Drums of War

[milliefink]

FUUUUUCK!!

Oops. Sorry, I forgot for a second that Israel has the right to defend itself from peacefully protesting 20 year old nurses.

[Wanderfound]

i24NEWS English

“The air strikes and artillery fire (Friday night) by the international coalition on the village of Hidaj, held by IS in the southern sector of Hasakeh, killed at least 12 people,” the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The civilians – including two women and their children – belonged to the same family, it added. The deaths bring to “20 the number of civilians killed by the coalition in 24 hours east of the Euphrates River”, said the Observatory, which relies on a network of sources across Syria for its reports.

[Wanderfound]

Here’s some history that remains relevant…

http://dgibbs.faculty.arizona.edu/brzezinski_interview

Brzezinski: Yes. According to the official version of history, CIA aid to the Mujahadeen began during 1980, that is to say, after the Soviet army invaded Afghanistan, 24 Dec 1979. But the reality, secretly guarded until now, is completely otherwise: Indeed, it was July 3, 1979 that President Carter signed the first directive for secret aid to the opponents of the pro-Soviet regime in Kabul. And that very day, I wrote a note to the president in which I explained to him that in my opinion this aid was going to induce a Soviet military intervention.

Q: Despite this risk, you were an advocate of this covert action. But perhaps you yourself desired this Soviet entry into war and looked to provoke it?

Brzezinski: It isn’t quite that. We didn’t push the Russians to intervene, but we knowingly increased the probability that they would.

Q: When the Soviets justified their intervention by asserting that they intended to fight against a secret involvement of the United States in Afghanistan, people didn’t believe them. However, there was a basis of truth. You don’t regret anything today?

Brzezinski: Regret what? That secret operation was an excellent idea. It had the effect of drawing the Russians into the Afghan trap and you want me to regret it? The day that the Soviets officially crossed the border, I wrote to President Carter: We now have the opportunity of giving to the USSR its Vietnam war.

That’s Mika Brzezinski’s dad in that interview, BTW. US power elites are incredibly inbred.

[Wanderfound]

UN issues another dire warning about Yemeni starvation risks | CBC News

After three years of conflict in which the Yemeni government, backed by Riyadh’s coalition, has fought against Iran-aligned Houthi fighters, Yemen is the world’s worst humanitarian crisis with some 8.4 million people severely short of food and at risk of starvation.
[…]
“If conditions do not improve, a further 10 million people will fall into this category by the end of the year,” he said.

[Wanderfound]

Ken Klippenstein (kenklippenstein)

[Akimbo_NOT]

[Akimbo_NOT]

Kim Jong-un Allegedly Fires the North Korean Versions of John Bolton, Yet Trump...

“Instead of asking why Kim Jong-un has made an obvious and natural move in order for his military leaders to better reflect the new priorities of the DPRK, people should be asking why the United States has not removed and replaced many of its own top government officials whose mindsets are manifestly incompatible with a successful peace process?”

[Wanderfound]

Amnesty International (amnesty)

Nowhere to Run

[Akimbo_NOT]

Trump's hawkish security adviser may have tried to sabotage the Kim Jong Un...

[Wanderfound]

Paul Gottinger (PaulGottinger)

Brandon Smith (muckrakery)

[Wanderfound]

Thread about a cool little corner of history:

krampus my calves (woke_hoover)

[Wanderfound]

This seems somewhat inconsistent with the “Putin controls Trump” theory popular amongst Dems.

U.S. pushes NATO to ready more forces to deter Russian threat

OTOH, so did this back in February.

[Akimbo_NOT]

Theater.

He’s satisfying the red meat Magites.

https://federalnewsradio.com/army/2018/06/big-guns-big-troop-numbers-and-big-budgets-are-all-part-of-the-armys-plan-for-2028/

[Wanderfound]

About as close to antiwar sentiment as you’ll find in mainstream US politics:

Bernie Sanders (SenSanders)

It’s a start.

[milliefink]

“to keep us safe”?

Oh Bernie, do you really still think you need to pull your punches like that?

[Wanderfound]

The official “Operation Inherent Resolve” civilian death count for the Raqqa offensive is 23.

They killed more than that from this family alone.

Amnesty International (amnesty)

[Wanderfound]

Meritocracy.

Stephen Miles (SPMiles42)

Rep. Joe Kennedy III (RepJoeKennedy)

[FGD135]

Yes, no… it’s just so complicated.

[milliefink]

@Wanderfound

You’re right. Meant to vote yes — it was an honest mistake on my part.

What the…?

0_o

[Wanderfound]

He’s just displaying the innate aristocratic virtue that caused the DNC to proclaim him a rising star and nominate him for the SOTU reply.

Thank the heavens that we have such wise and competent leadership to guide us. The world would be in danger were it not so.