There is so much talk about McCarthy and the House Speaker contest, you’d almost think they’re trying to hide something behind it. I’ll leave that alone for now.

Bhakdi
https://twitter.com/i/status/1610685980671094784

VDB
https://twitter.com/i/status/1610443745014710278

Cause unknown

Aubrey Marcus & Edward Dowd Get Emotional Discussing the Sudden Deaths Cataloged in Ed’s Book ‘Cause Unknown’

“This is 9/11 on steroids”@DowdEdward @AubreyMarcus pic.twitter.com/8wY8qI2Dcl

— Chief Nerd (@TheChiefNerd) January 5, 2023

“..although Russian intelligence would have a fair idea of the location of NATO officers conducting the Ukrainian operations, they have not been so far targeted.”

• US Climbs Escalation Ladder in Ukraine (Bhadrakumar)

In all probability, the message conveyed to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov from his American counterpart Antony Blinken via Israel’s new foreign minister Eli Cohen concerned the Ukrainian missile attack on Makeyevka (Donetsk) on New Year Day at 12.02 am killing 89 Russian conscripts. Kiev claimed that up to 400 Russian soldiers might have been killed. Russian MOD has made a rare acknowledgment of scores of deaths — latest figure is 83. Moscow rarely releases figures for casualties in the war. The Russian statements stressed that US-made Himars missiles were used in the attack. The site was a “a temporary deployment facility” (a vocational school temporarily used as barracks for scores of recently mobilised troops sent by Moscow.

The incident sparked renewed public criticism over the state of Russia’s military and the decision to use civilian infrastructure to house soldiers. The First Deputy Head of the Main Military-Political Department of the Russian Armed Forces Lieutenant General Sergey Sevryukov told reporters: “It has already become obvious at present that the main cause of the occurrence was activation and large-scale use, contrary to the ban, of personal phones by personnel within the reach of enemy’s destruction means. This factor enabled the enemy to take the bearing and determine coordinates of servicemen location to deliver a missile strike. Required measures are being taken at present to exclude such tragic incidents in the future.” Apparently, blame game has begun — that the “main cause” of the tragedy was the unruly behaviour of soldiers who used mobile phones on the warfront. But there is going to be consequences.

Public pressure may increase demanding maximum use of force to end the war quickly. There is always the danger of escalation if certain unwritten, unspoken red lines in the conduct of the war are crossed. It is entirely conceivable that there could be Cold-War style “strategic deconfliction” parameters worked out between the general staff in Moscow and the Pentagon aimed at avoiding miscalculation or any set of actions (by either side) that could lead to unnecessary conflict. The US and Russian forces have been operating in Syria for years and a communications line, used daily, has helped the two sides avoid direct conflict.

Now, the New Year attack comes as the Biden administration is trying to provide billions in weaponry to Ukraine while also claiming that avoiding a direct clash with Russia has been a top US priority. At any rate, although Russian intelligence would have a fair idea of the location of NATO officers conducting the Ukrainian operations, they have not been so far targeted. That is why, the Russian MOD’s decision on Monday to highlight that US-supplied Himars missiles have killed scores of Russian soldiers on Sunday night would have caused some uneasiness in Washington. The big question is whether Moscow will also now go up the escalation ladder and directly target American military personnel deployed in Ukraine.

Of course, any killing of American military personnel in Ukraine will make very damaging headlines in the US news cycle for the Biden Administration. So far, there has not been a single instance of a body bag arriving from Ukraine. The Russian generals probably ensured that.

The US will let other countries’ troops do the combat.

• U.S. Forces in Europe Prepare for War With Russia (Celente)

U.S. troops stationed in Eastern Europe are preparing for all-out war and have been performing war simulations against Russian forces, according to a new report. The U.S.’s 101st Airborne Division deployed to Romania for the first time in 80 years. The “Screaming Eagles” as a light infantry force that is trained to take to any battlefield and fight within hours. The U.S. Army said in a statement in June that the division arrived at the Mihail Kogalniceanu Airbase to “reinforce NATO’s eastern flank and engage in multinational exercises with partners across the European continent in order to reassure allies and deter further Russian aggression.” “Being here, so close to that fight (in Ukraine), is exactly where the 101st Airborne Division is destined to be,” said Maj. Gen. JP McGee, 101st commander, during the livestreamed ceremony, Stars & Stripes reported at the time.

U.S. infantry arrived at a military base in Estonia last month to train allied troops and secure Europe’s eastern flank amid the Ukraine War. The troops are stationed at the Taara base in Võru and will train alongside Estonia forces. The base is about 20 miles from the Russian border. The troops in Romania have been training Ukrainian forces on advanced weapons systems that are being shipped into Kyiv, The New York Times reported. “You get a chance to train and operate on the very ground that you might have to defend,” McGee told the paper. AntiWar.org noted: “The Times report stressed that the 101st Airborne deployment was about deterrence. If the US were preparing to enter the war directly, it would likely send significantly more troops. While in Romania, the soldiers are also participating in coastal defense drills, and Romanian troops are practicing firing HIMARS rocket launch systems into the Black Sea.”

The Pentagon has said it is sending U.S. troops into Ukraine, under the guise that they are going there not to fight, but instead just to track the billions of dollars of weapons the West sent into the country. NBC News, citing three senior U.S. officials, reported last month that there is discussion in the White House about sending additional troops into the country to help the U.S. track weapons. The report said there are already U.S. troops in the country, again, under the guise that all they are doing is monitoring weapons. The New York Times reported in June that Ukraine is filled with CIA officers and special forces from the West. The report said the CIA personnel have been working out of Kyiv. We reported in October that there are currently more U.S. special forces and CIA agents in Ukraine today than there were at the beginning of the war.

“No mere recital from the actor, but earnest loss he must reveal..”

• The Russia-Ukraine Conflict Is Existential For Both Sides (Lukyanov)

The year 2022 turned everything inside out. With the benefit of hindsight – having overcome the shock everyone experienced in February, when Russian troops entered Ukraine – it’s not that difficult to explain how it came about. And even how it could not have been otherwise. Also, after a full ten months, it is pretty clear why the campaign did not go as planned. The latter is probably even a positive thing. The façade crumbled, exposing the frame. It was not quite as imagined. Some structures thought to be load-bearing had surprisingly sagged. Others, suspected of being unreliable, stood up stronger than had been thought. There are fewer illusions, though the information machine works to maintain them. But this is basically by inertia. The need for a radical renewal of the architecture is obvious.

The Ukrainian landmine was laid when the Soviet Union collapsed. The grim realists knew from the outset that the separation of what had long been a single space – where it was almost impossible to draw a natural boundary – would not be possible. In Russia, as at the bottom of a peat bog, disagreement with the loss of territories of defining cultural and historical significance was smoldering. In Ukraine, radical nationalists lamented that independence came ‘cost-free’ and believed that nations are born in wars. The extremes have now converged. Russia took up the Ukrainian issue when it became central to the world order. Although it may have been the other way round – it became so important because Russia tried to solve it. The tipping point was probably former President Viktor Yanukovich’s decision on whether to tilt West (to the EU) or East (towards the EEU), back in 2013.

The two divergent positions are now firmly entwined. And our country faces fierce resistance, because of the desire of the neighboring state to defend its identity, and the readiness of Western grandees to sacrifice this very nation to put Moscow in its place. However, Russia voluntarily submitted itself to this stress test, and its future depends on the outcome. At this juncture, it is no longer possible to reverse course. Furthermore, the uncertainty of the objectives of the ‘special military operation’ reflects the overarching nature of the challenge. The goals won’t be fully understood until the end, because they won’t be apparent until that comes to pass. The peculiarity of the modern world is that there is no such thing as an outright victory. This is the main paradox here – war has returned as a form of state relations, but it does not involve a clear outcome in the classical sense.

This dramatically complicates the nature of competition and makes it inherently non-linear. And its result is thus ‘hybrid’, with the decisive factor the endurance and resilience of states under the volley of different blows that abound in the unpredictable international environment. The Russia-Ukraine conflict has become a clash for self-determination for Russia as much as for Ukraine. In the literal sense: as in who we are. While Ukraine’s self-determination is similar to examples from the history of nation-state building, in Russia the situation is far more complex. Many of the concepts from the past will not pass the test of this collision. Outright archaic positions are unsustainable in today’s global conditions, even if it seems that the world has turned backwards. But postmodern imitation will no longer work either. It’s too real and tragic. “No mere recital from the actor, but earnest loss he must reveal,” to quote the writer Boris Pasternak, in his poem ‘I Should Have Known that this Would Happen’.

“We are rewarding Russia for its war against us!”

Russia has no war vs the EU. You’re just making that up.

• Effect Of EU Sanctions On Moscow Is ‘Less Than Zero’ – Verhofstadt (RT)

The EU’s sanctions on Russia over the Ukraine conflict have been a complete failure, Belgian member of the European Parliament Guy Verhofstadt said on Monday. He added that the EU was only “rewarding” Russia by increasing imports from the country. Writing on Twitter, Verhofstadt, who served as Belgian prime minister from 1999 to 2008 and has been an MEP since 2009, claimed that the effect of the EU’s nine packages of sanctions on Moscow “is less than 0.” The former PM said that in the bloc’s attempts to punish Russia, it has achieved the opposite result. “We are rewarding Russia for its war against us!” Verhofstadt also posted a chart titled ‘Still Filling Putin’s Coffers’, showing Russia-EU trade from February to August 2022. The graphic, which cites Eurostat data, shows that most EU member states, including Germany, France, Italy, and Poland, significantly increased imports from Russia. In total, only seven EU members were buying less from the country.

Following the start of Russia’s military operation in Ukraine, the EU imposed unprecedented sanctions on Moscow, targeting entire sectors of the economy. In December, the bloc, along with the G7 countries and Australia, introduced a price cap on Russian seaborne oil, setting it at $60 per barrel. In response, last week, President Vladimir Putin signed a decree banning the supply of oil and petroleum products from Russia to countries which apply these restrictions. The sanctions on Russia have exacerbated the bloc’s energy crisis, causing fuel prices and the cost of living to soar. This has prompted protests against the sanctions policy in several EU countries. In December, a demonstration organized by the right-wing Patriots party took place in Paris against the government’s stance on Russia and France’s membership in NATO. In his New Year’s address, Putin said that the West’s “full-blown sanctions war” against Moscow has largely failed to undermine the economy.

“..using a missile against a UAV costs up to seven times more than the drone itself..”

• Russian Drones Far Cheaper Than Ukrainian Air Defenses – NYT (RT)

The fact that the smaller kamikaze drones used by Russia are much cheaper than the Ukrainian air defense missiles used against them is creating problems for Kiev and its Western backers, the New York Times has acknowledged. In an article on Tuesday, the paper didn’t question Kiev’s claims that most of the UAVs launched by Russia are being shot down, but pointed out that even in this case Ukrainian air defense stocks were being exhausted. “How long can Ukraine sustain its effort when many of its defensive measures cost far more than the drones do?” the NYT wondered. In addition to trying to destroy the incoming drones with anti-aircraft guns and small-arms fire, Kiev’s forces have “also relied heavily on missiles fired from warplanes and the ground,” which are very expensive, it wrote.

The paper cited the head of the Ukrainian consultancy Molfar, Artem Starosiek, who claimed that using a missile against a UAV costs up to seven times more than the drone itself. The drones that Russia uses are priced at around $20,000 per unit, while a surface-to-air missile from Ukraine’s arsenal ranges from $140,000 for a Soviet-era S-300 to $500,000 for a US-supplied NASAM system, he said. The article claims that the drones used by Russia in Ukraine are Shahed-136s, supplied by Iran. This claim has been denied by both Moscow and Tehran on many occasions. The Russian Defense Ministry insists that its Geran-2 drones are domestically made, just like all the other hardware used in the military operation against Kiev. The Iranian Foreign Ministry has only confirmed sending a small batch of drones to Russia before the outbreak of the conflict with Ukraine, stressing that no new deliveries have been made since then.

Starosiek nevertheless defended Kiev’s strategy, arguing that it still “costs far less to shoot down a drone than to repair a damaged or destroyed power station.” However, the NYT warned that the price difference between drones and air defenses was “an imbalance that could over time favor Russia, costing Ukraine and its allies dearly, some analysts say.” According to estimations by Molfar, Russia has targeted Ukrainian military infrastructure and energy systems with some 600 UAVs since September, when they began to be used more widely. Russia drastically ramped up its strikes against Ukrainian infrastructure in early October in response to repeated Ukrainian sabotage on Russian soil, including the bombing of the Crimean Bridge, which Moscow blamed on Kiev. Although the attack was widely cheered by top Ukrainian officials, Kiev has denied any involvement.

“I revolt and protest this intellectual dishonesty in the Ukraine crisis because the triggers of the war are the Americans and NATO..”

• US Makes Europeans Suffer – De Gaulle’s Grandson (RT)

The US is making Europeans suffer by fueling the Ukraine conflict and waging a pre-planned economic war against Russia, Pierre de Gaulle, the grandson of former French President Charles de Gaulle, has said. After leading the French resistance against the Nazi occupation during World War II, Charles de Gaulle founded the modern French political system and served as president from 1959 to 1969. His grandson, a strategy and corporate finance consultant, said he believes that the Ukraine conflict was incited by the West. “I revolt and protest this intellectual dishonesty in the Ukraine crisis because the triggers of the war are the Americans and NATO,” Pierre de Gaulle told the Franco-Russian Dialogue Association last week. “The United States, unfortunately, continues the military escalation, making not only the Ukrainian population suffer, but the European population as well.”

The scale and the number of sanctions show that all of this was organized a long time in advance. It is an economic war, from which the Americans are the beneficiaries. The Americans sell their gas to Europeans for a price four to seven times higher than they do in their own country. The Western sanctions imposed on Russian fossil fuel exports have exacerbated the financial and energy crisis in Europe, making “everyone suffer in their daily lives,” de Gaulle said. He also accused former German Chancellor Angela Merkel of “knowingly contributing” to the conflict by “authorizing the Ukrainian nationalist expansion,” which came after the 2014 pro-Western coup in Kiev. The government that came to power that year sought to “annihilate Russian culture… and the ability to speak Russian” in the largely Russophone Donbass, he said.

The Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR) broke away from Ukraine following the 2014 coup. The 2014-15 Minsk accords, brokered by Germany, France, and Russia, were designed to provide a peaceful reintegration of the rebellious territories into Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin cited the need to protect the people of Donbass and Kiev’s failure to implement the Minsk peace accords as reasons for launching the military operation in Ukraine in late February. The DPR and LPR, along with two other former Ukrainian territories, joined Russia after voting overwhelmingly in favor of the move in September. Merkel, as well as former Ukrainian President Pyotr Poroshenko, stated last year that Kiev had used the accords to buy time in order to rebuild its military and economy. Ukraine has adopted several laws since 2014 that restrict the use of the Russian language in the public sphere, including education and the media.

“..Xi Jinping’s meeting with the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in December marked “the birth of the petroyuan..”

• China Setting New World Energy Order – Zoltan Pozsar (RT)

The global energy order is being reshaped as deepening energy ties between China and the Middle East signifies the rise of the petroyuan, which could challenge the petrodollar, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday, citing Credit Suisse analyst Zoltan Pozsar. According to Pozsar, China has been boosting purchases of crude and liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Iran, Venezuela, Russia, and some African nations using its national currency. However, President Xi Jinping’s meeting with the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in December marked “the birth of the petroyuan,” he said in a note to clients. At the summit, the Chinese leader confirmed that Beijing is ready to make energy purchases in yuan instead of the US dollar with GCC countries.

“China wants to rewrite the rules of the global energy market,” Pozsar said, adding that the move to de-dollarize the oil and gas trade is backed members of the BRICS alliance (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa). According to the Credit Suisse analyst, the steps towards ditching the greenback in the energy trade have intensified in the wake of the sweeping sanctions imposed by Western nations on Russia, one of the world’s major energy producers and exporters, in response to the military operation in Ukraine. Pozsar added that dollar foreign exchange reserves were militarized in the sanctions war, making the use of the currency unsafe for major exporters and importers of oil, gas, and other commodities.

Cooperation between China and the GCC may potentially involve joint exploration and production in places such as the South China Sea, as well as investment in refineries, chemicals, and plastics. Pozsar said that implementing all of these projects in the yuan would mark a massive shift in the global energy trade. He added that even if it does not replace the dollar as a reserve currency, trading in the petroyuan will nevertheless come with significant economic and financial implications for policymakers and investors.

“Twitter was flooded with demands from so many officials, departments and agencies, they were confused and overworked. If action wasn’t taken promptly, followup emails quickly appeared, asking if action had yet been taken, and if not, why..”

• US Spies Used False Russiagate Claims To Bring Twitter To Heel (Livshitz)

In a pair of blockbuster #TwitterFiles threads, this week, journalist Matt Taibbi has blown open, even wider, the media giant’s concerning collusion with the US national security state. The former Rolling Stone writer exposed how political pressure from the US Democratic Party very effectively forced the company to endorse the lie that its platform was extensively weaponized by Russia, with hugely significant consequences. The first, boldly titled ‘How Twitter Let the Intelligence Community In’, documents how in August 2017, despite dubious allegations that Russian bots and trolls were responsible for the election of Donald Trump in the mainstream media reaching fever pitch, Twitter’s hierarchy knew its platform wasn’t riddled with malign Kremlin-directed actors. [..]

After years of bending over backwards to placate the Democratic establishment, Twitter attempted to push back. Over a series of internal emails, various executives spelled out deep concerns about allowing the Center any influence over the platform, and initially rejected an FBI request for the organization to be included in the moderation club’s regular ‘industry call’. It was felt the Center’s involvement would pose “major risks … especially as the election heats up.” Eventually, the FBI offered a compromise – the CIA, NSA, and Global Engagement Center would be able to simply listen to the industry calls, but wouldn’t be active participants. Twitter relented, a decision its higher-ups seem to have quickly come to regret. Before long, the social network was being bombarded with requests to censor content and ban users from every US government body under the sun.

This extended to US government officials asking for users to be banned because they didn’t personally like an individual in question. Notorious House Intelligence Committee chief Adam Schiff, a Democrat, once asked Twitter to ban journalist Paul Sperry, due to his critical reporting on the Committee’s work. After initially refusing, Sperry was later suspended. Almost every other request was granted immediately, even those from the Global Engagement Center. This included demands to ban independent media outlets falsely claimed to be “GRU-controlled” and linked “to the Russian government.” In one email, a former CIA staffer remarked that Twitter would soon be unable to deny a single request. “Our window on that is closing,” they said.

In the weeks before the 2020 Presidential election, Twitter was flooded with demands from so many officials, departments and agencies, they were confused and overworked. If action wasn’t taken promptly, followup emails quickly appeared, asking if action had yet been taken, and if not, why, and when it would be. In one request, an FBI official even apologized “in advance for your workload.” Once, a no doubt exhausted senior attorney at the social network complained internally, “my inbox is really f***ed up at this point.” Previous #TwitterFiles threads exposed how the FBI paid the social network $3 million to process its requests. Based on the most recent disclosures, it’s clear the company and its staff were significantly underpaid for their efforts. Future releases promise yet further bombshell revelations, but the long-hidden truths divulged so far should prompt every Twitter user to reflect how the site for many years in secret operated as an effective wing of the US intelligence – and may well still do so.

Tucker Russia

.@TuckerCarlson: "Blaming Russia turned out to be a very useful political tool…Before long, it became the default response for every perceived disaster in Washington."

"RUSSIA became a pretext for…censorship in this country." pic.twitter.com/8Zymt4ivrA

— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) January 5, 2023

He should disappear.

• Schiff Asked Twitter to Censor Paul Sperry Over Impeachment Whistleblower (BB)

House Intelligence Committee chair Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) pressured Twitter to censor the account of Paul Sperry, an investigative journalist who first published the name of the so-called impeachment “whistleblower.” In September 2019, Schiff announced that his committee had reached an agreement with the “whistleblower,” who allegedly filed a complaint about President Donald Trump’s July 2019 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, to testify in his inquiry, which became the impeachment investigation. But Schiff never produced the whistleblower and later claimed, falsely, that the whistleblower had a “right” to anonymity. Schiff also lied about his contact with the “whistleblower,” first claiming that his committee had never spoken to the whistleblower, then admitting — after a New York Times report to the contrary — that they had done so.

Later, Sperry published an article at RealClearInvestigations identifying the “whistleblower” as a CIA analyst named Eric Ciaramella, who had worked at the Trump White House before returning to the CIA. Sperry also published other articles identifying links between Schiff’s committee and aides who had worked at the Trump White House and who had been “holdovers” from the Obama administration. The media and the tech industry suppressed the name of the whistleblower, and Schiff refused to allow Republicans to ask questions about the whistleblower during the impeachment investigation. Even Chief Justice John Roberts played along, censoring a question from Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) during the Senate impeachment trial about the whistleblower.

On Tuesday, in the latest installment of the “Twitter files,” investigative journalist Matt Taibbi produced email evidence showing that Schiff’s office had asked Twitter, in writing, to censor Sperry after the November 2020 election, claiming (without evidence) that Sperry had spread “QAnon conspiracies” on the platform. Sperry told the New York Post Tuesday that Schiff’s claims were false and that he had never promoted QAnon: In an email Tuesday, Sperry told The Post, “I have never promoted any ‘QAnon conspiracies.’ Ever. Not on Twitter. Not anywhere.” “Schiff was just angry I outed his impeachment whistleblower and tried to get me banned,” he said. “I challenge Schiff to produce evidence to back up his defamatory remarks to Twitter.” Sperry also said, “This is a scurrilous smear, but par for the course for the unscrupulous Chairman Schiff.”

Library.

• Capsule Summaries of all Twitter Files Threads (Taibbi)

It’s January 4th, 2023, which means Twitter Files stories have been coming out for over a month. Because these are weedsy tales, and may be hard to follow if you haven’t from the beginning, I’ve written up capsule summaries of each of the threads by all of the Twitter Files reporters, and added links to the threads and accounts of each. At the end, in response to some readers (especially foreign ones) who’ve found some of the alphabet-soup government agency names confusing, I’ve included a brief glossary of terms to help as well.

Masks.

• Breathing Trouble (Bardi/Walach)

Just like smoking a single cigarette never killed anyone, wearing a face mask for a few hours or a few days does not cause irreversible damage either. But the immediate short-term physiological effects are detectable: A recent study led by Pritam Sukul, senior medical scientist at the University Medicine Rostock in Germany, found masks to cause hypercarbia (high concentration of CO2 in the blood), arterial oxygen decline, blood pressure fluctuations, and concomitant physiological and metabolic effects. On a time scale of weeks or months, these effects appear to be reversible. But how can we know what can happen to people who wear masks for several hours a day for several years? Will we have to wait for decades before concluding that masks are bad for people s health, as was the case with cigarettes?

Not necessarily, for we are able to assess face masks in terms of the air quality breathed by the wearers. One important parameter for air quality is CO2 concentration. Over the years, a lot of data has been accumulated in this field from miners, astronauts, submariners, and other people exposed to high concentrations of CO2 . Measurable negative effects on mental alertness already occur at CO2 concentrations over 600 parts per million (ppm), which is only slightly higher than the average concentration in open air (a little more than 400 ppm). Values higher than 1,000-2,000 ppm are not recommended for living spaces, especially for children and pregnant women. 5,000 ppm is the commonly accepted limit in working environments or in submarines and spaceships. Concentrations in the range of 10,000-20,000 ppm are not immediately life-threatening but can only be withstood for short periods.

Even higher concentrations may lead to loss of consciousness and death. So what kind of CO2 concentration are people exposed to when they wear a face mask? Measuring the concentration of CO2 inside the small volume of a face mask while it is being used poses practical problems, and there are no standardised methods and procedures to evaluate this. Nevertheless, during the past few years, several papers dealing with this subject were published. Some of these papers were criticised, but often baselessly. For instance, some fact checkers claimed that the same amount of CO2 could be found without face masks in exhaled breath. This is true, but trivial. The studies mentioned above measured the amount of CO2 in the inhaled air under face masks; the fact checkers measured the air exhaled. Other fact checkers provided a priori statements by experts, including a sports reporter.

“..79% of respondents think their country should “stand up for Swedish laws” in the face of Türkiye’s demands..”

• Swedes Adamant In Face Of Türkiye’s NATO Demands (RT)

An overwhelming majority of Swedes believe their country should not betray its legal principles to meet Türkiye’s conditions for ratifying Stockholm’s NATO bid, according to a new Ipsos poll commissioned by Swedish daily Dagens Nyheter and released on Monday. The survey found that 79% of respondents think their country should “stand up for Swedish laws” in the face of Türkiye’s demands. This red line, they said, should not be crossed even “if that delays joining NATO.” Only 10% said that “Sweden should try to join NATO as soon as possible,” even if it entails legal compromises, while 11% said they were not sure.

The poll shows only minor discrepancies in opinion between various social groups. Men are said to be more open to compromises with Ankara than women, although they also tend to insist on protecting the country’s legal principles. As for differences along political lines, those who vote for right-wing parties are more inclined to agree to a give-and-take approach. Despite the delays in joining NATO, the poll revealed that as many as 60% of Swedes still want to become part of the US-led military bloc, with only 19% opposing Stockholm’s membership bid. The survey, which was conducted between December 6 and 18, is based on 1,248 interviews with Swedish voters.

In June, NATO agreed to accept Sweden and Finland to the bloc, but their membership bid has yet to be ratified by all members of the alliance, with Hungary and Türkiye’s approval still pending. Ankara has been reluctant to finalize the accession process, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pushing Sweden and Finland to do more to combat Kurdish “terrorism,” including extraditing people that Türkiye accuses of having terrorist links. In early December, Sweden reportedly made some progress in this regard, handing over a man to Türkiye who had been convicted in his home country of being a member of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party. Two weeks later, however, Sweden’s Supreme Court blocked the extradition of Bulent Kenes, a former editor-in-chief of Zaman Daily who Ankara accused of being involved in an attempt to topple Erdogan in 2016.

Good to remember.

• A History of Dissent (Lauria)

The United States was founded by dissenters. The Declaration of Independence is one of history’s most significant dissenting documents, inspiring people seeking freedom around the world, from the French revolutionists to Ho Chi Minh, who based Vietnam’s declaration of independence from France on the American declaration. But over the centuries a corrupt centralization of American power seeking to maintain and expand its authority has at times sought to crush the very principle of dissent which was written into the United States Constitution. Freedom to dissent was first threatened by the second president. Just eight years after the adoption of the Bill of Rights, press freedom had become a threat to John Adams, whose Federalist Party pushed through Congress the 1798 Alien and Sedition Acts.

They criminalized criticism of the federal government. There were 25 prosecutions and 10 convictions, under the Sedition Act. The acts expired and some repealed by 1802. The Union then shut down newspapers during the U.S. Civil War. Woodrow Wilson came within one vote in the Senate of creating official government censorship in the 1917 Espionage Act. The 1918 Alien and Sedition Act that followed jailed hundreds of people for speech until it was repealed in 1921. Since the 1950s, McCarthyism has become the byword for one of the worst periods of repression of dissent in U.S. history. The closest we’ve come to Wilson’s troubling dream is the Biden administration’s Disinformation Governance Board under the Department of Homeland Security, which after heavy criticism was disbanded.

The roots of repression are in the earliest English settlers in North America, described in The Scarlet Letter and applied to McCarthyism in Arthur Miller’s The Crucible. Though its industrial and scientific achievements are most lauded, America’s tradition of dissent is probably the greatest thing in U.S. history and it is once again under threat.

Protocol to get rid of vaxx.

• Post-vaccine Treatment Protocol (FLCCC)

Major public health authorities do not recognize post-COVID-vaccine injuries and no official definition exists. However, a temporal correlation between receiving a COVID-19 vaccine and the beginning or worsening of a patient’s clinical manifestations is sufficient to diagnose a COVID-19 vaccine-induced injury, when symptoms are otherwise unexplained by concurrent causes. Since there are no published reports detailing how to manage vaccine-injured patients, our treatment approach is based on the postulated pathogenetic mechanism, clinical observation, and patient anecdotes. Treatment must be individualized according to each patient’s presenting symptoms and disease syndromes. Chances are, not all patients will respond equally to the same intervention; a particular intervention may be life-saving for one patient and completely ineffective for another. Early treatment is essential; the response to treatment will most likely be attenuated when treatment is delayed.

Trump 1991

Remarkable 1991 exchange between Donald Trump and DEMOCRAT Rep. Jimmy Hayes on the severe financial hardships caused by the 1986 tax law

The cordial & intelligent exchange – and a Democrat talking about reality!

Praise God that Trump is POTUS at this moment! pic.twitter.com/2iScdx9PNN

— John Skjult (@skjultster) April 21, 2020

Musk electric planes
https://twitter.com/i/status/1610745168743006209

Tiger spoons

Sculpture made of spoons and forks. WOW pic.twitter.com/qsZu79sE7E

— Figen (@TheFigen_) January 4, 2023

Sunfish

The ocean sunfish is the world's heaviest known bony fish: it reaches up to 2,300 kg of weight & 4.2 meters of size across the fins

[read more: https://t.co/Q3q2LQouPN]
[video: https://t.co/Y7b66SrkLA]pic.twitter.com/IgyJvA3reX

— Massimo (@Rainmaker1973) January 4, 2023

Octopus

When marine biologist Roger Hanlon caught this creature on camera, he said he screamed bloody murder. And no wonder. A superb visualization of how chromatophores allow an octopus to blend in with the backdrops

[source, read more: https://t.co/Vp1Uxhq0He]pic.twitter.com/1bp6cWouSN

— Massimo (@Rainmaker1973) January 4, 2023

Samoyed

Samoyed, in its natural habitat pic.twitter.com/Wal3TLVP8V

— Heckin Good Dogs (@HeckinGoodDogs) January 4, 2023

Support the Automatic Earth in virustime with Paypal, Bitcoin and Patreon.

This topic has 89 replies, 24 voices, and was last updated 1 year, 3 months ago by aspnaz.

Viewing 40 posts - 41 through 80 (of 90 total)

← 1 2 3 →

Author

Posts
January 5, 2023 at 7:09 pm #125122

John Day
Participant

Thanks Polemos. No need to self-censor.

Sasha has interesting technical comments regarding the administration of 5, 6 or even seven doses from an identical Comirnaty or Pfizer vial, as pertains to what went into the injected arm. It seems that it is extremely unpredictable how much of the (rises to the top) “active” lipid layer got injected into any particular victim. https://sashalatypova.substack.com/p/it-doesnt-add-up?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=870364&post_id=92869970&isFreemail=true&utm_medium=email

January 5, 2023 at 7:15 pm #125123

jb-hb
Participant

Afewknowthetruth – I include the “science denier” and “it is a religion” stuff for 2 reasons

1. A very significant component or your belief appears to be circular and moralistic:

The Science tells me I am unquestionably right.

The Science says horrible, awful, catastrophic things will happen If We Do Not Act.; We Need To Take Action All Of Us Together.

People who disbelieve The Climate Truth naturally will not Take Action. They will only get in the way of Taking Action.

Why should I entertain ANY arguments, questions, etc from someone whose actions are DEFINED AS preventing us from Taking Action, which we Must Do in order to Avoid Intolerable Massive Catastrophe? Them speaking ANYTHING AT ALL against The Science is an evil action – they’re essentially blocking the stopping of genocide aren’t they?

I am factually right about this super important thing > I am completely morally in the right.

I am completely morally in the right > I don’t need to consider any arguments from immoral people who are wrong

Anytime I’ve seen you “discuss” The Climate Science, it’s if there’s some inarguable Something Else that REALLY matters. Unspoken and therefore unquestionable.

NATURALLY I therefore point at it every time. It is, after all, what we’re really arguing about while you’d like me to pretend we aren’t, so that you can argue about it to the exclusion of all else and “win.”

But if maximum “harm” will be “triggered” by Human generated CO2 (hmm…. where else do we encounter Harm and Triggering?) unless we Take Action and Climate Science Deniers stand in the way of the ONLY thing that could prevent maximum harm….

…explain how it does NOT follow that this makes me your subhuman property. It should be easy for you to explain, shouldn’t it?

What measures CAN’T you decide, just like masks, EVEN IF IT HELPS ONLY A LITTLE BIT or perhaps MIGHT HELP. If there is a CHANCE of avoiding MAXIMUM HARM and there is an absolute imperative that We Must Take Action AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, you’ve already decided ANY objection I may raise is factually incorrect evil action that should be stopped? Like, even the IDEA that conversation would be possible is evil, since implicit in conversation is that one or the other might have a point? And the opposite side gaining ANY points takes us closer to Armageddon, by preventing Necessary Action?

You already expressed that I, as a Climate Science Denier am ultimate evil. You’ve already expressed total scorn for any thinking processes I may have. So how am I NOT your subhuman property to do with as you will, and even if any of my objections that my interests may be harmed by Taking Action turn out to be RIGHT, that would only be right and good, considering how evil and scummy I am???

(like when a Vax-Denier says hey, this thing could cripple or kill me. Well hey, that would be all to the good for a vax denier to get injured, serves them right – take the shot you anti vaxxer)

How should I NOT be subject to your Climate related whims, if you become convinced it will at least “Help” or “Might Help”?

And the more things you think of that I would object to, the more immoral and unthinking that would establish me as being, wouldn’t it? You think of 3 Climate Things and I argue with them. You think of 100 Climate Things and I deny 100 Climate Things. Aren’t I proven way, way worse now, purely as a function of the number of Vital Actions you thought of for us To Take?

2. You refrain from defending your belief with reason and science

I figure if I keep saying it is religious and unscientific, you’ll engage with IDEAS. I figure your pride in the reason and science that brought you to your belief would kick in. That you’d have enough pride to ENGAGE.

Proclaiming that you are better, changing the subject, making accusations, declaring you are the winner…

These are the argument-version of soiling your armor and fleeing the field of battle.

You would have to ENGAGE IDEAS to win. I am taunting you to get you to stop running away. Bok bok bok chicken. Like that.

SAYING you are winning while running away is the same as climbing to the top of the road sign that says “Cleveland 100 miles” and saying you have successfully reached Cleveland. Expressing the idea of winning a battle while not engaging in battle is not winning a battle.

Finally, let me make a clear and sincere statement here:

I am not better than you. I am not smarter than you. Sincerely, I mean that.

So how am I doing what I doing? What paradigm IS in play? Because the more we interact, the worse Climate Change looks. Not because I declare it, but because of all the questions and contradictions that go unanswered. When the “answers” evade, the suggestion is that one doth protest too much, got nothing under the hood after all, etc.

And again:

1. The Climate Religion says that CO2 DOES NOT itself cause the catastrophic heat thingy

2. The Climate Religion says that CO2 causes a LITTLE warming, enough to Tip The Fragile Balance and HOLY TRIGGER the totally completely non human factors that WOULD cause the warming catastrophe

3. The Climate Religion says it is TEMPERATURE, not the mere presence of CO2, the chemical, that causes the runaway feedback loop.

4. 40 interglacial periods show many, MANY temperature spikes going WELL ABOVE the temperatures that The Climate Religionists say trigger a runaway feedback loop causing a heat catastrophe

5. If CO2 constitutes the “different conditions” from before, but CO2 is only significant in the relatively minor temperature change it causes that then triggers the NON HUMAN feedback loops to start, then why does the same temperature AND HIGHER, over and over, NOT cause The Holy And Blessed Feedback Loop?

Are you BOTH a Science Denier AND a Climate Science Apostate/Heretic? Do you DENY any of the central tenets of your belief that I have mentioned above?

January 5, 2023 at 7:35 pm #125124

Afewknowthetruth
Participant

In the past I have been accused of thinking too much. I can’t help it. “It’s just the kind of guy I am.” (Carlin)

I have been thinking about Scienceand The Science, and the snivelling rats who make ad hominem attacks on me and others and completely fail to the scientific realities of the age we live in, conflating the phenomenon of snowfall with a general cooling of the Earth which is clearly not happening. Indeed, as anyone with a rudimentary knowledge of science knows -or even properly operating sensory organs- knows, snowfall is indicative of relatively warm conditions and the high atmospheric humidity that put the moisture into the atmosphere to generate the snow.

Clearly, we must distinguish very carefully between Science and The Science.

Science is an all-encompassing word, describing the systematic study of phenomena and the compilation of data, the formulation and testing of a hypothesis (or many) and an integrated body of knowledge accumulated over tens of thousands of years. Science has a predictive value.

Thus, when I became aware that so-called vaccines -commercially available at record speed- were based on Messenger-RNA, the Science I have studied over the past more-than-six-decades (and that is chemistry, physics biology, biochemistry, anatomy, anthropology, geology, geochemistry etc.) immediately set off alarm bells and informed me that the so-called vaccines were not vaccines at all but were cell biology modifiers of a potentially dangerous, even deadly, nature.

My suspicions were confirmed shortly after -nearly two years ago- by [arguably] Airstrip Five’s top biologist, Dr Martin Hansen, who declared that he would rather go to prison than have any of that injected into him. Another person, whom I shall not name, declared that if forced to have an injection of ‘that shit’ would immediately write a note: ‘Murdered by Adern via jabbing’ and would walk to the main highway and step out in front of a large, fast-moving truck.

When it comes to The Science, it is a completely different matter altogether. The Science -as espoused by The Scorpion and others- is a mind-control, system, developed by a clique of money-lenders, ‘economists’, anti-scientific bureaucrats, and politicians etc., as a means of promoting anti-scientific clap trap and as a means of perpetuating the wealth extraction system that has operated for many centuries.

Whereas Science is very clear in the matters of Declining Energy Availability, Planetary Meltdown and The Sixth Great Extinction Event etc., The Science offers all sorts of completely fake narratives -such as ‘Safe and effective vaccines’, ‘Carbon Neutrality by 2050 blah, blah, blah.

When it comes to those commenters-such as aspnaz, who have a propensity to make ant–scientific ad hominem attacks, I now realise that they have an important role in keeping the compassionate, logical, scientific, caring sector of society aware just how illogical, egotistical and nasty many homo sapiens (homo violentus) are.

January 5, 2023 at 7:50 pm #125125

jb-hb
Participant

bok bok bok

January 5, 2023 at 7:51 pm #125126

Afewknowthetruth
Participant

‘The Science tells me I am unquestionably right.’

jb-hb.

Yes, The Science, the completely fraudulent system of mind-control promoted by the money-lenders, anti-scientific bureaucrats and politicians etc. definitely tells you that you are unquestionably right.

Indeed, it is a hallmark of The Science to just accept and never question.

That is the opposite of Science, which tell us to question everything. And keep asking questions.

As per:

When it comes to The Science, it is a completely different matter altogether. The Science -as espoused by The Scorpion and others- is a mind-control, system, developed by a clique of money-lenders, ‘economists’, anti-scientific bureaucrats, and politicians etc., as a means of promoting anti-scientific clap trap and as a means of perpetuating the wealth extraction system that has operated for many centuries.

On the other hand, Science clearly proves you are wrong.

Apologies, jb-hb, I omitted you in this portion of the above comment. My bad.

When it comes to those commenters-such as aspnaz, who have a propensity to make ant–scientific ad hominem attacks, I now realise that they have an important role in keeping the compassionate, logical, scientific, caring sector of society aware just how illogical, egotistical and nasty many homo sapiens (homo violentus) are.

January 5, 2023 at 8:02 pm #125127

zerosum
Participant

Reference
My search at WHO, for Messenger-RNA,

https://www.who.int/teams/health-product-policy-and-standards/standards-and-specifications/vaccine-standardization/mrna-vaccines

https://www.who.int/publications/m/item/annex-3-mRNA-vaccines-trs-no-1039

https://cdn.who.int/media/docs/default-source/biologicals/vaccine-standardization/annex-3—mrna-vaccines_who_trs_1039_web-2.pdf?sfvrsn=6e31a112_1&download=true

January 5, 2023 at 8:10 pm #125128

Afewknowthetruth
Participant

Meanwhile, back in the real world, Nate, Canadian Prepper does an excellent job of presenting the latest data on the Planetary Meltdown that a certain sector of the TAE commentariat are firmly locked into denying is happening.

It’s all good, but the section from minute 12 -highlighting the extraordinarily high temperatures currently experienced in Europe and the US and the extraordinarily high sea-surface temperatures- is stunning.

There is so much high-CO2-induced instability in the atmosphere, another Arctic Vortex could cause land surface temperatures to briefly plummet by 30oC again, before the next upswing.

That is why Planetary Meltdown deniers, such as jb-hb. must avoid becoming informed about reality (or even thinking about reality) at all costs if they are to maintain their illogical stance on the matter:

.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXtwR0N3-Ws

January 5, 2023 at 8:12 pm #125129

Afewknowthetruth
Participant

Apologies, a . in the wrong place messed that up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXtwR0N3-W

January 5, 2023 at 8:16 pm #125130

Afewknowthetruth
Participant

January 5, 2023 at 8:19 pm #125131

jb-hb
Participant

Thus, when I became aware that so-called vaccines -commercially available at record speed- were based on Messenger-RNA, the Science I have studied over the past more-than-six-decades (and that is chemistry, physics biology, biochemistry, anatomy, anthropology, geology, geochemistry etc.) immediately set off alarm bells and informed me that the so-called vaccines were not vaccines at all but were cell biology modifiers of a potentially dangerous, even deadly, nature.

are you PURPOSELY missing the point?

The pro-injection-which-does-not-vaccinate person will use the SAME EXACT CIRCULAR THINKING YOU USE FOR THE HOLY CLIMATE SCIENCE to not listen to you.

That is the whole POINT of the thing you are responding to with a big whiff, zip, strike, fumble, etc.

I am factually right about this super important thing > I am completely morally in the right.

I am completely morally in the right > I don’t need to consider any arguments from immoral people who are wrong

Covid19 is causing Maximum Harm. We have to Take Action. When you voice doubts, you block the prevention of maximum harm. Expressing your THOUGHTS about the injection which does not vaccinate is essentially an attempt to block the prevention of virtual genocide.

Duh. The pro injection person won’t say they are For The Science and You are for Actual Science. That’s what YOU say. To them. While they remain in the boldface italicized thought loop above.

The MORE you say what they believe is The Science, while you know actual real Science, the more wrong you are! The more EVIL you are! The more you prove these things to them!

And your claims to Science and Morality for the CLIMATE DEBATE are different …how?

Again, are you PURPOSELY missing the point? You APPROVE of their methods, just not the specific thing their methods are used to defend?

Science I have studied over the past more-than-six-decades (and that is chemistry, physics biology, biochemistry, anatomy, anthropology, geology, geochemistry etc.)

climbing the road sign to Cleveland and announcing yourself as having arrived in Cleveland.

All the more reason, with all that great scientific list, that you could answer questions and resolve contradictions that you don’t. Or even define specifically what you believe or at least what you don’t. But if you get specific, you could get tied down defending a specific thing.

you have at least confirmed you DO specifically believe in:

Planetary Meltdown
The Sixth Great Extinction Event

That is why Planetary Meltdown deniers, such as jb-hb…

In a very painfully obvious fashion, you avoid my summary of your Plantery Meltdown beliefs.

You very pointedly avoid admitting you agree with any of the points AND pointedly avoid disavowing any of them. Your silence is deafening

At least you declared Planetary Meltdown is your belief. That’s something.

You purposely evaded understanding the vax analogy because you KNOW that in saying why the pro injection person doesn’t own you as subhuman property, to do with as they wish, to prevent maximum harm, you would be explaining why these can’t be true for YOUR belief either.

Planetary Meltdown surely qualifies as a case of stupendous Harm, yes? Or do you disavow? Planetary Meltdown is NOT massive Harm?

bok bok bok

January 5, 2023 at 8:22 pm #125132

Mr. House
Participant

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/fbi-increases-reward-500000-info-about-capitol-hill-pipe-bomb-suspect

A thought: Perhaps this was the backup plan if people didn’t go in the capital? How much you wanna bet if the “riots” hadn’t happened these bombs would have went off and the only reason they haven’t caught this person yet is because this person was working for them?

January 5, 2023 at 8:24 pm #125133

Mr. House
Participant

I agree with JB-HB and the only thing i would add is the war on terror was exactly the same.

January 5, 2023 at 8:42 pm #125134

jb-hb
Participant

That is why Planetary Meltdown deniers, such as jb-hb. must avoid becoming informed about reality (or even thinking about reality) at all costs if they are to maintain their illogical stance on the matter

My argument was ENTIRELY constructed of YOUR OWN Planetary Meltdown beliefs! I conceded EVERY SINGLE POINT.

What do you disavow, then? Specifically?

Because if you’re saying I am not acknowledging reality, and I am citing Planetary Meltdown beliefs as the foundation of my argument, you are saying there is something within Planetary Meltdown that does NOT match reality.

January 5, 2023 at 9:03 pm #125135

John Day
Participant

In case of SCIENCE-EMERGENCY – BREAK GLASS and PULL DOWN

January 5, 2023 at 9:18 pm #125137

John Day
Participant

“Release Of Information” is up, with some redundancy redundancy
https://drjohnsblog.substack.com/p/release-of-information

Cardiologist Sanjay Verma MD has the best explanation I have yet seen on the medical evaluation process for athletes who have acute cardiac events.
Cardiac Arrest and Sudden Cardiac Death in AthletesI
In this discussion it seems many (on all sides of the discussion) are subject to some confirmation bias and some deference to authority (quoting someone they respect but not understanding the pathophysiology themselves). While some aspects of the situation are speculative at best, other aspects can be interpreted with 100% confidence.
It really helps to put aside personal ego and not take any aspects of this discussion personally (and refrain from ad hominem attacks). Much of this can be explained or not explained with provable pathophysiology.
https://sanjayverma-66740.medium.com/cardiac-arrest-and-sudden-cardiac-death-in-athletes-9c93a6c47bf6

Damar Hamlin appears to be neurologically intact as he comes out of induced-sedation, holding hands and speaking to family and loved ones.
Time to forget this whole thing? Who needs answers? (Some football players still want answers, though.)
https://www.cnn.com/2023/01/05/sport/damar-hamlin-collapse-bills-status-thursday/index.html

Short and long versions of this important paper. Thanks “Doc”.
Circulating Spike Protein Detected in Post–COVID-19 mRNA Vaccine Myocarditis
Immunoprofiling of vaccinated adolescents and young adults revealed that the mRNA vaccine–induced immune responses did not differ between individuals who developed myocarditis and individuals who did not. However, free spike antigen was detected in the blood of adolescents and young adults who developed post-mRNA vaccine myocarditis, advancing insight into its potential underlying cause.
https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.122.061025
https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/epdf/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.122.061025

January 5, 2023 at 9:20 pm #125138

John Day
Participant

Interview with Peter McCullough MD: NFL Player Drops Suddenly
https://live.childrenshealthdefense.org/chd-tv/shows/good-morning-chd/nfl-star-drops-suddenly-with-peter-mccullough-md-mph/

FLCCC treatment options and protocols for post-COVID-vaccine syndromes. Thanks Ilargi.
https://covid19criticalcare.com/treatment-protocols/i-recover/

“Card Catalogue” Capsule Summaries of all Twitter Files Threads to Date, With Links and a Glossary, Matt Taibbi
For those who haven’t been following, a compilation of one-paragraph summaries of all the Twitter Files threads by every reporter. With links and notes on key revelations
https://taibbi.substack.com/p/capsule-summaries-of-all-twitter

This is actually a very good story. Twitter management did not initially want to get dragged into this black hole of censorship and propaganda, but was professionally coerced, with relentless pressure from multiple government offices, not just alphabet-agencies.
New Twitter bombshell: How American spies used false claims of Russian election interference to bring the tech giant to heel
https://www.rt.com/news/569389-politicized-xenophobic-witch-hunt/

January 5, 2023 at 9:22 pm #125139

John Day
Participant

MK Bhadrakumar has further insights on the midnight, new years massacre of Russian recruits in their barracks, as they phoned-home.
US climbs escalation ladder in Ukraine
In all probability, the message conveyed to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov from his American counterpart Antony Blinken via Israel’s new foreign minister Eli Cohen concerned the Ukrainian missile attack on Makeyevka (Donetsk) on New Year Day at 12.02 am killing 89 Russian conscripts…
..At any rate, although Russian intelligence would have a fair idea of the location of NATO officers conducting the Ukrainian operations, they have not been so far targeted. That is why, the Russian MOD’s decision on Monday to highlight that US-supplied Himars missiles have killed scores of Russian soldiers on Sunday night would have caused some uneasiness in Washington.
The big question is whether Moscow will also now go up the escalation ladder and directly target American military personnel deployed in Ukraine.
Of course, any killing of American military personnel in Ukraine will make very damaging headlines in the US news cycle for the Biden Administration…
..The Russian readout of Cohen’s phone conversation with Lavrov on Tuesday mentioned that the latter “informed his Israeli counterpart about certain aspects of the situation in Ukraine in the context of Russia’s special military operation.”
Lavrov probably had his say on Blinken’s charade that the US had nothing to do with the killing of 89 Russian soldiers. The fact that as many was six deadly HIMARS missiles were fired in rapid sequence at a single target at 12.02 am shows a high level of certainty on the part of the Ukrainian side and/or their western mentors that maximum damage would be inflicted.
The intelligence inputs in real time show direct American participation in the horrific operation targeting the Russian conscripts’ New Year party just when the toasts began. Of course, whipping up public sentiments in Russia against Putin is a core American objective in the war.

US climbs escalation ladder in Ukraine

Moon of Alabama (Germany) Ukraine – The Big Push To End The War (There is mass delusion about the realities of this war. That must be clarified first.)
The ‘western’ propaganda is still quite strong. However, as I pointed out in March last year propaganda does not change a war and lies do not win it. Its believability is shrinking.
Former Lt.Col. Alex Vershinin, who in June pointed out that industrial warfare is back and the ‘West’ was not ready to wage it, has a new recommendable piece out which analyses the tactics on both sides, looks ahead and concludes that Russia will almost certainly win the war… (Colonel Macgregor says the same thing.)
..Casualties are expected in wars and the Russians, with their steady remembrance of the second world war as their Great Patriotic War, know this well. Screw ups also happen and at times some bad leadership decisions puts people into the wrong place where the enemy can and will kill them. That is what happened in Makeyevka (Donetsk) on New Years day 2 minutes after midnight. Some 100 Russian reservists died. The Russian leadership pointed out that they were killed by U.S. HIMARS missiles...
..Those are four HIMARS, three M-777, some Czech ‘aid’, 800 HIMARS missiles and some Ukrainian guns that were lost in just one day. That was probably more than the ‘West’ can deliver over the next months…
..This only confirms the point Alex Vershinin was making. Russia has cared for its resources while the Ukraine, and NATO, have wasted their stuff mostly in senseless frontal campaigns against well protected Russian troops.
Yves Smith of Naked Capitalism points out that Vershinin has left out the economic side of the war where the picture is as bad for Ukraine as it is on the ground…
..December interview the Ukrainian war leader General Valery Zaluzhny gave to the Economist.:
General Zaluzhny, who is raising a new army corps, reels off a wishlist. “I know that I can beat this enemy,” he says. “But I need resources. I need 300 tanks, 600-700 IFVs [infantry fighting vehicles], 500 Howitzers.” The incremental arsenal he is seeking is bigger than the total armoured forces of most European armies.
What Zaluzhny really says is that the war is lost if he does not get those resources. He knows well that is he will not receive them…
..Due to currently warmer than normal weather the ground in Ukraine is not yet frozen and the mud will return in March and April. That gives only a two months window to move forward...
..The big question is how the U.S. will respond. If the Ukraine falls the U.S. and NATO will have lost their war against Russia. That will cause serious political damage…
..The effect of losing the war will be noticed in global and domestic politics. ‘Western’ global standing will be degraded and the leadership of the war party will receive some well deserved bashing.
But will the U.S. let that happen? Can it allow itself to lose this war? Or will it escalate? Even when that is likely to only worsen its situation?
https://www.moonofalabama.org/2023/01/ukraine-the-big-push-to-end-the-war.html#more

Russian drones far cheaper than Ukrainian air defenses (The Patriot air-defense missiles will cost $3-4 million each)
The drones that Russia uses are priced at around $20,000 per unit, while a surface-to-air missile from Ukraine’s arsenal ranges from $140,000 for a Soviet-era S-300 to $500,000 for a US-supplied NASAM system, he said.
https://www.rt.com/news/569386-ukraine-drones-iran-defense/

U.S. Forces in Europe Prepare for War With Russia (What can stop the war machine? Light infantry will be vaporized by artillery. USAF can’t own this sky.)
https://trendsinthenews.substack.com/p/us-forces-in-europe-prepare-for-war

101st Airborne Still Deployed in Romania Simulating War With Russia
Members of the division told CBS in October that they were prepared to enter Ukraine if given the (suicidal) order
About 4,000 members of the US Army’s 101st Airborne Division are still deployed in Romania as part of a military buildup in Eastern Europe that President Biden ordered last year...
..The military buildup in Eastern Europe has brought US troop levels on the continent to over 100,000 for the first time since 2005. The Pentagon is expected to decide soon if it will maintain the current levels for the long term or reduce or increase them.

101st Airborne Still Deployed in Romania Simulating War With Russia

January 5, 2023 at 9:26 pm #125140

John Day
Participant

Putin is offering the Ukrainian soldiers Friday and Saturday off for Christmas. Many already feel abandoned/sacrificed by Kiev. How would you feel?
Ukraine Rejects Putin’s Christmas Truce Proposal As “Hypocrisy” & “A Trap”
Zelensky advisor Mykhailo Podolyak announced on Twitter, that Russian forces…must leave the occupied territories – only then will it have a “temporary truce”. Keep hypocrisy to yourself...
..If the Russian church’s call for a Christmas truce is observed and holds, it could increase the chances of the two sides eventually seeking a more permanent ceasefire and negotiated settlement.
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/russias-patriarch-kirill-calls-both-sides-implement-truce-orthodox-christmas

January 5, 2023 at 9:58 pm #125142

Veracious Poet
Participant

January 5, 2023 at 10:02 pm #125143

Redneck
Participant

AAAWWW , how sweet.

But it seems Zelensky saw it coming, given the following comments at the end of November:

Israel’s incoming prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s “personal relationship” with Russia’s Vladimir Putin could affect the “historical relations” between Israel and Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky told The New York Times’ DealBook Summit on Wednesday.

“Of course, if [Netanyahu] wants to maintain his personal relations with Putin, he can continue doing what he’s doing,” Zelensky said at the summit, held in New York City.

“But if he wants to maintain the historical relations between Israel and the Ukrainian people, you have to do everything you can to save as many people as possible.”

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/incoming-israeli-foreign-minister-shocks-previewing-pro-russian-policies

January 5, 2023 at 10:06 pm #125144

Germ
Participant

Massive increase in excess deaths in England and Wales:

14,530 deaths were registered in England and Wales in the week ending 23 December 2022 (Week 51).

This was 20.7% above the five-year average (2,493 excess deaths).

See Table 1 here:

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/deaths/bulletins/deathsregisteredweeklyinenglandandwalesprovisional/weekending23december2022

TVASF and are dying in great numbers.

January 5, 2023 at 10:08 pm #125145

Afewknowthetruth
Participant

jb-hb

You clearly need to learn the difference between facts and beliefs. Chris Matenson’s Crash Course is a good place to start.

I assume you have avoided looking at the CP video.

Get back to me when you have.

Until you have, I will ignore every bit of nonsense you contaminate TAE with, including the ad hominem attacks -the sure sign of a failed debater.

On the other hand, your religious beliefs may preclude you from looking at current data.

I note the graphs you keep posting have almost nothing whatsoever to do with current conditions on Earth -other than as a reference point for how much Industrial Civilisation has fucked-up the natural systems that used to maintain stability.

Come to think of it, RIM posted exactly what my problem is:

‘The truth has no defense against a fool determined to believe a lie’

Mark Twain was a really smart guy, except when he attempted to expose the lies of The Empire of Lies.

t

January 5, 2023 at 10:13 pm #125146

Afewknowthetruth
Participant

Life on Airstrip Five in 2023:

‘My family is shattered’: Auckland business owner regrets moving to NZ after suffering third ram-raid

Police are investigating multiple robberies which have hit retail businesses in Auckland and Hamilton over the past 24 hours.

Kanna Sharma, the owner of Kauriland’s G.A.S station in Titirangi, Auckland is devastated after his business was ram-raided at 2:20am on Thursday.

He said it’s the third such attack on his business and he now regrets moving to Aotearoa with his family‘

https://www.msn.com/en-nz/news/national/my-family-is-shattered-auckland-business-owner-regrets-moving-to-nz-after-suffering-third-ram-raid/ar-AA15ZhJr?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=d2a0cfda70524dc18b2385f43aa0a616

We speculated for a long time what social meltdown would be like. Now we know.

January 5, 2023 at 10:23 pm #125147

Redneck
Participant

WIERD GETS WIERDERER!

January 5, 2023 at 10:40 pm #125148

jb-hb
Participant

You clearly need to learn the difference between facts and beliefs.

Then what do you disavow?

1. The Climate Religion says that CO2 DOES NOT itself cause the catastrophic heat thingy

2. The Climate Religion says that CO2 causes a LITTLE warming, enough to Tip The Fragile Balance and HOLY TRIGGER the totally completely non human factors that WOULD cause the warming catastrophe

3. The Climate Religion says it is TEMPERATURE, not the mere presence of CO2, the chemical, that causes the runaway feedback loop.

4. 40 interglacial periods show many, MANY temperature spikes going WELL ABOVE the temperatures that The Climate Religionists say trigger a runaway feedback loop causing a heat catastrophe

5. If CO2 constitutes the “different conditions” from before, but CO2 is only significant in the relatively minor temperature change it causes that then triggers the NON HUMAN feedback loops to start, then why does the same temperature AND HIGHER, over and over, NOT cause The Holy And Blessed Feedback Loop?

Are you BOTH a Science Denier AND a Climate Science Apostate/Heretic? Do you DENY any of the central tenets of your belief that I have mentioned above?

January 5, 2023 at 10:40 pm #125149

Veracious Poet
Participant

Meanwhile, back at the Office of The completely fraudulent system of mind-control promoted by the money-lenders, anti-scientific bureaucrats and politicians etc.

That is why Planetary Meltdown deniers, such as jb-hb. must avoid becoming informed about reality (or even thinking about reality) at all costs if they are to maintain their illogical stance on the matter

January 5, 2023 at 10:47 pm #125150

jb-hb
Participant

I will ignore every bit of nonsense you contaminate TAE with

Taking Planet Meltdown as a given, I posed a moral dilemma, and a logical dilemma.

January 5, 2023 at 11:05 pm #125151

aspnaz
Participant

@Germ Thanks for the DM links, gives me some more faith in the British people despite their government. Some in Japan are of the DM’s commenters’ point of view … https://twitter.com/hugh_mankind/status/1597663704044408832?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1597663704044408832%7Ctwgr%5Edfa5a02a1338e8dc9478817d1dbf14e84a99b2fe%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theautomaticearth.com%2F2022%2F11%2Fdebt-rattle-november-30-2022%2F.

January 5, 2023 at 11:07 pm #125152

Veracious Poet
Participant

“Of course, if [Netanyahu] wants to maintain his personal relations with Putin, he can continue doing what he’s doing,” Zelensky said at the summit, held in New York City.

“But if he wants to maintain the historical relations between Israel and the Ukrainian people, you have to do everything you can to save as many people as possible.”

January 5, 2023 at 11:28 pm #125153

Oroboros
Participant

Russian Geran-2 reaches its target in Kiev –

Note how the lights go out when the target is hit.

January 5, 2023 at 11:34 pm #125154

jb-hb
Participant

I note the graphs you keep posting have almost nothing whatsoever to do with current conditions on Earth

Temperature is irrelevant to Planet Meltdown. Gotcha.

January 5, 2023 at 11:39 pm #125155

Oroboros
Participant

January 5, 2023 at 11:50 pm #125156

Oroboros
Participant

Ukrainian UAV filmed its own destruction!

Cool, you can actually see the Russia drone killing missile coming straight at it.

January 6, 2023 at 12:15 am #125157

Oroboros
Participant

Kevin McCarthy starring in Groundhog Day II

January 6, 2023 at 12:19 am #125158

John Day
Participant

@Redneck: With all due respect the Russian TV New Year’s celebration was completely benign and heteronormative, compared to what was on the local San Antonio, Texas station, turned on for the large in-law’s party we attended. The local San Antonio station had lots of trashy, scantily clad performers of all 7 sexes, flaunting “IT”, whatever “it” individually and collectively may have been.
Ya’ shoulda’ been there; western decadence at some kind of a low mark on the empty toilet bowl.
The fireworks in San Antonio are another story. Something like 10,000 neighborhood parties seem to spend $200 – $ $200 and shoot most of it off at midnight. It’s a totally-embedded experience.
I’d never been in a sort f high and open backyard when it was happening before. (I usually skip new-years, wherever I am, retiring early.)
Very impressive!

January 6, 2023 at 12:22 am #125159

aspnaz
Participant

The airstrip child said

When it comes to those commenters-such as aspnaz, who have a propensity to make ant–scientific ad hominem attacks, I now realise that they have an important role in keeping the compassionate, logical, scientific, caring sector of society aware just how illogical, egotistical and nasty many homo sapiens (homo violentus) are.

You are completely anti-science because you have the attitude that the science is settled and you know the truth. People who say that the science is settled are using the science for their own malign purposes, whether those purposes are to make up for their own failures in life or are a way to take money from others, it doesn’t really matter. People who “know” are full of shit, while “people who know they don’t know” are more likely to be on the side of science and receptive to new ideas and interpretations. The sad thing is that those who “know” put themselves on a pedestal and give themselves permission to teach the untermensch how bad they are and how they need to see the light and be rescued from the bad ways by the self appointed Jesus. They are the idiot ranting in the town square, telling the people how the end is nigh.

Of course the science is not settled and is very unlikely to ever be settled, the reason being that the climate is a huge dynamic system with countless inputs, countless feedback loops, countless losses etc. all happening in continuous time, involving all the different disciplines from biology to geology etc. many of which we do not even understand at a basic level, such as the oceans. Despite what the screaming greens would have you believe, we do not have the ability to even work out whether there is a problem and as we don’t have a test environment to experiment with, we certainly do not know what the solution could be.

The fact that the climate science people are prepared to state that all our woes are down to CO2 levels – such a complex system yet such a simple answer – just show to me that they know nothing. All our woes are down to the life-giving gas in the atmosphere, the one gas that makes the earth the gem that it is in a galaxy of dust and gas balls, that one gas is killing the planet. Morons.

January 6, 2023 at 12:29 am #125160

zerosum
Participant

Russian Geran-2 reaches its target in Kiev –

Note how the lights go out when the target is hit.
Count how many pieces of friendly fire are causing damage.

January 6, 2023 at 12:50 am #125164

D Benton Smith
Participant

Science is never settled, and the same goes for the method it rode in on. Everything is on the table, which makes it fun until someone starts losing the argument so badly they try tossing the table, or claiming that it’s theirs.

January 6, 2023 at 12:56 am #125165

John Day
Participant

I can’t get the link for this story from Greek Site War News 24/7 to post
Russian soldier: “From the Ukrainian missile attack, 200 soldiers were killed – 150 are injured”
I fund it scrolling down the War Monitor tab too Ukraine

January 6, 2023 at 1:00 am #125167

D Benton Smith
Participant

Pretty nearly everything I ever learned that was worth knowing turned out to be something I was wrong about just before that.
Author

Posts