Puppet MastersS


Explosion

Israeli airstrike kills several in south Lebanon as 'ceasefire' nears end date


The Cradle
Sun, 16 Feb 2025 00:00 UTC
carfire
© XIsraeli airstrike blasts car into flames
Tel Aviv is pushing to maintain its occupation of five locations on the border with Lebanon after the extended truce comes to an end.

At least three people were killed and five others injured, including two children, on 15 February in an Israeli airstrike targeting a car on the Jarjouh-Luwaizeh road in the Iqlim al-Tuffah region of south Lebanon.

According to the Israeli military, the strike targeted "a key member of Hezbollah's aerial unit." The latest attack on Lebanese soil took place less than 72 hours before a unilaterally extended ceasefire comes to an end. Tel Aviv also intensified its violations in the southern Lebanese towns of Kfar Kila and Yaroun on Saturday, detonating several residential homes using heavy explosives. Israeli attacks were also reported in the villages of Labouneh, Mays al-Jabal, and Houla.

Since a US-backed ceasefire agreement was put into effect in late November, the Israeli army has violated the terms of the deal hundreds of times, killing dozens of Lebanese citizens and injuring hundreds.

Comment: Addicted to killing and experts in destruction, the 'guise of ceasefire' made targets easier for Israel to access.

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Dollars

Top Trump agency recovers eye-popping sum after launching DOGE task force

Deirdre Heavey
Fox News
Sun, 16 Feb 2025 20:15 UTC
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner doge musk
© Getty/APU.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner launched a Department of Government Efficiency Task Force to review how HUD is spending taxpayer dollars.
'HUD will be detailed and deliberate about every dollar spent,' HUD Secretary Turner said

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Scott Turner announced a new Department of Government Efficiency task force on Thursday to "eliminate waste, fraud and abuse" at his federal agency.

DOGE revealed that $1.9 billion in HUD money had been recovered as of Friday, saying the funds were misplaced during the Biden administration and were "earmarked for the administration of financial services, but were no longer needed."

DOGE said it worked with Turner to release the funds, and they are now available for use by the U.S. Department of Treasury.

Comment: DOGE has its own X account which posts daily, for those who want to follow along with the fun:



Full text:

US taxpayer dollars were going to be spent on the following items, all which have been cancelled:
  • $10M for "Mozambique voluntary medical male circumcision"
  • $9.7M for UC Berkeley to develop "a cohort of Cambodian youth with enterprise driven skills"
  • $2.3M for "strengthening independent voices in Cambodia"
  • $32M to the Prague Civil Society Centre
  • $40M for "gender equality and women empowerment hub"
  • $14M for "improving public procurement" in Serbia
  • $486M to the "Consortium for Elections and Political Process Strengthening," including $22M for "inclusive and participatory political process" in Moldova and $21M for voter turnout in India
  • $29M to "strenghening political landscape in Bangladesh"
  • $20M for "fiscal federalism" in Nepal
  • $19M for "biodiversity conversation" in Nepal
  • $1.5M for "voter confidence" in Liberia
  • $14M for "social cohesion" in Mali
  • $2.5M for "inclusive democracies in Southern Africa"
  • $47M for "improving learning outcomes in Asia"
  • $2M to develop "sustainable recycling models" to "increase socio-economic cohesion among marginalized communities of Kosovo Roma, Ashkali, and Egypt"


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Bad Guys

Huge spike in "BleachBit," "wipe hard drive," "offshore bank" internet searches in DC area suggest Deep State panic mode

Tyler Durden
ZeroHedge
Fri, 14 Feb 2025 16:41 UTC
panic deep state search terms hide crimes wikileaks
© Wikileaks/XWashington DC searches soar for "Swiss bank" (yellow), "offshore bank" (green), "wire money" (red) and "IBAN" (blue)
Internet search trends in the Washington, DC, metro area have been nothing short of stunning in recent weeks, reflecting what appears to be growing panic within the federal bureaucracy as President Trump and Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) root out corruption in non-governmental organizations (NGO) and federal agencies.

Earlier this week, internet search trends for "Criminal Defense Lawyer" and "RICO Laws" went viral on X, fueling speculation that Washington's political elites were in panic mode. The searches coincided with DOGE's efforts to neuter USAID's funding of NGOs that propped up a shadow government, as well as begin cutting tens of thousands of workers from various federal agencies.
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Putin

Vance's Munich Speech Vindicated Putin's Summer 2022 Prediction About Political Change In Europe

Andrew Korybko
korybko.substack.com
Sat, 15 Feb 2025 21:55 UTC
putin vance
The Russian leader was the first to talk about a European-wide populist-nationalist revolution and to foresee the emergence of civilization-states as the next phase of the global systemic transition.

Vice President Vance excoriated the Europeans in his keynote speech at last week's Munich Security Conference, which can be read in full here. He accused the ruling liberal-globalist elite of becoming the greatest threat to their own civilization after straying from its traditional values and massively importing migrants. Vance made it clear that Trump 2.0 won't support them against their own people, especially the populist-nationalists who they're actively canceling, censoring, and persecuting.

He very strongly implied that the US wants these same like-minded movements to rise to power across Europe, which would amount to a continent-wide revolution of the sort that Putin was the first to predict back in June 2022 while speaking at that year's St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. His speech can be read in full here, but what follows is the pertinent excerpt that's since been vindicated by none other than the new American Vice President nearly three years after being mocked by Western leaders:
"A direct result of the European politicians' actions and events this year will be the further growth of inequality in these countries, which will, in turn, split their societies still more, and the point at issue is not only the well-being but also the value orientation of various groups in these societies. Indeed, these differences are being suppressed and swept under the rug.

Frankly, the democratic procedures and elections in Europe and the forces that come to power look like a front, because almost identical political parties come and go, while deep down things remain the same. The real interests of people and national businesses are being pushed further and further to the periphery.

Such a disconnect from reality and the demands of society will inevitably lead to a surge in populism and extremist and radical movements, major socioeconomic changes, degradation and a change of elites in the short term. As you can see, traditional parties lose all the time. New entities are coming to the surface, but they have little chance for survival if they are not much different from the existing ones."
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MAGA

Tulsi Gabbard at Munich Security Conference: Trump will be 'peacemaker, unifier'

Olivia Rondeau
Breitbart
Fri, 14 Feb 2025 21:51 UTC
tulsi gabbard
© AP Photo/John McDonnell
Newly-sworn Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard took to the stage at the Munich Security Conference in Germany on Friday to highlight President Donald Trump's promise to be a "peacemaker and unifier."

"It's a critical time to gather as we face complex threats. More than ever, we need strong intelligence and security partnerships as we work to ensure the freedom and security of our nations and their peoples, and work toward peace," the former Hawaii congresswoman said, just two days after being confirmed to Trump's cabinet.

"President Trump promised in his inaugural address that his proudest legacy will be that of a peacemaker and unifier," Gabbard continued, before saying that the "foundations of this legacy" of peace are already apparent after less than a month of Trump's second term.
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Footprints

Trump ejects from the Ukraine joyride, leaving the EU screaming in the backseat

Rachel Marsden
RT
Fri, 14 Feb 2025 15:36 UTC
Around the table
© Sven Hoppe/picture alliance/Getty ImagesFederal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier • US VP J.D. Vance • Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock • Munich Security Conference
Western European leaders are having a meltdown because shutting them out from talks is the only way to peace.

The European Union was never in the driver's seat on the Ukraine conflict. And now that same toddler sitting in the back with the plastic Fisher-Price steering wheel is throwing the kind of full-blown crimson-faced meltdown that makes adults chuckle.

How many times was the EU told, including by its own citizens with sledgehammer subtlety at the ballot box, to stop kissing Uncle Sam's butt and start covering its own? Instead, its leaders cribbed America's talking points, completely oblivious as they indulged in economic seppuku.

The EU's entire economy-wrecking "strategy" over Ukraine was based on the fantasy that they were America's little bro, not being used as naive pawns in a grand game that would knock them right off the chessboard. If Washington had picked peace over profit from the start, the closest thing that the Euroclowns would have seen to a military confrontation with Russia in Ukraine would have been playing Sergeant Savoir-Faire back home, armed with a map of the nearest coffee shops and a five-course lunch.

And now the previously unthinkable has happened. The jig is up on Biden's ridiculous scam of vowing to do "whatever it takes" for Ukraine to beat Russia on the battlefield - mainly by dumping cash into US weapons which miraculously get lost en route to the frontlines after the cheque clears.

Nice racket. Too bad it's getting people killed - something Trump's made it clear he's not exactly a fan of. Looks like he's finally asked himself if there's a way for the US to keep feasting on cash without a body count in Ukraine. Spoiler alert: he found a way, apparently. Several, in fact.

Comment: A colorful and entertaining rendition of "Stop the War!" brought to you by a cast of misfits and two wise guys.

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Jet5

Best of the Web: High-explosive drone pierces shell of Chernobyl Nuclear Plant at very moment Trump pushes Ukraine toward peace

Tyler Durden
Zero Hedge
Fri, 14 Feb 2025 01:40 UTC
Chernobyl
© IAEAChernobyl Nuclear Power Plant pierced by drone
On Friday just prior to high-level meetings among Western security officials and Ukrainian leadership commencing in Munich, including US Vice President J.D. Vance and Zelensky, there was a dangerous incident at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine's Kyiv oblast.

Ukraine's Ex-President Zelensky accused Russia of launching a drone equipped with a high-explosive warhead at the historic, defunct power plant, site of the April 1986 nuclear disaster and meltdown. The drone reportedly hit the protective containment shell of the Chernobyl plant. Zelensky's office released footage showing an impact to the giant concrete and steel shield protecting the remains of the nuclear reactor.

Thus the situation is deeply alarming given the potential for a new radiation leak at the site which could impact the region, or even Europe. An IAEA team on the ground said it heard an explosion at around 01:50 local time coming from the New Safe Confinement (NSC) shelter. Photos showed flames at the top of the huge structure.

The UN agency is on high alert, but issued a statement saying the drone strike did not breach the plant's inner containment shell. The IAEA also did not attribute blame, not identifying who sent the drone.

Comment: The smaller the mind the bigger the flaw, the more desperate the scam, the more obvious the source.

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Warning

Vance blasts 'Russian meddling' narrative


RT
Fri, 14 Feb 2025 07:46 UTC
JDVance
© Peter Kneffel/picture alliance/Getty ImagesUS VP J. D. Vance In Bavaria • February 13, 2025
US Vice President J.D. Vance told the Wall Street Journal on Thursday:
"Western mainstream political parties blaming Russian meddling for electoral failures are increasingly out of touch with voters. EU politicians would rather suppress dissent than reflect on their actions."
Ahead of attending the Munich Security Conference on Friday, Vance urged Western politicians to embrace the rise of anti-establishment politics. He criticized attempts to dismiss viewpoints on issues such as traditional values and immigration by those who attribute them to "misinformation."
"If your democratic society can be taken down by $200,000 of social media ads, then you should think seriously about how strong your grip on or how strong your understanding of the will of the people actually is."
Hillary Clinton, former US secretary of state and presidential candidate, notably popularized the tactic of blaming Russia following her loss to Donald Trump in the 2016 US presidential election — a claim Moscow has consistently denied.
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Warning

End of war in Ukraine near as Poland and Europe fear explosion of Ukrainian crime activity

Uriel Araujo, PhD
Infobrics
Thu, 13 Feb 2025 00:00 UTC
suspect in custody
© UnknownEU Crime • Suspect in Custody
Even a peace deal will not put an end to problems in the region or tensions in Europe. US-funded Ukrainian radical nationalism will not just go away overnight. Likewise, there is no easy way out of Ukraine's structural problems with endemic corruption and criminality. When it comes to the Ukrainian crisis, unfortunately, the end is not the end.

The Polish, and the rest of Europe for that matter, are bracing themselves for an explosion of cross-border organized crime activity with the end of the conflict in Ukraine (which now seems closer than ever). Poland's President Andrzej Duda is warning about such an "explosion" of crime within Ukraine with the end of the war, and is calling on Kyiv's allies to provide it with "massive support". Moreover, Duda is worried, as he said in an interview to the Financial Times, that this could spill across the border into his own country, and also affect the rest of Europe and even the United States, with migration waves and transnational mob activity.

Comment: Wars are nearly indelible - the deepest marks carried for generations.

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Arrow Down

Kiev backtracks on Tulsi Gabbard claims


RT
Thu, 13 Feb 2025 15:15 UTC
TrumpTulsiswear
© Andrew Hamik/Getty ImagesUS President Donald Trump swears in Tulsi Gabbard as Director of National Intelligence
The Ukrainian Center for Countering Disinformation (CCD) has publicly recognized that it previously disseminated unverified information about Tulsi Gabbard, a former Democrat lawmaker who now serves as the US Director of National Intelligence.

Established in 2021 under Ukraine's security council, the center was designed to combat perceived information threats, primarily those attributed to Russia.

The news site Strana.ua reported in November that the CCD took down four of its bulletins mentioning Gabbard from social media, including one from April 2022 that described her as someone who "for several years, has been working for foreign audience for the Kremlin money."

A June 2024 bulletin accused Gabbard of spreading disinformation about Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky, and a February 2023 post claimed she was "espousing pro-Russian rhetoric," according to the outlet.

On Thursday, the center admitted to past misjudgments concerning Gabbard, who has just been confirmed by the US Senate as the national intelligence director. The statement added that in 2022 and 2023, the Ukrainian organization released content about her that "had not been properly verified and thus fell short of the Center's standards."
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