Friday, June 29, 2018
Thursday, June 28, 2018
America’s Low Yield Nuclear Bombs, Russia’s Nuclear Doctrine Is Being Distorted Once Again
On June 13, 2018, the Washington Post published an original piece by Paul Sonne that describes America’s potential use of the low-yield nuclear warheads that are to be installed on the future US B-61-12 nuclear bombs, as well as on the ballistic missiles carried by the Trident II submarines in the form of W76-2 warheads, in accordance with Washington’s 2018 nuclear doctrine. The article claims that the introduction of low-yield warheads and the idea of their potential use is being justified by the Pentagon as necessary due to the fact that Russia is allegedly prepared to use similar warheads against NATO countries, based on that nation’s current nuclear doctrine and because a purported strategy of “escalate to de-escalate” has apparently been “approved” by Moscow.
It should be kept in mind that the Military Doctrine of the Russian Federation, which has sections covering the potential use of nuclear weapons, says nothing about the power of the nuclear weapons that might be utilized, nor is there any mention of warheads with either high or “low” yields in TNT equivalents. Those sections of the official doctrine do not even categorize Russian nuclear weapons into strategic vs. tactical varieties.
Only one term is specified in Russia’s military and strategic posture: “nuclear weapons.” And only two circumstances are listed as a basis for their potential use: the first — only in response to the use of nuclear or other weapons of mass destruction against the Russian Federation and/or its allies; and the second — in the event of aggression against Russia that employs conventional weapons to the point that “the very existence of the state is threatened.” In other words, only reciprocal actions are permitted in either case.
Nor does the Russian nuclear doctrine list the countries or alliances against which nuclear weapons can be used.
Read the entire article
It should be kept in mind that the Military Doctrine of the Russian Federation, which has sections covering the potential use of nuclear weapons, says nothing about the power of the nuclear weapons that might be utilized, nor is there any mention of warheads with either high or “low” yields in TNT equivalents. Those sections of the official doctrine do not even categorize Russian nuclear weapons into strategic vs. tactical varieties.
Only one term is specified in Russia’s military and strategic posture: “nuclear weapons.” And only two circumstances are listed as a basis for their potential use: the first — only in response to the use of nuclear or other weapons of mass destruction against the Russian Federation and/or its allies; and the second — in the event of aggression against Russia that employs conventional weapons to the point that “the very existence of the state is threatened.” In other words, only reciprocal actions are permitted in either case.
Nor does the Russian nuclear doctrine list the countries or alliances against which nuclear weapons can be used.
Read the entire article
Wednesday, June 27, 2018
Tuesday, June 26, 2018
Free Julian Assange!
Nobel Peace Laureate Mairead Maguire called on UK government to free Julian Assange and end their cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment which amounts to torture, as defined by international law. She said,
“I know of no other country where an asylee is held with no sunlight, no exercise, no visitors, no computer, no phone calls, yet all this is happening in the heart of London at the Ecuadorian Embassy to an innocent man, Julian Assange, now in his 8th year of illegal and arbitrary detention by the United Kingdom government. “*
We are here this evening to stand in solidarity with our friend Julian Assange, Editor in Chief, of WikiLeaks. Because of WikiLeaks reporting of acts during US/NATO’s illegal wars against Afghanistan, Iraq, etc., and its highlighting of corruption by USA/CIA and corporate power, and continuing his fight in disclosing the links between the great private corporations and government agencies, Julian Assange has been threatened by high profile USA citizens, and a Grand Jury has been set up in American to try Julian Assange and WikiLeaks, for their publications.
For this, he is being persecuted and deprived of his right to liberty, human rights, etc. Six years ago Julian Assange, aware of these extradition plans of America, sought asylum in the Ecuadorian Embassy, in London, where he remains today. (He is now in his 8th year of Arbitrary Detention in the U.K.) Although Mr. Assange’s conditions were already harsh, having no sunlight or outdoor exercise since June 2012, his situation has gotten worse since March 2018 when the Ecuadorian Government (after a visit by UK/USA officials to Ecuador) imposed conditions that are like indefinite confinement.
Read the entire article
“I know of no other country where an asylee is held with no sunlight, no exercise, no visitors, no computer, no phone calls, yet all this is happening in the heart of London at the Ecuadorian Embassy to an innocent man, Julian Assange, now in his 8th year of illegal and arbitrary detention by the United Kingdom government. “*
We are here this evening to stand in solidarity with our friend Julian Assange, Editor in Chief, of WikiLeaks. Because of WikiLeaks reporting of acts during US/NATO’s illegal wars against Afghanistan, Iraq, etc., and its highlighting of corruption by USA/CIA and corporate power, and continuing his fight in disclosing the links between the great private corporations and government agencies, Julian Assange has been threatened by high profile USA citizens, and a Grand Jury has been set up in American to try Julian Assange and WikiLeaks, for their publications.
For this, he is being persecuted and deprived of his right to liberty, human rights, etc. Six years ago Julian Assange, aware of these extradition plans of America, sought asylum in the Ecuadorian Embassy, in London, where he remains today. (He is now in his 8th year of Arbitrary Detention in the U.K.) Although Mr. Assange’s conditions were already harsh, having no sunlight or outdoor exercise since June 2012, his situation has gotten worse since March 2018 when the Ecuadorian Government (after a visit by UK/USA officials to Ecuador) imposed conditions that are like indefinite confinement.
Read the entire article
Monday, June 25, 2018
Friday, June 22, 2018
The Persistent Myth of US Precision Bombing
In my recent report on the death toll in America’s post-9/11 wars, I estimated that about 2.4 million Iraqis have been killed as a result of the U.S. invasion and hostile military occupation of their country. But opinion polls in the United States and the United Kingdom have found that a majority of the public in both countries believe that no more than 10,000 Iraqis have been killed.
An important factor in the public’s failure to grasp the scale of the death toll in America’s post-9/11 wars is that the U.S. military has worked hard to convince the public that its weapons are now so "precise" that they can kill terrorists and other enemies without harming innocent civilians. A U.S. military spokesperson recently described the bombing of Raqqa in Syria as "one of the most precise air campaigns in military history,” even as journalists and human rights groups documented the total destruction of the city.
The dreadful paradox of “precision weapons” is that the more the media and the public are wrongly persuaded of the near-magical qualities of these weapons, the easier it is for U.S. military and civilian leaders to justify using them to destroy entire villages, towns and cities in country after country: Fallujah, Ramadi, and Mosul in Iraq; Sangin and Musa Qala in Afghanistan; Sirte in Libya; Kobane, and Raqqa in Syria.
An Imprecise History
The skillful use of disinformation about “precision” bombing has been essential to the development of aerial bombardment as a strategic weapon. In a World War II propaganda pamphlet titled the “Ultimate Weapon of Victory”, the US government hailed the B-17 bomber as “… the mightiest bomber ever built… equipped with the incredibly accurate Norden bomb sight, which hits a 25-foot circle from 20,000 feet.“
Read the entire article
An important factor in the public’s failure to grasp the scale of the death toll in America’s post-9/11 wars is that the U.S. military has worked hard to convince the public that its weapons are now so "precise" that they can kill terrorists and other enemies without harming innocent civilians. A U.S. military spokesperson recently described the bombing of Raqqa in Syria as "one of the most precise air campaigns in military history,” even as journalists and human rights groups documented the total destruction of the city.
The dreadful paradox of “precision weapons” is that the more the media and the public are wrongly persuaded of the near-magical qualities of these weapons, the easier it is for U.S. military and civilian leaders to justify using them to destroy entire villages, towns and cities in country after country: Fallujah, Ramadi, and Mosul in Iraq; Sangin and Musa Qala in Afghanistan; Sirte in Libya; Kobane, and Raqqa in Syria.
An Imprecise History
The skillful use of disinformation about “precision” bombing has been essential to the development of aerial bombardment as a strategic weapon. In a World War II propaganda pamphlet titled the “Ultimate Weapon of Victory”, the US government hailed the B-17 bomber as “… the mightiest bomber ever built… equipped with the incredibly accurate Norden bomb sight, which hits a 25-foot circle from 20,000 feet.“
Read the entire article
Thursday, June 21, 2018
Wednesday, June 20, 2018
The Insanity of the American Anti-Trump, Pro-War Left
What’s becoming ever clearer is that Democratic Party establishment and its media surrogates are no longer part of ‘the Left’ as it was once traditionally known.
Whether it’s egging on increased tensions between the US and Russia, or a violent proxy war and regime change in Syria, (Obama’s) war on Yemen, general support for Israel’s brutal occupation and repression of the native Palestinians, or their opposition to any constructive peace between the US and North Korea – through their incessant pro-war rhetoric, it should be self-evident by now that America’s Democratic establishment and its media arms in MSNBC and CNN – are clearly in common cause with Neoconservatives, the military establishment and transnational corporate monopolists. If they have their way, all of these illegal wars of aggression will carry on, and US will continue its 21st century downward spiral from world leader and once trusted force for mediation on the international scene. The Resistance is hastening America’s inevitable demise and making mainstream politics and media a laughing-stock in the process.
American talk show host Jimmy Dore illustrates this point by revealing the complete insanity of America’s hysterical anti-Trump, pro-war Left, featuring a disturbingly crass segment by unhinged MSNBC host Rachel Maddow who somehow managed to tie-in Russia with the recent North Korean talks – another case of someone purporting to be on “the Left” politically, but in actuality is attacking Trump from the (Neoconservative) right. Not only that, but Maddow is also engaging in toxic fake news too. Watch:
Read the entire article
Whether it’s egging on increased tensions between the US and Russia, or a violent proxy war and regime change in Syria, (Obama’s) war on Yemen, general support for Israel’s brutal occupation and repression of the native Palestinians, or their opposition to any constructive peace between the US and North Korea – through their incessant pro-war rhetoric, it should be self-evident by now that America’s Democratic establishment and its media arms in MSNBC and CNN – are clearly in common cause with Neoconservatives, the military establishment and transnational corporate monopolists. If they have their way, all of these illegal wars of aggression will carry on, and US will continue its 21st century downward spiral from world leader and once trusted force for mediation on the international scene. The Resistance is hastening America’s inevitable demise and making mainstream politics and media a laughing-stock in the process.
American talk show host Jimmy Dore illustrates this point by revealing the complete insanity of America’s hysterical anti-Trump, pro-war Left, featuring a disturbingly crass segment by unhinged MSNBC host Rachel Maddow who somehow managed to tie-in Russia with the recent North Korean talks – another case of someone purporting to be on “the Left” politically, but in actuality is attacking Trump from the (Neoconservative) right. Not only that, but Maddow is also engaging in toxic fake news too. Watch:
Read the entire article
Monday, June 18, 2018
Bringing Julian Assange Home
Assange does not ask for special treatment. The government has clear diplomatic and moral obligations to protect Australian citizens abroad from gross injustice: in JulianE’s case, from a gross miscarriage of justice and the extreme danger that await him should he walk out of the Ecuadorean embassy in London unprotected.
We know from the Chelsea Manning case what he can expect if a US extradition warrant is successful — a United Nations Special Rapporteur called it torture.
I know Julian Assange well; I regard him as a close friend, a person of extraordinary resilience and courage. I have watched a tsunami of lies and smear engulf him, endlessly, vindictively, perfidiously; and I know why they smear him.
In 2008, a plan to destroy both WikiLeaks and Assange was laid out in a top secret document dated 8 March, 2008. The authors were the Cyber Counter-intelligence Assessments Branch of the US Defence Department. They described in detail how important it was to destroy the “feeling of trust” that is WikiLeaks’ “centre of gravity”.
Read the entire article
We know from the Chelsea Manning case what he can expect if a US extradition warrant is successful — a United Nations Special Rapporteur called it torture.
I know Julian Assange well; I regard him as a close friend, a person of extraordinary resilience and courage. I have watched a tsunami of lies and smear engulf him, endlessly, vindictively, perfidiously; and I know why they smear him.
In 2008, a plan to destroy both WikiLeaks and Assange was laid out in a top secret document dated 8 March, 2008. The authors were the Cyber Counter-intelligence Assessments Branch of the US Defence Department. They described in detail how important it was to destroy the “feeling of trust” that is WikiLeaks’ “centre of gravity”.
Read the entire article
Friday, June 15, 2018
Thursday, June 14, 2018
Analyst Explains Why Time is Running Out for Soros
US billionaire George Soros may soon lose his veneer of being more powerful than any national politician, according to Wall Street analyst Charles Ortel. Speaking to Sputnik, Ortel explains Soros’ “unregulated globalism” and what’s behind the magnate’s fear of US President Donald Trump.
Hungarian-born billionaire George Soros is fretting and fuming over the recent changes in the global political landscape. However, it appears that time is running out for “the man who broke the Bank of England.”
Speaking to Sputnik, Wall Street analyst and investigative journalist Charles Ortel noted that Soros “began operating hedge funds well before promoting unregulated globalism in the 1988 to present period.”
Indeed, the investor kicked off his first hedge fund in 1969, which in 1973 formed the basis for the Soros Fund. The would-be billionaire was rather successful, which apparently made him claim in his 1987 book “The Alchemy of Finance” that sometimes he had seen himself as “some kind of god or an economic reformer like Keynes, or, even better, like Einstein.”
Read the entire article
Hungarian-born billionaire George Soros is fretting and fuming over the recent changes in the global political landscape. However, it appears that time is running out for “the man who broke the Bank of England.”
Speaking to Sputnik, Wall Street analyst and investigative journalist Charles Ortel noted that Soros “began operating hedge funds well before promoting unregulated globalism in the 1988 to present period.”
Indeed, the investor kicked off his first hedge fund in 1969, which in 1973 formed the basis for the Soros Fund. The would-be billionaire was rather successful, which apparently made him claim in his 1987 book “The Alchemy of Finance” that sometimes he had seen himself as “some kind of god or an economic reformer like Keynes, or, even better, like Einstein.”
Read the entire article
Wednesday, June 13, 2018
Tuesday, June 12, 2018
Trump/Kim Meeting Shows Value of Policy Over Politics
When President Reagan met with Mikhail Gorbachev in Reykjavik, Iceland, on October 11, 1987, it helped put into motion events that would dramatically change the global system. A line of communication was fully opened with an enemy of decades and substantive issues were on the table. Though the summit was initially reported as a failure, with the two sides unable to sign a final agreement, history now shows us that it was actually a great success that paved the way to the eventual end of the Cold War and a reduction in the threat of a nuclear war.
A year later Gorbachev and Reagan met in Washington to continue the dialogue that had been started and the rest is history. Success began as a “failure.”
We are now facing a similar situation with President Trump’s historic meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Singapore. As with the Reagan/Gorbachev meetings, detractors on all sides seem determined to undermine and belittle the opening of a door to diplomacy and peace.
The neocons demand that North Korea give up all its bargaining chips up front in return for vague promises of better relations with the US. Yet in the post-Libya era no serious person would jump at such an offer. Their biggest fear is that peace may break out and they are doing everything to prevent that from happening. Conflict is their livelihood.
Read the entire article
A year later Gorbachev and Reagan met in Washington to continue the dialogue that had been started and the rest is history. Success began as a “failure.”
We are now facing a similar situation with President Trump’s historic meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Singapore. As with the Reagan/Gorbachev meetings, detractors on all sides seem determined to undermine and belittle the opening of a door to diplomacy and peace.
The neocons demand that North Korea give up all its bargaining chips up front in return for vague promises of better relations with the US. Yet in the post-Libya era no serious person would jump at such an offer. Their biggest fear is that peace may break out and they are doing everything to prevent that from happening. Conflict is their livelihood.
Read the entire article
Monday, June 11, 2018
Friday, June 8, 2018
NATO Virus is Spreading, Aggressive & Immune to Any Antibiotic of Logic
Like a geographical virus the spread of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization has broken all natural boundaries. It is immune to any antibiotic of logic and poses a deadly threat to the health, peace and stability of the world.
For decades in the West, NATO was believed to have been a defensive response to the creation of the Warsaw Pact - despite the fact that it was formed long before the treaty, which has in turn been nearly 30 years dead. Nonetheless, like death and taxes, membership of NATO has been assumed to be one of life's few certainties with an increasing share of national wealth going to pay for it.
This might have gone on unquestioned but for the multiple East-West crises of the last few years and the bizarre inclusion of, brothers-in-arms and non-North Atlantic states, Colombia and Israel in recent NATO activity.
Almost overnight, interest in my long-quiescent No2 NATO campaign has picked up as public opinion has switched on like a light to the fact that there is little that is defensive about NATO and even less that is North Atlantic.
Read the entire article
For decades in the West, NATO was believed to have been a defensive response to the creation of the Warsaw Pact - despite the fact that it was formed long before the treaty, which has in turn been nearly 30 years dead. Nonetheless, like death and taxes, membership of NATO has been assumed to be one of life's few certainties with an increasing share of national wealth going to pay for it.
This might have gone on unquestioned but for the multiple East-West crises of the last few years and the bizarre inclusion of, brothers-in-arms and non-North Atlantic states, Colombia and Israel in recent NATO activity.
Almost overnight, interest in my long-quiescent No2 NATO campaign has picked up as public opinion has switched on like a light to the fact that there is little that is defensive about NATO and even less that is North Atlantic.
Read the entire article
Thursday, June 7, 2018
Wednesday, June 6, 2018
John Pilger And Roger Waters Support Vigils And Rallies For Julian Assange
On 19 June 2018, it will be six years since Julian Assange was forced to take refuge in the Ecuadorean embassy in London. He had been warned that the US planned an extradition warrant for his arrest. His 'crime' was that of a scrupulous editor - WikiLeaks had revealed the war crimes of the US. Today, Julian has never been more isolated, and his health is failing.
On Sunday 17 June, the SEP will stage a rally for Julian in the heart of Sydney, Australia, his homeland. This is backed by John Pilger, Roger Waters, Julian Burnside QC and Terry Hicks, father of former Guantanamo prisoner, David Hicks. John Pilger will address the rally from the steps of Sydney Town Hall, which starts at 1pm.
On Tuesday 19 June, there will be a rally and vigil outside the Ecuadorean embassy in London, beginning at 6pm. Other vigils will be held outside British embassies around the world on the same day. In Dublin, Nobel Peace Prize winner Mariead Maguire and members of the Irish parliament, Clare Daly and Mick Wallace, will speak in support of Julian outside the British embassy.
Read the entire article
On Sunday 17 June, the SEP will stage a rally for Julian in the heart of Sydney, Australia, his homeland. This is backed by John Pilger, Roger Waters, Julian Burnside QC and Terry Hicks, father of former Guantanamo prisoner, David Hicks. John Pilger will address the rally from the steps of Sydney Town Hall, which starts at 1pm.
On Tuesday 19 June, there will be a rally and vigil outside the Ecuadorean embassy in London, beginning at 6pm. Other vigils will be held outside British embassies around the world on the same day. In Dublin, Nobel Peace Prize winner Mariead Maguire and members of the Irish parliament, Clare Daly and Mick Wallace, will speak in support of Julian outside the British embassy.
Read the entire article
Tuesday, June 5, 2018
Monday, June 4, 2018
Dinesh D’Souza Sounds the Alarm: NY Attorney General Wants to Get Rid of ‘Double Jeopardy’ to Go After Me Again
Conservative activist Dinesh D’Souza faced political persecution after he directed and released anti-Obama film, “2016: Obama’s America”. He was indicted over illegal campaign contributions.
It was an obvious witch hunt.
On Thursday, President Trump announced publicly he would be issuing a full pardon to Dinesh D’Souza.
The New York Attorney General is so angry over the presidential pardon of Dinesh that she wants to get rid of double jeopardy to go after him again.
Dinesh D’Souza celebrated on his Twitter account with an epic smack down of the Obama hack who made his life hell, former US Attorney Preet Bharara.
Dinesh blasted the Obama hack on Thursday with a viral smackdown!
Read the entire article
It was an obvious witch hunt.
On Thursday, President Trump announced publicly he would be issuing a full pardon to Dinesh D’Souza.
The New York Attorney General is so angry over the presidential pardon of Dinesh that she wants to get rid of double jeopardy to go after him again.
Dinesh D’Souza celebrated on his Twitter account with an epic smack down of the Obama hack who made his life hell, former US Attorney Preet Bharara.
Dinesh blasted the Obama hack on Thursday with a viral smackdown!
Read the entire article
Friday, June 1, 2018
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)