“Learn the rules like a pro, so you can break them like an artist.”
Pablo Picasso

a bit of local news from last week.

Switchblade soars: A Prineville man's long-sought dream of a 'flying sports car' has just had (2.27 min)

English Royalty tidbits

Revealed: King Charles secretly profiting from the assets of dead citizens The Guardian Nov 23, 2023

The king is profiting from the deaths of thousands of people in the north-west of England whose assets are secretly being used to upgrade a commercial property empire managed by his hereditary estate, the Guardian can reveal.

The Duchy of Lancaster, a controversial land and property estate that generates huge profits for King Charles III, has collected tens of millions of pounds in recent years under an antiquated system that dates back to feudal times.

Financial assets known as bona vacantia, owned by people who died without a will or known next of kin, are collected by the duchy. Over the last 10 years, it has collected more than £60m in the funds.
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A leaked internal duchy policy from 2020 gave officials at the king’s estate licence to use bona vacantia funds on a broad array of its profit-generating portfolio. Codenamed “SA9”, the policy acknowledges spending the money in this way could result in an “incidental” benefit to the privy purse, the king’s personal income.

https://His Highness’ headache: What’s wrong with Britain’s Africa policy? Russia Times Nov 19, 2023

This snapshot of history explains why apologies were due. The calls for the King to say 'sorry’ were heard from Evelyn Wanjugu Kimathi, daughter of the resistance leader hanged by the British in 1957, as well as from the Nandi tribe, who want the British to return the skull of Koitalel Arap Samoei, their supreme leader, who'd led a much earlier resistance against colonial rule, which lasted until 1906. Elders of the Maasai, too, decried the agreement with the British, which resulted in a loss of land and traditional lifestyles.

While King Charles cited his “greatest sorrow and deepest regret” to the people of Kenya at a state banquet, he stopped short of the expected apology for the misdeeds of colonial rule. This was in stark contrast to Steinmeier’s behaviour in Tanzania, who said “I beg your forgiveness”, promising answers “to the open, unanswered, outstanding questions that give no peace.” Germany had a similar record with the Maji Maji Rebellion, with the skull of the executed Chief Songea Mbano taken to Germany.

So, the symbolism that was present for Charles III, was lacking for Kenyans, although President William Ruto commended the visiting king’s “readiness to shed light on uncomfortable truths.” Britain’s approach has not changed much, however, beyond what Ruto called “timid half-measures.”
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During his Kenya trip, Charles also met Samweli Mburia, a war veteran believed to be 117 years old. On a symbolic note, the King returned to him the five medals he’d thrown away “for fear” during the Mau Mau Rebellion. While commemorative in nature, that could be read as another symbol of Britain’s clinging to the old days, albeit patchily.

Also, no mention was made of the controversial presence of British troops at Nanyuki, mired in accusations of murder, sexual abuse and more. In 2021, they were responsible for a blaze that ravaged some 4,800 hectares, nearly 12,000 acres, of land. To this day, no compensation to the local community has paid. An open letter signed by 7,000 people seeking justice for their cause argues that “the British Army is using every trick from the colonial rule book” to avoid liability.

Even Alastair is unable to simply wish the Judge a Happy thanksgiving without mentioning the loss to King George the Third at the end of the interview.

Alastair Crooke (fmr British Diplomat ): Evaluating Israel's Moral Justifications (28:17 min)
Worth a full watch, note at 12:45 min he discusses Iran's capabilities to destroy Israel with traditional missiles if attacked. He passed on the information to Secretary of Defense Rumsfield

Collective Punishment if China does not comply with US demands? From simply a selfish point of view this will not be good for the average US citizen.

Pacific shift: US to build a ‘missile wall’ against China Nov 21, 2023

The US is closer to deploying long-range land-based missiles to deter a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a provocative move that could spark a destabilizing conventional missile arms race in the Pacific.

General Charles Flynn, Commander of US Army Forces Pacific, stated at the Halifax International Security Forum in Nova Scotia, that the US will deploy new intermediate-range missiles including Tomahawks and SM-6s to the Pacific region in 2024, Defense One reported.

The deployment was made possible by the US’s withdrawal from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty in 2019 due to Russia’s alleged non-compliance.
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US long-range missile projects in the Pacific are part of a strategy to create a “missile wall” in the First Island Chain, spanning Japan, Taiwan, and the Philippines, to deter China.

Pepe Escobar this week on shifting power alliances in West Asia (formerly Middle East in his writings)

Pepe Escobar: Will Russia-China Strategic Patience Extinguish the Fire in West Asia? Sputnik Globe Nov 21, 2023

(note - GCC = Gulf Cooperation Council in the article)

Everyone familiar with West Asia – from US generals to grocers in the Arab Street - knows that Israel is a landed aircraft carrier whose mission is to keep West Asia in check on behalf of the Hegemon.
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The ultimate – neocon and Zio-con - targets are of course Hezbollah, Syria, Hashd al-Shaabi in Iraq and Iran: the whole Axis of Resistance.

Iran-Russia-China, the new neocon-defined “axis of evil”, which happen to be the Top Three Actors of Eurasia integration, for all practical purposes have interpreted the genocide in Gaza as an Israeli-American operation. And they have clearly identified the key vector: energy.

The inestimable Michael Hudson has noted how “we’re really seeing something very much like the Crusades here. It’s a real fight for who is going to control energy, because, again, the key, if you can control the world’s flow of energy, you can do to the whole world what the United States did to Germany last year by blowing up the Nord Stream pipelines.”

Gaza: a pause before the storm The Cradle Nov 23, 2023

While the world cries “Israeli genocide,” the Biden White House is gushing over the upcoming Gaza truce it helped broker, as though it's actually “on the verge” of its “biggest diplomatic victory.”
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Real journalists have been working in Gaza 24/7 since October 7 – dozens of whom have been killed by the Israeli military machine in what Reporters Sans Frontieres calls “one of the deadliest tolls in a century.”

These journalists have spared no effort to go all the way to “illuminate the devastation,” a euphemism for the ongoing genocide, shown in all its gruesome detail for the entire world to see.
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The South African government has paved the path, globally, for the proper reaction to an unfolding genocide: parliament voted to shutter the Israeli embassy, expel the Israeli ambassador, and cut diplomatic ties with Tel Aviv. South Africans do know a thing or two about apartheid.

They, like other critics of Israel, better be extra wary moving forward. Anything can be expected: an outbreak of foreign intel-conducted “terra terra terra” false flags, artificially induced weather calamities, fake “human rights abuse” charges, the collapse of the national currency, the rand, instances of lawfare, assorted Atlanticist apoplexy, sabotage of energy infrastructure. And more.
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We return to the 21st century's main chessboard here: the Hegemon vs. BRICS.
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This analysis by Eric Li is all one needs to know about what lies ahead. Beijing has mapped out all relevant tech roads to follow in successive five-year plans, all the way to 2035. Under this framework, BRI should be considered a sort of geoeconomics UN without the G7. If you’re outside of BRI – and that concerns, to a large extent, old comprador systems and elites - you’re self-isolating from the Global South/Global Majority.

video suggestion from article
Chinese New Economy and Globalisation - The Sequel - Dr. Eric Li (43:34 min)
Introduction 0-3:41, Presentation 3:42-33:39, Q&A 33:39-43:34)

I have been reading Mary's Mosaic by Peter Janney 2012 recommended by Ray on a video earlier this year. The novel style allows the reader to focus on interrelations of a small group of people in Northeastern social class who ruled the United States. The story revolves around events related to the murder of Mary Meyer the divorced wife a CIA deputy Director, Cord Meyer, and paramour of John F Kennedy during his transition from a Cold Warrior president to Peace Warrior president. Authors conclusion CIA involvement in creating the cover-up narrative, actual assassination and follow-up in removing loose ends was to prevent a decades long Kennedy dynasty. They did not act alone and it did reshuffle the geographic location of power groups in the US.

Ray McGovern: They Killed JFK, Will We Let Them Kill Peace? (1hr 29 min) Nov 23, 2023

1:00-26:31 min John F Kennedy peace speech - transcript if prefer to read
26:32-61 min Ray McGovern presentation
62-66:00 min Housekeeping
66- 89 min Questions - quality variable

We can not forget this bit of information about al-Shifa Hospital and the Israeli takeover.

IDF Knew Real Hamas HQ While Lying About al-Shifa Consortium News Nov 23, 2023

The IDF and the Israeli government already knew when they launched their propaganda campaign about al-Shifa that Hamas had no military command and control facility hidden there because it had already found the complex kilometers away.
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But something quite unexpected had happened during this new round of press stories on al-Shifa that completely demolished the entire IDF story line: the IDF had gained control of the real Hamas command and control center in an area where the Hamas leadership had previously had their above-ground offices in the Al Atatra neighborhood, in the extreme northwest of Beit Lahiya city, 8.5km away from al-Shifa.

After that office building was demolished, the IDF discovered a major tunnel facility that was quite certain had been the central headquarters for the Hamas high command — the command and control center for the entire war.
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No story about the discovery of the real Hamas high command bunker has been published inside Israel or elsewhere in the nearly two weeks since the detailed Jerusalem Post piece on Nov. 14. Somehow the Israeli government and media have been able to completely suppress the discovery of the Hamas headquarters,

The differences between the various guests viewpoints and experience were very apparent this week when discussing military striking civilians targets.

Prof. Jeffrey Sachs: Analysis of Major Wars and Paths to Sustaining Peace (24:59) Nov 21, 2023
Jeffery was very distressed at the language being used by Israeli officials and the potential for regret in the future (at 16:06)

Col. Lawrence Wilkerson: A Close Look at Israeli Intentions and Arab Accusations (22:57 min)

The livestream videos this week by Judge Napolitano channel ongoing discussions regarding current events in Israel/Hamas/Gaza, secondary subject China and third subject Ukraine/Russia conflict. The interviews are generally posted on Monday through Friday if would like to view them in a more timely manner. The link opens in the LIVE column, occasionally an interview only appears in VIDEOS section.

What is on your mind today?