[JustTheNews] Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) whistleblower Marcus Allen on Wednesday slammed the culture of the organization, saying that "vain careerists" have been willing to destroy others just to move up. Shocking! Who could have possibly known ?
"I would say that unfortunately in my experience with the culture at the FBI, it's very easy for leaders there to kind of impose their wills on their subordinates," Allen said during his testimony in front of the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government.
The committee held a hearing to "examine how the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has used its security clearance adjudication process to purge its ranks of conservatives and whistleblowers, and unlawfully punish those with views contrary to FBI leadership." Sorry, it's a 'condition of employment.' Have a nice life.
Empower Oversight President Tristan Leavitt and Allen testified before the subcommittee and alleged the FBI is using clearances as a pretext to violate employeesโ constitutional rights.
Congressman Warren Davidson, R-Ohio., asked Allen about the culture of the FBI and how he has seen it change over the years.
"I'd like to say that this is from my personal experience... but from what I've seen, there have always been vain careerists within the organization that will destroy people in order to climb the charts," Allen said.
"Safe to say we're not always promoting the best and the brightest?" Davidson asked. More FBI Drone operator classes are urgently needed.
"I would concur with that statement," Allen answered.
Pournelle's Iron Law of Bureaucracy states that in any bureaucratic organization there will be two kinds of people":
First, there will be those who are devoted to the goals of the organization. Examples are dedicated classroom teachers in an educational bureaucracy, many of the engineers and launch technicians and scientists at NASA, even some agricultural scientists and advisors in the former Soviet Union collective farming administration.
Secondly, there will be those dedicated to the organization itself. Examples are many of the administrators in the education system, many professors of education, many teachers union officials, much of the NASA headquarters staff, etc.
The Iron Law states that in every case the second group will gain and keep control of the organization. It will write the rules, and control promotions within the organization.
#3
I remember something of Spock's famous quote...
"A civilized man can act primitive, a primitive man cannot be civilized." Apologies for the butchery.
[Outkick] This is how far the United States of America has fallen and how unrecognizable to the rest of the world we are:
The United Nations General Assembly began its session this week and the countries of the world heard a world leader explain how his country is blazing the path to freedom with traditional American ideals.
GOVERNMENT FOR โITS OWN PEOPLE FIRSTโ
Within one minute of stepping in front of the microphones for his 10-minute speech, that leader reminded the delegates from the UN's 193 members that "the main responsibility of a government is towards its own people first."
No, that speech was not delivered by American President Joe Biden or Vice President Kamala Harris. It couldn't be.
The speech also was not delivered in English because, sadly, the English-speaking world has been given over to governments that mostly do not protect liberties, or respect the will of their own people anymore.
The speech that outlined what in the past had been American ideals was delivered by Nayib Armando Bukele Ortez.
He's the president of El Salvador.
He's the president of a tiny country most Americans never think about. And he delivered a speech most Americans will never hear. But that speech was bathed in American ideals that, unfortunately, too much of America has abandoned.
NAYIB BUKELE SEES DECLINE OF FREE WORLD
"Today, the free world is no longer free," Bukele told the delegates. "This is not an exaggeration. Tragically, there is undeniable proof of this decline every dayโฆ
"When the free world indeed became free, it was thanks to its principles of freedom of expression, equality under the law, unity, and respect for private property. But at the moment a nation abandons its principles that make it free, it's only a matter of time before it loses all its liberties completely.
"The consequences are developing before our very eyes. We can see them. In some so-called first-world cities, stores must secure their products behind glass cases under lock and key in order to prevent robberies. And I speak not of expensive products. I'm talking of simple things like chocolate bars or razors.
"In other cities, the streets no longer belong to the people, but have instead fallen into the hands of homelessness, of gangs, of organized crime and drugs."
And now Bukele was speaking as if directly to the United States, although he didn't mention the U.S. by name.
AMERICAN STREETS FULL OF DRUGS, CRIME
"You cannot claim the title of leader of the free world if your people are not free to walk the streets without fear of being accosted, robbed or murdered," he said. "We are also bearing witness in real time to the erosion of the freedom of expression.
"It's been barely a decade since the West was the bastion of freedom of expression. And now it is lectured to by those who used to speak out. The largest social media platforms in the world are forced to censor its users at the petition of its governments.
"Citizens of Western countries have been arrested for sharing posts on social media. The ruling parties have attempted to ban their political opponents. These are not accusations or conspiracy theories.
"They are verifiable and widely documented facts."
All of that, by the way, addresses the entire English-speaking world.
Our elites are perceiving communist China, Russia and the Islamic world not only as competitors but also as role models.
A principled political stance for freedom of speech was once largely a Western consensus position but is unimaginable in the present political climate.
Western elites being seduced by the powers that oriental governance would bring them isn't a new phenomenon (e.g. Alexander, Cesar, Heliogabal...).
Nayib Armando Bukele Ortez was born on 24 July 1981 in San Salvador.[3] His father was Armando Bukele Kattรกn, a businessman and industrial chemist of Palestinian origin, and his mother is Olga Marina Ortez. Bukele's father converted from Christianity to Islam in the 1980s, became an imam, and founded four mosques in El Salvador; Bukele's mother is Roman Catholic. Bukele's paternal grandparents were Palestinian Christians who immigrated to El Salvador from Jerusalem and Bethlehem in 1921; his maternal grandfather was Greek Orthodox, and his maternal grandmother was Roman Catholic.
Posted by: Bobby ||
09/27/2024 9:33 Comments ||
Top||
#4
Calling opposing political members terrorists.
Arrest, prosecution, and calls for assassination of leading politicians.
Open support and arming of political regimes which have suspended elections.
Open support of political regime which had very funny vote counting.
Implicated in a failed military coup.
Implicated in a color revolution.
Yeah, the last four years is not a good track record.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited. by Gevorg Mirzayan
[REGNUM] On the evening of September 25, President Vladimir Putin held a meeting of the Security Council's Standing Conference on Nuclear Deterrence. At the event, Putin publicly announced changes to Russia's nuclear doctrine. And the changes are fundamental.
One of the most important innovations is the expansion of the number of cases in which Russia allows the use of nuclear weapons.
"The previous version of the principles of state policy only spoke about the launch of ballistic missiles as a condition for a retaliatory strike. Now we are talking about the launch of aircraft, tactical and strategic cruise missiles, as well as drones, hypersonics, and in general any massive launch of aircraft," explains Dmitry Suslov, deputy director of the Center for Comprehensive European and International Studies at the National Research University Higher School of Economics, to Regnum.
This change is related to the development of non-nuclear weapons. During the Cold War and even in the 1990s, conventional weapons were nowhere near the destructive power and delivery speed of ballistic missiles with nuclear warheads.
Therefore, they did not fundamentally threaten the principle of guaranteed retaliatory strike โ that is, the ability of a country to strike back if attacked. The principle that makes it senseless for an aggressor country to start a nuclear war.
Now, thanks to the development of cruise missiles, hypersonic weapons, and even drones, a number of countries have the ability to deliver a disarming strike using conventional means. And Moscow is responding.
"Now the mass use of conventional weapons can lead to a nuclear response. This logically follows from the text of the previous doctrine, where a nuclear strike is prescribed in the event of a threat to the infrastructure that ensures the possibility of a guaranteed nuclear response. Otherwise, the enemy will be tempted to hit this infrastructure for a subsequent unpunished nuclear strike," Nikita Mendkovich, head of the Eurasian Analytical Club, tells Regnum.
Hence the change in terms. Russia is essentially abandoning the formulation that nuclear weapons can be used in a non-nuclear war, in the event of a critical threat to the existence of the Russian Federation. And also for Belarus.
Another innovation was the permission to use nuclear weapons against a non-nuclear state if it commits aggression against Russia with the support or participation of a nuclear state.
Again, during the Cold War, this principle would have been considered dangerous because it did not allow for the possibility of waging โwars on the peripheryโ โ conflicts between Moscow and Washington in Third World countries, where the superpowers supported local players and let off steam.
But, firstly, then we were talking about a conflict on the periphery, and now we are talking specifically about aggression on the sovereign territory of Russia - something that was absolutely unthinkable during the Cold War and therefore was not taken into account in nuclear doctrines. Secondly, the level of support for the Kyiv regime from the US and the West as a whole is now unprecedented - in essence, the Americans and the entire NATO bloc are fighting against Russia with the hands of the Ukrainians.
Changes in Russia's nuclear doctrine will, of course, cause criticism in the West. They are already being called an escalation of the conflict. But all these changes are, in essence, the West's response to new threats. And threats not only to Russian sovereignty, but to the entire world.
"The West continues to look for 'dead zones' in our nuclear concept to implement the strategy of a thousand cuts. That is why we are forced to adjust the rules," says Nikita Mendkovich.
For example, the Westโs hybrid war against Russia has demonstrated that the effect of Russian nuclear deterrence is not yet working sufficiently.
"It only partially prevents other powers from entering a direct war against Russia using non-nuclear weapons. The West itself is considering the possibility of launching missile strikes deep into Russian territory. The US and Europe went for escalation because they considered its risks to themselves less painful than the risks from the consequences of Ukraine's defeat," Dmitry Suslov is sure.
According to him, Western countries convinced themselves that Russia would not use nuclear weapons under any circumstances. And they did something that was considered unacceptable during the Cold War - they tried to inflict a hybrid defeat on Russia or even move to a direct non-nuclear war.
At the same time, Vladimir Putin systematically tried to change the West's mind. First, he declared that Moscow would interpret Kyiv's permission to fire long-range missiles at Russian territory as Western countries entering a war against the Russian Federation.
After this, over the course of several days, a series of publications appeared in Western media that Biden might not make a decision on long-range strikes deep into Russia. In addition, it turned out that in the United States, many Pentagon officials, led by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, as well as members of the National Security Council, headed by Biden's national security adviser Jake Sullivan, are against such a decision.
"Only Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in favor. And this is logical, given that the head of the State Department has a more hawkish and uncompromising approach towards Russia. Well, and he thinks much less strategically than the realist Jake Sullivan," says Dmitry Suslov.
Now Vladimir Putin is announcing new provisions in the nuclear doctrine, in which his warnings are already officially written down. At the same time, it is possible that Moscow will take a third, consolidated step.
"For the West to believe in the seriousness of Moscow's intentions, it is necessary not only to limit itself to words, but also to continue deeds. To support Russian steps with direct actions. For example, by continuing exercises on the use of nuclear weapons, preparing nuclear tests," Suslov noted.
But behind the changes in the nuclear doctrine, there is another, more global plan. It is to prevent the war that the world is being pushed toward by Western elites who have stopped fearing nuclear Armageddon. They have literally lost their fear, which means it needs to be brought back.
[Breitbart] Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has pushed back against the notion that social media directly harms the mental health of teenagers, despite growing concerns and calls for increased regulation in the industry. His position is even more extraordinary given the fact that Metaโs own internal researchers determined that his social media platforms are terrible for the mental health of teenagers, especially young women and girls.
โPlease don't hurt my company when youโre president, Mr. Trump! Iโm a Libertarian now, donchaknow. And I did let you back on Facebookโฆโ
In a recent interview with the Verge, Mark Zuckerberg addressed the ongoing debate surrounding the impact of Metaโs Facebook and Instagram social media platforms on the mental well-being of adolescents. Zuckerberg asserted that there is no direct causal connection between social media use and poor mental health outcomes in teens, citing the majority of high-quality research on the subject.
This statement echoes Zuckerbergโs testimony before Congress in January, where he argued that existing research has not definitively established a causal link between social media and negative mental health effects in young users. However, proving such causal relationships is inherently challenging, and current research suggests that social media can have both positive and negative impacts on the mental health of adolescents.
Zuckerberg acknowledged the complex nature of the issue, stating, โThe academic research shows something that I think, to me, fits more with what Iโve seen of how the platforms operate. But itโs counter to what a lot of people think, and I think thatโs going to be a reckoning that weโll have to have.โ He emphasized the importance of providing parents with the necessary tools to monitor and limit their childrenโs social media use, rather than placing the onus solely on the platforms themselves.
In response to growing concerns, Instagram, owned by Meta, recently announced plans to move all teenage users into more private accounts with restricted direct messaging capabilities and a โSleep Modeโ feature to limit notifications during nighttime hours. Meta also introduced a suite of parental controls for Instagram and Messenger last year, granting parents greater insight into their childrenโs activities on the platforms.
The debate surrounding social mediaโs impact on teen mental health intensified following the release of the Facebook Papers in 2021, which contained internal documents suggesting that Meta was aware of the negative effects Instagram had on some teenage users. In the wake of these revelations, U.S. lawmakers have increased efforts to implement age verification measures for social media platforms, with some advocating for tobacco-style warning labels on the networks.
Breitbart News reported extensively on the revelations from the Facebook Papers, including that the companyโs internal researchers found that Instagram is toxic for teen girls.
The Wall Street Journal reported:
โThirty-two percent of teen girls said that when they felt bad about their bodies, Instagram made them feel worse,โ the researchers said in a March 2020 slide presentation posted to Facebookโs internal message board, reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. โComparisons on Instagram can change how young women view and describe themselves.โ
โฆ
โWe make body image issues worse for one in three teen girls,โ said one slide from 2019, summarizing research about teen girls who experience the issues.
โTeens blame Instagram for increases in the rate of anxiety and depression,โ said another slide. โThis reaction was unprompted and consistent across all groups.โ
Among teens who reported suicidal thoughts, 13% of British users and 6% of American users traced the desire to kill themselves to Instagram, one presentation showed.
Zuckerberg reiterated his belief that app store owners, such as Google and Apple, should be responsible for handling age verification, rather than individual platforms. He argued that it is โnot very excusableโ for these companies to avoid taking responsibility for such measures, given that age verification is already essentially in place for every payment transaction made on smartphones.
Despite his skepticism about the direct links between social media and mental health issues, Zuckerberg assured that Meta will comply with any government directives and laws related to child safety if they are passed. He added, โI would say that the ability to get push notifications and get distracted, from my perspective, seems like a much greater contributor to mental health issues than a lot of the specific apps.โ
[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] A strike by the largest dockworker group in the US could bring the country's shipping industry to a standstill, several have warned.
The International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) threatened to strike of the first time since 1977, asking their demands be met by October.
If not, 85,000 workers across 36 ports on the East Coast and Gulf of Mexico will cease work, resulting in about $5billion in losses each day.
The move would also disrupt supply chains that only just recovered from the pandemic, further fueling inflation and the cost of living.
Experts warned of the concept this week, as the deadline rapidly approaches.
#5
The move would also disrupt supply chains that only just recovered from the pandemic
grr grrr Supply Chain is a term invented by Ultra-MAGAs usurpers in a pathetic incel attempt to discredit the booming Bidenconomy and those using that term should be treated as a saboteur.
[Bee] NEW YORK, NY — In a bold defense of mayors nationwide, Eric Adams declared New York City a sanctuary city for any mayors out there who may happen to be facing criminal charges.
According to an official statement from the Office of the Mayor of New York, Adams felt that it was his duty to make sure that the Big Apple would always remain welcoming of public officials, especially those who could be at a disadvantage because of an indictment from a federal grand jury.
"Here in New York, we believe that all people belong and are to be welcomed," Adams said. "Especially mayors. And most especially those mayors, who may hypothetically be facing federal prosecution after taking a hardline stance on some theoretical border policy. We think they belong too. This is their safe space."
Political experts hailed the announcement as a shrewd move. "Well played, Mayor Adams. A brilliant chess move," one analyst said. "As we've already learned, once you declare a place to be a sanctuary city, people can avoid being held accountable for any crimes they've committed once they get there. Congratulations to Mayor Adams and any other federally indicted mayor who seeks refuge in New York."
At publishing time, Adams' announcement had proved to be immensely popular, with a caravan of panicked Democratic mayors from all across the country forming to march to New York.
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/27/2024 06:20 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[11125 views]
Top|| File under: Tin Hat Dictators, Presidents for Life, & Kleptocrats
I really recommend the author, Mordechai Kedar
[Jpost] Recently, Russia and Iran have been fighting over the Zangezur Corridor, a transport route that links Azerbaijan proper with the Nakhchivan enclave in Azerbaijan, thus establishing a new route linking Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Many high-level Russian officials in recent days have expressed support for this corridor, which will link Azerbaijan to Russia and Turkey, bypassing Armenian checkpoints. Iran is extremely unhappy with Russiaโs support for this corridor, as it would sever the geographic connection between Yerevan and Tehran if this corridor is under Azerbaijani sovereignty rather than Armenian rule.
An official in the Iranian Foreign Ministry told the Middle East Eye: "As the supreme leader has emphasized, our border with Armenia must remain intact and any corridor should be established with that in mind... Our military power would only be deployed in response to any attempt to sever Iranโs border with Armenia."
In the face of such Iranian threats, the strong partnership between Baku and Moscow exists despite Azerbaijanโs multi-vector policy, which seeks to balance the Westโs interests in Ukraine with a desire to avoid confrontation with Russia as a former Soviet bloc country. Azerbaijan is a Shia Muslim country that told ayatollahs to go f*ck a chicken.
Apparently this is a traditional American idiom. The things I learn here at Rantburg!
Why did the muslim cross the road?
This poses major challenges for Tehran. On the one hand, Baku is helping the West to wean itself off Russian oil and gas by offering itself as a viable alternative that can provide Europe with energy security. Baku supports Ukraineโs territorial integrity and has sent humanitarian aid to Kyiv.
Yet at the same time, Baku has not been doing it in a way that prevents it from having relations with Putin, as the Aliyev government does not believe its alliance with the West is a reason to self-destruct. The Azerbaijanis have witnessed how much the Ukrainian people have suffered because of their leadershipโs desire to join NATO and do not believe that NATO membership is worth the price. For this reason, Azerbaijan is content to be just an ally of NATO and not a member.
...Meanwhile, Putinโs recent visit to Baku has strengthened Azerbaijan to the detriment of Iran and its proxies, as demonstrated by Russiaโs support of the Zangezur Corridor, which is of pivotal importance to the Azerbaijani people.Meanwhile, Putinโs recent visit to Baku has strengthened Azerbaijan to the detriment of Iran and its proxies, as demonstrated by Russiaโs support of the Zangezur Corridor, which is of pivotal importance to the Azerbaijani people.
THE ATTEMPTED OVERTHROW OF THE ARMENIAN GOVERNMENT
WHILE TEHRAN is fuming over Putinโs support for using the Zangezur Corridor, Russia has attempted to overthrow the Armenian government and replace it with a more friendly regime. In a recent statement, the Investigative Committee of the Republic of Armenia said seven people would be charged with "preparing to usurp power... using violence and the threat of violence to take over the powers of government."
Politico reported that six Armenians were recruited to undergo three months of training in Russia and were paid monthly salaries of 220,000 rubles ($2,377) while learning how to use weaponry. They also reportedly underwent background checks and polygraph tests to determine their allegiance, before being transferred to the Arbat military base in Rostov-on-Don in southern Russia.
It appears that Moscow wanted to replace the Pashinyan government because they withdrew from the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), which the Armenian government views to be "creating threats to Armeniaโs security, continued existence and statehood." Armenia was one of the founding members of the CSTO, established in 1992 following the collapse of the Soviet Union. In addition to Russia, the CSTO consists of Kazakhstan, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan.
For decades, Russia had backed Armenia in its conflict with Azerbaijan, enabling the Armenians to control Karabakh and the seven Azerbaijani districts in violation of four UN Security Council resolutions for 30 years. Putinโs ties with the Caucuses country began to deteriorate after the Pashinyan government took over in 2018; this trend further continued after Azerbaijanโs victory during the second Karabakh War and the subsequent military operation that took place after that. The Armenians felt that the Russians were not supportive enough in this conflict.
Despite that the Pashinyan government is closer to the West and Iran than it is to Moscow presently, it is critical to recall that trade relations between Armenia and Russia remain strong, despite the recent coup attempt. Armenia remains the main hub for circumventing the Westโs anti-Russian sanctions.
Deputy Prime Minister Alexei Overchuk cited the following figures during his recent visit to Yerevan: "In 2023, the volume of mutual trade between Armenia and Russia increased by 55.8%, reaching $7.4 billion. This year, the growth rate is even higher; in the first half of the year, the trade turnover was $8.4 billion, and by the end of the year we can reach $14-16 billion. For comparison, in 2020, this volume was only $2.3 billion."
ccording to Overchuk, by the end of 2024, the volume of trade turnover between Armenia and Russia may reach $14 to $16 billion. Overchuk noted that the economic cooperation between the two countries is developing dynamically and covers almost all sectors of the economy.
It is obvious that the Armenian economy, given its small volume, does not have its own resources for such trade turnover. A paradoxical picture emerges when on the one hand the West finances Ukraineโs resistance against Russian aggression, and on the other hand allows Armenia to make money on this very aggression, actually encouraging re-export schemes through Armenia, allowing the Russian economy to continue the war against Ukraine.
At the same time, the leading American PR agency Edelman is openly working for Russian Armenian oligarch Ruben Vardanyan. It is noteworthy that while commenting on the unnaturally growing trade turnover between Armenia and Russia, as well as the increasing military cooperation between Russia and Armenia, the US State Department in September officially called it "Armeniaโs sovereign right."
However, some Western commentators have been critical of Putinโs recent visit to Azerbaijan, claiming that Baku is taking a pro-Russian and anti-Western stance, while remaining silent on all of the ongoing trade between Armenia and Russia. This represents a double standard.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
[Bee] NEW YORK, NY — In a bold defense of mayors nationwide, Eric Adams declared New York City a sanctuary city for any mayors out there who may happen to be facing criminal charges.
