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the world according to my parents:

the Shah was the leader of OPEC and he caused the oil shock in the '70s because he loved Iran so much he wanted a better deal on oil. it was the US that overthrew the Shah and put Khomeini in power. the US doesn't actually hate the IRI, that's just talk. the US props up the IRI because they do whatever the US wants, and it's preferable to an independent, secular government like the Shah.

why do US politicians constantly talk about bombing Iran and why did they assassinate Soleimani, nearly starting a war?

well, that was just a joke. Iranian generals aren't 'real' generals anyway, they make anyone general over there - most of them are drug dealers and potato vendors.

I was right: Russia responds by blowing Kharkov up

Ancap Update:

Argentina's General Workers' Confederation, the CGT, has announced a general strike against the government. The strike will take place on January 24, 2024.

https://nitter.net/chenweihua/status/1740393458722918465

Blinken ratioed by Chen Weihua

Argentines to Go on General Strike Against Milei's Reforms

Among other things, the far-right President intends to govern by granting himself legislative powers for 4 years.

On Thursday, the General Confederation of Labor (CGT), Argentina's largest labor union, called for a general strike and a march to the Congress on January 24th to protest against the decree of urgent necessity and a bill that grants "superpowers" to the far-right president Javier Milei to govern discretionally for two years.

The general strike will take place one day before the date on which the Milei administration intends to have Parliament vote in favor of his neoliberal reform package, which seeks to deregulate and liberalize the Argentine economy and downsize the State.

As political processes are currently happening in Argentina, however, parliamentary approval could become just a formality, since Milei's anti-worker reforms began to come into force de facto from December 29.

On Wednesday, Milei also sent another bill to Parliament to declare Argentina in "public emergency" until the end of 2025, a measure that could be extendable until 2027.

If this bill is approved, the far-right President could govern his four-year term by attributing himself broad legislative powers in matters related to the economy, finance, taxes, social security, defense, goods and services tariffs, energy, and public administration.

"If a president is allowed to assume all public power for a period of two years renewable for two years, we will live in a country where the president will have all the power, and institutions will not be respected," CGT Secretary Hector Daer said, warning that Milei's intentions are against collective and individual rights.

Among other things, Milei's new bill includes electoral regulation reform, changes in the Penal Code to control street protests, a deep labor flexibility, the privatization of 41 large state-owned companies, and authorizations to incur more public debt.

"The mobilization is a clear fight against the reinstatement of the conservative neoliberal model in its cruelest version," said Luis D'Elia, the leader of the Federation of Land, Housing, and Habitat, one of the organizations that blocked roads on the outskirts of Buenos Aires as a protest measure on Thursday.

After assuming the presidency on December 10th, Milei, a far-right politician who claimed that his dead dogs communicate with him and advise him on state matters, launched a "shock" plan to supposedly balance the Argentine macroeconomy.

UK Deploys Military Ship to the Caribbean Sea, Venezuela Warns

"A warship in waters to be delimited? What about the commitment to good neighborliness and peaceful coexistence?," Venezuelan Defense Minister asked.

On Sunday, Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez asserted that Venezuela is maintaining heightened alerts after the United Kingdom announced the dispatch of a warship to Guyana amid the territorial dispute between the two South American countries.

A warship in waters to be delimited? What? What about the commitment to good neighborliness and peaceful coexistence? And what about the agreement not to threaten or use force mutually under any circumstances?" he asked.

"We remain vigilant in the face of these provocations that jeopardize the peace and stability of the Caribbean and our Americas!" the Bolivarian Defense Minister stated, alluding to the potential threat posed by the British presence to the Venezuela-Guyana agreements signed in St. Vincent and the Grenadines on Dec. 14.

On that day, Venezuelan President Nicolss Maduro and Guyanese President Irfaan Ali pledged not to mutually threaten each other and to "avoid incidents" regarding the Essequibo, a territory of 160,000 square kilometers rich in natural resources, gas, and oil.

On Sunday, the British BBC reported that the United Kingdom is preparing to send the HMS Trent warship as a "show of military and diplomatic support" to Guyana.

The controversy over the Essequibo escalated after Venezuelans reaffirmed their sovereignty over the territory through a referendum on Dec. 3. Subsequently, in response to the popular mandate, the Venezuelan state appointed provisional authorities for that area.

"The HMS Trent will visit our regional allies and Commonwealth partners in Guyana later this month as part of a series of commitments in the region during its deployment on Atlantic patrol," confirmed a spokesperson for the British Defense Ministry.

Can't wait for the UK to lose these ships to bad weather

President Milei Rejects Joining Argentina to BRICS

During his presidential campaign, he said that Argentina would align itself with the U.S. Israel, the EU, and the "free world."

On Friday, the Argentine Foreign Affairs Ministry formally announced that President Javier Milei will not incorporate his country into the economic cooperation bloc formed by Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS).

The decision was communicated through letters dated December 22, sent to Lula da Silva (Brazil), Vladimir Putin (Russia), Narendra Modi (India), Xi Jinping (China), and Cyril Ramaphosa (South Africa).

In his letter, the far-right politician, who assumed the Argentine presidency on Dec. 10, expressed that Argentina will not participate as a member of BRICS.

“As you are aware, the foreign policy imprint of the Government that I have presided over for a few days differs in many aspects from that of the previous Government. In this sense, some decisions made by the previous management will be reviewed. Among them is the creation of a specialized unit for the country's active participation in BRICS,” Milei said.

"Serious: Argentine dictator Javier Milei decided to withdraw his country from the BRICS. I am imagining the concern of China and other nations upon knowing that their bloc will not have the presence of a country whose crazy leader allowed that salaries would be paid with bananas."

“I would like to inform you that at this stage the incorporation of the Argentine Republic to the BRICS as a full member as of January 1, 2024 is not considered appropriate,” he added.

In August, during the BRICS summit in Johannesburg, those countries decided to invite Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Ethiopia, the United Arab Emirates, and Iran to join the bloc. This invitation was positively received by the then-President, Alberto Fernandez (2019-2023).

During his campaign, however, Milei had already rejected this proposal, arguing that Argentina would align itself with the United States, Israel, the European Union, and the "free world."

Currently, BRICS collectively will have a production equivalent to 36 percent of the global GDP and a market representing 42 percent of the world's population. So far, Argentina has sent 30 percent of its exports to that market.

New

https://twitter.com/revolutionaryem/status/1739374528461967620

https://nitter.net/revolutionaryem/status/1739374528461967620

Christmas Liberation of Maryinka

"The official announcement of the liberation of Maryinka, made by Sergei Shoigu to President Putin today, Christmas Day, is a beautiful present for hundreds of thousands of Donbass residents, especially in our neighborhood, the Petrovsky District of Donetsk.

Petrovsky has become another legendary place in this war, like Donetsk airport or Saur Mogila, legendary for the bombing and destruction it has endured since 2014. And the vast majority of those terrorist attacks - tanks, artillery, snipers, drones, originated in Maryinka, a town that was literally turned into a fortress by the Ukrainian Army and their NATO masters. And now, finally, it has been purified by fire, once and for all.

This victory is personal for me and my family - My wife and her family are from Petrovsky, my wife and I lived there for three years before the beginning of the special military op, but moved to the city center because of heavy shelling about two years ago. Our house in Petrovsky has been damaged three times by shelling - not directly hit, but from heavy artillery shells landing within 100 meters of our house multiple times. We were lucky. Some of our close neighbors were killed. Many people never understood that the Petrovsky District was closer to the Nazis in Maryinka than to the Donetsk city center.

I have close friends among those who liberated Maryinka, and one great friend who died in the effort, and did not live to see the task completed. And he was not alone. There is no victory without sacrifice, and great sacrifices were made to reach this seminal turning point in the war. And make no mistake, though on a smaller scale, this victory is every bit as profound as the liberation of Artemovsk (Bakmut). It is not just a turning point in this war, it is the point of no return. As goes Maryinka, so goes Avdeyevka, as goes Avdeyevka, so goes Kiev. There are tears of joy in Petrovsky tonight. The last couple of months have seen a major escalation of targeted attacks specifically against civilians there, that have taken a heavy toll, both physically and spiritually.

Those attacks will now diminish, and while there is no easy road ahead, the liberation of Maryinka is a huge stepping stone towards the defeat of the nazis in Avdeyevka, and the eventual liberation and de-nazification of Ukraine. God bless every hero who had a hand in this major accomplishment, this victory of our Russian Army over the Nazism of the 21st century, and the victory of our Russian spirit over the forces of evil in the world today. It couldn't have happened on a more appropriate day. Amen!"

Odete Santos, a prominent portuguese communist and feminist passed away recently, she was an MP for years and many portuguese women grew up watching her defending women's rights and the right to abortion in parliament and outside it. Rest in peace.

Choice quote: "And I ask of the economists, politicians, moralists, if they have already calculated the number of individuals that must be condemned to misery, to unjust work, to demoralization, to infamy, to ignorance, to unbeatable disgrace, to absolute penury, in order to produce a single rich man?"

@Middle East Observer

Channel 7 Hebrew:

An #Israeli soldier suffers from difficult psychological conditions while he is near Ashkelon on leave for several days to rest after the fighting in #Gaza..

He woke up at night and took another soldier's weapon and opened fire on the soldiers accompanying him, wounding a number of them before he was controlled and referred for psychological treatment.

Israeli Channel 12:

A soldier from the Paratroopers Brigade returning from #Gaza opened fire after waking up from a nightmare and wounded his comrades

The soldier's incident was referred for investigation by the Ministry of Defense, and it was decided not to investigate him due to his health condition

Looks like UKR has retaliated by bombing Belgorod, with cluster bombs they're saying now too

https://www.rt.com/russia/589937-deadly-ukrainian-attack-belgorod/

Head Editor of The Cradle News --Sharmine Narwani

A new influence operation may be forming against Iran. Suddenly seeing a slew of tweets on Iranian women, with this one below pointing to events taking place "in a few days, at selected locations." Seatbelts on, folks. Propaganda ride ahead.

Pure unadulterated copium: Ukraine Doesn’t Need All Its Territory to Defeat Putin

https://www.alquds.com/en/posts/105127

China is imposing stealth unilateral sanctions on the Zionist entity

Apparently, the IOF are hacking into the security cameras of civilians in southern Lebanon because all of their surveillance equipment got rekt by Hezbollah: https://nitter.cz/political_aya__/status/1740436945212232104

We call on our dear people, especially in the bordering villages in the area where Resistance operations are taking place, to disconnect the private cameras in front of their homes, shops and institutions from the Internet, and to contribute to further blinding the enemy to some of the activities or movements carried out by the Resistance and its Mujahideen in the region.

Venezuela denounces the arrival of British Navy vessel HMS Trent to the coasts of Guyana, calling it “an act of hostile provocation and a violation of the recent Argyle Declaration”.

The President of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, said that the country would receive around 20,000 young Colombians who are currently studying in Argentina and would be charged at the country's universities, according to Javier Milei's new bill.

Javier Milei's Basic Principles bill, dubbed the "Bus law", will only charge tuition fees to students who are not legally resident in Argentina.

"We will receive 20,000 Colombian students who were educated for free in Argentina."

"They are literally expelled from that country, for them there was no so-called 'freedom'."

"We are going to manage so that they can continue their studies in Colombia without major obstacle and also for free." - Gustavo Petro

Some brief analysis of the implications of the assassination of Iran’s top commander in Syria, Radhi Mousavi, presumably by Israel.

Bottom line: Israel either killed Mousavi as a warning to Iran, given Tehran’s support for the Houthis’ targeting of ships in the Red Sea, as a provocation to beget an Iranian response that would give Israel the pretext to enlarge the war, or as a preparatory move to enlarge the war regardless of Iran’s response.

It is very likely that Israel is behind the assassination of Mousavi since it is the only power with both a motive and capacity to pull off such a killing - not to mention a long history of assassinating Iranian operatives. The US has the capacity but not necessarily the motive. The analysis below rests on the rather safe assumption that Mousavi was assassinated by Israel.

US intelligence believes that Iran has been actively involved in the Houthi movement’s targeting of ships in the Red Sea, which has effectively closed the Bab el-Mandeb Strait for Israel and cost the Israeli economy billions of dollars. The Houthis insist they will continue the attacks - despite threats of retaliation from the US - until Israel ceases its bombardment of Gaza. Israel, of course, refuses and Biden is loath to press Israel for a ceasefire. From Israel’s perspective, Iran is not paying a price for its alleged role in the Red Sea attacks. The assassination may, as a result, be a warning to Iran that Israel has the capacity and willingness to exact a price from Iran - even in areas where the Iranians may have presumed that they are safe.

In a second scenario, the assassination may be a deliberate provocation to beget an Iranian response that would give Israel the pretext to enlarge the war. While the Biden administration has given Israel a complete green light to bomb Gaza to smithers, Biden opposes an expansion of the war since that very likely could drag the US into it. The debate inside the Israeli government is increasingly leaning toward expanding the war - they have already mobilized +300,000 troops and there is a growing belief in Israel that it simply is intolerable for Israel to live next to Hezbollah. They thought they could manage the threat from Hamas - and they couldn’t. Even though it wasn’t Hezbollah that attacked Israel on Oct 7, the Israeli argument is that next time it might be Hezbollah, and as a result, Israel has no choice but to expand the war. But unless there is an attack from Iran or Hezbollah itself, the US may continue to oppose such a move.

But the assassination of Mousavi may cause Iran to retaliate against Israel via Hezbollah, the reasoning goes, and Israel can then use Hezbollah’s action as a pretext to not only expand the war to Lebanon - but also force the US to go along with it.

There is also a third explanation. According to Amwaj Media, Mousavi was in charge of facilitating the entry of Iran-led forces and arms shipments to Syria as well as Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement. If Israel intends to attack Lebanon, taking out Mousavi could be a logical first step to disrupt the arming of Hezbollah as well as its supply lines. As such, the assassination may be a preparatory move to enlarge the war regardless of Iran’s response to the killing of Mousavi.

All of these scenarios point to one undeniable reality: As long as Biden refuses to pressure Israel to accept a ceasefire in Gaza, tensions in the region will continue to rise and the Middle East will gravitate towards a regional war that very likely will engulf the US as well. Biden may think that he can control these events and allow Israel to slaughter the people in Gaza while keeping a lid on the escalation risk. He is likely wrong - and the American people may soon find themselves in yet another unnecessary war in the Middle East because of Biden’s strategic incompetence.//

twitter | nitter

interesting analysis. the 3rd explanation is most compelling to me - I think Israel really wants to invade Lebanon next

This is old news but Belize also suspended diplomatic ties with Israel last month. They're the only Central American country to do so and the second Commonwealth nation to do so. This just makes Guatemala look even worse. They have a much smaller Palestinian population than we do and are doing more to protest Israel while we bootlick even harder.

https://www.cnn.com/2023/11/14/world/belize-suspends-diplomatic-ties-israel-ceasefire/index.html

An officer in Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards [RG], Sayyed Reza Mousavi, who was serving as a military advisor in Syria, has been martyred in an “Israeli” airstrike in the Sayyeda Zeinab neighborhood of Damascus.

https://t.me/Eng_ahed/53642

Under British occupation, India experienced 12 famines that each killed millions of people.

Praying rn for our boys in the IDF shitting out their dodo asses and combating the fungus from resident evil that turns people into plant zombies.

So, uh, quick question: if enough states remove Trump from the ballot does that mean we'll have to start posting 'This is how DeSantis can still win' memes?

One of the released POWs talked in an interview and revealed the HORRORS that she was hiding, of a 10 year old kid denying her candy

https://nitter.net/MarinaMedvin/status/1740835136537800983#m

https://vxtwitter.com/MarinaMedvin/status/1740835136537800983#m

Does anyone know how the Argentinian military sees our favorite ancap? Do they 100% support him, do they merely tolerate him, are they divided in support, and so on?

Santa has sided with the zionists, our fight against him is righteous

These videos released by the diaper force are always unbelievably silly

In this 45 second video, we get to see a bunch of diaper babies shooting at distant buildings a little bit to psych themselves up, the finding of a hole (THERE IS A HOLE HERE!!!), a unit commander instructing his team of diaper babies that from there on out they need to all point their guns, and finally the brave neutralization of the hole with a single grenade

You know, since Kissinger died, something's been scratching at the back of my brain: what's left of the US administrative Realist camp? Brzezinski, Kissinger, H.W., even Powell, are all gone. Obama? Oliver North?

here's the link to South Africa's complaint against Israel in the ICJ.

beginning page 59 is 'D. Expressions of Genocidal Intent against the Palestinian People by Israeli State Officials and Others'

Breaking! Bomb blast near Israel embassy in Delhi, no staff harmed, NIA officials at the spot: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/videos/news/breaking-bomb-blast-near-israel-embassy-in-delhi-no-staff-harmed-nia-officials-at-the-spot/videoshow/106300286.cms

Operation prosperity gospel.

I'd say something about the vid but that would be fedposting.

Naked, handcuffed and blindfolded: Palestinian poet details time in Israeli custody - YouTube

Palestinian poet and writer Mosab Abu Toha joined "CNN This Morning" to share his experience of being detained by the Israel Defense Forces in Gaza as he was trying to evacuate the region with his wife and children.

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Edit

archive.today • Mosab Abu Toha's Perilous Journey Out of Gaza | The New Yorker

Not sure if this came through here last week.

Quite interested if anyone's been keeping up with Bolivia here. I know they had a party/government split not long back. This would mean the existing government (which MAS split from) are legislating to fuck MAS right? How bad is it looking?