INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT APPROVES FIRST EVER WAR CRIMES INVESTIGATION OF US FORCES, CIA
Rachel Blevins —RT.com
Rachel Blevins Government Corruption
With special addendum reportage by Blevins
[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he US is promising retaliation after top judges at the International Criminal Court gave the approval to move forward with the first ever war crimes investigation into the conduct of the US military and the CIA in Afghanistan.
The US is now firing back, after top judges at the International Criminal Court gave the green-light to move forward with a war crimes investigation into US conduct in Afghanistan. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the US does not recognize the ICC’s authority over American citizens, and has no plans to cooperate.
“This is a truly breathtaking action by an unaccountable political institution masquerading as a legal body,” Pompeo said. “It’s all the more reckless for this ruling to come just days after the United States signed a historic peace deal on Afghanistan, which is the best chance for peace in a generation.”
Pompeo’s comments follow a decision from ICC appeals judges earlier Thursday, which confirmed that the investigation will target all sides in the conflict, including the US Military and the CIA.
“The Appeals Chamber considers it appropriate to amend the appealed decision to the effect that the prosecutor is authorized to commence an investigation in relation to alleged crimes committed on the territory of Afghanistan in the period since 1st May, 2003, as well as other alleged crimes that have a nexus to the armed conflict in Afghanistan.”
The US invaded Afghanistan less than one month after 9/11 with the promise of defeating the Taliban. And while the Taliban is now stronger than it has been at any point since the war began, members of the ICC have attempted to call attention to the atrocities people in the country have faced throughout the war with an investigation that looks at all sides in the conflict.
Back in 2017, the Office of the Prosecutor claimed it had evidences proving that from 2003 to 2004, members of the US armed forces and members of the CIA “committed acts of torture, cruel treatment, outrages upon personal dignity, rape and sexual violence against conflict-related detainees.”
Last year, the ICC tried to move forward with an investigation. But the Trump Administration responded by revoking the visa of the ICC’s chief prosecutor after repeated threats from Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, claiming Washington would do anything possible to stop the court from investigating the US.
And the threats appeared to work briefly, as judges from the ICC ruled last April that there was no point in moving forward with an investigation if they couldn’t guarantee there would be cooperation. However, that decision has now been overruled.
Pompeo has previously threatened economic sanctions against the International Criminal Court if they do move forward with investigating the US for war crimes, so now it remains to be seen if he will follow through with that threat.
There are likely major concerns about what a potential war crimes investigation could uncover, especially when looking at nearly two decades of war where countless civilians have been killed, injured and displaced at the hands of the US and its allies.
The bombings have also drastically increased in recent years. The United Nations confirmed that in 2018, Afghanistan saw the highest number of civilian casualties in a decades. And in 2019, the US and its allies killed more civilians than the Taliban.
The war in Afghanistan has continued under three administrations, and there have been numerous accusations of corruption—the latest of which came in the form of the Afghanistan Papers. Released late last year, they documented interviews with top military generals who revealed that the US government has been lying about the war for years.
Even though the latest peace agreement promises to bring American troops home, the latest round of bombings from the US raises new questions about whether the longest war in US history will truly come to an end anytime soon.
Addendum
NYT TRIES TO MAKE ‘RUSSIAGATE’ 2020 HAPPEN WITH HIT PIECE CITING ANONYMOUS SOURCES
The NYT published an article claiming intelligence officials are warning US lawmakers that Russia is already interfering in the 2020 election—and there is apparently nothing the US can do about it in a country that budgeted nearly $63 BILLION for its National Intelligence Program in 2020…
The New York Times released an article with the headline “Lawmakers Are Warned That Russia Is Meddling to Re-elect Trump,” where they claimed that intelligence officials warned House lawmakers during a classified briefing.
The article states that although “intelligence officials have previously told lawmakers that Russia’s interference campaign was continuing, last week’s briefing included what appeared to be new information: that Russia intended to interfere with the 2020 Democratic primaries as well as the general election.”
In addition to the fact that the Mueller Report confirmed there was no collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign in 2016, this article also claims that Russia has been and is currently working to influence our election.
That raises a much bigger question, considering the fact that in 2020 alone, the United States National Intelligence program was funded to the tune of nearly $63 billion dollars—so if intelligence officials did, in fact, have evidence that another country was trying to influence our election, why wouldn’t they do anything to stop it?
A spokesperson for President Putin was quick to deny the Times’ article, but he said he was not surprised by it and he warned these claims will only continue.
In a statement, Dmitry Peskov said, “This is just another paranoid report of the kind which, unfortunately, we will see more and more of as the election approaches. Of course, such claims bear no relationship to the truth.”
Before Trump was elected, outlets like the New York Times, claimed Russia preferred to have Trump in office over Hillary Clinton. However, Moscow has repeatedly denied those claims and we have seen Trump increase tensions both by keeping a firm US presence in Syria, and by pulling out of the INF treaty.
The article credited four authors, and the names that are listed are very familiar with both the 2016 election and the Russiagate narrative.
Among those authors is Maggie Haberman, the New York Times’ White House Correspondent. She was featured in internal documents from Clinton Staffers leaked by Guccifer 2.0 in 2016. The memos described Haberman as “friendly” to Hillary Clinton, and her campaign press secretary was quoted as saying, “We have had her tee up stories for us before and have never been disappointed.”
Then there is Adam Goldman who is contributing to the article about Russiagate after he has reported on the flimsiness of the Steele Dossier, and he has admitted that he was one of the ones who chased the infamous Trump “Pee tape.” When asked what happened, he just said, “I don’t want to get into it.”
The important thing to remember here is that the New York Times’ story is once against making claims based on vague “anonymous sources.” That is a practice we saw repeatedly in 2016, and even though claims about Russiagate turned out to be blatantly false, we are seeing it once again in 2020.
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Acclaimed by critics, Ron Ridenour’s incisive history of the struggle between the US and Russia, extending from the Bolshevik revolution to our day, plus a wide-ranging and comprehensive analysis of many cultural America features which continue to bolster the US drive for world domination, is now available in print at a discount price. It’s 564 pages packed with information, many critical but practically unknown facts, and an uncompromising revolutionary perspective on the colossal challenges confronting this generation. (Click here or on the image below to order.)
THE DEEP STATE IS CLOSING IN
The big social media —Google, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter—are trying to silence us. Pictured above: my dealings with MSM journalists are entirely too predictable. It’s the nature of their industry. Sixteen years on the streets, living and working with the people of China, Jeff Downloadable SoundCloud podcast (also at the bottom of this page), YouTube video, as well as being syndicated on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, RUvid and Ivoox (links below), [dropcap]I[/dropcap] was recently contacted by a freelance journalist, who said they were writing a story on video blogging (vlogging) in China, and wanted to interview me, to be included. First, a note about freelancing journalists. They are only free in the sense that they do not get a paycheck. They are contract workers who get paid by the article or podcast. In order to get paid, they have to pitch ideas and content to editors who give the thumbs up or down. This means having to write what the editors think is appropriate, what the red lines are and what will be censored. In the West’s MSM, there are thousands of red lines and taboo topics that are censored by the Big Lie Propaganda Machine (BLPM). I don’t call it the Great Western Firewall for nothing. This freelance journalist interviewed me for about 80 minutes total. I could tell that they did not like what I was saying. I knew that my real-life China experiences would not make it across all those MSM red lines, nor pass muster in the BLPM. They were calling from far away in the United States, a huge geographical and cultural chasm. Reporting anything that says something truthful or factual about global capitalism’s many anti-imperial enemies is strictly verboten: China, Russia, Cuba, Venezuela, Eritrea, Iran, Syria, DPRK, and on and on, unless it can be spun in the most negative and critical manner possible. If you are a friend, fan or follower of China Rising Radio Sinoland, you might predict that I didn’t figure much in this person’s article. In fact, they were able to gin two articles that got published in the MSM. Out of all that, I got a one-line quote and was branded as a “French communist”. For most brainwashed Euranglolanders, that was a signal that I am no better than an intellectual leper, and my one sentence could not be valid or trusted. To really get a true idea about what an open sewer MSM really is, be sure to watch/listen to my interview with JP Leonard and Andrew Schlademan, about the book they published, Presstitutes: In the Pay of the CIA-A Confession from the Profession. Book interview with John-Paul Leonard and Andrew Schlademan. China Rising Radio Sinoland 200214 Before we talked, I wrote out my answers as a matter of record. Herewith are this freelance journalist’s questions and my replies, Interview Question: How long have you been vlogging in China? Is vlogging in and about China different than doing so in other South and East Asian countries? Jeff: I started blog writing in 2010, audio blogging in 2014, then video blogging in 2017. Since then, I typically do all three for each article/podcast. After living and working in China for 16 years, starting in 1990, my wife and I just moved to Thailand, to a fresh perspective on Asia. In both countries, the biggest vlogging challenge is bandwidth. Recording video interviews gobbles up a lot of megabytes and slow internet can make producing and uploading videos more challenging. Q: What has your experience been vlogging in China? Good? Bad? Welcoming? Harassing? Jeff: Wonderful. China is the Greatest Show on Earth, accomplishing so many things for so many people, which in human history have never been done on such a monumental scale. Since I blog in English, my fanbase in China is small, compared to the rest of the world. However, those who do follow me tell me there and around the world that they love my work. That’s why I do three media for the same piece: written, audio and video, to reach as many fans as possible, around the planet. Q: Do you know any of the other western vloggers in China? What is your impression of that community? Is it even a community in any real sense? Jeff: Vlogggers specifically, not really. But China-focused journalists, authors, bloggers, podcasters and vloggers as an unofficial collective, absolutely. I have regular contact with too many fellow journalists, authors and bloggers to count. More directly, I started an Outlook group, called China Writers’ Group, with both Westerners and Chinese members, where we exchange a lot of information. Q: Do you feel constrained at all in what you post online while in China? Do you feel the need to censor yourself? Jeff: Never, but I am very impressed by what Baba Beijing and the country’s 1.4 billion citizens are accomplishing, so I’m positive and truthful about what I produce. Q: What, in your experience, is the average Chinese person’s awareness of or attitude toward the Great Firewall? Jeff: Excellent question. In the West, it’s one of the most misunderstood Chinese government policies and deserves thorough, honest explanation. First, the citizens demand and want the Great Firewall. It’s discussed at length in the national and social media. The Chinese government treats its citizens like adults, telling them everything: censorship, cameras, face and voice recognition, data gathering, etc. The Chinese expect Baba Beijing to maintain social harmony, political stability and economic prosperity for all. They are generally socially conservative and would not accept an endless avalanche of mind numbing, Western “tittytainment”. Second, if the Great Firewall were not in place, the CIA-MI6 complex and all its umpteen NGOs would create thousands of bogus Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts, vomiting fake news and sensational Big Lie propaganda targeted to the Mainland. Chinese citizens defiantly reject all this color revolution sabotage against them, which has been going on nonstop, since 1949, when China gained its liberation, freedom and independence from Western imperialism and colonialism. Don’t take it from me. Pew Research Center, which is 100% US-owned, has its ongoing Global Attitudes Survey. Year after year, around 70% of Chinese approve of their media, the highest in the world. In the US, it’s in the low 30s. After living and working 16 years in China, I know that its citizens have a much more truthful and realistic perspective on world affairs, than Westerners, hands down. Third, the Great Firewall is fantastic national policy, showing visionary foresight, since it has allowed China to develop its own thriving internet and social media infrastructure, businesses, economy and culture. As a result, the PRC has some of the world’s biggest and most profitable IT corporations, like Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent, the last which is now ranked among the World’s Top Ten biggest companies. There are hundreds of other smaller, but just as successful entities. In 2018, China had nine of the Top 20 global tech companies, with the US taking the other eleven. It’s probably even-steven in 2019. Without the Great Firewall, none of this could have ever happened. A case in point is our interview using China’s WeChat. Without the Great Firewall, we would be using the US’s WhatsApp. Q: Have you had any experience with the so-called wumao [note: people who are paid to leave comments online, at the end of articles]? Jeff: No, but every government around the world, at least the bigger countries, use paid online commenters, as well as censoring unwanted comments. Eurangloland is no exception. Q: Some prominent China YouTubers have reported being solicited by people in China to promote certain themes or messages on their channels. Have you ever been paid, approached, or directed by any organization to speak in defense of China and/or the CCP? Jeff: I have been paid by Chinese entities to write articles for them, which is quite normal for journalists to do. But, I have never been asked to skew my reporting to favor China. However, every government worth its salt tries to mold all concerned media to project a certain image and message. I just read Udo Ulfkotte’s sensational book, “Presstitutes: In the Pay of the CIA – A Confession from the Profession”. I will be interviewing the publisher and translator later this month. It’s shocking and disgusting. The worst offenders are Westerners. When I interviewed James Bradley, he said that the US media is government controlled and corporate managed (https://chinarising.puntopress.com/2020/02/07/james-bradley-talks-about-his-new-podcast-program-untold-pacific-china-rising-radio-sinoland-200207/). He sure got that right, and all the other Western countries are just as Orwellian. Punto Press released China Rising - Capitalist Roads, Socialist Destinations (2016); and for Badak Merah, Jeff authored China Is Communist, Dammit! – Dawn of the Red Dynasty (2017). • check this page on his special blog CHINA RISING RADIO SINOLAND [dropcap]I[/dropcap]f you find China Rising Radio Sinoland's work useful and appreciate its quality, please consider making a donation. Money is spent to pay for Internet costs, maintenance, the upgrade of our computer network, and development of the site.
Originally published on February 28, 2020 About me: https://chinarising.puntopress.com/about-the-author/ Sixteen years with the people on the streets of China, Jeff Downloadable SoundCloud podcast (also at the bottom of this page), YouTube video, as well as being syndicated on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, RUvid and Ivoox (links below), If you missed our first interview, here it is, Note before starting: John talked about Dave McGowan’s book on the Laurel Canyon drug/music scene. Here is the website to read it online for free, http://centerforaninformedamerica.com/ On the same website, I can also highly recommend Dave’s book, Wagging the Moondoggie. I am honored to have Mr. John Potash on the show today, who has done some of the best journalism of the 21st century, if its definition is to expose the truth about the lies of empire. In May 2015, Potash released his book: Drugs as Weapons Against Us: The CIA’s Murderous Targeting of SDS, Panthers, Hendrix, Lennon, Cobain, Tupac and other Activists. Potash completed graduate studies at Columbia University. He published his first book, The FBI War on Tupac Shakur and Black Leaders, in 2007. Today’s interview will be about John’s second book, which focuses on the CIA as the global leader in addicting the 99% – people like you and me – to drugs. I can’t say enough about John’s Drugs as a Weapon against Us book. His years of research and synthesis show just how psychopathic and paranoid the US’s elite rulers are. It is frightening to contemplate how organized and committed these mentally ill people are and the lengths they go to, in order to destroy any possible disagreement to their global capitalist stranglehold on the citizens, as well as all levels of institutions, governance and the media. I think what make’s John’s fine book so compelling is all the minute details he shows about the genocidal use of drugs to destroy minorities and the poor, promoting and addicting musicians to glorify drug use among the 99%, and if these stars promote socialist ideals, the CIA then kills them. – all over the world. His detailed proof of just how pathological our owners really are, allowed me to step back from the nitty-gritty, down and dirty of the leaves on his trees, so I could really look at the whole global forest, and for this perspective, I am deeply thankful. I cannot overestimate how important it is for all free thinkers and freedom lovers to read John’s FBI War on Tupac Shakurbook. It’s not that expensive, but if money is issue, then ask your local library, school, college, university or place of worship to get it, so many others can share its wealth of discovery and truth telling. Failing that, several friends can pool their money to buy it. Using it in a book club would make for fascinating discussion as well. Not a reader? There is the DVD below too, which is even less money! Libraries stock them too! John’s contact info: Website: http://www.johnpotash.com/ Buy the book and DVD here: http://www.johnpotash.com/books-dvds/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/john.potash.9 Email: jlpotash@gmail.com Skype: live: john.potash2 Phone: +1-410-960-7744 In honor of three musicians who were killed by the CIA/FBI, along with millions of others who have fought and continue to demand social justice and socialism for the 99%, here are their songs from my collection. The oligarchs keep exterminating many more millions every year at home and around the world, but they can’t snuff out ideals, dreams and aspirations. The global struggle will never stop. Tupac Shakur: White Man'z World
Bob Marley: Redemption Song John Lennon: Imagine Punto Press released China Rising - Capitalist Roads, Socialist Destinations (2016); and for Badak Merah, Jeff authored China Is Communist, Dammit! – Dawn of the Red Dynasty (2017). • check this page on his special blog CHINA RISING RADIO SINOLAND [dropcap]I[/dropcap]f you find China Rising Radio Sinoland's work useful and appreciate its quality, please consider making a donation. Money is spent to pay for Internet costs, maintenance, the upgrade of our computer network, and development of the site.
Summary of developments [dropcap]F[/dropcap]irst, Zelenskiy has proven to be a total ZERO. Simply put, neither he not his team can get anything done, anything at all. I really mean nothing, nothing at all. Second, while initially the victory of Zelenskiy seem to indicate that the Ukronazis had suffered a crushing defeat, it now is completely obvious that Zelenskiy lacks the will, or the means, or both, to tackle this huge problem. Now the Ukronazis are back in force, they provoke Zelenskiy on a daily basis, but the man is simply unable to react and reassert his authority. Third, in social and economic terms, the Ukraine is in free fall. Following years of chaos and corruption the Ukraine is now a deindustrialized country which can sell only three things: men (for menial jobs in Poland and in the EU), women (prostitution) and its “black soil” (chernozem). Once the land is sold, it will give the Ukrainian budget enough money to keep up the appearance of a state for a few more months, maybe a year or so. After that – it’s show over, curtains down, lights off and everybody go home… Fourth, it is pretty clear who the kingmaker of the Ukraine is: Arsen Avakov, the “eternal” (by Ukrainian standards) Minister of the Interior. He not only has real firepower, he also seems to be able to turn the Ukronazi “spigot” on and off depending on his personal needs and circumstances. Unlike the bona fide nutcases, Avakov does not strike me as a Nazi at all, in fact, I would say that he is non-ideological – he is all about “pure power”. This makes him a much more desirable “partner” for the Empire than real nutcases. Fifth, while the Minsk Agreements are still more or less on the agenda, at least officially, the Ukronazis have been vocal enough in their protests to basically completely stall any meaningful negotiations. Yes, prisoners will probably be exchanged, but beyond that I see any real progress as exceedingly unlikely. For all practical purposes, the regime in Kiev has made it very clear: there will be no negotiations with the Donbass, which simply means that there will be no negotiated solution. It’s that simple, really. Six, COVID19 has hit the Ukraine very, very hard. The problem is that the authorities, which fully knew that they had no means to do anything meaningful began by thumping their chests and saying that there were no cases in the Ukraine only to then suddenly decree drastic quarantine measures. And yet, the true information is seeping out: Ukrainians hospitals are full of cases, mostly un-diagnosed, and many have already died. Officially, and as of right now, there are only 14 confirmed cases in the Ukraine, and only two fatalities. But absolutely everybody knows that these numbers are totally fictional and that the real number of cases remains unknown due to a lack of testing kits, not a lack of cases. MDs in Ukrainian hospitals are sounding the alarms, but nobody is listening. Seventh, the situation is made even worse by the fact that there are no credible alternatives to Zelenskiy. There IS an opposition in the Ukraine, the typical Ukronazis nutcases and the generally pro-Russian politicians who are categorically and absolutely unacceptable to the (much larger) Ukronazi opposition. Thus, there does not appear to be any political solution or alternative to the current regime. Right now, the two politicians who appear to be the most competent are Vadim Rabinovich and Elena Lukash. These two are very sharp and, frankly, very courageous, but they don’t have a power base strong enough to take on the Nazis. Finally, there is Viktor Medvechuk whose main quality is also his biggest weakness: he is considered close to Putin. These are all rather smart and courageous figures, but compared to the power of an Arsen Avakov – they are just soap bubbles. Will that change in the future? Maybe, but not in the foreseeable future. Possible scenarios When a country enters a dramatic and deep systematic crisis, something must inevitably eventually give. Right now there are relatively few protests simply because there is no political force of personality which could inspire people to rally and struggle for change. Most Ukrainians are both absolutely exhausted and absolutely desperate. They are into the “survival mode” which history has taught them and they simply wait. Frankly, I can’t blame them. My advise to all my Ukrainian contacts has been “get out of there while you can”, but if you can’t get out, then going into a survival mode is the only option. Right now, the Ukronazis feel energized and they are back with a vengeance demanding that the Ukraine finally be transformed into the Banderastan they have been dreaming about for generations (except they don’t use the word “Banderastan” but prefer the expression “Banderstat”). Their strength is in their unity and firepower. Their main weakness is that most Ukrainians hate them. A most dangerous combination. Some observers have suggested that a coup might take place. I doubt it because I don’t see any person capable of leading such a coup. Avakov would be ideal, but he is *already* in power, he does not need a coup at all. Furthermore, if an openly Ukronazi regime replaces Zelenskiy, this will only further deepen the distress of the general population. The truth is both as simple as it is terrible: there is no solution for the Ukraine. None whatsoever. So what could happen next? The basic ingredients are pretty predictable: protests, civil unrest, violence and, eventually, a break-up of the Ukraine into several entities. In theory, this could be avoided, but in order to do this, at the very least, the following basic conditions have to be met: As you can immediately tell, this is not happening. Yes, some have begun thinking about this issue, see, for example, this very interesting report from the Euro-Atlantic Security Leadership Group (EASLG): https://securityconference.org/assets/02_Dokumente/03_Materialien/EASLG_Statement_Ukraine_FINAL.pdf, in particular, take a good look at the “Economic Steps” and “Political Steps” suggested in this report. The fact that a guy like Gen (Ret) Breedlove, former SACEUR and rabid Russia-hater, could sign this document is, by itself, quite amazing. However, with the current SARS-CoV-2 pandemic AND a brutal oil war threatening most economies of our planet, I expect the western nations to simply lose interest in the Ukraine: they will be too busy scrambling to recover from the political fallout of the SARS-CoV-2 crisis. As for Russia, there is absolutely no way that she will agree to foot the bill for the reconstruction of the Ukraine, nor will she provide the forces needed to get rid of the Ukronazis. Which means that for the foreseeable future, the Ukraine will be mostly left on its own. Russia will, of course, continue to support Novorussia (for example, SARS-CoV-2 testing kits have already arrived from Russia) while distributing Russian passports to anyone wanting one (the vast majority of the people of Novorussia). Conclusion The SARS-CoV-2/COVID19 pandemic will have huge political repercussions worldwide because in this specific case, not only will the AngloZionist propaganda machine not be able to hide the truth from the people (if anything, all sorts of fake news and crazy rumors will have more “street cred” than what the politicians tell us), but the consequences of this crisis will be felt everywhere, including at home. So Trump can go on in each of his pressers about how everything in the USA is “the best”, “the greatest” and “the mightiest”, but the truth is that the this virus will reveal not only the total inability of the private sector to save the day, it will also reveal how utterly dysfunctional the US, along most other western states really are (no, Walmart and Amazon will not save the day). No wonder the western politicians are scrambling to show how “involved” they all are – they are simply trying to cover their rear end for the inevitable “lessons learned” moment coming for all. Maybe at some point in the future will see most US Americans reconsider what they think they know about Socialism and Libertarianism, especially when it becomes clear how different the reaction to the virus was in China and Russia compared to the EU or US. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License • remember: ALL CAPTIONS, IMAGES, PULL QUOTES AND ANNOTATIONS BY THE EDITORS, NOT THE AUTHOR— [premium_newsticker id="211406"] OF INTEREST TO OUR READERS Acclaimed by critics, Ron Ridenour’s incisive history of the struggle between the US and Russia, extending from the Bolshevik revolution to our day, plus a wide-ranging and comprehensive analysis of many cultural America features which continue to bolster the US drive for world domination, is now available in print at a discount price. It’s 564 pages packed with information, many critical but practically unknown facts, and an uncompromising revolutionary perspective on the colossal challenges confronting this generation. (Click here or on the image below to order.) The big social media —Google, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter—are trying to silence us. And when I say the exact same thing, I mean literally the exact same thing. The frenzied, shrieking hysteria I’m witnessing right now among Trump’s base regarding China looks and moves in the exact same way the mental zombification of Russia hysteria looked and moved when it began tearing through rank-and-file Democrats in late 2016 and early 2017. The seething, screaming vitriol I get from the MAGA crowd on social media when I talk about this is identical to what I got during that period from Democrats: just as irrational, just as vituperative, and just as emotion-driven. The 2020 outbreak of China hysteria is so identical to the 2016/2017 outbreak of Russia hysteria that as of this writing if you do a Twitter live search right now for the word “wumao” or “CCP paying you” you’ll see an endless stream of Trump supporters running around bleating accusations of being a paid troll for the Chinese Communist Party at anyone who disputes their hysterical China narratives. Do a Twitter live search right now for the words "CCP" "paying" and "you" together to see an endless stream of Trump supporters accusing any critics of their China hysteria of being paid trolls running propaganda for the Chinese government. Sound familiar?https://t.co/cfCWE3JvTV https://t.co/dp9SYYai9I — Caitlin Johnstone ⏳ (@caitoz) March 19, 2020 Anyone who’s ever shared anti-establishment ideas on social media will immediately recognize this as identical to accusations which come from the pussyhatted #Resistance crowd of brainwashed MSNBC liberals, who accuse anyone who questions establishment narratives of being a paid troll conducting propaganda for the Russian government. These “How much is the CCP paying you for this?” accusations which have been cluttering up my social media notifications for the last 24 hours are indistinguishable from the “How’s the weather in St Petersburg, Ivan?” McCarthyite accusations I’ve been receiving from rank-and-file Democrats for the last three years. Just like the froth-mouthed victims of media-induced Russia hysteria, the victims of media-induced China hysteria are always unable to justify their sudden Beijing anxiety in a way that makes any coherent sense. I’ve spent the last few days debating these poor wretches online, because that’s what I do whenever a new sociopathic establishment narrative surfaces to gain an understanding of how it works, and I have yet to encounter a single one which can coherently reconcile the sudden uptick in shrieking China hysteria with the thing that China has always been throughout its historical existence. They’ll tell me it’s because China lied about the virus and made errors in the early days of the outbreak, but can’t lucidly explain how screaming about this helps fix any problem, and can’t justify the fact that lying about the virus and making errors is exactly what their president just spent weeks doing. They’ll tell me it’s because China is authoritarian, but can’t explain the sudden uptick in outrage over this since China has always had an authoritarian government and that has nothing to do with the virus. They’ll parrot establishment narratives about Uighurs and organ harvesting, but, again, can’t explain how this has any connection to the virus. When I point out that there are extremely powerful government agencies which stand much to gain from manufacturing consent for new escalations against America’s primary geostrategic rival I mostly get more outraged, incoherent sputtering, but once in a while a more thoughtful China Derangement Syndrome victim will say they don’t want any escalations against China, they just want to end an economic relationship between China and the US which they perceive as unfair. But, again, this has nothing to do with the virus, and also it’s a mighty interesting coincidence that they’ve formed this opinion about the one nation who just so happens to be America’s primary geopolitical foe. In reality these people are rallying behind the campaign to blame China for the health crisis they’re now facing because they understand that otherwise the blame will land squarely on the shoulders of their president, who’s running for re-election this year. Deep down they know full well that this isn’t really about China, but about protecting their president. But what they are actually doing, unwittingly, is manufacturing consent for an agenda which is far bigger and far more consequential than who wins the election in November. And it’s no accident that they’re being shepherded in this direction with the help of right-wing establishment narrative managers. Russiagate Isn't About Trump, And It Isn't Even Ultimately About Russia #China #Russiagate #TrumpRussiahttps://t.co/6QhzZGNPfX — Caitlin Johnstone ⏳ (@caitoz) January 28, 2018 More than two years ago I wrote an article titled “Russiagate Isn’t About Trump, And It Isn’t Even Ultimately About Russia“, about how all these Russia escalations (and the propaganda used to justify them) are ultimately not really about Russia at all, but China. Here’s an excerpt: This is what Russiagate is ultimately about. Democrats think it’s about impeaching Trump and protecting the world from a nigh-omnipotent supervillain in Vladimir Putin, Trump’s supporters think it’s a “deep state coup” to try and oust their president, but in reality this has nothing to do with Trump, and ultimately not a whole lot to do with Russia either. When all is said and done, Russiagate is about China. In an essay titled “Russia-China Tandem Changes the World”, US-Russia relations analyst Gilbert Doctorow explains how the surging economic power China depends upon Russia’s willingness to go head-to-head with America and its extensive experience with US attempts to undermine the USSR during the Cold War. Alone both nations are very vulnerable, but together their strengths are complimentary in a way that poses a direct threat to America’s self-appointed role as world leader. And now we’re seeing one of America’s two mainstream factions cheerleading for increased hostility toward America’s primary rival, while the other faction cheerleads for increased hostility against that rival’s right arm. This two-pronged propaganda campaign has enabled the establishment via the Trump administration to escalate tensions not just with China but with Russia as well. This tracks with something I’ve been pointing to for a while now, which I described in an article from last year titled “37 Tips For Navigating A Society That Is Full Of Propaganda And Manipulation“: Notice how the manipulators like to split the population in two and then get them arguing over how they should serve the establishment. Arguing over whether it’s better to vote Democrat or Republican, arguing over whether it’s better to increase hostilities with Iran and Venezuela or with Syria and Russia, over whether you should support the US president or the FBI, arguing over how internet censorship should happen and whom should be censored rather than if censorship should happen in the first place. The longer they can keep us arguing over the best way to lick the imperial boot, the longer they keep us from talking about whether we want to lick it at all. 37 Tips For Navigating A Society That Is Full Of Propaganda And Manipulation Added some more tips to this article from last year in order to help navigate through the haze of narrative manipulation in these confusing times. https://t.co/Z05RH16IlB — Caitlin Johnstone ⏳ (@caitoz) March 18, 2020 It is truly, deeply and profoundly stupid because the agenda to topple Iran’s government and the agenda to topple Syria’s government are not two separate agendas. They are the same. Supporting one while opposing the other is like wanting to shoot someone in the head but being morally opposed to shooting them in the heart. Syria and Iran are allies. Eliminating one government necessarily hurts the other. Iran has been helping Syria to win the war against foreign-backed extremist proxy fighters who nearly succeeded in toppling Damascus before its allies stepped in, and should Syria succeed in rebuilding itself (something the Trump administration is actively preventing it from doing) we can be sure it would return the favor when called upon. We are now seeing this exact same two-pronged approach used with Russia and China. We’ve actually been seeing it for years, like in this affectionate debate between former CIA Director James Woolsey and Fox News’ Laura Ingraham over which of the two nations America should be more aggressive toward, but it’s kicked into high gear now. The end result being that you have America’s two mainstream parties arguing over whichestablishment agenda should be advanced and how establishment interests should be served, and hardly anyone in mainstream circles ever questioning if the establishment should be served at all. Which is just how the establishment likes it. America has two war parties. The Overton window of acceptable mainstream debate has been ripped away from those who simply want peace and a healthy planet altogether, and now the only permitted arguments are about which wars should occur first. This is gravely disordered, and it cannot continue. Addendum ____________________ Thanks for reading! The best way to get around the internet censors and make sure you see the stuff I publish is to subscribe to the mailing list for my website, which will get you an email notification for everything I publish. My work is entirely reader-supported, so if you enjoyed this piece please consider sharing it around, liking me on Facebook, following my antics on Twitter, checking out my podcast on either Youtube, soundcloud, Apple podcasts or Spotify, following me on Steemit, throwing some money into my hat on Patreon or Paypal, purchasing some of my sweet merchandise, buying my new book Rogue Nation: Psychonautical Adventures With Caitlin Johnstone, or my previous book Woke: A Field Guide for Utopia Preppers. For more info on who I am, where I stand, and what I’m trying to do with this platform, click here. Everyone, racist platforms excluded, has my permission to republish or use any part of this work (or anything else I’ve written) in any way they like free of charge. Bitcoin donations:1Ac7PCQXoQoLA9Sh8fhAgiU3PHA2EX5Zm2 This is a dispatch from our ongoing series by Caitlin Johnstone [premium_newsticker id=”213661″] |