Puppet MastersS


Bad Guys

Regime change as usual? Trump adviser is chair of National Endowment for Democracy

Joseph Thomas
New Eastern Outlook
Wed, 01 Mar 2017 19:11 UTC
Donald Trump
While supporters of recently elected US President Donald Trump believe steadfastly that among other things, his administration will role back what has been essentially a century of American expansionism worldwide through overt wars and more "covert" methods toward achieving "regime change," by all metrics it appears such methods will only expand.

Not only do observers note continued subversive activities coordinated through local US embassies around the world since Trump's presidency began, including across Southeast Asia as part of America's continued attempts to isolate and contain China, but also movement within US agencies charged with organising and financing this subversion, such as the US State Department's National Endowment for Democracy (NED).

Comment: Anyone who believes that Trump can end, or perhaps even wants to end, a centuries-long orientation to the world that has led to exploitation, genocide, and colonial expansion is probably engaging in wishful thinking. After all, isn't all of that what 'made America great'?

If anything, the main positive of a Trump presidency seems to be that Americans have a president who is at the very least 'almost human,' full of real emotions and foibles, and maybe even a sincere desire to make life better for his 'tribe'.

But sadly, in the world of politics, nothing is perfect and no one is immune to the corrupting influence of ponerization - a process that has been going on for a long time. We have a much bigger swamp than we think, and it seems to have a mind of its own.

Further reading:

Read More...
USA

SOTT Exclusive: 'Deep State' Tries to Trash Trump's 'Presidential Moment'

Joe Quinn
Sott.net
Wed, 01 Mar 2017 22:50 UTC
Carryn Owens
Carryn Owens, center, at Trump's first speech to congress.
So last night, el gran Trumpo addressed a joint shindig of Congress for the first time as President.

Read More...
Bad Guys

US accuses Russia of bombing 'their' rebels in Syria, Russia denies accusations


RT
Wed, 01 Mar 2017 20:33 UTC
Russia military Syria Su-24 Hmeimim airbase
© Maksim Blinov / SputnikA Russian Su-24 aircraft lands at the Hmeimim airbase in Syria.
Neither Russian nor Syrian air forces had bombed positions of Syrian Arab coalition fighters supported by Washington in Syria on Tuesday, Russia's Defense Ministry has said, rejecting accusations put forward by a US military commander.

The Russian military in Syria had been contacted by their American counterparts, who "expressed concern" that Russian and Syrian aircraft could "carry out an unintended strike" at positions of Washington-backed fighters during an anti-terrorist operation, the Russian ministry said.

"To avoid any incidents, the US representative has provided exact coordinates of the US-backed opposition forces in the region to a Russian officer," the ministry said in a statement on Wednesday, adding that the information was "taken into account" by the Russian military.
Read More...
Chess

Revenge for Brexit? UKIP civil war intensifies as party experiences 'major funding crisis'


RT
Wed, 01 Mar 2017 20:33 UTC
Douglas Carswell Nigel Farage
© Toby Melville / ReutersDouglas Carswell (L) speaks to Nigel Farage.
The civil war within the Brexit spearheading UK Independence Party (UKIP) is deepening, after its only MP and one-time Conservative was reportedly found to be holding chats with his former party about a possible return.

Internal fighting is nothing new to UKIP, but the current fracas could be the most serious yet, with Brexit possibly also leaving the party with a serious funding crisis.

Douglas Carswell, who defended himself on Wednesday by claiming he is "100 percent UKIP," was accused by the party's former leader Nigel Farage of lacking loyalty.
Read More...
Document

Trump's new immigration order to drop Iraq from travel-ban list, amends rules for Syrians


RFE/RL
Wed, 01 Mar 2017 00:00 UTC
Trump trav ban
© KY3
U.S. President Donald Trump's new immigration order will remove Iraq from the list of countries whose citizens would be temporarily barred from entering the United States, U.S. officials have told the Associated Press.

The decision followed pressure from the Pentagon and State Department, which had urged the White House to reconsider Iraq's inclusion given its key role in fighting the extremist group Islamic State (IS), according to several officials who talked to Associated Press on February 28.

Citizens of six other predominantly Muslim countries -- Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen -- will remain on the travel-ban list, said the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to discuss the order before it is signed. Those bans are effective for 90 days.

The new measure includes other amendments as well. The document no longer singles out Syrian refugees for an indefinite ban, the officials said. The order includes them instead as part of a general, 120-day suspension of new refugee admissions.

The officials also said the order will not contain any explicit exemption for religious minorities from the states targeted by the order ban. The Trump administration had been accused of adding such language to help Christians get into the United States while excluding Muslims.

Comment: Trump is not acting out of protocol on this issue. In recent decades, every president, upon coming into office, has addressed immigration with temporary bans. With the newly proposed changes, will the courts put this issue to rest? Will the public?

Read More...
Stop

Trumped? Recent poll shows CNN brand going down the tubes

Peter Hasson
Daily Caller
Tue, 28 Feb 2017 12:47 UTC
CNN sign
© Shutterstock
CNN's brand has continued to struggle.

CNN, which President Trump has referred to as the "Clinton News Network," now trails both MSNBC and Fox News in brand perception, according to findings from YouGov. Both MSNBC and CNN have fallen far behind Fox News in recent months.

Respondents were asked, "If you've heard anything about the brand in the last two weeks, through advertising, news or word of mouth, was it positive or negative?" Of the three cable networks, only Fox News scored a neutral brand perception. Both CNN and MSNBC were well in the negatives.
YouGov poll
© YouGov
"CNN's negative acceleration point happened in mid-October 2016, around the time Anderson Cooper interviewed Melania Trump, notably discussing her husband's famous 'Access Hollywood' tape," YouGov's Ted Marzilli notes. "Also at that time, a local North Carolina Republican office was firebombed, causing conservative-leaning media to pounce on CNN for suggesting Trump's rhetoric spurred the incident."

He concludes: "The big picture — going back to early 2016 — shows the possible toll particular news events, and being the recipient of incessant Trump bashing, may have taken on CNN." Trump has consistently singled out CNN for criticism, calling the network "fake news" — one of Trump's favorite labels for hostile news outlets.
Read More...
Clipboard

Mattis offers WH tentative plan for rapid defeat of ISIS

Richard Sisk
Military.com
Tue, 28 Feb 2017 00:00 UTC
James Mattis
© J. Scott Applewhite/APDefense Secretary James Mattis
Defense Secretary Jim Mattis presented a classified plan to the White House Monday for the rapid defeat of ISIS that was reportedly an updated version of the Obama administration's strategy of relying on local forces to carry the brunt of the fight. "It is a plan to rapidly defeat ISIS," said Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, but he stressed that "this is a preliminary plan" whose details will be closely held to allow for continued discussion and to avoid giving the enemy forewarning.

The plan called for the involvement of "all elements of national power" in what Davis called a "trans-regional approach" to defeating the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. "Diplomacy is a key part of the plan" that was focused on ISIS but was also shaped to include other "trans-regional" terrorist groups, Davis said. "This is really a framework for broader discussion."

The formulation of the plan fulfilled a campaign pledge by Trump, who had said that if elected he would order up a 30-day review on accelerated action to eliminate ISIS as a threat. On Jan, 27, Trump went to the Pentagon for the first time to sign an executive order directing Mattis to draw up the plan within 30 days.

At the White House, Mattis outlined the plan to the "Principals Committee" of the National Security Council, led by the new National Security Advisor, Army Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, Davis said. The Principals Committee included White House chief strategist Steve Bannon and other senior Trump advisers.

Comment: While there is surely both a broad and technical military plan afoot to eliminate ISIS et al, it should also include the domestic plan of removing all funding, weaponry, supplies and communication capabilities provided here-to-for by the Obama administration and friends...for starters.

Read More...
Stock Up

Economic agreements between Russia and Japan could avert Japanese crisis


Sputnik
Wed, 01 Mar 2017 16:12 UTC
PutinAbe
© www.nippon.com
Tokyo could benefit significantly from bilateral economic cooperation with Moscow if the two countries work together in the Kuril Islands, according to Sputnik Japan columnist Tatyana Khlon. Decades of economic stagnation, a shrinking population and competition from elsewhere in Asia have left Tokyo searching for growth opportunities, Sputnik Japan columnist Tatyana Khlon reported.

However, for years, Japan rejected the notion of cooperating with Russia to develop the contested archipelago. It was assumed that if Tokyo made a step towards Moscow, Japanese business people would have to clinch deals within the framework of Russian legislation, thereby recognizing Russia's control over the Kuril Islands, which Tokyo refers to as the Northern Territories.

However, Russian-Japanese relations have been improving since President Vladimir Putin visited Japan on December 15-16, 2016 and met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. It prompted some experts to speak of a new stage of bilateral relations.

According to them, there are signs that Japan is ready to develop bilateral economic cooperation in the Kuril Islands. The details have yet to be specified because both sides are looking for a mutually acceptable consensus on the matter. Importantly, Japan's new budget stipulated allocating funds for joint economic projects with Russia.

Comment: See also:

Read More...
Heart - Black

British-made weapons likely being used by child soldiers in Iraq, Syria & Yemen


RT
Wed, 01 Mar 2017 20:33 UTC
child kid Syria Yemen Afghanistan rubble
© Khaled Abdullah / Reuters
Rifles and other firearms made in Britain is possibly being used in wars involving child soldiers, including the conflicts in Syria, Yemen, and Iraq, a report authored by a group of European children's charities has warned.

The report - compiled by Terre des Hommes, Brot für die Welt, Kindernothilfe and the German Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers - found that German arms manufacturers Heckler & Koch (H&K) is using its UK subsidiaries as a way to bypass obstacles to arms exports.

H&K have been operating in Britain since the '70s when the Ministry of Defense (MoD) licensed the company to produce and assemble some of its weapons.

Comment: Further reading: UK argues that ending arms trade to Saudi Arabia 'carries serious political risks'

Read More...
Attention

US General Townsend anticipates Kurds 'will be involved' in liberating Raqqa from ISIS


RT
Wed, 01 Mar 2017 20:24 UTC
Kurdish soldier
© Rodi Said / Reuters
The general commanding the US-led coalition against Islamic State said that Kurds will be involved in liberating Raqqa, the IS capital. Kurdish militias are considered terrorists by Turkey, which is also angling for a role in the battle.

"I do anticipate there will be Kurds involved in Raqqa assault. There are Kurds from Raqqa," US Army Lieutenant General Stephen Townsend, commander of the Combined Joint Task Force for Operation Inherent Resolve (CJT-OIR), told reporters on Wednesday.

"There are going to be Kurds assaulting Raqqa for sure. The number, the size of them, and how many Kurdish units are participating in that, I can't really say right now," Townsend added, according to Reuters.
Read More...