Puppet MastersS


Red Flag

UN rep: At least 400,000 civilians trapped in Mosul with no food, water or electricity


RT
Fri, 24 Mar 2017 10:52 UTC
mosul children
© Youssef Boudlal / Reuters
Some 400,000 civilians stuck in Mosul's Old City, held by Islamic State militants, are dealing with food and electricity shortages, making the UN High Commissioner for Refugees believe that "the worst is yet to come" in the humanitarian crisis in northern Iraq.

"The worst is yet to come, if I can put it this way. Because 400,000 people trapped in the Old City in that situation of panic and penury may inevitably lead to the cork popping somewhere, sometime, presenting us with a fresh outflow of large-scale proportions," said Bruno Geddo, representative of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Iraq, according to Reuters.

Displacement levels have increased after Iraqi forces began gaining ground in the offensive on the city, with 8,000 to 12,000 people fleeing the area daily, Geddo added, speaking from a reception and transit center at Hammam al-Alil, located 20km (15 miles) south of Mosul.

"We also heard stories of people running away under the cover of early morning fog, running away at night, of trying to run away at prayer time when the vigilance at ISIS (Islamic State, or IS) checkpoints is lower," the UN official said.
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Eye 1

Senate repeals FCC regulations on internet privacy, making it easier to gather user's sensitive data


RT
Fri, 24 Mar 2017 10:46 UTC
cellphone user
© Brendan McDermid / Reuters
Internet service providers may be able to gather private and sensitive data from their customers and sell it to the highest bidder, now that the Senate has voted to repeal some FCC regulations.

On Thursday, the Senate voted 50-48 along party lines to approve a joint resolution that overturns Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules relating to "Protecting the Privacy of Customers of Broadband and Other Telecommunications Services."

After the vote, the FCC released a statement saying that if the rules are overturned, it will create "a massive gap in consumer protection law as broadband and cable companies now have no discernible privacy requirements. This is the antithesis of putting #ConsumersFirst," FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn and FTC Commissioner Terrell McSweeny said.

The FCC rules were put in place in 2016 to prevent consumers' private and sensitive information automatically getting into the hands of Internet Service Providers (ISPs) such as AT&T, Comcast and Verizon.
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Info

Philippines' Duterte blames past US inactivity for tensions in South China Sea


RT
Fri, 24 Mar 2017 10:25 UTC
Rodrigo Duterte
© Romeo Ranoco / Reuters
Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte has accused the US former administration of taking no action when China began building artificial islands in the South China Sea, which he said resulted in the current strained situation in the region.

"Why did [the US] not reprimand [China]? Why did you not send five aircraft carriers? And you had to wait for the problem to ripen to an international issue involving, this time, so many countries," President Duterte said at a news conference upon arrival from a trip to Myanmar and Thailand at an international airport in Manila, according to Reuters.

"You could have cut the problem in the bud had you taken a decisive action," Duterte said, apparently addressing former US President Barack Obama and his administration.


Comment: These are some provocative statements here. Does Duterte really think the US would risk war with China by sending war ships as a preventative measure? China has no intentions of disrupting trade relations but wants to make sure other countries don't impede on those relations.

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Light Sabers

Democrats threatening to filibuster Gorsuch confirmation to Supreme Court


RT
Thu, 23 Mar 2017 16:26 UTC
Neil Gorsuch
© Jim Bourg / ReutersSupreme Court nominee judge Neil Gorsuch
Eleven US senators are siding with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) in the battle to block Judge Neil Gorsuch's confirmation to the Supreme Court. Republicans are expected to deploy the nuclear option to thwart a filibuster.

On Thursday, following the end of two days of testimony from Gorsuch to the Senate, the top Democrat in the upper chamber threatened to lead a filibuster to prevent a Senate floor vote on the nominee. Schumer called for Democrats to join him, as it takes 60 votes to overcome a filibuster, and Republicans hold only 52 seats.

"If this nominee cannot earn 60 votes," Schumer said, "a bar met by each of President Obama's nominees, and George Bush's last two nominees, the answer isn't to change the rules. It's to change the nominee."
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Info

Senate confirms David Friedman as US ambassador to Israel


RT
Fri, 24 Mar 2017 10:15 UTC
David Friedman
© Yuri Gripas / ReutersDavid Friedman
In a narrow vote Thursday, the US Senate confirmed David Friedman, President Donald Trump's controversial pick for ambassador to Israel, in his new role.

Friedman was confirmed by a majority of 52 to 46 in a vote that was deeply divided among party lines. All but two Democrat Senators - Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) and Joe Manchin (D-WV) - voted against the former bankruptcy lawyer, even those normally seen as pro-Israel. The level of opposition to Friedman was quite unusual, as most of a president's nominees tend to be approved by the Senate by a large majority.
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Attention

Turkey refuses to join US-led offensive on ISIS-held Raqqa if Kurds involved


RT
Fri, 24 Mar 2017 10:05 UTC
Kurd soldiers
© Rodi Said / Reuters
A rift has opened up between NATO allies US and Turkey over the part Syrian Kurdish forces should play in the liberation of Raqqa from Islamic State terrorists as Ankara has openly rejected taking part in any operation that would involve the Kurds.

Turkey has "set out a model" for successfully fighting against jihadists in Syria, which it suggested should be further implemented to defeat Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) in the region, Turkey's Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus said, as cited by Turkish media on Thursday.

Citing the liberation of the cities of al-Bab and Jarabulus in the Aleppo Governorate, which was carried out with the support of the Turkish military, the minister said Ankara was willing to support the anti-terrorist operation to free the IS stronghold of Raqqa in a US-led offensive.
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Eye 2

ISIS pulls back from Deir Ezzor - Syrian army captures Deir Hafer, closes on Raqqa

Alexander Mercouris
The Duran
Fri, 24 Mar 2017 02:49 UTC
ISIS
ISIS reported to be withdrawing fighters from Deir Ezzor to defend Raqqa as apocalyptic battle for its 'capital' looms.

Reports are circulating in the Middle East that over the last few days ISIS has started pulling back some of its fighters from Deir Ezzor to its 'capital' Raqqa, which is coming under increasing threat from the Kurdish militia and the advancing Syrian army.

This news comes after reports that a senior Syrian government official has recently visited Deir Ezzor to inspect the defences of the encircled town and presumably to give some encouragement to its population and defenders.

There have also been reports that the Russian air force has been successfully air dropping supplies to the Syrian troops defending Deir Ezzor and its airport.
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Health

Freedom Caucus balks after White House 'final offer' on Obamacare replacement - says 'not enough votes'

Jacob Pramuk
CNBC
Fri, 24 Mar 2017 02:27 UTC
house freedom caucus
The White House gave the House Freedom Caucus a final offer as it tries to win support for a bill to repeal and replace parts of Obamacare, but the conservative group's leader said no deal was reached by Thursday afternoon.

The lack of an agreement throws more doubt on a planned Thursday night vote on the crucial legislation. The conservative contingent has threatened the bill's passage, as its members have said the GOP plan does not go far enough to repeal the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.

President Donald Trump met with the caucus earlier as he and House GOP leaders aimed to rally enough support for their proposal. Following the meeting though, Freedom Caucus chairman Rep. Mark Meadows told reporters "there are not enough votes" to push the legislation through.

Comment:

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Family

Flashback Trump, when out of the spotlight

Liz Crokin
Townhall
Sun, 10 Jul 2016 02:12 UTC
Trump
© Aaron P. Bernstein/Reuters
Donald Trump is a racist, bigot, sexist, xenophobe, anti-Semitic and Islamophobe -- did I miss anything? The left and the media launch these hideous kinds of attacks at Trump everyday; yet, nothing could be further from the truth about the real estate mogul. As an entertainment journalist, I've had the opportunity to cover Trump for over a decade, and in all my years covering him I've never heard anything negative about the man until he announced he was running for president. Keep in mind, I got paid a lot of money to dig up dirt on celebrities like Trump for a living so a scandalous story on the famous billionaire could've potentially sold a lot of magazines and would've been a "yuge" feather in my cap. Instead, I found that he doesn't drink alcohol or do drugs, he's a hardworking businessman and totally devoted to his beloved wife and children. On top of that, he's one of the most generous celebrities in the world with a heart filled with more gold than his $100 million New York penthouse.

In 2004, the first season of The Apprentice aired and at that time I worked as an entertainment columnist for the "RedEye Edition of the Chicago Tribune" and as a freelancer for US Weekly. I had a gut feeling that Chicago contestant, Bill Rancic, was going to win the reality show. So I contacted him and covered the hit show the entire season. I managed to score an invite to New York for the show's grand finale and after-party. This is where I first met Trump and got to ask him a few questions. That year, Rancic did win The Apprentice. I attended The Apprentice finale the next two years in a row. Between that and the frequent visits Trump and his family made to Chicago during the construction of their Trump International Hotel & Tower, I got a chance to meet most of his family too and I've had nothing but positive experiences with them. Since the media has failed so miserably at reporting the truth about Trump, I decided to put together some of the acts of kindness he's committed over three decades which has gone virtually unnoticed or fallen on deaf ears.
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Book 2

David Ray Griffin reviews The Lost Hegemon: Whom the Gods Would Destroy

David Ray Griffin
Institute for Political Economy
Mon, 23 Jan 2017 01:57 UTC
Lost Hegemom
© F. William Engdahl
F. William Engdahl, who is well known for books and articles in geopolitics, has recently published a book entitled The Lost Hegemon: Whom the Gods Would Destroy. The subtitle refers to a dictum by Euripides, "Those whom the Gods wish to destroy they first make mad."

This book describes how the U.S. has been going mad since the fall of the Soviet Union, thereby destroying itself. The madness involves the method through which the United States tried to prevent the loss of its global hegemony. Engdahl writes that the method was based on a scheme devised by Zbigniew Brzezinski, while he was serving as President Jimmy Carter's national security advisor.

The scheme was to destroy the Soviet Union's economy by luring it into an unwinnable war in Afghanistan. The method for doing this was for Osama bin Laden, working for the CIA, to invite fundamentalist Muslims in Saudi Arabia and other countries to Afghanistan, where the U.S. military would arm and train them (Operation Cyclone). Engdahl believes that the weakening of its economy led to the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The Cold War was over. How would the United States respond?
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