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Even before election, Trump is roaring. Screams of taking over the Panama Canal, Canada and Greenland. Promises of tariffs on, essentially, everyone. Lots of domestic threats about immigrants and going after Democratic politicians. At the same time his proxies, like Musk, muse on slashing Social Security and Medicare.

Europe’s in particularly tentative position: threats of tariffs and forcing Europe to spend more of its money on defense, by which Trump means “buying more US weapons.”

Western Europe has been an American satrapy since WWII. The Americans invaded and never left, and have had the Euros under the economic thumb the entire time. When necessary they have overthrown governments and they have every politician of note under surveillance.

Eastern Europe fell under the thumb after the collapse of the USSR and were, mostly, happy to do so.

This year, our flagship podcast Lever Time reached new heights. Now we’re taking it to the next level.

. Jag tänder ett ljus för dig också. Siv Pettersson (1955-1975). RIP

ALLEGRA School in Coffs city centre was the subject of Member for Coffs Harbour Gurmesh Singh’s Community Recognition Statement presented to Parliament in November. Community Recognition Statements are one-minute presentations made by MPs which congratulate or acknowledge the achievements of people or groups in the community, recognise charity work, retirement, honours and awards, or express...

The post Coffs’ Allegra School recognised in Parliament appeared first on News Of The Area.

A RECENT poll has revealed the State Government is at odds with New South Wales voters over its handling of the current pay and conditions dispute with nurses and midwives. The state government has been at loggerheads with the NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association (NSWNMA) since May, unwilling to negotiate a deal beyond its original...

The post Poll shows voters siding with nurses on pay dispute appeared first on News Of The Area.

Once again, thank you everybody for your kind generosity. I am so incredibly grateful and feel more motivated than ever to keep forging ahead. We’re facing some stiff political headwinds but I believe that with all of you at our backs we’ll be able to come through even stronger on the other side. The MAGA cult is feeling its oats right now but reality is going to bite very soon. We’ll be here to document the victories and the atrocities and I hope you’ll all stop by frequently to see what we’ve dug up, analyzed or otherwise just observed with dismay or delight. Barring a round-up to the camps we’ll be here 7 days a week doing that thing we do. I’m going to leave this up until New Year’s just in case there are any stragglers. And thank you again, from the bottom of my heart. cheers, digby

Source - Patreon

Source - Patreon

Source - Patreon

Trump has named his ambassador to Panama, the country he’s threatening with invasion and annexation: Perhaps that name sounds familiar but you can’t quite place it? He a mover and shaker in Southern Florida, MAGA all the way. But you may recognize the name as one of the GOP operatives involved in a Proud Boys attack in Miami against Nancy Pelosi. Remember this? It was reported at the time: Diaz, the Miami-Dade County Republican Party chairman, is employed by the Southern Strategy Group, a government relations firm. One of Diaz’s co-workers is Kevin Cabrera, who was formerly employed by Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-FL). This is an image of Cabrera from the Southern Strategy Group website: In footage of the demonstration that was posted on Big League Politics, it appears as though Cabrera (in a black shirt) joined Diaz as part of the angry mob: He’s a “fierce fighter” alright. Trump does love a MAGA mob, so it stands to reason he’d choose one of his violent henchmen to be an ambassador. This action was widely condemned by Republicans at the time. But those days are gone. This is completely acceptable right wing behavior these days.

The FrameLab Book Club is launching in 2025! First on the list: “The Political Mind: A Cognitive Scientist’s Guide to Your Brain and Its Politics” by Dr. George Lakoff. Nearly 400 readers have signed up to participate! This online book club will feature personal insights from Dr. Lakoff, as well as an ongoing Q&A with […]

MAGA Farmers wondering who’s going to pick those damn crops: The country’s largest agricultural constituency backed Trump in November, bucking California’s deep-blue electorate over his campaign promises to “open the faucet” and deliver more water to the state’s parched, conservative-leaning Central Valley. But now it’s reckoning with an uncomfortable contradiction: Trump also campaigned on mass deportations of undocumented immigrants, who make up at least half of the state’s agricultural workforce. That’s left California’s agricultural barons, who employ the most farm workers of any state in the nation and grow half the produce consumed in the United States, nervously parsing Trump’s rhetoric. “To say it would have an impact on California would be an understatement,” said Chris Reardon, vice president of policy advocacy at the industry group California Farm Bureau Federation. Reardon, who declined to say who he voted for, has been fielding calls from members asking him what exactly will happen to workers. “We just don’t know yet,” he’s told them.

In the name of building a “moderate opposition,” London established a social service and media network in areas controlled by HTS, benefitting the group it branded as a dangerous Al Qaeda affiliate. Leaked British intelligence files reviewed by The Grayzone raise grave questions about whether London has aided the rise of Hayʼat Tahrir al-Sham, the Islamist group which was proscribed by Western governments until it seized power in Syria this December.  Prime Minister Keir Starmer has stated it is “too […]

The post Leaked files show secret UK Syria project boosted Jolani’s HTS  first appeared on The Grayzone.

The post Leaked files show secret UK Syria project boosted Jolani’s HTS  appeared first on The Grayzone.

My good friends, for the second time in our history, a British Prime Minister has returned from Germany bringing peace with honour. I believe it is peace for our time. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Go home and get a nice quiet sleep — Neville Chamberlain How’d that work out? As you no doubt recall, Hitler invaded Czechoslovakia the next day. For decades, the Republicans accused the Democrats of being Neville Chamberlains every time they suggested that the right’s bellicose saber rattling was over the top. They are still saber-rattling — against our allies like Canada, Mexico, Panama and Greenland, as we have seen during the Trump transition. Trump seems to have decided that threats of territorial expansion and invasion is going to be a cornerstone of his new administration. But when it comes to Russia, the GOP has become Neville Chamberlain on steroids: Accountability is only for people the Republicans don’t like. For his friends, (like Vladimir Putin) no act of provocation and violence is worthy of condemnation. It’s always a reason for Putin’s enemies to capitulate and give him whatever he wants. What could go wrong?

Interesting, no? Trump and his tech bro buddies need labor so it’s important that we make sure they can immigrate. I guess all the construction, agriculture, hospitality jobs that are currently filled by the foreigners Trump plans to deport are going to be filled by what? Prison labor? We have less that 4% unemployment. Who’s going to do it? Musk doesn’t care about any of that, of course. He went on to explain: “The number of people who are super talented engineers AND super motivated in the USA is far too low. Think of this like a pro sports team: if you want your TEAM to win the championship, you need to recruit top talent wherever they may be. That enables the whole TEAM to win.” MAGA fans were confused and upset. According to TNR, this one went viral: “There are over 330 million people in America.

The Albanese government with their policy is likely to turn Australia into the 51st state of the United States, writes former Prime Minister of Australia, Paul Keating. A repost from Aug, 09, 2024 Introduction: Defence Minister Richard Marles and Foreign Minister Penny Wong have been in the US for talks with the Secretaries of Defence Continue reading »

There’s no question that they did it: on 27 November last year, in the middle of Hatt Road, two people, Carmen Robinson and Alexandra (Tommy) Walker, locked themselves onto a barrel filled with concrete, blocking traffic on the way into the Pine Gap military base. Supported by some 30 others, they made their action public, Continue reading »

Anthony Albanese appears to be strikingly lacking in ambition. I am convinced that making some bold decisions, and explaining them, would strengthen his prime ministership significantly. Some influential Australians now call for moderation and “centrism”. This would be a grave mistake. What is the “centrist” position on killing children in war zones, child sexual abuse, Continue reading »