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Mr. Potato

Who needs experience? Russophobic ex-Fox News host Nauert tapped as next UN Ambassador


RT
Fri, 02 Nov 2018 10:51 UTC
Heather Nauert
© Global Look / Liu Jie
The Trump administration has found the perfect blank slate to push its uniquely belligerent foreign policy at the UN: Heather Nauert, a former Fox News host who had zero political experience until joining the Trump team last year.

Trump has confirmed that State Department Spokesperson Nauert "is under very serious consideration" to become the next US Ambassador to the UN, taking over from Nikki Haley, who announced last month that she would leave at the end of the year amid fierce speculation that she was planning a presidential run in 2020.


While lacking foreign policy experience, she's good at dodging questions, finding justifications for schizophrenic US policy, and making bizarre statements that would make her Obama-era predecessor Jen Psaki blush. Here are just a few examples from her briefings over the past year:

Comment: One could say that she actually has the required experience: ignorance, lying with impunity and Russiaphobia. What more could you ask for? See also:

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Propaganda

'Don't be fooled!': German-owned Polish media trying to influence local elections - Poland's PM


RT
Thu, 01 Nov 2018 14:43 UTC
Fakt
© AFP / Janek Skarzynski
A man buys a copy of the new Polish daily "Fakt" published by the German media group, Axel Springer Poland in downtown Warsaw, 23 October 2003.
Polish media has been "sold out" to Germany, Poland's prime minister has lamented, adding that the foreign-owned outlets have considerable influence over Warsaw's internal affairs.

"Today, the media are in foreign hands, for the most part in German hands," Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki told Republika TV on Wednesday. "These German media have become particularly active during the campaigns for local elections."

Morawiecki, who is a member of the right-wing nationalist ruling party Law and Justice (PiS), noted that other countries - including Germany - take measures to protect their media from foreign ownership. "In Germany, they say that their newspapers must be in their hands, and in Poland, the Germans bought the main Polish media."

Comment: See also:

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Oil Well

Iran embargo falters: Bolton gives India temporary waiver, claims won't hurt "friends and allies"


RT
Thu, 01 Nov 2018 05:09 UTC
oil rig
© Getty Images / Mohd Jailanee Othman
After Donald Trump issued a memorandum reaffirming his Iran oil embargo plans, his National Security Advisor has rushed to reassure allies that the measure is not intended to hurt them and even dangled the possibility of waivers.

One of the chief architects of Donald Trump's belligerent policy on Iran, National Security Advisor John Bolton, softened his boss's rhetoric on Wednesday, noting that the looming US sanctions against Iran are not meant to hurt American allies, who might be offered concessions to continue trading with the Islamic Republic.
We want to achieve maximum pressure but we don't want to harm friends and allies either.



Comment: Iranian sanctions, unsurprisingly, look set to backfire, because the US and its allies are already losing business, and they can't give everyone waivers.


Some countries "may not be able to go all the way, all the way to zero immediately," and halt trade with the third-largest oil producer in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) Bolton said in a talk at the Hamilton Society.

While laying off US allies, the Republican hawk, notorious for his warmongering attitude towards Tehran, stressed that Washington is still committed to punishing Iran. "I think it's important that we not relax in the effort."

Comment: RT also reports on India's waiver:
US agrees to grant India waiver from Iran sanctions... for the time being

Indian oil companies have been allowed to continue importing about 2.5 million tons of Iranian crude per month until March, sources familiar with the matter told the Economic Times.

The sources said New Delhi and Washington "have broadly agreed on a waiver," detailing that "India will cut import by a third, which is a significant cut." The official announcement is expected to come over the next few days.

Washington's sanctions targeting Iran's crude oil exports will come into force on November 4. US President Donald Trump announced in May America's withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal, warning that any countries or companies that conduct transactions with Tehran could face secondary sanctions.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in September that the White House would only consider waivers for Iran's oil buyers if they vowed to eventually bring their imports to zero.

India, the world's third-biggest oil consumer, has imported about 22 million tons of crude oil from Iran in 2017-2018 and plans to raise that to about 30 million tons in 2018-2019.

According to sources, Indian oil firms will have to reduce their imports significantly as a condition of the waiver. The companies will be allowed to import 2.5 million tons a month up to March 2019, the same as they ordered for October and November. They still have to decide on how to split the quantum and on the form of payments, the source said. The companies will likely stick to the existing mechanism under which 55 percent of payment is made in euro and 45 percent in rupee, the source added.

India and Iran still have to figure out shipping and insurance details as sanctions have driven away Indian and international shippers and insurers from extending their services for Iranian oil imports. Currently, Tehran is providing its tankers as well as insurance for oil cargoes to India.
Also check out SOTT radio's:

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Blackbox

Is Brazil's Bolsonaro a Pinochet or a populist? - George Galloway


RT
Tue, 30 Oct 2018 00:00 UTC
Supporters of Jair Bolsonaro
© Global Look Press / Cris Faga
Supporters of Jair Bolsonaro in Sao Paulo, Brazil, 24 October 2018
The victory of the far-right Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil, Latin America's most populous country and co-founder of the BRICS bloc, has understandably caused much fluttering in the dovecotes of leftists and liberals around the globe.

But what the Bolsonaro victory shows is not so much the strength of far-right ideas as the weakness of the left.

First, though, a word about fascism.

It has become in vogue for left wing people to brand everyone to the right of them 'a fascist'. This is not just wrong it is entirely self-defeating. As the famous 'Boy who cried Wolf' found out, it can end up with one being eaten when folks conclude that if everybody is a fascist then, for practical purposes, nobody is.

Comment: Brazil swings right, elects right-wing nationalist Jair Bolsonaro as president

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USA

American breakdown: Uncle Sam finally pays an overdue visit to the psychiatrist couch

Robert Bridge
RT
Thu, 01 Nov 2018 20:19 UTC
uncle same parade balloon
© Reuters / Eric Thayer
After a tumultuous week that included letter bombs, a swooning stock market, a caravan of migrants approaching the border, and a deadly mass shooting at a synagogue, the US finally sought out professional help.

Hello, Doctor. I am so grateful that you agreed to see me at this late hour. I am at my wit's end with the latest turn of events and could really use some consultation. Yes, I would be happy to recline myself on your fine couch, thank you.

Tell you about myself? Well, alright. My name is Uncle Sam and I manage a political entity known as the United States of America, perhaps you've heard of it. It's a sprawling democratic franchise that is home to some 325 million restless souls, each with their own endless desires and demands. They always want something! As for myself, I turned 242 years old in July, and I guess you could say I'm struggling with a mid-life crisis of sorts. Although my friends say I am sprightly for my age, ongoing events have taken a toll on this body and mind. And now with this maverick Donald Trump in the White House I haven't had a moment's rest in a long time. Why, I barely recognize my own country anymore!
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Better Earth

Cuba's new president reaches out to old allies Russia & China, seeking trade deals


RT
Thu, 01 Nov 2018 11:30 UTC
cuba
© Getty Images / Patrik Bergström
Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel is starting his official three-day visit to Russia on November 1. Moscow and Havana have been re-establishing trade ties, a tradition going back to Soviet times.

Diaz-Canel will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev. After the visit to Moscow, he will continue his trip to China, Vietnam, North Korea and Laos.

Moscow and Havana have inked deals worth more than $260 million, said Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov, adding that more new agreements are expected to be reached soon.

Among the agreements was a contract to deliver 837 rail cars to Cuba in 2019-2021 and supplies of 15,000 LED lamps and their parts manufactured in Russia.

Comment: The Western model of imperialism as 'business' is dying, and Russia is showing how deals will need to be done in the future if players wish to remain in the game: Also check out SOTT radio's: Behind the Headlines: Putin The World To Rights: Russia's New Nuclear Weapons And The End of 'Unipolarity'

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Russian Flag

Russian MP loses 2kg after experimenting with living wage, minister who proposed it gets fired


RT
Thu, 01 Nov 2018 19:44 UTC
Natalya Sokolova
© Saratov region labor ministry
Ex-Labor Minister Natalya Sokolova.
A regional MP in Russia lost 2kg in one week while trying to survive on a living wage. The experiment follows a scandal which cost the job of the minister who set the wage and defended her decision in a rather insensitive way.

The career-killing scandal over the living wage in Russia's Saratov Region started in mid-October when Nikolay Bondarenko, an MP from the Communist Party, challenged the region's then-labor minister, Natalya Sokolova. He asked whether she would be prepared to eat on 3,700 rubles (about $56) a month, after proposing this amount as part of a law setting the minimum living wage for non-working pensioners.

The minimum living wage is a more or less technical term in Russia, upon which various subsidies and amount of pension depends; setting it in a way that doesn't run the region's budget into a deficit is a serious task.
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Stop

The Attack on Social Network Gab Proves That Free Speech Was Never Free

Tom Luongo
Gold, Goats 'n Guns
Mon, 29 Oct 2018 00:00 UTC
gab social media
"Who Runs Bartertown!?"
- Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome
The First Amendment protects your right to say whatever you want free from government prosecution. It does not protect you from saying hateful things on private properties or privately-owned forums without fear of repercussion.

That is the very definition of freedom of association.

Friday's attack by an unhinged, vile piece of human excrement on a Synagogue in Pittsburgh wasn't hours old before real world agendas pushed to the top of the news.
  • Twitter alternative Gab was immediately dropped by PayPal without specific reasons.
  • Then immediately, Gab's latest hosting service unilaterally gave the company a 48-hour termination notice of its contract.
  • This is the second time Gab has had to switch providers this year. They have been denied an app in the iOS store. Google will not allow their Android app to be in the Play Store.
Why is Gab targeted?
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HRC Blue

Gab.com And The Continuing Purge of Free Speech

Kit Knightly
OffGuardian
Tue, 30 Oct 2018 09:50 UTC
GAB social media
Gab.com is an alternative social network, set up and launched in 2016. It's founder, Andrew Torba, stated he wanted to create a home for free speech, and counter what he perceived as "liberal bias" on other platforms, such as twitter and facebook.

Two days ago, their website was taken down. This was in response to being blocked by PayPal, and then having their server space taken away by their hosting service. Gab's founder posted this statement on their stripped-down website.

Why did this happen?

Because Robert Bowers, the alleged gunman at the synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh, had a gab account and posted some things about "the Jews" on it.

Is it right, or sensible to punish a platform for the (alleged) actions of ONE user out of 100,000s? And is that really what's going on?

Robert Bowers also had a Twitter account. And a Facebook page. Neither of these platforms has faced punishment, or censure, from any quarter.

Comment: Power + corporations = fascism.

Their purge isn't 'forthcoming', by the way... it's already here and has been for a while now. Gab is just the latest platform to have been shutdown by the powers that be. However, it's not quite the end of them just yet. One can hope there will continue to be alternative sources ready to fill the void that the social media giants create by their ever increasing censorship. See also:

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Brick Wall

Opinion: Donald Trump is correct about birthright citizenship

Will Ricciardella
The Daily Caller
Wed, 31 Oct 2018 18:46 UTC
trump at wall
© Getty Images
It shouldn't exist in the first place

No single issue can fire up a national debate quite like anything related to immigration - particularly during the Trump era.

When President Trump decried the doctrine of birthright citizenship on the campaign trail in 2015, it sparked a national debate, with many on the Left and Right issuing ad hoc condemnations.

When news broke Tuesday that the president is considering ending birthright citizenship with an executive order, many of these same voices, once again, condemned the president, claiming birthright citizenship is indeed constitutional.

But if that idea were true, why wasn't the 14th Amendment applied to illegal or temporary immigrants prior to the 1960s?
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