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2020 candidate Andrew Yang promises to legalize marijuana and pardon all non-violent drug offenders on 4/20 if he's elected

John Haltiwanger
Business Insider
Wed, 03 Apr 2019 04:38 UTC
Andrew Yang
© AP Photo/Phil Long
  • Andrew Yang said if he's elected president he'll legalize marijuana and pardon non-violent drug offenders on April 20,2021.
  • Traditionally, April 20 is a holiday for marijuana enthusiasts, and is often referred to as "4/20."
  • "I would legalize marijuana and then I would pardon everyone who's in jail for a nonviolent drug-related offense," Yang said on Wednesday. "I would pardon them on April 20, 2021 and I would high-five them on the way out of jail."
Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang pledged to legalize marijuana at the federal level if elected president and pardon all those who've been incarcerated for non-violent, drug-related offenses.

"I would legalize marijuana and then I would pardon everyone who's in jail for a nonviolent drug-related offense," Yang said at the National Action Network conference in New York City on Wednesday. "I would pardon them on April 20, 2021 and I would high-five them on the way out of jail."

April 20, or 4/20, is considered a holiday by marijuana enthusiasts.
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Arrow Down

Turkey's offer to address S-400 fears rejected by Pentagon

Jack Detsch
Al-Monitor
Thu, 04 Apr 2019 00:00 UTC
S-400 missile system
© Igor Zarembo/Sputnik
S-400 missile system
The Pentagon will not entertain Turkey's plan to set up a bilateral working group aimed at tempering US fears over the looming acquisition of Russian air defenses, the Defense Department told Al-Monitor today.

Speaking at a Washington panel celebrating the 70th anniversary of the NATO alliance on Wednesday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu again insisted that the purchase of the Russian made S-400 was "a done deal." But he also floated the idea of creating a bilateral panel to try to quell US fears that the system could give Russia insights into Western weapons systems, including the F-35 fighter jet, for which Turkey builds the fuselage.

Cavusoglu's pitch for a working group appears to be the newest idea from Ankara to quash tensions over the pending purchase of the S-400, which Turkey insists will not be integrated into NATO networks. But the Donald Trump administration isn't interested.

"A technical working group at this stage isn't necessary or a path the US is even considering as a resolution," said Pentagon spokesman Eric Pahon. "We have been clear with Turkey at all levels - the S-400 is a threat to the F-35 program and the safety of our NATO allies."

Comment: See also:

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Nuke

Satellite images show Saudi nuclear reactor close to completion


Sputnik
Thu, 04 Apr 2019 13:51 UTC
Riyadh installation
© KACST/Facebook
Riyadh has been showing interest in building nuclear power plants as a mean to diversify its energy supplies as a significant part of the fossil fuel produced in the country is consumed to power its growing electricity needs.

Saudi Arabia is close to completing the construction of its first nuclear reactor in the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology in Riyadh, Robert Kelley, a former International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) director told Bloomberg after analysing satellite images from Google Earth. Kelley said that judging by the photos it's a 30-kilowatt research reactor, which will be ready to function within a year.

The reactor itself was designed by the Argentinian company Invap SE, but the engineering was completed by Saudi specialists. Argentinian envoy to the IAEA, Rafael Mariano Grossi, has confirmed to The Guardian that Invap was in charge of designing the reactor and that it will be operational "by the end of the year roughly".

Comment: See also:

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Target

Circus or civil war? Poroshenko aide trolls election frontrunner Zelensky with Pinochet picture


RT
Fri, 05 Apr 2019 11:26 UTC
Poroshenko/Pinochet
© REUTERS/Viacheslav Ratynskyi; Global Look Press/ZUMAPRESS.com/Marcelo Monteciao
Ukraine president Petro Poroshenko • Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet
Political life in Kiev was invigorated this week with a promise of a debate between two presidential election frontrunners in a stadium. Less amusing were vibes of a potential coup coming from the camp that's lagging behind.

Sport venues and debates between presidential hopefuls don't usually mix, but Ukraine is set to become an exception. Incumbent President Petro Poroshenko and frontrunner Volodymyr Zelensky are expected to have a verbal bout sometime before the second round of presidential race at the Olympiysky stadium, one of Ukraine's biggest arenas.

Or it can be used by the Poroshenko-loyal henchmen to slaughter supporters of his opponent in their dozens and hundreds. At least that's the implication of a picture posted by one of the president's aides after Zelensky made a public challenge for a debate on Wednesday.

The picture shows the face of Poroshenko photoshopped over that of Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet. His government notoriously used the national stadium in Santiago to execute political opponents in the aftermath of the 1973 military coup. The words written under Poroshenko's smiling face paraphrase his actual video response to Zelensky's challenge and roughly translate as "Let it happen at the stadium then."

Comment: See also:

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Arrow Down

US revokes visa for ICC prosecutor over investigation into US war crimes in Afghanistan


Reuters
Thu, 04 Apr 2019 03:52 UTC
Fatou Bensouda
© Diplomat Magazine
ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda
The United States has revoked the entry visa of the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Fatou Bensouda, her office said on Thursday, a response to her inquiry into possible war crimes by U.S. forces in Afghanistan.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said last month the U.S. would withdraw or deny visas to ICC staff investigating such allegations against U.S. forces or their allies.

United Nations human rights experts called the reaction "improper interference" in the work of the world's permanent war crimes court. It also drew criticism from within the European Union.

"We can confirm that the U.S. authorities have revoked the prosecutor's visa for entry into the U.S.," Bensouda's office told Reuters in an e-mail. It said it understood the move should not impact Bensouda's travel to the U.S. to meet her United Nations obligations.

The ICC is not a U.N. court, but Bensouda travels regularly to brief the U.N. Security Council on cases referred to The Hague by the UN body. The U.S. in not a member of the ICC, along with other major powers Russia and China.

Comment: See also:

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MIB

Russian historian says she was manipulated into helping FBI, Stephan Halper to entrap General Flynn

Catherine Herridge, Cyd Upson
Fox News
Fri, 05 Apr 2019 18:00 UTC
Svetlana Lokhova
© Fox News
Svetlana Lokhova
A Russian-born academic who was at the center of attention in 2017 for past contact with former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn told Fox News in an exclusive interview that she is not a spy for Moscow - and, to the contrary, believes she was "used" to smear Flynn.

"I think there's a high chance that it was coordinated, and I believe it needs to be properly investigated," Svetlana Lokhova told Fox News.

Lokhova entered the political firestorm in early 2017, as Flynn was forced out of the Trump administration over lying about his contact with Ambassador Sergei Kislyak. At the time, Lokhova was contacted by three American media outlets over a four-day period - and was promptly hit with claims in the press and on social media that she was a Russian operative for Moscow.

The allegations involved her contact with Flynn three years prior at a 2014 dinner at the University of Cambridge, England, when Flynn was Defense Intelligence Agency director.

"I'm not a Russian spy and I have never worked for the Russian government," the 38-year old historian and academic said, in an interview first broadcast on Fox News' "Tucker Carlson Tonight." "I believe that General Flynn was targeted and I was used to do it."

Comment:


More on Halper's role in Russiagate:

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Gingerbread

'Let's not make weapons': Trump laments military spending by US, China and Russia


RT
Thu, 04 Apr 2019 21:57 UTC
Trump/Liu He
© Twitter/Donald J. Trump
US President Donald Trump • Chinese Vice-Premier Liu He
Having drastically increased the Pentagon budget and demanded more spending by NATO, US President Donald Trump is now, seriously (?), complaining that all that money could be better spent elsewhere.

Trump lamented the levels of US, Chinese and Russian military spending at a meeting with Chinese Vice Premier Liu He at the White House on Thursday, part of the ongoing talks to resolve the trade war between Washington and Beijing.

"As you know China is spending a lot of money on military, so are we, so is Russia and those three countries I think can come together and stop the spending and spend on things that maybe are more productive toward long-term peace," Trump said.

"I think it's much better if we all got together and we didn't make these weapons."

Comment: Trump's statement may be a flippant comment or one of those fleeting candid moments that reflects a different vision. Regardless of what Trump may or may not want, the US war machine will not be denied.

See also:

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Pistol

US claims Iran is behind the killing of hundreds of US troops in Iraq


Sputnik
Wed, 03 Apr 2019 14:22 UTC
C-17 Globemaster
© CC0
C-17 Globemaster at Joint Base Balad, Iraq
Back in February 2019, US President Donald Trump announced that the US was planning to maintain its presence in Iraq in a bid to monitor the country's neighbour and one of its key trade partners - Iran.

US Special Representative for Iran, Brian Hook, has leveled criticism at Iran's alleged actions in the Middle East region, specifically blaming Tehran for the deaths of hundreds of American soldiers in Iraq since the start of the invasion in the Middle East state, citing previously classified information.
"In Iraq, I can announce today, based on declassified US military reports, that Iran is responsible for the deaths of at least 608 American service members. This accounts for 17 percent of all deaths of US personnel in Iraq from 2003 to 2011".
The US special envoy also claimed that "IRGC's proxies" are responsible for killing many more Iraqi citizens. What is more, Hook alleged that Tehran is attempting to bring Iraq "under Iranian control" and that the most recent visit by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani was part of these efforts. Tehran has not commented on the allegations, claimed by Hook.

Comment: The fault for American deaths in Iraq lies squarely with the US for initiating a needless war knowingly based on a false accusation. Deaths of Iraqi soldiers and civilians at the hands of the US? Estimates from 2003-2011 are a whopping half million. How many have died in Syria by US proxies? Estimates are 220,000. There are no comparisons that even begin to justify Hook's statements.

See also:

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Document

Russiagate hysteria alive and well: The DETER election meddling bill has its day in the Senate


RT
Wed, 03 Apr 2019 16:25 UTC
Van Hollen/Rubio
© Carroll County Times/Getty Images
Senators Chris Van Hollen and Marco Rubio
Mueller may have had his day, but the specter of Russian meddling still hangs over Washington. A bill newly introduced in the Senate promises to slap harsh sanctions on Russia should future election interference be discovered.

The 'Defending Elections from Threats by Establishing Redlines' (DETER) Act is the latest attempt by US lawmakers to squeeze Russia for a range of perceived election-related offenses. Introduced on Wednesday by Chris Van Hollen (D-Maryland) and Marco Rubio (R-Florida), it would require the Director of National Intelligence to determine within 30 days after every federal election whether Russia or any foreign government attempted to interfere.

If the DNI were to find such interference, it would require sanctions to be imposed on a list of Russian banks and energy companies. It would also prohibit US citizens from engaging in business with any entity owned by the Russian government, and freeze the assets of Russian political and business leaders targeted for sanction in the US.

The bill's text, seen by Reuters, appears to be a carbon copy of a bill introduced by Van Hollen and Rubio in January 2018. That iteration of the DETER Act never made it past introduction, and has languished in Congressional limbo ever since.

Comment: A groveling apology to Russia (and to President Trump) would be more appropriate.

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Hourglass

Magnier: Syria won't be able to liberate Golan for decades to come

Elijah J. Magnier
ejmagnier.com
Wed, 03 Apr 2019 17:48 UTC
druze golan
© JALAA MAREY/AFP/Getty Images
Druze men at the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights flash the V for victory sign as they look out across the southwestern Syrian province of Quneitra, visible across the border on July 7, 2018
The Syrian state will not be in a position to liberate the occupied Golan for decades to come. US President Donald Trump made a gift of the territory to Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu last month. The move was Trump's support for Netanyahu's domestic election campaign; Netanyahu is facing severe accusations of bribery and corruption. No government in Damascus can regain the occupied Golan in the next decades due to the hefty price the Syrian government would pay for any war with Israel to recover the territory. The only hope for Syria would be to copy the Lebanese experience and delegate power to a Syrian resistance. However, the Lebanese experience is unique and would be difficult to imitate, unless Syria were to regain good ties with the west and with Arab countries allied to the US.

Yes, the Lebanese resistance managed to impose on Israel in the year 2000 a humiliated unconditional unilateral withdrawal of most occupied territories. Ehud Barak, then the Prime Minister, decided to end over two decades of occupation and abandon his allies in the "South Lebanese Army" (SLA), withdrawing from Lebanon following repetitive attacks of the resistance that left over 1000 Israeli officers and soldiers killed.

Moreover, in the second Israeli war on Lebanon in 2006 (the first war was the 1982 invasion), Israel refrained from destroying the capital Beirut, the Ministry of Defence and many official institutions and infrastructure (bombing some official targets and destroying many bridges). The reason Israel held back from using its destructive firepower from these and other targets - even if it failed to achieve its goal of limiting Hezbollah's military capabilities - is also due to the split within the Lebanese government between friends and enemies of the hegemony and dominance of the US and its allies.
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