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The West Marches East, Part 2: Georgia Starts a War, Russia Draws a Line
Andrew Gavin Marshall
In Part 1 of this series - 'The West Marches East' - I examined the circumstance that while Russia has received the majority of the blame for the more than six-month-crisis in Ukraine, these events did not take place in a vacuum, and, in fact, the Western powers and institutions - notably the United States, NATO and the European Union - have broke promises made at the end of the Cold War to expand NATO - a Western military alliance that was created in opposition to the Soviet Union - to Russia's borders. Simultaneously, the European Union has expanded eastwards, bringing Eastern and Central European countries within its orbit and in adherence to its economic orthodoxy. Further, many NATO powers had worked together to promote 'colour revolutions' across much of Eastern Europe over the previous decade or so, helping to overthrow pro-Russian leaders and replace them with pro-Western leaders. After nearly a quarter-century of Western expansion - militarily, politically, economically - to Russia's borders, Russia has had enough. But Ukraine was not the first instance in which Russia has been provoked by the West into a response that the West subsequently declared as an act of imperial "aggression." In 2008, the small Caucasus nation and former Soviet republic of Georgia started a war with Russia, leading to Russia's invasion of the tiny country, effectively ending nearly two decades of NATO and Western expansion. This report examines the 2008 war in Georgia and the roles played by Russia and the NATO powers.
Gallup Poll Finds Democrats More Compassionate; Republicans More Psychopathic
Eric Zuesse
Gallup headlined on 28 January 2014, “Democrats and Republicans Differ on Top Priorities,” and reported that the biggest difference between supporters of the two Parties concerned “The environment,” where 71% of Democrats said it’s important to them, versus only 32% of Republicans who did: a whopping difference of 39%, between the two Parties, considered that issue to be important. The second-biggest difference was on “The distribution of income and wealth”: 72% of Democrats, versus only 38% of Republicans – a 34% difference. Third came “Poverty and homelessness”: 82% of Democrats, versus 53% of Republicans – a 29% difference. Fourth came “Education”: 91% of Democrats, versus 70% of Republicans – a 21% difference.
Here were the four issues on the conservative end, the four issues where Republicans scored the largest amount higher (more concerned) than Democrats: First, “The military and national defense”: 76% of Republicans, versus 61% of Democrats – a 15% difference – considered that issue to be important. Second, “Taxes”: 69% of Republicans, versus 56% of Democrats – a 13% difference. Third, “Terrorism”: 77% of Republicans, versus 68% of Democrats – a 9% difference. Fourth, “Government surveillance of U.S. citizens”: 45% of Republicans, versus 37% of Democrats – an 8% difference (but if the President had been a Republican, Democrats might have been more concerned about that issue than Republicans would have been).
Ed Miliband - A Shameless Zionist In Our Midst
By Gilad Atzmon:
Yesterday, a poll indicated that half of the British voters figure that “Ed Miliband should be dumped as Labour leader before the next general election.”
Some 49 per cent think that Miliband should be replaced - including 43 per cent of Labour supporters. It is hard to imagine, but Miliband is even less popular than Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg who managed to alienate just 44% of the voters.
As the Brits were expressing their disapproval of ‘Red Ed’ and his clumsy politics, the Labour leader found the time to socialise with the Jewish Lobby. The following is Ed Miliband’s speech to LFI (Labour Friends Of Israel), the same Zionist Lobby group that funded Blair’s government as it drove Britain into a criminal war in Iraq.
Globalization’s Game of Thrones, Part 2: Managing the Wealth of the World’s Dynasties
By: Andrew Gavin Marshall
In part 1 of this series (“Globalization’s Game of Thrones”) I examined the concept of corporate and financial dynasties holding significant power in the modern world. In this, part 2 of the series, I examine the realities of the ‘wealth management’ industry in being responsible for handling the wealth and investments of the world’s richest families, and the role of a unique institution dedicated to protecting and propagating dynastic wealth: the family office.
A Family Affair
In 2010, Forbes – a major financial publication which publishes an annual list of the world’s richest people – noted that the richest of the richest 400 Americans were members of prominent corporate and financial dynasties, with six of the top ten wealthiest Americans being heirs to prominent fortunes, as opposed to being ‘self-made’ billionaires. What’s more, since the financial crisis began in 2007 and 2008, the fortunes of these dynasties – and the other super-rich who made the Forbes list – had only increased in value.
Fracking - Suicide Capitalism Poisons The Earth's Fresh Water Supplies
By Dylan Murphy
Lena Headley lives in in Fayette County, Pennsylvania. She and her husband bought a small farm for their semi-retirement with the mineral rights but not the oil and gas rights. Over the last seven years 5 gas wells and a transmission pipeline have been put on their land. The effect has been devastating: Pollution of land and air together with destruction of fruit trees and the burning of 10 acres of ground by the gas drillers. Gas wells leak and a spring 200 feet from her house is so rich with gas it can be set on fire.
Visits to the family doctor have become common. Her 5 year old son Adam suffers from crippling stomach pains. Lena has said that she wants her story to act as warning to ordinary people about the dangers of fracking.
In an interview in 2012 she said;'' And why? All because of an uncaring, dirty industry, driven by greed, selling their souls, leaving our health, environment, and rights behind as waste. When will this nightmare end ???''.
That Much Petroleum is That Much Bullshit. China Won the Oil War, and the Shale Oil Revolution is About to Shrivel Up
By Nicholas C. Arguimbau
Wall Street is the government, and the New York Times is right across town. Maybe that's all you need to know to understand what's happened.
In January, 2011, this writer published a four-part article in Countercurrents and elsewhere entitled "The War: Did We Sacrifice A Million Lives And A $Trillion Cash Just To Hand Our Jobs To China?, http://www.countercurrents.org/arguimbau270111.htm,. It was long (around 40 pages) and I must admit a little confusing, because the information was so stunning that I had a difficult time understanding what I was reading. The gist of the article was that Big Oil had asked Congress in 1998 to remove the Taliban so as to allow the building of a pipeline that would let Mideastern oil go to "the right markets" "The right markets"? Guess. The US and Europe, of course. Wrong. India and China. Those, it was explained, were "the right markets" because the oil market was stagnating in the US and Europe and actively growing in India and China. Hardly, it would seem, something for the US to go to war for. But then Wall Street is the government.
Greece: The Dilemmas of Democratic Socialism
James Petras
Introduction
Greece is experiencing a triple crisis which has a profound impact on the economy, society and political system. The economy has experienced a deep, prolonged depression lasting six years and continuing. Workers and employees have suffered a 40% loss in income and a commensurate decline in medical, pension, educational and welfare benefits. The political system has witnessed a precipitous decline in electoral support for previously dominant right and center left parties and the rapid rise of radical democratic-socialist and fascist parties.
The socio-economic effects of the crash of the economy have been exacerbated by the “austerity programs” imposed by the European Unions’ triumvirate. The economic cuts have undermined any economic recovery and accentuated the reductions in employment, social welfare and public investments.
The political consequences resulting from the extremely harsh policies of the EU and their forceful implementation by the right and center parties have been dramatic. A vast upheaval has shaken the entire political system. Previously dominant mainstream parties have been increasingly rejected, while formerly marginal democratic socialist and radical right wing parties have made major advances.
Antagonizing Palestinians, Australia’s linguistic blunder snowballs
By Nicola Nasser*
Reacting to antagonized Palestinian snowballing protests to her government’s decision on June 5 to reverse a 47-year old bipartisan consensus on describing eastern Jerusalem as “occupied,” Foreign Minister Julie Bishop on June 13 denied any “change in the Australian government’s position.”
On June 5, Australian Attorney-General George Brandis in a statement said: ''The description of East Jerusalem as 'Occupied East Jerusalem' is a term freighted with pejorative implications, which is neither appropriate nor useful.''
The new Australian terminology provoked Jordan, the third largest importer of Australian sheep in the Middle East, to summon Australia's charge d'affaires, John Feakes, to convey its “concern” because “The Australian government's decision violates international law and resolutions that consider east Jerusalem as an integral part of all Palestinian territories occupied in 1967.”
Syrian army foils chemical attack on Damascus - reported
Don't expect a rush to verify this report by the United Nations or any NATO members. In the broadest sense, a verification would mean that the rulers of the United States, Great Britain, France, and other Euro powers were wholly deficient or massively deceptive in their profound assurance that the Syrian government had gassed its own people in August 2013. It would mean that the Obama administration's massive attack planned against Syria was callous and reckless beyond words. It would mean that Seymour Hersh was right when he linked Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan's government with the August 2013 attack in East Ghouta (The Red Line and the Rat Line). This article in Al Akahbar English cries out for an investigation that will never be. Failure to investigate should be seen for what it is.
Michael Collins
Syrian army foils chemical attack on Damascus By: Racha Abi Haidar
AL-AKAHBAR English, Buirut June 16, 2014 Creative Commons
Image: Al-Nusra acquired 16 canisters of Sarin gas with a
spread radius of 500 meters. Photo taken on October
30, 2014. (Photo: AFP)
Unbearable oppression forces Palestinians to kidnap Israelis
By Khalid Amayreh in al-Khalil
The ostensible kidnapping of three Israeli settlers in the southern West Bank this week, presumably at the hands of Palestinian militants, seems to have driven the Israeli political-security establishment over the edge.
Perplexed, even hysterical, reactions by Israeli political leaders and army commanders were noted in the past few days.
Tens of thousands of Israeli soldiers were deployed in several parts of the West Bank in a seemingly futile effort to locate the kidnapped young soldiers. The crème de la crème of the Israeli intelligence community as well as the best technology money could buy are being employed in a race against time to find the kidnapped settlers, but so far to no avail.
The Israeli army has also rounded up as many as 80 Palestinian community leaders associated with the "Islamic current," especially Hamas. The detainees include university professors, lawmakers and religious leaders.
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