Puppet MastersS


Attention

Five variables defining our future

Pepe Escobar
Sputnik News International
Thu, 25 Jan 2024 14:14 UTC
Night World
© CC0 / /
In the late 1930s, with WWII in motion, and only months before his assassination, Leon Trotsky already had a vision of what the future Empire of Chaos would be up to.

"For Germany it was a question of 'organizing Europe'. The United States must 'organize' the world. History is bringing mankind face to face with the volcanic eruption of American imperialism...Under one or another pretext and slogan the United States will intervene in the tremendous clash in order to maintain its world dominion.

"We all know what happened next. Now we are under a new volcano that even Trotsky could not have identified: a declining United States faced with the Russia-China "threat". And once again the entire planet is affected by major moves in the geopolitical chessboard.

The Straussian neocons in charge of US foreign policy could never accept Russia-China leading the way towards a multipolar world. For now we have NATO's perpetual expansionism as their strategy to debilitate Russia, and Taiwan as their strategy to debilitate China.

Yet in these past two years, the vicious proxy war in Ukraine only accelerated the transition towards a multipolar, Eurasia-driven world order.

With the indispensable help of Prof. Michael Hudson, let's briefly recap the 5 key variables that are conditioning the current transition.
The Decline of the West

Sputnik columnist Pepe Escobar reviews French historian Emmanuel Todd's latest book, which focuses on the key reasons that have led to the West's downfall.

Among them: the end of the nation-state; de-industrialization (which explains NATO's deficit... pic.twitter.com/N7zbXn60CF

— Sputnik (@SputnikInt) January 18, 2024
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Life Preserver

US asks China for help with Houthis & Red Sea blockade, China reminds journalists 'Gaza conflict' to blame


Reuters
Wed, 24 Jan 2024 12:16 UTC
shipping yemen
© Houthi Military Media/Handout via REUTERSFILE PHOTO: The Galaxy Leader cargo ship is escorted by Houthi boats in the Red Sea in this photo released November 20, 2023.
The United States has asked China to urge Tehran to rein in the Iranian-aligned Houthi rebels attacking commercial ships in the Red Sea but has seen little sign of help from Beijing, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday, citing U.S. officials.

The U.S. has repeatedly raised the matter with top Chinese officials in the past three months, the report said.

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan and his deputy, Jon Finer, discussed the issue in meetings this month in Washington with Liu Jianchao, head of the International Liaison Department of China's Communist Party, the newspaper said.

Comment: Reuters questioned China's Foreign Ministry on the issue; below is the response in brief, followed by the text in full:

Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin's Regular Press Conference on January 24, 2024

Reuters: The Financial Times reported that the United States has asked China to urge Tehran to rein in the Iranian-aligned Houthis attacking commercial ships in the Red Sea, but has seen little sign of help from Beijing. This is according to US officials. The report said the US has repeatedly raised the matter with top Chinese officials in the past three months. Could we confirm with the Ministry if these discussions with the US took place? Has China been in touch with Iran or the Houthis about the Red Sea attacks? If so, what was discussed or any outcomes that China is hoping for?

Wang Wenbin: We are deeply concerned over the recent rapid escalation of tensions in the Red Sea. The Red Sea is an important international trade route for goods and energy. China has been in close communication with various parties and worked actively to alleviate the tension in the Red Sea. China calls for a stop of causing disturbance to civilian ships, and urges relevant parties to avoid adding fuel to the fire in the Red Sea and jointly safeguard the safety of the Red Sea shipping route in accordance with the law. It must be stressed that the tension in the Red Sea is a manifestation of the spillover of the Gaza conflict. The priority now is to end the fighting in Gaza as soon as possible to avoid further escalation and prevent the situation from getting out of control. In the meanwhile, we believe that the Security Council has never authorized the use of force by any country on Yemen and the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Yemen and other coastal countries of the Red Sea need to be earnestly respected. China stands ready to work with all parties to help cool down the situation and safeguard the security and stability of the Red Sea region.
Indeed. Those same criminal, aggressor nations haven't sought authority from their respective democracies, either.

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Hourglass

Casino capitalism and the Trillions of dollars derivatives market: Time for another 'Lehman moment'?

Ellen Brown
Scheerpost
Mon, 15 Jan 2024 00:00 UTC
derivatives world
Reading the tea leaves for the 2024 economy is challenging. On January 5th, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said we have achieved a "soft landing," with wages rising faster than prices in 2023. But critics are questioning the official figures, and prices are still high. Surveys show that consumers remain apprehensive.

There are other concerns. On Dec. 24, 2023, Catherine Herridge, a senior investigative correspondent for CBS News covering national security and intelligence, said on "Face the Nation," "I just feel a lot of concern that 2024 may be the year of a black swan event. This is a national security event with high impact that's very hard to predict."

What sort of event she didn't say, but speculations have included a major cyberattack; a banking crisis due to a wave of defaults from high interest rates, particularly in commercial real estate; an oil embargo due to war; or a civil war. Any major black swan could prick the massive derivatives bubble, which the Bank for International Settlements put at over one quadrillion (1,000 trillion) dollars as far back as 2008. With global GDP at only $100 trillion, there is not enough money in the world to satisfy all these derivative claims. A derivative crisis helped trigger the 2008 banking collapse, and that could happen again.
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Eagle

US focused on forming servile colonial administration in Ukraine, Russian intel chief says


TASS
Mon, 22 Jan 2024 03:36 UTC
Russian Foreign Intelligence Service Director Sergey Naryshkin
© Alexander Shcherbak/TASSRussian Foreign Intelligence Service Director Sergey Naryshkin
According to Sergey Naryshkin, the US has demanded that the Ukrainian president "should on one pretext or another dismiss senior officials who have lost the White House's trust"

The US has started to form a colonial-style administration in Ukraine, Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) Director Sergey Naryshkin said.

"The United States has started to form an actual colonial administration in Ukraine as part of a policy aimed at completely subordinating the country," he pointed out in a statement released by the SVR. "According to Washington's plan, the administration will consist of Ukrainians who were trained in the West and have sworn allegiance to US interests," Naryshkin added.

Comment: The US military / intelligence / political elites / vulture capitalists facilitated much of Ukraine's destruction - and now these pathological groups want to assume complete control of it, its resources, and all its geopolitical capital. See also:

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Dollar Gold

Nikki Haley's New Hampshire director lobbied for dark money giant that helped Biden win 2020 election

Gabe Kaminsky
Washington Examiner
Sat, 20 Jan 2024 00:00 UTC
Nikki haley
© Robin Opsahl/Iowa CapitalDisgraceful former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley spoke to a crowd at Avacentre in Cedar Rapids Oct. 20, 2023
The New Hampshire state director for Republican Nikki Haley's presidential campaign lobbied in 2020 for a Democratic dark money organization that spent millions of dollars that year willing Joe Biden to the White House, among other left-wing groups, documents show.

Tyler Clark, who became Haley's 2024 state director for the Granite State late last year, is listed on lobbying disclosures filed in New Hampshire as working in 2020 on behalf of Sixteen Thirty Fund, a nonprofit group managed by Arabella Advisors, the largest liberal dark money network in the United States. Sixteen Thirty Fund, which is being investigated by the Washington, D.C., attorney general's office over financial mismanagement allegations along with the broader Arabella network, doled out more than $410 million in 2020 to boost Democrats and help unseat former President Donald Trump, all thanks to billionaire donors such as George Soros.

The top Haley campaign staffer's ties to Sixteen Thirty Fund could become a major liability for the ex-U.N. ambassador, who, along with Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), will compete Tuesday in the New Hampshire primary. Clark, the former New Hampshire state director for Trust in the Mission, a super PAC allied with failed GOP White House hopeful Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), also lobbied as recently as last year for New Hampshire's chapters for the American Civil Liberties Union and American Federation of Teachers, two groups conservatives often criticize for purportedly operating as arms of the Democratic Party, according to lobbying disclosures.
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Bad Guys

US planning to withdraw from Syria as it 'reconsiders its priorities' - Foreign Policy magazine


Saba
Thu, 25 Jan 2024 01:45 UTC
US embassy baghdad attack
FILE: US bases in Iraq and Syria have come under near-daily attacks by Iraqi resistance factions since mid-October 2023.
The American magazine Foreign Policy revealed on Wednesday that the United States is planning to withdraw from Syria, as the American administration is reconsidering its military priorities in the region.

The newspaper said: Since the Hamas attack on October 7, "tensions and hostilities throughout the Middle East have reached their peak."

It added: "With the emergence of such a complex regional crisis, it should not be surprising for the Biden administration to reconsider its military priorities in the region," noting that "however, there should be great concern that this may involve a complete withdrawal of US forces from Syria.

Comment: Evidently what the US is scheming is much more important than its plundering of Syria's oil reserves, which, as the West continues to suffer from the energy crisis, is ominous indeed.

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Arrow Up

Mad dogs and American presidents?

Julian MacFarlane
News Forensic
Wed, 24 Jan 2024 22:33 UTC
Scott Horton: Why Do Presidents Kill? (youtube.com)


One of my Palestinian friends has sent me a link to this video with the "Judge" interviewing Scott Horton.

Just in case you thought I was a little over the top calling Biden a "murderer" and criticizing the US for its "kill kill kill" mindset, Scott Horton lays out supportive evidence in detail.

The "Judge" (Napolitano) answers the question of "Why do Presidents kill?" saying":

a. because they can get away with it

b. because it's politically useful.

Both of these things are true but....

Unfortunately, Napolitano does not answer the more important question which is why?

Why can they get away with it? And why do they think it's politically useful when actually it's not?

Anwar Nasser Abdulla al-Awlaki
© News ForensicsAnwar Nasser Abdulla al-Awlaki.
For example, Horton gives the example of Anwar Nasser Abdulla al-Awlaki in 2011 whose death Obama ordered in Yemen, despite him posing no threat to national security of the United States. He was condemned to death for speaking against the official narrative, just as Julian Assange did.... Unlucky he was accused of being a leader real evidence is only unproven allegations.

Awlaki was accused of being an Al Qaeda "leader" — although there is no real evidence — only unproven allegations — rather like the accusations made against Assange. Anwar was a just a preacher pontificating as preachers do.

He had condemned the 9/11 attack and briefly worked with the US government — but became increasingly upset about American attacks on the Muslim world, Gitmo, -and other provocations — especially the Palestinian issue.

Palestinian Protesters
© News Forensics
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Bad Guys

Caught between the Ukrainian people and the war for NATO expansion: Kiev's mobilization crisis

Gordon Hahn
gordonhahn.com
Fri, 19 Jan 2024 21:53 UTC
Ukraine abduction
Ukraine's Maidan regime is in the grips of multiple crises. The most recently developing one is the need to conduct a mass mobilization of the Ukrainian people to the increasingly collapsing frontlines in order to continue the war for and (in Russia's case) against NATO expansion. The hot potato of promoting a mass mobilization of new military recruits for the Ukrainian army continues to leave Kiev's politicians with tender fingers and scarred reputations among the public. The issue of the mobilization has the potential to destroy the Maidan regime by provoking a revolt by society or at least some societal elements and/or provoke a regime split and military or palace coup against the Zelenskiy administration. The potential of further regime spitting is high given an already dividing regime, eating itself over the failure of the war effort and potentially of the Ukrainian state itself. A regime split does not only set the stage for a coup attempt, but it poses the threat of weakening the regime by defectors who join societal opposition elements angered by the injustices of the present draft system and now a likely even more draconian mass mobilization law. Just the pre-adoption debate of daft bills is provoking popular indignation and opposition and ultimately could spark outright revolt.

At the same time, a mass mobilization of some sort and scale is imperative if Ukraine is to avoid capitulation or at least negotiations of a few issues tertiary for Moscow probably destined for late this year or early next year. The issue of whether to talk with or capitulate to Moscow is even more explosive than mobilization, the latter being a stopgap measure before the former. In short, Ukraine has been driven into a corner by the West's insistence on war in order to secure the right to expand NATO wherever Washington and Brussels prefer.
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Brain

Social Media goes ballistic as Biden speech devolves into word soup and supporters clap 'like brainless seals'

Bryan Lyman
Daily Caller
Wed, 24 Jan 2024 10:26 UTC
Joe Biden
© Screenshot Twitter Trump War Room
Social media went ballistic after President Joe Biden gave a speech that devolved into a word salad bad enough to rival his vice president and yet his supporters clapped enthusiastically.

Biden, speaking alongside Vice President Kamala Harris at a rally in Virginia on Tuesday, tried to emphasize the issue of abortion heading into the 2024 race.

"We'll teach Donald Trump a valuable lesson, don't mess with the women of America unless you want to get the benefit," Biden said, slurring the entire time and forcing people who are transcribing it to listen several times.

Yet for some reason, the crowd went BALLISTIC. Enthusiasm not seen for Biden since, well, never.

But social media sleuths took Biden to task for his speech.

Comment: Politicians 'talk a lot' but 'say little'. In this case it really leaves you open-mouthed. If you didn't know any better, you'd think it was a satirical comedy.

See also:

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Light Saber

Court Ruling: Federal Government acted illegally in responding to 2022 Freedom Convoy


Justice Centre
Wed, 24 Jan 2024 21:27 UTC
Freedom Convoy, Ottawa, Canada
The Justice Centre is pleased to announce that the legal and constitutional challenge against the first-ever invocation of the Emergencies Act, filed as Jost et al. v. Canada, has been decided in favour of the citizens who participated in the peaceful 2022 Freedom Convoy in Ottawa. The Justice Centre provided lawyers for these Canadians, who launched a court action within ten days of the Emergencies Act being invoked, and who sought a court declaration that the Emergencies Act was invoked without legal justification.

The constitutional challenge to the invocation of the Emergencies Act was filed on behalf of four Canadians who had participated in the peaceful Freedom Convoy protest in Ottawa in January and February 2022. They are Jeremiah Jost, a 28-year-old contractor and volunteer firefighter from Alberta; Edward Cornell, a 64-year-old retired military veteran from New Brunswick; Rev. Harold Ristau from Ontario, a former Canadian Armed Forces chaplain and retired officer with Canadian Special Operations Forces Command; and Vincent Gircys, a retired, decorated member of the Ontario Provincial Police.

The Emergencies Act was invoked on February 14, 2022, by the Federal Cabinet to shut down the Freedom Convoy protest. Each of the plaintiffs suffered significant harm during the militaristic police crackdown that began on February 18, 2022. Two of the applicants represented by the Justice Centre had their bank accounts frozen and seized, without judicial authorization or a review process, under laws that normally apply only to terrorists and enemy nations.

Edward Cornell said his experience having his bank accounts seized was traumatic. "I broke no law, yet the government seized my accounts and froze my hard-earned money. I am not a criminal. I am not a terrorist. I am a retired Canadian military veteran who honourably served his country... I feel betrayed by my own government," he added.

Comment: It's not much, but it's something!

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