SSDG World News - 22 Nov 2023
CIA in court over spying on American citizens visiting Julian Assange.
SOUTH AMERICA
On Monday, Javier Milei became the new President of Argentina. His victory speech included:
"Today begins the reconstruction of Argentina. Today begins the end of Argentina's decline… The model of decadence has come to an end. There is no way back."
What he represents is less clear.
The Left identifies him as a radical far-right, ex-tantric sex coach. But he’s also an economist with two master degrees.
Conspiracy theorists love him but that seems to be at odds with his promise to move Argentina’s embassy to Jerusalem. “Our geopolitical alignment is with the United States and Israel. That’s our international policy. We won’t align with communists.”
He is vehemently anti-socialist whilst proclaiming to be a libertarian but that conflicts with him standing against a woman’s right to choose an abortion.
He rails against Peronists as the manipulators of Argentina’s economic decline yet is a member of the World Economic Forum (WEF) and an advisor to the G20.
He has promised to dismantle the Central Bank and kill the peso to adopt the dollar yet hasn’t explained how he will accomplish that.
He stated that he’d walk Argentina away from BRICS, and downgrade ties with with China and Brazil despite them being major trading partners. When questioned on that, he contradicted himself, claiming to support free trade.
He appears to have learned from Donald Trump, Boris Johnson and Jair Bolsanaro how to weaponise the anger of populism. The catch-22 is that corruption and the erosion of democracy traditionally follows populist winners, but Argentina needs a radical to overcome its toilet economy.
Milei’s promises can only begin on December 10 when he officially takes office. Before then, he will be visiting Israel and the USA.
USA
“A United States court held an extraordinary hearing on November 16, where a judge carefully considered a lawsuit against the CIA and former CIA director Mike Pompeo for their alleged role in spying on American attorneys and journalists who visited WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.”
The USA is heading for over 700 mass shootings with 3,000 casualties this year. The latest happened in a Walmart in Ohio. The evening before, two people were shot dead at a Walmart in Alaska (but does not count as a mass shooting which requires at least 4 casualties).
ISRAEL/PALESTINE
Stuart Seldowitz, formerly a high official in Obama’s government, and a government lobbyist for a Jewish firm that counts Trump as one of its previous clients, was filmed harassing and threatening an Egyptian street vendor, and claiming that killing 4,000 Gaza kids wasn’t enough.
The current citizen death tally in Gaza is unknown due to the lack of internet and collapse of health services. The last official figure was 11,078, but that’s 3 week’s old. The unofficial figure presented by the Palestinian Authority in the West bank is 13,300. They claim that 5,500 children have been killed, and 1,800 are missing (presumed dead). Add adults under the rubble, and the dead will climb closer to 20,000.
Israel keeps killing journalists. 2 more were killed in Lebanon by an Israeli air strike. Israel has been documented illegally using white phosphorus against 4 towns in Lebanon.
104 UN staff have been killed. A WHO worker and her family were also killed.
“With heavy hearts, WHO announces the death of one of our staff in Gaza, in the occupied Palestinian territory. Dima Abdullatif Mohammed Alhaj, 29 years old, had been with WHO since December 2019. She worked as a patient administrator at the Limb Reconstruction Centre, a critical part of the WHO Trauma and Emergency Team.
Dima died today when her parents’ house in southern Gaza—where she had evacuated to from Gaza City—was bombed. She was tragically killed alongside her husband, their six-month old baby boy, and her two brothers. Reportedly, over 50 family and community members sheltering in the same house also died.
Dima had a bachelor’s degree in Environmental and Earth Sciences from the Islamic University of Gaza, and continued to study and work on environmental issues and health. She was a master’s student at Glasgow University, Scotland, UK, as part of the Erasmus exchange program from 2018-2019.”
The good news is that in a Qatar-brokered deal, Israel has agreed to a temporary ceasefire in return for 50 alive hostages. Those killed by Israeli airstrikes don’t count. 150 Palestinian women and children will be released. Israel will arrest more. There are over 10,000 Palestinian prisoners, many held without trial.
There are protests in Morocco to end ties with Israel. Those were persuaded by the USA in 2020 after it legitimised Morocco’s brutal and illegal occupation of the Western Sahara, one of the world’s least covered atrocities (and get-rich mining schemes).
Jordan has pulled out of an energy for water trade deal that was meant to be ratified with Israel this month.
21 entries have pulled out the world’s biggest documentary festival for its failure to support Gaza. The International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) has long highlighted Palestinian films but is now being accused of using it to only look progressive. It’s being labelled as a hypocrite for having immediately condemned Russia’s invasion, but unwilling to even call for an Israeli ceasefire.
ICELAND
The Iceland Noir Literary Festival was boycotted by 67 writers because anti-ceasefire Hilary Clinton was the guest of honour.
“Hillary Clinton is campaigning publicly against a ceasefire in the ongoing genocide of the Palestinian people perpetrated by the Israeli army. This is in addition to the years she has spent using her huge platform to spread Israeli government propaganda and misinformation with observable damage to the Palestinian nation.
By inviting her, Iceland Noir took a stance. By keeping their invitation open, the organizers of the festival have underlined their political stance, that of standing with war crimes and genocide.
When children are impaled on spears of death, and one child is murdered every ten minutes, there is no time for speculations and sharing of opinions. There is only one valid position to take… Do not take part in whitewashing the Israeli government and its supporters.”
Iceland’s latest magma river hasn’t reached the surface. No one can predict what will happen, so the evacuated town of Grindavik and its cracked streets are not out of danger yet. The meteorological office will keep you updated.
ASIA
Japan is at risk of a recession as slowdown persists. So is the USA, the question being whether it will try cut interest rates to avoid it, and what ramification that will have on everything else.
In Korea, plain flights are cancelled so there will be no noise during university entrance exams VERSUS a provincial government in South Africa pleading with bars not to play their music too loud during the exam period.
AFRICA
South Africa exists on credit yet has received a R10-billion loan from Germany to move away from coal-powered energy. This follows R12-billion received last year, from Germany and France.
REMINDER
Watch 'Iraq's Secret Sex Trade'!
SUBSTACK
Fog over Gaza: Examining 12 lingering questions on the conflict
Al Shifa Flood, brought to you by CNN (Chronicle Cover Narration)
PODCASTS
Lex Fridman interviews John Mearsheimer about Israel-Palestine, Russia-Ukraine, China, and NATO
Prices fall, unemployment rises and Boomers have all the houses
This is my view of the sickness/condition of the West today to keep my comment short & simple. "Milei has telepathic conversations with his dead dog. Paid $50,000 to PerPETuate to clone the dog 'Conan'. He now seeks counsel from his new dogs (5) on policy & more."