Infinite Unknown

Residents look over the remains of their burnt-out home in Ostafyevo, 15km from Moscow, yesterday (AFP)

A state of emergency was declared in seven Russian regions yesterday, as authorities struggled to cope with forest fires which have been burning for a week.

A total of 34 people have died and thousands have been left homeless by the blazes, which have been prompted by one of the most severe heatwaves to hit European Russia in recorded history.

President Dmitry Medvedev referred to the fires as a “huge tragedy” yesterday, and said the state would do everything it could to help those affected.

“More than 2,000 of our citizens have been left without roofs over their heads,” he said. “Many families have been left with absolutely nothing at all.”

The army has been called in to help tackle the fires, which are expected to continue raging as temperatures show no sign of dropping. The state of emergency means that people will be banned from entering areas deemed at high risk for new fires. Many of the blazes have been sparked by discarded cigarette ends or barbecues. Mr Medvedev appealed to Russians to be extra vigilant.

“Much depends on our behaviour,” he said. “It’s difficult to be in the city – it’s hot and sweaty, and everyone wants to go to the countryside. But we need to be very attentive and careful here. Remember that a single match thrown carelessly can lead to irreparable disaster.”

In some regions of European Russia, whole villages have been burned to the ground by the fires. Late last week, Vladimir Putin, the Prime Minister, travelled to Verkhnyaya Vereya, where 337 of the village’s 341 houses have been destroyed. He spent time reassuring distraught residents, and promising that houses would be fully rebuilt before winter sets in. In some areas there have been complaints that local officials were too slow to respond to the fires, and many residents of Verkhnyaya Vereya told Mr Putin that their calls to emergency services went unanswered. Continue reading »

Tags: Dmitry Medvedev, Global News, Government, Politics, Russia, Vladimir Putin

A New World Order is emerging …

- President Obama’s New World Order: ‘We have to shape an international order that can meet the challenges of our generation’

- President Dmitry Medvedev Calls For ‘New World Economic Order’

- ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet calls for ‘Global Governance’ at the Council on Foreign Relations

- EU Draws Up Plans For Single ‘Economic Government’

- Gordon Brown Praises New World Order (19 Feb 2010)

- Gordon Brown On Saddam Hussein: ‘This New World Order That We Were Trying To Create Was Being Put At Risk’

… and we have to stop it NOW.

Russia to introduce ‘draconian’ Minority Report-style law

Russian police arrest a political opposition activist at a rally in Moscow. (AFP)

Russian citizens can be issued official warnings about crimes that they have not yet committed under powers granted to the security services today.

President Dmitry Medvedev signed off on a new law giving the FSB, the successor agency to the KGB, the right to caution people suspected of preparing acts of extremism, or to jail them for obstructing the agency’s work.

The powers appear similar to those enjoyed by Precrime, the police unit in the 2002 Hollywood film Minority Report. “This is a draconian law reminiscent of our repressive past,” said Boris Nemtsov, a leader of the Solidarity opposition movement.

Rights activists had hoped Medvedev would rein in the security services, after his predecessor, Vladimir Putin, a former KGB colonel, stuffed his administration with hawkish veterans. The Kremlin’s tough stance comes against the backdrop of a disparate but emergent civil movement protesting against corruption and authoritarian government.

Under the new provisions, the FSB will be able to echo Soviet practices. The punishment for ignoring a warning was unclear, but 15-day jail sentences are envisaged for “obstructing an FSB officer’s duties”. Sergei Ivanenko, a leader of the Yabloko party, called it “the law of a police state”. He said: “If such a law exists in a democratic country then it is limited by a very powerful system of civil, public and parliamentary control. In our conditions it will mean absolute power for the security services.” Continue reading »

Tags: Dictatorship, Dmitry Medvedev, FSB, Global News, Government, KGB, Law, Minority Report, New World Order, Police State, Politics, Russia, Society, Vladimir Putin

Related information:

- Kyrgyzstan requested US military aid and rubber bullets but was turned down (Foreign Policy)

- Russian military force in Kyrgyzstan grows to Medvedev’s order (ITAR-TASS)

- Tens of thousands flee ethnic violence in Kyrgyzstan (BBC News)

- Kyrgyzstan increases troops, authorizes killing rioters; death toll climbs to 100 (Los Angeles Times)

Kyrgyzstan begs Russia’s help to quell ethnic violence

Uzbekistan soldiers and security officers help ethnic Uzbeks fleeing southern Kyrgyzstan to cross the border after attacks by Kyrgyz rioters in Osh. (AP)

(AFP) — Kyrgyzstan imposed a state of emergency in a second southern city as its interim leader warned ethnic violence is spiralling “out of control” and asked Russia to send in troops.

Interim President Roza Otunbayeva appealed to Moscow to intervene militarily after at least 75 people were killed and 977 wounded, according to the health ministry, in nearly three days of unrest.

“Since yesterday the situation has got out of control. We need outside military forces to halt the situation. For this reason we have appealed to Russia for help,” said Otunbayeva in a nationally televised address.

But while Moscow said it was rushing humanitarian aid to the former Soviet Central Asian republic, a spokeswoman for President Dmitry Medvedev said it would not yet send troops. Continue reading »

Tags: Dmitry Medvedev, Global News, Government, Kyrgyzstan, Military, Politics, Russia

Amateur video showing the aftermath of one of the explosions

At least 36 people have been killed after two female suicide bombers blew themselves up on Moscow Metro trains in the morning rush hour, officials say.

Twenty-four died in the first blast at 0756 (0356 GMT) as a train stood at the central Lubyanka station, beneath the offices of the FSB intelligence agency.

About 40 minutes later, a second explosion ripped through a train at Park Kultury, leaving another 12 dead.

The FSB said it was likely a group from the North Caucasus was responsible.

The BBC’s Richard Galpin in Moscow says no group has yet said it carried out the attacks, but past suicide bombings in the capital have been carried out by or blamed on Islamist rebels fighting for independence in Chechnya.

People were yelling like hell… Within about two minutes everything was covered in smoke Alexei, witness Live: Moscow Metro bombings In pictures: Aftermath of attacks Profile: Moscow Metro A Chechen link to Moscow bombs?

In February, Chechen rebel leader Doku Umarov said “the zone of military operations will be extended to the territory of Russia… the war is coming to their cities”.

At an emergency meeting with senior officials, President Dmitry Medvedev vowed to uphold the “policy of suppressing terror and the fight against terrorism”.

“We will continue operations against terrorists without compromises and to the end,” he said. Continue reading »

Tags: Crime, Dmitry Medvedev, FSB, Government, Moscow, Politics, Russia, Terrorism, Terrorists

Sure! That is called ‘his-story’ (Henry Paulson’s fairy tale).

See also:

- Paulson Says He Was Prepared to Guarantee Lehman (BusinessWeek):

Jan. 29 (Bloomberg) — Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson says in his memoir that he was prepared to support a government backstop to prevent the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. until he learned the firm’s assets were so mis- marked it would have guaranteed a loss to taxpayers.‘

As of  ‘now’ the US taxpayer has already lost everything, because of bailouts, stimulus packages, quantitative easing etc., which only benefited the banksters and the elite. It is just that the people don’t know it yet.

The US government and the Fed are bankrupting America!

As a side note:

If you are an investor and your investment starts to look really bad and is about to lose a lot of money, then you better sell it straightaway.

China is also about to lose a lot of money from holding US Treasuries, and it has now become very difficult to sell them without tremendous consequences, but the bailout/stimulus bubble will finally blow up. This will be the end of the dollar and the US as we know it.

Just think about the big dilemma the Chinese are in now, because of the irresponsible economic policies of the US.

I am not saying that China ‘always’ acted responsible. This is a created crisis. This is the Greatest Depression and it has only just begun.

Henry Paulson, former U.S. treasury secretary, testifies at a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 27, 2010. (Bloomberg)

Jan. 29 (Bloomberg) — Russia urged China to dump its Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac bonds in 2008 in a bid to force a bailout of the largest U.S. mortgage-finance companies, former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said.

Paulson learned of the “disruptive scheme” while attending the Beijing Summer Olympics, according to his memoir, “On The Brink.”

The Russians made a “top-level approach” to the Chinese “that together they might sell big chunks of their GSE holdings to force the U.S. to use its emergency authorities to prop up these companies,” Paulson said, referring to the acronym for government sponsored entities. The Chinese declined, he said.

Russia’s five-day war with U.S. ally Georgia started on Aug. 8, the same day as the opening ceremonies of the Beijing Games. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin told U.S. President George W. Bush during those ceremonies that “war has started,” according to Dmitry Peskov, Putin’s spokesman.

“The report was deeply troubling — heavy selling could create a sudden loss of confidence in the GSEs and shake the capital markets,” Paulson wrote. “I waited till I was back home and in a secure environment to inform the president.”

Russia never approached China about dumping U.S. bonds, Peskov said today. “This is not the case,” he said by phone.

Russia sold all of its Fannie and Freddie debt in 2008, after holding $65.6 billion of the notes at the start of that year, according to central bank data. Fannie and Freddie were seized by regulators on Sept. 6, 2008, amid the worst U.S. housing slump since the Great Depression. Continue reading »

Tags: Bailout, Bonds, China, Debt, Dmitry Medvedev, Economy, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, George Bush, Global News, Government, Henry Paulson, Politics, Russia, Taxpayers, U.S., Vladimir Putin

Let’s take a look at history first:

Most American high school history books describe how the Soviets invaded Afghanistan, “without provocation and with overwhelming force”. America then “came to the rescue” of the Afghan “resistance”. This happened under president Jimmy Carter.

Yet Carter’s National Security Adviser, Zbigniew Brzezinski confirms that it was the US and not the Soviet Union which started the war:

“According to the official version of history, CIA aid to the Mujahadeen began during 1980, that is to say, after the Soviet army invaded Afghanistan, 24 Dec 1979. But the reality, secretly guarded until now, is completely otherwise Indeed, it was July 3, 1979 that President Carter signed the first directive for secret aid to the opponents of the pro-Soviet regime in Kabul. And that very day, I wrote a note to the president in which I explained to him that in my opinion this aid was going to induce a Soviet military intervention….” (Interview with Zbigniew Brzezinski, Le Nouvel Observateur, 15-21 November 1998)

In other words, the Soviet-Afghan war was triggered on the orders of President Carter, the latest recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize!

Jimmy Carter was not only instrumental in unleashing the war (which has been ongoing for the last 23 years), he was also the architect of the CIA’s covert support to Islamic terrorism. In fact, it turns out that prime 9/11 suspect, Saudi born Osama bin Laden, was recruited during that period “ironically under the auspices of the CIA, to fight the Soviet invaders”. (See Michel Chossudovsky, War and Globalisation, The Truth behind September 11 , Global Outlook, Shanty Bay, 2002, Chapter 2)

Carter’s July 3, 1979 Directive

Following President Carter’s July 3, 1979 directive, US support to various rebel groups evolved into the largest covert operation in CIA history. In the words of Carter’s National Security Adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski:

“…That secret operation [in support of Islamic fundamentalism] was an excellent idea. It had the effect of drawing the Russians into the Afghan trap and you want me to regret it? The day that the Soviets officially crossed the border, I wrote to President Carter. We now have the opportunity of giving to the USSR its Vietnam war. Indeed, for almost 10 years, Moscow had to carry on a war unsupportable by the government, a conflict that brought about the demoralization and finally the breakup of the Soviet empire.

The Nouvel Observateur journalist concludes the interview with Zbigniew Brzezinski with following question:

“And neither do you regret having supported the Islamic fundamentalism, having given arms and advice to future terrorists?

To which Brzezinski retorts:

“What is most important to the history of the world? The Taliban or the collapse of the Soviet empire? Some stirred-up Moslems or the liberation of Central Europe and the end of the cold war? “

The 2002 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to former President Jimmy Carter for:

“his decades of untiring efforts to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights and to promote economic and social development.” (Norwegian Nobel Institute, http://www.nobel.no/eng_ins_new.html , 11 October 2002)

Source: Global Research

So what will Russia do? Help?

Maybe Russia will just sit back, do nothing and watch NATO and the US fail!

Anders Fogh Rasmussen

The head of Nato appealed to Russia for greater help with the war in Afghanistan yesterday as he sought to repair relations between the military alliance and Moscow.

Anders Fogh Rasmussen asked President Medvedev to supply helicopters and prepare pilots for the Afghan air force, and expand training for Afghan police in Russia. It was the first visit by a Nato leader since Russia’s war with Georgia last year caused the most serious rift in relations since the Cold War.

“I do believe that it’s also essential for Russia that we succeed in Afghanistan,” Mr Rasmussen said during the Kremlin talks. “Because if Afghanistan once again becomes a safe haven for terrorists, then Russia would be among the victims, as terrorists could easily spread from Afghanistan through Central Asia to Russia.”

Mr Medvedev said that Russia and Nato had “many reasons for interaction”. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who was at the meeting, said that the President had ordered officials to study the requests and prepare a response.

“We also expect our ideas to be considered by the alliance,” Mr Lavrov added, a reference to Mr Medvedev’s recent proposal for a new pan-European security treaty that Nato has largely ignored.

The Kremlin is anxious to prevent any return to power by the Taleban in Afghanistan. But it is also fearful of being drawn into the conflict after the Soviet Union’s painful experience of fighting a decade-long war in the country before withdrawing in defeat in 1989.

It has provided logistical support to Nato operations and sent $220 million of military aid to the Afghan government, including an air-defence system for Kabul airport. Russia also sold four Mi-17 helicopters to Afghanistan last month, the country’s first new aircraft for 20 years.

Continue reading »

Tags: Afghanistan, CIA, Dmitry Medvedev, Global News, Jimmy Carter, Military, NATO, Nobel Peace Prize, Osama Bin Laden, Politics, Taliban, U.S., War, Zbigniew Brzezinski

UPDATE: Russian President Dmitriy Medvedev told CNN that Israeli President Shimon Peres assured him that Israel would not attack Iran.

“This is the worst thing that one can imagine,” Medvedev said. “What would happen afterwards? A humanitarian catastrophe, a huge number of refugees. And Iran would want revenge, and not only over Israel, but over other countries as well. The events in the region would become completely unpredictable. I think the scope of such a disaster would not be comparable to anything. Therefore, before taking the decision to launch any attacks, you need to think the situation through. It would be the most irrational way to deal with the situation. But my Israeli colleagues told me they do not plan to do that. And I trust them.’

….

“Brzezinski plays no role in the Obama administration ….”

Brzezinski is the man behind Obama reporting to the elite.

Brzezinski is the partner of David Rockefeller.

Together they created the TriLateral Commission in 1973. Intellectual representative of 300 of the wealthiest people in the world. Strong influence on US policies, foreign and domestic.

“We are on the verge of a global transformation. All we need is ”the right major crisis” and the nations will accept the New World Order.” - David Rockefeller

He’s like a bookend to Henry Kissinger, who is also a Tri-Lateralist. Brzezinski was a rising advisor under Nixon. Brzezinski served as National Security Advisor under Jimmy Carter. Truthfully, Jimmy Carter was ‘appointed’ to serve under Rockefeller and Brzezinski.

Brzezinski basically created Al-Qaeda.

Brzezinski is Obama’s “right-hand man.” (He’s his fucking “Dick Cheney” if you need it spelt out for you in “Bush” language.).

The national security adviser for former President Jimmy Carter, Zbigniew Brzezinski, gave an interview to The Daily Beast in which he suggested President Obama should make it clear to Israel that if they attempt to attack Iran’s nuclear weapons sites the U.S. Air Force will stop them.

“We are not exactly impotent little babies,” Brzezinski said. “They have to fly over our airspace in Iraq. Are we just going to sit there and watch? … We have to be serious about denying them that right. That means a denial where you aren’t just saying it. If they fly over, you go up and confront them. They have the choice of turning back or not. No one wishes for this but it could be a ‘Liberty’ in reverse.”

The USS Liberty was a U.S. Navy technical research ship that the Israeli Air Force mistakenly attacked during the Six Day War in 1967.

MISTAKENLY???:
- Dead In The Water – The Sinking of the USS Liberty (BBC Documentary)

Brzezinski endorsed then-Sen. Obama’s presidential campaign in August 2007, which at the time was portrayed in the media as a boost to Obama’s foreign policy cred. The Washington Post reported: “Barack Obama, combating the perception that he is too young and inexperienced to handle a dangerous world, got a boost yesterday from a paragon of foreign policy eminence, Zbigniew Brzezinski.”

Brzezinski was never an official campaign adviser, but Republicans jumped on the endorsement to push the meme that Obama wouldn’t be a friend to Israel, as Brzezinski’s views of Israel attracted criticism from some quarters in the American Jewish community.

“Brzezinski is not an adviser to the campaign,” former Ambassador Dennis Ross, then a senior adviser on Middle East affairs to the Obama campaign, said at the time. “There is a lot of disinformation that is being pushed, but he is not an adviser to the campaign. Brzezinski came out and supported Obama early because of the war in Iraq. A year or so ago they talked a couple of times. That’s the extent of it, and Sen. Obama has made it clear that on other Middle Eastern issues, Brzezinski is not who he looks to. They don’t have the same views.”

Brzezinski plays no role in the Obama administration; the White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Continue reading »

Tags: Air Force, Barack Obama, Dmitry Medvedev, Government, Iran, Istrael, Military, Obama administration, Politics, Russia, U.S., Zbigniew Brzezinski

Russia’s message to Israel and the US: ‘Hands off Iran’.

The bill says troops can be used to protect Russian citizens abroad

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has introduced a bill to parliament that would allow the country’s armed forces to intervene beyond Russia’s borders.

The bill would allow Russian troops to be used abroad “to rebuff or prevent an aggression against another state” or “protect Russian citizens abroad”.

Mr Medvedev said the bill was linked to last year’s war with Georgia over South Ossetia, Russia’s Interfax reports.

Moscow said it was protecting Russian citizens in South Ossetia.

The war began on 7 August 2008, as Georgia tried to retake control of its breakaway region, following a series of clashes.

Russian forces quickly repelled the assault and pushed further into Georgia.

The conflict lasted for five days before a ceasefire was agreed. Russia pulled back, but built up its military presence in both South Ossetia and another breakaway region, Abkhazia. Continue reading »

Tags: Dmitry Medvedev, Military, Politics, Russia

July 10 (Bloomberg) — Russian President Dmitry Medvedev illustrated his call for a supranational currency to replace the dollar by pulling from his pocket a sample coin of a “united future world currency.”

“Here it is,” Medvedev told reporters today in L’Aquila, Italy, after a summit of the Group of Eight nations. “You can see it and touch it.”

The coin, which bears the words “unity in diversity,” was minted in Belgium and presented to the heads of G-8 delegations, Medvedev said.

The question of a supranational currency “concerns everyone now, even the mints,” Medvedev said. The test coin “means they’re getting ready. I think it’s a good sign that we understand how interdependent we are.”

Continue reading »

Tags: Dmitry Medvedev, Dollar, Economy, G8, New World Order, Politics, Russia

The real President Obama will visit Russia on Monday and Tuesday. On Friday, Russians in downtown Moscow had to settle for a cardboard facsimile. (AP)

MOSCOW – The Russian government has agreed to let American troops and weapons bound for Afghanistan fly over Russian territory, officials on both sides said Friday. The arrangement will provide an important new corridor for the United States military as it escalates efforts to win the eight-year war.

The agreement, to be announced when President Obama visits here on Monday and Tuesday, represents one of the most concrete achievements in the administration’s effort to ease relations with Russia after years of tension. But the two sides failed to make a trade deal or resolve differences over missile defense, and are struggling to draft a preliminary nuclear arms deal.

Continue reading »

Tags: Afghanistan, Dmitry Medvedev, Government, Joe Biden, Military, NATO, Obama administration, Politics, Russia, U.S., War