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US may lose control of world finance due to conflict in Ukraine — French expert


TASS
Fri, 13 Jan 2023 07:08 UTC
soldiers
© AP/Libkos
Emmanuel Todd is certain that the United States is in a phase of long-term decline and, against the backdrop of its waning influence in the world, it has decided to press for greater influence in its "original protectorates," acquired after World War II...

The Ukrainian conflict is existential for the United States, which, in the event that friendly European economies become exhausted, will run the risk of losing its grip on world finance, French historian and anthropologist Emmanuel Todd said in an interview with Le Figaro.

In his commentary, he recalls a piece of analysis offered by Professor John Mearsheimer, of the University of Chicago, who argued that whereas for Russia this conflict was "existential," for the United States it was just another game among other countries, and that victory or defeat in it would be of little importance to the US.
"But this analysis is insufficient. [U.S. President Joe] Biden now has to hurry. America is fragile and the Russian economy's resistance is pushing the US imperial system towards the abyss. Nobody had expected the Russian economy would be able to withstand the 'economic power' of NATO."
He is certain that the United States is in a phase of long-term decline.
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No Entry

Chip Roy introduces bill to keep China from snapping up US farmland

Chris Pandolfo
Fox Business
Thu, 12 Jan 2023 01:07 UTC
ChipRoy
© Nathan Howard/Bloomberg/Getty ImagesTexas Representative Chip Roy
With lawmakers of both major parties in agreement that the United States must push back against China's increasing influence in the U.S. economy, a House Republican is putting forward legislation to crack down on Chinese purchases of U.S. farmland.

Texas Rep. Chip Roy introduced the "Securing America's Land from Foreign Interference Act" on Thursday, a bill that would prohibit any member of the Chinese Communist Party or an entity linked to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from purchasing private or public real estate in the U.S.

The bill directs the president of the United States to "take such actions as may be necessary" to prohibit entities that are "under the ownership, control, or influence" of the CCP from purchasing U.S. farmland.


Comment: See also: So just how much of the U.S. does China own?

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Document

Jonathan Turley drops Karine Jean-Pierre for false claims about classified documents scandal

Bonchie
RedState
Fri, 13 Jan 2023 03:30 UTC
Press sec
© Susan Walsh/APWhite House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre
Karine Jean-Pierre struggles with her job during the best of times, and this has not been the best of times, to say the least. Faced with the biggest scandal to hit the Biden administration since its inception, the press secretary has continually shown she's just not built to operate in an environment that doesn't include fawning praise.

When she took the job, she was the first "black, lesbian, immigrant" to hold the position, and that offered her a fair bit of protection from tough questions. That's all faded though, as the press is demanding answers about why Joe Biden illegally possessed multiple troves of classified documents following his vice presidency.

Jean-Pierre's go-to response has been to claim that they are being completely transparent, historically transparent even. That's not true at all, and Jonathan Turley laid out on Friday why their excuses don't add up.

Comment: See also:

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TV

Don Lemon to Schumer: "You seem much more measured about Biden's classified docs than with the Trump docs"

Ian Schwartz
RealClearPolitics
Fri, 13 Jan 2023 18:29 UTC
lemon schumer cnn biden docs interview
© CNN

Comment: Don Lemon momentarily busts out a spine.


CNN morning co-host Don Lemon on Friday pressed Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) on his reaction to classified documents found in two separate locations belonging to Joe Biden from when he was Vice President compared to how he reacted when former President Donald Trump had his Mar-a-Lago property raided over classified documents.

Schumer claimed he believed it was premature to comment on what should be done in former President Donald Trump's case and will apply the same logic to Biden.

Comment: Surprisingly, Schumer is telling the truth. Breitbart reported Schumer's comments on August 8, 2022:
On Monday's broadcast of MSNBC's Rachel Maddow Show, Senate Majority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said that "none of us know the facts" about the FBI's execution of a search warrant on former President Donald Trump's home at Mar-a-Lago earlier on Monday and therefore, "any comments" on the subject "are premature" and it's wise for people to withhold comment on the issue until more facts are known.

Schumer responded to a question on his reaction to the search by stating, "Well, I know nothing about it other than what I've read, like everybody else, so I think it's wise for me to withhold comment until we learn more."

Host Rachel Maddow then tried to get Schumer to react to House Minority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy's (R-CA) vow to conduct oversight of the Department of Justice if the Republicans take control of the House of Representatives in the 2022 midterms.

Schumer responded, "Look, I think we don't — none of us know the facts and any comments are premature."

Maddow then acknowledged that trying to press Schumer for any further response to the search would be "futile on my part."

Schumer laughed and responded, "Yes it would."
Schumer seems to understand that ''gotcha" can be played by two. Especially if he was aware of the ticking time bomb sitting in Biden's garage.



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V

While the West was making other plans: The world order already changed in 2022

Thierry Meyssan
Voltaire Network
Tue, 10 Jan 2023 17:57 UTC
unipolar multipolar world
It is a constant of History: changes are rare, but sudden. Those who bear the brunt of them are generally the last to see them coming. They perceive them only too late. Contrary to the static image that prevails in the West, international relations have been turned upside down in 2022, mainly to the detriment of the United States, the United Kingdom and France, often to the benefit of China and Russia. With their eyes riveted on Ukraine, Westerners do not perceive the redistribution of the cards.

It is rare for international relations to be shaken as they were in 2022. And it is not over. The process that has begun will not stop, even if events disrupt it and possibly interrupt it for a few years. The domination of the West, both the United States and the former colonial powers of Europe (mainly the United Kingdom, France and Spain) and Asia (Japan), is coming to an end. No one obeys a leader anymore, including the states that remain vassals of Washington. Everyone is now beginning to think for themselves. We are not yet in the multipolar world that Russia and China are trying to bring about, but we are seeing it being built.
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Info

Will Türkiye and Syria reconciling pave the way to ending the Syrian conflict?

Robert Inlakesh
RT
Fri, 13 Jan 2023 08:10 UTC
Turkish troops deploy in Syria's northern region of Manbij, Syria, Oct. 14, 2019.
© AP Photo, FileTurkish troops deploy in Syria's northern region of Manbij, Syria, Oct. 14, 2019.
Finding common ground with Ankara can help Damascus solve many problems, including the US occupation of its territories.

Against the wishes of Washington, both the Syrian and Turkish leaderships seem to be coming closer to re-establishing ties. After an 11-year break in relations, could such a rapprochement pave the way to closing the final chapter of the brutal Syrian war by breaking the current stalemate?

According to Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, the diplomat could meet his Syrian counterpart, Faisal Mekdad, as early as February to further conversations regarding reopening ties between both governments. Despite protest from US state department spokesperson Ned Price, who said that the US does "not support countries upgrading their relations or expressing support to rehabilitate the brutal dictator Bashar Assad," Ankara and Damascus continue their journey towards normalization.

Comment: See also:

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USA

US restricts Israeli dual-citizens from piloting F-35 jets


The Cradle
Sat, 14 Jan 2023 00:28 UTC
f-35 jet
© IDFThe decision represents a longstanding US concern that sensitive information could make its way from Israel to China
The Department of Defense (DoD) and US intelligence authorities are restricting Israeli air force pilots with dual citizenships from manning F-35 fighter jets, according to the Jerusalem Post.

On 6 January, the Israeli outlet reported that Washington's move is rooted in "fear of information security and technology leaks," as the US has been widening its focus on information security and protecting its interests.

According to sources, the Israeli air force has reportedly accepted the restrictions, and Israel, as a result, has ceased assigning pilots to its "Adir" F-35 jets.

Comment: The same F-35s that the US admitted were a $1.7 trillion failure? Maybe there are some aspects China would benefit from copying, but let's not forget that China is already at the forefront of technological developments with a space station in orbit, and it recently 'surprised' America's MIC with its successful hypersonic missile test. It's also on great terms with Russia, which has some of the world's most advanced military technology.

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X

Sergey Poletaev: Russia, Ukraine, the EU and the US have something in common - their illusions were shattered in 2022

Sergey Poletaev
RT
Tue, 10 Jan 2023 16:20 UTC
flags
© Julian Stratenschulte/picture alliance/Getty Images
All the key players in the current conflict spent years kidding themselves, and peace will only come when they accept reality.

The Russian military offensive in Ukraine has set in motion a chain of events that has led to a global upheaval - in political and economic terms - comparable to world wars. We are probably in the initial phase of this conflict, and more players will become involved over time, but some conclusions can already be drawn.

The past year has been one in which postmodernism collided with the real world. Almost all of the direct and indirect actors in the Ukrainian crisis built their domestic and foreign policies on theoretical, highly ideological constructions. And the more the wishful thinking, the tougher the consequences now.

Let's take a look at the main players:

Comment: An impressive analysis of the process of war via the current sides involved.

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Magnify

FBI reveals it uses CIA and NSA to spy on Americans

Ryan Lovelace
The Washington Times
Tue, 10 Jan 2023 00:00 UTC
C Wray
© Charlie NeibergallFBI Director Christopher Wray
The FBI revealed how the bureau uses the CIA and National Security Agency to probe the private lives of Americans without a warrant in its updated rulebook, which is the first version made public since the Obama administration.

The handbook, rewritten in 2021, confirms a decade-old leak showcasing the bureau's collaboration with the CIA and NSA for FBI probes that may involve surveillance without court orders against people not accused of any crimes. Such probes are known as "assessments" at the FBI.

The revelations will fuel critics who have long accused the FBI of abusing its national security surveillance powers.

The FBI's partnership with U.S. intelligence agencies that are focused on foreign threats is expected to get intense scrutiny from the new Republican-run Congress. The House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and House Judiciary Committee are digging into how intelligence agencies target Americans. Plans include a new panel to examine the weaponization of the federal government against U.S. citizens.

Comment: Seeping deceptively into the mainstream, abuse of power will not be curtailed nor contained.

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X

SCOTUS rejects Israeli spyware company's request for immunity in WhatsApp lawsuit

Michael Arria
Mondoweiss
Mon, 09 Jan 2023 00:00 UTC
NSO group
© Facebook
On January 9 the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) determined that WhatsApp (a messaging platform owned by Meta Platforms) could proceed with its lawsuit against the Israeli spyware company NSO Group Technologies. The NSO Group's request for immunity had already been rejected by lower courts before reaching SCOTUS.

Meta sued the NSO Group in October 2019 over its Pegasus hacking technology. Meta alleges that Pegasus allowed users to access WhatsApp servers and surveil some 1,400 individuals illegally.

In 2021 a reporting consortium investigated an NSO Group data leak (initially obtained by the Paris-based Forbidden Stories and Amnesty International) and discovered that Pegasus had been used by at least twenty authoritarian governments to spy on activists, journalists, and attorneys. Among the findings was news that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates surveilled the family of slain Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, before and after his murder.


Comment: See also:

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