Welcome to Sott.net
Wed, 27 Oct 2021
The World for People who Think

Puppet Masters
Map

Dollars

Billionaires are not policy failures - far from it

Gonzalo Schwarz
The Hill
Sat, 06 Apr 2019 08:00 UTC
Dollar umbrella
© AllBusiness.com
Successful entrepreneurs buck the system
Income inequality dominates our political and policy debates. Perhaps the latest example of this phenomenon is the extent to which proposals regarding how much the rich should be taxed have become ubiquitous in our discourse.

The problem now surfacing in our public and political discussions is how they are creating a culture that frowns on success. This is particularly the case when we start denouncing that billionaires are policy failures or that they somehow take money from the rest of us, instead of thinking about their value-creation for society as a whole.

Three things are often overlooked and/or underappreciated when thinking about billionaires, millionaires or really any successful entrepreneur for that matter and the system that fosters their achievements.

First, one of the most consequential shortcomings of our ever more affluent society, is the extent to which the power and role of entrepreneurship for increasing opportunity and raising living standards is taken for granted.

Comment: See also:

      Read More...
Footprints

Another one gone: Trump fires Secret Service Director Randolph Alles

Jake Tapper, Evan Perez, Betsy Klein
CNN
Mon, 08 Apr 2019 04:36 UTC
1Kirstjen Nielsen, Randolph Alles
© law.virginia.edu/Fox 4/ewscripps.brightspotcdn
Sec. DHS Kirstjen Nielsen • USSS Dir. Randolph Alles
United States Secret Service director Randolph "Tex" Alles is being removed from his position, multiple administration officials tell CNN.

President Donald Trump instructed his acting chief of staff, Mick Mulvaney, to fire Alles. Alles remains in his position as of now but has been asked to leave. The USSS director was told two weeks ago there would be a transition in leadership and he was asked to stay on until there was a replacement, according to a source close to the director. Secret Service officials have been caught by surprise with the news and are only finding out through CNN, according to the source.

In an email to employees at his agency obtained by CNN's Jim Acosta, Alles told the workforce he was not fired, but was told weeks ago that the administration would be making "transitions in leadership" at the Department of Homeland Security. "The President has directed an orderly transition in leadership for this agency and I intend to abide by that direction," he wrote.


Comment: See also: DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen resigns

      Read More...
Eiffel Tower

How can Marine Le Pen win in France? By doing nothing

Bill Wirtz
The American Conservative
Fri, 05 Apr 2019 00:00 UTC
LePen
© COMEO/Shutterstock.com
Marine Le Pen
She's back and capitalizing on Emmanuel Macron's failures to address the Yellow Vest protests.

A couple months ago, when he was still the rising star of a new generation of EU enthusiasts, France's "centrist" president Emmanuel Macron was expected to turn European politics around. Back then, the only people pointing out the potential negative consequences of his administration were libertarians, of which there aren't many in France, and conservatives, who are still bemoaning their electoral failure in 2017.

France has 79 seats in the European Parliament, making it the second most influential country after Germany. As a result of Brexit, France has gained an additional five seats while Germany's count remains the same. Seventy-nine seats could potentially drive a wedge through the myriad political groups of the European Parliament and drastically alter the political priorities of the legislature.

Current polling suggests that Macron's En Marche party and its allies will reach 23 percent, just in front of Marine Le Pen's Rassemblement National (the party changed its name from "National Front" to "National Rally") at 21 percent. These data reveal that Macron's party is currently performing better than he is in the polls, which is likely related to the fact that he is trying to delegate campaigning to other party officials while he deals with the fallout of the Yellow Vests movement.
      Read More...
No Entry

16 Saudi individuals involved in Khashoggi's murder banned from US by the State Department

Abigail Williams
NBC News
Tue, 09 Apr 2019 12:02 UTC
Khashoggi
© Hasan Jamali AP file
Jamal Khashoggi speaks during a press conference, in Manama, Bahrain on Dec. 15, 2014.
The State Department on Monday publicly barred 16 individuals from entering the U.S. for their roles in the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The statement reads:
"In cases where the Secretary of State has credible information that officials of foreign governments have been involved in significant corruption or gross violations of human rights, those individuals and their immediate family members are ineligible for entry into the United States."
Khashoggi, a permanent U.S. resident and vocal critic of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was murdered and dismembered Oct. 2 in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

The designations from the State Department follow the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's detention of at least 10 individuals associated with women's rights advocates in the kingdom's biggest crackdown since Khashoggi's death, according to Human Rights Groups. The State Department confirmed that two U.S. citizens were among those arrested.

Among those banned Monday from entering the U.S. is Saud al-Qahtani, an adviser to bin Salman who the CIA suspects organized the assassination of Khashoggi.

Comment: See also:

      Read More...
Briefcase

AG Barr reveals he is reviewing FBI's 'conduct' in the original Russia probe

Brooke Singman
Fox News
Tue, 09 Apr 2019 18:23 UTC
William Barr
© Tom Williams/Getty Images
Attorney General William Barr
Attorney General William Barr revealed Tuesday that he is reviewing the "conduct" of the FBI's original Russia investigation during the summer of 2016, following calls from Republicans to investigate the origins of the probe.

Barr testified before a congressional panel in what was his first Capitol Hill appearance since revealing the central findings of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation. Barr was grilled by Democrats on the handling of that summary, which stated the special counsel found no evidence of collusion between members of the Trump campaign and Russia during the 2016 election -- but he was also questioned about the initial Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) warrants approved to surveil members of the Trump campaign.

Barr explained that Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz has a pending investigation into the FISA warrants and said the probe will be complete by May or June. He then confirmed he's personally reviewing the investigation itself.

Comment:

      Read More...
Jet5

Pakistan says Indian claims of downing F-16 have been proven false - UPDATE: India provides radar data of dogfight


RFE/RL
Mon, 08 Apr 2019 09:33 UTC
Pakistan F-16 combat jet
© AFP
All of Pakistan's F-16 combat jets have been accounted for, according to a report that cited U.S. officials.
Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan says India's claim it downed a Pakistani F-16 fighter aircraft during a military standoff in February has proven to be "false."

U.S.-based Foreign Policy magazine issued a report on April 4, citing U.S. officials, that said all of Pakistan's F-16 combat jets had been accounted for.

"The truth always prevails and is always the best policy," Khan said in a tweet on April 6.

Comment: Update (Apr. 9): India responded by releasing photos of the dogfight between the two militaries:





      Read More...
Star of David

Netanyahu claims Trump designated Iran's Revolutionary Guard a terrorist group at his request

Noga Tarnopolsky
LA Times
Tue, 09 Apr 2019 18:12 UTC
trump and netanyahu
© Susan Walsh / Associated Press
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, facing a hotly contested bid for a fourth term, tweeted on the eve of the election that the Trump administration designated Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a foreign terrorist organization at his request.

"Thank you, my dear friend, the president of the United States, Donald Trump, for having decided to designate Iran's Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist organization," he wrote in Hebrew on Twitter on Monday. "Thank you for responding to another of my important requests, which serves the interests of our countries and countries of the region."

His English-language thank you note posted later omitted taking credit, but said of Trump, "Once again you are keeping the world safe from Iran aggression and terrorism."

In Israel, the move by the Trump administration is being viewed by some as an election eve gift to Netanyahu.

Comment: Former Pentagon official Michael Maloof pointed out the dangerous precedent this sets:
"It is a slippery slope. It can backfire," he warned. What happens if Iran or any other country declares the US troops in Syria a terrorist group? That means to shoot on sight.
Political analyst Seyyed Mostafa Khoshcheshm believes this decision could leave to major conflict in the Middle East:
"As soon as Washington's decision is communicated to the US Army, they would target the IRGC on the ground and the IRGC would definitely defend itself," he told RT. "Security consequences will be grave."
Seyed Mohammad Marandi, political analyst and professor at the University of Tehran, believes that by cozying up to Tel Aviv, Washington alienates other players in the region and weakens its position globally
It is a major miscalculation. A string of openly provocative actions that clearly favor Israel has pushed people in the Middle East away from the US and closer to Iran, at the same time uniting Iranians in their pushback against the US, Marandi explained. Trump's other blunders, like his continued row with Turkey, are also likely to make Ankara friendlier towards Tehran, the analyst believes.


      Read More...
Caesar

Mueller investigation was 'total nonsense' targeted at domestic US audience - Putin


RT
Tue, 09 Apr 2019 15:48 UTC
trump and putin helsinki
© Sputnik / Sergey Guneev
Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin
The investigation by Robert Mueller was only aimed at home consumption and revealed a crisis in the US political system, Vladimir Putin said in his first comment on the probe, which found no collusion between Trump and Russia.

"This is complete nonsense, which was only aimed at a domestic audience [in the US]," the Russian president said on the investigation, which topped the headlines in the mainstream media for months, but turned-out fruitless.

"Such attacks on Trump are elements of a crisis in the political system of the US," he added.
      Read More...
Jet4

Libyan GNA presidential council slams LNA's Tripoli airport missile strikes as war crime - UPDATES


Sputnik
Tue, 09 Apr 2019 14:49 UTC
airstrike tripoli airport
© Youtube/Top
A still from an alleged video of LNA airstrike against Mitiga airport in Tripoli
The Libyan Government of National Accord's (GNA) Presidential Council condemned the Libyan National Army's (LNA) airstrikes on the Mitiga Airport in Tripoli describing them as a war crime.

"The Presidential Council is strongly condemning the airstrikes on the Mitiga International Airport by forces of [LNA commander] Khalifa Haftar [...] The council regards this attack as a war crime and a crime against humanity, which is violating all national laws and international agreements and which made sending ill and wounded people to hospitals impossible at this difficult moment", the council said on late Monday in a statement obtained by Sputnik.

Comment: The UN has called for an immediate ceasefire:
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday strongly condemned the military escalation near Tripoli and called for an immediate halt to the fighting, AFP reported.

Guterres "urges the immediate halt of all military operations in order to de-escalate the situation and prevent an all-out conflict," said a UN statement as cited by AFP.

He "strongly condemns the military escalation and ongoing fighting in and around Tripoli, including the aerial attack today by a Libyan National Army (LNA) aircraft against Mitiga airport."

Earlier UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) spokesperson Russell Geekie said that the number of displaced people fleeing from the fighting in Libya's capital Tripoli had reached 3,400.

The United Nations have issued an appeal for a temporary humanitarian truce in Libya that would allow the passage of civilians who wish to leave Tripoli and provide the provision of humanitarian assistance, Geekie said.

The Libyan National Army of Marshal Khalifa Haftar last Thursday marched on the national capital with the stated goal of wrestling it from "terrorists".

Forces loyal to the Tripoli-based and UN-supported Government of National Accord (GNA) said on Sunday that they were launching a counteroffensive operation dubbed Volcano of Rage.
Hafter's forces have continued the attack:
Hafter libya soldier
© Reuters / Esam Omran Al-Fetori
A member of Libyan National Army (LNA), commanded by Khalifa Haftar, is seen as he heads out of Benghazi to reinforce the troops advancing to Tripoli, in Benghazi, Libya April 7, 2019
The forces of Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar have been closing in on the Libyan capital, which is controlled by the UN-backed government.

An aircraft of Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar's Libyan National Army (LNA) is striking military positions at Tripoli's defunct international airport, south of the capital, Sky News Arabia reports.

A source from Haftar's entourage told Sputnik last Friday that his forces had assumed control over Tripoli International Airport. However, the Libya Ahrar TV channel reported on Monday that the Tripoli-based government had recaptured areas seized by forces loyal to Haftar, including at the airport.

On 4 April, the LNA commander ordered an offensive on Tripoli, controlled by the UN-supported interim Government of National Accord (GNA), to "liberate it from terrorists". His army earlier seized control over the cities of Surman and Garyan, located west and south of Tripoli, respectively.

The Tripoli government has mobilised additional forces and raised the emergency level to its maximum amid plans of the Libyan National Army to move further into GNA-controlled territories.
The Libyan Government of National Accord's (GNA) apparently retained control of Mitega International airport and has reopened it by order of Libyan Civil Aviation Authority:
Mitiga airport Libya
© Reuters/Hani Amara
Airplanes are seen at Mitiga airport
The Mitiga International Airport was partially reopened on Tuesday after the Monday airstrikes on it carried out by the Libyan National Army's (LNA) headed by Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, the Libyan Civil Aviation Authority said.

"The Civil Aviation Authority ordered to open the airspace over Mitiga and resume night flights from 7:00 p.m. [17:00 GMT] up to 7:00 a.m. until further notice", the body said on its Facebook page.

On Monday, the Libyan Government of National Accord's (GNA) accused the LNA of striking the Mitiga airport, which is located about eight kilometers (5 miles) east of Tripoli's city center, saying that the attack threatened the lives of civilians and the safety of flights.

The airport was closed following the incident.
An arrest warrant has been issued by the GNA for Haftar:
The Tripoli-based GNA presidential council has ordered the military prosecutor's office to issue arrest warrants against Haftar and any allies participating in the advance on the city, al-Jazeera has reported.

According to the news network, council chairman Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj instructed prosecutors to prepare arrest warrants against the military leader. Earlier, al-Sarraj vowed that Haftar and members of the Libyan National Army would be brought before Libyan and international courts for trial.

Haftar's LNA troops began an advance on Tripoli last week, striking positions of armed forces loyal to the GNA at the city's defunct international airport on Tuesday following an attack on another airport a day earlier. The GNA responded to the offensive by announcing a mobilisation of its forces, and vowed to start a counteroffensive dubbed operation 'Volcano of Rage' to repel the LNA.

The LNA has been advancing into western Libya in recent months, taking control of strategic oil fields and population centres.
Hafter's actions are likely at the behest of the CIA and Mossad, to continue the turmoil Libya has suffered since the murder of Gadhaffi: Some background:

      Read More...
Alarm Clock

If rumored US threat against Lebanese Speaker Berri is true, Americans may be asked to leave permanently

Elijah J. Magnier
ejmagnier.com
Mon, 08 Apr 2019 15:05 UTC
pompeo berri
The Emirati newspaper, The National - quoting sources with knowledge of US plans - reports that the United States is considering sanctions against the Shia Lebanese Speaker Nabih Berri, along with a number of his financial supporters. Well-informed sources knowledgeable of the Speaker's intentions said that "such a step - if it is serious and not just an empty threat - will lead to the forceful exit of all US forces from Lebanon, particularly those training and embedded with the Lebanese Army and other security forces. This step will also be taken against all US government-linked organisations by a clear decision of the Lebanese parliament as retaliation against aggressive decisions adopted by the US establishment".

The sources say that "Speaker Nabih Berri does not enjoy the support of the AMAL movement or Hezbollah and their respective members of Parliament and Ministers, but he does enjoy the support of the majority of Lebanese MPs. It is they who have elected him over decades. Therefore, any US step against the Speaker or AMAL's supporters in Lebanon or Africa or anywhere in the world with the aim to hit Berri indirectly will be met with the same retaliation in Lebanon against the US presence in the country. Berri has a wide circle of friends among Muslim speakers and the presidents of parliament in GCC and Muslim African countries, who are ready to stand with him against the US establishment. The reaction is expected to be harsher and more visible than the Arab states' merely verbal condemnation of Israel annexation of the Golan Heights and Jerusalem".
      Read More...
Amazon Smile
Revolt! T-shirts