Puppet MastersS


Light Sabers

Online war between liberals and conservatives in US obscures real threat of government censorship

Danielle Ryan
RT
Thu, 27 Jun 2019 09:20 UTC
facebook
© REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro
With sudden suspensions and hasty banning sprees, social media giants are censoring more than ever. High-profile spats between liberals and conservatives often grab the spotlight - but that's the tip of the censorship iceberg.

Liberal rage mobs calling for provocative conservatives to be "cancelled" or "deplatformed" are loud - and they attract plenty of attention both on social media and across centrist and liberal-leaning mainstream media.

The simultaneous banishment of right-wing agitator Alex Jones from major platforms last year was a litmus test; a way to gauge whether such bans would be palatable to the mainstream. When few raised their voices to object, the corporations had their answer: It was going to be easy to push out similar voices - and they could probably even start to widen the net.

When Vox journalist Carlos Maza insisted that conservative YouTube host Steven Crowder be banned for using homophobic slurs against him, it made headlines. In their haste to comply with this and other demands from the outrage police, platforms have been concocting new 'rules' and 'guidelines' on the fly. The result has been that even the most innocuous accounts have found themselves caught up in the maelstrom. Incredibly, history teachers even had their YouTube channels suspended for "hate speech" because they published resources for students to learn about Nazi Germany.

Comment: See also:

Read More...
Newspaper

US Air Force veteran released from captivity in Libya - Amidst accusations of being a militant mercenery

Kylie Atwood
CNN
Thu, 27 Jun 2019 19:17 UTC
Khalifa Haftar
Libyan Strongman Khalifa Haftar salutes during a military parade in the eastern city of Benghazi on May 7, 2018.
US Air Force veteran Jamie Sponaugle was released from captivity in Libya this week where he has been held since early May by the Libyan National Army on accusations of being a mercenary, according to US government officials and a source familiar with the matter.

Sponaugle was freed after being held captive for weeks by forces loyal to renegade Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, commander of the Libyan National Army, which in April began an offensive to seize the Libyan capital of Tripoli from the United Nations-backed Government of National Accord (GNA).

While the State Department claims that US policy of supporting the GNA remains enact, President Donald Trump's praise for Haftar earlier this year signaled a departure from previous administration statements condemning the rogue Libyan general's march on the capital.

Comment: See also: And for insight into the current situation in Libya, check out SOTT radio's: NewsReal: Interview With The Moriartys - New Light on Benghazi, And Liberating Libya

Read More...
Heart - Black

Russian Orthodox Church seeks ban on free abortions, embryo experimentation, genetic screening


RT
Wed, 26 Jun 2019 15:50 UTC
abortion Moscow
© Global Look Press / Komsomolskaya PravdaFILE PHOTO: A rally against abortion is held in Moscow on November 15, 2016.
The right to life should be guaranteed for embryos, the Russian Orthodox Church has said as it presented a document which calls for abortions and scientific experiments on human embryos to be banned.

"An embryo is a human being, who therefore has certain rights that should be protected," the paper, rolled out for public discussion, states. The document specifically lists the right to life, human identity, and personal developments as indispensable to any unborn child from the moment of conception.

The Orthodox Church has asked the Russian government to grant doctors a right to refuse to perform an abortion on grounds of conscience. It also called for a ban on any experiments on human embryos and freezing them.

Comment: The other issues are debatable, although, for most cases, highly unnecessary. Regarding abortion, it seems a reasonable approach has already been addressed by Russia's Deputy Health Minister:
"We won't solve the problem with restrictive measures, but only make it worse," Deputy Health Minister Tatyana Yakovleva said, adding that she was a pediatrician herself and knew the issue from the inside.

Making abortions illegal "will only lead to increased maternal and infant mortality as well as criminalization of the situation. No way!" she warned the guests of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).

Besides, the Russian state has already successfully managed to bring the abortion rate down through consulting and supporting women, Yakovleva pointed out. According to her stats, 582,000 such operations, not caused by medical grounds, were performed in the country in 2013, while last year the number of abortions requested by females only stood at 294,450.

The trend reveals that women in Russia are themselves trying to avoid having an abortion if it's possible, she said.
See also: Also check out SOTT radio's: Objective: Health - Law or Flaw? Let's Talk About Abortion

Read More...
Black Cat

'Unmasker in Chief' Samantha Power spewed anti-Trump bias in government emails

John Solomon
The Hill
Wed, 26 Jun 2019 16:15 UTC
samantha powers_obama
Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power may share an unflattering stage with a text-loving FBI agent and his Donald Trump-hating paramour from the bureau.

Fired agent Peter Strzok and ex-FBI lawyer Lisa Page are infamous today for texting on FBI phones their anti-Trump sentiments while allegedly having an affair. They played key roles in the now-debunked Russia collusion investigation.

It turns out that Power - the diplomat whose authority inexplicably was used to unmask hundreds of Americans' names in secret intelligence reports during the 2016 election - engaged in similar Trump-bashing on her official government email, according to documents unearthed by an American Center for Law and Justice lawsuit. The conservative legal group is run by Trump defense attorney Jay Sekulow.

The discovery could add a new dimension - a question of political bias - to a long-running congressional investigation into why Power's authority was used to unmask hundreds of Americans' names in secret National Security Agency intercepts during the 2016 election. That practice of unmasking continues to grow today.
Read More...
Post-It Note

Iran: Message sent - message delivered

Tom Luongo
Gold, Goats 'N Guns
Mon, 24 Jun 2019 00:00 UTC
rouhani trump
It is clear that Iran is sending the U.S. a stern message. And that message is we can hurt you asymmetrically as much as you hurt us.

Over the weekend Iran's leadership made it clear there was no mistake in their actions last week. They purposefully shot down one of our most advanced drones to send the U.S. a very clear warning.

'Our capabilities far exceed your tolerance for withstanding them.'

The more we learn about this incident the more the initial story concocted by the U.S. looks specious. Drone in international airspace? Most likely not.

Trump said someone made a mistake? No, completely deliberate.

The drone that was shot down, an RQ-4A Global Hawk, was the cream of our surveillance drones. It was flying in tandem with an anti-submarine Poseidon P-8 spy plane, which, according to Elijah Magnier was carrying far more than its normal crew of 9.

Try 38.

That was not reported at first either in the initial flush for war. Iran then revealed just how loose with the truth the U.S. turned out to be and that forced a complete rethink of the situation.
Read More...
Rocket

The Indian-Turkish embrace of Russia's S-400 is a punch to the gut of US "Full Spectrum Dominance"

Matthew Ehret
Strategic Culture Foundation
Wed, 26 Jun 2019 00:00 UTC
Russia’s advanced S-400 defense system
India and Turkey's recent embrace of Russia's advanced S-400 defense system represents a major turning point in the international battle now underway between two opposing paradigms of global affairs.

Both nations are standing up to immense pressure by an Anglo American empire which has been working desperately since 2007 to build a vast military infrastructure around Russia under the utopian doctrine of "Full Spectrum Dominance" (aka: the belief that a nuclear war can be won with a first strike monopoly). This missile shield began to target China and Russia's South Pacific flank in 2011 when Obama unveiled the military branch of the anti-Chinese "Pivot to Asia" (1).

The S400 Solution to Full Spectrum Dominance

However if nations like India, and Turkey who were meant to be participants of the encirclement of Russia and China were to adopt next generation defensive radar/missile systems like Russia's S400, then the entire formula for unipolar dominance breaks down. Already, China has adopted the S400 as of 2015 which features short to long range supersonic interception of missiles, aircraft and bombs at altitudes of 38 km and at distances of 400 km. Other nations which have expressed interest in the S400 include Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Algeria, Morocco and Vietnam.

The rise of the S400 and the new security architecture which comes with it has come to be known as "Full Spectrum Defense" and is one of the most important transformations of the world order. When considered in tandem with the globally extended Belt and Road Initiative (which is tightly integrated with the Eurasian Economic Union and Shanghai Cooperation Organization), represents the greatest hope for mankind currently available.
Read More...
Snakes in Suits

Mueller agrees to publicly testify before Nadler and Schiff led committees

Kristinn Taylor
Gateway Pundit
Tue, 25 Jun 2019 17:44 UTC
mueller
© Reuters/Jim BourgSpecial counsel Robert Mueller: accused of "scorched earth" methods and "Gestapo tactics."
Former Special Counsel Robert Mueller will testify before open House committee hearings on July 17 following issuance of a subpoena compelling his appearance, Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee and Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee announced Tuesday night. (UPDATE at end: each committee will hear from Mueller separately the same day.)

"I am pleased to announce that @HouseJudiciary and House Intel will have Special Counsel Robert Mueller testify in open session on July 17, pursuant to a subpoena issued this evening. We look forward to having Mr. Mueller testify, as do all Americans."
Read More...
Network

India mulls offering incentives to companies moving from China

Shruti Srivastava
Bloomberg
Wed, 26 Jun 2019 19:10 UTC
India trade
© Dhiraj Singh/Bloomberg News
India is weighing offering incentives to attract companies moving out of China amid its trade war with the U.S., a person familiar with the development said.

Financial incentives such as preferential tax rates and the tax holiday provided by Vietnam to lure companies are among measures being considered, the person said, asking not to be identified as the discussion is still private. Industries identified for incentives include electronics, consumer appliances , electric vehicles, footwear and toys, according to a trade ministry document seen by Bloomberg.

Economies, including Vietnam and Malaysia, have benefited from businesses trying to sidestep tariffs, while India has largely missed out on any investment gains. The trade ministry's effort is part of a larger plan to cut reliance on imports, while boosting exports, and needs Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's approval.
Read More...
Russian Flag

Russia reinforces Iranian air defense, mobilizes advisers for support

John Helmer
Dances with Bears
Tue, 25 Jun 2019 18:59 UTC
blitz wolf
The Russian General Staff has reinforced the air defences for Russians at the Iranian nuclear reactor complex at Bushehr, on the Persian Gulf, according to sources in Moscow. At the same time, Iran has allowed filming of the movement of several of its mobile S-300 air-defence missile batteries to the south, covering the Iranian coastline of the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. More secretly, elements of Russian military intelligence, electronic warfare, and command and control advisers for Iran's air defence systems have been mobilized to support Iran against US and allied attacks.

The range of the new surveillance extends well beyond the S-300 strike distance of 200 kilometres, and covers US drone and aircraft bases on the Arabian peninsula, as well as US warships in (and under) the Persian Gulf and off the Gulf of Oman. Early warning of US air and naval-launched attacks has now been cut below the old 4 to 6-minute Iranian threshold. Counter-firing by the Iranian armed forces has been automated from attack warning and target location.

This means that if the US is detected launching a swarm of missiles aimed at Iran's air-defence sites, uranium mines, reactors, and military operations bunkers, Iran will launch its own swarm of missiles at the US firing platforms, as well as at Saudi and other oil production sites, refineries, and pipelines, as well tankers in ports and under way in the Gulf.

"The armed forces of Iran," said a Russian military source requesting anonymity, "have air defence systems capable of hitting air targets at those heights at which drones of the Global Hawk series can fly; this is about 19,000 to 20,000 metres. Iran's means of air defence are both foreign-purchased systems and systems of Iran's own design; among them, in particular, the old Soviet system S-75 and the new Russian S-300. Recently, Iran transported some S-300's to the south, but that happened after the drone was shot down [June 20]. Russian specialists are working at Bushehr now and this means that the S-300's are also for protection of Bushehr."
iran drone
Flight distance between Bushehr and Bandar Abbas is about 570 kms. From Bandar Abbas southeast to Kuhmobarak, the site of the Iranian missile firing against the US drone, is another 200 kms.
Read More...
Pills

Russian Parliament approves law on growth of opioid plants for drug production


RT
Wed, 26 Jun 2019 17:45 UTC
Opium poppies
© REUTERS / Carlos JassoOpium poppies in Mexico.
A government-sponsored bill that makes legal the growth of opioid plants for raw materials in pharmaceutical firms in Russia has been fully approved by legislators. It is meant to prevent possible cuts in supply due to sanctions.

The draft law was greenlit on Wednesday by the Russian senate. The State Duma, the lower chamber of parliament, passed it in the third reading last week. Once signed into law by the president, it will allow the government to license larger-scale growth of plants like opium poppy, which would then be delivered to Russian drug producers. At the moment only small-scale growth is allowed for scientific research, teaching purposes or use by forensic experts in their work.

The government introduced the legislation in January, saying it was necessary to ensure that Russian drug producers won't find themselves short on supply if foreign nations producing precursors for opioid painkillers impose sanctions on Russia.

There are 13 domestically produced drugs, including nine listed as essential for the national healthcare system, that are at risk, according to the sponsors. The plan is to allow two state-owned companies, which are currently licensed to grow opium poppy, to prepare for a possible expansion of their fields, should a need arise. The government estimates that it would need to allocate about two square kilometers of land to poppy growth to cover all domestic demand.
Read More...