square-cables-claim.html

Posted by: haze | Jun 4 2019 2:55 utc | 89

@88 I have friends who taught on a reserve in Northern Ontario. Apparently the abuse these poor girls have to deal with on the reserve is unbelievable. If they leave the reserves they are helpless innocents in a world they don’t understand. So what’s the answer? More education? Better policing?

Posted by: dh | Jun 4 2019 3:06 utc | 90

psychohistorian @86
(i believe it is called the VAGUS nerve, small matter of spelling)
Yoga teaches control of the heart with the breath, this is called pranayama. I am not qualified to explain it, but I do practice it, especially when feeling uptight/stressed, and when singing.
You can slow your heart, and improve its rhythm, by practicing pranayama. It also improves muscle function around vocal chords, and can result in a lower more relaxed pitch. This all occurs through the vagus nerve.
Pranayama is very powerful, and subject to abuse. A good teacher is strongly recommended.

Posted by: mauisurfer | Jun 4 2019 3:19 utc | 91

zach @ 89
We have all seen the pictures of “tank man”.
I have read that when the pictures were taken, the tanks were actually LEAVING, i.e., he was not preventing them from entering.
There is a lot of contradictory information about the events.

Posted by: mauisurfer | Jun 4 2019 3:27 utc | 92

@ mauisufer with the spelling correction of vagus nerve….makes me sound like I don’t know what I am saying….sigh
Thanks for that…I do have a TBI and still ADD symptoms which this error shows but have been doing yoga for 30+ years.
Have you followed the link to my website about the breath exercise I discovered which vibrates the vagus nerve while in a hypocapnic state?
I know a bit about pranayama and the concept is part of my western life, thanks.

Posted by: psychohistorian | Jun 4 2019 3:38 utc | 93

Posted by: haze | Jun 3, 2019 10:55:43 PM | 89
haze, the point of my link was to demonstrate that even the worst-case massacre in China’s Tiananmen Square involved less violence than has been done to the Palestinians by the apartheid Jewish state. That there might be people who are actively into “Tiananmen Square Denial” hadn’t occurred to me.
When governments are challenged they usually react violently. Chinese citizens in 1989 had plenty of reasons to be unhappy, and with hindsight I’d imagine they had encouragement from outsiders. Naturally the US would be high on the list of “possibles”. I did locate a scholarly article written in late 1989, and it had an interesting “rumor” that the Government had brought in troops from Inner Mongolia who had little ability to speak Mandarin. Such outsiders wouldn’t have been as reluctant to use violence.
Without undertaking a major research project I’ve no way of making any authoritative claim about casualties, but deep in my bones I believe the numbers were very high. By demonstrating utter ruthlessness the Chinese authorities showed resistance was hopeless. Continued improvement in living standards was another factor reducing the drive to rebellion. But in any case, if there have been any more such revolts I haven’t heard of them. I suspect the slaughter ws such that risking a repeat of it was unthinkable.

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Jun 4 2019 4:54 utc | 94

psychohistorian
I just read your website, very interesting, good for you.
I learned pranayama from Satchidananda long ago. The exercise I practice is called “nadi suddhi”, or nerve purification.
Satchidananda died long ago, he called his system “integral yoga” and the organization he founded continues, with headquarters at Yogaville in Virginia.
https://www.yogaville.org/about/

Posted by: mauisurfer | Jun 4 2019 4:55 utc | 95

@ mauisurfer | Jun 3, 2019 11:27:00 PM #92

I have read that when the pictures were taken, the tanks were actually LEAVING…

You know, that’s the first plausible explanation I’ve ever heard of for that picture. The street is obviously empty, it’s broad daylight, and the tank crews would have been nuts to have smeared him into a blood pulp in front of cameras. The man was very brave, but also more than a little crazy. If he survived he undoubtedly spent several years in a “reeducation” camp.

Posted by: Zachary Smith | Jun 4 2019 5:02 utc | 96

B
Would be interested in your take on the visit to Sydney of 3 chinese warships given the situation currently playing out in the south china sea
Posted by: m | Jun 3, 2019 5:28:27 PM | 79
The visit was pre-arranged and Scum Mo’s Govt knew about it but decided to keep quiet for unexplained reasons. It was a reciprocal visit in response to a similar visit by Oz warships to China circa 3 months ago according to the TV News.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-06-03/chinese-warships-enter-sydney-harbour-south-china-sea-claims/11172578

Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Jun 4 2019 6:37 utc | 97

Zachary Smith
Worth researching Tiananmen square. Very few if any casualties at the square.
Look up the picks of long lines of military vehicles burning. They are on the net. The troops abandoned their vehicles to make their way through the crowds on foot towards the square rather than push through the crowds with apc’s and trucks. When they left the vehicles, the crowds burnt them. It was sometime after this that troops took action against the crowd. Some time ago when I looked into it.
There were two parts to the crowd, the pro US democracy crowd that wanted to do away with communism and go full US democracy, and the farmers and so forth who were on the losing end as the government started to move away from full on communism.
Burnt vehicles
Another

Posted by: Peter AU 1 | Jun 4 2019 6:43 utc | 98

Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Jun 4, 2019 2:37:49 AM | 97
(Scum Mo’s unexplained reasons)..
… can usually be (accurately) interpreted as:
“Hey serfs and peasants! Just because you voted for us Liberals, doesn’t give you the right to ask why we do stuff, or to get an effing answer! We’re here to help The Rich line their own pockets – and ours!”

Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Jun 4 2019 6:53 utc | 99

You cannot make this one up!
Neo-fascist Svoboda & Euromaidan activist who cheered Odessa massacre joins Facebook as public policy manager!
https://on.rt.com/9vpq

Posted by: Zanon | Jun 4 2019 7:43 utc | 100

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