Notes From The Edge Of The Narrative Matrix Listen to a reading of this article (reading by Tim Foley): Israel’s allowed to bomb an Iranian consulate, but Iran’s not allowed to strike back. The US is allowed to surround China with war machinery, but it would be World War Three if China ever tried to militarily encircle the US. NATO is allowed to expand to Russia’s doorstep and amass proxy forces on its border, but the last time Moscow placed a credible military threat anywhere near the United States, the US responded so aggressively that
"So much suffering and loss has been caused by the way people decided a long time ago that killing one person is murder and therefore immoral but killing thousands of people is “war” and therefore fine. The actual act is the same; only the narrative and the scale are different."
There you go--if you don't want to be found guilty of murder, just call it a "war" and start slaughtering innocents by the hundreds to thousands. To follow this through the eyes of "Isreality" (Israeli Reality/Zionist Logic) then, to not be found guilty of genocide just call every thing violent you do "retaliation" and start lobbing bombs at other countries consulates, thus ensuring the start of World War III. Sheer narrative-control genius is what these immoral apartheid-lovers have...
Press sources said that an airstrike by a Zionist reconnaissance aircraft targeted a gathering of Palestinian civilians, mostly children, in Al-Qasatina lane at the Mohandes Roundabout area in the center of the camp, and in a place containing children’s toys installed during the Eid days.
According to sources, the raid killed 11 martyrs, including at least five children, while a number of other children and young people were injured, some of whom were transferred to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Hospital in Deir al-Balah. https://en.ypagency.net/322895
UN Rights Office Says Israel Still Imposing ‘Unlawful’ Restrictions on Gaza Aid
The UN’s Human Rights Office said on Tuesday that Israel is still imposing “unlawful” restrictions on aid entering Gaza despite US and Israeli claims that there’s been an increase in deliveries, Reuters reported on Tuesday.
After Israel slaughtered seven workers for the World Central Kitchen on April 1, Benjamin Netanyahu’s government made a commitment to allow more aid into the Strip, but the UN says aid levels are still way below the bare minimum of what’s needed.
“Israel continues to impose unlawful restrictions on the entry and distribution of humanitarian assistance and to carry out widespread destruction of civilian infrastructure,” said Ravina Shamdasani, spokeswoman for the UN Human Rights Office.
John Helmer looks at Israeli vulnerability to Iranian attacks upon its electrical system, the type of war Russia is now prosecuting in Ukraine.
If Israel escalates by attacking Iran and striking at the country’s infrastructure, then Iran’s counter will be to take a page out of Russia’s book and commence the one line of attack which Israel, the US and their allies cannot withstand any better than Ukraine – that’s Electric War.
For the seven months which have elapsed since Hamas began its operation against Israel on October 7, and Israel commenced its genocide against the Palestinians, there has been no targeting by Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, or the Syrian and Iraqi groups of Israel’s highly vulnerable maritime gas platforms, gas pipelines, coal and oil-fired electricity generating plants, the coal and oil storages nearby, solar and wind power units, or the electricity grids keeping the country alight.
The Arab inhibitions and calculations are understandable. Iran’s will disappear if Israel triggers a new round of attacks.
If and when that happens, the Palestinian failure in the US and in Europe to counterattack and stop Israel financing its war through the $60 billion genocide bond issue won’t matter. Bond holders don’t invest in blackouts...
..A NATO veteran and expert in applying electrical engineering to war comments: “Honestly, I don’t believe the Iranian strikes were all that effective in terms of damage done. This being said, again, they weren’t meant to be. They mostly used drones and older missiles with a few of the newer models thrown in to test, and send a message.” ... "If the Iranians turn to electric war strikes, things will look a lot different.”
He is repeating what the Israelis began admitting publicly last week. “A war scenario with Hezbollah presented last week by the head of the Ministry of Defense’s National Emergency Management Authority (NEMA), Brigadier General Yoram Laredo, sparked widespread concern about the level of preparedness for such an event within the energy sector...
..In the latest NEMA report, according to industry press summaries, “it is evident that the lessons of Ukraine have not been absorbed by Israel, with security sources citing the lack of preparedness of the Israel Electric Corporation. In addition to Russia, Iranian weapons are used by their proxy organizations including Hezbollah. Israel’s power grids are similar to those of Ukraine, Iran, and Lebanon, so its weak points have been marked by the enemy.”
“According to NEMA, in a full-scale war with Hezbollah, about 5,000 rockets, precision missiles, and suicide drones will be launched at Israel every day, targeting critical electricity infrastructure as well. The damage to this infrastructure would lead to two nationwide power outages lasting from 24 to 48 hours, for at least 60% of the country, in addition to 11 regional power outages and numerous local power outages. There would also be power outages lasting weeks and even months in some parts of the country, mainly in the north.”...
..This paper from an Israeli military think tank explains the vulnerability of these power generating plants and the transmission systems they supply. “The security of the electrical system during emergencies and a reduction in the risk of an excessive and protracted blackout are critical issues that demand national attention and response,” the Israelis claimed in June 2017. “We maintain that the current systemic responses to threats against the electrical system are inadequate in light of the unique geostrategic characteristics of the State of Israel.”...
..“To protect the functional continuity of the state and the capability of the IDF to maintain an ongoing offensive effort until victory has been achieved implies the protection of power stations and IAF bases before the protection of the large cities. It is possible that in the future we will be able to protect both, but currently, with the number of batteries and interceptor missiles at our disposal, we have to designate an order of priorities for the deployment of our assets. We have to make a difficult, painful, and clear-cut decision.”
Gilbert Doctorow gives an interview today where he mentions a very recent poll showing 75% of Israelis opposed to an Israeli counter-counter-attack on Iran.
What do you do if your company researches or makes weapons, drones and missiles? Or researches or makes drugs? Or products that make people and the world ill?
Create war after war, keep people fat and sick and employ the people who can make people believe that up is down and to scorn those who insist otherwise.
I'm sick to death even of the glee that greets Iran (rightfully) fighting back and the sophisticated weapons that the Resistance has.
The trap is sprung. War. War. War. Obesity. Dementia. Heart Disease. Autism. Pollution. Animal abuse. Slaughter.
It’s clear that modern humans have gotten used to major contradictions in the global picture. Witness American distress in response to the notion that a foreign nation threatens our borders, or even hundreds of miles beyond our borders (like Cuba in 1962 and Nicaragua in 1979). These days I am most concerned about the money pledged by my American government to Ukraine at the expense of the individual American taxpayers who will be forced to pay it; in this way America is sacrificing its citizens in order to potentially score against Russia. What bullies we are.
I have lived my entire life aware that the US was the biggest badest nation on the planet, and without any awareness of the details. What would my life have been like had I lived in a mid-European nation, one that has been invaded at least once and is susceptible to being invaded again? I would be a different person.
There are no rules; and there is no order. Or perhaps it’s a rules based disorder. Either way, Caitlyn is right. Bolton is a dolt who belongs as exhibit 1 in a museum.
Those who do not conform to the ruling elite find themselves on the outside looking in. When politicians gloat about the amount of jobs created they are actually announcing the latest enslavement boundaries. If you need a job to survive, you are a slave.
The good news is that the West's military is loaded with ineffective weapons which cost 100x what Russia, Iran or China pays for better weapons...So the coming financial collapse will destroy most of the ability of our psycho leaders to murder women and children...The bad news is that it won't happen tomorrow....
The whites of the western colonial countries cannot put their heads around any conception of the world that does not mean their foot stamped on the necks of all the rest.
Problem is: the rest of the world understands that very well now. And is not down with it any more.
So for the white west, WW III and the world blown to bits,is a more acceptable outcome than peaceful equality.
if you doubt that, just look at Gaza: the boot on the neck is what they mean by “two state solution”. Otherwise, they dont mind permanent war. And that’s what they are all COLLECTIVELY ganging up to do.
As for John Bolton, to be fair, the past two years have uncloaked his fellow western political elite as being not one single iota less racist or belligerent or warmongering than him. He just doesnt cloak it in flowery lies is all……
I see little notice that academic freedom is dead in the US - and they are working very hard to ban inconvenient political protest (and not just against pro-Palestinian protest):
Columbia’s President Tells Congress That Action Is Needed Against Antisemitism
Here is the comment I just submitted - doubt NY Times will print it:
This is disgraceful McCarthyism, and not just by Republicans. Democrats are complicit or enabling.
When billionaires and ignorant bullies can remove prestigious University Presidents and intimidate others, any notion of academic freedom is dead. And they're coming for political freedoms too.
This is part of a rising tide of fascism in America - you can no longer call it "right wing populism" or "illiberal democracy". It's fascism. And it is on the verge of being consolidated in government power in Nov.
Bravo. Especially on Bolton.
"So much suffering and loss has been caused by the way people decided a long time ago that killing one person is murder and therefore immoral but killing thousands of people is “war” and therefore fine. The actual act is the same; only the narrative and the scale are different."
There you go--if you don't want to be found guilty of murder, just call it a "war" and start slaughtering innocents by the hundreds to thousands. To follow this through the eyes of "Isreality" (Israeli Reality/Zionist Logic) then, to not be found guilty of genocide just call every thing violent you do "retaliation" and start lobbing bombs at other countries consulates, thus ensuring the start of World War III. Sheer narrative-control genius is what these immoral apartheid-lovers have...
Press sources said that an airstrike by a Zionist reconnaissance aircraft targeted a gathering of Palestinian civilians, mostly children, in Al-Qasatina lane at the Mohandes Roundabout area in the center of the camp, and in a place containing children’s toys installed during the Eid days.
According to sources, the raid killed 11 martyrs, including at least five children, while a number of other children and young people were injured, some of whom were transferred to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Hospital in Deir al-Balah. https://en.ypagency.net/322895
UN Rights Office Says Israel Still Imposing ‘Unlawful’ Restrictions on Gaza Aid
The UN’s Human Rights Office said on Tuesday that Israel is still imposing “unlawful” restrictions on aid entering Gaza despite US and Israeli claims that there’s been an increase in deliveries, Reuters reported on Tuesday.
After Israel slaughtered seven workers for the World Central Kitchen on April 1, Benjamin Netanyahu’s government made a commitment to allow more aid into the Strip, but the UN says aid levels are still way below the bare minimum of what’s needed.
“Israel continues to impose unlawful restrictions on the entry and distribution of humanitarian assistance and to carry out widespread destruction of civilian infrastructure,” said Ravina Shamdasani, spokeswoman for the UN Human Rights Office.
Shamdasani added that “those delivering or trying to access humanitarian assistance must never be attacked.” Last week, UNICEF workers reported that a vehicle they were traveling in was hit by Israeli gunfire, but nobody was hurt. https://news.antiwar.com/2024/04/16/un-rights-office-says-israel-still-imposing-unlawful-restrictions-on-gaza-aid/
John Helmer looks at Israeli vulnerability to Iranian attacks upon its electrical system, the type of war Russia is now prosecuting in Ukraine.
If Israel escalates by attacking Iran and striking at the country’s infrastructure, then Iran’s counter will be to take a page out of Russia’s book and commence the one line of attack which Israel, the US and their allies cannot withstand any better than Ukraine – that’s Electric War.
For the seven months which have elapsed since Hamas began its operation against Israel on October 7, and Israel commenced its genocide against the Palestinians, there has been no targeting by Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, or the Syrian and Iraqi groups of Israel’s highly vulnerable maritime gas platforms, gas pipelines, coal and oil-fired electricity generating plants, the coal and oil storages nearby, solar and wind power units, or the electricity grids keeping the country alight.
The Arab inhibitions and calculations are understandable. Iran’s will disappear if Israel triggers a new round of attacks.
If and when that happens, the Palestinian failure in the US and in Europe to counterattack and stop Israel financing its war through the $60 billion genocide bond issue won’t matter. Bond holders don’t invest in blackouts...
..A NATO veteran and expert in applying electrical engineering to war comments: “Honestly, I don’t believe the Iranian strikes were all that effective in terms of damage done. This being said, again, they weren’t meant to be. They mostly used drones and older missiles with a few of the newer models thrown in to test, and send a message.” ... "If the Iranians turn to electric war strikes, things will look a lot different.”
He is repeating what the Israelis began admitting publicly last week. “A war scenario with Hezbollah presented last week by the head of the Ministry of Defense’s National Emergency Management Authority (NEMA), Brigadier General Yoram Laredo, sparked widespread concern about the level of preparedness for such an event within the energy sector...
..In the latest NEMA report, according to industry press summaries, “it is evident that the lessons of Ukraine have not been absorbed by Israel, with security sources citing the lack of preparedness of the Israel Electric Corporation. In addition to Russia, Iranian weapons are used by their proxy organizations including Hezbollah. Israel’s power grids are similar to those of Ukraine, Iran, and Lebanon, so its weak points have been marked by the enemy.”
“According to NEMA, in a full-scale war with Hezbollah, about 5,000 rockets, precision missiles, and suicide drones will be launched at Israel every day, targeting critical electricity infrastructure as well. The damage to this infrastructure would lead to two nationwide power outages lasting from 24 to 48 hours, for at least 60% of the country, in addition to 11 regional power outages and numerous local power outages. There would also be power outages lasting weeks and even months in some parts of the country, mainly in the north.”...
..This paper from an Israeli military think tank explains the vulnerability of these power generating plants and the transmission systems they supply. “The security of the electrical system during emergencies and a reduction in the risk of an excessive and protracted blackout are critical issues that demand national attention and response,” the Israelis claimed in June 2017. “We maintain that the current systemic responses to threats against the electrical system are inadequate in light of the unique geostrategic characteristics of the State of Israel.”...
..“To protect the functional continuity of the state and the capability of the IDF to maintain an ongoing offensive effort until victory has been achieved implies the protection of power stations and IAF bases before the protection of the large cities. It is possible that in the future we will be able to protect both, but currently, with the number of batteries and interceptor missiles at our disposal, we have to designate an order of priorities for the deployment of our assets. We have to make a difficult, painful, and clear-cut decision.”
That was seven years ago – the Israelis were taking no account of the development by the Iranians of drone decoys and hypersonic missiles, and of the impossibility of defending against their combination. https://johnhelmer.net/loose-lips-dont-sink-ships-or-israel/#more-89746
Gilbert Doctorow gives an interview today where he mentions a very recent poll showing 75% of Israelis opposed to an Israeli counter-counter-attack on Iran.
Talking to Indian global broadcaster WION about Iran's weekend missile strike on Israel https://gilbertdoctorow.substack.com/p/talking-to-indian-global-broadcaster
Americans are screwed and so is everyone else as a result! I’m damn mad!
I can’t begin to tell you how much I love you and Tom you are amazing human beings thank you thank you thank you
What do you do if your company researches or makes weapons, drones and missiles? Or researches or makes drugs? Or products that make people and the world ill?
Create war after war, keep people fat and sick and employ the people who can make people believe that up is down and to scorn those who insist otherwise.
I'm sick to death even of the glee that greets Iran (rightfully) fighting back and the sophisticated weapons that the Resistance has.
The trap is sprung. War. War. War. Obesity. Dementia. Heart Disease. Autism. Pollution. Animal abuse. Slaughter.
Totally avoidable.
All for profit.
Once the limit of resilience is reached, every system explodes or implodes.
It’s clear that modern humans have gotten used to major contradictions in the global picture. Witness American distress in response to the notion that a foreign nation threatens our borders, or even hundreds of miles beyond our borders (like Cuba in 1962 and Nicaragua in 1979). These days I am most concerned about the money pledged by my American government to Ukraine at the expense of the individual American taxpayers who will be forced to pay it; in this way America is sacrificing its citizens in order to potentially score against Russia. What bullies we are.
I have lived my entire life aware that the US was the biggest badest nation on the planet, and without any awareness of the details. What would my life have been like had I lived in a mid-European nation, one that has been invaded at least once and is susceptible to being invaded again? I would be a different person.
There are no rules; and there is no order. Or perhaps it’s a rules based disorder. Either way, Caitlyn is right. Bolton is a dolt who belongs as exhibit 1 in a museum.
Those who do not conform to the ruling elite find themselves on the outside looking in. When politicians gloat about the amount of jobs created they are actually announcing the latest enslavement boundaries. If you need a job to survive, you are a slave.
The good news is that the West's military is loaded with ineffective weapons which cost 100x what Russia, Iran or China pays for better weapons...So the coming financial collapse will destroy most of the ability of our psycho leaders to murder women and children...The bad news is that it won't happen tomorrow....
Spot on Caitlin
The whites of the western colonial countries cannot put their heads around any conception of the world that does not mean their foot stamped on the necks of all the rest.
Problem is: the rest of the world understands that very well now. And is not down with it any more.
So for the white west, WW III and the world blown to bits,is a more acceptable outcome than peaceful equality.
if you doubt that, just look at Gaza: the boot on the neck is what they mean by “two state solution”. Otherwise, they dont mind permanent war. And that’s what they are all COLLECTIVELY ganging up to do.
As for John Bolton, to be fair, the past two years have uncloaked his fellow western political elite as being not one single iota less racist or belligerent or warmongering than him. He just doesnt cloak it in flowery lies is all……
It takes such a small amount of digging to see how biased western governments are, and how deceptive and destructive. Thanks for posting, Caitlin.
I see little notice that academic freedom is dead in the US - and they are working very hard to ban inconvenient political protest (and not just against pro-Palestinian protest):
Columbia’s President Tells Congress That Action Is Needed Against Antisemitism
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/17/nyregion/columbia-university-president-nemat-shafik-hearing.html
Here is the comment I just submitted - doubt NY Times will print it:
This is disgraceful McCarthyism, and not just by Republicans. Democrats are complicit or enabling.
When billionaires and ignorant bullies can remove prestigious University Presidents and intimidate others, any notion of academic freedom is dead. And they're coming for political freedoms too.
This is part of a rising tide of fascism in America - you can no longer call it "right wing populism" or "illiberal democracy". It's fascism. And it is on the verge of being consolidated in government power in Nov.