jas007

The US would consider Russia an enemy even in the absence of problems in the Middle East or with China. The warmongers and the military/industrial complex wouldn’t be in business very long without a boogeyman. The inertia is still there from the Cold War, so it continues.

Depending on where you live, you don’t always have a choice, at least for fiber internet. Different buildings seem to use different providers. You have no choice.

I guess this Chomsky interview was recorded some time ago, when the internet was still in its infancy. Propaganda is the name of the game today, more than ever. The internet just adds another dimension. The reach is now global. Big tech tries its best to contain and filter out the truth, but that’s not always so easy. In any event, world is about to be at war, and one of the weapons used is propaganda. The lies are piled pretty deep, sprinkled with a little truth, for the sake of plausibility. Anyway, anyone interested should take a look at the Nazis use of propaganda in Germany in the 30s and during WWII. That was very effective for them. Print media, newsreels, documentaries, films. Today, the Deep State is following that playbook, without a doubt.

Again, you miss the point. I know what “supported” means. Unfortunately these days, it doesn’t mean much. You assume there really is such a thing as an “approved credible source.” That would be about none of them, from what I can tell. They stopped reporting real news long ago. Today, we have propaganda. So you take it with a grain of salt. That’s today’s reality. Fortunately, there’s still some free speech out there. Elon Musk bought Twitter and so we have that. There’s a lot of junk to sort through on X, as it’s now called, but at least it’s not censored. I read a lot. But I don’t keep a link to everything I read. I’m not writing a term paper and it wouldn’t do me any good, in any event. I read a lot and draw my own conclusions. Imagine that. Thinking for myself. And I can usually sort out what’s BS and what’s not. In another lifetime, I once had a job writing official BS. That’s all I did all day. Of course, when I took the job I thought it might require real work. Analyzing the facts to tell the true story. Fortunately, that’s not really what they wanted. Far from it. What they wanted was a plausible narrative. They didn’t always want the truth, they just wanted a fairy tale that sounded good. Once I figured that out, I had the easiest job in the world. I knew where the land mines were, so to speak, and I stayed away from them. I wrote whatever I wanted, and everyone was happy. A few people worked with me. We used to have a joke of sorts. Begin every piece like any good fairy tale: “Once upon a time….”

Unsupported? What do you want, some sort of link “supporting” every assertion in every post? As if a link to some website proves anything. I guess some people are easily fooled. “Gee, here’s a link to the New York Times. I guess the content must be true.” Do you realize that’s not necessarily the case? These days, a link to any particular piece of “news” is likely to be part of the mainstream narrative. In other words, a lie from the spin doctors. So why play games? Why pretend a link to a website proves anything? About the only thing I read in the mainstream media these days that I take at face value is when they post what day it is. I sometimes have to look that up.

You should probably listen to what he has to say. You might learn a thing or two. Or would you rather continue to pretend he’s a “grifter”? As for “sleazy”? I haven’t followed that part of the story, other than to wonder whether he wasn’t somehow set up. He had been warned that they were out to get him, so he says. Anyway, none of that detracts from the fact that he does know his stuff.

$51 trillion dollars won’t put boots on the ground. The U.S. has a big navy and advanced aircraft, but does not have the necessary equipment in place to materially change the course of the war at this point. Not the manpower, not the equipment. Nor does the rest of NATO. Currently, the big bad Navy can’t even stop the Houthi in Yemen, and Ukraine doesn’t have many modern aircraft and won’t have them anytime soon in close proximity to the battles. Aircraft have to be refueled . Aircraft have to be maintained. Tanks must be refueled. Tanks must be maintained. All of that requires a substantial military presence in close proximity to the front lines. It’s just not available and won’t be anytime soon. Place any of that stuff where it needs to be and it’s a legitimate target for Russia. And if this war is escalated, what happens next is anyone’s guess, but the outcome could be tragic. The West isn’t as powerful as you seem to think it is. Money, yes. Military might, not so much, unless nukes enter the equation. Too many people are simply delusional. That’s the problem. As for “vastly superior advanced technology”? That’s just propaganda. For all practical purposes, Russia has all the same technology the West has. That wasn’t the case in the 90s, perhaps, but today, it’s a different world. One could argue that Russia is better equipped for purposes of a ground war in Eastern Europe. The U.S. combat forces have not unlike what was used to fight WW II. Even today, much of the equipment is from the 1990s. Outdated. As for no “exchangeable currency”? You mean other than within BRICS? Surely you must know that there are customers for Russia”s oil, gas, and other resources. They aren’t giving that stuff away. All the US sanctions have done is weaken the U.S. dollar. Weaken the dollar as the world’s reserve currency. What do you think BRICS is all about? Much of the world is fed up with the continued devaluation of the dollar. A devaluation caused, in part, to fund wars to drop bombs on the very people who put their faith in the stability of the dollar. They buy US bonds, and how are they rewarded? By the theft of their money. Loaning money to the U.S. at negative interest rates is probably not the best idea.

Just out of curiosity, when did I say the U.S. “invaded” Cuba? And I don’t consider the Bay of Pigs fiasco to be an “invasion.” The real military could have done better than that. At the time of the Cuban missile crisis, the military was in favor of a strong military response. Massive bombing and all the rest. Kennedy opted for a naval blockade. Still an act of war, but less drastic. A deal was then made, ending the crisis. In any event, Neocons have now infested both the U.S. State Department and the U.S. foreign policy establishment, and there are no adults in the room, so to speak. The people running America are delusional beyond all belief. They seem to think sending hundreds of billions of dollars to Ukraine will somehow turn the tide of a war that cannot possibly be won by Ukraine or NATO. If they’re that delusional, they wouldn’t think twice about invading Mexico or Cuba to extinguish a hostile military presence. Remember, there are no adults in the room. The people in charge believe in the Neocon fantasy. Biden is no more than a puppet at this point, and there’s no telling who is calling the shots.

Why would the U.S. invade? Over the years, they imposed sanctions, in part to appease the Cubans in Miami, and as everyone knows, it’s difficult to win a presidential election without Florida. During the Cuban missile crisis the military was in favor of a strong military response. Kennedy decided otherwise, opting for a naval blockade. A deal was made to end the crisis. Russia would pull its missiles from Cuba, and the U.S. was supposed to remove nukes from Turkey. I think the nukes are still in Turkey, though. Maybe they were never removed. It worked out ok, in any event. Of course, Cuba has relied heavily on the tourist Industry over the years, even though U.S. tourists were prohibited from visiting. Russia hasn’t been the primary source of support.

It’s hardly propaganda. The deal was all but agreed to by Ukraine before the US and The UK nixed it. Why have peace when the money laundering can continue? Why have peace when you can continue with the delusional Neocon fantasy that the unipolar world still exists? What does it matter if a half a million Ukrainian kids are slaughtered? No one really cares about them. It’s all about prolonging the war at any cost.

Were you asleep during the Cuban missile crisis? Russia removed its missiles from Cuba. Whatever support Cuba has received since that time has been less signifiant. And in case you haven’t been paying attention, Cuba is now in big trouble, financially. They aren’t doing too well.

Los Lobo, That article is two years old, so not too relevant today. In ant event, given the continued U.S. meddling in Ukraine since at least 2014, I’m sure Russia wasn’t taking promises by Zelensky at face value. And remember, US Secretary of State James Baker once promised Russia that NATO would not expand one inch eastward. That was way back in 1991, I believe. And yet, look at what has happened since. Country after country in Eastern Europe has joined NATO or is in the process of doing so. Now, more than ever, the issue is important to Russia. They don’t want NATO on their doorstep in Ukraine. That’s understandable. At this point, it’s obvious the U.S. wants nothing more than to harm Russia in as many ways as possible. The rationale that NATO is only a defensive alliance won’t fly. Imagine hostile forces were established in Tijuana, or Juarez, or Cuba. Hostile forces armed with all the latest military equipment, including missiles. The U.S. establishment would go nuts. They don’t want that kind of threat right on the border. Again, that’s understandable. Why should it be any different for Russia?

I think you read too much propaganda. It’s probably not entirely you fault, though. That’s par for the course considering who controls the mainstream media.

Here’s your problem: you seem to really think that the West can somehow use “force” to stop Putin. It cannot. Not on the ground with traditional forces. It doesn’t have the manpower. It doesn’t have equipment in place, and even with the help of other NATO countries, it will fail. The only thing that force will do at this point is to bring the world closer to nuclear war. And then no one wins. We all lose. How does that make any sense? The Us has no business fooling around in Ukraine, but that’s what has been happening for years. Whether or not Ukraine is a member of NATO shouldn’t be of such importance that we start WWIII over the issue. And no, Russia does not want to reassemble the old Soviet Union. They just about went bankrupt trying to control all those countries prior to its dissolution, and it doesn’t want to try that again. All they want is no NATO on their doorstep. Seems reasonable to me. No different than in 1962 when President Kennedy wouldn’t stand for Russian missiles in Cuba. Despite what the Neocons want everyone to believe, territorial nation states are still a thing, as are spheres of influence.

I don’t see a problem with Ritter. He obviously knows what he’s talking about. Of course, that’s exactly why the administration is trying to silence him. They’ll do anything to maintain the narrative.

All this talk about “useful idiots” for Putin. Nonsense. Some of us realize that people in the West have been fed a constant stream of propaganda for years. Almost nonstop. A narrative that demonizes Russia, demonizes Putin, and is designed to keep the war machine fully funded. And if it’s not Putin, it’s “terrorists.” Although the West has had one failure after another, and the death of the dollar is becoming more and more of a real concern, no one stops to question the narrative. The money keeps flowin, so the war machine is happy. Anyone who questions the narrative is labeled one of Putin’s “useful idiots.” I guess the non-stop propaganda works. I once spent six years or so living inside the Beltway. I’ve seen how DC works. The place is flooded with lobbyists and defense contractors. And they love nothing more than a continuous and increasing flow of money. They don’t care how many millions of people die, they only care about more and more money. Immediately after 9/11, I never saw so many giddy people. They were elated at the prospect of new government contracts to fight “terrorism.” That’s all anyone could talk about. More money. Unfortunately, Russia isn’t some small country. It’s not Panama, or Iraq, or Haiti. It’s a major power with more nukes than the U.S. And if they perceive an existential security threat, I don’t doubt for a second that they might well defend themselves by any means necessary. Normally, I don’t pay much attention to a lot of the nonsense that goes on in the world. But this situation is different. The U.S. and NATO are sleepwalking into WWIII, and all most people can do is regurgitate Neocon propaganda. Anyway, I’m not quite ready to be dead.

Biden isn’t calling the shots. That much is obvious. All you have to do is watch a few of his public appearances. He loses his train of thought, sometimes speaks gibberish, and has to be led around by a handler. And the people really calling the shots? Whoever they are they need a reality check. Fortunately, Putin is calm and collected. He understands the world and he understands history. We’re lucky there isn’t some sort of deranged idiot in charge of Russia. This war needs to stop before it escalates out of control. Otherwise, many of use might not be around by this time next year.

I thought about dropping Medicare Part B, as that would currently save me a few hundred dollars a month. But there’s a premium penalty to pay if I opt to resume coverage at a later date. And for all I know, I might do just that.

All of them. That seems to be the narrative. Fight Russia in Ukraine or the next thing you know you’ll be fighting them elsewhere in Eastern Europe. Look up the “Wolfowitz doctrine.” Those ideas or variations of it have resulted in trillions of dollars wasted on wars around the world that have essentially accomplished nothing other than to impoverish the middle class and enrich the defense industry. And now BRICS. All because some idiots continue to live in fantasyland.

I wouldn’t call it “corruption.” The agent is performing a service. The agent deserves to be paid for that service. Anyway, no one is forcing anyone to use an agent. If you have all day to run around, do it yourself. Maybe you’ll be successful, or maybe not.

For what it’s worth, I’m just trying to be realistic. It’s just that simple. Ukraine cannot “win” this war. If it continues, the youth of Ukraine will continue to be slaughtered. All gone. And in the end, Ukraine might lose whatever is left of their territory. For what? Why not stop now and preserve what’s left? Even with the help of NATO forces, Russia cannot be defeated in a ground war. The necessary manpower isn’t available. And so what then? Continued escalation risking a global nuclear war? A really dumb idea, all because some politicians seem to live in a Neocon fantasyland. And I don’t buy for a second the nonsense about Putin continuing the war beyond Ukraine. That’s just a line of BS put out by the Neocon spin doctors. In one form or another, they’ve used that same type of excuse to justify wars for years. Even to justify the Vietnam war. The “domino theory.” Remember that? It was a stupid idea then, and the Neocons have yet to learn. Or, maybe they know better but war is profitable, and so they keep pushing the narrative.

At this point, I’d happily use an agent to open an account if I didn’t already have one. The cost seems reasonable, and it would be preferable to running around from bank to bank trying to find one that would open an account.

At this point, the U.S. is hardly in a position to use its military as some sort of a mechanism to save the dollar as the world’s reserve currency. That’s why some people are concerned with BRICS. Libya and Iraq were easy to deal with. But the totality of BRICS? That’s not going to happen. The unipolar world order with the U.S. calling the shots is over. It’s now a multipolar world. The sooner the politicians in DC realize that, the better. They abused the so called “exorbitant privilege “ enjoyed by the US dollar in the years following WWII, and much of the rest of the world is fed up with the continued dollar debasement. Printing money to fund wars all over the world has been a recipe for disaster. And the wars have accomplished nothing. Defense contractors got rich while the U.S. middle class and the rest of the world paid the price.

Russia has announced its conditions for a cease fire. Basically, Ukraine must withdraw entirely from all territory now occupied by Russia, and Ukraine must promise never to join NATO. Sounds like a good plan to me, and probably the best Ukraine can hope for at this point.

Actual FEP Blue. I guess the claims are now processed by GeoBlue.