Welcome to Sott.net
Mon, 08 Nov 2021
The World for People who Think

Puppet Masters
Map

Road Cone

Afghanistan - New US strategy on effectiveness splits experts


Sputnik
Sun, 28 Jan 2018 09:29 UTC
US soldiers patrol
© AP Photo/ Aaron Favila
US soldiers patrol the perimeter of a weapons cache four miles of the US military base in Bagram, Afghanistan
The Pentagon has deployed approximately 3000 additional troops to the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan under US President Donald Trump's revised strategy for the war-torn country.

Now the Pentagon is planning to send to Afghanistan around 1000 more combat 'advisers,' a large number of drones and other types of weaponry by the end of January to bolster efforts against the Taliban and the Daesh terrorist groups, as reported by The Wall Street Journal.

Mohammad Radmanesh, Afghan Defense Ministry deputy spokesperson, told Sputnik that the additional foreign troops will help Afghanistan counter terrorism.

Comment: The death count in a horrific Saturday bombing attack in Kabul has risen to 95, while at least 158 have been injured, many seriously according to updated reports.
Saturday's detonation of an ambulance packed with explosives on a busy city street in the Afghan capital is the deadliest in recent years, occurring alongside several other recent attacks, including the storming of a well-guarded hotel in Kabul popular with westerners that saw 22 killed, according to reports.

As hospitals struggled with the influx of wounded and forensics experts worked to identify those killed, officials suggested that casualties were likely to rise, according to the New York Times.
New data released by the Pentagon has revealed that in 2017, some 4,300 bombs were dropped on the country, doubling the amount of deadly attacks over the previous two years.
...

Following an announcement by US President Donald Trump detailing new Pentagon strategies in southeast Asia and Afghanistan, current bombing raids on insurgents not aligned with the US-backed government in Kabul have risen significantly.

"Airstrikes are up significantly in 2017 primarily due to the South Asia policy which President Trump has signed and allowing us to go after both the Taliban and [Daesh] where they are,'' stated Resolute Support Mission (RS) Public Affairs Director Thomas Gresback.

The Trump upsurge will "allow us to pursue them. The rules of engagement are now different," added Gresback, cited by Tolonews.com.

Alongside the US military surge in Afghanistan, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg recently announced that the military bloc will deploy an additional 3,000 so-called trainers to guide a Pentagon-sponsored Afghan army that relies almost entirely on outside support.

Stoltenberg asserted that NATO members are committed to preventing the establishment of safe havens for insurgents, as the US war in Afghanistan enters its 17th year with no resolution in sight.


      Read More...
Dollar

Pelosi tries to extend $137,000 tax break for two of her multi-million-dollar properties

Susan Crabtree
Washington Free Beacon
Thu, 25 Jan 2018 23:47 UTC
Pelosi

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi
Congress's wealthiest woman plays the tax game too: Pelosi rushed to pre-pay property taxes after decrying GOP tax overhaul as middle-class tax hike and corporate giveaway

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.), who often rails against income inequality and calls on the wealthy to pay its "fair share" in taxes, took pains in late December to try to preserve tax breaks for two of her multi-million-dollar homes one last time before the new tax law kicked in.

Largely thanks to her husband Paul, a real-estate and venture-capital investor, Pelosi is the wealthiest woman in Congress with a net worth of more than $100 million and the seventh wealthiest member overall, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

In fact, assets and cash disclosed in her 2016 financial-disclosure statement places Pelosi in the top one-tenth of the 1 percent of Americans.

Comment:

      Read More...
Dominoes

Sexual harassment scandals hit Killary and Republican Finance Chair Steve Wynn - UPDATE


RT
Fri, 26 Jan 2018 22:55 UTC
wynn clinton
© Global Look Press / Reuters
Steve Wynn, Chairman and CEO, Wynn Resorts and Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
New disclosures reveal Hillary Clinton protected her faith advisor when he was accused of sexual harassment. Meanwhile, Republican National Committee finance chair Steve Wynn faces numerous sexual assault claims.

During her 2008 bid for the presidency, Clinton is alleged to have protected her faith advisor Burns Strider after a subordinate accused him of sexual harassment, the New York Times reported Friday.

The complaint came from a 30-year-old aide who shared an office with Strider, who said he had inappropriately rubbed her shoulders, kissed her forehead, and sent suggestive emails even though he was married.

Clinton's campaign manager advised her to fire Strider, but Clinton refused. She instead docked his pay for a few weeks, ordered him to go to counseling, and moved the young woman who complained into a different position.

Comment:

Update: Killary has poked her head above ground with her first twee since the Strider scandal came to light. The Daily Caller writes:

It was reported on Friday that Hillary Clinton covered up for a longtime friend and campaign aide who was accused of sexually harassing a female staffer on her 2008 presidential campaign, but she avoided the bombshell revelation in her first public comments after the story broke.

Clinton tweeted a thank you to Cecile Richards, the former president of the pro-abortion group Planned Parenthood, for her "tireless advocacy on behalf of women and girls."

[..]
Burn Strider and Hillary Clinton
© Twitter
Burn Strider and Hillary Clinton
[U]nmentioned in the tweet are aforementioned allegations of sexual misconduct against Burns Strider, a political operative who has been described as Clinton's faith adviser.

The New York Times reported that Strider repeatedly sexually harassed a 30-year-old female campaign staffer on Clinton's 2008 campaign.

Strider, who co-founded a group called American Values Network, allegedly touched the woman inappropriately and sent her sexually suggestive emails.

His actions were so disturbing that Clinton campaign manager Patti Solis Doyle and other senior campaign officials requested that Strider be fired from the campaign.

But Clinton refused, siding with her friend, much to the frustration of campaign officials.

According to The Times, Strider was sent to counseling and docked several weeks pay.

The staffer received a harsher sentence. She was reassigned within the campaign and forced to sign a nondisclosure agreement.

Strider, who was married at the time of the incidents, later joined Correct the Record, an opposition research group founded by Clinton ally David Brock. Strider was fired from that group because of allegations similar to those he faced on the campaign.

Clinton's State Department emails showed that she was in frequent contact with Strider while she served as secretary of state.

Clinton, who has claimed to be an advocate for women and a supporter of the #MeToo movement, was also friends with Harvey Weinstein.

      Read More...
Padlock

Saudi billionaire Alwaleed bin Talal released from government detention


Sputnik
Sat, 27 Jan 2018 16:01 UTC
Prince Alwaleed bin Talal
© AFP/Fayez Nureld
Prince Alwaleed bin Talal
The Saudi Arabian billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal had been detained under the government anti-corruption campaign, launched on November 4 and had spent over two months in luxurious custody.

Prince Alwaleed bin Talal on Saturday was released from his detention in Riyadh's Ritz-Carlton hotel, converted into a luxurious prison to hold royalty and the country's officials, the Reuters news agency reported, citing the Prince's family sources.

Prior to his release, bin Talal told the agency that he soon would be cleared from any wrongdoing, describing his charges as "discussions between me and the government. There are no charges. I believe we are on the verge of finishing everything within days."

Describing the conditions of the custody, the billionaire found it quite satisfactory, expressing his readiness to stay as long as the investigation takes.

"I have nothing to hide at all. I'm so comfortable, I'm so relaxed. I shave here, like at home. My barber comes here. I'm like at home, frankly speaking," Prince Alwaleed bin Talal stated, as quoted by the media outlet. "I told the government I'd stay as much as they want, because I want the truth to come out on all my dealings and on all things that are around me."

Comment: See also: Top Saudi minister detained in 'corruption purge' returns to work

      Read More...
Bizarro Earth

The national defense strategy of sowing global chaos

Nicolas J.S. Davies
Consortium News
Tue, 23 Jan 2018 00:00 UTC
UncleSamflagplanes
© Global Research
In the new U.S. National Defense Strategy, military planners bemoan the erosion of the U.S.'s "competitive edge," but the reality is that they are strategizing to maintain the American Empire in a chaotic world.

Presenting the 2018 National Defense Strategy of the United States on Friday at the Johns Hopkins University, Secretary of Defense James Mattis painted a picture of a dangerous world in which U.S. power - and all of the supposed "good" that it does around the world - is on the decline. "Our competitive edge has eroded in every domain of warfare - air, land, sea, space, and cyberspace," he said. "And it is continually eroding."

What he could have said instead is that the United States military is overextended in every domain, and that much of the chaos seen around the world is the direct result of past and current military adventurism. Further, he could have acknowledged, perhaps, that the erosion of U.S. influence has been the result of a series of self-inflicted blows to American credibility through foreign policy disasters such as the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

There were also two important words hidden between the lines, but never mentioned by name, in the new U.S. National Defense Strategy: "empire" and "imperialism."

Comment: The empirical strategy of the United States has hit its groove. What worked before is still good to go -- a blind military philosophy that doesn't account for the evolution of one's opponents' awareness and resistance. And, allies see the US war machine continue down the same configurations. While target countries evolve their resistance methodology and make new alliances, the 'end of Empire America' comes closer to actuality at an ever-increasing cost.

      Read More...
Laptop

The 'US hacks and meddling quite unlike China's and Russia's hacks and meddling,' says ex-Pentagon chief

Alexandre Antonov
RT
Sat, 27 Jan 2018 14:46 UTC
Ashton Carter
© Marijan Murat/DPA/Global Look Press
Former Defense Secretary Ashton Carter
One could almost see the proverbial pots and kettles on Friday, when ex-Pentagon chief Ashton Carter informed us that America's cyber operations and election meddling are entirely dissimilar to the activities of China and Russia.

The panel, held as part of the World Economic Forum in Davos, was dedicated to state cyberwarfare, the risks of cyber operations spiraling out of control, and ways to rein in the emerging threat - from making better software and incentivizing people to update it, to establishing international rules for states to voluntarily observe.

The ghost of Russia's alleged interference with 2016 election in the US haunted the event, with supporting roles as cyber menaces given to China, alleged thief of US top secret military technologies, and North Korea, alleged perpetrator of the 2014 Sony hack and last year's WannaCry ransomware epidemic. The panel were debating how the US and the West in general can respond to such attacks, but barely mentioned the role played by the US in bringing the cyberwarfare situation to its current state.


Comment: The US government: Making it up hoping no one will notice.

      Read More...
X

Wrong! Biden claims Russia is in 'enormous decline'

Bryan MacDonald
RT
Fri, 26 Jan 2018 21:40 UTC
Biden
© Bryan Snyder/Reuters
Joe Biden keeps scoffing at Russia and seems to genuinely believe it is a rapidly declining power. This incorrect assumption suggests senior US politicians are receiving extremely poor intel on the subject.

At first glance, Biden would make an unlikely fan of the Scottish writer J.M. Barrie, but he may well have read Peter Pan a few times. His continued obsession with talking about Russia's "enormous decline" sounds like something the boy who never grows up might have conjured: 'dreams do come true, if only we wish hard enough."

Biden and his old boss Barack Obama have both delivered various renditions of this trope over the years. With the former's first recorded foray in 2009. He was at it again this week, mocking Russia in front of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Biden was being interviewed by Richard Haass, a neoconservative who believes the US should adopt "an imperial foreign policy." During the chat he again publicly exposed his complete ignorance of Russia, which leaves one wondering how poorly US leaders are briefed on the subject.

Comment: Consistent! They lie so well they don't even know they are lying! And, Biden has made his personae and career based on the 'perception of sincerity' - which in itself is a lie. For Russia, the truth is truth. For the US, truth is apparently subjective. One of these holds the keys to the future, the other will make up an excuse.

      Read More...
Pirates

ISIS survives because the US lacks the will to Russia in destroying it

Alexander Mercouris
The Duran
Sat, 27 Jan 2018 17:58 UTC
terrorists/flag
© National Security Law & Policy
Despite massive defeats ISIS still has 8,000 to 11,000 fighters scattered across Syria and remains a threat.

Though 2017 was a year of disaster for ISIS, with the terrorist organisation losing control of all the cities it once controlled in Iraq and Syria including Mosul and Raqqa, and with nearly all the territory, it once controlled lost, it is a fundamental mistake to think that it is wholly defeated or broken.

Both Presidents Trump and Putin have in my opinion been much too hasty to declare victory over it, whilst the distraction caused by the games the US has been playing with the Kurds in northern Syria have played directly into ISIS's hands, and have secured it a further lease of life.

Confirmation of the extent of the threat ISIS still poses in Syria has now been provided by the Lebanese news agency Al-Masdar, which has been a consistently reliable source of information about the Syrian war, with sources in the Syrian military and the Syrian government.

Comment: If President Trump is truly committed to ending ISIS, and he says he is, it suggests there are factions within the Pentagon's operation that embody neocon ideals and make decisions that improve ISIS' chances of survival and mission in order to justify the US military's occupation in Syria and its proximity to Iran.

      Read More...
Arrow Up

Trump expects positive dialogue with Russia post summit

Seraphim Hanisch
The Duran
Sat, 27 Jan 2018 01:34 UTC
TrumpDavos
© Nikkei Asian Review/AP
President Trump at Davos Economic Forum
President Trump uses the Davos Economic Forum to promote the "America First" economic theme, expresses hope to normalize relations with Russia as domestic turmoil fades

As the false narrative about the "Russia-gate" debacle winds down, the American president is coming to life about repairing the relationship with the Russian Federation.

President Trump was asked by a TASS reporter about whether or not he intends to build a dialogue with Russia. Trump's response was simple and direct: "We hope so."

At the Davos World Economic Forum, President Trump spoke about his acumen as a businessman, and the way he has been able to turn failing enterprises into successful ones. With great humor but also great respect, he discussed the direction the American nation is headed now, contrasted with what it likely would have been, had Hillary Clinton been elected president in 2016.

Comment: See also: Trump makes grand entrance in Davos - Wows WEF Summit with 'America First' platform (VIDEOS)

      Read More...
Briefcase

Julian Assange requests UK court to drop arrest warrant

Nadia Khomami
The Guardian
Fri, 26 Jan 2018 08:33 UTC
Assange
© ABC News
Julian Assange hopes ruling in his favor would allow him to leave Ecuadorian embassy.
The WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange, has asked a UK court to drop the arrest warrant that prevents him from leaving the Ecuadorian embassy in London, where he has been living for five and a half years.

Assange, 46, skipped bail to enter the embassy in 2012 in order to avoid extradition to Sweden over allegations of sexual assault and rape, which he denies. Though Swedish prosecutors have dropped the investigation against him, Assange will be arrested if he leaves the building in Knightsbridge for breaching his former bail conditions in the UK.

Mark Summers QC told senior district judge Emma Arbuthnot at Westminster magistrates court on Friday that now that the Swedish case had been dropped the warrant had "lost its purpose and its function". He said because Swedish extradition proceedings against Assange had come to an end, so had the life of the arrest warrant.
      Read More...
Amazon Smile
Revolt! T-shirts