Tag: perpetual war

Cheerleaders of the Military-Industrial Complex

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump have something in common.  They both embrace colossal Pentagon budgets and both celebrate the “lethality” of the U.S. military, which, they agree, must be the strongest, bestest, in the world.  They also agree on giving a blank check to Israel and its leaders to do whatever they want in Gaza to the Palestinians and will continue to provide whatever weapons Israel desires to kill massive numbers of Palestinians while flattening and destroying the Gaza Strip.

With respect to Iran, Harris appears to be even more hawkish than Trump, and indeed criticized him for not being aggressive enough with Iran’s leaders.  Harris is also a strong supporter of Ukraine, seeing war as its best option to defeat Russia, whereas Trump is more skeptical of war and more open to diplomacy with Putin and Russia.

This isn’t surprising.  Mainstream Democrats in DC are basically warmongering neo-conservatives on foreign policy, so a vote for Harris/Walz is a vote, as the “liberal” New York Times reported, for “muscular patriotism” (or, to paraphrase my wife, febrile and unapologetic nationalism).  This is Washington Beltway conformity at its finest, as organs such as the National Interest write unironic articles about cheerleading the wonders of the military-industrial complex (MIC).

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Another Chernobyl in the Making?

Ukraine has tried to attack the Kursk nuclear power plant reinforcing a theory that the Kursk offensive was aimed at creating significant havoc by either capturing or wrecking the Kursk NPP.  

The Russian Ministry of Defense reported a single suicide drone attack on the plant.  Russian President Vladimir Putin said that “The enemy tried to strike the Nuclear Power Plant … and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been informed, and they have promised to visit and send specialists to assess the situation.” The head of the IAEA, Rafael Grossi, said he plans to visit the plant during the week of August 26th.

Last year there was a Ukrainian drone attack on the same facility. Nuclear Engineering International reported that in July 2023 “Unit 4 at Russia’s Kursk NPP was completely disconnected from the grid following a Ukrainian kamikaze drone carrying explosives fell near the station.”

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Russia China and Iran Are Being Patient…

It has become clear that with the lack of response from Iran (so far) over the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh the political leader of Hamas, that in conjunction with Russia and China a common approach has been taken not to be responsible, or even seen to be responsible in the West, for precipitating an all-out military conflict.

We see this approach with Russia’s Special Military Operation as well. Russia is careful to contain it between Russia and Ukraine, despite NATO’s involvement in the provision of modern equipment and personnel to Ukraine, and Ukraine’s deep strikes into Russian territory.

Russia is completely surrounded on her western flank by NATO forces, threatening Russia with a full-scale attack and invasion. All that’s needed is an excuse. To ensure the western border coverage is total, America leaned heavily on Finland and Sweden to join NATO, breaking their long-standing policies of neutrality. Who knows what threats the Americans made to force them to accept and provide weapons and military bases targeting Russia from their territories.

Europeans should be extremely concerned about this, because the Americans don’t care much about collateral damage so long as it is not in America. It was the US’s determination to punish Sadam Hussein, Gaddafi, Assad, and the Taliban in the wake of 9/11 which led to a flood of refugees in Europe. But that’s not America’s problem, and presumably nor will it be if the Europeans get nuked. So long as it’s not US civilians.

That the Europeans, including formally neutral Swedes and Fins have fallen for it says more about their pusillanimity in the face of US diplomatic aggression than anything else. They are cannon fodder for the US’s determination to break up Russia. But in Putin, America has an adversary who demonstrates statecraft and strategic cunning over impetuousness.

In the Middle East, Israel is frightened for its very existence. Netanyahu wants to provoke Iran and her proxies into a confrontation to bring America into direct conflict on her side. Officially, the US is resisting involvement but is reported to have sent a naval fleet to the Eastern Mediterranean signalling that she will back Israel against Iran if necessary.

But the Asian partnership is playing a different game. They are acutely aware that America is looking for excuses for military action in Europe. As the pressure mounts, Russia, Iran, China and even North Korea will have to find alternatives to military action designed to cripple the western alliance.

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War brings demographic catastrophe to Ukraine

One of the most tragic consequences of the war for Ukraine is the demographic crisis. On the one hand, more than 700,000 soldiers died or were seriously injured on the battlefield, while on the other, 12 million Ukrainians have emigrated, leaving about 20 million people in the country and creating a population deficit that will be difficult to overcome. At the same time, pressure from Western elites for Ukraine to open its borders to immigration is becoming increasingly strong, which is likely to create even more problems in the future.

Ukrainian demography will never be restored to the pre-war situation. No matter how hard the Kiev regime and its international supporters try to repatriate some of the millions of Ukrainian refugees around the world, it is extremely difficult for these measures to succeed. In order for Ukrainians who have emigrated to Europe and the US to return to Ukraine, authoritarian policies, such as arresting and expelling them from the country, may be implemented. This would make it impossible for these countries to continue maintaining their “democratic” mask. Furthermore, it is important to remember that most Ukrainians have fled to Russia itself, and are actual opponents to the Maidan junta.

In the meantime, the war machine does not seem to have an end. Zelensky has agreed to obey the Western plan to “fight to the last Ukrainian.” Even with more than 700,000 casualties on the battlefield, surrender is still not an option for the regime. Despite knowing that defeat is inevitable, Ukraine continues to recruit new soldiers every day. Elderly people, women, people with serious health problems and even teenagers are already being targeted by the draconian mobilization measures, making the future of the Ukrainian population even more critical.

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Blinken ‘Sentenced Ceasefire Talks to Death’ With Comments on Netanyahu

Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s comments about Gaza ceasefire talks this week sentenced the negotiations to death, Middle East Eye reported Thursday, citing Israeli media.

After meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, Blinken said the Israeli leader agreed to a new US proposal and that it was now up to Hamas to agree to the deal. However, the US proposal included new demands from Netanyahu that Hamas considers unacceptable. Israeli, US, and Arab sources have all said Netanyahu’s demands are too hardline and will prevent a deal.

Sources speaking to Ynet slammed Blinken for making the comments that portrayed Hamas as the obstacle to a deal. “Blinken made a very serious foul here that indicates innocence, amateurism, naivety, and lack of understanding,” a source said.

They added that Blinken’s positive spin on the ceasefire negotiations was likely an effort to prevent the situation from overshadowing the Democratic National Convention.

“He broadcast optimism from intra-American political considerations, so that the Democratic convention in Chicago would go smoothly, but senior officials of the Israeli negotiating team who listened to his press conference wanted to dispel the speculations,” the source said.

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Russia Is Not Our Enemy

Given the ongoing war between the United States and Russia in Ukraine, it’s natural for Americans to conclude that Russia is our enemy. Not so. Our enemy is instead the US national-security establishment — i.e., the Pentagon, the CIA, and the NSA — the entity that is responsible for the war in Ukraine and that is destroying our lives, liberties, and well-being here at home.

Our American ancestors would have understood this phenomenon. If the Constitution had called into existence a national-security state form of government, our ancestors would never have accepted it. That would have meant that the United States would have continued operating under the Articles of Confederation, a type of governmental structure without a standing army.

Our American ancestors loathed standing armies, which was the term they used to describe what we call today a national-security state. They understood that big, permanent military establishments are always the enemies of the citizenry. They understood that standing armies or national-security states end up destroying the lives, liberties, and prosperity of the citizenry.

That’s why the Constitution called into existence a limited-government republic, one whose powers were few and limited and that had only a relatively small, basic army. That’s why America lived without a national-security state for more than 150 years.

Today, things are totally inverted. Americans love the Pentagon, the CIA, and the NSA, which is, in actuality, one great big military-intelligence entity that is divided into three wings. Americans don’t see this enormous permanent entity as their enemy or as a grave threat to their lives, liberties, and well-being, as Americans did at the nation’s founding and for the next 150 years. Today’s Americans see the national-security state as their friend, ally, and protector that keeps them safe from all those scary creatures in the world.

But what today’s Americans don’t realize is that it is their very own national-security state that gins up those scary creatures in order to have Americans view their national-security state as their friend and protector.

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Prolonging Genocide as a Smokescreen: On Israel’s Other War in the West Bank

Promises of “absolute victory” in Gaza are nothing but “gibberish”, according to Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Gallant’s comments were not meant to be public, but somehow were leaked and published by Israeli media on August 12.

The explanation of why Netanyahu is pursuing a losing war in Gaza has been largely confined to the prime minister’s personal interests: avoiding the outcome of his corruption trials, preserving his extremist government coalition and avoiding early elections.

Still, none of these rationales explain the absurdity of continuing with a war, which, in the words of former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak is “the worst failure in Israel’s history”.

What else could explain Netanyahu’s motive behind the war? And why are his most crucial government allies, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich determined to prolong it?

The answer may not lie in Gaza, but in the West Bank.

While Israel is extending its failed military campaign in the Strip with no clear strategic objectives, its war on the West Bank is driven by clear strategic motives: the annexation of the West Bank and the ethnic cleansing of large sectors of the Palestinian population.

This is not only obvious through Israel’s daily actions in the West Bank but also because of the clear statements made by Israel’s extremist government officials.

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WWIII: Zelenskiy Says Ukraine Will Soon Be Able To Attack “Anywhere In Russia” – Ukraine Uses Long-Range Thermobaric Drone Inside Russian Federation Overnight

A jet-based drone rocket called Palyanytsia was fired onto RF territory overnight.

This is a new rocket drone type developed in Ukraine, or given to Zelenskyiy, and will seriously escalate the situation.

It contains aluminum fog that when blown up creates a vacuum effect — thermobaric rocket drone, 1500 km range.

The drone rocket was launched during the night of Aug 24.

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B-2 Stealth Bomber “Hot Pits” At Indian Ocean Air Base, Positioned Within Striking Range Of Iran

The Middle East has been on edge all week as the world awaits a retaliatory Iranian attack on Israel that could spark a regional conflict. As of Friday, Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah rebels have been exchanging fire, and an oil tanker earlier this week in the southern Red Sea was hit by a missile attack, likely from Iran-backed Houthi forces.  

With all eyes on the Middle East, our attention shifts to a “hot pit event” on Wednesday with a Northrop B-2 Spirit stealth bomber and US Air Force Airmen assigned to the 110th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron at the Naval Support Facility Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, according to the USAF. 

The US military uses Diego Garcia as a strategic point for launching operations in the Indo-Pacific. The hot pit event allowed the B-2 to land and refuel without shutting its engines down. 

USAF noted, “Conducting hot pit events in various locations around the globe enables aircrew and support Airmen to maintain a high state of readiness and proficiency.” 

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Sabotage Confirmed At Norwegian Air Base

Norway has revealed that one of its most strategic air bases has been the target of sabotage. The announcement comes as other European NATO air bases — namely in Germany — report incidents, one of which remains unexplained, as well as troubling drone activity over critical infrastructure. These incidents come amid increasing warnings about nefarious Russian activity on the continent, part of an apparent wave of ‘hybrid warfare’ as the conflict in Ukraine further stokes East-West tensions.

Reports emerged today from The Barents Observer that a critical communications cable associated with Evenes Air Station, in northern Norway, had been severed. The incident occurred in April and was reported to the police, but has only now been announced, as state prosecutors investigate what happened.

The precise function of the cable has not been disclosed, but reports describe it as being “part of the air base’s critical infrastructure,” and that it was cut outside the airfield’s perimeter. The Norwegian Police have confirmed that it was severed in a deliberate action but that, so far, no one has been charged, and no suspects have been identified at this point.

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