Puppet MastersS


USA

Does an unelected intelligence community or an elected president govern the US?

John Wight
Sputnik
Thu, 19 Jul 2018 17:08 UTC
Trump and Putin in Helsinki
© REUTERS / Kevin Lamarque
The madness that gripped liberals and neocons within the Western political, media, and security establishments, over the sight of a US president having the temerity to treat his Russian counterpart - Vladimir Putin - as an equal rather than colonial vassal who knows his place, was and is more pronounced than anyone could have expected.

Indeed in the wake of the Helsinki Summit between US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, the tsunami of madness that ensued can only be described as unhinged. Treason, they cried - a surrender summit, they declaimed - to thus reveal that for such people peace and stability is tantamount to disaster while conflict and chaos is nirvana.

In light of this collective madness, spewed out from every mainstream US media platform in response to Helsinki, the backlash from within the Beltway reached such heights of intensity that we were witness to the astonishing sight of a sitting president going public with a mea culpa as he rolled back on his original denial - Trump claiming he had 'misspoke' during his joint press conference with the Russian president when the question of Russian state interference came up.
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Bad Guys

US diplomats riding roughshod over sovereignty of national governments


PressTV
Thu, 19 Jul 2018 11:54 UTC
Geoffrey R. Pyatt (L) and Samantha Power on Maidan square, in Kiev on June 10, 2015
© YURY KIRNICHNY / AFPGeoffrey R. Pyatt (L) and Samantha Power on Maidan square, in Kiev on June 10, 2015
On the world's Grand Chessboard, the US is fighting for control and influence. And there are countries where its ambassadors are perceived more as imperial governors than simple channels of communication.

At the height of the Maidan protests in Kiev in early 2014, a conversation was leaked between the US ambassador to Ukraine, Geoffrey Pyatt, and the then-Assistant Secretary of State in the Obama administration, Victoria Nuland. The conversation gained notoriety because Nuland said to Pyatt, "F**k the EU" and the recording was almost instantly available on Youtube.

More shocking than Nuland's bad language, however, was what the conversation was about. The US government officials were discussing how to put their men into power in Ukraine - which of the three then opposition factions would dominate, who would take the lead (Arseniy Yatsenyuk) and who would be excluded (Vladimir Klitschko). At the time of this conversation, early February 2014, their enemy Viktor Yanukovych was still president. The leaked recording proved that the US and its Kiev embassy were actively involved in a regime change operation. The composition of the post-Maidan government corresponded exactly with US plans.


Comment: See: 'Ukraine on Fire': How US, Not Russia, Destroyed Ukraine - Oliver Stone Documentary Finally Available (VIDEO)


Comment: With the US' weakening influence around the world, many countries and their representatives are defying their decree's and exposing just what their meddling representatives get up to behind closed doors:

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Handcuffs

South Korean court adds eight more years to ex-president Park Geun-hye's 24 yr jail term


Press TV
Fri, 20 Jul 2018 12:09 UTC
Park Geun-hye South Korea
© AFPThis file photo taken on August 25, 2017 shows South Korean ousted leader Park Geun-hye (L) arriving at a court in Seoul.
Disgraced South Korean president Park Geun-hye was convicted of charges including illegally receiving funds from the country's spy agency on Friday and given eight more years in prison, on top of her current term.

Park, the South's first female president, was impeached last year after huge street protests over a sprawling scandal, and was jailed for 24 years for corruption and abuse of power in April.

Friday's penalty - issued in her absence after she refused to attend the Seoul Central District Court - came after a separate trial for pocketing money from the National Intelligence Service (NIS) and improperly intervening in 2016 in the selection of her ruling party's parliamentary candidates.

Comment: Previously:

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Oil Well

Saudi Arabia defies Trump's request to boost oil production to offset Iran sanctions


PressTV
Thu, 19 Jul 2018 11:59 UTC
oil tanker
© ReutersAn oil tanker is being loaded at Saudi Aramco's Ras Tanura oil refinery and oil terminal on May 21, 2018.
Saudi Arabia's governor to the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) says the kingdom's oil export will be little changed this month, dealing a setback to US President Donald Trump who had pinned hopes on Saudis to reduce oil prices in global markets.

Adeeb al-Aama said in a statement on Thursday that the kingdom's July crude oil exports will be roughly in line with last month's total, which stood at nearly 500,000 barrels per day (bpd).

He added that Saudi Arabia's total supplies to the market are poised to drop by 100,000 bpd in August compared with July.

Aama further noted that Saudi Arabia will not substantially oversupply the market, dismissing concerns over an oil glut as baseless.

He asserted that Riyadh "does not try to push oil" into the market beyond customer needs.

Comment: For the moment at least, it seems Saudi is working in its own interests to boost the price of oil and increase its own profits, and US lobbying to strengthen its position in its sanction on Iran is falling on deaf ears:

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Propaganda

Dependent: Saudi Arabia hires UK's The Independent to create multi-language news outlets - A year after selling third of companies shares to Saudi investor


Press TV
Fri, 20 Jul 2018 08:41 UTC
Independent newspaper
British media corporation The Independent will launch four new website, including one in Persian, under a deal with Saudi Arabia. (File photo)
Saudi Arabia has hired the UK-based Independent media corporation to launch a slew of news websites in Persian and other languages.

Under the deal, the British outfit would create up to four websites for the Saudi Research and Marketing Group (SRMG), which is tied to the Saudi royal family and often promotes the regime's agenda,.

Despite ownership by the SRMG, the news outlets -- Independent Arabia, Independent Urdu, Independent Turkish, and Independent Persian -- would be owned and operated by SRMG and would follow the editorial standards of The Independent.

"Four new websites will offer the highest-quality, free-thinking, independent news, insight and analysis on global affairs and local events," the daily said in a statement.

Comment: It's highly likely Saudi Arabia with it's anti-Iranian stance has chosen to launch a Persian speaking news outlets in order to target Iranians with subversive propaganda. And with Saudi Arabia's flagrant and damning record of human rights abuses it's unlikley there'll be anything 'independent' featured on their news pages. As for The Independent in the UK, with the advent of the internet newspaper circulations have flatlined so it's no surprise they've sold their soul to the cash rich but apparently talent poor Saudi Arabia: Also check out SOTT radio's: Behind the Headlines: MBS Saudi Takeover Heralds End of the Petrodollar? Trump Does Asia, Asia Likes It

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Star of David

Oh please! Labour MP calls Corbyn 'anti-semite and racist'- because Israel


Press TV
Fri, 20 Jul 2018 11:34 UTC
Labour MP Margaret Hodge
Britain's Labour Party is reportedly preparing to take disciplinary action against veteran Jewish fellow member MP Margaret Hodge who launched a verbal attack against Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn on Tuesday.

According to media reports, a Jewish MP and former minister, subjected Corbyn to an expletive ridden rant in Parliament following the party's decision to reject an internationally recognized definition of anti-Semitism.

In what has been described as an extraordinary tirade, she called the Labour leader an "anti-Semite and a racist".

"I'm sorry you feel like that," Corbyn is reported to have responded after Hodge confronted him behind the Speaker's chair in the Parliament building on Tuesday night.

The confrontation was sparked after Labour decided to adopt a new code of conduct on anti-Semitism, meant to separate criticism of Israel and Zionist supporters from what is defined as anti-Semitism.

Comment: So, according to Margaret Hodge, if you don't support a certain nation that is proud to be racist and is now officially an apartheid state, then you are a racist. Go figure.

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MIB

False-flag? Mossad says it cooperated with MKO terror cult to 'uncover' bomb plot in Paris blamed on Iran


Press TV
Fri, 20 Jul 2018 11:04 UTC
MKO Maryam Radjavi Giuliani
© CSDA man looks on as head of anti-Iran terrorist group of MKO Maryam Radjavi and former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani pose for pictures during an MKO meeting in Paris, June 30, 2018.


Israel's main spy agency Mossad has openly acknowledged that it cooperated with the People's Mujahedin of Iran (MKO) terror group over a plot to implicate the Islamic Republic in what it said would be a bomb attack in Paris.

Mossad said it had worked with its Belgian, French and German counterparts to uncover an alleged cell that was planning to bomb a June 30 conference in the French capital organized by the MKO, Israeli website Headshot reported on Thursday.

According to the report, the cell was led by an Iranian diplomat based in the Austrian capital of Vienna. It was also consisted of two Belgian nationals and another alleged member in Paris.

All of the suspects, including the alleged diplomat and his wife, were arrested and charged with plotting the attack.

Comment: For the record, the MKO or MEK is a terrorist organization:
The United States, Iran and Terrorism
June 29, 2018

For reasons that defy logic, France will once again host an anti-Iranian terrorist group meeting this weekend. The oddly named People's Mojahedin Organization (most commonly known as the Mujahideen-e Khalq, but also operating under the following names and abbreviations: MEK PMOI, MKO, NCRI, Muslim Iranian Students Society, Organization of the People's Holy Warriors of Iran, the National Liberation Army, Sazeman-e Mujahideen-e Khalq Iran), which supports the violent overthrow of the democratically-elected government of Iran, will meet in Paris. This organization, in addition to having the blessing of the French government, is endorsed by United States Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo.

The MKO was once listed by the U.S. as a terrorist organization, but that designation was removed in 2012. This was a puzzling move when looked at on the surface. According to one report, by early 2016, "...out of the nearly 17,000 Iranians killed in terrorist assaults since the victory of Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution, about 12,000 had fallen victim to MKO's terrorist attacks." Some estimates put that number, and the number of MKO victims, much higher. Should an organization that has killed this many people in one country through terrorist activities not be designated a terrorist organization?

[...]

How serious are the crimes of this group? As early as 2003, one analyst said that "The leaders of MKO cult must be brought to justice in a court of crimes against humanity in a fair trial. The ICC (inThe Hague) is the proper place to give a fair trial for their atrocities against their own members and other Iranians." Of course, that was, according to the U.S., before the organization 'reformed', and was then removed from the U.S. terrorist list. So now it is simply a benign political organization, almost like a lobby group. So there.

In the summer of 2016, Saudi Arabia's former intelligence chief addressed the MKO conference, also held in Paris. His very presence indicated his support for an organization whose stated goal is the overthrow of the Iranian government.

[...]

And why doesn't the U.S. like some countries? Iran is its enemy because Iran is Israel's chief rival for power and influence in the Middle East, and pro-Israel lobbies in the U.S. have long since bought and paid for the U.S. Congress. Iraq had the nerve to place itself atop oil that the U.S. owned; well, maybe it didn't own it, but destroying Iraq enabled the U.S. to steal it, and also make a fortune for such characters as then Vice President Dick Cheney, whose company made billions on 'reconstruction'. Yemen resists annexation by Saudi Arabia, a nation that, like Israel, has an abominable human rights record, but spends millions on U.S. weaponry. The U.S. doesn't care who those weapons are used on, as long as they are bought from the U.S.

And so U.S. support for MKO makes perfect sense in the senseless world of U.S. governance. Add it to the long list of terror organizations that the U.S. has either established or supported. The innocent blood that is shed by MKO in Iran, and also in Yemen and other nations, matters not at all to the U.S. Its brutal geopolitical goals must be achieved; if that is over the dead bodies of innocent men, women and children around the world, so be it. Money and power are all that matters; human rights, international law and common decency be damned.


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Extinguisher

Rep. John Ratcliffe: Lisa Page gave significantly different testimony than Peter Stzrok

Ryan Saavedra
The Daily Wire
Tue, 17 Jul 2018 00:01 UTC
Lisa Page
© ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP/Getty Images
Congressional leaders have praised the testimony of former FBI agent Lisa Page in recent days and have said that they found her testimony to be very credible as some of them claim she gave a very different account of events than her former lover, disgraced FBI agent Peter Strzok.

Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-TX) told Fox News' Maria Bartiromo that there were "significant differences" in Page's testimony compared to the testimony given by Strzok and that she gave congressional investigators new information they did not previously have.

Comment: See also:

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Violin

The eulogy of a never ending Russiagate scandal

Elizabeth Vos
Disobedient Media
Tue, 17 Jul 2018 08:49 UTC
Apocalypse
© Christoph Niemann
From the latest joke-indictment by Robert Mueller to the hysterical press-coverage of the Trump-Putin summit, the way establishment media has been acting over the past week has been apoplectic. One might imagine, given their response, that the end was nigh and Putin personally commandeered the four horsemen of the apocalypse or something equally Biblical.

However, the certifiable insanity characterizing the media's reaction to these events is not the focus of this article. Instead, we ask, how is it that the Russiagate issue is still being discussed in the first place? How did we get here, to the verge of a neo-McCarthyist second-coming, despite all aspects of this issue being repeatedly dismissed in the light of evidence?

When we part the curtain of staged madness, designed to provoke fear in the gullible and outrage in the skeptical, what do we actually glimpse?

The reality is that Russiagate, the neoliberal war-cry, is only spurred on by a constant shift in narrative focus. Yesterday we saw farcical indictments; today we are consumed by a summit. If the pattern holds, then tomorrow we will be delivered a new take on Mifsud, tailored to deceive and mislead once again.

In a recent Memorandum to the President penned by Bill Binney and Ray McGovern, they noted: "We now have forensic evidence that shows the data provided by Guccifer 2.0 had been manipulated and is a fabrication."

Comment: Through the art of deception, thou shalt do war.

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Stop

UK security minister claims identification of suspects in Skripal case is 'wild speculation'


RT
Fri, 20 Jul 2018 05:49 UTC
UK Security Mnister Ben Wallace
© Tom Nicholson / Global Look Press
UK Security Minister Ben Wallace has dismissed claims police identified the suspects in the poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal in Salisbury as "wild speculation."

The Tory minister Tweeted, in response to the Press Association post, that the report "belongs in the ill informed and wild speculation folder."

It comes after the Press Association reported on Thursday morning that police had identified the suspects behind the nerve agent attacks against former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia. The pair were found on March 4 slumped on a bench after being exposed to the substance in the Wiltshire town of Salisbury.
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