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"The nation no longer stands for the enlightenment tradition, but rather for military-political hegemony and the total commodification of life."

-- Morris Berman

News and Opinion

Julian Assange: more than 60 Australian MPs urge US to let WikiLeaks founder walk free

More than 60 Australian federal politicians have explicitly called on the US to drop the prosecution of Julian Assange, warning of “a sharp and sustained outcry in Australia” if the WikiLeaks founder is extradited.

With a small cross-party delegation due to fly to Washington next week, the Guardian can reveal the lobbying trip has won the open support of 63 members of Australia’s House of Representatives and Senate.

In a letter, the 63 MPs and senators said they stood in support of the trip to the US and were “resolutely of the view that the prosecution and incarceration of the Australian citizen Julian Assange must end”.

They said the matter had “dragged on for over a decade” and it was “wrong for Mr Assange to be further persecuted and denied his liberty when one considers the duration and circumstances of the detention he has already suffered.

“It serves no purpose, it is unjust, and we say clearly – as friends should always be honest with friends – that the prolonged pursuit of Mr Assange wears away at the substantial foundation of regard and respect that Australians have for the justice system of the United States of America,” the letter said.

CIA Manipulation of Public Opinion w/Jeffrey Sachs

Putin Doesn’t Think US Foreign Policy Will Change If Trump Is Re-Elected (And He’s Probably Right)

Vladimir Putin said at the Eastern Economic Forum on Tuesday that he wouldn’t expect any meaningful changes in US policy toward Russia if former president Donald Trump secures re-election next year.

TASS reports the following on the Russian president’s comments:

“I think there will be no fundamental changes regarding Russia in US foreign policy, no matter who is elected president,” Putin said. “Mr. [Donald] Trump (ex-president and Republican Party candidate — TASS) says he will solve acute problems, including the Ukrainian crisis, in a few days, this can only please. Nevertheless, he too imposed sanctions on Russia during his presidency,” Putin recalled.

The US, according to the Russian president, “views Russia as a permanent adversary, or even an enemy, and has hammered this into the heads of ordinary Americans.” “The current authorities have tuned American society into an anti-Russian vein and spirit — that’s what it’s all about. They have done it, and now it will be very difficult to somehow turn this ship in the other direction,” Putin said.

This is not the first time Putin has made such comments. When Oliver Stone asked him in an interview during Trump’s presidency what has changed from administration to administration in the four US presidents he’d gone through during his leadership, Putin replied, “Almost nothing. Your bureaucracy is very strong and it is that bureaucracy that rules the world.”

And he’s right; from Bush to Obama to Trump to Biden there has been a consistent pattern of escalation which has now culminated in a terrible proxy war — provoked by western actions — which has the potential to go nuclear at any time. Trump has been campaigning on the claim that he can end the Ukraine war in a day if re-elected, but there is no actual reason to believe that’s true.

Neither mainstream American party likes to admit to this fact because of the implications for their respective political agendas, but in terms of concrete policy decisions Trump actually governed as a virulent Russia hawk who spent his entire term ramping up cold war aggressions against Russia on multiple fronts. He arguably played as much of a role in paving the way toward the war in Ukraine as any other president — it was Trump after all who first began pouring American weapons into Ukraine, an incendiary move that his predecessor Obama had actually resisted for fear of provoking Moscow.

The claim that Trump was a secret agent of the Kremlin has always been a ridiculous conspiracy theory made possible by mass-scale journalistic malpractice and intervention by the US intelligence cartel, and it has been debunked and discredited from pretty much every angle you could think of. But the strongest evidence that it was false was always the fact that Trump spent his entire presidency directly attacking Russian interests with actions like sanctions, shredded treaties, aggressive Nuclear Posture Reviews, efforts to shut down Nord Stream 2, occupying and repeatedly bombing Syria, and arming Ukraine.

Trump defenders will argue that Trump only did these things because he was politically pressured to by the Russiagate narrative, and that may be true, but what is the functional difference between a president who acts aggressively toward Russia because he was pressured to and a president who acts aggressively toward Russia because he wants to? In terms of actual behavior, there is no difference. If Trump is ramping up nuclear brinkmanship against Russia, it doesn’t matter how his feelings secretly feel about it inside — all that matters is that it’s happening. And if empire managers could pressure Trump to act as a Russia hawk before, there’s no reason to believe they can’t do it again.

The most significant thing about all US presidents is not their differences, it’s their similarities. The truth of the matter is that if you were to only watch the movements of troops, war machinery, resources and money from year to year, you wouldn’t be able to tell when one president’s term ended and another began, or what party they belong to or what their campaign platform was. The empire marches on completely uninterrupted, regardless of who Americans elect to be the face at its front desk.

The bureaucracy is very strong, and it is that bureaucracy that rules the world.

Ukr Offensive Huge Losses, No Gains; Putin, Lukashenko Discuss Offensive

Ukrainian missiles strike Russia’s Black Sea fleet in Crimea

Ukraine has struck Russian naval targets and port infrastructure in the Crimean city of Sevastopol, in what appeared to be the biggest attack of the war on the home of the Russian navy’s Black Sea fleet. ...

Russia’s defence ministry said in statement that Ukraine had attacked a Black Sea shipyard with 10 cruise missiles and three uncrewed speedboats in the early hours, damaging two military vessels that had been undergoing repairs.

It said it downed seven of the incoming missiles and that the attack boats had been destroyed by a Russian patrol ship.

An image circulated online and verified by Reuters showed a docked vessel that had sustained serious damage.

Putin Accuses UK of Being Behind Plot Against Russian Nuclear Plant

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday alleged that the UK was behind a foiled plot against a Russian nuclear power plant.

The Russian leader claimed that a group of “saboteurs” was captured by Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB). “During the questioning, they testified that they were trained under supervision of British instructors,” Putin said, according to Russia’s TASS news agency.

Putin did not offer any evidence for the accusation and did not name what nuclear power plant the saboteurs planned to target but insisted he was telling the truth. “The leadership of British intelligence agencies knows that I am telling the truth,” he said.

Ukraine Conducted Drone Attack Near Nuclear Plant - Russia's Rosatom

Ukraine carried out a drone strike on the Russian-held city of Enerhodar near the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant on Monday, the head of Russia's state nuclear corporation was quoted as saying on Tuesday by Russia's RIA news agency.

Rosatom chief Alexei Likhachev said six drones were launched at Enerhodar, and that all were destroyed.

The city is in territory in southeastern Ukraine that is held by Russia, which sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine over 18 months ago. The nearby Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe's biggest, is also in Russian hands.

Kim Jong-un invites Putin to North Korea after summit brings ties to ‘a new level’

Kim Jong-un invited President Vladimir Putin to visit North Korea during their meeting in Russia on Wednesday, Pyongyang’s state media reported, amid warnings that Kim was poised to offer the Kremlin artillery shells and other munitions for the war in Ukraine.

Kim told Putin that their closely watched meeting had brought bilateral ties to a new level, and expressed his willingness to foster stable, future-oriented relations for the next 100 years, news agency KCNA said. ...

On Wednesday, Putin gave numerous hints that military cooperation was discussed at the summit, but disclosed few details. Russia’s defence minister, Sergei Shoigu, attended the talks. The Kremlin said sensitive discussions between neighbours were a private matter.

During Wednesday’s meeting at the Vostochny cosmodrome in the remote region of Amur, Kim offered Putin his support for Russia’s “sacred fight” against the west, while Putin reportedly offered Russian help with North Korea’s troubled satellite programme.

On Wednesday, the US expressed alarm over potential new military cooperation between Russia and North Korea. The cooperation announced during Kim’s visit was “quite troubling and would potentially be in violation of multiple UN security council resolutions”, state department spokesperson Matthew Miller said. He noted US concerns that North Korean satellites, on which president Putin promised cooperation, have been used to develop Pyongyang’s ballistic missiles. The US “will not hesitate” to impose sanctions if appropriate, Miller said.

'Important Step': Biden Admin to Track Foreign Forces Killing Civilians With US Weapons

Human rights advocates and some congressional Democrats on Wednesday cautiously welcomed Washington Post reporting that the Biden administration has created a program to track and investigate allegations of foreign forces harming or killing civilians with weapons provided by the United States.

"The United States clearly has a vested interest in knowing what harm its weapons sales and security assistance cause to civilians," Human Rights Watch (HRW) deputy Washington director Nicole Widdersheim told the newspaper. "Let's see if the Biden administration puts political will behind this good idea."

Annie Shiel, U.S. advocacy director at the Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC), called the initiative "an important step" but added that "of course, its impact will come down to the details of implementation." ...

The U.S. State Department, which is leading the program with the help of "personnel from the Pentagon, intelligence community, and other agencies," announced the Civilian Harm Incident Response Guidance (CHIRG) in an August 23 cable to American embassies and consulates, according to the Post.

A State Department spokesperson told the Middle East Eye on Wednesday that "CHIRG establishes a process to respond to new incidents of civilian harm and prevent them from recurring, and to drive partners to conduct military operations in accordance with international law," but declined to say whether the probes will be made public.

Senate subpoenas Saudi’s $700bn sovereign wealth fund over US dealings

Saudi Arabia’s $700bn sovereign wealth fund – which has been used as a lever of global influence by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman – has been subpoenaed by a powerful Senate committee after it refused to voluntarily comply with information requests about its US dealings.

The subpoena, which was issued by the Senate’s permanent subcommittee on investigations, is targeting the Public Investment Fund’s wholly-owned US subsidiaries in connection to the group’s proposed golf deal and “related investments throughout the United States”. ...

The subpoena was announced on Wednesday at a committee hearing led by its chairman, the Democratic senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut. On its face, the hearing was meant to focus on Saudi’s controversial proposed golf merger.

But the hearing – and lengthy remarks by both Democrats and Republicans – delved instead into Saudi’s record human rights abuses, the kingdom’s alleged role in the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and fundamental objections to attempts by the oil rich nation to takeover assets of national interest.

Senators were visibly agitated by the PIF’s lack of compliance with voluntary requests for disclosure, which is seen by the lawmakers as part of a troubling posture by Saudi officials to put themselves out of reach of US law.

Elites FEARMONGER About AI So They Can Censor Online Speech MORE: Michael Shellenberger

Google accused of spending billions to block rivals as landmark trial continues

The court battle between the US justice department and Google has entered its second day, as the United States government seeks to prove that the tech behemoth illegally leveraged its power to maintain a monopoly over internet search engines. The trial is a major test of antitrust law and could have far-reaching implications for the tech industry and for how people engage with the internet. ...

On the first day of the trial, attorneys for the justice department and the dozens of states that have joined in the suit accused Google of shutting out competition through billion-dollar agreements with companies such as Apple and Samsung.

The justice department lawyer Kenneth Dintzer alleged Google spends $10bn a year in deals to ensure it is the default search engine on devices such as the iPhone, effectively blocking meaningful competition and positioning Google as the gatekeeper of the internet. “They knew these agreements crossed antitrust lines,” Dintzer said on Tuesday.

Google’s opening statement gave a window into how the company and its lead attorney, John Schmidtlein, plan to defend against the accusations. Schmidtlein argued that Google has achieved its dominance over online search – the government estimates it holds about a 90% market share – because it is simply a better product than alternatives such as Microsoft’s Bing search engine. Consumers are free to switch default settings with “a few easy clicks” and use other search engines if they please, Schmidtlein told the court on Tuesday.

Child Poverty SKYROCKETS To Historic Levels

Police union leader said woman killed by Seattle officer ‘had limited value’

A Seattle police union leader was caught on camera joking about a woman who was killed by a police cruiser, saying her life had “limited value” and the city should “just write a check”.

Daniel Auderer, vice-president of the Seattle Police Officers Guild, responded to the scene of a 23 January crash where another Seattle police officer, Kevin Dave, had struck and killed Jaahnavi Kandula, a 23-year-old graduate student, on a crosswalk. Dave was driving 74mph (119km/h) on the way to an overdose call in an area where the speed limit was 25mph. Kandula was thrown more than 100ft and died that night.

Auderer is a drug-recognition expert and was called to evaluate whether Dave was impaired. He left his body camera on as he drove away and called the union president, Mike Solan, the Seattle Times reported. The footage released by the police department on Monday only captures Auderer’s end of the call, where he said Dave was not “out of control” when he killed Kandula, but then said: “She is dead,” at which point he laughed.

It’s unclear what Solan said in response, but Auderer continued, “No, it’s a regular person. Yeah. Just write a check. Eleven thousand dollars. She was 26 anyway. She had limited value.” He misstated her age and repeatedly laughed. A city watchdog agency is now investigating the matter.

FATHERLY LOVE: Biden's Hunter Excuse

Elite Media PANICS Over Biden Age

Long, but maybe worth it if you're invested in this argument:

Jimmy Dore Discusses Cornel West Interview, Trump/Biden, Identity Politics & More!

Earth ‘well outside safe operating space for humanity’, scientists find

Earth’s life support systems have been so damaged that the planet is “well outside the safe operating space for humanity”, scientists have warned. Their assessment found that six out of nine “planetary boundaries” had been broken because of human-caused pollution and destruction of the natural world. The planetary boundaries are the limits of key global systems – such as climate, water and wildlife diversity – beyond which their ability to maintain a healthy planet is in danger of failing.

The broken boundaries mean the systems have been driven far from the safe and stable state that existed from the end of the last ice age, 10,000 years ago, to the start of the industrial revolution. The whole of modern civilisation arose in this time period, called the Holocene.

The assessment was the first of all nine planetary boundaries and represented the “first scientific health check for the entire planet”, the researchers said. Six boundaries have been passed and two are judged to be close to being broken: air pollution and ocean acidification. The one boundary that is not threatened is atmospheric ozone, after action to phase out destructive chemicals in recent decades led to the ozone hole shrinking.

The scientists said the “most worrying” finding was that all four of the biological boundaries, which cover the living world, were at, or close to, the highest risk level. The living world is particularly vital to the Earth as it provides resilience by compensating for some physical changes, for example, trees absorbing carbon dioxide pollution.

The planetary boundaries are not irreversible tipping points beyond which sudden and serious deterioration occurs, the scientists said. Instead, they are points after which the risks of fundamental changes in the Earth’s physical, biological and chemical life support systems rise significantly. The planetary boundaries were first devised in 2009 and updated in 2015, when only seven could be assessed.

Antarctica may have entered ‘new regime’ of low sea ice as global warming ramps up

Record low Antarctic sea ice in recent years may be a sign the region has entered a “new regime” of low sea ice coverage driven by warming, research suggests.

The study, conducted by Australian scientists, describes a “breakdown” in the link between sea ice and the atmosphere over Antarctica. It suggests that the area may have “entered a new regime in which previously important relationships no longer dominate sea ice variability”.

“While for many years Antarctic sea ice increased despite increasing global temperatures, it appears that we may now be seeing the inevitable decline, long projected by climate models,” the study found.

Scientists say the “regime shift” in sea ice coverage will likely have far-reaching repercussions for both local Antarctic ecosystems and the global climate system.

Also of Interest

Here are some articles of interest, some which defied fair-use abstraction.

The US Air Force Is Clearing Out Jungles In The Pacific To Prepare For War With China

Matt Taibbi: A Day that Never Ended

The September 11 Legacy of Forever Wars, the Patriot Act, and Loss of Legal Rights

Does Elon Musk’s Refusal to Comply with All of Ukraine’s Demands Constitute Treason?

More Voices Call On Biden To Withdraw From The 2024 Race

Markey Bill Would Greenlight Criminal Prosecution for Negligent Fossil Fuel Pipeline Operators

Inflation SPIKES As Media Praises 'Bidenomics'

U.S. Military Is ALREADY Controlling The Weather!

UAW Preps For BIGGEST STRIKE In Industry HISTORY, Deal Deadline At 11:59PM TONIGHT

Author Craig Murray and others hold speaking event for Julian Assange in DC

A Little Night Music

Cousin Joe Pleasant- Beggin Woman Blues

Cousin Joe - Looking For My Baby

Cousin Joe w/ Leonard Feather's Hiptet - Just Another Woman

Cousin Joe - Bad Luck Blues

Cousin Joe and his Sextet - Little woman blues

Cousin Joe - How Long Must I Wait ?

Cousin Joe - I Never Harmed An Onion

Cousin Joe - Levee Blues

Cousin Joe - Post War Future Blues