Puppet MastersS


USA

US regime blames Afghan war failure on... Russia

Jonathan Marshall
Consortium News
Tue, 31 Oct 2017 00:00 UTC
Taliban publicity shot
© ReutersTaliban publicity shot?
Another part of the U.S. mainstream media's rash of Russia-bashing is to claim that Moscow is arming Afghanistan's Taliban, but again the evidence doesn't match the accusations.

News flash: The United States is supplying spiffy new Humvees and Ford Ranger pickup trucks to the Taliban, who brazenly parade their troops in those vehicles "without fear of being targeted by Afghan or Coalition forces," according to a senior fellow at the neoconservative Foundation for Defense of Democracies.

As Bill Poggio observed in the foundation's Long War Journal, "The Taliban displayed their military power in the contested district of Bakwa in a newly released video titled From the Fronts of Farah. The video which was released on the Taliban's propaganda website, Voice of Jihad, 'is dedicated to . . . showcasing the strength, control and advances of the Mujahideen of Islamic Emirate,' according to an accompanying statement."

Poggio concluded, more reasonably than I suggest in my opening sentence, that the trucks displayed in the Taliban video were "captured from Afghan Army and police units," not ordered directly by the Afghan insurgents out of a Pentagon catalog.

But U.S. officials have not shown the same good sense in their continued, but unsupported, denunciations of Russia for supplying the Taliban with assault rifles and other small arms.

Comment: The US needs Afghanistan...a geostrategic location adjacent to other designated military fronts. The US needs the Taliban...the ongoing cause to be there. MSM dutifully informs the public of all the flimsy reasons to maintain this facade, including blaming Russia.

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Attention

Khamenei: US is #1 enemy, Iran will never yield to it


RT
Thu, 02 Nov 2017 11:28 UTC
khameini
© Leader.ir / ReutersIran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khameini
Iran will never give in to its "number one enemy," which "uses all the wickedness" to undermine the 2015 nuclear agreement, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a statement. The broadside comes as US President Trump pushes ahead with his anti-Tehran policy.

"America is the number one enemy of our nation ... We will never accept their bullying over the nuclear deal," the supreme leader said Thursday, Reuters reports. "They are using all the wickedness to destroy the fruit of the nuclear talks," Khamenei added, referring to the pact, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), at a meeting with students in Tehran.

US hostility towards Iran "has blinded their calculation vision, leading them to repeat their mistakes," IRNA news agency quoted the supreme leader. Earlier this month, Trump decried the Islamic republic as "a terrorist nation like few others." Responding to that "foolish remark," Khamenei suggested the US "holds grudges and hostility toward the very existence of a tireless and resistant nation,"according to Tasnim news agency.

After lambasting the agreement as the "worst deal ever" on numerous occasions, Trump proceeded with his disavowal by decertifying the agreement in mid-October despite Tehran complying with its terms. The US president referred the matter to Congress, opening a 60-day window for lawmakers to consider whether to re-introduce sanctions on Tehran, which were lifted as a part of the treaty. The move triggered a wave of criticism from other signatories of the 2015 deal, including Russia, China, France, Germany and Britain. For its part, the Iranian government reiterated that it would stick to the pact, adding that it cannot be amended or renegotiated.

Comment: The US has doubled down on a weak and unpopular decision. Never a good strategy, especially considering Israel as the prod and source.

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Footprints

Four thousand US troops in Syria?

Shawn Snow
Military Times
Wed, 01 Nov 2017 00:00 UTC
USMilitarySyria
© ABC News"They're here..."
U.S. Army Maj. Gen. James B. Jarrard, the commander of the Special Operations Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve, told reporters at a televised press briefing on Tuesday that there were 4,000 U.S. troops in Syria, then quickly walked backed his answer.

The number of U.S. troops operating in Syria has been mystery since the start of the U.S.-led campaign to oust ISIS fighters from Iraq and Syria.

The Obama administration originally set what is referred to as Force Manning Levels, or FML. These numbers represent the maximum number of troops allowed in Iraq and Syria. The current FML for Iraq is 5,262 and 503 for Syria.

However, those numbers don't paint the actual picture of the size and scope of the U.S. footprint in either country. U.S. commanders on the ground have leeway to bring in extra troops for limited periods of time that don't count towards the total FML.

Comment: More like 30,000, including 'ISIS'.

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Flashlight

Killary's health problems during election covered by MSM, but RT is only news outlet under fire


RT
Thu, 02 Nov 2017 17:55 UTC
hillary bad health
© ReutersThe 68-year-old candidate with aides holding her arms as she ascends the stairs.
A congresswoman has asked if Trump was "mimicking" RT during his election campaign or vice versa, in relation to rumors about Hillary Clinton's poor health prior to the 2016 election. RT looks back at how the news emerged and who was first to report it.

Alleged meddling by Russia and collusion with Trump got a new angle during a senate committee hearing with tech giants this week. Now one of the senators is asking, "who was mimicking who?"

"One of the things we noted during the campaign was that, often times, the ads from the Trump campaign mimicked ads from the Russians," Republican Jackie Speier said on Wednesday. She asked if Google, Facebook, or Twitter investigators had looked at whether the Trump campaign was sharing Russian content or vice versa.

The congresswoman pointed out that presidential candidate Trump was questioning his rival's health, including on social media, while RT "hammered the message" in less than two weeks in September 2016. Speier mentioned Trump's tweet from August 2016, where he said that Clinton "doesn't have the strength or the stamina to make America great again."
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Smiley

Julian Assange trolls 'victim' John Podesta: 'Not sure they serve lobster risotto in prison'

Alex Christoforou
The Duran
Thu, 02 Nov 2017 17:18 UTC
Assange
© WND.com
Former Hillary Clinton campaign chair John Podesta went on Twitter to cry about being a "victim," of POTUS Trump, after Trump called the Podesta brothers out of hiding to release all the dirt they have on the Clinton mafia.
"The biggest story yesterday, the one that has the Dems in a dither, is Podesta running from his firm. What he know about Crooked Dems is...earth shattering. He and his brother could Drain The Swamp, which would be yet another campaign promise fulfilled. Fake News weak!"
President Trump tweeted Tuesday morning.

Comment: Further reading: Tucker Carlson: Podesta brothers and Manafort, not Trump, are 'central figures' in Mueller probe (UPDATE)

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Bad Guys

Big Bad Tillerson claims US will build additional 'de-escalation zones' in Syria

Alex Gorka
Strategic Culture
Thu, 02 Nov 2017 17:18 UTC
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson
© Mike Theiler / ReutersUS Secretary of State Rex Tillerson
In his testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on October 30, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson told lawmakers that the US is working to create additional de-escalation zones in Syria. The secretary did not say where exactly the zones will be built. It's logical to assume that the top diplomat meant the southern and south-eastern parts of Syria under the control of US-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and Kurdish militias.

The area accounts for about one third of the national territory with approximately 70% of hydrocarbons in Syria. Tillerson emphasized that he was not talking about demarcation zones to divide the country. He said the regime change was not the goal but the US executive will approach lawmakers for authorization to act against the government of Bashar Assad, if need be.
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Powertool

Robert Mueller can't stop Donald Trump - Here's why

StrategyCamp
Medium
Wed, 01 Nov 2017 17:28 UTC
Robert Mueller
© Reuters
Earlier this week, members of the left broke out their tubs of popcorn and champagne glasses to watch and celebrate the announcement of indictments of Paul Manafort and Rick Gates brought down by Robert Mueller. There was also a gleeful twitterstorm in reaction to the revelation that George Papadopoulos had already plead guilty and more indictments could be on the way.

Personally, I can't wait to see members of the Trump Administration go down in flames. I want to see the whole family be dragged down into the fiery abyss. Ivanka, Don, Jr., and Jared...all of them. Can you imagine Ivanka's prison line? I do. The orange jumpers, the make-unless mug shots, the Barbara Walters interview. All of it. But I digress...

As much as I anxiously await (and actively work towards) an end to the Trump Administration and this apparent detour down the darkest timeline - Robert Mueller can't stop Trump. He just can't. He can't unseat Trump, he can't impeach Trump, he can't arrest Trump, he can't send Trump to prison. Robert Mueller III - with every last ounce of his effort, authority, and stoic fortitude - cannot stop Trump.

I repeat: Robert Mueller can't stop Trump.

Why not?

Comment: This article gets points for stating the objectively true fact that an impeachment of Trump at this point in time is very unlikely - especially now that Trump seems to be dancing at the tune of the Deep State. Why remove a perfectly cooperative PR face?

On the other hand, the author and the left-wingers who are hoping to see Trump fall have failed to take a serious look at what would happen if their wish came true. Do they think that the alternatives would be any better? On whom are they counting to save the day? Mike Pence? Hillary Clinton??

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X

US Military censors key data on Afghan security forces growth and casualties

Thomas Gibbons-Neff
New York Times
Mon, 30 Oct 2017 15:49 UTC
Afghan commandos
© Shah Marai/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesAfghan commandos training on the outskirts of Kabul. Among the details redacted are the number of people in the Afghan National Army and police force, and how many have been wounded or killed.
The American military command in Afghanistan has decided to keep secret key figures related to the growth and progress of local security forces, redacting the numbers at the behest of Afghan officials from the latest report by the government's watchdog for spending.

The move clouds measures of progress for the Afghan security forces, the primary benefactor of the $120 billion that the United States has spent on reconstruction since the start of the war and the linchpin of President Trump's new strategy in Afghanistan. Backed by the American military and its NATO allies, the Afghans are responsible for turning the tide of the war against the Taliban in the coming years.

Among the details being kept private in the report are the number of people in the Afghan army and police force, how many of them have been wounded or killed and the state of their equipment.

Comment: In other words, the already horrendous situation in Afghanistan is getting worse, and the authorities don't want people to know just how bad it's become.

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Arrow Up

President Vladimir Putin's visit to Iran: 4 key messages

Adam Garrie
The Duran
Thu, 02 Nov 2017 17:15 UTC
Putin Khamenei
© Agence France-Presse
Iran and Russia continue to expand bilateral relations.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has been in the Iranian capital, Tehran for meetings with Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and President Hassan Rouhani.

The meetings which have been largely described as successful, coincided with the beginning of work on Iran's second nuclear power station, which will be constructed by Russian engineers and master builders.

Iran's Supreme Leader spoke positively of the meetings and encouraged Russia to join with Iran in developing alternatives to the US Dollar as a basis for international trade. Ayatollah Khamenei stated,
"By ignoring the negative propaganda of the enemies, that seek to weaken relations between countries, we can nullify US sanctions, using methods such as eliminating the dollar and replacing it with national currencies in transactions between two or more parties; thus, isolate the Americans".
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Megaphone

Ex-Killary spokesperson: Someone from Clinton campaign knew about dossier payments

Matt Vespa
Townhall
Wed, 01 Nov 2017 16:38 UTC
Former Clinton spokesperson Brian Fallon
Former Clinton spokesperson Brian Fallon
Well, the secret is out: The Hillary Clinton campaign, along with the Democratic National Committee, funded the unverified Trump dossier. Clinton and DNC lawyer Marc Elias hired research firm Fusion GPS, who then retained the services of former MI6 operative Christopher Steele to gather information on Trump from sources within the Kremlin. Former Clinton spokesperson Brian Fallon took to social media when the news was revealed last week, noting that he would have helped Steele gather information and held a James Comey-style press conference, like the one the ex-FBI director held during the Hillary email probe, to unveil its contents.

Many have noted that paying money to hire a firm that uses an ex-spy to gather information on one's political opponent from foreign sources is textbook collusion. Also, last week, Fallon, putting on his campaign spokesperson hat tried to say that the hiring of Fusion GPS by the Clinton campaign was different from Donald Trump Jr.'s meeting in June of 2016 with members supposedly speaking on behalf of the Russian government.
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