Investigative journalists Vanessa Beeley, Fiorella Isabel and Elina Xenophontos join us for a conversation that the multipolarity discourse rarely has out loud.
I hope that Fiorella's expectation of Russia being balkanized is wrong. I think that Putin's reticence isn't fear of fighting, but recognizing that punching back can easily spiral into a global war that wouldn't bode well for anyone in Russia. Russia can make Europe resemble Ukraine in a matter of weeks, but what then? For Europe's part, how to explain the zeal of the European Epstein class? Alex Krainer believes it is the only card they can play. War with Russia or criminal charges is a credible explanation.
I think that Putin may be praying for the global depression to kick in for the West, and that looks like it's weeks to months away. But I expect him to strike the UK or Germany if the drone attacks on Moscow persist.
I agree with Karim. Russia needs communists to stand up against the dumb Russian youth who don't have a problem with consumerist values. The Russians born in this century never witnessed the Russian dead decade, triggered by the liberators Clinton and the IMF. If they are taught what their forebearers sacrificed, their cavalier position regarding the sponsors of the war in Ukraine would probably turn into resentment. I'd be curious to know, maybe from Fiorella, if Russia's dead decade has exacerbated the Russian population decline. I know that statistics in the U.S. show a steep decline in the American male young adult population beginning with the generation following the 2008 economic collapse. No future = fewer babies.
I think that China believes, and with reason, that engaging in a soft war with the West could hurt China more than the West. The global market is the last refuge of states living in austere and unstable conditions, and that constitutes the bulk of humanity. I read that Putin was bitterly disappointed with Lula when Brazil was the host country for BRICS for a year after the momentous summit in Kazan. It was reported that Putin had made significant progress in fashioning an alternative for the international currency, but Lula let it sit, and now Modi is doing the same thing.
Just like Russia and Europe is fraught with danger and risk, I think what Vanessa called a tipping point regarding thousands of Isis fighters being armed for a strike into Lebanon is also a powder keg with an unlit fuse. And this makes me believe, that both Iran and the U.S. are engaged in a deadly game of chicken. They both are engaged in what they perceive as existential wars, where Iran's autonomy and sovereignty are at stake, and the empire cannot conceive of a world where it is only equal to everyone else. This toxic self perception cannot go soon enough.
A decade ago, a war of attrition, or a softer war of sanctions and clandestine internal interference, would have favored the empire without question. But today, the war happy U.S. is outta ammo, and the profligate spending of the USG on war after war after war has caught up with the badasses. I think that Trump wants to play the perpetual war game with Iran, but the cost is going to rise exponentially when the proverbial sh!t hits the fan. Larry Johnson, a retired CIA analyst and a good guy, trusts a Canadian economist living and working in China, who follows markets for a living. His name is Alex Tani, and he is a derivatives expert who knows that those commodities can be used to mask real values of anything, but only at high risk and only for a while. Derivatives were what created the housing bubble that popped in 2008. I reference this to amplify the seriousness of the coming economic hit for any country dependent on the global market. This is a link to a recent podcast where Johnson and Tani discussed the inevitability of much future pain: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yjy_2bFiA-8
At about 5 minutes in, Tani briefly speaks, but the whole cast goes for an hour. It is very informative.
I think it's worth countering the dark conclusions which are rooted in excellent journalism and analysis, and admirable biases, with a less dark, more remote perspective. Much of what I can see, the abandonment of civil rights, the overt killing of peaceful protestors, the indifference to explaining anything that smacks of criminality, this is all the stench of a rotting corpse, and the question is when the hell will it expire? So I think that in the last decade, the empire has become more vicious and threatening because it's soft power is waning. It is desperately hoping to sustain its dollarization by conquering Greenland and Venezuela and anyplace else that gives it a foothold in wealth extraction.
There's an irony attached to this era of the empire. When the Cold War began, the size of the ruling elites engaged in selling Russian evil and Chinese inhumanity to the population was a few hundred industrial heads and fat cats. Now they had done such a thorough job, that there is no real political left, and the fall of the USSR left the West standing alone, and so began the delusions. The "End of History," the primacy of the individual, the exceptionalism of the USA. When the governing elites are high on their own fumes, there can be no common ground. And the ones in charge can't se themselves. Just like the narcissist in chief.
I appreciate you wearing your bias, and it reminds me of how many Americans decide what they believe based on who they like. I know that’s not you, but I just see so much facile thought processing from educated dolts. I know that many of the people I watch and follow are much more conservative than I am, but Johnson and Lawrence Wilkerson know things that many people don’t. And they have seasoned perspectives.
Like bombastically announcing that Iran has a nuke? I found that a very unwise move by Johnson without the proper vetting of such info. Saying that alone has tremendous consequences for Iran.
(and the big cigar-smoking ex-intelligence persona is also something I find hard to digest. But I admit, that's a very personal thing)
I agree that it comes across as perhaps irresponsible, but I don’t know enough about his reasons. If, as he says, that his associate has connections with someone who is part of the “unofficial” negotiations where Pakistani and Saudi officials are brokering something with the great abstainers of diplomacy, it may be true and unverifiable.
Johnson said, and I think this was before his infamous podcast with Pepe and “Mr Z, that the rumor of an existent nuke made Trump livid. Maybe that was the point, but I doubt it.
I was far more optimistic when the NeoLibs of IRAN were not contaminating the discourse of leadership with fanciful dreams
of a Capitalism that is not essentially the same Epstein Class treachery that has enslaved humanity for the last 500 years. In a country that has regenerated itself completely in over 4 decades of total international sanctions all the while adhering to Islamic principals that govern responsibility to the most vulnerable as well as the outlawing of usury, it seems incomprehensible to me that
the steady stream of success that IRAN has achieved against their self declared enemies has been brought to an ignominious halt
by such a silly distraction. To allow a $300 billion dollar Trojan horse to tempt anyone is beyond foolish: it is suicidal. It is accepting a ride on the scorpion’s back.
Please God that Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei corrects course and rejects further negotiations with the USA. 🙏🏻❤️🇵🇸
I hope that Fiorella's expectation of Russia being balkanized is wrong. I think that Putin's reticence isn't fear of fighting, but recognizing that punching back can easily spiral into a global war that wouldn't bode well for anyone in Russia. Russia can make Europe resemble Ukraine in a matter of weeks, but what then? For Europe's part, how to explain the zeal of the European Epstein class? Alex Krainer believes it is the only card they can play. War with Russia or criminal charges is a credible explanation.
I think that Putin may be praying for the global depression to kick in for the West, and that looks like it's weeks to months away. But I expect him to strike the UK or Germany if the drone attacks on Moscow persist.
I agree with Karim. Russia needs communists to stand up against the dumb Russian youth who don't have a problem with consumerist values. The Russians born in this century never witnessed the Russian dead decade, triggered by the liberators Clinton and the IMF. If they are taught what their forebearers sacrificed, their cavalier position regarding the sponsors of the war in Ukraine would probably turn into resentment. I'd be curious to know, maybe from Fiorella, if Russia's dead decade has exacerbated the Russian population decline. I know that statistics in the U.S. show a steep decline in the American male young adult population beginning with the generation following the 2008 economic collapse. No future = fewer babies.
I think that China believes, and with reason, that engaging in a soft war with the West could hurt China more than the West. The global market is the last refuge of states living in austere and unstable conditions, and that constitutes the bulk of humanity. I read that Putin was bitterly disappointed with Lula when Brazil was the host country for BRICS for a year after the momentous summit in Kazan. It was reported that Putin had made significant progress in fashioning an alternative for the international currency, but Lula let it sit, and now Modi is doing the same thing.
Just like Russia and Europe is fraught with danger and risk, I think what Vanessa called a tipping point regarding thousands of Isis fighters being armed for a strike into Lebanon is also a powder keg with an unlit fuse. And this makes me believe, that both Iran and the U.S. are engaged in a deadly game of chicken. They both are engaged in what they perceive as existential wars, where Iran's autonomy and sovereignty are at stake, and the empire cannot conceive of a world where it is only equal to everyone else. This toxic self perception cannot go soon enough.
A decade ago, a war of attrition, or a softer war of sanctions and clandestine internal interference, would have favored the empire without question. But today, the war happy U.S. is outta ammo, and the profligate spending of the USG on war after war after war has caught up with the badasses. I think that Trump wants to play the perpetual war game with Iran, but the cost is going to rise exponentially when the proverbial sh!t hits the fan. Larry Johnson, a retired CIA analyst and a good guy, trusts a Canadian economist living and working in China, who follows markets for a living. His name is Alex Tani, and he is a derivatives expert who knows that those commodities can be used to mask real values of anything, but only at high risk and only for a while. Derivatives were what created the housing bubble that popped in 2008. I reference this to amplify the seriousness of the coming economic hit for any country dependent on the global market. This is a link to a recent podcast where Johnson and Tani discussed the inevitability of much future pain: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yjy_2bFiA-8
At about 5 minutes in, Tani briefly speaks, but the whole cast goes for an hour. It is very informative.
I think it's worth countering the dark conclusions which are rooted in excellent journalism and analysis, and admirable biases, with a less dark, more remote perspective. Much of what I can see, the abandonment of civil rights, the overt killing of peaceful protestors, the indifference to explaining anything that smacks of criminality, this is all the stench of a rotting corpse, and the question is when the hell will it expire? So I think that in the last decade, the empire has become more vicious and threatening because it's soft power is waning. It is desperately hoping to sustain its dollarization by conquering Greenland and Venezuela and anyplace else that gives it a foothold in wealth extraction.
There's an irony attached to this era of the empire. When the Cold War began, the size of the ruling elites engaged in selling Russian evil and Chinese inhumanity to the population was a few hundred industrial heads and fat cats. Now they had done such a thorough job, that there is no real political left, and the fall of the USSR left the West standing alone, and so began the delusions. The "End of History," the primacy of the individual, the exceptionalism of the USA. When the governing elites are high on their own fumes, there can be no common ground. And the ones in charge can't se themselves. Just like the narcissist in chief.
I cannot watch Larry Johnson anymore. That’s just preference. Nothing personal against the man.
I appreciate you wearing your bias, and it reminds me of how many Americans decide what they believe based on who they like. I know that’s not you, but I just see so much facile thought processing from educated dolts. I know that many of the people I watch and follow are much more conservative than I am, but Johnson and Lawrence Wilkerson know things that many people don’t. And they have seasoned perspectives.
Like bombastically announcing that Iran has a nuke? I found that a very unwise move by Johnson without the proper vetting of such info. Saying that alone has tremendous consequences for Iran.
(and the big cigar-smoking ex-intelligence persona is also something I find hard to digest. But I admit, that's a very personal thing)
I agree that it comes across as perhaps irresponsible, but I don’t know enough about his reasons. If, as he says, that his associate has connections with someone who is part of the “unofficial” negotiations where Pakistani and Saudi officials are brokering something with the great abstainers of diplomacy, it may be true and unverifiable.
Johnson said, and I think this was before his infamous podcast with Pepe and “Mr Z, that the rumor of an existent nuke made Trump livid. Maybe that was the point, but I doubt it.
I was far more optimistic when the NeoLibs of IRAN were not contaminating the discourse of leadership with fanciful dreams
of a Capitalism that is not essentially the same Epstein Class treachery that has enslaved humanity for the last 500 years. In a country that has regenerated itself completely in over 4 decades of total international sanctions all the while adhering to Islamic principals that govern responsibility to the most vulnerable as well as the outlawing of usury, it seems incomprehensible to me that
the steady stream of success that IRAN has achieved against their self declared enemies has been brought to an ignominious halt
by such a silly distraction. To allow a $300 billion dollar Trojan horse to tempt anyone is beyond foolish: it is suicidal. It is accepting a ride on the scorpion’s back.
Please God that Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei corrects course and rejects further negotiations with the USA. 🙏🏻❤️🇵🇸
Oh, btw…. While Trump and Netanyahu act out their public disagreement, the Congress and Senate, which are
94% financially supported by the Zionist Lobby, are voting in favor of integrating the IDF into the US Dept of Defense.
https://substack.com/@sugarrhi/note/c-284487128?r=27c2yf&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action