As the Russian invasion of Ukraine grinds on and the two sides continue negotiations, the Washington Post reports that some NATO states prefer Ukrainians continue “fighting and dying” over “a peace that comes too early,” rejecting any outcome that could be sold as a “victory” for Moscow.
The Washington Post
News Roundup 3/25/2022
US News Rep. Fortenberry was found guilty on three counts of lying to the FBI. [Link] The US is seeking the extradition of John Joël Joseph from Jamacia. Joseph is accused by the US of having a role in the assassination of Haiti’s president last summer. [Link] Russia Italy says it will view Russian demands for Rubles as payments as a violation of contract. [Link] Japan announced new sanctions on over 100 Russian individuals and businesses. [Link] Biden says NATO will respond to chemical weapons use in Ukraine. [Link] The UK plans to deploy 6,000 “defensive missiles” to Ukraine. [Link]...
Slovakia Floats Dangerous Scheme to Arm Ukraine & Revamp Own Air Defenses
NATO member Slovakia has offered to transfer an air defense system to Ukraine so long as the US backfills its arsenal with new interceptors.
Western Neo-Nazis Respond to Azov’s Call to Arms
White nationalist and neo-Nazi militants are flocking to Ukraine to help repel a Russian invasion following a plea for foreign volunteers from President Volodymyr Zelensky, according to a report in the Washington Post. Thousands of fighters have already arrived, many said to hold a “shared vision for an ultranationalist ethno-state.” Many of those hoping to join the fight in Ukraine are being recruited by the Mariupol-based Azov Battalion and other ethnic-supremacist factions, who’ve used their social media presence to bolster their ranks with foreign nationals. “[Azov’s] official...
Foreign Fighters Arrive in Ukraine to Repel Russian Invasion
At least 16,000 foreign nationals have volunteered to join an “international legion” created to resist Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky claimed, after Kiev lifted visa requirements for anyone willing to fight. “Every friend of Ukraine who wants to join Ukraine in defending the country, please come over,” Zelensky pleaded at a recent press conference, adding “We will give you weapons.” Though the president offered no details on the international fighting force, including the origin of the volunteers, the request comes as Kiev appears to grow more desperate for...
Salafis Throwing Bombs: How American and British Planners Partnered With Al-Qaeda Affiliated Groups At the Start of the Syrian Civil War
Introduction In the mainstream view, al-Qaeda did not play a role in the Syria conflict until Islamic State of Iraq (ISI) leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi dispatched his deputy, Abu Muhammad al-Jolani, to Syria in August 2011 to establish a wing of the group there, called Jabhat al-Nusra, or the Nusra Front. Additionally, al-Qaeda allegedly did not carry out any military operations until December 2011 and did not announce its establishment until January 2012. However, there is evidence that al-Qaeda affiliated militants were involved in the Syrian conflict much earlier. Saudi intelligence...
Biden’s Keynesian Course: Riding the ‘Multiplier’
White House Chief of Staff Ronald Klain tweeted on Wednesday: “Stronger COVID measures produce STRONGER ECONOMIC outcomes. That’s why jobs, growth, and economic activity are UP this year, significantly over last year.” Actually, jobs and economic activity have rebounded because governors are no longer locking down businesses, schools, and daily life. But Biden’s team is painting its latest COVID decrees as the key to renewed prosperity. Biden’s team is tacitly invoking a long history of multipliers to justify government interventions. In the 1930s, John Maynard Keynes popularized the...
COI #185: Biden Takes Ownership Over Saudi’s War in Yemen
On COI #185, Kyle Anzalone and Connor Freeman – writer at the Libertarian Institute - cover the latest arms sales to Saudi Arabia approved by the U.S. State Department. Despite President Joe Biden’s previous pledges to end support for this war (as well as a UN warning that 400,000 children under five years old will starve to death this year if conditions do not change) Biden is happily by-lining this genocidal war. Raytheon, on whose board the current Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin recently sat, is the primary contractor for this $650 million missile sale. The missiles will be used by...
News Roundup 11/2/21
US News The TSA is ordered to pay more than $100 million in a patent infringement suit over the bins used during security checks. [Link] A US judge throws out most of the charges against Venezuelan diplomat Alex Saab. [Link] Great Power The Washington Post reported that Russia is massing troops on its border with Ukraine. Ukraine denies the report. [Link] Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with his Chinese counterpart. [Link] Afghanistan The Pentagon removed over 130,000 photos and videos from its website, claiming the move was made to protect Afghans. [Link] Former members of the...
9/27/21 Kevin Gosztola on the CIA’s War on Assange, Wikileaks and Journalism Itself
Kevin Gosztola is back on the show to discuss a recent Yahoo! News article about Assange that went viral. Gosztola thinks the piece contains some good reporting but leans too much on a flawed Russiagate framing. Scott and Gosztola discuss the semantic war our government is waging with attempts to redefine certain journalists as “information brokers” and “non-state hostile intelligence agents.” Gosztola also gives an update on Assange’s situation as his next hearing approaches next month. Discussed on the show: “Kidnapping, assassination and a London shoot-out: Inside the CIA's secret war...