Puppet MastersS


Rocket

'No analogues in the world': Putin announces first ship armed with Russian 'Zircon' hypersonic missiles enters combat duty


RT
Wed, 04 Jan 2023 18:48 UTC
Admiral Gorshkov frigate
© Sputnik / Russian Defence MinistryAdmiral Gorshkov frigate
The Russian navy frigate 'Admiral Gorshkov,' has become the first warship carrying Zircon hypersonic cruise missiles to begin routine combat service.

Russian President Vladimir Putin oversaw the ceremony on Wednesday via video link, declaring that the Zircon missile was a "unique weapon" and that "no other country has anything comparable."

"I am sure that such a powerful armament will allow us to steadfastly defend Russia from potential foreign threats. It will help to maintain the national interests of our country," Putin stated.
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Rocket

US-made HIMARS destroyed in new strikes - Moscow


RT
Tue, 03 Jan 2023 12:15 UTC
HIMARS
© Jam Sta Rosa/AFPHIMARS rocket launcher
Russian forces have destroyed several US-supplied HIMARS rocket launchers and eliminated scores of Ukrainian troops and dozens of foreign fighters in a fresh series of missile strikes, Moscow's Defense Ministry said on Tuesday.

According to the military, two launchers were destroyed at the Druzhkovka railway station in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR). The second pair of launchers, which were firing at other DPR cities, were located near the Ukrainian-held city of Kramatorsk, the ministry added.

In addition, nine HIMARS rockets were intercepted near the frontline in the Lugansk People's Republic (LPR), as well as in Kherson Region to the north of Crimea, the statement said.

The Russian Air Force's "precision strikes" on positions of the "foreign legion" fighting for Ukraine near Kramatorsk and Maslyakovka destroyed over 130 "foreign mercenaries," it added.

Up to 120 Ukrainian soldiers were eliminated at Druzhkovka railway station, the military claimed.

This attack comes after Russia confirmed on Monday that over 60 of its soldiers were killed in Makeyevka, when Kiev's forces targeted the building they were housed in with missiles fired from HIMARS launchers.
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Bad Guys

Documents reveal how 'Russiagate' was used to justify forcing Twitter censorship


RT
Wed, 04 Jan 2023 18:16 UTC
musk taibbi
© Daniel Zuchnik/WireImage via Getty Images; James Glover II/ReutersLeft: Matt Taibbi Right: Elon Musk
Democrats threatened regulation and leaked to the press to pressure the platform

Internal documents from Twitter made public on Tuesday show how the social media platform was pressured to follow the US intelligence community's lead on censorship back in 2017. Key Democrats in the US Congress, a British university, and two media outlets - Politico and BuzzFeed - played a major role in constructing and amplifying the 'Russiagate' conspiracy theory, according to research by Matt Taibbi.

In a pattern established in just six weeks, from August to October 2017, Twitter went from being on nobody's radar to agreeing to take orders from US spies as to whom to censor, Taibbi wrote on Substack.

"Threats from Congress came first, then a rush of bad headlines (inspired by leaks from congressional committees), and finally a series of moderation demands coming from the outside," he added.

In a 30-tweet thread, Taibbi presented emails and other internal documents he obtained, thanks to Twitter's new owner, Elon Musk.

Comment: It is somewhat heartening to see that executives of Old Twitter™ at least attempted some pushback against the intelligence community diktats. But when faced with being fined and regulated out of existence by congressional committee hacks, they had little choice in the matter:

"Nice little social media company you got there. Be a shame if anything happened to it."

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Sheriff

Report: Brazil to reopen fraud case against Rep.-elect George Santos

David Propper
New York Post
Wed, 04 Jan 2023 17:56 UTC
george santos criminal case brazil
© Associated PressIncoming House Rep. George Santos could face another probe -- this time outside of the US.
Incoming federal lawmaker George Santos now faces a probe outside of the United States to go with investigations by federal and local prosecutors into the Long Island representative-elect, according to a report.

Brazilian prosecutors told the New York Times Monday that law enforcement authorities intend to restart a fraud case against Santos and will seek a formal response from him to charges that stem from a 2008 incident tied to a stolen checkbook.

The case was suspended more than a decade ago because police could not locate Santos, who has perhaps the largest profile of any incoming freshman rep due to the myriad of lies he spun during his successful campaign.

Comment: The GOP have fallen down on the job in vetting Santos. With such a background, he never should have been allowed to run.

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Blackbox

Are foreign forces on their way out of Syria?

Gilbert Doctorow
Antiwar.com
Sun, 01 Jan 2023 00:00 UTC
Erdogan assad
News about the impending removal of foreign forces from Syria that you will not get...from Western mainstream

Happy New Year 2023 to one and all. With some luck we may all make it through the next 12 months intact.

My purpose in violating the sanctity of New Year's Day is to bring to your attention news from the Middle East that has been posted by an authoritative newspaper from the region, Al-Watan, of Doha, Qatar, but seems not to have been picked up by mainstream Western media. My knowledge of it came from the so-called Free Press (Свободная Пресса) portal in Russia. I'd have learned about it sooner from the much better known RIA Novosti news agency, which also carried a lead story on the subject, but, sadly, RIA Novosti is banned in the European Union. Brussels obviously prefers for ours to be the Dark Continent where public opinion is manipulated from the offices of the Commission.
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Jet2

Japan's militarization a 'security threat' - Russia


RT
Tue, 03 Jan 2023 15:26 UTC
Onyx cruise missile
© Sputnik / Ministry of Defense of the Russian FederationTesting of the Onyx cruise missile by the Bastion coastal complex of the Pacific Fleet.
Moscow stands ready to thwart threats from a Japanese military buildup near Russian islands in the Far East, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko has said.

The statement came after Japanese broadcaster NHK cited the country's Defense Ministry in late December as saying that Tokyo was planning to deploy supersonic missiles on the island of Hokkaido, which borders Russia's Kuril Islands, the southern part of which Japan claims as its "Northern Territories." Moscow condemned the move at the time.

"We consider Tokyo's activities a serious challenge to the security of our country and the Asia-Pacific as a whole," Rudenko stated, in an interview with TASS news agency on Tuesday.

"If such practices continue, we will be forced to implement appropriate retaliatory measures in order to block the military threats Russia faces," the diplomat added, condemning the "expedited militarization" of Japan and the "unprecedented" increase in its military budget.
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Bulb

If we're punishing politicians for lying about their past, start with Joe Biden

Christopher Tremoglie
Washington Examiner
Mon, 02 Jan 2023 15:26 UTC
Biden
© Gene Puskar/APUS President Joe Biden
George Santos is a despicable, lying fraud. He's lied about his ethnicity, background, parents, and experience, among other things. If there was anything that could be embellished, George Santos probably did it. His deceit would be comical if it weren't so tragic. Santos should be held accountable with punitive actions for his lies. However, if we are now going to be genuinely outraged and start punishing politicians for lying about their past, we can begin with President Joe Biden.

Biden's lies do not excuse what Santos did in any way. This isn't a case of "whataboutism" or some attempted rationalization predicated on universally applying the same standards for all politicians. Yet, this doesn't change the fact that many Democrats, such as Joe Biden, have their own sordid history regarding what they told voters about their past. And when these Democrats were exposed, other politicians, pundits, and talking heads in the media — basically the same people in a huff about Santos — did not have the same outrage then as they do now. This is particularly concerning since it was not just Biden who lied.

Comment: Politician's lie precisely because there is no accountability and this is also because people have accepted their biggest lies and would rather go on believing than look at the fact that they have been duped. And if we're going to talk about these lies, we should be looking at the real issues impacting people's lives like covid, Russia and Ukraine, relations with Europe, elections, and 'global warming'.

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Books

US schools becoming a 'cesspool of Marxist indoctrination' - senator


RT
Tue, 03 Jan 2023 12:00 UTC
marco rubio
© AFP / Eva Marie UzcateguiUS Senator Marco Rubio addresses his supporters.
Republican lawmaker Marc Rubio has urged colleagues not to use federal funding for the promotion of radical ideas.

The Republican Party must support governors and school-board members who are fighting to prevent US educational institutions from becoming a "cesspool of Marxist indoctrination," Senator Marco Rubio has said.

"Dangerous academic constructs like critical race theory and radical gender theory are being forced on elementary school children," Rubio wrote in an article published in the American Conservative magazine on Tuesday.

Comment: See also:

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People

Russia says peace treaty talks with Japan 'impossible' over 'unfriendly' Ukraine stance

Tyler Durden
ZeroHedge
Tue, 03 Jan 2023 18:08 UTC
Russian warships
© ReutersRussian warships in a 2020 Navy Day parade.
The Kremlin has announced that Japan's "anti-Russian course" means that peace treaty talks remain "impossible" at this point, according to the words of a senior Russian foreign ministry official quoted in TASS.

"It is absolutely obvious that it is impossible to discuss the signing of such a document [a peace treaty] with a state that takes openly unfriendly positions and allows itself direct threats against our country," the official said.

The two countries have long been locked in a standoff regarding competing territorial claims over islands off northern Japan, disputed since the end of WWII, but which have come under increasing militarization by Russia.

Comment: See also:

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Magnify

Best of the Web: Iran: Women, Life, Freedom...and NATO

Ariana Mohammadi
The Cradle
Fri, 29 Dec 2023 12:00 UTC
iran woman protest
© The Cradle
A superpower in decline still retains a vast appetite for irregular, proxy warfare to slow down the imminent multipolar order. Iran, Russia, China are its big targets and all tools will be employed.

To maintain its global hegemony in the face of a rapidly emerging multipolar world, the US seeks to restrict the redistribution of power in all regions where its clout is foundering.

While Washington can no longer afford the high costs of engaging in direct, hot wars, its military-industrial complex - the powerhouse of the US economy - is likewise unable to afford disengaging from global conflict. Therefore, US military strategy has shifted from waging war to taking its war to its adversaries, via proxies.
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