Puppet MastersS


Bad Guys

Truth is dangerous! Former Homeland Security official laments RT's truth-telling


RT
Wed, 28 Nov 2018 21:25 UTC
media
© Reuters / Shannon Stapleton
Cover your ears and avert your eyes, Americans: RT is attempting to weaken the United States using a whole host of nefarious methods - such as telling the truth, a former Homeland Security official has warned.

Sounding the alarm during a panel discussion at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, Suzanne Spaulding, former deputy secretary for cyber and infrastructure protection at DHS in the Obama administration, said that one of RT's methods when it comes to its influencing vulnerable Americans is... telling the truth.

As an example of this worrisome and effective truth-telling, Spaulding cited one of RT's weekly shows, America's Lawyer, hosted by prominent US trial lawyer Mike Papantonio. The theme of this show, Spaulding revealed to the audience is that the US justice system is "corrupt and broken" and has been "taken over by politicians and the elite for their own corrupt ends."
They feature every week, stories from our courts all across the country to demonstrate the truth of this statement. I don't think there's anything in there that is a lie.
A truthful news show dedicated to exposing the corruption of the American justice system? Terrifying!
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NPC

NY Times columnist calls those who work for Trump 'bad people'


RT
Wed, 28 Nov 2018 21:20 UTC
trump
© Reuters / Cathal MacNaughtonPresident Trump meets young black Republicans at an event in October
Why would anyone work for Donald Trump? Aside from a shared ideological vision, advancing one's own career, or chasing a sniff of political power, one New York Times columnist has a better explanation: They're just bad people.

In a failed attempt to understand life outside the morally superior left coast, New York Times columnist Michelle Goldberg argues that many Trump supporters are simply "bad people," of two kinds: "the immoral and the amoral."

Goldberg wasn't writing about the MAGA-hat wearing middle-Americans who turn out in droves for Trump's rallies, nor the conservative-leaning average Joe who would have voted for a kick in the head before Hillary Clinton. Instead, she was talking about the revolving cast of aides, officials, and lawmakers who've worked for the Trump administration or lent political support to his policies.
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Blackbox

Who boosted Soleimani's image and spread Iran's influence across Middle East?

Elijah J. Magnier
ejmagnier.com
Tue, 27 Nov 2018 20:57 UTC
iranian officials
Who was it that helped the Iranian General, head of the al-Quds brigade, Qassem Soleimani, to expand his influence and the circle of his allies in the Middle East? How did his name become so well-known and his reputation blown up out of all proportion?

Behind Soleimani's success we find, firstly, the US establishment, and secondly, Europe and Saudi Arabia. The 2003 US invasion of Iraq offered Iran the head of its fiercest enemy, Saddam Hussein, on a platter, creating the space for Iran to re-establish its links with Mesopotamia. Moreover, the war in Syria brought the relationship between Tehran and Damascus to new heights when President Assad asked for the support of the Islamic Republic to prevent the regime-change promoted, financed and advocated by the US and Europe (with the full support of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey). Then the clash in Gaza washed away the differences between the Axis of the Resistance and Hamas, once again improving Soleimani's position. And last but not least, the Saudi war in the Yemen pushed the Houthis into the arms of the only country that supported them, and provided them with the tools to withstand almost four years of genocidal warfare: Iran. What more could Soleimani ask for? Is he, indeed, the strongest man in Iran, as believed in the west?

Contrary to what some experts seem to believe, Soleimani is not the most powerful General in Iran. Soleimani's direct superior officer is Brigadier General Mohammad Ali Jafari. Soleimani is part of the IRGC and doesn't have forces under his command in Iran. He implements policy as dictated to him and is a part of his country's security apparatus, with a team of assistants helping him deal with the allies of Iran, mainly non-state actors.
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Black Cat

While Kiev whips up confusion and panic, Ukraine citizens try to figure what martial law will mean for them

Oliver Carroll
The Independent
Tue, 27 Nov 2018 20:38 UTC
poroshenko
Ukraine President Poroshenko
Increased security around ports and stations already being reported, but consequences for ordinary Ukrainians are unclear

A day after the Ukrainian parliament voted to introduce martial law across 10 border regions, there was little clarity about what it would actually mean in practice.


Comment: The regions where most ethnic Russians live, in other words.


With parts of the government on different pages, and the introduction of measures that could cover most aspects of life, even family, some areas of the country bordered on panic mode.

Comment: It's even money that Poroshenko engineered the whole farce (under advice from his Western handlers) to create an excuse to block the Party of the Regions opposition (which is most popular in the regions where martial law has been announced).

The Kerch Strait provocation was bad political theater, but the consequences for ordinary Ukrainians are very real.

The British press obviously has a vested interest in conducting PR on Kiev's behalf, so here's the real skinny from Russia media about the political situation in Ukraine:



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USA

US increases presence in Syria to fight Daesh, Turkey says the terrorists are no longer in the country


Sputnik
Wed, 28 Nov 2018 20:45 UTC
U.S. Air Force
© U.S. Air Force
The US-led coalition and its partners will continue fighting Daesh in both Iraq and Syria and degrade their capabilities, a Pentagon spokesman said.

The US military is setting up a number of observation posts in Northeast Syria in an effort to prevent the remnants of Daesh forces in the central Euphrates River valley from making their way into Turkey, CDN news portal reported on Tuesday, citing the spokesman for Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve.

'These observation posts will provide additional transparency and will better enable Turkey's protection from ISIS [Daesh] elements', Army Colonel Sean Ryan said, speaking via teleconference from Baghdad.

Comment: And yet this past Tuesday, President Erdogan said ISIS is no longer in Syria. During a parlimentary meeting he stated, "there is no Daesh in Syria, there are only a small number of gangs who are kept in reserve, trained and equipped, allowed to mix in this country and the region under the guise of Daesh." This is in line with Russian operations and statements from Moscow. It's pretty clear the US isn't increasing their presence in Syria to 'continue fighting Daesh', but they were never in Syria to combat Daesh anyway.

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Red Pill

How to know you are deep inside the Matrix

Raúl Ilargi Meijer
The Automatic Earth
Tue, 27 Nov 2018 04:33 UTC
B&Wbear
© Creative Resistance
Our politicians and media are not going to allow us to see Russia, and any incidents the country can be linked to, in any other way than black and white, in which we are the good party and they are the black, evil and guilty ones. So we'll have to do that ourselves.

More than enough has been said about why NATO should have been dismantled when the reason for its existence, the Soviet Union, was dissolved, but nobody listened and NATO has kept expanding eastward and demanding more money, more members, more weapons.

NATO demands an enemy, and their chosen enemy is Russia. This has nothing to do with anything Russia has done or is doing at the moment. We can only hope that people are willing to accept that simple fact. And not passively go along with the flow of badmouthing and smear that decides what our picture of the country is.

Russia 'invaded' Crimea? Russia 'downed' MH17? Russia sent two hapless and inept blokes to kill the Skripals? Russia launched an unprovoked attack on three Ukrainian vessels in the Sea of Azov? Russia colluded with the Trump campaign against Hillary Clinton? And collaborated with Julian Assange to make that happen?

What all these allegations have in common is that there is no evidence any of them are true. Oh, and that nobody's really trying to prove them anymore. Because you've already accepted them as gospel.
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Arrow Up

Kremlin confirms Trump-Putin meeting to happen, preparations are ongoing


RT
Wed, 28 Nov 2018 09:58 UTC
TruPu
© abcrop2
The Kremlin received no notice of US President Donald Trump calling off talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin at the G20 event in Argentina, the Kremlin spokesperson confirmed after Trump saying he might back out.

Preparations for the talks "continue" and the meeting between Trump and Putin is "settled," Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday. "We have no other information from our US colleagues," he stressed.

His remarks came after Trump told the Washington Post that he might call off the talks with Putin in response to the recent maritime incident in the Kerch Strait, in which the Russia seized three Ukrainian naval vessels it said violated Russian sovereignty.

Putin's schedule also contains "contacts" with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, his spokesperson told the media. Earlier, the Kremlin said that the Russian leader and the Crown Prince will have an opportunity to talk on the sidelines of the summit.

Trump isn't planning to hold a meeting with bin Salman, the president's National Security Advisor John Bolton said earlier. He added, however, that he "wouldn't rule anything out."

The annual G20 summit will kick off in Buenos Aires, Argentina on Friday.

Comment: See also: Trump scheduled to meet Putin at G20, but not MBS

From RFE/RL:
U.S. President Donald Trump says he is considering canceling his scheduled meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Group of 20 (G20) summit in Argentina this week over Russia's detention of Ukrainian sailors.

His comments in an interview with The Washington Post published late on November 27 came as the Ukrainian president warned of a "threat of full-scale war" with Russia while European leaders said they were considering a new round of sanctions against Russia because of its capture of three Ukrainian naval ships and their crews following a confrontation at sea off Crimea on November 25.

Trump told the Post he was awaiting a "full report" from his national security team about the incident before going through with a Putin meeting that had been expected to address a range of issues from arms control to the conflicts in Syria and Ukraine.

"That will be very determinative," Trump told the Post. "Maybe I won't even have the meeting ... I don't like that aggression. I don't want that aggression at all," he said.

Trump is due to meet Putin on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Buenos Aires on November 30 and December 1.


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Arrow Down

France, Germany rebuff fresh calls for tougher sanctions on Russia


RT
Wed, 28 Nov 2018 12:51 UTC
MacMerkPoroPut
© DNA India/mashable.com/1cab4/KJNMacron • Merkel • Poroshenko • Putin
German and French diplomats are against hitting Moscow with a new round of sanctions following a maritime clash with Ukraine, and instead want to improve trust between the nations, a media report suggests.

High-ranking diplomats from France and Germany favor tackling the renewed Russian-Ukrainian tensions with more "trust-building measures," German paper Die Welt reported on Wednesday.

The paper, citing its own sources, wrote that additional sanctions weren't included in the diplomats' proposal. Instead, they reportedly offered to "continue diplomatic efforts" to solve the crisis and to consider the role of the OSCE in resolving the conflict.

According to Die Welt, this approach was voiced by Berlin and Paris on Tuesday during a "secret meeting" of the EU's Political and Security Committee in Brussels.

Comment: All is not well on the Ukrainian front. See also:
Sea of Azov provocation: Kiev declares martial law, Russia warns of 'consequences' - UPDATES

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Attention

Putin: Kerch Strait standoff is a provocation, 'Kiev would get away even with eating babies'


RT
Wed, 28 Nov 2018 12:00 UTC
Putin, Ukraine boat
© Sputnik/Grigory Sysoev/Alexey MalgavkoRussian President Putin • Ukraine'v vessel moored at Kerch haven
Russia's President Vladimir Putin said the clash between Russian and Ukrainian military ships was a result of foreign nations' failing to hold Kiev accountable for bad behavior as long as it remains confrontational towards Russia.

The remarks were the first made by the Russian leader since the confrontation in the Kerch Strait, a narrow passageway between the Black Sea and the Azov Sea, where a strategic bridge connecting Crimea with mainland Russia is located.

"The authorities in Kiev are selling anti-Russian sentiment with quite a success today. They have nothing else to do," Putin said during a business forum in Moscow.


Comment: Ukraine is a very useful Western puppet at this point in time. And, instead of becoming a better politician or steward for his people, Poroshenko has increased his capability to divert and refocus attention for his own political gain.
See also: Uki election antics? Poroshenko declares martial law in Ukraine after Kerch standoff

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Cell Phone

Google accused of breaching EU laws, tricking users into consenting to be tracked


RT
Wed, 28 Nov 2018 02:07 UTC
Tracking map
© clipart
Seven European countries are fighting back against Google's invasive data collection, alleging the internet giant violated privacy laws by tracking users' movements after obtaining their consent through deception.

Google hoodwinks users into consenting to highly intrusive tracking measures using verbal trickery and misleading interface design, according to complaints filed by consumer agencies in the Netherlands, Greece, Poland, Slovenia, Czechia, Norway, and Sweden on Tuesday. The consumer groups are urging privacy regulators to prosecute Google for violating the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) - the sweeping internet-privacy legislation that took effect in May.

Comment: So much for freedom and anonymity. See also:

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