ALERT: World War III Imminent

Source: GreeneWave






A recent embargo by Europe and the United States all but assures a Pearl Harbor style retaliation by Iran. WW3 here we come!

Empire, Power, and People with Andrew Gavin Marshall - Episode 3

Source: Boiling Frogs Post
Andrew Gavin Marshall

Punishing the Population: The United States in Haiti and the Dominican Republic

This podcast episode examines the early 20th century United States military occupations of Haiti (1915-1934) and the Dominican Republic (1916-1924), undertaken as an imposition of the Monroe Doctrine (1823) declaring Latin America as the “backyard” of the United States. The ruthless military occupations, inflamed by racism, supported by the media, and undertaken by the ruthlessly imperialistic and racist politicians who are today celebrated as champions of ‘democracy,’ resulted in the strengthening of state structures, establishment of brutal militaries, and exploitation by American corporations and banks, leading to the establishment of military dictatorships which dominated these countries for much of their recent history, while American economic interests reigned supreme. These incidents provide a brief, yet illuminating look at the nature of American imperialism as it progressed throughout the 20th century.

Corbett Report Radio - FBI Blackballing with Jason Leopold

Source: Corbett Report
James Corbett

James talks to Jason Leopold of truth-out.org about his recent report: “Revealed: The FBI’s Secretive Practice of ‘Blackballing’ Files.” Leopold reveals (yet another) trick the FBI has been using to hide records from FOIA requests, a practice called “blackballing” that has never been previously disclosed. We also discuss the case of former CIA officer John Kiriakou, who was recently charged by the DOJ for leaking classified information.

Monsanto: No Need for Testing, Pre-Crime, SOPA and More - Infowars Nightly News

Source: Infowars

UK Gears Up for Iran Face Off

Source: PressTV

UK Defense Secretary Philip Hammond says Britain could send military reinforcements to the Persian Gulf in the wake of a military confrontation with Iran.

Speaking at a press conference in London on Tuesday, he said two British and French warships and the American aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln had entered the Persian Gulf on Sunday. 

Hammond added that the decision to send British HMS Argyll sent a "clear signal" to Tehran, The Telegraph reported. 

When asked if more resources could be sent, Hammond said, "The UK has a contingent capability to reinforce that presence should at any time it be considered necessary to do so." 

UK defense ministry declined to offer further details on what assets and personnel are currently in the Persian Gulf. 

Anti-Iran measures and war rhetoric provoked by the United States and its Western allies are aimed to deny Iran's right of having peaceful nuclear program. 

Iran, as a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency, has the legal right to develop nuclear capability for civilian purposes. 

Iran's nuclear facilities are under the constant surveillance of the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) cameras. The agency's inspectors have repeatedly traveled to Iran and inspected the country's nuclear sites and held talks with officials at the sites. A high-ranking delegation of IAEA negotiators is also scheduled to visit Iran on Saturday, January 28. 

Information obtained by the IAEA inspectors during visits to Iran's nuclear sites has been abused, and the leakage of confidential information by the UN nuclear agency to the Western countries and the Israeli regime has led to all the recent assassination attempts against Iranian nuclear scientists. 

Tehran Pushes to Ditch the US Dollar

Source: Casey Research
Marin Katusa - Chief Energy Investment Strategist
Casey Research

Report: India and Iran are hammering out a deal to trade oil for gold 

Rumors are swirling that India and Iran are at the negotiating table right now, hammering out a deal to trade oil for gold. Why does that matter, you ask? Only because it strikes at the heart of both the value of the US dollar and today's high-tension standoff with Iran.

The official line from the United States and the European Union is that Tehran must be punished for continuing its efforts to develop a nuclear weapon. The punishment: sanctions on Iran's oil exports, which are meant to isolate Iran and depress the value of its currency to such a point that the country crumbles.

But that line doesn't make sense, and the sanctions will not achieve their goals. Iran is far from isolated and its friends – like India – will stand by the oil-producing nation until the US either backs down or acknowledges the real matter at hand. That matter is the American dollar and its role as the global reserve currency.

The short version of the story is that a 1970s deal cemented the US dollar as the only currency to buy and sell crude oil, and from that monopoly on the all-important oil trade the US dollar slowly but surely became the reserve currency for global trades in most commodities and goods. Massive demand for US dollars ensued, pushing the dollar's value up, up, and away. In addition, countries stored their excess US dollars savings in US Treasuries, giving the US government a vast pool of credit from which to draw.

We know where that situation led – to a US government suffocating in debt while its citizens face stubbornly high unemployment (due in part to the high value of the dollar); a failed real estate market; record personal-debt burdens; a bloated banking system; and a teetering economy. That is not the picture of a world superpower worthy of the privileges gained from having its currency back global trade. Other countries are starting to see that and are slowly but surely moving away from US dollars in their transactions, starting with oil.

If the US dollar loses its position as the global reserve currency, the consequences for America are dire. A major portion of the dollar's valuation stems from its lock on the oil industry – if that monopoly fades, so too will the value of the dollar. Such a major transition in global fiat currency relationships will bode well for some currencies and not so well for others, and the outcomes will be challenging to predict. But there is one outcome that we foresee with certainty: Gold will rise. Uncertainty around paper money always bodes well for gold, and these are uncertain days indeed.

Google Announces Privacy Changes Across Products; Users Can’t Opt Out

Source: Washington Post
Cecilia Kang

Google will soon know far more about who you are and what you do on the Web.

The Web giant announced Tuesday that it plans to follow the activities of users across nearly all of its ubiquitous sites, including YouTube, Gmail and its leading search engine.

Google has already been collecting some of this information. But for the first time, it is combining data across its Web sites to stitch together a fuller portrait of users.

Consumers won’t be able to opt out of the changes, which take effect March 1. And experts say the policy shift will invite greater scrutiny from federal regulators of the company’s privacy and competitive practices.

FAQ: What exactly will Google be able to collect and integrate? How does this affect me?

The move will help Google better tailor its ads to people’s tastes. If someone watches an NBA clip online and lives in Washington, the firm could advertise Washington Wizards tickets in that person’s Gmail account.

Consumers could also benefit, the company said. When someone is searching for the word “jaguar,” Google would have a better idea of whether the person was interested in the animal or the car. Or the firm might suggest e-mailing contacts in New York when it learns you are planning a trip there.

But consumer advocates say the new policy might upset people who never expected their information would be shared across so many different Web sites.

A user signing up for Gmail, for instance, might never have imagined that the content of his or her messages could affect the experience on seemingly unrelated Web sites such as YouTube. 

“Google’s new privacy announcement is frustrating and a little frightening,” said Common Sense Media chief executive James Steyer. “Even if the company believes that tracking users across all platforms improves their services, consumers should still have the option to opt out — especially the kids and teens who are avid users of YouTube, Gmail and Google Search.”