Puppet MastersS


Chess

CrossTalk on RT: The Yemen "template of success"


RT
Wed, 01 Apr 2015 18:09 UTC
Amazingly the Obama administration still calls Yemen a "template" of success when it comes to its counterterrorism efforts. Closer to the truth is probably still another poorly thought out foreign policy adventure. And double standards abound - what is deemed legitimate for Yemen is denied in the case of Ukraine.


Comment: Some interesting contrasts drawn between the response of the US to the toppling of the legitimately elected leader of the Yemen vs the response to the toppling of the legitimately elected leader of the Ukraine. Bottom line, there is no pretense of consistency. Whatever course appears to preserve US hegemony is the one they will follow. Without this lens, the actions of the US appear incomprehensible to normal people.

Read More...
Pirates

While millions of Syrians starve, Islamic State destroys shipment of US-made halal chicken


RT
Thu, 02 Apr 2015 17:41 UTC
Image
© Reuters/Stringer
The so-called Islamic State intercepted and destroyed hundreds of boxes of US-produced chicken, which had been part of a humanitarian aid convoy bound for people starving in war-torn Syria.

On Wednesday, the group posted pictures of men and children setting fire to the boxes in the town of Akhtarin in northern Syria, according to the SITE jihadist monitoring service. The militants claimed the chicken had been "slaughtered unlawfully." According to the boxes' labels, however, the chicken was halal, meaning slaughtered in accordance with Islamic law. The boxes are emblazoned with the Illinois-based Koch Foods logo.

Comment: Islamic State winning hearts and minds.

Read More...
Light Sabers

What transatlantic renaissance? US-EU relations falling apart at the seams


Sputnik
Thu, 02 Apr 2015 17:23 UTC
Obama sad
While the US President urges his Western allies to rally support for Washington's stance on the most burning international issues, he should not be surprised that consensus is hard to come by, notes David J. Karl, pointing to the fact Barack Obama has repeatedly snubbed the continent's leaders.

The "continuing ructions" in the US relations with its Western allies caused by Obama's failure to develop strong ties with European leaders have ultimately overshadowed Washington's plan of a "transatlantic renaissance," David J. Karl, president of the Asia Strategy Initiative, an analysis and advisory firm, pointed out.

"[In 2008] speaking before a massive crowd assembled in Berlin's "Tiergarten", [President Obama] grandly vowed to "remake the world once again," this time in a way that allies would "listen to each other, learn from each other and, most of all, trust each other." That pledge is now so yesterday that Mrs. Merkel is reportedly longing for the days of George W. Bush," the expert emphasized.

Barack Obama has repeatedly snubbed the European leaders, Mr. Karl pointed out.

Instead of taking a chance to demonstrate to the world US-NATO solidarity, Barack Obama "in fact deliberately" missed an opportunity to meet with the new NATO Chief, Jens Stoltenberg, in Washington last week.

Comment: With friends like the United States, eh? No, the US does not do consultation. There is no partnership and that should at least be apparent in the disdainful attitude the Obama administration demonstrates towards Europe. How long will Europe accept their chains while on board the USS sinking ship?

Read More...
Dollars

Serbia's path to EU acquiescence dependent on toeing the line on Russia

Lenta.ru
Russia Insider
Thu, 02 Apr 2015 16:52 UTC
Image
Mogherini wants Serbia to align with policy led by her.
Serbia has applied for EU membership but has not followed the EU in instituting sanctions against Russia.

This article originally appeared at Lenta.ru. Translated for RI by Aleksei Shestyan.

Federica Mogherini, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, has stated that the priority of the European Union is to "open the first chapter" in negotiations on Serbia's entrance into the trading bloc, according to Reuters. The politician discussed this topic at a press conference in Belgrade.

"At this stage, I cannot say with certainty when, and what chapters we will open," stated Mogherini. According to Mogherini, Brussels and Belgrade want this to happen before the end of the 2015 and she emphasized that on this occasion, it will require a joint effort from all of the European Union states.

Comment: But what do the Serbian people want? Will they be suckered into the EU propaganda of making their lives 'better' under the EU jackboot?

Read More...
Bulb

Indiana legislators announces changes to controversial religious freedom bill that allows discrimination of LGBT people

Erin McClam
NBC News
Thu, 02 Apr 2015 16:48 UTC
Image
© WRTVIndiana state legislators and business leaders announce proposed changes to a "religious freedom" law after it was criticized for possibly enabling discrimination
The Republican leaders of the Indiana Legislature on Thursday unveiled a change to the state's controversial religious freedom law spelling out that it does not allow businesses to refuse service to gays or other minority groups.

Brian Bosma, speaker of the state House, said that the language would make clear that "we value you — gay, straight, black, white, religious, nonreligious. We value each and every Hoosier."

The language says that businesses may not use the law to refuse service to anyone on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity or a range of other classifications, including race and religion.

Bosma and his counterpart in the state Senate said that they had secured the votes to pass the change later in the day.

Gov. Mike Pence, a Republican, and state leaders faced intense criticism after enacting the law last week. Supporters said that it was meant to protect religious liberty, but opponents said that businesses could use it to deny service to gay customers.
Read More...
Attention

Venezuela plans to buy more Russian and Chinese weapons


Sputnik
Thu, 02 Apr 2015 16:33 UTC
Image
© Sputnik/ Mihail Mokrushin
Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro plans to buy more weapons produced in Russia and China, saying the nation should step up its defense against foreign threats.

"We are a people of peace; we want neither violence nor war," Maduro said, adding that the army, police and the people of Venezuela have to stay alert.

Venezuela is the largest weapons importer in Latin America, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Since 2011, the country spent some $2.6 billion on weapons, buying the majority of them in Russia.

Comment: It's a shame in order to have 'peace' they must spend massively on defense. That is also a lot of money the US defense contractors are losing because they don't like Maduro.

Read More...
Megaphone

Putin's press secretary slams newspaper's 'hysteria and demonization of Russia' over perceived nuclear threat


RT
Thu, 02 Apr 2015 16:27 UTC
Image
© RIA Novosti/Konstantin Chalabov
Russia never threatened to use nuclear weapons over Crimea and the Baltic States, according to Vladimir Putin's press secretary. The Kremlin official added the claims were simply 'hysteria' and a 'classic example' of the West's demonization of Russia.

"This is a classic example of the continuing hysteria and the demonization of our country. They themselves are fanning the flames concerning this. However, it is not guided by any particular facts and they themselves are afraid of what they wrote," Peskov told reporters.

The Times newspaper said that President Putin was using the threat of a "nuclear showdown" over the Baltic States, to force NATO to back away from Russia's border. They made the claims after obtaining notes of high-level security talks between former Russian and American security chiefs.
Guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham to enter Black Sea,promoting stability in the region http://t.co/bDAdYRqj3M pic.twitter.com/x1getcmDkb

— US Mission to NATO (@USNATO) April 2, 2015
US officials stated that President Putin was ready to respond forcibly to any further NATO build-up of troops in the Baltic States and they would deliver "a spectrum of responses from nuclear to non-military," the Times added.
Read More...
Eye 1

Merkel's 'anti-Russian front' falling apart


Sputnik
Thu, 02 Apr 2015 16:24 UTC
Image
© AP Photo/ Markus Schreiber
More and more European countries oppose an extension of anti-Russian sanctions and disagree with the German policy towards Russia.

Attempts to save "European unity" are doomed, the German online newspaper Die Freie Welt reported.

During her recent visit to Helsinki, German Chancellor Angela Merkel tried to convince Finns to further follow the anti-Russian course and stressed the importance of pursuing a common EU policy towards Russia. However, this policy is in fact far from being united, the German online edition wrote.

Comment: Of course the EU has nothing to gain and much to lose from these anti-Russian sanctions foolishness. Looks like if the US wanted the EU to split up, they found a wonderful way to do it.

Read More...
Rocket

Israel successfully test-fires 'David's Sling' missile defense system


RT
Thu, 02 Apr 2015 02:57 UTC
rocket fired
© rt.comTesting David's Sling Weapon System.
In an ongoing effort to boost its missile defenses, Israel has recently been testing its David's Sling anti-ballistic missile system. The latest test coincided with positive developments in Iran nuclear talks currently just meters from the finishing line.

A number of recent David's Sling missile tests - the most recent one this Tuesday - have been a great success, the Homa Directorate at the Defense Ministry and the American Missile Defense Agency (MDA) announced Wednesday. "This is a unique weapons system: the interceptor is small and agile," Homa Directorate chief Yair Ramati said. "The system should be introduced to the Israeli Air Force (IAF) by next year."


Comment: In 2011, the US pledged $235.7M aid for David's Sling and Arrow 3 defense systems in addition to $205M for Iron Dome. These funds were added to the annual $3B stipend already allocated by congress and paid for by the American public.


Also known as the "Magic Wand," the short-range ballistic missile defense system, designed to intercept medium range missiles from nearby Gaza, Syria, and Lebanon, has been jointly developed the between the Pentagon contractor and by Israel's Rafael Advanced Defense Systems.

"The system is designed to intercept... threats from Lebanon. Representatives from the US were present during the trials and are full partners in the project," Ramti told the Ynet news site.


Comment: Double standard? Some countries are restricted, condemned, policed for wanting to defend themselves with sophisticated weapons systems even when they only have junk and duct tape, while others aren't even winked at (and we can guess who that might be). David's Sling is categorized as a defense missile system, yet it has shown its capability to seek and destroy. Would Israel deploy this weapon as an aggressive means to an end? In a heartbeat. At the US taxpayer's expense. Why does the US make such a special effort to buy Israel the best technology and acquiesce to its demands? Location, location, location!

Read More...
Eye 1

DARPA to test new underwater submarine attack drone


RT
Wed, 01 Apr 2015 14:46 UTC
Image
© AFP/DARPAThis undated photo obtained March 29, 2015 from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) shows a prototype Submarine Hold at RisK (SHARK) unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) during deep-sea testing for DARPA’s Distributed Agile Submarine Hunting (DASH) program.
This year, the Pentagon's advanced research projects department will start testing their new "submarine" drone, which can lie in wait on the ocean floor for years before ever being launched into the skies.

The new drones, being developed by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), are part of a new focus by the US military in developing and improving technology for emerging threats.

These deployable, unmanned systems and sensors can theoretically lie on the deep-ocean floor for years at time in anticipation of the US Navy's need for non-lethal assistance. When needed, the deep-sea nodes can be activated remotely and recalled to the surface.
DARPA makes Underwater Attack Drones http://t.co/AEB7YtDSgS #ReleaseTheKraken #DARPA#Drones #TechnologyGoneWild #Anonymous #AnonymousSaveUs

— Jose Prado (@GalanDeLaCalle) April 21, 2014
DARPA will specifically be testing whether the drones can survive for years under extreme pressure before being triggered from a distance, and whether they can rise through a water column and relay information. The tests are part of DARPA's two phases under its Upward Falling Payloads (UFP) program.
Read More...