” Pharma and the government health agencies had put regulatory capture on steroids” cite from Kennedy’s book. I heard that it sound better in German “am Steroiden mit Viagra”, in short, it takes big Pharma to concoct the most powerful combination (Oxycontin was perhaps in the mix, and who knows what else — proprietary information).
As I discussed on this website, American pharma learned how to convert “base metal”, cheap medicines with patents that expired before most of us were born, into gold. 5 g tube of acyclovir creme costs 2-3 dollars in Poland where the creme is produced by a local company that otherwise makes cosmetics — same technology, after all, and mostly same ingredients, except for acyclovir itself which is quite cheap in bulk. In USA it costs 600 dollars, or 300 with a discount, BUT! there is a special price, 50 dollars for 15 g. Too bad that it is not possible to use more then 5 g in two years (i.e. before the expiration) while having occasional herpes outbreaks, something experienced by 10-20% of people. 50 dollars for 0.75g of a cheap active ingredient is the price of gold.
And the completion for the GENERIC drug is regulated out of existence. And this is a very mild example. I studied another example with roughly similar robbery ratio, epinephrin injector that can be preventatively purchased by people at risk for anaphylactic shock. And that happens for almost every drug, except that for new medicines with active patents the prices are above stratospheric, perhaps they would barely fit in the Solar system if converted to distances.
Regulatory capture is a systemic result of the political system driven by lobbies. In the modern spirit of outsourcing, our elective representatives outsource such mundane activities like thinking to outside suppliers who provide them with ideas and solution at no cost — why, they even pay to use their intellectual productions! Perfectly economic solution, saving precious time and effort for some bacchanalia or even hiking. One governor hiked so well that he ended up in Buenos Aires with an attractive widow, while he stated in South Carolina (he actually left office informing that he will spend some time on the Appalachian Trail, which is actually quite long, from Maine to Georgia, and then, hop-hop, all the way to Argentina). [This example is dear to me, because I do regularly hike in Appalachians, although on short distances only.]

Posted by: Piotr Berman | Dec 11 2021 0:41 utc | 103

suzan @100&101–
Thanks for your reply and additional information! The litigation pushback has stalled the narrative and demonization of the unvaccinated, and the media generated hysteria seems to now remain within media as people begin to wise-up and reason. The latest all vaccinated staff and passenger compliment of a cruise ship to become infected helps provide the fact that vaccinations don’t/won’t/can’t stop the spread or protect one from becoming infected, thus the very illogical need for vaccine mandates and passports. But there’s still a long ways to go to defeat the federal government and BigPharma.

Posted by: karlof1 | Dec 11 2021 0:45 utc | 105

@ c1ue | Dec 11 2021 0:39 utc | 102 who is asking good social organization structural issues with the link about a Land Value Tax and associated Citizen’s Dividend.
If you don’t appropriate ownership of all property like China and then lease it back to the public as store of value then you are stuck with applying bandaids like proposed in your link to “solve” the problem…..doesn’t deal with the underlying problem and so much effort will be expended to game it….sigh

Posted by: psychohistorian | Dec 11 2021 0:57 utc | 107

karlof98 & psychohistorian: i was surprised MH didn’t mention quantum computing…hat tip to you ph for linking to Xin & its tech so often it’s now on my morning goto…bt the chinese have as you know been doing amazing research with QC & it’s believed that it will adversely affect bitcoin. i’ve been expecting max to make some reference to it, however, so far he hasn’t. thank you to you both. your posts, links & research are crucial.

Posted by: emersonreturn | Dec 11 2021 1:06 utc | 109

Get well quick please. U r the first port of call for me.
U r it, u r the best at what u r doing which is demolishing the prevailing the false narrative.

Posted by: A.z | Dec 11 2021 1:28 utc | 111

Perimetr #23
“I watched the videos criticizing Gabbard; the Krystal Ball link is clearly a hit piece…”
Seemed like a solid compare/contrast exercise to me. Few during the primaries gave Gabbard as much air-time and came to her defense against the Clinton Cabal as Ball/Enjeti did when they hosted Rising.

Posted by: Gulo | Dec 11 2021 1:50 utc | 113

@emersonreturn #109
Quantum computers of sufficient size/capacity to attack hash algorithms won’t work anytime soon – certainly before bitcoin mining reserve runs out.
Secondly, why attack bitcoin when the entire internet and banking system is easier to attack?
Hi t even disregarding the hardware issue, the software is a problem. How do you test that a 1300-4000 qubit software program is working correctly? You literally cannot. Plus there is the issue of collisions: a hash function actually has many solutions for a given output. Google researchers demonstrated this by creating a 1 page text which produced an identical hash output as a significantly modified version of the same text.
With 1300-4000 qubits, the million monkeys/million years writing Shakespeare becomes a tangible likelihood.

Posted by: c1ue | Dec 11 2021 2:09 utc | 115

When I heard about Biden’s conference with Zelensky, I had to go visit a majority democrat, trump-deranged, Russia-hating website (imgur) and troll them a bit.
I provided a transcript of the actual conversation.
https://imgur.com/gallery/adImffC

Posted by: featherless | Dec 11 2021 2:18 utc | 117

Speaking of Zelensky, he’s talking about a referendum (referendumb?) on Crimea!? WTF is he smoking?
https://ca.yahoo.com/news/ukrainian-president-does-not-exclude-190824586.html“ rel=”nofollow”> Ukrainian president does not exclude referendum on Crimea and Donbass

Posted by: spudski | Dec 11 2021 2:33 utc | 119

@ emersonreturn | Dec 11 2021 2:11 utc | 116 with the ongoing question of quantum computing value
Yes, security will always be a challenge for humans because of what you call the otherwise of your “scrupulous or otherwise” folks. One of our problems is that currently the “lie, cheat and steal if you can get away with it” meme is normalized because of our God of Mammon worship. This increases the incentive to break security as a “acceptable” way to make money…..and control other nations through control of information.
That is why it is important and as to why I think it is possible, understanding the detail of some of that is above my pay grade. That said, based on my understanding of the technology, using some sort of quantum computing will allow a message/transaction to be encrypted on one end and decrypted on the other w/o any in-between ability to decrypt/modify…..secure communication, verifiable transactions, etc. are what you get and that flies in the face of God of Mammon immorality as a virtue and tool of control.

Posted by: psychohistorian | Dec 11 2021 2:42 utc | 121

@ Grieved | Dec 11 2021 2:43 utc | 122 who ended with
”
Biden did the same kind of flexing even as he was being told by Putin – and had to accept – how things are.
”
Now we just need to see the same swing of the ship of empire away from China aggression…..might even crash the markets….grin

Posted by: psychohistorian | Dec 11 2021 2:48 utc | 123

Below is a link to a Strategic Culture posting and a take away quote I think is telling
Americans Need a Conspiracy Theory They Can All Agree on
The take away quote
”
The China conspiracy theory seems to be working – a survey by the Reagan Foundation found that 52% saw China as the “greatest threat” to the USA (Russia well behind at 14% and North Korea just behind it at 12%). Three years ago Russia was 30% to China’s 21%. More striking is that China has gained twenty points since February. Can the Putin-won-2016/Trump-won-2020 divide be bridged by a Chinadunnit conspiracy theory?
”
When you have a MSM that is part of the God of Mammon religion, the fire hose of truth/conspiracy theory lies are overwhelming and effective as we see quite clearly by the zombie all around us.

Posted by: psychohistorian | Dec 11 2021 3:04 utc | 125

@ Featherless | Dec 11 2021 3:44 utc | 126 with the shout out
More later after my sauna and your link experience reviewed but for now from a previous barfly
The Hopi Precepts
Show Up
Be Present
Tell The Truth
Don’t Own The Outcome

Posted by: psychohistorian | Dec 11 2021 4:04 utc | 127

Hitler hears about BoJo’s Christmas party…..hilarious. Up there with our bust of the NATO we are the world drunken soiree.

Posted by: FiveGunsWest | Dec 11 2021 4:54 utc | 129

Below is a Xinhuanet posting about the US Democracy event
”
BEIJING, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) — As one of its latest attempts to tackle the “challenges to democracy,” the United States rolled out another expensive program to promote American-style democracy worldwide.
The so-called “Summit for Democracy,” which kicked off on Dec. 9, saw the country’s leadership unveil the “Initiative for Democratic Renewal” that mainly promises to provide up to 424.4 million U.S. dollars in 2022 to fund efforts in five areas the United States deems “crucial to the functioning of transparent, accountable governance.”
But, will some 400 million U.S. dollars be of any help in the “renewal” of U.S. democracy? Not very likely. The conclusion can be quite apparent to anyone who takes a closer look at the details of the initiative.
At the first glance, the five areas where the funds will go may seem convincing: free media, fighting corruption, democratic reform, advancing technology for democracy, and defending free and fair elections. But intriguingly, all these areas have artfully evaded the existing problems the United States faces at home. Thus, it is fair to say that in terms of “renewing” the United States’s own democracy, the initiative is completely off the point.
As a matter of fact, when it comes to democracy, the United States is not doing so well itself. For instance, “fighting corruption” and “defending fair elections” are what the United States needs to push forward at home.
Currently, the American-style democracy is plagued by money politics, turning elections into de-facto “rich men’s game.” For example, the 2020 presidential election and Congressional elections cost some 14 billion U.S. dollars, which is roughly 30 times the 400-million fund the initiative has promised.
In the United States, political donations are almost seen as “legitimate bribery.” They enable the rich to have more political clout, and in return, those who eventually get elected often serve the interests of their financial backers. They speak for vested interests rather than ordinary people. In this context, how “fair” can such elections be?
Of course, the United States has much more to worry about than money-driven politics, the COVID-19 pandemic being one. As of this November, the United States has reported over 48 million COVID-19 cases, including more than 770,000 deaths.
Behind such exasperating consequences is the hefty medical insurance that about 25 million underprivileged people in the United States can’t afford, as well as the discrepancies in medical attention received by the rich and the poor, and whites and minorities.
This has resulted in minority groups and poorer communities being disproportionately affected by the pandemic. Some medical institutions even practice “selective treatment” when it comes to treating minority or poor patients.
Internationally, the United States has been pursuing “vaccine nationalism” by hoarding excessively more doses of vaccines than it needs.
It has not only shirked its responsibilities by quitting the World Health Organization at the height of the world’s fight against the pandemic but has also been busy undermining this fight by scapegoating and politicizing COVID-19 origins tracing.
Aren’t these factors more important to the United States than pouring money into the five projects it cobbled up in the initiative by completely ignoring the pertinent needs of the American people?
The topmost criterion for democratic governance is that ordinary people should enjoy the dividends of peace and development, and live peaceful and happy lives. If the United States is sincere in its pledge to “renew democracy,” then it first ought to focus on its own people’s needs, address its domestic problems, and interact with the rest of the world with less arrogance and hostility.
”

Posted by: psychohistorian | Dec 11 2021 5:53 utc | 131

Grieved @124–
Putin and Biden talked Tuesday. The meeting where he excused himself was on Thursday.

Posted by: karlof1 | Dec 11 2021 6:16 utc | 133

re Insiders utter control of mainstream media…
If one is looking for the fraudulent keystones upon which fraudulent regulatory capture [ownership of the regulators] relies for fraudulent legitimacy, consider…
corporations are persons and have the rights of persons.
The Supreme Court played the vital role in enabling this confusion.
The fraudulent use of the 14th Amendment as legal precedent for the above makes for an insider’s view of insanity. It is how corporations were given the privacy rights and freedom of [money] speech rights, etc. ..all based on a series of coincident lies/tricks beginning about middle 1800s thru the Great Railroad land-grants and rail rights-of-way schemes, thru oil field/refining monopolies and consolidation of industry giants…all involving unlimited accumulation of wealth by greed, AKA acquisitive intentions AKA evil purposes.
In great measure, it is how we arrived at the 1% v 99% present condition.
It is also a correct target for undoing.

Posted by: chu teh | Dec 11 2021 6:53 utc | 135

Posted by: karlof1 @ 95
Thanks for the interview with Hudson and Alan Kohler, he is indeed one of Australia’s most respected economists.
Here is some local knowledge. I know just about every street in the rundown suburb mentioned, Mascot. It houses Sydney’s huge, noisy Kingsford Smith Airport and plenty of polluting industry. i couldn’t believe paying $1.7 million for a typical house there. It is grimy and has huge traffic problems. It also has a monstrous new apartment building failure, Mascot Towers. I blame poor government, developer friendly, building standards approval, ripping off the unsuspecting apartment buyers.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-04-15/mascot-towers-owners-urged-to-sell-as-developers-circle/100073040
A scandal.
The Australian real estate bubble will pop sooner or later.

Posted by: Paul | Dec 11 2021 7:40 utc | 137

@136 Psychohistorian
I think patriarchy and monotheistic religions are basically entwined, brought about by the Caucasian(Kurgan) culture that began expanding from the Caspian Steppes shortly after the last Ice Age.
Just my two cents. A couple interesting reads on that subject…Robert Graves “The White Goddess”…Rianne Eisler “The Chalice and the Blade…and the works of archeologist Marija Gimbutas.

Posted by: Haassaan | Dec 11 2021 7:52 utc | 139

Psychohistorian
It depends whether your monotheistic religion has the Mother Goddess at its head or not. The Greek mysteries were related to Demeter, probably a survival of a time when the earth goddess was above any kind of “zeus”. Even the Judeans took a few centuries to get rid of Ashera. And the Arabs quickly moved from Allat to Allah in a couple of centuries.

Posted by: Tom2 | Dec 11 2021 8:59 utc | 141

suzan #101

Brief withdrawal of syringe plunger to exclude blood aspiration may be one possible way to reduce such risk.”
“>https://academic.oup.com/cid/advance-article/doi/10.1093/cid/ciab707/6353927

I have asked a few nurses over the past year if they follow the aspiration protocol and was asked what I meant. Once explained they all confirmed that they never practiced that method and most informed they had not encountered that dictum in their training. My internal self was in rage as I understood it was procedure practice #101. What a shambles.

Posted by: uncle tungsten | Dec 11 2021 9:52 utc | 143

karlof1 #106

“Then Zemmour announced the name of his new political party: ‘Reconquete’ – named after the seven century-long Christian battle to expel the Moors from Iberia, finally achieved in 1492.”

Might I hazard the thought that in the land of refined hucksters, fakers, jean paul satre and Micron – anything is possible even a bigot coalition. Just take a look at the bunya nut republic.

Posted by: uncle tungsten | Dec 11 2021 10:02 utc | 145

There was a survey done by the University of Johannesburg on the attitude of South Africans to mandatory workplace vaccination:

Support for compulsory workplace vaccination is highest amongst Indian adults at 65% followed by Black African Adults at 56%, Coloured adults at 49% and lowest among White adults at 32%.
Similarly, support for vaccine passports is lower among White adults, 32% compared to 54% for Black African adults, 51% of Indian adults, and 46% among Coloured adults.
“61% of those with less than matric support compulsory workplace vaccination compared to 39% of those with post-matric education. 60% of those with less than matric support providing proof of vaccination to enter public places compared to 40% of those with post-matric education.”
Adults aged 18-24 years had slightly higher support for compulsory workplaces vaccination compared to older age groups.

UJ survey reports fair support for mandatory workplace vaccination
Those most affected by the lockdowns (economic hardship) are the ones who most support mandatory vaccinations as they think that if everyone is vaccinated then the lockdown restrictions will end and everything will go back to normal.
But we know that even countries wi the highest rates of vaccination are still imposing lockdowns as the vaccines do not stop the spread of the virus and so the lockdowns will continue indefinitely.
As Klaus Schwab said, there is no going back to normal, this is the new normal.

Posted by: Down South | Dec 11 2021 10:10 utc | 147

Word inflation: BEIJING — China’s State Council Information Office on Saturday released a white paper titled “China: Democracy That Works.” http://en.qstheory.cn/2021-12/06/c_687631.htm

Posted by: Antonym | Dec 11 2021 10:34 utc | 149

@perimetr 75
Thanks for the Link to the Dossier. Another big piece in the puzzle.
As for “Omicron”, I am quite sure, that people out of the “publish or perish” community are busy in searching for variants etc. For matters of urgency, reviewing may be reduced to a minimum and a paper gets either immediately attention (and citations) or never – make it sound dramatical. The problem with repeatability isn’t addressed at all – no one needs to worry about that.
So, who ever needs for certain reasons o new variant can easily pick one and push it to the media. Fear p*rn because people started to get used.

Posted by: BG13 | Dec 11 2021 11:56 utc | 151

Hope you get better, b

Posted by: Andres | Dec 11 2021 13:02 utc | 153

@psychohistorian #121
Your premises are completely inaccurate.
First of all, there is no such thing as “quantum encryption”. There is encryption and decryption; the hardware performing said function may be semiconductor/digital or quantum. Quantum algorithms are different than digital algorithms – see below for why.
Second of all, quantum computers will never be household items. Among other things, they require liquid nitrogen as the qubits operate 4 or less degrees above absolute zero (-273 Celsius).
Thirdly, you are conflating quantum computing with quantum linking (entanglement). These are both quantum physics based but are not the same thing.
Quantum entanglement means 2 objects physically far apart act as if they are linked. If you pulse one, the other object also shows the pulse. This is how quantum communications works and why it is secure – how do you tap into the quantum physics linking between the 2 objects since there is no physical connection such as a wire or a radio signal? This also will never be a household capability because each entangled pair has to first be created, then carefully separated with at least one of the 2 objects transported to its final resting place. It goes without saying, but I will say it anyway: quantum communications is always only 1 to 1. If you want to talk to 100 people securely, it will require 100 different entangled pairs.
Quantum computing is use of the multi-state property of a qubit in place of a transistor. Under the right conditions, the qubit will basically instantaneously collapse into 1 of 3 states. In comparison, a transistor is only 2 state (on or off) and is much slower as it requires both the charging/discharging of a gate and the subsequent passage (or cessation of passage) of electrons from one side of the transistor to the other.
Long and short of it: no household quantum communications or computing, extremely likely ever.

Posted by: c1ue | Dec 11 2021 14:05 utc | 155

Brazil–Glenn Greenwald challanged by union
I tend to agree with Glenn Greenwald’s articulation of his positions but I’m often left with a kind of bad feeling that he makes a lot of money and has worked for some oligarchs (Pierre Omidyar). Apparently, his argument: rich donors can do good things.
“It all started on the Flow podcast. Sitting with his husband Glenn, David Miranda, one of 10 members of Brazilian congress from PSOL (the Brazilian Socialism and Freedom Party), announced they had convinced US tech billionaire Jack Dorsey to donate R$1,2 million towards the renovation of public sports facilities in Jacarezinho – the Rio de Janeiro favela where he grew up. Greenwald then announced that they were looking for donations for similar projects in the south zone favelas of Vidigal and Rocinha. It was important, Miranda added, because, “we can’t depend on the State to do this, it isn’t doing it.”
The article describes the negative reaction of the Espirito Santo state petroleum workers union, basically calling out Greenwald and his husband for being neolibs. bottom line, they followed the money.
“What is really worrying is to see David justifying this on Flow with the idea that you can’t rely on the State for social transformation. To see a federal congressman use such a depoliticized line of thinking borders on the ridiculous. Why is he a congressman then?”
https://www.brasilwire.com/greenwalds-embarrassing-public-spat-with-brazilian-union/

Posted by: migueljose | Dec 11 2021 14:19 utc | 157

@karlof1 106
Zemmour is a typical Jew. Chances for him to bring any changes to Jew elected Macron are infinitesimal. Even more, I can bet my left testicle Zemmour will be to France what Zelensky (another Jew) is to Ukraine – final nail in the coffin.
Just my opinion.

Posted by: Abe | Dec 11 2021 14:29 utc | 159

Speaks for itself:

Statement Regarding the Ongoing Trial of Jussie Smollett
December 7, 2021
The below is a statement from Dr. Melina Abdullah, Director of BLM Grassroots and Co-Founder of BLM Los Angeles, regarding the ongoing trial of Jussie Smollett:
As abolitionists, we approach situations of injustice with love and align ourselves with our community. Because we got us. So let’s be clear: we love everybody in our community. It’s not about a trial or a verdict decided in a white supremacist charade, it’s about how we treat our community when corrupt systems are working to devalue their lives. In an abolitionist society, this trial would not be taking place, and our communities would not have to fight and suffer to prove our worth. Instead, we find ourselves, once again, being forced to put our lives and our value in the hands of judges and juries operating in a system that is designed to oppress us, while continuing to face a corrupt and violent police department, which has proven time and again to have no respect for our lives.
In our commitment to abolition, we can never believe police, especially the Chicago Police Department (CPD) over Jussie Smollett, a Black man who has been courageously present, visible, and vocal in the struggle for Black freedom. While policing at-large is an irredeemable institution, CPD is notorious for its long and deep history of corruption, racism, and brutality. From the murders of Fred Hampton and Mark Clark, to the Burge tortures, to the murder of Laquan McDonald and subsequent cover-up, to the hundreds of others killed by Chicago police over the years and the thousands who survived abuse, Chicago police consistently demonstrate that they are among the worst of the worst. Police lie and Chicago police lie especially.
Black Lives Matter will continue to work towards the abolition of police and every unjust system. We will continue to love and protect one another, and wrap our arms around those who do the work to usher in Black freedom and, by extension, freedom for everyone else.

Posted by: librul | Dec 11 2021 14:42 utc | 161

Posted by: Paul | Dec 11 2021 8:42 utc | 139
For the sale to go ahead, it will need the support of all 141 owners.
Mr dos Santos said he thought that was unlikely as the meeting was “pretty divided.”
———-
Synopsis: multistory condominium was sold to 141 apartment owners, 2 bedroom for 930 k is an example of a price, and because of the cracks in the foundation, it is a total loss. And the owners have to vote if the sell the building as land with trash (the building) to be removed, or not. They can get 20 or 30% of what they invested.
From American point of view, this is a bit strange, because most of the purchase price would remain unpaid — middle class folks cannot just pay 930 k cash, they would use a mortgage loan, perhaps with 20% downpayment, typically, with 30 years payment schedule. The owners could individually default on their loans and the banks plus the remaining owners would decide what to do.
But in other countries, like Poland, walking away from a mortgage loan is not allowed, the liability is not limited to the property. Hundreds of thousands were hit hard because there was a period when the banks offered “very good” interest rate, with a twist: loan in Swiss Franks. Then the real estates prices dropped, Polish currency dropped a bit to Euro, Euro dropped a lot to Swiss Frank. So people were trapped with much higher monthly payments than they expected, and properties “under water”.
I wonder how it is in Australia.

Posted by: Piotr Berman | Dec 11 2021 15:33 utc | 163

Posted by: librul | Dec 11 2021 14:42 utc | 156
Abolishing police does not seem practical, someone has to enforce the law, especially in larger communities. In rural areas, folks can take care of themselves to a large extend, and otherwise county police can come. The township has to officers and a cruiser, people know each other.
But this model would not work in a city hence town guard, militia, police. The problem appears if the police can get away with too many things, including the proverbial murder. Ironically, for police it may be easier to get away with murder than a heavy but non-lethal beating. The victim can testify, arguments about “split second decisions” cannot be used etc.
Thus the issue is about changing in managing the police and in legal system that is indispensable for accountability. Easier said than done, and some changes have to go quite deep, but politically and practically more feasible.
20 years ago, Russia and USA were quite similar in these aspects. A lot of brutal crime, brutal police, unreliable legal system, and ridiculously large incarceration rate. Since then, there was no revolution but a lot of gradual progress. Police and prison guards are actually accountable, prison population was halved, crime went down — although still too high.
For more ambitious reformers, one could study Finland and Norway. I mention Russia as an example that going from A (that includes brutal unaccountable police plus other social problems) to B (with many times less acute social problems) is possible. Russia is closer to USA than to Finland, so a glacial pace of progress does not need to be copied, but is good example to realize “where we are”.

Posted by: Piotr Berman | Dec 11 2021 15:59 utc | 165

c1ue, karlof1, psychohistorian: thank you for your replies regarding bitcoin & quantum computing, it was late & i was drowsy. what i neglected to say—decrypting the private key requires factoring extremely large numbers into primes, something that takes supercomputers a very long time to do. quantum computers will be able to factor extremely large numbers into primes very quickly. rumour has it they already can. as i said all this is well above my pay grade, bt it fits perfectly in michael hudson’s uneasiness regarding bitcoin.

Posted by: emersonreturn | Dec 11 2021 16:14 utc | 167

Posted by: Republicofscotland | Dec 11 2021 16:07 utc | 161
This would leave China no option but to invade Taiwan to disrupt the missile launch base network …

Posted by: Arch Bungle | Dec 11 2021 16:38 utc | 169

Spudski @ 119 asks:
“Speaking of Zelensky, he’s talking about a referendum (referendumb?) on Crimea!? WTF is he smoking?
Cited link:
Ukrainian president does not exclude referendum on Crimea and Donbass
==================
Volodymyr is just doing his job Spuds…working up lines for a new comedy. The first screening had critics raving; “you’ll laugh until you cry”.

Posted by: S Brennan | Dec 11 2021 17:20 utc | 171

@159 William Gruff
Thanks for your comments on this matter.
I wonder if in the rejecting of God, science also rejected the willingness to entertain the seemingly miraculous nature of the universe? Foolish position if so.
With regard to the snipe that chased your comment: if the pun is indeed the lowest form of wit, surely empty derision is the lowest form of science?

Posted by: Grieved | Dec 11 2021 18:08 utc | 173

lol. *casus belli* autocorrect doesn’t’ like Latin

Posted by: Perimetr | Dec 11 2021 18:35 utc | 175

If the Anglo central banks make good on their promise to better support the economies of Indigenous peoples in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, I see that New Zealand has come up with a very creative way to provide an alternative source of revenue. Well played, New Zealand.
https://youtu.be/RyNm-rtxT2s

Posted by: Bruised Northerner | Dec 11 2021 19:07 utc | 177

Miguel Jose @ 153:
I can see problems with the position that Greenwald and Miranda have taken. They use the apparent scale of the problems they claim to want to solve to push for urgent action to the exclusion of proper consultation with the favela residents. We don’t know what the favela residents really want or if they would favour the solutions David Miranda proposes and his way of financing them.
Miranda’s idea of getting rich US billionaires to finance his plans opens him to potential charges of political corruption. This is surely something that leaders like Lula da Silva and Rousseff fought against. How do we know Miranda won’t be getting kickbacks from Dorsey and other donors? Will favela residents have any input into or even access to Miranda’s negotiations with prospective foreign donors? How do we know Miranda and his constituents even agree on what they urgently need and what their most critical problems are?
A true socialism involves and values every person’s input. Miranda seems to have a poor understanding of what “the State” is. By getting himself elected, he becomes part of the State. As the workers union says, why did he stand for election if he then repudiates the State? It seems that if he cannot get his own way, he’ll go outside the State, away from being accountable to the people who elected him. This is corruption.
And I haven’t touched on yet how begging for donations from rich foreigners is fraught with its own problems. I’ll bet Miranda has not bothered to study past examples in his own country where politicians begged for foreign money for projects supposed to help the poor – and those politicians ended up being puppets doing their donors’ bidding.
BTW if you were to read about Greenwald’s own past entrepreneurial activities in the 1990s when (I believe) he was briefly the owner or co-owner of a company that made porn films, and ended up in legal difficulies over that company, you’ll die laughing.

Posted by: Jen | Dec 11 2021 19:43 utc | 179

U.S. imposes sanctions on the Chairman of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine Tupitskiy (Alternativa, December 10, 2021 — in Russian)

The U.S. has imposed sanctions on the former [actually not — S] Chairman of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine Aleksandr Tupitskiy [Ukrainian: Oleksandr Tupytskyi — S], suspecting him of “significant” corruption. This was stated by Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, RIA Novosti reports.
“Oleksandr Tupytskyi, a former Chairman of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine [has been put on the sanctions list — RIA Novosti] for significant acts of corruption, including taking bribes while working in the judiciary of Ukraine. Tupitskiy’s wife Olga has also been put on the sanctions list,” Blinken said in a statement.
In response, the judge said that he himself had not yet figured out what kind of sanctions had been imposed on him and his wife. He does not exclude that there may be a decision by the State Department to ban them from entering the U.S.
“Fake information is being spread that by taking this step the Americans are allegedly demonstrating that they do not consider me the Chairman of the Constitutional Court. Let them consider whatever they want—there is the Constitution. I am the legally appointed Chairman of the Constitutional Court, illegally suspended, I have not been dismissed. I do not know the reasons for the imposition of sanctions and what list I am on. At the moment I only see it in the media. I need to dig into this. They’re writing about some kind of bribe and a criminal corruption case, but there is no such case. It was invented out of thin air. Allegedly, my wife was involved. It would have been made public a long time ago, there would be an investigation. This is done with the aim of destroying my reputation. It’s fiction,” — Tupitskiy told Strana.
When asked whether he intends to appeal the U.S. sanctions, the Chairman of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine replied that he must first figure out what the sanctions are, and only then appeal them.
…

The backstory to this is that in October 2020 the Constitutional Court of Ukraine has ruled an important piece of 2014 anti-corruption laws unconstitutional and thus null and void. Instead of tweaking the law to adhere to the Constitution or proposing amendments to the Constitution itself, Zelenskiy has then signed a decree “suspending” Tupitskiy as the Chairman of the Constitutional Court, which he had no legal right to do. Tupitskiy ignored the illegal decree and continued to work at his office. Zelenskiy then ordered the State Security Administration, which is tasked, among other things, with guarding the buildings where the President, the Cabinet, the Parliament, the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court reside, to prevent Tupitskiy from entering the premises of the Constitutional Court, which they did (illegally). In March, he signed a decree annulling Yanukovich’s 2013 decree that had appointed Tupitskiy as the Chairman of the Constitutional Court, thus “dismissing” him, which, again, he had no legal right to do. In July, the Administrative Court of Cassation of the Supreme Court has ruled Zelenskiy’s decree illegal and thus null and void. On the very next day, the State Bureau of Investigations (Ukrainian anti-corruption agency created after Euromaidan) has initiated a criminal probe against the judges of the Administrative Court of Cassation of the Supreme Court. Now the U.S. has put Tupitskiy and his wife on a sanctions list, referring to him as a “former” Chairman of the Constitutional Court, thus officially supporting Zelenskiy’s illegal actions.

Posted by: S | Dec 11 2021 19:50 utc | 181

Perimetr (169)
Thanks for the link, there’s also a Second Island Chain and a Third Island Chain, but I don’t know if there’s any plans to build missile bases on those yet, like Russia with Ukraine it would appear that attempts are being made to goad China into substantial military action.
The US warhawks seem intent on compelling China into military action, which will have an effect on us all.

Posted by: Republicofscotland | Dec 11 2021 20:00 utc | 183

Re comment @ 179: not “subs”, it should have been SUVs instead. Damn this stupid smartphone!

Posted by: Jen | Dec 11 2021 20:04 utc | 185

Two recent articles on Australian citizen Julian Assange:
Justice denied: the judicial kidnapping of Julian Assange
By John Pilger
https://johnmenadue.com/justice-denied-the-judicial-kidnapping-of-julian-assange/
Australian government must intervene on Julian Assange’s behalf
By Greg Barns
https://johnmenadue.com/australian-government-must-intervene-on-julian-assanges-behalf/
The captive zionised governments of Australia, the UK and US stand condemned. Stuff their warmongering USUKA alliance, which will end in tears before bedtime and the ruination of their citizens.

Posted by: Paul | Dec 11 2021 20:12 utc | 187

Montreal @ 87:- Thank you for your reply ( I think). I know a little about Anna Akhmatova but even less about Isaiah Berlin so how their historic meeting relates to discussions about Ukraine puzzles me a bit. Just thinking about her observation “This door that you half-opened for me, I don’t have the strength to push it shut” at first made me think of a cultural happenstance such as your Beatles concert in St. Petersburg – the poet being of that place and having experienced its seige. I couldn’t find the source of the quote,but I will hunt. I know I have some of her poems somewhere. Here though is a 1998 NYT archive extract about Berlin:

At the risk of simplification (a caution Berlin made again and again): Berlin argued that modern tyrannies did not develop despite the triumphs of reason and science; they developed, in large part, because of them. The ideas that a perfectly just society could be created and that reason could be its unshakable foundation were the very ideas that led to Communist tyranny.
Berlin argued that any unified ideology that promises to reconcile all contradictions ends up imposing that presumably enlightened vision on its citizens as an oppressive form of what he called ”positive” liberty. A liberal government should recognize that all values conflict, and all conflicts require negotiation. The best hope is that there might be liberty without undue imposition, a form of ”negative” liberty. Berlin’s favorite maxim was from Immanuel Kant: ”Out of timber so crooked as that from which man is made, nothing entirely straight can be built.”

[My bold]
Thanks for the exercise!

Posted by: juliania | Dec 11 2021 20:31 utc | 189

re. US public opinion, China is a threat
I suspect that the claaim that us public sees China as a threat is a distortion of reality. I have never met any commoner in us who saw china as other than maker of inexpensive stuff which we import at the expense of our own wellbeing. The same was thought of mexico and japan and relates to the understanding that the manufacturing jobs have been moved elsewhere but the middlemen – importers and etc are making enormous profits from this arrangement and would like it to continue. The threat is that us skills and education are being hollowed out and that by the time our government acknowledges that this is not a good situation, it will be very difficult to reverse the trend. The government is largely captured by the boyars – it is time to crush the bees. Government needs to creat an emergency (threat to security) to respond to. Has nothing to do with military power, exept that in the medium term the stronger economy will be capable of supporting and developing the stronger military. The middlemen are the globalists and support “free” trade – overriding the judgement of the sovereign. At the moment, China is benefitting from globalism a cousin of neoliberalism.
Instead of all the dick waving, us should apply 30% percent tarrif to all imports and use the money to fund rebuilding of manufacturing base and should block any imports in industries it sees as desirable. China should feel free to do likewise (I think they do). This will remove much of the source of tensions.
Then us should nationalize all debt and leave the banks to write and service loans with us to retain interest and enforce.

Posted by: jared | Dec 11 2021 20:39 utc | 191

The moron Pelosi mumbles her way to the exit. Is this her Marie Antoinette moment of disgrace?
She inadvertently proves that Xerxes Biden is more fit to be the president.

Posted by: uncle tungsten | Dec 11 2021 20:44 utc | 193

@ Featherless | Dec 11 2021 20:29 utc | 183… that’s funny… is that your website or gallery?

Posted by: james | Dec 11 2021 20:57 utc | 195

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202112/1241219.shtml
China will have betterchance to solve Taiwan question in 3-5 years
First time I’ve seen China stating a time frame on this sensitive issue. So, China believes in 3-5 years it will have overwhelming advantage over the U.S. in the region. In addition,
“The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authority on the island is unlikely to breach Chinese mainland’s red lines. They see more merit in staying in power than taking excessive risks. [They know] the mainland’s military superiority is obvious and US cannot be relied on,” Wang Zaixi, former deputy director of Association for Relations across the Taiwan Straits, told the forum, which was held in Beijing with several speakers appearing remotely, including two from Taiwan.
Knowing China often hedges its bets and stay conservative in estimating its own strength and/or developmental progress, I’d say China likely believes it already enjoys vast advantage over the Empire in this region now!!!

Posted by: Oriental Voice | Dec 11 2021 20:58 utc | 197

Regarding Taiwan, my personal view has always been that China doesn’t relish in governing Taiwan per se, given the known that people in Taiwan have been grossly brainwashed to be hostile to China/Chinese so much so that governance would be painful and problematic. All it wants is to ensure that Taiwan doesn’t become part of USA nor Japan. The return of Hong Kong, and the color-revolution aftermath of the past few years are reason enough for China to want to leave governance of Taiwan on Taiwan people’s own.
The real return of Taiwan and Hong Kong into China’s real fold will take at least 1 or 2 generations.

Posted by: Oriental Voice | Dec 11 2021 21:09 utc | 199