When you see the right and left apoplectic about the same organization, you know they are doing the right thing. Wikileaks is exposing the world leaders as buffoons, liars, killers and criminals. What is wrong with that? Sarah Palin and her band of conservative christian extremists are being revealed for what they are. They don’t give a shit about freedom and liberty. If they did, they would applaud Julian Assange as a patriot for truth. He isn’t getting rich off of his website, while Palin, Beck, and the rest of the Fox News crew are raking in millions by stirring up the ignorant masses. Doug Casey, as usual, makes the case for freedom, truth and liberty. Here are three gems from the interview:
“Shining a light on the sociopaths who hide in the dark places under the rocks of government is always a good thing.”
“Crooks should not get away with their crimes just because they hold lofty titles, wear spiffy uniforms, and call their crimes great deeds necessitated by “national security,” “economic stimulus,” or whatever other nonsensical lies they come up with.”
“If you aren’t prepared to accept the consequences of something, don’t do it.”
Doug Casey on Wikileaks
(Interviewed by Louis James, Editor, International Speculator)
L: So, Doug, North Korea shelled South Korea – do you think that’s the sound of an approaching black swan we hear?
Doug: It could be, but I doubt North Korea wants a real war, and South Korea absolutely wants to avoid one. Of course, North Korea’s government is a hereditary monarchy, run by the thoroughly degraded Kim family – which is a bit confusing, in that everybody in Korea is either a Kim, a Park, or a Lee. Who knows what’s going on in the abnormal psychology of Kim Jong-Il, or whoever is really running the place? It’s perverse. North Korea is already a wasteland, so a war would do them relatively less harm; in a way they have nothing to lose. South Korea is a G20 economy, however, so even if they win a shooting match in short order, they still lose, in terms of the damage they would suffer in the process.
From a realpolitik point of view, it makes sense for the North to occasionally kill a few South Koreans, make threatening noises, and keep the “us vs. them” rhetoric hot. It provides an excuse for their extraordinarily low standard of living, and a reason for having a police state. They use nationalism and patriotism very effectively to prop up their pathetic regime. In that regard, they are like most governments, just more extreme. But I consider the chances of an actual war to be slim.
It was interesting to see gold shoot up the day the Koreas traded artillery shells. Coincidentally, it was just after the EU’s announcement that all is well and everyone can go back to spending as usual. I don’t think it’s likely that the Koreas will go for all-out war and push the teetering global economy over the edge. But it’s possible, because we’re dealing with certifiable lunatics. It’s more likely the EU itself will provide a black swan event. The bankruptcy of the euro, and then the EU, was always inevitable. It may now be imminent as well.
Regarding North Korea, though, what’s really interesting is the information leaked through Wikileaks that China – basically their only supporter – may be pulling back its support. The Chinese can see that maintaining a lunatic regime in North Korea no longer serves any useful purpose. They don’t need a loose cannon on their border. I expect it will collapse in the near term. The Chinese, likely with the collusion of some North Korean generals, will oust the Kims, and set up something that’s less of a liability.
L: I saw that news. It’s quite striking that after the wikileak, some Chinese officials have apparently come out and said that they do, in fact, favor reunification of the Koreas.
Doug: The whole idea of Wikileaks is terrific. They’ve become one of the most important watchdog organizations on the planet, helping to expose a lot of government action for what it really is.
This latest leak of a quarter of a million classified U.S. embassy cables is quite a coup, not just for revealing China’s changing attitudes about North Korea, but for exposing discussions the U.S. had with other countries about bombing Iran, espionage conducted by U.S. diplomats in Paraguay, Chinese government attacks on Google, and more mundane things like the lavish lifestyles of Kazakhstan’s political elite.
Shining a light on the sociopaths who hide in the dark places under the rocks of government is always a good thing. Just as they recently did in their exposé of what is going on with the counterproductive U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. It’s great to have a whistleblower organization like them. Julian Assange, who runs it, is a hero, and deserves the Nobel Peace Prize – although it’s a shame that prize has become so meaningless and degraded.
L: The more skeptical people become of the Right and Honorable So-And-So, the better.
Doug: Exactly. And on a more fundamental philosophical level, this is in keeping with my sense of justice. Crooks should not get away with their crimes just because they hold lofty titles, wear spiffy uniforms, and call their crimes great deeds necessitated by “national security,” “economic stimulus,” or whatever other nonsensical lies they come up with.
I’m fond of saying, “Do what thou wilt, shall be the whole of the law – but be prepared to accept the consequences.” Well, exposing secrets is an important part of enabling the natural consequences for dastardly deeds to follow.
The whole idea of “national security” has gotten completely out of control. It has about zero to do with protecting what little is left of America; it’s all about protecting, and building, the U.S. government, and the people who participate in it and profit from it. People fail to understand that the USG doesn’t represent them, or care about them – or at least not any more than a farmer cares about his milk cows. It’s an entity unto itself at this point. It has its own interests, which have only an accidental or coincidental overlap with those of America. Government is by its very nature duplicitous and predatory; it always puts itself first. By cynically paying lip service to traditional values, and whipping up a nationalistic, patriotic fervor, they can get Boobus americanus to go along with almost anything they propose. Just like Boobus north koreansis.
L: Hm. Sarah Palin apparently does not agree with you about Wikileaks. She’s reported as going on record saying that Wikileaks personnel should be treated like terrorists.
Doug: And people thought I was being too hard on the Tea Party movement. This is exactly the sort of knee-jerk conservative reaction that shows that such people really don’t care about freedom at all. I suspect Palin is cut from the same cloth as Baby Bush – ignorant, unintelligent, thoughtless, reactionary, and pig-headed. She belongs on reality TV, not in a position where she could damage the lives of billions of people.
L: The report says she wants to know why governments didn’t hack the Wikileaks website. Well, apparently somebody did last Sunday when these secret diplomatic cables were leaked – and who is a more likely culprit than the U.S. government? On the bright side, the attack failed. A handful of nonviolent individuals took on the world’s greatest superpower, as a matter of principle, and won. That just goes to show yet again how technological advances tend to flatten the power pyramid of society.
Doug: Yes; we talked about that in our conversation on technology. Every advance in technology puts the little guy on a more even footing with those at the top of the intra-human food chain. This is why the Colt revolver became known as “the great equalizer.” For the first time, the little guy was not only the equal of the big guy but, because he presented a smaller target, was his superior.
The Internet is the best thing that’s happened for freedom since the invention of the printing press. Technology is the biggest force for individual liberty, and politics the main enemy of it. But people idiotically idolize politicians and generals much more than scientists and inventors. Despite that, with the development of very powerful, homemade laser weapons, and 3D printers that will soon allow anyone to make almost anything, at trivial cost in their garage, the cat will soon be out of the bag. We should discuss those in the future. These things are very opportune at the very time that the bloated states of the world are going into collapse, much like the Roman Empire in the 5th century.
L: In an interesting counterpoint, Reuters reports that Hillary Clinton defended Wikileaks, even as she arrived in Kazakhstan at the same time as the embarrassing assessment of Kazakh leadership was leaked. Sometimes liberals do defend liberal ideas, like freedom of the press.
Doug: Sometimes. But not if it’s politically incorrect press. You can rely on them only to make government larger and more expensive at every turn – that you can rely upon like a Swiss train. Hillary – like any Secretary of State – is a skilled and enthusiastic liar. Her stock in trade is deception. Everything she says is intended to forward her drive to be the President. I wonder if she’d be worse than Palin? But that’s like asking if Nero would be worse than Caligula.
L: No argument from me on that. And you know I agree with you on the watchdog principle, but what if they go after private-sector entities? CNN reports that Wikileaks’ next target is a major U.S. bank.
Doug: It’s a mistake to think of banks in the U.S. as being private sector entities. U.S. banks got into bed with the state decades ago, and got even more closely entwined via the latest set of regulations, and bailouts. At this point they’re really parastatal entities. Plus, I’d guess that whatever whistle-blowing Wikileaks is planning, it probably has to do with the bailouts or other government interactions with the banks anyway – exactly the type of thing that needs to be exposed.
L: Fine, but their mission is not to fight the state, but simply to publish “important” news and information. What if someone uses their secure drop-box technology to reveal salacious material on private individuals… say, a complete list of all of Doug Casey’s mistresses?
Doug: Unfortunately, that list would be rather small at the moment. Not that Wikileaks would deem that sort of thing important enough to bother with. But, look, it doesn’t matter; there are tabloids that cover that ground already, and they get the respect they deserve. If you aren’t prepared to accept the consequences of something, don’t do it. The only sure way to avoid having your mistresses exposed, if you really don’t want that to happen, is not to have mistresses.
L: So… do you believe in a human right to privacy?
Doug: In the sense of having a right to remain silent, yes. No one should ever be forced to reveal anything they don’t want to reveal. But in the sense of stopping other people from saying, publishing, or broadcasting information about you, no. The information in their heads is theirs, and they have a right to do whatever they want with it. If it happens to be about you and you don’t like it, tough. Develop better security measures. Or better, “If you can’t do the time, don’t do the crime.”
L: What about libel?
Doug: If information put out by others about you is wrong, defend yourself with the truth. If you have a solid reputation accumulated over years of interactions with many people, your side of the story should get a good hearing. If you’ve been a jerk to many people, or not always honest, you’ll have a tougher time – which is as it should be.
The potential harm that lies might do does not justify giving power to the state to control what other people say – that’s a far greater harm. A complete free market in information will necessarily make people much more discriminating, and less gullible. They’ll become much less likely to believe things without solid evidence.
L: Sounds a bit like an intellectual Wild West.
Doug: Yes, but that’s a good thing. We have laws against libel and slander now, and people violate them constantly. It’s not just ineffective, it’s counterproductive, because the existence of libel laws makes people more likely to believe what they hear. In a society without laws against libel, people would be much more skeptical, and the potential harm from lies would be diminished.
L: I can see that… and why you favor the Wikileaks technology. You remain an optimist; things have to get worse before they can get better, but the longest term trend of them all is “the ascent of man.”
Doug: Yes. The trend is towards rapidly accelerating advances in technology. So, certainly in this case, the trend is your friend. Don’t fear technology – it’s what brought us out of the caves and primeval slime – it’s everybody’s best friend.
L: After the dog?
Doug: Poodles in particular. I suspect this isn’t the time for a sidebar on standard poodles. But I will mention it’s one of the many subjects on which I’m in total agreement with my friend Richard Russell.
L: Poodles. I’m not going to go there now. Perhaps we can discuss animals and their rights, or lack thereof, in some future edition. How about investment implications?
Doug: Unfortunately Wikileaks is not itself an investment opportunity, being a non-profit organization.
L: If it was for profit, would you invest?
Doug: I’d have to look at the actual business model and projections, but there’s reason to be skeptical. By its nature, Wikileaks is always going to be outside the mainstream of the economy, with rabid governments trying to shut it down, maybe even imprison its people, as they get more desperate. This thing has “scapegoat” written all over it. I hear Interpol has suddenly decided to bring Assange in on charges of sexual assault – transparency and accepting the consequences of his actions should apply to him, like anyone else, but I’m very suspicious of the timing of these accusations. Wikileaks is an encrypted, moving target, but a target nonetheless.
L: Do you contribute to Wikileaks? You like the service, but don’t believe in charity.
Doug: I wouldn’t consider it charity; I value their service. If I sent them money it would be because I want to show support, and reward their efforts. Sending them money, and giving them other support, amounts to a fair exchange, in my view. Not because of charity, which very often just assuages the guilt of the donor, while subtly encouraging bad habits in the recipient.
L: Okay. So, other than as yet another straw in the wind – evidence of the approach of the end game for the current global economic order (the latest implications of which we’ll cover in The Casey Report in two days) – are there any other investment implications?
Doug: Well, this is also a technology story. Wikileaks itself is not an investment opportunity, but there are new technologies that are fantastic opportunities. Not to be overly promotional here, but Alex Daley does an excellent job of covering this beat in our Casey’s Extraordinary Technology newsletter.
L: Roger that.
Stuck—–This country is here illegally? Congress approved the use of force. What do you not get about that? Engage your goddamn brain for a change. Do you think for a fucking SECOND that we would have a single troop in the Middle East if Congress did not approve? Do you think the President could get a penny of funding? Goddamn near every fucking person in Congress approved of using force in Iraq and Afghanistan. How is that illegal? Because you and a bunch of libs don’t like it does not make it illegal.Your INCONSISTENCY in this matter is goddamn laughable. You claim that Americans machine gunning a group of civilians gins up hate for America overseas, but broadcasting that act to the fucking entire world doesn’t gin up hate.
It is Congress’ duty to declare war. They have not done so. WTF don’t you understand?
Administrator—-You imply that I have said that there are Muslim terrorists in this country. I have never remotely indicated that, and you know it. You have said repeatedly that I hate all Muslims and that I think all Muslims hate us. I have never said anything of the sort, and you know it. In fact I have said repeatedly that I think that only a small percentage of Muslims would like to kill us. I’ll tell you how you WIN THE WAR ON TERROR. You bomb Iran’s nuclear facilities tomorrow. You then explain to Iran that we know they have undermined the Iraq war from Day 1, we can prove it, and that there will be consequences if there is further interference in our efforts. You then commit enough troops and resources to eradicate Al Qaeda and the Taliban from Afghanistan, and be very clear to Pakistan that if they obstruct the effort they will pay. You pay cash wherever necessary as you did to end the war in Iraq.—-And don’t say the war isn’t over in Iraq. That is such a pussy cop out. There are more goddamn murders in inner cities in the USA now than in Iraq.
Why are troops there? If the war is illegal, can’t Congress bring them home? Are the troops being prevented by the Middle Eastern countries from returning, because the Middle East people love them so much? I mean, Goddamn, if I’m a congressman, and I don’t like the war and think it is illegal, guess what the fuck I’m going to do? —-The military operations in the middle east are NOT ILLEGAL and the reason it has not been brought before the United States Supreme Court is that the case would be laughed out of the Goddamn court. Read this shit again and UNDERSTAND it. THEY WOULD NOT BE THERE WITH TRILLIONS OF DOLLARS FUNDING FOR TEN YEARS IF IT WAS ILLEGAL.
SSS—-They know that. What POSSIBLE reason is a guy running in a war zone with a fucking assault rifle? The probability is that they were terrorists, but that won’t even be considered by the HATE AMERICA crowd. With them, it is not even open to interpretation. They choose to believe they were a bunch of journalists, family people. “American soldiers are murderers”. Of course, you don’t hear a fucking peep that that fucker was carrying an assault rifle. No, Goddamn, that would kill a good story. That would ruin the “Americans are murderers” story.
We found out from the leaks how much the Saudi “king” wants US to attack Iran for him.
They probably also wanted the war in Iraq and Afghanistan (see who are the biggest funders and promoters of terrorism). So we send our kids into war for THEM? WTF?
Smokey –
THAT IS NOT MY POST !!!!!!!!!!!!!! The one that says you’re warped .. Germans .. etc.
Again … that is NOT MY POST!! Some chicken-shit fucker is using my name.
Anyway, no onehere has yet come up with a REAL example of wiki hurting National Security. Why not? Look … if the guy gave away nuclear codes or actual names of our double agents then I say fry the sunuvabeech.
The Obama administration is confusing “security” with “embarassment”. And seeing those fuckers squirm is just wonderful.
Stuck—-Got it. My reply was directed at the chicken-shit asshole impostor who doesn’t have the nuts to use his own pseudonym.—-Thanks for the clarification.
“SSS—-They know that. What POSSIBLE reason is a guy running in a war zone with a fucking assault rifle? The probability is that they were terrorists, but that won’t even be considered by the HATE AMERICA crowd. With them, it is not even open to interpretation. They choose to believe they were a bunch of journalists, family people. “American soldiers are murderers”. Of course, you don’t hear a fucking peep that that fucker was carrying an assault rifle. No, Goddamn, that would kill a good story. That would ruin the “Americans are murderers” story.”
fuckin’ genius. watch the video and please specify at what exact moment (mm,ss) you saw a guy running with an assault rifle. come on.
there’s a little problem with your “terrorists”, their identity is known. and guess what, they were all cousins from Bin laden with their ass stuffed of C4? start growing cum face. if the equipment from the two guys from Reuters has been taken for a gun, maybe the standards have been a tad too much lowered when it comes to put a pair of jerks in a chopper.
now, I’ll make an effort of understanding. let’s say there was an AK-47 in the crowd, wich sounds strange in the middle east, can you tell us smokydoky what level of threat a fat ass with an AK-47 could be to a platoon of Marines? think they needed air support? impressive…
the more you justify such a total fuckup and its aftermath, the more you will roam the abyss
Goldopussy—-So nice of you to weigh in with your socialist drivel. You have to be one of the few people alive to make a statement that fucking stupid. To say that an AK-47 in a war zone poses no threat. Try to wrap your microscopic brain around the fact that a terrorist with an AK-47
AK-47 poses a threat to people on the ground. —–Watch the tape again you fucking blind dumbass. There is a rifle in the arms of one of the people who were shot. Fucking idiot.
answer the question fucking coward. at what exact time did you see the rifle?
I come back in the morning and I want to see this fucking rifle. move your ass Smokydoky, we all WANT TO KNOW.
How the fuck am I going to give you the exact time if I don’t have the video in front of me? Goddamn, you’re stupid. When I watched it three months ago, it was when one of the men first rounded the street corner by a store. The INSTANT I watched the video, I saw the gun. I SAID on this blog that one of the men had a gun. Tell me the EXACT time I said it, you fucking fool.
goldorack
I, too, have watched the video of those group of terrorists AND the guy identified later as a journalist (or photographer) running down the street together. The journalist had a fucking rifle in his hand. Period. He got lit up, as he should have.
For those who have not seen the video here they are.
In the shorter vid (17 minutes) the shooting takes place at the 4:45 mark. I didn’t watch the longer video (39 min).
http://www.collateralmurder.com/
For the record there were SIX guys with AK47’s … PLUS a guy with a RPG.
For those who say the US is evil: Hey, it’s a fucking war zone! What the fuck do you expect when you walk around with AK47s and RPGs? A fucking birthday party?
For those who say the shooting was justified. Why did we have to shoot two children? Also, aren’t the guys in the helicopter taking just a little too much joy in the shooting? Jeez, it’s not a fucking video game, guys!
Not sure where I stand on this. Very tough question … made even tougher by being a damn “armchair quarterback”.
It’s a war zone. People get killed. Mistakes get made. There is absolutely no reason to cover-up the incident. That is what the military was doing. The American public should see war as it is. The release of that video changed nothing. It didn’t make things better or worse. We are fighting two undeclared wars that are supposedly about Terror. The truth is that we are fighting for oil.
The truth will set you free.
Thanks for the video Stuck——-Goldopussy, I see assault weapons at THREE FORTY SIX on the video ASSHOLE. Got it?
The US shouldnt be involved in any of this.
Interesting that all of these folks who consider Assange a hero haven’t run out and started their own leaks website – goldoleaks, etc.
Come on folks, where is the courage of your conviction? Don’t let the threat of a little treason charge, rape charge or assassination attempt slow you down.
Stucky
War story. My third trip to Southeast Asia was a Saigon-based tour. As a Forward Air Controller (the pilots who directed airstrikes against North Vietnamese and Viet Cong ground forces), I patrolled an area designated a “free-fire” zone, because it was a major supply route for 2 North Vietnamese Divisions which had invaded South Vietnam and were trying to get into Saigon. You could fire at ANYBODY at any time in this zone. I got shot at all the fucking time. And I mean, all the fucking time.
One day I saw a guy riding a bicycle down a road in the zone. I did nothing but circle the guy to see where he was going. But this prick jumped off his bike and started shooting his AK at me. Pissed me off, so I fired a couple of rockets at him and left. Probably didn’t even come close, but combat produces some pretty stressful situations for everyone involved in the firefight.
What’s my point? It’s my response to your statement, “For those who say the shooting was justified. Why did we have to shoot two children? Also, aren’t the guys in the helicopter taking just a little too much joy in the shooting? Jeez, it’s not a fucking video game, guys!”
SSS —
Thanks for the story. I REALLY appreciate the insight.
In terms of the issue at hand, my comments notwithstanding, I tend to give the benefit of the doubt to the US soldiers.
What is entirely lost here in the debate — your story being one of the few exceptions — is the CONTEXT of THAT specific battle … as well as the context of the war in general. Those who are quick to judge are shallow thinkers because ……THEY WEREN’T THERE!!
It’s too easy for many to be Monday night quarterbacks. US soldiers are being blown to bits by random IEDs, and snipers in shitty clay buildings, and like Vietnam they often don’t know who the hell is friend or foe.
To sit in judgement of the men stuck in such horrible conditions is utter foolishness, imho. Besides … many feel that one day we will all answer to the Final Judge. If so, I’ll leave it in his hands.
Admin
Who are you setting free with the truth? Me? Like I don’t know what war looks like?
What cover up? Shit, nearly every aerial engagement since WWII has been covered by gun camera film. Are you proposing all of it be reproduced for public release? There was NO mistake made in firing on that paneled van. None. They were picking up wounded and dead illegal combatants. Fuck ’em. They’re toast. Two children in the van, who couldn’t possibly be seen from the ground or air, just shows the total disregard terrorist ragheads have for children.
“The truth is that we are fighting for oil.” Get a grip. 1) Please print anything showing the huge oil reserves in Afghanistan. Last time I looked, it was zero. 2) Please print anything showing the great gains the U.S. has made to Iraqi oil production and reserves.
Hurry up with your answer. I eagerly await your enlightened version of the truth.
SSS
Are you as ignorant of the Middle East map as you seem? The countries in the world with the largest oil reserves are:
Saudi Arabia 230 billion barrels
Iraq 180 billion barrels
Iran 138 billion barrels
Kuwait 103 billion barrels
What countries border Iran Mr. CIA agent? IRAQ and AFGHANISTAN.
Now we have troops in Yemen. What country borders Yemen? Saudi Arabia
Our Military knows that peak oil is here. We have bases and troops spread throughout the Middle East. Don’t be so naive.
You should know that Henry Kissinger pushed hard for the US Military to descend on Saudi Arabia in 1973 and capture their oil fields during the oil embargo.
I have an article in process that will detail our wars in the Middle East as being only about oil. The War on Terror is a front for our access to oil.
Here is a link to a map of the Middle East in case you need to verify where Afghanistan is located.
THE TRUTH WILL SET THE CIA FREE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Admin
Get real. Your facts and figures mean nothing. Zero. Zip. Nada.
You ignored my questions, “1) Please print anything showing the huge oil reserves in Afghanistan. Last time I looked, it was zero. 2) Please print anything showing the great gains the U.S. has made to Iraqi oil production and reserves.”
We have no oil interests in Afghanistan, which your hero Ron Paul voted to attack, We have gotten nothing from the war in Iraq, vis a vis oil. Nothing
SSS
You seem to think because the neocons Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, and Wolfowitz FAILED in their effort to remake Iraq into their gas station, that proves that we were not after oil. Are you purposely acting stupid? I thought CIA agents could put facts together to come to logical conclusions. I guess I was mistaken. Look at the BIG PICTURE.
The bases are there. The troops are there. The oil is there.
Evidently you aren’t good with maps.
@SSS
The lack of Oil Reserves in Afghanistan is a Straw Man argument. Geographically, Afghanistan sits directly between the Oil reserves in the ME and the large Asian economies of India and China. As such, its the land across which a Pipeline would be built to drain the ME and supply those economies with the lifeblood of Oil.
Besides this, Afghanistan represents the eastern slope of the High Ground of the Himalayas and controlling this high ground is necessary to surround the low lying Oil producing states. To the east of those states, we have a large military presence in Saudi Arabia and in Israel, and then inthe Indian Ocean we have our Carrier Groups, which you yourself note are powerful means to control a Naval/Air battle for the resources contained in the ME.
Since at the moment short of a massive increase in commitment to go in and attempt to physically control states like Iraq and Iran the best way to control them is to “ring” them, that is what is being done here. Embargoing these nations for food supplies can effectively bring them to their knees over time if/when push comes to shove. Leave the Afghany corridor open, the Chinese could continue to supply those nations with food and armaments by land over the Himalayas.
The “War on Terror” provides a justification for ringing the Oil producing states in the ME with the Army of the Military-Industrial Complex of the Illuminati. Before a full scale war breaks out between the FSofA and China, NATO is trying to establish its military bases and logistics so the Oil production in the ME can be controlled and directed toward their munitions factories. This is a massive project which takes time to accomplish. Just securing the transit routes through Pakistan to Afghanistan has not been easy, and keeping the Puppet Goobermint in Pakistan functioning to allow this has had a few setbacks along the way.
You are correct in saying as of yet no real net flow of Oil has been realized here from either Iraq or Iran as a result of the buildup surrounding those states by NATO forces. However, we remain still inthe “set-up” phase of the hot war, its still mainly an economic and political war at the moment. this will inevitably change however, as incresaing economic dislocation both inthe FSofA and China results in further scattered clashes such as on the NK-SK border.
How this will play itself out long term is anybody’s guess, but what is going on now is very clear. Its a War for Resources, specifically the resource of Oil still contained under the water depleted landscape of the Middle East. Its all about the Oil, the ideological shit of Islam and Christianity is just a cover for the age old battle of the Haves and the Have Nots. Its an excuse to get the uneducated and downright stupid population here in the FSofA to go ALL IN and have our boys and girls sign up to be Cannon Fodder to secure the Oil for the further Glory and Profit of the Illuminati. Idiots like yourself who went and fought in Vietnam will go again to fight this War as well. The Illuminati count on the Idiots to do this for them. Your service to them will earn you a one way ticket to Hell. Enjoy the ride.
RE
RE
Brilliant summary of the Middle East situation. This debate with SSS proves that ignorance is a choice.
Smokypussy, I’ll prove you I’m open minded. I’ve watched the video until it my eyes poped out.
we see the two Journalist coming and they go hide close to the crossing, behind them two guys have an AK-47 without optical mount. one of them slow down because he has heard the helicopter, hides the rifle behind him and another guy in white shirt take it, and moves behind the wall. then one of the journalist appears at the corner with his 400mm Sigma. the guy in the chopper mistakenly thinks it’s an RPG (wich has absolutly NOT the same shape). they decide to open fire, wich wasn’t the case when there was only the 2 assholes with gun.
conclusion: an average haji isn’t able to put a bullet at more than 50 yards with a regular AK. the guys in the chopper know it, so they don’t shoot. a single marine can solve the problem.
then they don’t take the time to identify what they suppose to be an RPG, but that is in fact a reflex with a large focal zoom. they shoot happy and gun down around 20 persons for 2 damned AKs…awesome fucking warriors. a single round in a wall and they would have dropped it before getting caught. I call that a lack of professionalism, at best.
SSS, it is not enough to down a whole bunch of guys, the rescuers have to be killed also?
It is legitimate to refuse cares to 2 wounded girls?
you said: “We have gotten nothing from the war in Iraq, vis a vis oil. Nothing”
call us stupid OSS117, the US companies stole 15 years of TOTAL’s prospection and mapping. the US made a reset of the Iraki market to prevent Chinese to settle. just to avoid a darfur scenario.
don’t tell us all those wars aren’t related to commodities, we don’t take this shit.
by the way, Iraq that have never funded terrorism nor attacked US has been butcherfucked, and in the other hand north Korea that develloped missiles for erasing Los Angeles and San Francisco from the map, that fired several times at Americans, that sunk an allied warship recently and shelled a south Korea village has never seen a single US round for 58 years…WTF?
can you tell us James Bond why North Korea still hasn’t been turned in a parking lot?
there’s no oil in Venezuela, in Colombia, around Georgia, exactly like there was no oil in the falklands. call us stupid
Afghanistan isnt about oil. Its about the golden crescent. Namely 90% of opium production. 1,782 metric tons (U.S. State Department estimates) Afghanistan is also the world’s largest producer of hashish.
Berlusconi says Bunga Bunga Partay!!
Harper’s ran an article the same year [1975] titled “Seizing Arab Oil,” which argued that the U.S. could solve its economic problems by taking over Middle East oil fields–an argument that experienced a post-Sept. 11, 2001 revival on the Washington think-tank circuit. The article, it turned out, had been inspired by a background briefing by Kissinger.
Kissinger and the Shah of Iran worried that the Ba’ath regime [Iraq], newly strengthened by rising oil revenues and Soviet arms:
“would be used as a battering ram against all moderate pro-western regimes in the area. Though not strictly speaking a Soviet satellite, once fully armed with Soviet weapons Iraq would serve Soviet purposes by intimidating pro-western governments, such as Saudi Arabia; simultaneously, it would exert pressure on Jordan and even Syria, which, while leaning to the radical side was far from being a Soviet client. The Soviet Union would try to squeeze Iran between Afghanistan and its Iraqi client…We must try to prevent the fertile crescent–Iraq, Syria, and Jordan–from being ruled from Baghdad.”
opium production is just the cherry on the cake in Afghanistan.
it just finance the corrupt politicians for their loyalty and finance some black ops. It add a pain in the ass of europe.
there was an agreement before 9/11 between the talibans and USA for the building of a pipeline through Afghanistan from the former republics to the sea in Pakistan. this agreement went to shit, and bin Laden that was quite a moving person decided to settle….
Administrator—-“We’re there for the oil.” That idiotic, shallow, ill-conceived statement reeks of desperation. If oil is the objective, why did Bush Sr. in Gulf War I march troops to just short of Baghdad and then walk away? Your utterly vacuous claim totally breaks down. I mean, goddamn, if oil is THE OBJECTIVE, you don’t turn around after winning the war and leave the spoils behind. By your tally, we’ve spent over a TRILLION dollars on the war. I ACHE for you to tell me how many barrels of oil we’ve taken. How much oil revenue have we taken, even to pay for the war? And if you persist in clinging to your utterly delusional notion that we are there for the oil, WHEN do we take it? Is theer some fucking GOLDEN MOMENT we’re waiting for?——Do you think that Obama or George W Bush ever thought that “Damn, maybe the administration following mine might not want to steal the middle-east oil, and all my efforts will be for naught.” ? —-The asinine “we’re there for the oil ” argument breaks down in every conceivable way and on every conceivable level.
Smokey
Your ignorance is breathtaking. After the Gulf War we left troops and bases in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia you fucking moron. I think bin Laden had an opinion about that. Your favorite term – BLOW FUCKING BACK.
There has been no reason to TAKE the fucking oil because back in 1991, oil was $20 a barrel.
You can’t get it through your thick cranium that the neo-cons failed. Their WMD proved to be a lie. Their Mission Accomplished turned into a FUCKING DISASTER. They lost all credibility regarding anything in Iraq. They had to abandon their grand visions. Rumsfeld said that the oil would pay for the fucking war you ignorant moron.
You can bet your fat ass that when oil hits $200 a barrel and there are 5 mile gas lines at stations across the country and food can’t get to your fucking supermarket, the US MILITARY WILL ACT.
How fucking stupid and myopic can you be on this subject? You actually believe what your government spews out?
Good day sir. I have to go to my son’s Confirmation. I’ll be back later to rip you a new asshole if you persist in your pathetic arguments.
I guess when we spent millions of dollars and had thousand of troops in Vietnam we were there for the oil too.
Smokey
Is that all you got? That is pathetic. We were fighting the communist menace. 50,000 more dead for absolutely nothing.
Punk
I think Smokey and SSS are smoking opium. They are so out to lunch on this issue, it is laughable.
When I read what passes for their arguments I’m picturing a Fox News anchor spewing their usual drivel.
Smokey
So does the “fighting terrorism” argument. The occupation creates more terrorists, not less. It is a losing strategy. In the face of the report issued by the military regarding peak oil, It doesn’t make sense to invest such a vast amount of its dwindling resources on a losing strategy.
Admin
It may not be wise to associate SSS with a Fox news anchor. Smokey is another story, but SSS might take it personally.
Administrator—-When oil hits $200 per barrel, which it will within probably 3-4 years, our military won’t do shit. Did they attempt a takeover when oil hit $140? What is so fucking sacred about $200 a barrel. I’m giving you a golden opportunity to revise your pathetically flawed $200 benchmark right now. Keep in mind, that would only be slightly over a doubling of today’s prices. We could EASILY hit $200 within 6 months, and a 3 month horizon isn’t off the table. Three to four years is a virtual cinch. Ponder seriously your statement that the military will move on $200 oil, if that benchmark is taken out in the next couple of years. —Did our evil government move on the middle east countries when there were long lines in the seventies? —-Your position on “war for oil ” is so fucking flawed that it is laughable. JFC,
Smokey
Your lucky I’m filled with the Holy Spirit and have goodwill to men or I’d thrash you like a neocon ragdoll. There is a point in the not too distant future when there is not enough supply reaching our shores. It isn’t about price. Price will be a result of not enough oil. The lack of supply will lead to disarray in this country. Three days without sufficient supply and the 30 Blocks of Squalor will become the Rumble in the Jungle. Our way of life will be in danger without oil.
THE US MILITARY WILL GO TO WAR FOR OIL. You can book it.
Google Kissinger and the 1973 oil embargo. He was the fucking Secretary of State and he was pushing hard for the US to invade Saudi Arabia and take over their oil fields. That is a fact.
I’ll give you time to come to your senses, but when my good feelings wear off, I will treat you the way that Assange handled that Swedish wench.
Reference Mr. Assange (The subject of this wide ranging and insane thread).. It turn outs now that he is no longer being chased down by armies of Interpol agents for rape.
I know this because on the MSM last night it was downgraded to “sex crime”..
Wanna know what said “sex crime” was? Not using a condom during consensual sex. I checked the data and sure enough, in Sweden you can get your ass locked up or fined by having unprotected sex. I wonder how that’s working out for them as I can find no statistic that shows the percentage of sex acts that resulted in arrests for going bare during the poke.
What this proves is that when you piss off the Feds, they will find some obscure 1917 law to try and nail you with. Or they will find some 17th century law still on the books in Europe to nail you with.
How can the FSofA want to extradite and arrest a foreign citizen for violating a law that is only applied in a foreign country and a really unenforceable piece of statist shit law anyhow?
There should a Nobel Prize for leakers.. I’m thinking of starting a web site called “BankBizLeaks” and invite whistle blowers to submit the dirt on every crooked, greedy, ethically bare bankers (and lawyers) for publication. I suspect it will attract ‘Bot attacks just like TBP did but there are workarounds for that.
Muck
I really think you are on to somthing. I bet there are thousands of disgruntled bank employees who would provide mounds of dirt on the criminal banking syndicate. I’ll bankroll your site with my massive take from the Amazon ad.
JFC, say we are in the middle east to impose our ideology on others. Say the war has proven to be a catastrophic fuckup. Say that there are too many innocent bystanders dying. But DON’T SAY THE FUCKING TROOPS ARE OVER THERE FOR OIL. I await your return, because after your son’s confirmation. I’m going to light your fat ass up in one for the record books.
Smokey
Do I sense common ground? It is the civilians who run our government that have sent the troops to the Middle East. The boots on the ground don’t think they are there for oil. That is what makes it more revolting. Our leaders have lied to the troops and are sending them to die for a false cause. It is despicable.
Muck—–Douchebag RE already posted that shit yesterday and it was debated eighteen ways to Sunday on his thread.
~~ When oil hits $200 per barrel, which it will within probably 3-4 years, our military won’t do shit ~~
Of course not, its okay when banksters, hedge funds and speculators in America and Europe drive the price up to 140bl and rape the people.
But when OPEC did it they started selling Iran and Iraq weapons.
MuckAbout
I think you absolutely should start a BankBizLeaks site. If you have the resources, why not? If you get some good stuff and provoke the ire of uncle sugar, you can come stay in my basement.
Between 1970 and 1978, the Shah bought some $20 billion worth of U.S. arms (amounting to one-quarter of total U.S. arms sales at the time). “Our choice in 1972,” Kissinger argued, “was to help Iran arm itself or to permit a perilous vacuum.”
Administrator—–I think Richard Nixon sucked. I think George W. Bush sucks. I think Obama sucks. I do not think that it ever even crossed Obama’s mind to steal the oil from any of the middle eastern countries. I don’t think Bush or Nixon ever seriously considered stealing their oil either. I do not think that any American administrations following Obama’s will invade the middle east and steal their oil.
Smokey
Obama is a liberal left wing Democrat. If there was anyone on the planet who would cut the military budget it would have been him. He is far outspending GWB and ratcheted the war in Afghanistan up 5 times. You can bet your ass on the day he took office, the military sat his bony black ass down and told him that Peak Oil is a fact. Our country will collapse without oil. They told him that he would not reduce military spending or withdrawal from the Middle East. He has done as he was told.
What do you think we will do when the food stops reaching supermarkets, the lights start to go out, and the savages start to riot? Are you pulling my leg, or do you really believe we will not go to war over dwindling resources?
I can’t leave you guys alone for a day without you tearing shreds off each other. Play nice.
And Punk, stop instigating. You are like a little terrier nipping at the heels of giants.
LLPOH
Smokey and I haven’t had a good knock em down drag em out in months. I think he may just be goading me, because he can’t really think we are not in the Middle East for oil. He’s too smart to really think that.
Not only do I think the military did not sit his black ass down and explain to him that Peak Oil is a fact, I will guarantee you that Obama has no understanding or comprehension of the concept of Peak Oil at all, except in the vaguest of terms.——–I believe the military sat his black ass down as soon as he was inaugurated and told him that if he presided over a massive withdrawal of American forces, that is was a virtual certainty that the US would be hit again with a massive terrorist strike, and that things would RAPIDLY destabilize in the middle east and lead to more violence.
Massive terrorist strike? 19 ragheads with knives who could have been stopped with a $39.99 deadbolt lock from Wal-Mart if the FAA had one drone with a brain, really required two never ending wars, 5,500 Americans killed, 35,000 wounded, $3 trillion pissed down the drain? There were by most accounts 1,000 to 2,000 Al Queda in the entire world on 9/11/2001. After ten years of the WAR ON TERROR, are there more than 2,000 terrorists now?
MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.
We got 35% bigger government thanks to 911. I know I feel safer what with big brother reading my email and porno scanners imaging the furry giblets.
Terrorists would never dare attack again we have so few freedoms left to hate.
“There were by most accounts 1000-2000 Al Qaeda in the entire world on 9/11/2001”–ROFLMAO–Al Qaeda has had cells in at least 100 countries for over TEN YEARS, including England, Italy, France, Spain, Germany, Albania, Thailand, Uganda and elsewhere. Al Qaeda has supported through financing, logistics and training for OVER ten years Islamic terrorist groups in Afghanistan, Algeria, Bosnia, Chechnya, Eritrea, Iran, Kosovo, the Phillipines, Malaysia, Syria, Somalia, Tajikistan, Thailand and Yemen and others. Fuck, I saw a fucking WANTED poster hanging on the wall for Osama Bin Laden in an Alexandria Virginia post office in 1988, before the first Gulf War.
Smokey
I know facts don’t matter to neocons, so I’m sure you’ll disregard these facts. Al Qaeda was a two bit miniscule operation in 2001. Read and learn (my 1,000 to 2,000 was a vast overestimation):
http://www.harpers.org/archive/2006/07/sb-al-qaeda-new-members-badly-needed-1151963690
Indeed, as Hirsh argues, Al Qaeda isn’t the all-powerful group that it is often portrayed to be; its strength and reach have been exaggerated, partly because of the extraordinary impact of the 9/11 attacks, and partly because the Bush Administration has found it politically useful to hype the group’s capabilities.
Two years ago, I interviewed Jack Cloonan, a 25-year veteran of the FBI who, between 1996 and 2002, served on a joint CIA–FBI task force that tracked bin Laden. “How many members of Al Qaeda do you think there are?” he asked me. Cloonan laughed when I pegged its membership at several thousand. The real numbers, he said, “are miniscule.”
Documents discovered by the joint task force, Cloonan said, showed that Al Qaeda had 72 members when it was founded in 1989. Twelve years later, the task force got its hands on an updated membership list after a CIA Predator destroyed a building near Kabul during the American invasion of Afghanistan. The membership list was discovered in the rubble, along with dozens of casualties, including Mohammed Atef, one of bin Laden’s closest aides. It showed that bin Laden had a grand total of precisely 198 sworn loyalists. (Hirsh’s Newsweek article said that the intelligence community “generally agrees that the number of true A-list Al Qaeda operatives” at the time of 9/11 probably between 500 and 1,000, most of them in and around Afghanistan.)
Smokey
Do you ever get the feeling you’ve come to a gun fight with your dick in your hands?
What do you think we will do when the food stops reaching supermarkets, the lights start to go out, and the savages start to riot? -=JQ=-
Im gonna put a sign in the front yard with a big arrow that points to some politicians house that reads FREE FOOD, BEER and Walmart Women —->
Well, when oil becomes scarce and alternative energy becomes a must the middle east battle for the control of that oil and the costs in lives and money are tallied history, perhaps, will paint it as the century of pointless insanity and how reliance on oil was ultimately detrimental.
I read once that Osamas name, when he was a US asset against communism, was Tim Osman.
Administrator—–After the unforgiving way I’ve obliterated your nonsensical positions in the past two days, I’m surprised you haven’t called the server and shut down the blog. If I’d gotten my ass thrashed that bad I’d be embarrassed to show up here. Shit, I’ve smoked you AND all your legions of ass-kissers BY MYSELF, with virtually no help, other than a comment or two from SSS and LLPOH. I’m going to ask you a serious question and I want a straight answer. If you give me a straight answer, I promise to show mercy on you. If I don’t get a straight answer, the massacre will continue. This is the question—-Have you ever, in you entire life, here or SA or ZH or ANY blog site suffered as humiliating and abject a beating with your opinions so thoroughly and utterly exposed for the idiocy they are while being simultaneously annihilated, as you have by me in the past two days?
Smokey
The TBP community has been treated to one of the most one sided thrashings in history. After two days of pummeling you aren’t looking too good. I hope you can recover someday and have the courage to post again.
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