Puppet MastersS


Snakes in Suits

Obama brags about 'remarkable progress' of past 8 years: The data paints a slightly different picture

Tyler Durden
Zero Hedge
Mon, 02 Jan 2017 20:19 UTC
Obama looking up
As we close out 2016 and draw nearer to the end of Obama's 8 years in the White House, our commander-in-chief decided to celebrate by once again telling us all just how awesome he thinks he is via a lovely little tweet storm.

Of course, as he often does, POTUS decided to highlight the number of private sector jobs that were added under his presidency as proof of his "remarkable progress."
Read More...
Bad Guys

British lies and Aleppo: A secret no more

Jean Perier
New Eastern Outlook
Mon, 02 Jan 2017 20:13 UTC
Aleppo, Syria
© Omar Sanadiki / Reuters
The sitting British officials remain ignorant of the fact what kind of disservice the Obama administration has made them by demanding London to repeat the twisted lies the former has been spreading. Both David Cameron and Theresa May have always been obedient disciples of the White House, therefore they chose to spread tedious lies and disinformation in a bid to justify the failure of their social and economic policies, while hiding from the public the fact that Britain is responsible for a number of armed conflicts in the Middle East and Africa.

As a result, a considerable number of media sources and non-governmental organizations have been tasked with creating the image of a dangerous enemy looming somewhere on the borders, to cover corruption and looting of the UK treasury, that are now being labeled as "necessary measures taken for the protection from external threats."

The British Independent would become pretty apologetic by claiming:
The foreign media has allowed - through naivety or self-interest - people who could only operate with the permission of al-Qaeda-type groups such as Jabhat al-Nusra and Ahrar al-Sham to dominate the news agenda.
So it's now the fault of pro-Western radical militants that the corporate media were publishing one lie after another about the situation in Aleppo, and Western governments had nothing to do with the fact that those who reported facts about the situation on the ground would soon be kidnapped and executed. Thus, the Independent openly admits, that radical jihadists were allowed to shape the media coverage of Western media sources completely. But then the Independent takes a step further in admitting what has been happening all along in Syria:

Comment: See also:

Read More...
Info

Angela Merkel to skip Davos again amid blowback against 'Global Elite'

Tyler Durden
Zero Hedge
Mon, 02 Jan 2017 19:50 UTC
Angela Merkel
Last week we were surprised to learn that demand for hotel rooms at the annual World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, where the world's billionaires, CEOs, politicians, celebrities and oligarchs mingle every year (while regaled by their public relations teams known as the "media", for whom getting an invite to the DJ event du jour is more important than rocking the boat by asking unpleasant questions) was so great, not only are hotel rooms running out, but local employees may be put up in shipping containers in car parks to free up much needed accommodations.

This scramble to attend what has traditionally been perceived as the hangout for those who have benefited the most from "peak globalization" was in some ways surprising: coming after a year in which "populism" emerged as a dominant global force, while sending establishment politics, legacy policies and even globalization reeling, the message - in terms of lessons learned from 2016 - sent to the masses from the world's 0.1% was hardly enlightened.

However, while most Davos participants remain tone deaf, one person has gotten the message loud and clear.
Read More...
Info

UN Syria envoy adviser says Moscow will not accept foreign long-term occupation of Syria


Sputnik
Mon, 02 Jan 2017 19:31 UTC
Syrian flag over Damascus
© REUTERS/ Omar Sanadiki
Moscow will not tolerate long-term occupation of any part of Syria, despite accepting Ankara's military operation in the north of the country, Vitaly Naumkin, an adviser to the UN special envoy for Syria, said Monday.

Since August 2016, Turkish forces have been conducting a military operation to clear northern Syria of Daesh, with the Syrian Kurds and Damascus accusing Ankara of violating Syria's territorial integrity.

"Of course, Moscow has made some concessions to Ankara by reacting very gently to the de facto establishment of a buffer zone in the north of Syria. There was no harsh reaction from Russia, but it does not mean that Moscow... will accept that some part of Syria is occupied by a foreign state for a long time, regardless of which state it is," Naumkin told RIA Novosti.
Read More...
Star of David

The mask is off: Human Rights Watch says Israeli officials back shoot-to-kill policy of Palestinian suspects

Harriet Agerholm
The Independent
Mon, 02 Jan 2017 19:16 UTC
Israel shoot on sight palestinians
© ReutersA supporter of Elor Azaria, an Israeli soldier charged with manslaughter by the Israeli military after he shot a wounded Palestinian assailant as he lay on the ground holds a placard during a protest calling for his release
'No attacker, male or female, should make it out of any attack alive,' says defence minister

Leading Israeli officials have been encouraging soldiers and police officers to kill Palestinians suspected of attacks regardless of whether lethal force is necessary, according to a new report by a leading human rights organisation.

Human Rights Watch has compiled numerous statements by senior members of Benjamin Netanyahu's administration and the country's police force, which appear to endorse using lethal force against suspects, irrespective of whether anyone is in danger.

International human rights law limits lethal force to circumstances in which it is necessary to protect life, and in which no other less extreme option is available.

"It's not just about potentially rogue soldiers, but also about senior Israeli officials who publicly tell security forces to unlawfully shoot to kill," said Sari Bashi, Israel advocacy director at Human Rights Watch.
Read More...
Attention

Turkey at the crossroads following Istanbul shooting

Alexander Mercouris
The Duran
Mon, 02 Jan 2017 19:10 UTC
Istanbul shooting
There are no quick or easy solutions to Turkey's terrorism crisis. However if the crisis is to be overcome Turkey urgently needs to reconcile with Syria and Iraq, in order to secure peace and establish good neighborly relations with these countries, ending the threat of Jihadi terrorism spreading to its territory. Turks also urgently needs to focus on the fight against ISIS, work for better relations with Russia, and in the long term seek reconciliation with the Armenians and the Kurds.

The murderous attack on New Year's Day on a nightclub in Istanbul is merely the latest in a string of terrorist attacks in Turkey.

Responsibility for the New Year's Day attack has been claimed by ISIS. ISIS has also claimed responsibility for previous terrorist attacks in Ankara in October 2015 (which killed 100 people) in January and March 2016 in Istanbul, on Ataturk airport in Istanbul in June 2016 (which killed 45 people) and in August 2016 in Gaziantep (which killed 54 people).
Read More...
Stock Down

SOTT Exclusive: Hillary Clinton's "Trumped Up Trickle Down"

J. Martin
Sott.net
Mon, 02 Jan 2017 20:09 UTC
Hillary Clinton trumped up trickle down
In her second presidential debate, Hillary Clinton made reference to the 'economic theory' of "trickle down", claiming that The Donald planned to implement "the most extreme version" of trickle down economics "all over again." She decided to name it "Trumped Up Trickle Down."

There's just one problem: There is no such thing as "trickle down economics."

Politics is a game of rhetoric, of clever catch phrases. Chairman Mao, in his book The Art of War(Amazon Link), insisted the most important thing was to have your slogans ready. Nothing beats a good soundbite, least of all facts.

It's a common tactic in a debate to represent an inaccurate caricature of your opponent's position because it is easier to attack a cartoon than a reality, but in the case of "trickle down economics", no such position exists, and it never has.

That's right, this has been a hollow and caricatured talking point for almost a century in the United States, and the use of this term has only grown. Obama used it, Bernie Sanders used it, The Young Turks used it.
Read More...
Info

Former Egyptian State Council's Secretary-General commits suicide while in custody for corruption charges


Sputnik
Mon, 02 Jan 2017 18:52 UTC
Egyptian prison
© AFP 2016/ MOHAMED EL-SHAHEDEgyptian prison
Former Secretary-General of Egypt's State Council Wael Shalaby committed suicide, while in custody amid corruption charges, local media reported Monday.

Egypt's authorities detained Shalaby on Sunday just after he had resigned from his post on Saturday.

Shalaby killed himself on Sunday soon after the detention within the framework of investigation on corruption activities, the Ahram Online news website reported, citing a source at Egypt's State Security Prosecution.

According to the media outlet, Gamal Laban, yet another high-ranking official of the State Council, responsible for procurement issues, was also detained and charged with taking bribes in December 2016.
Read More...
Magnify

Newly released FBI document shows active probe of support network for 9/11 hijackers continued in 2012

Dan Christensen
Florida Bulldog
Fri, 18 Dec 2015 17:52 UTC
pentagon 911
The Pentagon after 9/11 - notice any plane wreckage?
As late as October 2012, federal prosecutors and FBI agents in New York City were actively exploring filing charges against a suspect for providing material support to the 9/11 hijackers and other crimes.

The suspect's identity and many details of the New York investigation are blanked out of a FBI summary report that discusses "Updates and Initiatives (as of 5 October 2012)" about 9/11. The document was released to Florida Bulldog amid ongoing Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) litigation that seeks access to records of the 9/11 Review Commission.

The report was heavily redacted for national security, privacy and other reasons. But the report's declassified portions indicate the New York investigation targeted an apparent U.S. support network for two of the 9/11 suicide hijackers - Saudis Nawaf al-Hazmi and Khalid al-Mihdhar - who with three other terrorists crashed American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon.

"This has never been disclosed before and it's to the contrary of everything the FBI has produced so far that has indicated that 9/11 is history," said former Sen. Bob Graham, D-FL, who co-chaired Congress's Joint Inquiry into the terrorist attacks. "It's interesting that it took them 11 years to get there, and a FOIA to get this information to the public."

The report, originally classified secret, is marked "declassify on 12-31-2037."

Comment:

Read More...
Jet5

US-led coalition admits to killing 188 civilians in Iraq and Syria


Sputnik
Mon, 02 Jan 2017 18:33 UTC
US-jets-over-Iraq
Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTF-OIR) admitted that the US-led coalition likely killed 188 civilians in Iraq and Syria since the start of the operation against Daesh terrorist group, CJTF-OIR said in a statement on Monday. The CJTF-OIR stressed that among the 16 reports it received in November 2016 about possible civilian casualties from the coalition strikes in Iraq and Syria, 13 were assessed as non-credible, five were labeled credible and five more were still being assessed.

The coalition airstrikes against Daesh targets, which together resulted in the unintended death of 15 civilians, occurred in the Iraqi cities of Shahid-Yunis As Sab on November 6, Mosul on November 26 and 29, and in Syrian Salahiyah on November 21 and Raqqa on November 26, according to the statement.

"To date, based on information available, CJTF-OIR has assessed that, it is more likely than not, at least 188 civilians have been unintentionally killed by coalition strikes since the start of Operation Inherent Resolve. CJTF-OIR regrets the unintentional loss of civilian lives resulting from coalition efforts to defeat ISIL [Daesh] in Iraq and Syria and express our deepest sympathies to the families and others affected by these strikes," the statement said.

The US-led coalition of more than 60 nations has been conducting airstrikes against Daesh in Syria and Iraq since 2014. The strikes in Syria have not been authorized by the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad or the UN Security Council.

Comment: The world knows the US body count is much, much higher!

Read More...