Open Thread 2020-54
News & views ...
Posted by b on July 9, 2020 at 14:35 UTC | Permalink
next page »A Journey To LAC Which Took Indian Army 16-18 Days Now Takes Just 24 Hours, Here's Why China's Frustrated
https://swarajyamag.com/news-brief/a-journey-to-lac-which-took-indian-army-16-18-days-now-takes-just-24-hours-heres-why-chinas-frustrated
Finally India upgraded some long tracks into roads on own territory, decades after China did the same; the PLA took offense.
Posted by: Antonym | Jul 9 2020 15:01 utc | 2
@b
I was wondering if you did indeed say what this site claims you said.
Posted by: Doubter | Jul 9 2020 15:14 utc | 3
How to build a pure lie out of many half-truths:
How Chinese tech titan ZTE came back from the dead
Since when was ZTE even near its "death"? The op-ed is pay walled, so we can't read the "sources" of these propagandists (oops, I mean, journalists).
ZTE was never even close to bankruptcy. This was a propaganda narrative spitted like psalms by the Western propaganda machine (MSM) in order to prop up the nationalist fervor of the masses from the First World to rally against China by enduring the impoverishment to come. When it clearly failed, they fabricated this Bible-grade escape route of the miraculous resurrection of ZTE.
China, if you think everyone’s against you, it’s time to reflect
Since when did China officially adopted an "us against the world" position? I must've missed it.
In no place in any China news outlet you'll find any hint of the CCP giving up international cooperation and globalization.
The "CCP is isolating itself and generating a nationalist fervor" was another Western propaganda myth created to justify the trade wars Trump waged unilaterally against it. It is a lame attempt by the Western propagandists (journalists) to gather popular support to destroy China, i.e. to paint China as an aggressive neofascist superpower.
The Five Eyes is not "everyone".
--//--
There was one dude here fantasizing about a soon-to-come border war between China and Russia (in the middle of nowhere, in Central Siberia...). He simply extrapolated the China-India border conflict to infer another one at the Amur River would happen.
Well, that didn't age well:
China, Russia vow firm mutual support
--//--
The façade that painted China as dying out Icarus is crumbling:
Tokyo Electron shares soar due to US restrictions
Shanghai soars nearly 6%, leading gains in Asia as 'bull sentiment' drives markets
You know what hurt the Americans more with this one? The fact that this Shanghai soar also lifted Wall Street at the same day. So much for decoupling...
Ericsson, Nokia are more Chinese than meets the eye
--//--
Another moderate hero fabricated:
Koike’s star rises as post-Abe era looms in Japan
Liberalism is dead, long live liberalism!
Posted by: Antonym | Jul 9 2020 15:01 utc | 2
"A Journey To LAC Which Took Indian Army 16-18 Days Now Takes Just 24 Hours....".
Before took 16-24 days the for Indian Army get slaughter, now it will take only 24-hrs. Bravo send more Indians... GO Indians GO!!
Posted by: JC | Jul 9 2020 15:16 utc | 5
GOD DAMMIT B, IRAN SIGNED A DEAL W SYRIA FOR WEAPONS EXPORTS TO BUILD SYRIAS AIR DEFENSES, ISRAEL CARRIED OUT 6 STRIKES ON IRANIAN SOIL, VENEZUELA SHOT DOWN A PASSENGER PLANE, AND BROOKINGS SAYS YHE HOUTJIS WON.... SAY SOMETHING BUDDY! PAY ATTN!
Posted by: karafspolo | Jul 9 2020 15:24 utc | 6
@ karafspolo,
Is there a compelling reason why b needs to repeat what you just made clear to us?
Posted by: Tim | Jul 9 2020 15:31 utc | 7
Back in the CHOICES thread, we had discussion on the US bullying Iran, and the semantics of whether the US was engaging in "war" against Iran. I hope not to get caught up in those semantics again, but here are a couple of good pieces to show the situation.
The latest Renegade Inc episode interviews Gareth Porter, who draws from Smedley Butler and talks about the "racket" of the security state of the US, which acts only to perpetuate and extend itself, and to increase its funding by all means.
The racket of national security
The episode answers several questions about the US posture towards Iran. Porter supplies the history and background to illustrate the US anger for Iran. Sharmine Narwani makes an appearance also, and together they show why the Pentagon will never conduct acts of war against Iran that will provoke the kind of overt retaliation that Iran delivered by targeting the US bases this year.
The US will only conduct acts that Iran will not overtly respond to. It will escalate its theater right up to that red line, but if it crosses the line - as it did with killing Soleimani - it will be by miscalculation. The only purpose of the US security state is to escalate the threat level to keep the funding coming, and to leave no possible margin for de-funding by Congress. It's a racket, and the racket has swallowed all statecraft.
Once I suggested seriously that Ukraine could not be understood in terms of statecraft, but only in terms of thievery. It becomes increasingly clear that the tenets of organized crime are now the only way to parse US action.
~~
Iran meanwhile, lives by statecraft. It will always respond when that red line is crossed - always and without hesitation. My view is that Iran is continuously working for the total departure of the US from West Asia, as it said that it would in retribution for Soleimani. Much of what it does we don't see, but I note the "resistance" axis goes from strength to strength in solidarity. It was ready to erupt when Iran attacked the US base, but the US disengaged and this unified axis of several nations and forces stood down.
So the school of thought presented for example by Richard Steven Hack here, that the US will war on Iran for decades if it can, simply to feed the MIC, is correct. What's not correct is that the US can perform much in the way of military action against Iran.
We stumbled over the word "war" so perhaps we can talk about minor activities of warfare, which are not enough to bring the theater to full battle. All the nations in the region have tolerated US incursions because to fight them head on would provoke escalation that serves less purpose than living with them - there is a time for everything.
But we have to understand the red lines. And we have to understand that because we see nothing moving, it doesn't mean nothing is moving. Narwani makes some good points about that - and see her full interview on Renegade from last year for a good understanding of what Iran is as a nation and an adversary. It's clear that the Pentagon agrees with her.
As to the Resistance axis, this interview with Lebanese analyst Anees Naqqash is worth a quick read. It tells us much about Lebanon.
US should know ‘Resistance’ now controls all of West Asia: Naqqash
It is not the case that Iran is doing nothing in response to US warfare against it and its regional allies. The red flag is still flying, and the Iranians take it seriously.
Posted by: Grieved | Jul 9 2020 15:59 utc | 8
@Doubter | Jul 9 2020 15:14 utc | 3
This domain is moonofalabama.org
ISGCP quotes MoonOfAlabama.com a name which is currently available.
https://whois.domaintools.com/moonofalabama.com
Revealed: Saudi Arabia Tripled its Theft of Yemen’s Oil amid Price War with Russia https://www.mintpressnews.com/saudi-arabia-tripled-theft-yemen-oil-amid-price-war-russia/269209/ Mintpress one of the only places that does investative reporting on Yemen.
Short version - Saudis currently stealing Yemeni oil production and negotiating long term oil leases with the 'legitimate' Hadi govt to continue stealing Yemeni oil long after war ends. Hadi's cronies will get billions of $, Sautis payments contingent on Yemenis being nice to Saudis (too bad Saudis aren't nice to the rest of us).
The info was leaked by members of Hadi's own government to Mintpress because some people (not named Pompeo, Pence, Trump) actually do have a conscience.
How many Yemenis have we killed? the old number was frozen at 10,000 the new number is 100,000 so the real number must be a multiple of that.
Posted by: Christian J. Chuba | Jul 9 2020 16:12 utc | 10
Vanity Fair sets the ground for Ghislaine Maxwell's defense: Just another victim of monster Epstein:
Her business, first and foremost, was keeping Jeffrey Epstein happy. He shared much with her father ... Maxwell was expected to drop everything to serve Epstein.. . .
She had to keep everyone in line, because one misstep would unleash the wrath of Epstein, one of the few people who could make Maxwell cry. “He would be screaming over the phone,” recalls a victim, “and she would burst into tears.” The woman who once had everything money could buy, only to lose it all because of a man, was once again living a life of luxury. All she had to do to keep it was to give the monster what he wanted. And what he increasingly wanted were women—“on the younger side,” as Donald Trump would say ...
. . .
Maxwell consistently denied ever soliciting underage girls for Epstein. And she began trying to distance herself from him long before he went to jail. In the early 2000s, she spent time in California with a man many times richer than Epstein: Ted Waitt.... Away from Epstein, Maxwell was reborn, appearing on CNN, giving a speech at a TED event, and speaking nine times before the United Nations
<> <> <> <> <> <>
No doubt Ghislaine will make a bundle when she sells the movie rights.
!!
Posted by: Jackrabbit | Jul 9 2020 16:28 utc | 11
vk @4
Remember simple-minded American axioms: "You're either with us or against us!"
If people in other parts of the world are not against China, that means, by Americans' childish way of thinking, that they must be against US. This is why it is necessary for corporate mass media to try to fabricate the story that everyone is against China.
Silly, I know, but this is where we are at.
Posted by: William Gruff | Jul 9 2020 16:42 utc | 12
Latest M. K. Bhadrakumar articles, on China and Russia being forced to take self-defense steps against never-ending Western destabilization attempts.
https://indianpunchline.com/russia-china-keep-the-dragon-in-the-fog/
https://indianpunchline.com/india-shouldnt-align-with-five-eyes/
What complicit Western media then get to portray as authoritarianism in other countries is most often a response necessitated to defend themselves against constant and continuous Western machinations.
Posted by: Canadian Cents | Jul 9 2020 16:46 utc | 13
Ghislaine Maxwell's best friend, Melania, urges schools to reopen so COVFEFE-19 can be spread even further and the death toll can be maximized. Death to teachers, right Melania? Because you care so much.
You first, you two-bit tart. I bet you think they should go back to "massaging" the likes of all the Jeffrey Epsteins out there. We can rename all the schools the Ghislaine Maxwell Training Academy. All schools can be annexes with the same name and the goal of an education will be to learn how to expertly satisfy the sexual urges of the wealthy predator class of which you are a member. Scumbag.
Posted by: 450.org | Jul 9 2020 16:50 utc | 14
@b
I was wondering if you did indeed say what this site claims you said.Posted by: Doubter | Jul 9 2020 15:14 utc | 3
Not b
The quote is from along weird post by a guy called Roman rugantine
Post 60 on Jan 13 2017
Posted by: Michael Droy | Jul 9 2020 16:56 utc | 15
Sometimes I think some new posters are trying to get clicks.
Posted by: arby | Jul 9 2020 17:09 utc | 16
Posted by: Canadian Cents | Jul 9 2020 16:46 utc | 13
Thank you, "Latest M. K. Bhadrakumar articles, on China and Russia being forced to take self-defense steps against never-ending Western destabilization attempts."
PS good articles and wish the 5eyes piss off!!
Posted by: JC | Jul 9 2020 17:11 utc | 17
Posted by: Canadian Cents | Jul 9 2020 16:46 utc | 13
Thank you, "Latest M. K. Bhadrakumar articles, on China and Russia being forced to take self-defense steps against never-ending Western destabilization attempts."
PS good articles and wish the 5eyes piss off!!
Posted by: JC | Jul 9 2020 17:11 utc | 18
Anyone know what's going on in Serbia, it looks like another US backed colour revolution but it's hard to see who they could replace the government with if they succeeded. If the US is behind this, I imagine we'll see Russia push back somewhere else (Ukraine or Syria) soon.
Posted by: Kadath | Jul 9 2020 17:11 utc | 19
@14
In the spirit of Mao's Cultural Revolution, it appears Melanomia and Fat Donny are weaponizing the youth to cull the herd. Melanomia is encouraging the schools to reopen so the children, the weapons, can murder their teachers via COVFEFE-19.
How many Americans, or humans the world over for that matter considering America is a massive globalized, can Melanomia and Fat Doony murder before they and their supporters are held to proper account?
It's high time we started paying teachers what the fecal matter Jamie Dimon gets paid and paying the likes of Jamie Dimon what teachers currently get paid. Or we can just round up and hang the likes of Jamie Dimon. I prefer the latter of course and I pray every day for that day to come and come soon.
After Years of Underfunding, Now Public School Teachers Are Supposed to Save the Nation’s Economy?
This piece on the difficulty and risk of reopening public schools covers a lot of ground, but a couple of additional points. First is that China and other countries that got their infections down have reopened their schools, and they have stringent processes to protect teachers and students. Obviously specifics vary but they include sanitizing shoe bottoms and sometimes backpacks and clothing (with a disinfectant spray), temperature checks, issuance of new masks or face shields, plastic barriers at each desk and seat in the lunch room, required hand washing or sanitizer use when changing classrooms, cleaning of the desk and doorknobs between classes (often by some students supervised by a student monitor). It is easy to see snowflake American parents objecting to having backpacks and clothing sprayed with disinfectant.A second problem in the US is that a big rationale for school reopening is free parents from daytime child-minding so they can go back to work. But what happens when a student fails a temperature screening and should be sent home? Or a child has been in close contact with someone at school who tests positive for Covid-19? My understanding of the normal practice in countries that do contract tracing well is that they require the exposed person to quarantine until a Covid-19 test comes back. It’s not hard to imagine some parents rebelling when schools refuse to allow children who’ve been exposed and haven’t yet gotten test results to come to class.
A dirty secret of the old normal is kids would regularly go to school when somewhat sick because their parents would have trouble at work if they skipped out to tend for an ill child, and some parents don’t think a mild ailment justifies missing a school day. So the US hostility to sensible policies like paid sick leave results in pressure on teachers to instruct children even when it would be better from a public health standpoint to send them home. And that is going to produce yet more contagion risk.
Posted by: 450.org | Jul 9 2020 17:26 utc | 20
Comment from Sam Bowne, a computer security teacher at CCSF here in San Francisco, on Twitter:
Sam Bowne @sambowne 2h
Trump's destroying OSHA and the CDC, forcing us to teach face-to-face, and blocking testing. Now I understand how my gay friends felt under Ronald Reagan in the 1980s. Republicans want to kill us all, senselessy: they are like rabid dogs.
He's got that right.
Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Jul 9 2020 17:27 utc | 21
#6
got a link to Venezuela shooting down a passenger plane?
All I see is they forced a narcotics plane to land and the people set fire to the plane after they got out.
Posted by: arby | Jul 9 2020 17:29 utc | 22
Interesting article over at The Economic Collapse blog...which blog I don't believe I've ever visited before, so I have little to say about its accuracy, although it links to several MSM stories.
The U.S. Economy Hasn’t Experienced Anything Like This Since The Great Depression Of The 1930s
For example, the New York Times is reporting that a million jobs have been lost in New York City, and the unemployment rate for NYC “is hovering near 20 percent”...The city is staggering toward reopening with some workers back at their desks or behind cash registers, and on Monday, it began a new phase, allowing personal-care services like nail salons and some outdoor recreation to resume. Even so, the city’s unemployment rate is hovering near 20 percent — a figure not seen since the Great Depression.
We are going to be using the phrase “since the Great Depression” a lot in the coming months.
Fear of COVID-19 is going to paralyze our economy for the foreseeable future, and all of this fear is hitting some companies more severely than others. On Tuesday, Levi Strauss announced that sales were down a whopping 62 percent during the second quarter…
The denim maker Levi Strauss & Co.’s sales fell 62% during its fiscal second quarter, the company announced Tuesday, as its online sales weren’t enough to make up for its stores being temporarily shut for roughly 10 weeks during the Covid-19 crisis.
If Levi Strauss expected this to be just a temporary setback, they would probably try to keep all of their employees on board.
But instead, they apparently believe that hard times are here to stay and they have just decided to eliminate “about 700 jobs”…
Levi’s also announced it will be slashing about 15% of its global corporate workforce, impacting about 700 jobs, in a bid to cut costs during the coronavirus pandemic. It said the move should generate annualized savings for Levi’s of $100 million.
Of course a whole lot of other companies are laying off workers right now too. Another 1.427 million Americans filed new claims for unemployment benefits last week, and that is an absolutely catastrophic number. Prior to 2020, the worst week in all of U.S. history for new unemployment claims was in 1982 when 695,000 unemployed workers filed in a single week. So what we are witnessing right now is nothing short of a “tsunami of job losses”, and even CNN is admitting that millions of the jobs that have been lost “are never coming back”…
Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Jul 9 2020 17:33 utc | 23
@20
Here's an excellent, intelligent, sane, rational comment from that linked article.
None of what “needs” to be done to reopen schools with any degree of confidence will be done; there is neither the will nor, frankly, the means. The U.S. is once again in danger of shortages of PPE for front-line health workers due to the massive resurgence of the virus in the majority of states, and as for N95 masks – it’s just impossible for the U.S. to produce the numbers needed now. That $116.5 billion requested is mostly for PPE + other products + additional cleaning staff – even if it’s awarded (by no means guaranteed), states/districts won’t be able to procure what they need to reopen with a modicum of safety.And that’s without considering the added costs from staggered classes split into two or three smaller groups to maintain social distancing. Or the fact that many of, e.g., NYC’s 1,800 schools are over a century old – new ventilation systems simply can’t be installed by late August (no money to do so, anyway); janitors currently have their hands full trying to pry open windows in many schools to provide minimal ventilation. That D+ has repercussions, and means that our school building infrastructure cannot possibly be upgraded in six weeks.
Thirty years of deliberate disinvestment, denigration and direct political attacks on the teaching profession have resulted in severe teacher shortages in many states; there won’t be enough to assume responsibility for second and third sections of classes (NYC has many schools with 40 students per class; they’ll have to be split into three sections); once teachers start getting ill, there won’t be substitutes available (my own home state depends almost exclusively on retired teachers as substitutes, and exactly none of them will return to schools in 2020-2021). And then there are the 25-30% of teachers who will be given health exemptions from teaching onsite – that means that de facto, at least 30% of teaching will remain remote for the foreseeable future.
Yes, of course it’s far better for children to be in school with their peers, and online/remote teaching is but a pale substitute. But countries which have started up K-12 again had a robust infrastructure, ample protective gear and other equipment, and a sufficient number of teachers to accomplish their mission. The U.S. doesn’t, and we have to accept that hard reality. Given that there were 60,000+ new cases diagnosed yesterday, opening schools in many states would be criminal negligence – and I don’t use that characterization lightly.
It's clear she really doesn't care how many useless eaters die. Strike that, she does care, and she wants to help make sure as many as possible do. She doesn't care that they die. The more the merrier.
Posted by: 450.org | Jul 9 2020 17:46 utc | 24
Charts show Bay Area’s coronavirus surge vs. hot spots in Arizona, Florida and Texas
Arizona and Florida now top a list of the world’s worst outbreaks, according to New York Times data showing new coronavirus cases per 1 million residents. Arizona is No. 1 on the list, followed by Florida at No. 2. Texas ranks 11th. All three state governors were late to issue stay-at-home orders, resistant to face mask mandates and aggressive in their reopening strategies.California lands 16th on the worst outbreaks list. Cases statewide have been escalating at a worrisome rate as counties have begun reopening, but the data show that the escalation is not on par with Arizona, Florida and Texas.
And while the Bay Area has also seen a concerning uptick in cases and hospitalizations, Chronicle analysis shows the regional surge here is not as severe as what the hardest-hit metropolitan areas around the country have seen. (See more data on coronavirus cases across the state and Bay Area in The Chronicle’s Coronavirus Map.)
The article says Bay Area hospitals are "straining", but San Francisco isn't doing at all badly based on the city's virus statistics Web site. Most ICU and urgent care beds are still occupied by normal patients, and the death toll continues to increase *very* slowly, just a couple deaths every week or so. San Francisco clearly benefited from being one of the first counties to lock down in April.
Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Jul 9 2020 17:48 utc | 25
U.S. Foreign Aid https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_foreign_aid#Overview
I heard someone claim that the U.S. 'feeds the world' so I looked at our top 10 nominal beneficiaries of economic aid, 1. Afghanistan, 2. Ethiopia, 3. Kenya, 4. South Sudan, 5. Syria, 6. Nigeria, 7. Uganda, 8. Iraq, 9. Tanzania, 10. Yemen.
I get how someone could confuse our weaponization of aid with charity. I am familiar with our agenda in Afghanistan, South Sudan, Syria (all to the SDF), Iraq, and our despicable weaponization of it in Yemen. But what game do we have going on in Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria and Tanzania?
Posted by: Christian J. Chuba | Jul 9 2020 17:52 utc | 26
From The Hill...
Florida emerges as world's new epicenter for COVID-19
On Wednesday, Florida reported nearly 10,000 new cases. There are nearly 220,500 positive cases statewide, and the test positivity rate has been above 14 percent for more than a week.Adding to the trouble, hospitals across the state are running out of beds in the intensive care units, although state officials say there is still plenty of capacity and hospitals have the ability to add surge beds.
According to a state dashboard from the Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA), hospitals have less than 15 percent ICU capacity available. Statewide, 42 hospitals have no ICU beds available, though that number is down from the 56 hospitals reported on Tuesday.
DeSantis has refused to release data on daily hospitalizations, despite pledging to do so. Florida is one of the only states that doesn’t publicly release that information.
Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Jul 9 2020 17:54 utc | 27
arby @22
There is this tweet from "Official Account of the Bolivarian National Guard". It pretty much agrees with what you were able to find.
Looks like another CIA shipment that won't make it to Mena Intermountain Mun Airport. I hope the pilot died, but since the aircraft was torched after being forced down that is not likely.
Posted by: William Gruff | Jul 9 2020 17:56 utc | 28
OK, Hack. There is a comment section for Covid on the previous blog.
Otherwise we will get a pile of yes it is, no it isn't's here as well.
CJC @26
"I get how someone could confuse our weaponization of aid with charity."
Good one.
I posted on the previous open thread of a bunch of munitions found in Yemen with USAID stickers on it.
Posted by: arby | Jul 9 2020 18:02 utc | 29
More on BlueLeaks...
Germany seizes server hosting pilfered U.S. police files
The document dump helps expose “the United States’ overdeveloped police intelligence apparatus,” said Brendan McQuade, a criminology professor at the University of Southern Maine who has viewed the documents. The files do not include high-level intelligence but provide a window into the relationship between law enforcement at all levels, he said — one that he believes the FBI doesn’t want the public to see lest it ”add more fuel to the protests” against police brutality and racism in policing.Best said the files remain publicly accessible through more complicated means such as BitTorrent and the Tor network, both of which complicate censorship efforts. Best said the organization is now rebuilding its infrastructure for public access. “All they cost us is time,” they said.
The only thing preventing me from downloading those is the size: 269GB is more than I want to download even using BitTorrent.
If you want to download it, here's a new BitTorrent set up by DDoSecrets (obviously you need a BitTorrent client to do so):
https://ddosecrets.com/BlueLeaks.torrent
Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Jul 9 2020 18:17 utc | 30
Posted by: arby | Jul 9 2020 18:02 utc | 29 OK, Hack. There is a comment section for Covid on the previous blog.
Otherwise we will get a pile of yes it is, no it isn't's here as well.
The thread is "news and views". It doesn't say "non-covid."
You're not b, don't tell me what to do.
Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Jul 9 2020 18:19 utc | 31
SF Mayor London Breed awaiting test results after being exposed to coronavirus
Probably doesn't have it, since the exposure was not within six feet for ten minutes, but she's treating it as such. She won't be doing any public appearances for ten days, but isn't isolating at home.
She should walk through the Tenderloin some time if she wants significant exposure. Although I noticed a reduction in tent clusters in some places where there were a lot of tents set up a few weeks ago. Maybe the city is getting around to cleaning them out. They closed off the road and parking area between the Main Library and the Asian Museum and set up a tent city there.
Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Jul 9 2020 18:25 utc | 32
Re that plane in Venezuela, are we talking about this here?
=> https://mobile.twitter.com/Libertad020/status/1280863374449000449
A good command of Spanish, anyone?
Posted by: Scotch Bingeington | Jul 9 2020 18:31 utc | 33
Twitter thread on Trump's forcing students to go to face-to-face classes instead of online learning or be deported. This is by an immigration lawyer who is an author on several books on immigration.
(((Greg Siskind))) @gsiskind 16h
Warning - Long tweet thread coming. I'm summing up the Harvard v. DHS complaint challenging ICE in its attempt to force F-1 students to leave the US if their courses are being offered online this fall. They lawyers did a superb job. I think you'll find this interesting.
Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Jul 9 2020 18:36 utc | 34
google translate
"Jul 8
🚨
#ULTIMAHORA || #CEOFANB reports that @CODAI_FANB
, detected at midnight on # 07JUL20 the entry of a Narco-aircraft with registration #USA into our airspace and once the protocol of the Law was applied, it was NEUTRALIZED with aircraft from our Military Aviation."
Doesn't exactly sound like Venezuela shot down a passenger plane to me.
Posted by: arby | Jul 9 2020 18:37 utc | 35
It kind of sounds like The US wanted to plant narcotics in Venezuela so as to implicate Maduro with their stupid accusation of him being a drug trafficker.
Posted by: arby | Jul 9 2020 18:40 utc | 36
Christian J. Chuba @Jul9 17:52 #26
But what game do we have going on in Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria and Tanzania?
The Global War on Terror game.
This Map Shows Where in the World the U.S. Military Is Combatting Terrorism (2019)
There have been many reports of ISIS and al Queda expanding to Africa and Central Asia, like this one from CNN in 2018. There are other terrorist groups also like Boko Haram.
So ... USA Mil have to be in Africa to protect Africans from groups that are anti-Western. And round and round we go.
!!
Posted by: Jackrabbit | Jul 9 2020 19:11 utc | 38
William Barr is working hard..that good willing boy..too bad for him and for fat mike that the load has been destroyed ..Strange way for an administration to be pro isolation anyway.
Posted by: LuBa | Jul 9 2020 19:20 utc | 39
Breakthrough: Tuesday 4:20 PM, Vienna, America is given a COVID cure, Will it be withheld?
https://www.veteranstoday.com/2020/07/09/tuesday-420-pm-vienna-america-is-given-a-covid-cure-will-it-be-withheld/
What's the deal with Gordon Duff? Occasionally he has worthwhile articles but this one is way out there. It made me laugh, it made me cry. Iran selflessly provides cure / therapy to U.S. for Covid19 but the U.S. State Dept covers it up (alarm bells start to ring). But okay, maybe Iran developed something novel but he ends with it being 'Nano Gas State Technology' which puts it into infomercial land. BTW Fars does not mention this, FARS has declared about 150 new deaths in the past 24hrs.
Don't get me wrong. I would love for Iran to develop a miracle cure, treatment. I can think of no other country that is more worthy of this honor except for perhaps Cuba.
Posted by: Christian J. Chuba | Jul 9 2020 19:34 utc | 40
List of Collaborators and sellouts on FOX. I am only including the people who either do or should know better. I am excluding the morons like Hannity and Kilmeade, I realize that this is debatable.
1. Dr. Marc Siegel - this song bird changed his tune so many times to appease his audience I cannot even keep track of his stories. I cannot think of one time when he contradicted the non-doctor who interviewed him, same for Dr. Naomi. He even accused Iran of having a biological weapons program. A sellout knows that FOX always likes it when you justify aggression against Iran.
2. Laura Ingraham - Flaks for Trump no matter what he says, I'm on the fence as to whether she should know better of if it's stupidity.
3. Daniel Hoffman - CIA, he knows he is lying. I cannot say the same thing about Gen. Jack Keane, I think he is that stupid.
Other nominees? [remember this is a list of the sellouts]
Posted by: Christian J. Chuba | Jul 9 2020 20:27 utc | 41
- It seems the US has no intentions of reducing the amount of sactions against Lebanon.
Quote:
"In the last two weeks, the new U.S. ambassador in Lebanon, Dorothy Shea, has been launching a propaganda offensive against Hizbullah that seems more aggressive and open than that of her predecessors."
Source:
https://consortiumnews.com/2020/07/09/the-angry-arab-silence-over-lebanons-suffering/
Posted by: Willy2 | Jul 9 2020 21:31 utc | 42
American democracy.... Two presidential candidates, one almost dead continue digging his own grave, while the other presidential candidate is half dead, even he if survives he'll die before he starts/finishes his term....
Posted by: JC | Jul 9 2020 21:49 utc | 43
RT is reporting explosions and a power outage in Tehran, looks like the US/Israel have decided to push the maximum pressure campaign to 11, how will Iran respond? At some point Iran will need to respond with force (with plausible deniability) otherwise, the US/Israel will start targeting more and more important infrastructure, damaging power stations to trigger a blackout, even a temporary blackout, represents a major threat to any government. Hospitals and sanitation treatment will be disrupted and during a major pandemic the threat to public health will be extreme.
Posted by: Kadath | Jul 9 2020 23:10 utc | 44
@8 Grieved. Well put, but those red lines you are referring to are being crossed these past days/ weeks in a massive way and if still covert may tip the balance into retaliation..
@38 JR. USA Mil have to be in Africa to protect Africans from groups that are TRAINED AND FUNDED BY AFRICOM TO APPEAR anti-Western or further FUKUS multi-faceted agendas..
Now the big news: Turkey to consider deploying S400 system to Libya. Gotta say, that's a solid chess move..
https://www.cowrynews.com/turkey-libya/
Posted by: Lozion | Jul 9 2020 23:11 utc | 45
@40 Chuba. Duff is the name of Springfield's favorite beverage of Moe & the Gang..
fogetabboutit..
Posted by: Lozion | Jul 9 2020 23:16 utc | 46
Lozion @Jul9 23:11 #45
Yes. I was less direct by calling it a 'game' and the sarcastic phrase: round and round we go.
!!
Posted by: Jackrabbit | Jul 10 2020 0:21 utc | 47
re Christian J. Chuba | Jul 9 2020 17:52 utc | 26
"I get how someone could confuse our weaponization of aid with charity. I am familiar with our agenda in Afghanistan, South Sudan, Syria (all to the SDF), Iraq, and our despicable weaponization of it in Yemen. But what game do we have going on in Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria and Tanzania?
People who have lived on their traditional land for generations are strangely reluctant to leave that land for a tarpaulin shack on the fringes of some 'pop-up' Mega City, so it can cost a great deal of money to shift them.
Gangs of thugs usually under the command of a boer , descend on a region in late model 4wd's and wantonly butcher citizens, rape the women and kidnap adolescents to be used as sex slaves/trainee warriors.
Someone has to pay for that in order to ensure clan holdings can be amalgamated into one huge bloc just right for some multinational corporation to install an arms length 'sub contractor' turning the area into a farm for peanut, palm oil or whatever other non-nutritious commodity the corporation desires to corner the market in.
But the costs don't end there, African farmers have been resisting bandits and wannabe warlords since forever, so it is essential that capital interests fund and infiltrate the resistance as well.
If you speak to the average grunt in a resistance group, inevitably referred to by governments & media as Boko Haram, you'll find they ended up there after they chose to resist a land grab in their own traditional region.
Some of the usaid or whatever amerika calls it does 'unfortunately' slip through and leak into buying weaponry to resist the bandits, but most of it is used to buy influence in Boko Haram leadership & to fund the big headline attacks in cities, indoctrinating former child slaves turned soldiers to suicide attack shopping malls, tourist hotels etc.
These are the only resistance actions that the world ever hears about; most people see Boko Haram as a bunch of mad dogs, never comprehending the driving force behind african people's resistance.
The bandit attacks which occur just about every day, well night somewhere in sub-Saharan Africa are rarely covered in world media, and the effect is obvious.
eg it is never covered here any more as most of the posters who claim to be opposed to resisting 'the MSM' or whatever is the insult de jour, only interest themselves in subjects their alleged enemy is also interested in.
One of the major reasons no coverage happens is that apart from that unfortunate incident in Niger a coupla years back, most of the whitefella troops are french or french controlled, don't forget the foreign legion blah, blah.
I have never comprehended why, but even quite leftish french people see little problem with french imperialism.
When we were fighting france's efforts to cover the south pacific with radioactive fallout, getting resistance to france's nuclear arsenal by organising within france itself, was really pushing shit uphill.
The wide support for suppression of muslims in france (banning traditional clothing) is another example of french left hypocrisy. The french elite have managed to sell a bill of goods around spreading Liberté, égalité, fraternité in Africa as french culture even while suppressing those three tenets to buggery. In fact I notice that fraternity appears to have fallen by the wayside inside france as well. Maybe because it is considered sexists, but it also makes the oppression of french people of ME, African or SE Asian ethnicity a lot easier if one isn't required to consider them brothers - or sisters for that matter.
Slight diversion, but not for nothing is Gates stirring up trouble in Africa.
Of course being a traditional mega capitalist it is doubtful gates is wasting much of his dosh on so-called aid projects. As we all know amerika practises socialism for big capitalism, grabbing the taxes ordinary amerikan shit-kickers have to psy as the seed money for land theft.
That should be sufficient reason for amerikans to demand comprehensive coverage of what is occurring in sub Saharan africa, but I for one won't be holding my breath.
Posted by: A User | Jul 10 2020 2:19 utc | 48
Just more example of Saint Trump draining the swamp /snark
I am sure Jay is doing God's work
Posted by: psychohistorian | Jul 10 2020 3:31 utc | 49
Anther three anti China propaganda articles today in the Australian news section of our government propaganda broadcaster.
We are being taken to war.
China's big focus for its science and manufacturing has been communications and infrastructure with only a tiny portion of that huge base used for military research and manufacturing. It will have to look at moving a bigger chunk of its scientific research to military research.
Posted by: Peter AU1 | Jul 10 2020 7:26 utc | 50
I understand there are at least 3 separate schools of thought about defeating the covid19 virus among various governments around the world:
1] containing, like in Australia, which ha now fallen down
2] elimination, which has has worked well for New Zealand and others
3] heard immunity, a work in progress in Sweden and it's hybridised USof A version: https://off-guardian.org/2020/07/07/second-wave-not-even-close/
I am interested in the economic impact of this virus.
I can imagine another Bretton Woods type economic "reset" being planned by the usual suspects right now. Of course China won't be invited to Jerusalem for the discussions.
I doubt freedom of expression will always be available for future generations.
Posted by: Paul | Jul 10 2020 10:50 utc | 51
The reopening of schools in 22 European countries has not led to any significant increase in coronavirus infections among children, parents or staff, a videoconference meeting of education ministers from around the EU has heard.
Posted by: Down South | Jul 10 2020 11:17 utc | 52
@Lozion | 45
The Turkish 'chess move' seems to be uncertain to say the least. There are a few points that spring to mind immediately
- end user agreement would be water tight and Russia allowing placement of S-400 on territory other than Turkish and for an end user other than Turkey would take significant negotiation which would be an interesting meeting to be in on given their opposing positions in Libya. Of course, money might grease the wheels ...
- maybe of more interest is this that according to Yuri Borisov and the Russian MoD. Russia is currently awaiting Turkey's decision as to whether it will purchase a second S-400 batch. With a price tag of +/- $2bn that's a good negotiating position. ))) But this may also be a repeat attempt to cajole the US into selling the Turks the Patriot system.
- The US is unlikely to be persuaded however, given its unwillingness to reach a compromise on the S-400 issue because it knows full well that Turkey is simply trying to reverse engineer and produce its own systems - maybe in conjunction with Russia (?) maybe even with Iran (?) - and is currently testing the S-400 capabilities against F-16s and F-4s.
So, unless you know something I don't, it's not quite the chess move but it throws into light some interesting goings on regarding the S-400.
Posted by: AtaBrit | Jul 10 2020 12:16 utc | 53
A quick background on the Muslim Brotherhood by Kevork Almassian:
Part 1 - The History of the Muslim Brotherhood (4 min)
Part 2 - The British collusion with the Muslim Brotherhood (5 min)
Part 3 - The Muslim Brotherhood rebellion against Hafez Assad (9 min)
Posted by: S | Jul 10 2020 12:26 utc | 54
@52
Apples and oranges. No one would intelligently argue against reopening schools. What's crucial is reopening only after the country has properly implemented ANY and ALL protocols, sparing no expense, to contain the virus. America has clearly not done that and in fact the criminal mass-murdering American government has gone out of its way to do everything it can do to spread the disease far and wide and to maximize the suffering and death. COVFEFE-19 has no greater champion than DJT himself. Maybe Trump does have COVFEFE-19 and it's like Toxoplasma Gondii in its effect on his brain. It appears COVFEFE-19 has entered DJT's brain, what little brain he has, and is now directing it in order to allow itself to flourish unhindered.
T. gondii has been shown to alter the behavior of infected rodents in ways that increase the rodents' chances of being preyed upon by felids.[11][15][16] Support for this "manipulation hypothesis" stems from studies showing T. gondii-infected rats have a decreased aversion to cat urine.[11] Because cats are the only hosts within which T. gondii can sexually reproduce to complete and begin its lifecycle, such behavioral manipulations are thought to be evolutionary adaptations that increase the parasite's reproductive success.[11] The rats would not shy away from areas where cats live and would also be less able to escape should a cat try to prey on them. The primary mechanisms of T. gondii–induced behavioral changes in rodents is now known to occur through epigenetic remodeling in neurons which govern the associated behaviors;[17][18] for example, it modifies epigenetic methylation to cause hypomethylation of arginine vasopressin-related genes in the medial amygdala to greatly decrease predator aversion.[17][18] Widespread histone-lysine acetylation in cortical astrocytes appears to be another epigenetic mechanism employed by T. gondii.[19][20] Differences in aversion to cat urine are observed between non-infected and infected humans and sex differences within these groups were apparent, too.[21]
Posted by: 450.org | Jul 10 2020 12:55 utc | 55
@ Posted by: Paul | Jul 10 2020 10:50 utc | 51
There are no "schools of thought" in containment of the pandemic. Except for China, Vietnam and Cuba, every other government is simply doing what they can, when they can, the best way they can.
Charlatan doctors throwing shit on the fan on the internet don't count as "school of thought", as they have zero influence over their respective governments.
Coronavirus cases surge in cities as Tokyo sets new record of 243
As we already know, Japan's testing numbers are pathetic (it was one sixth of Germany's when Germany was testing very few people). They have an enforced policy that only the doctor can prescribe the test, so a random person who thinks he/she has COVID-19 can't unilaterally get tested even if he/she is willing to pay for it.
Some weeks ago, the Japanese government officially stated that "random testing" (i.e. by sample) of the population in the Kyoto region revealed "almost nobody was infected". But this is the Japanese government, no need to tell you all their word isn't worth the ink and paper used to write it.
All in all, I suspect we can comfortably multiply this official number by 10-15 (more or less what we can do to Brazil, as estimated by Brazilian experts themselves). That would make daily new cases in the Tokyo region at about 2,500-4,000. I expect the official number of deaths to hover around the same scale - as it is very easy to camouflage those numbers (you just need to order the doctors to put "unknown cause" on the death certificates for patients who died without getting tested while alive - this is what's being done in Brazil, and Japan is very capable of doing similar thing).
How I know they are lying about Iran, Venezuela, and China because the supremacists in D.C. lied about Iraq and they always use the same pattern.
stage 1. Except for Iran, each country enjoyed either obscurity and in China / Iraq's case approval. We even liked Saddam when he was murdering Iranians.
stage 2. We target the country for whatever reason, China threatens our dominance, Venezuela offended us, Iraq/Iran perceived right to manage M.E.
stage 3. There is a steady stream of stories that reinforces the idea that this country is not just imperfect like Saudi Arabia, it is evil. It must be dealt with. This country is run by a ruthless dictator who crushes dissent, persecutes a local ethnic group, threatens his neighbors, supports terrorism, and threatens our security (in some unspecified manner but someone impressive makes it sound good).
stage 4. By the time we finally do something, impose draconian sanctions (starvation trade embargo) or if the country is small enough, a military attack the U.S. population declares, 'why did it take so long for us to act!'
Posted by: Christian J. Chuba | Jul 10 2020 13:52 utc | 58
About Ghislaine Maxwell...
One can presume Maxwell wants to continue living and doesn't want to end up like Epstein, assuming he is in fact dead. Therefore being an intelligent and calculating person one can also presume Maxwell has put together an ironclad personal insurance package that includes sex tapes of powerful people cavorting with underage girls. Possibly including people like former president Clinton, former Israeli PM Ehud Barak, Prince Andrew and billionaires like Leslie Wexner. One can presume she has provided sealed copies of her insurance package with multiple lawyers and trusted individuals with specific instructions on what to do with the tapes should anything bad happen to her. Anybody would know this. So did Trump orchestrate her arrest and devise a Machiavellian plan to boost his chances of winning a second term? If Maxwell gets off with slap of the wrist I'd conclude that Trump nailed it. I guess we will have to wait and see.
Posted by: krypton | Jul 10 2020 14:13 utc | 59
On Ghislane, I like Xymphora's guess.
Israel seems to be having a bit of a problem getting this "annexation" done. Arresting her is like showing a whip to the powerfull that are not onside.
Posted by: arby | Jul 10 2020 14:27 utc | 60
Turkey's state court has voted to annul the 1934 agreement turning Hagia Sopgia into a museum. Also Erodgan has tweeted that responsibility for the Hagia Sophia has now been handed to the Diyanet - the ministry of religious affairs - you may recall that the Diyanet opened Ramazan festival by reading a passage from the Quran which blames 'pestilence' and 'disease' (in this case Covid, of course) on homosexuals, those living 'in sin' and adulterers.
Also worth mentioning that the Diyanet has a budget of 70bn and funds the building of mosques and Muslim Brotherhood imams throughout Europe, especially in Eastern Europe where sectarianism is of course the goal in preparation for a return to 'Turkish' rule. ))
What can I say? Taliban, Al Qaeda, ISIS, Daesh, Muslim Brotherhood, Turkey and latterly BLM all see Cultural Aggression and Revisionism as a weapon. (Spot the link?) In my opinion it is indeed a weak religion or politics that has to resort to such tactics.
Posted by: AtaBritt | Jul 10 2020 14:33 utc | 61
AtaBritt @ 62
I see the link, there all victims of the US @ U.K. warmonger, far right fascist politicians!
Misappropriation of tax’s payer’s money, to fund the arms industry and their shareholders. Hiding the imoral proceeds of their crimes in off-shore tax haven bank accounts!
Posted by: Mark2 | Jul 10 2020 14:56 utc | 62
"Glenn Greenwald
@ggreenwald
·
1h
- Proposals for free college & health care: THERE'S NO MONEY FOR THIS!
- House authorizes $740.5 billion in military spending to defense contractors, more than the next 15 countries combined: SILENCE.
Vividly shows who the US Government & media serves:"
Posted by: arby | Jul 10 2020 14:57 utc | 63
that's one possible scenario, kypton. but why didn't epstein do it? he was supposedly intelligent and calculating, too. then that leads to the question, why did they come to the u.s. at all? the whole affair is extremely murky, because of all the lies, and one person who could have cleared it all up is dead, and the other is in prison in the same city in which epstein got suicided. the prospect of maxwell ending up dead too is doubly worrisome, because that means our reactions don't worry them at all.
Posted by: pretzelattack | Jul 10 2020 14:59 utc | 64
@Mark2 | 62 ))))))
Not quite the link I was thinking of, and I would definitely not classify any of them as "victims" in any way shape or form.
The link I was referring to was of course Muslim Brotherhood.
Posted by: AtaBrit | Jul 10 2020 15:11 utc | 65
@S | 54
Need to find some time to look at these later today. The history of Muslim Brotherhood's terrorism in Syria and current events are very important to understanding regional alliances and are not nearly sufficiently discussed.
Thanks for posting.
Posted by: AtaBrit | Jul 10 2020 15:19 utc | 66
pretzelattack, I also asked myself why Epstein wouldn't have done something similar to protect himself. The only thing I could come up with is that he is actually safe somewhere and his alleged suicide was somehow faked as a cover. Yeah I know that seems pretty far out.
Posted by: krypton | Jul 10 2020 15:39 utc | 67
To add to my previous post re Epstein
With the cameras turned off and the guards "asleep" how difficult would it have been to exchange the real Epstein with a body closely resembling Epstein. Given enough money most people can be easily bought off.
Posted by: krypton | Jul 10 2020 15:49 utc | 68
Posted by: AtaBritt | Jul 10 2020 14:33 utc | 61
They all helped cia/mossad getting their aims even if in different times and shapes.
Posted by: LuBa | Jul 10 2020 16:05 utc | 69
How cute: Europeans think their "Human Rights Court" still has any credibility left and jurisdiction over Russia:
They believe in God and only one God - the Money God, that is:
AP: Catholic Church lobbied for taxpayer funds, got $1.4B
And just wait for the peaceful and lovely religion to become the war religion in one instant:
Turkey's State Council Annuls 1934 Ruling to Turn Hagia Sophia in Istanbul Into Museum
Russian soldiers better prepare to become cannon fodder for patriarch Nikephoros XXVIII or whatever his name.
Hagia Sophia a Masjid / S400 in Libya / Rus-Tur relationship deteriorating in Syria. Levant in Turmoil..
Premises foretold of a Conflagration to come.. Man is walking on a razor thin edge, to which side will he tip over?
Likklemore, are you safe?
Posted by: Lozion | Jul 10 2020 18:06 utc | 72
Grieved @8--
Porter is somewhat on the right path but needs to deepen his examination temporally so he can strengthen his theory--he needs to read and channel Hudson, IMO.
Pepe Escobar's latest is deemed an AT Premium item, so if you don't have access to that directly, you'll need to await its publication elsewhere in a few days. It focuses on the relationship between China and Iran and links to some recent exposes of which this Global Times recap of "Remarks by State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the China-US Think Tanks Media Forum" not publicized in the West is very important with this long excerpt being an example of why it wasn't:
"One particular view has been floating around in recent years, alleging that the success of China's path will be a blow and threat to the Western system and path. This claim is inconsistent with facts, and we do not agree with it. Aggression and expansion are never in the genes of the Chinese nation throughout its 5,000 years of history. China does not replicate any model of other countries, nor does it export its own to others. We never ask other countries to copy what we do. More than 2,500 years ago, our forefathers advocated that 'All living things can grow in harmony without hurting one another, and different ways can run in parallel without interfering with one another'. This is part of the Oriental philosophy, which remains highly relevant today. The American people have long pursued equality, inclusiveness and diversity. The world should not be viewed in binary thinking, and differences in systems should not lead to a zero-sum game. China will not, and cannot, be another US. The right approach should be to respect, appreciate, learn from, and reinforce each other. In its reform and opening-up, China has learned a lot of useful experience from developed countries. Likewise, some of China's successful experiences have also been quite relevant for some countries in tackling their current challenges. In this diverse world, China and the US, despite their different social systems, have much to offer each other and could well co-exist peacefully." [My Emphasis]
The "Defense Racket" and its Rentier Class beneficiaries cannot abide with such thinking--cooperation and dual paths don't make for confrontation and the excuse to further waste monies on unneeded weapon systems. What's said by China above is essentially the same as Iran's POV. Ideologically, the Outlaw US Empire cannot generate a Zero-sum win for itself using now failed Colonial methods. If it wants to profit from Eurasian Development, it must alter its Ideology, but that currently looks to be an impractical expectation. The Eurasians however, will continue their path; and short of Nuclear War, there's nothing the Outlaw US Empire can do to stop their efforts--retard them yes, but stop no. That end point is what's being rejected by the diehards and their bosses.
Posted by: karlof1 | Jul 10 2020 18:24 utc | 73
@ 450.org | Jul 9 2020 16:50 utc
The "first lady" is not Russian whore, she is a sophisticated prostitute from Slovenia. She even had a statue in her hometown:
Statue in Sevnica, Slovenia
You we ~1,000kms off.
Posted by: ex-SA | Jul 10 2020 18:27 utc | 74
Activists Plan Protests At Politicians Houses Over Stimulus This Saturday!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_wwjCTTq4U
The Jimmy Dore Show
SOME RELLY, REALLY SHOCKING NUMBERS ARE COMING UP !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by: Ashino | Jul 10 2020 18:39 utc | 75
@ 74 ex-SA ... it is a very pretty town where she is from... we passed thru the town on a train going from ljubljana to zagreb... this train ride is worth taking if you are ever in the area travelling around..
Posted by: james | Jul 10 2020 18:51 utc | 76
@LuBa | 69
Absolutely. And you can add our very own MI6 to that list too.
Sadly we often create/ facilitate these monsters.
Let's face it, Turkey is openly Muslim Brotherhood and yet it is a member of NATO. Hence our silence when Turkey decides it is doing its own thing ...
Posted by: AtaBrit | Jul 10 2020 19:51 utc | 77
John Bolton was invited to flog his anti-Trump book on DW's Conflict Zone series hosted by Tim Sebastian on circa July 10. It's fairly recent because Bolton had a little gloat about the several infrastructure 'mishaps' Iran has experienced recently. Bolton declined to say who he thinks the perps were but did say that he "hopes it was 'Israel'" followed by a brief rant about what an evil menace Iran is and he's hopeful that more, similar, attacks will continue until the "Regime" can be overthrown.
The whole interview runs for about 25 minutes and covers a lot of ground. It has several amusing moments, the first being that both Bolton and Sebastian think Trump is as big a menace as Iran. The second was that their shared opinion of Trump made Sebastian drop his guard and stifle his usual hysterical bullying style with the result that Bolton was in charge from the beginning.
If you google DW Conflict Zone you'll find video of the interview which DW has thoughtfully headlined "How incompetent is Trump?" You'll also be able to ponder which of them is the crankier crank...
Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Jul 10 2020 20:06 utc | 78
In other news...
Infamous anti-Russian pro Jihadi US puppet & AlQaeda propagandist gets his phone hacked... One wonders what the Prophet and his pious brigade of head-choppers will have to say about what would make even a veteran Grinder from Castro blush...
LMFAO!!!!!
https://southfront.org/scandalous-photos-of-american-al-qaeda-propagandist-in-syria-surface-online/
Posted by: Et Tu | Jul 10 2020 21:28 utc | 79
Some will find this report relating the infiltration of Trump's Tulsa event amusingly worthy. I liked this portion:
"And then, of course, there was the version of patriotism on display in the arena. I’ve never seen so many representations of the Stars and Stripes in my life, classic flags everywhere and flag designs plastered on all manner of attire. Remember, I went to West Point. No one showed the slightest concern that many of the red-white-and-blue adaptations worn or waved strictly violated the statutes colloquially known as the U.S. Flag Code (United States Code, Title 4, Chapter 1).
"That said, going undercover in Trumplandia means entering a universe in which it’s exceedingly clear that one political faction holds the flag hostage. They see it as theirs — and only theirs. They define its meaning, its symbolism, and its proper use, not to speak of whom it represents. The crowd, after all, was vanilla. (There were more people of color serving beers than cheering the president.)....
"Nothing better exemplified the contrast between what I’ve come to think of as the 'pageantry patriotism' of the crowd and the more complex 'participatory patriotism' of the dissenting vets than that moment. At its first notes — we were still waiting in the arena’s encircling lobby — our whole team reflexively stood at attention, removed our hats, faced the nearest draped flags, and placed our hands upon our hearts. We were the only ones who did so —until, at mid-anthem, a few embarrassed passersby followed our example. Most of the folks, however, just continued to scamper along, often chomping on soft pretzels, and sometimes casting quizzical glances at us. Trumpian patriotism only goes so far." [My Emphasis]
I urge other barflies to read the entire article as it explains some painful details that never get much exposure, like the issue of defending the nation from its enemies that are clearly within and the actual lifelong adherence the Soldier's Oath has in connection with Genuine Citizenship--issues I've written about here previously.
And as for POTUS's committing treason, Trump certainly isn't the first in recent memory to do so. This review of the Outlaw US Empire's involvement in Afghanistan provides additional evidence to charge multiple Presidents and administration members with Treason for they clearly worked for the Enemy Within.
Posted by: karlof1 | Jul 10 2020 22:35 utc | 80
Last few months seems to have revealing effect on lot of analytical blogs I am following. Lot of them shown its true colors.
Pat Lang, for instance. When pressure mounted and US world dominance started to circle down the drain, it was time for him to turn of his brain and go into full-retard anti China mode chanting U-S-A, U-S-A!
Saker, that anti Anglo-Zionist and empire of whatever crusader, switched to publishing "analysis" from sources written by the propagandist of the same beast he is "fighting" against, keeping straight face in the process.
And not the least, MoA, in this rich time with so many ground breaking events, decided to focus on COVID-19 with 90%+ of its energy, tirelessly crunching and analyzing garbage statistical data. Garbage in, garbage out.
Posted by: Abe | Jul 10 2020 23:24 utc | 81
@71 vk
Hey, bud, why don't you ever dig a little deeper instead of just spraying the forum with your cherry-picked articles followed by your snappy one liners. Do some thinking.
The Catholic Church was forced to close the majority of its 17k+ parishes in the U.S. It was thus completely deprived of its weekly-tithing income sans those who continued their electronic-giving, which is give or take probably less than 50% of its parishoners.
So do some math. Let's say 10k+ parishes x (50% of an average $10,000 weekly tithing income per parish) x 20 weeks = $1 billion. Add 400 million for range of error.
Seems fair to me that they get some income this way as they were forced to close as was many a business collecting federal aid, don'tcha think?
Seems mighty fair.
Posted by: NemesisCalling | Jul 11 2020 0:24 utc | 82
Abe @Jul10 23:24 #81
- b was early in his pandemic coverage, he has covered it extensively, and he's been mostly right;
- the pandemic is a worthy topic as it is so important to the world and to geopolitics - how many bloggers are writing on things like what b just posted about race/class and Covid-19?
- b has covered other seemingly minor events - like Boeing Max fiasco and Skripals - in a superb way;
- b's publishing timetable is variable. Sometimes he surprises me with how quickly he reacts (like with Boeing Max and Integrity Initiative) and sometimes he is slower than most because he wants to have a thoughtful post.
- b has a liberal commenting policy. You can start a discussion on any topic that you think warrants attention.
With that said, there are recent events that are very troubling and they all seem to point to things coming to a head this fall. I expect we'll see something from b soon.
<> <> <> <>
PS I'm not from a 'fanboy'. I have my own blog and have been critical of b from time to time.
!!
Posted by: Jackrabbit | Jul 11 2020 0:48 utc | 83
Narco-agression now that really does fit he USA. No truer word was ever said. A good brief read at NEO.
Dr Alfred McCoy also described similar objectives by the same mendacious USA decades ago in the Golden Triangle.
Trump is the true face of the USA government and whoever comes next as its "president'.
Posted by: uncle tungsten | Jul 11 2020 1:07 utc | 84
Posted by: Jackrabbit | Jul 11 2020 0:48 utc | 83
I appreciate B's effort as this is one of rare places for this topic, but I feel he is trusting data too much. Being from statistical background, and seeing how that data is collected and processed, I think vast majority of it is pure garbage, probably by design. Time will give us clearer picture, but now we are at "fog of war" as they say.
Posted by: Abe | Jul 11 2020 1:14 utc | 85
@ 83 jr.. thanks... i pretty much view it the same... abe doesn't mention the sites he holds in high esteem.... that is a revelation in itself as i see it.. b is a lot more diverse then the covid critics let on... but it seems if b hasn't said what they want to hear on covid, they come to the conclusion all b focuses on is covid.. that is false...
roger stone had his sentence commuted...
number of new cases of covid in usa 72,000... brazil is in a race to catch up and india isn't far behind...
Posted by: james | Jul 11 2020 1:21 utc | 86
Now the scumbags and their useful idiots are out to silence Charles Dickens after all the good work and exposure of the evils of capitalism and feudalism.
Posted by: uncle tungsten | Jul 11 2020 1:31 utc | 87
james @Jul11 1:21 #86
I respect Abe. He's been commenting on various blogs for a long time.
!!
Posted by: Jackrabbit | Jul 11 2020 1:45 utc | 88
@ jr.. his response to you @ 85 was thoughtful.... i agree with him in that there are a lot of unknowns around covid and that it is a contentious issue for many too..
Posted by: james | Jul 11 2020 1:48 utc | 89
james @Jul11 1:21 #86>blockquote>roger stone had his sentence commuted...
But not Manafort.
I'd suspect that there were suggestions to Flynn that Trump could pardon him too. LOL. Something like: What are you worried about? Just plead guilty and Trump will take care of you.
I've said it many times now: IMO Manafort, Flynn, Assange were targets that were set up via the 2016 Deep State selection of the US President.
!!
Posted by: Jackrabbit | Jul 11 2020 1:52 utc | 90
karafspolo | Jul 9 2020 15:24 utc | 6:
MoA is a one man show. You can't expect everything to be covered. If you want more, than start donating large sums of $$$.
Willy2 | Jul 9 2020 21:31 utc | 42:
Gone are the days of when an Embassy was suppose to be a liaison between two countries. Now, it's a forward operating base. It's time to end this concept of embassies.
Christian J. Chuba | Jul 10 2020 13:52 utc | 58:
Well said. Past is prologue.
Posted by: Ian2 | Jul 11 2020 3:17 utc | 91
Jackrabbit # 90
I've said it many times now: IMO Manafort, Flynn, Assange were targets that were set up via the 2016 Deep State selection of the US President.
Exactly that. Trump was given his script well before November 2016. He may even have been presented with a gold engraved 45 thumb drive with the unedited version of the Zapruder movie just to make things unambiguous.
Posted by: uncle tungsten | Jul 11 2020 3:52 utc | 92
@92 Uncle
Can you clarify this? Are you saying Flynn was set-up and that this set-up was sanctioned by POTUS who knew about this?
Wouldn't Flynn know more about the case against him than anyone else over the last three years?
So why would Flynn not condemn POTUS? Indeed, he even put out an OP-ED that lands him squarely aimed at the political forces behind the recent urban uprisings to unseat POTUS.
Are you saying that Flynn would not know after three years that POTUS was actually complicit in his indictment?
Seems a rather silly position to me. But oh well.
Posted by: NemesisCalling | Jul 11 2020 4:14 utc | 93
@ debsisdead
You have walked the talk, and written what you believe. Go back to your old user name because that is what you are. I'm just a shitkicker and dont always agree with you but whatever, you have lived the life and done what you believe.
Posted by: Peter AU1 | Jul 11 2020 5:20 utc | 94
Abe #81
OK so I too am a little tired of covid porn and dodgy data but don't let that distract you from posting material that you assess as being of interest to us. Just assume b is on leave or taking a lull in his typical posting energy but you have the capacity to put up good material and analysis to inform us all and we are likely to chip in to build a narrative (or a tackling match :)
So here is my link to good old Spanish Imperial porn. I see that grubby little Franco ghost now stalks the egos of Spain’s Socialist Party (PSOE)-Podemos government. Nasty bunch of treacherous hypocrites.
As for the middle east politics the same old same old is whirring about. Iran just took a punch from the illegal state of occupied Palestine, Turkey remains in its invaded portion of Idlib, the head of Al Qaieda in Idlib was assassinated yesterday by someone with the assistance of a Russian pair of drones, the Syrian Arab Army has been building muscle for weeks and now awaits the end of July whereupon Turkey has to have 'kept' its promise to open roads or piss off or be thrown out. Time will tell.
The Houthis continue their victory march in Yemen.
Post some of your preferred links to assess if you will.
Posted by: uncle tungsten | Jul 11 2020 6:26 utc | 95
NemesisCalling #93
I gather Flynn is not the sharpest tac in the box. I am sure he got it mighty quick that he was set up and that POTUS was deficient in loyalty platelets.
Flynn was after all a very vocal antagonist of the USA "intelligence school".
Flynn might have known more than most about the case against him. He seems to know little about the law and courtroom tactics. That is understandable.
Flynn might not condemn POTUS because that may be one step too far for a person who seeks to survive and just beat off the dogs at his heels. He clearly has enough enemies and the USA has a mendacious media and President just now. He is focused on his and family survival afaik.
I am not saying Flynn would know or not know anything other than his own estimation of the forces against him and the tactics he might deploy. His current legal team appear to be well resourced and cunning as a shithouse rat.
I hope Flynn wins a massive settlement and the scumbag USA judge gets his arse whipped.
Posted by: uncle tungsten | Jul 11 2020 6:38 utc | 96
A leaf out of the old National Socialist book of Reichstag operating protocols:
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is responding to the collapse of Israel’s economy and a resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic with a turn to dictatorial measures against the Israeli and Palestinian working class.Netanyahu admitted Friday that the country was once again in the grip of a “major outbreak.” He introduced a controversial law—passed shortly after midnight on Tuesday by a 29 to 24 majority—giving himself and the cabinet emergency powers to impose pandemic restrictions for up to a week before lawmakers can discuss, amend or cancel them.
He justified this blatant erosion of the Knesset’s control over the government saying that debating proposed laws delays the implementation of governmental decisions. He declared, “The legal rules restrict us, it’s simply unbelievable to pass everything through legislation.”
More here if you wish.
These clowns will annexe land in Argentina next.
Posted by: uncle tungsten | Jul 11 2020 6:57 utc | 97
Jimmy Dore craps on the Bernie/Biden sham show.
Not surprised, but a 23 minute expose of treachery, empty rhetoric, broken promises if you can stomach it.
Posted by: uncle tungsten | Jul 11 2020 7:07 utc | 98
Ref Istanbul Hagia Sophia,
https://www.rfi.fr/fr/europe/20200706-visite-josep-borrell-la-turquie-pointe-sujets-discorde-l-ue
Announcement was made the day of a visit of the EU FM
Posted by: Mina | Jul 11 2020 8:42 utc | 99
Matt and Katie are opening their show this week with a great support story for Glenn Greenwald on the very nice relationship between the Democrazis and Liz Cheney to block the withdrawal of USA invaders from Afghanistan.
There is no depth too low for the dems.
Posted by: uncle tungsten | Jul 11 2020 9:48 utc | 100
The comments to this entry are closed.
Found a new word I can use BULLDUST...
Posted by: Jayne | Jul 9 2020 14:41 utc | 1