Puppet MastersS


Cult

George Soros' empire exposed: Billions for subversion, sabotage and strife


Sputnik
Mon, 30 Oct 2017 20:25 UTC
George Soros
© AP Photo/ Manuel Balce CenetaGeorge Soros, long an advocate of imposing more taxes on the wealthy, has himself amassed a massive fortune by delaying those very tax payments - but the bill may be about to come due
OSF officials told the Wall Street Journal that Soros transferred much of his considerable wealth to the organization over a period several years, although the exact sum remained a secret until Tuesday. The revelation makes Soros' OSF the second-largest 'philanthropic' organization in the US, behind the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the third largest in the world.

The revelation of the immense sums involved plays to fears voiced by Soros' political and ideological opponents. Inside the US and around the world, Soros and his civil society grant-making network have been at the heart of numerous controversies related to attempts to interfere with or manipulate democratic elections and other political processes through funding for 'democracy development', the media, youth initiatives, good governance, and minority rights.

United States

In the US, criticism against Soros has included accusations that the billionaire has been attempting to "destabilize" the country in the wake of Donald Trump's election. Last month, over 150,000 Americans signed a White House petition to have Soros declared a domestic terrorist and to strip him of his assets. The petition, which claims that Soros is using his wealth to try to "facilitate the collapse of the systems and constitutional government" in the US, has earned an official response from the White House, collecting over 50,000 signatures more than needed.
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Eye 1

Ukrainian Nazi volunteer battalions pledge 300 fighters to suppress 'Catalan separatism'

Eduard Popov / Translated by Jafe Arnold
Fort Russ
Mon, 30 Oct 2017 19:40 UTC
ATO Veterans Union
ATO Veterans Union
According to Ukrainian media reports from October 28th, the All-Ukrainian ATO Veterans Union has formed a battalion of volunteers to be sent to defend the unity of the Spanish state. Three representatives of Ukrainian Nazi volunteer battalions issued this announcement on behalf of the veterans' union, claiming that a corps of 300 militants has already been formed and armed to fight separatism in Catalonia.

The "spokesmen" expressed their support for the Spanish King and their appreciation of their "Spanish brethren" fighting alongside them against "separatism in East Ukraine." The video proclamation ended with a chant in Ukrainian similar to that of the National Socialist German Workers Party - "Spain above all!"

This message has since been published by all Ukrainian internet news resources, a fact which in and of itself speaks to the seriousness of this announcement.
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Attention

The danger and political economy of fascism

Louis Proyect
CounterPunch
Fri, 27 Oct 2017 00:00 UTC
TrumpEffect
© CNN Money
For all of the millions of words written about the fascist danger posed by Donald Trump, there are very few devoted to an actual analysis of fascist economics both as ideology and state policy. Instead there is a fixation on marchers in Charlottesville chanting "blood and soil" or other Nazi era memes. Before considering whether people like Donald Trump or Steve Mnuchin seek to impose a fascist dictatorship on the USA, it might be useful to take a look at some of the demands found in the Manifesto of the Fascist party founded by Benito Mussolini in 1919 that was co-written by labor syndicalist Alceste De Ambris and Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, the author of the 1909 Futurist Manifesto that had a powerful impact on Russian art in the 1920s.
  • The quick enactment of a law of the state that sanctions an eight-hour workday for all workers
  • A minimum wage
  • The participation of workers' representatives in the functions of industry commissions
  • To show the same confidence in the labor unions (that prove to be technically and morally worthy) as is given to industry executives or public servants
  • A strong progressive tax on capital (envisaging a "partial expropriation" of concentrated wealth)
  • The seizure of all the possessions of the religious congregations and the abolition of all the bishoprics, which constitute an enormous liability on the Nation and on the privileges of the poor
Unlike Donald Trump, whose populism was mostly campaign bluster and a rightwing version of the hokum Barack Obama used in 2007 to get votes, Mussolini's dictatorship could hardly be confused with the neoliberalism that has been hegemonic since the early 1970s under Republicans and Democrats alike.

Comment: The exploration of Trump's economic philosophy -- as compared in the historical contexts of fascism and neoliberalism -- is useful in order to delineate what is/is not Trump and as to where his approach might lead.

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Arrow Down

UN report made to fit the official narrative: Khan Sheikhoun victims hospitalized BEFORE claimed incident happened

b
Moon of Alabama
Sun, 29 Oct 2017 13:03 UTC
Idlib Syria chemical gas attack Khan Sheikhoun
© Edlib Media Center, via APThis frame grab from video provided on Tuesday April 4, 2017, by the Syrian anti-government group, the Edlib Media Center, shows an alleged victim of a suspected chemical attack as he receives treatment at a makeshift hospital, in the town of Khan Sheikhoun, northern Idlib province, Syria.
A UN commission concluded that the Syrian government is responsible for a widely discussed incident in Khan Sheikhoun. An alleged gas attack by air happened in April in an al-Qaeda controlled area in Syria. It was used by the White House to justify its bombing of a Syrian airbase.

The now released report was made to fit the narrative. The details below show that it was not the result of a serious investigation. This explains why Russia blocked the extension of the mandate of the reporting commission.

Comment: US now admits Syrian "rebels" have used chemical weapons

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Dollar

Europe contemplates ditching IMF and creating own fund


RT
Mon, 30 Oct 2017 10:00 UTC
EU stars figure
© Kai Pfaffenbach / Reuters
Relations between Europe and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which have carried out several bailout programs together, may change dramatically as the eurozone intends to replace the fund's presence in bailouts.

The European Commission plans to give more responsibility to the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) which helps eurozone countries to borrow money. The ESM will monitor and enforce compliance with bailout programs while continuing to disburse funds.

"The euro area is more resilient now than in years past... I believe the ESM should now progressively graduate into a European Monetary Fund which, however, must be firmly anchored in the European Union's rules and competences," Jean-Claude Juncker, European Commission president, told lawmakers in September.

Analysts say by creating its own IMF the eurozone will deepen links within the union and thereby become more resilient to financial shocks. The move would also make Europe independent from the IMF each time a euro currency country needs financial rescue.

Comment: Currently in the IMF, EU holds approximately 35% of the voting power.

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Eye 1

Trump accuses Killary and Dems of a 'Witch Hunt' aiming to distract from tax cuts


RT
Mon, 30 Oct 2017 08:27 UTC
Trump
© Sputnik News
Donald Trump has unleashed a tweetstorm against Clinton and the Democrats, accusing them of a "Witch Hunt" over his alleged ties with Russia and hinting their aim is to distract public attention from "historic tax cuts & reform."

[Tweet messages October 29:]
"Never seen such Republican anger and unity as I have concerning the lack of investigation on [Hilary] Clinton made Fake Dossier (now $12,000,000?) The Uranium to Russia deal, the 33,000 plus deleted Emails, the Comey fix and so much more," Trump wrote on Sunday.

..the Uranium to Russia deal, the 33,000 plus deleted Emails, the Comey fix and so much more. Instead they look at phony Trump/Russia,....

..."collusion," which doesn't exist. The Dems are using this terrible (and bad for our country) Witch Hunt for evil politics, but the R's...

...are now fighting back like never before. There is so much GUILT by Democrats/Clinton, and now the facts are pouring out. DO SOMETHING!

There is so much guilt by Democrats/ [Hilary] Clinton, and now the facts are pouring out," he added.

"The Democrats are using this terrible (and bad for our country) Witch Hunt for evil politics, but the Republicans are now fighting back like never before," he tweeted.

All of this "Russia" talk right when the Republicans are making their big push for historic Tax Cuts & Reform. Is this coincidental? NOT!
On Friday Trump said it was "commonly agreed" that there was no collusion between his presidential bid and the Russian government, adding that there "was collusion with [Hillary Clinton]!" He was apparently referring to the accusations that the Clinton Foundation received bribes in exchange for approving the 2010 sale of US uranium mines to a Canadian company owned by the Russian corporation Rosatom.

Comment: It is less likely the DNC wants to distract the public from tax cuts as much as it wants to deflect scrutiny away from its illegal activities.
See also:

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Attention

Sen. Collins demands Debbie Wasserman Shultz and John Podesta testify on Trump-Russia dossier


RT
Sun, 29 Oct 2017 23:11 UTC
PodestaclintonDWS
© unknown
Several top Democrats should be summoned to testify before the US Senate Intelligence Committee on the infamous Trump-Russia dossier, US Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) has said.

Her remarks were prompted by new revelations linking the file to the Democratic Party and the Clinton campaign. Collins, who is a member of the Senate's Intelligence Committee, was emphatic that Hillary Clinton's election campaign manager, John Podesta, and the former head of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), Debbie Wasserman Schultz, "absolutely need to be recalled."

She added that they were most likely aware of the Democrats role in the preparation of this document.

"It's difficult to imagine that a campaign chairman, that the head of the DNC would not know of an expenditure of this magnitude and significance. But perhaps there's something more going on here. But certainly it's worth additional questioning of those two witnesses," she told CBS' Face the Nation.

She said further that Marc Elias, a lawyer representing Hillary for America and the DNC, should be questioned "more than anyone." On Tuesday, the Washington Post alleged that Elias retained research firm Fusion GPS in April 2016 to continue research into Trump's alleged coordination with Russia; and which later became known as the Steele dossier.

Comment: The 'Russia-Trump Campaign Collusion' farce, and subsequent permutations of Russophobia, has taken center stage for over a year. One of its nearly successful effects was to camouflage, sidetrack and delay investigations into real sabotage taking place at the DNC.

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Snakes in Suits

Department of Justice says former Trump campaign aide lied to FBI agents


RT
Mon, 30 Oct 2017 19:27 UTC
Trump
© Mark Kauzlarich / Reuters
A former Trump campaign aide pleaded guilty to lying to federal agents during the investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller, the Department of Justice said Monday.

Attorney George Papadopoulos pleaded guilty on October 5 to making false statements to FBI agents in the probe examining allegations of Russian influence in the 2016 US presidential election.

Papadopoulos "made material false statements and material omissions during an interview with the Federal Bureau of Investigation that took place on January 27, 2017," said the complaint. He allegedly mislead the investigators "about the timing, extent and nature of his relationships and interactions with certain foreign nationals whom he understood to have close connections with senior Russian government officials."

According to the authorities, the campaign aide made numerous false statements and omitted material facts regarding the extent, timing, and nature of his communications with an "overseas professor" said to have "substantial connections" to Russian government officials; a female Russian national; and a man who "told defendant Papadopoulos he had connections to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA)." The three individuals were not named.
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Arrow Down

Rohani turned down meeting with Trump in September


RFE/RL
Mon, 30 Oct 2017 07:51 UTC
Rohani
© unknownPresident of Iran Hassan Rohani
The Iranian Foreign Ministry says President Hassan Rohani turned down a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump during his trip to the United Nations General Assembly in September.

The semiofficial ILNA news agency on October 29 quoted ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi as saying that "an intention was expressed by the American side that was not approved by President Rohani" during his visit to New York. The White House has not commented on the claim.

Rohani and Trump exchanged harsh words during their speeches at the annual UN Assembly. Trump called Iran "a corrupt dictatorship," while Rohani assailed the "rogue newcomers" in the U.S. administration.

The U.S. leader has consistently accused the Iranian government of supporting terror and insurgent groups throughout the Middle East. He has also said Tehran has broken the "spirit" of a 2015 landmark nuclear accord in which Iran agreed to curtail its nuclear activities in exchange for relief from international sanctions.

Washington and Tehran have not had diplomatic relations since 1979.

Comment: A well-deserved international snub, given the rhetoric, paranoia and animosity displayed by the US administration.

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Stock Up

Romania's Basescu criticizes EU defense spending, ridicules 'Russian threat'


Baltic Review
Sat, 28 Oct 2017 00:00 UTC
Traian Basescu
© Stiri pe surseFormer Romanian President Traian Basescu
In a speech October 26, former Romanian President Traian Basescu suggested there was no need for US forces and weaponry to be posted in Europe, and ridiculed the notion of a "threat" posed to the continent by Russia. His comments will almost inevitably be extremely unwelcome to NATO leaders.

Traian Basescu, Romanian President 2004 to 2014, said October 26 the integration of national armed forces across Europe into a cohesive unit was essential for the European Union to solve external security problems and improve internal defenses.

Speaking at a conference at the National Bank of Romania, "10 Years Since Romania's EU Accession," the popular reformist ex-President noted member states had 178 weapon systems, while the US had but 30.

"The EU can defend its eastern flanks on its own, provided the armed forces are integrated. An integration of defense research is essential. We're all spending money to find out the same thing. Sooner or later, taxpayers will ask, 'why are we investing so much money in defense and are unable to defend ourselves and crying for the Americans to come defend us?' " Basescu said.

He also implicitly ridiculed the notion of an existential "Russian threat" by noting the Russian Federation's defense budget totals US$66 billion, while EU member states had a collective total defense expenditure of US$263 billion.

"Poland is crying for the Americans to come, [saying] Russians are attacking us. Romania is also crying for the Americans to come. I can assure you the Americans will come to Europe anyway. Why do we feel we're not safe?" he explained.

Comment: Objectivity and big picture...two missing elements in the EU paranoia over Russia.

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