S.T.

JUN 04, 2024 BY 🗽 DENNIS KUCINICH


State-ordered Purge of Truth-Tellers in Time of War. Scott Ritter Passport Seized, WaPo Smears Indy Journalists
SNIPPETS:

Scott Ritter was pulled off a NY-to-Istanbul flight yesterday by US officials and his passport confiscated in a startling new development in the government’s open drive to 🦍 censor and silence critics of the Administration’s foreign policies at a time when the United States is supplying billions of dollars in arms to foment wider war in Russia, accelerate the ☠️ attacks on Gazans 🥵 and set the stage for war with China over Taiwan. ... ...

Mr. Ritter first came to my attention when he testified at a Capitol hearing I sponsored to inquire into the Bush Administration’s plans to attack Iraq. Ritter warned in August of 2002 that a case had not been made for attacking Iraq.

Had Congress listened to Mr. Ritter, the US would have been spared the loss of thousands of our soldiers and the waste of trillions of tax dollars. Over one million Iraqis died as a result of the US attack on their country. America’s financial and moral debt will never be able to be repaid, but would not exist if we had simply looked at the evidence he presented.

Mr. Ritter’s  passport was confiscated yesterday by U.S. authorities without explanation.
There are several Constitutional issues at stake here:

1. The taking of his passport was  an illegal seizure, prohibited by the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution. Mr. Ritter asked for, but did not receive a receipt, for the seized passport. 

2. The seizure represents a punitive attempt to censor his views, a violation of his First Amendment right to free speech and freedom of the press.

3. His Fifth Amendment rights to due process were violated. Someone in the State Department made an administrative decision to prevent his travel and to take away his passport.  Since there was no stated reason for the seizure, there was no open court hearing, no evidence to justify the confiscation of Mr. Ritter’s passport was presented publicly.  The whole process has a Kafka-like Trial feeling, where Mr. Ritter cannot find out what he is accused of.

The State Department was aware of Mr. Ritter’s travel three weeks before his planned departure, giving rise to the likelihood that the interception was designed to humiliate Mr. Ritter, in addition to the blatant disregard of his Constitutional rights.

Full article: 🕯️👀

June 4, 2024 The Kucinich Report

JUNE 7, 2024

COUNTERPUNCH

BY 🕯️ WILLIAM ASTORE


SNIPPETS:

 As a retired Air Force officer who worked in Cheyenne Mountain, America’s nuclear redoubt, during the tail end of the first Cold War, and as a historian who once upon a time taught courses on the atomic bomb at the Air Force Academy, I have some knowledge and experience here. ... ...

he Biden administration, for example, professes little concern about the possibility that arming Ukraine with weaponry capable of hitting deep inside Russia could lead to destabilization and the possible use of nuclear weapons on the battlefield (something Vladimir Putin has threatened to do). Nor are we to fret about surrounding China with ever more U.S. military bases and sending ever more weaponry to Taiwan, while the Chinese are enlarging their own force of ICBMs; or, for that matter, about the fact that the last nuclear agreement limiting the size of the American and Russian arsenals will run out in less than 1,000 days.

To such issues, the only response America’s “best and brightest” ever have is this one: give us more/newer strategic bombers, more/newer ICBMs, and more/newer nuclear submarines (whatever the cost)! To those men, it’s as if nuclear war were a theoretical (and distinctly money-making) chess match — and yes, they are indeed still mostly men! — a challenging game whose only components are 😈🦖🦍💵🎩 profits, jobs, money, and power. Yet when the only story to be told is one featuring more 🚀 nuclear warheads and more delivery systems , it’s hard not to conclude that, in some horrific fashion, nuclear Armageddon is indeed us (or at least them).

And though few spend much time thinking about it anymore, that’s madness personified.

Read more: 

AGelbert NOTE: The Deep State's ideology is EXACTLY the same as that of the Zionists, who are part of the worldwide army of loyal foot soldiers of the murder and mayhem for money and POWER championing, Wall Street Based, Deep State Empire.   





🕯️ Judge Napolitano - Judging  🗽 Freedom 384K subscribers Jun 10, 2024  #RecepTayyipErdogan #IsraelPalestine #IsraelHamasWar

Alastair Crooke :   Israel and Reality

Alastair explores the historical context that has shaped modern Israel, the ongoing conflicts and peace processes, and the broader implications for the Middle East and beyond. Alastair provides unique perspectives on the challenges and opportunities facing Israel today, from security concerns to socio-political developments.



🕯️ Judge Napolitano - Judging  🗽 Freedom 384K subscribers Jun 10, 2024 #DouglasMacgregor #BenjaminNetanyahu #Netanyahu

In this compelling discussion, we sit down with Colonel Douglas Macgregor to explore his provocative insights on the future of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. With a distinguished military career and expertise in defense strategy, Colonel Macgregor brings a unique and informed perspective on the political landscape in Israel and Netanyahu's tenuous grip on power.

Colonel Macgregor delves into the internal and external pressures facing Netanyahu, the shifting dynamics within Israeli politics, and the broader geopolitical implications. We examine the factors contributing to the speculation that Netanyahu’s days as Prime Minister may be numbered, including public sentiment, legal challenges, and international relations.

This conversation offers a thorough analysis of Israel's current political climate and potential future scenarios. Whether you are a student of international politics, a follower of Middle Eastern affairs, or simply curious about global leadership dynamics, this video provides valuable and thought-provoking insights.

📢 Please Pass These ✨ ON for 🕊️ PEACE in 🗽 Palestine.

What is Going on With Shipping? 299K subscribers Jun 14, 2024  #supplychain #houth #redsea
Red Sea Convoys

In this episode, Sal Mercogliano - a maritime historian at Campbell University (@campbelledu) and former merchant mariner - discusses the latest Houthi attack against MV Tutor using an Unmanned Surface Vessel and killing a merchant mariner onboard (the fourth mariner killed since the start of the attacks in November 2023  ).  Should the world navies adopt a new strategy and utilize convoys to run ships through the Red Sea, Bab el-Mandeb, and the Gulf of Aden?

#supplychain #houth #redsea #shipping #navies #gulfofaden #babelmandeb

Support What's Going on With Shipping via:
Patreon: www.patreon.com/wgowshipping
Twitter: @mercoglianos 
Facebook:  @wgowshipping 
Email: mercoglianosal@gmail.com

00:00 Introduction
02:21 Shipping Situation
15:23 New Convoy Operation

Bulk Carrier Flooding After Surface Drone Attack in Red Sea
...

UPDATED: Seafarer killed in Houthi attack
...

United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)
https://www.un.org/depts/los/conventi...

Drewry's Container Index
https://www.drewry.co.uk/supply-chain...

Marine Traffic
www.marinetraffic.com

AGelbert COMMENT: It took a while, but Dr. Sal finally figured out that ya can't stop them Houthis, PERIOD.

Now the good Dr. Sal does NOT want to talk about "politics", but there is NO WAY you can address the RISING COST of shipping insurance without pointing the CAUSE finger at Blinken - Netanyahu et al, period, full stop.

And by the way, when you bemoan FOUR mariner deaths, while studiously ignoring about FORTY THOUSAND DEATHS AND over 70,000 INJURED in Gaza by US bombs, thanks to Netanyahu - Blinken et al, you are guilty of faulty, reasoning (i.e. world class cherry picking), to put it mildly.

And YEAH, you ARE deliberately ignoring the horrors WE AMERICANS are supporting, so do not pretend you can claim an ethical position.

As to who's PROSPERITY is ACTUALLY being guarded, YEAH, I certainly agree with you that it sure ain't the shippers! The fact that you cannot bring yourself to point the finger at NETANYAHU et al smacks of hypocrisy.

All that said, your suggestion that maybe we should just pull the (sitting ducks) US Navy out of there is the proper one.

However, your desire for convoys is so WWII yesterday (i.e. obsolete). WHY? Ships are ALL sitting ducks now, no matter how well armed they are, ever since drone missile robots made blue water navies OBSOLETE. Talk to former CIA Larry Johnson and/or retired Col. Lawrence Wilkerson (Colin Powell State Department). They will explain to you why PEACE, not your idea, is the only cost effective rational answer to the Red Sea Houthi problem. 

You like to talk about costs. WHY don't you talk about he COST of missiles on a U.S. warship versus the relatively INSIGNIFICANT costs of drone missles that can be shot at them by the hundreds!

Do you know what it COSTS (millions of DOLLARS!) every time a warship has to rearm with missiles after they have used those onboard to interdict cheap drone cruise missiles?

Remember that, unlike during WWII, when tender ships sailed to warships to rearm them with munitions at sea, there are NO tenders to bring replacement missiles to them at sea now and warships have to go to some secure port, never mind the COST of getting the missiles to the port.

Hey brother American taxpayer, isn't the MASSIVE Pentagon swag now impoverisihng we-the-taxpayers enough for you? You want to spend BILLIONS of ADDITIONAL dollars of our tax money to build convoy warships? WHY do you ignore THAT COST while claiming you "just want to lower shipping costs"?     

Dr. Sal, you love shipping, but the U.S. Blue Ocean Navy power projection is NOT WORKING because Blue Ocean Navy warships, whether they be ours, Russia's or China's, constantly exposed to the danger of being sunk by CHEAP, NUMEROUS multiple drone attacks, are all now sitting ducks.

And please spare us the lecture about the Houthi's "not having any right to attack shipping", while ignoring the FACT that WE HAVE NO RIGHT to support the Gaza (see: et al, etc. above).

PEACE is the only rational alternative. Our massive military budget is at least 4 times the size it should be, and even at 25% of the present size, it would STILL be MUCH greater than China's or Russia's military spending COMBINED! I am not asking you to give the Houthis the Nobel Prize for Peace, but they certainly deserve one if their principled actions convince the U.S. to bring PEACE to the Palestinians.

 
Proverbs 24:24-25 "He that saith unto the wicked, Thou are righteous; him shall the people curse, nations shall abhor him: But to them that rebuke him shall be delight, and a good blessing shall come upon them."

Dialogue Works 144K subscribers June 19, 2024  Interviews

Scott Ritter is a former Marine intelligence officer who served in the former Soviet Union, implementing arms control agreements, and on the staff of General Norman Schwartzkopf during the Gulf War, where he played a critical role in the hunt for Iraqi SCUD missiles. From 1991 until 1998, Mr. Ritter served as a Chief Inspector for the United Nations in Iraq, leading the search for Iraq’s proscribed weapons of mass destruction. Mr. Ritter was a vocal critic of the American decision to go to war with Iraq. His new book, Disarmament in the Time of Perestroika: Arms Control and the End of the Soviet Union, is his ninth.

COUNTERPUNCH


JUNE 20, 2024 BY PATRICK MAZZA


SNIPPETS:

The vital role of the U.S. is why efforts in this country to bring the light to bear are absolutely crucial. Changing the U.S. position is the only way to force a solution. But as with so many other situations, we run up against the power of the Israel lobby and deep rooted support for Zionism in high places. Without the organized opposition to the Gaza genocide we have seen, we would not even be hearing the lip service our politicians have paid to the issue. But clearly so far, it is not enough. As many such as my friend, I struggle with feelings of powerlessness against an ongoing genocide that can be almost crippling. ... ...

It comes down to this. Out of the darkest of situations comes the light. Before October 7, the Palestinian cause was all but dead around the world. Normalization of relations with Saudi Arabia and other states in the Islamic world then in the offing would have pounded the final nails in the coffin. Say what you want about what Hamas did – and it is documented many of the civilian deaths were at the hands of the Israeli military and most if not all of the atrocities about which we hear are fabrications – the Palestinian cause is now in the foreground of world awareness in a way it never was before. The streets of the world have filled. Encampments have spread across university campuses. Powerful political figures are being called out during their public appearances. Leaders of Islamic countries fearful of their enraged populations have been forced to back off normalization.

What has happened in Gaza since October 7 has exposed the brutal realities of occupation under which the Palestinian people have long suffered. Even before October 7, a record number of murders of Palestinians had already taken place on the West Bank in 2023, while settlers backed by the far right Israeli government were on a rampage of land theft. The Al Aqsa Mosque, third most sacred site in Islam, was being regularly invaded by settlers, aiming to demolish it to build a new temple. The world was ignoring all this. Now it cannot.

Read more: 🙏🏼

Judge Napolitano - 🕯️ Judging 🗽 Freedom 391K subscribers Jun 20, 2024

Scott Ritter : Netanyahu Destroying Israel