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'Russian collusion': The only 'colluders' have been proven to be the accusers

ComeyBrennanClapper
© Unknown
James Comey • John Brennan • James Clapper
IN BRIEF
  • The Facts: As more evidence comes out, it is looking like the only ones 'colluding' in the 'Russian Collusion' affair are those U. S. government officials who have been trying to make the case against Donald Trump.
  • Reflect On: Is there anyone out there that still believes claims that Donald Trump somehow 'colluded' with Russia, given that no evidence to that effect has come out after all this time?
What do John Brennan (ex-CIA), James Clapper (ex-DNI), James Comey (ex-FBI), Andrew McCabe (ex-FBI), Peter Strzok (ex-FBI), Lisa Page (ex-FBI), Rod Rosenstein (DOJ), Bruce Ohr (ex-DOJ), Hillary Clinton (ex-DOS) and a whole host of lesser-known players have in common? They've all been revealed as co-conspirators ("colluders") in an attempt first to prevent and then to terminate the Trump presidency by whatever means possible.

Their strategy was to accuse the Trump campaign of "collusion" with Russia, not based on any credible evidence, but on the basis of the idea that this would be the easiest and most powerful story to fabricate. Most powerful because Russia remains the most feared enemy and biggest threat to U. S. sovereignty in mainstream perception, and easiest because these accusations are actually a projection of their own activities, including Hillary Clinton's Uranium One dealings with Russian entities.

FISA Warrant 'DECLAS'

At this point, anyone who still believes that there is any possibility that Donald Trump somehow "colluded" with Russia, which isn't even illegal, has simply fallen victim to mainstream propaganda. If you take a look at any of the actual evidence, it seems like this was all a 'witch hunt,' as Trump would say.

Comment: Nefarious and subversive, treason within the ranks...and this was just the 2016 election activities. What else lies semi-buried in the history of the US and its governance? Guessing quite a lot.


Question

When democracy fails to deliver, is revolution inevitable?

France Yellow Vests
© YouTube screenshot
French Yellow Vests protest
"Those who make peaceful revolution impossible ... make violent revolution inevitable," said John F. Kennedy. In 2016, the U.S. and Britain were both witness to peaceful revolutions.

The British voted 52-48 to sever ties to the European Union, restore their full sovereignty, declare independence and go their own way in the world. Trade and immigration policy would henceforth be decided by a parliament elected by the people, not by bureaucrats in Brussels. "Brexit" it was called. And British defiance stunned global elites.

Two and a half years later, Britain is still inside the EU, and no one seems to know when or whether the divorce will take place - a victory of London and European elites over the expressed will of the British people.

Appalled by the Brexit vote, these elites played a waiting game, broadcasting warnings of what could happen, to panic the British public into reconsidering and reversing its democratic decision.

Losing candidates and losing parties accept defeat and yield power. Establishments have agendas they do not regard as subject to electoral repudiation or repeal. Defeated, they use their non-electoral powers to prevent unwanted policies from ever being implemented. Call it limited democracy.

Comment: The good news is the public has not yet been so completely made ineffective that it is incapable of rising up.


Green Light

Iran to remain in Syria as long as asked to, says security official

Aleppo, Syria
© REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki
Damage to al-Kalasa District, Aleppo, Syria
The comments by the secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council came the same day that Israel carried out a series of strikes on alleged Iranian targets in Syria.

In an extensive interview published by the Mehr news agency, Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said that Tehran would continue providing assistance to Syria as long as Damascus needs its help in fighting terror. He said:
"We reject interference in the internal affairs of other countries, and of course we do not allow anyone to interfere in our internal affairs. So, at the request of the governments of Iraq and Syria, we went to these countries and fought Daesh and Nusra Front [Jabhat Fatah al-Sham]."
The senior official noted that instead of "exporting terrorism to Syria", Western nations should let the Syrian people decide their future.

Shamkhani's wide-ranging interview was published the same day that Israel announced it had conducted a second air raid against alleged Iranian targets in Syria in two days.

The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) tweeted that it had hit purported Iranian military sites, including "facilities of [Iranian elite unit] Quds Force, weapons depots, mainly in the area of the Damascus International Airport, Iranian intelligence centre, Iranian training camp" in Syria, as well as Syrian air defences responding to the Israeli attack.

Comment: More from Sputnik, 1/22/2019:
Any increase in Israeli airstrikes on Iranian targets in Syria will most likely prompt Tehran to boost aid to allies such as Hezbollah while stopping short of provoking open warfare between the Islamic Republic and the Jewish State, the Soufan Center said in a new report on Tuesday.

"Israeli strikes, even if increased in frequency or intensity, are unlikely to force Iran to withdraw from Syria, but are also unlikely to provoke a wider conflict," the report stated. "Iran's political and military decision-makers, including leaders of the hardline Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), have always stopped short of actions that would lead to hostilities with more capable conventional powers such as Israel or the United States."

The most likely scenario is for Iran to stick to a longtime regional strategy that depends on creating and/or backing allied proxy forces such as Hezbollah, which gives Tehran a measure of deniability and keeps Iranian territory free from major conventional combat, the report said.

Since US President Donald Trump announced the withdrawal of about 2,000 US forces from Syria in December, Israel has shifted away from a long-standing policy of denying or downplaying military action in Syria.



No Entry

Iranian airline banned from German airport for its support to Syria

Mahan Air
© bachpanexpress.com
The Iranian airline, Mahan Air, has been banned from operating out of Germany's airports according to Foreign Ministry Spokesperson c, speaking from a press conference in Berlin, on Monday.

"It is in the foreign-policy interests of Germany not to allow any air traffic from companies that support the war in Syria and contribute to the oppression of people in war zones," stated Burger.

Government spokesperson Steffen Seibert dismissed the idea that the decision had been made due to US pressure stating that "it is simply the case that it cannot be ruled out that this airline could transport cargo to Germany that also negatively impact our security concerns." Seibert added that these concerns were particularly valid given the government's "knowledge of terrorist activities from the Iranian side and Iranian agencies in Europe in the past."

The Tehran based airline, which offered flights between its homebase and the German cities of Munich and Dusseldorf, has already been blacklisted by the US government.

Comment: Guilty until proven innocent.


Bulb

Moscow exchange chief suggests replacing US dollar with Russian gold

gold
© Sputnik / Pavel Lisitsyn
Russian gold could become the perfect alternative to conservative investments in the greenback, the CEO of Russia's key trading floor, Moscow Exchange (MOEX), believes.

"Let's offer an alternative to the US dollar in the form of Russian gold, which we produce... investment gold," CEO Alexander Afanasiev suggested, speaking in the Lower House of Russia's parliament on Monday.

He added that some "super-conservative investors" purchase dollars and keep them "under the pillow," which is not very safe, he believes.

The MOEX chief also noted that Russians have increased their investment activity and act "surprisingly rational."

Russian Flag

Russia cuts foreign debt to decade low while boosting national reserves

money
© Reuters / Alexander Demianchuk
Russia's external debt has fallen by $64.4 billion or 12.4 percent from the beginning of last year, amounting to $453.7 billion as of January 1, 2019 - the lowest level since April 2009, according to Central Bank of Russia data.

All institutional sectors dropped their debts last year, the Central Bank of Russia announced on Monday, adding that other sectors contributed "the most to the country's external debt contraction," reducing their indebtedness by $32.3 billion.

The foreign debt has been dropping since mid-2014, when it reached its peak of around $733 billion in the wake US and EU sanctions. Since then, Russia managed to reduce debt by nearly $280 billion to reach the ten year minimum. In the fourth quarter of 2018 alone, the external debt was reportedly reduced by more than $16 billion or some 3.5 percent.

Comment: A textbook example on how to avoid becoming a slave to US imperialism.


Bad Guys

World's richest gather in Davos to tackle global poverty, but key leaders are missing

Klaus Schwab
© REUTERS / Arnd Wiegmann
World political and business elites are gathering in Davos, Switzerland, for an annual forum on how to tackle global problems, like the increasing wealth gap between rich and poor. Several key leaders will be missing though.

This year the leader of the US, the UK and France will not be attending the World Economic Forum due to domestic troubles.

Donald Trump is busy with his government shutdown. Theresa May is bogged down by Brexit negotiations complete with defiant MPs and unyielding EU officials. Emmanuel Macron has crowds of yellow vest-wearing protesters, outraged at his austerity reforms. Arguably the biggest political name on the guest list is German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Megaphone

Breaking the silence: Trump blasts media for pouncing on Covington 'MAGA boys'

trump
© REUTERS / Carlos Barria
US President Donald Trump has finally commented on the controversy over a standoff between Catholic students and a Native American activist, which turned out to be not what the liberal media rushed to report.

The president, who was earlier criticized by people in the conservative camp for staying silent on arguably the biggest political story of the last weekend in America, voiced his support for a group of youths, who had been branded racists and spoiled rich kids last week. The group was "treated unfairly with early judgements proving out to be false" and "smeared by media," Trump tweeted.

Later on Monday morning, Trump called the debacle a symbol "of Fake News and how evil it can be," adding that the boys "have captivated the attention of the world, and I know they will use it for the good - maybe even to bring people together."

Comment: Previously:


Top Secret

US-North Korean intelligence services maintained secret talks since 2009

Trump Kim jong un
The US and North Korean intelligence officers have been engaged in secret talks and held a number of meetings since 2009, paving the way for a historic summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un last year, The Wall Street Journal newspaper reported, citing US officials.

The "goon channel" was initially established by Washington to discuss the release of US citizens held in North Korea, but soon has started to touch upon plans for Pyongyang's denuclearization as well as the preparation for the leaders' summit, officials from the current and former US administration under US President Barack Obama told the newspaper.

Comment: See also: And check out SOTT radio's: Behind the Headlines: Trump Wags the Iran Riot Dog, Kim Talks Korean Peace


Whistle

Brussels fines Mastercard €570m for breaking competition rules

mastercard
Brussels has fined Mastercard €570.6m for limiting banks' ability to shop around between member states to offer lower fees, thereby restricting competition between banks and raising the cost of card payments for both retailers and customers.

Mastercard levies a so-called interchange fee on transactions between the cardholder's bank and the retailer's bank. Historically the rates varied considerably between member states but in December 2015 the EU passed a regulation capping the cost and levelling the playing field within the bloc.

"By preventing merchants from shopping around for better conditions offered by banks in other member states, Mastercard's rules artificially raised the costs of card payments, harming consumers and retailers in the EU," Margrethe Vestager, the bloc's competition commissioner, said on Tuesday.

Comment: Financial institutions seem to think they create their own rules and it's actually surprising the EU finally took them to task, although it's a drop in the bucket compared to the many other scandals they're involved in: