Tag: Defense Department

US, China military chiefs trade barbs at 1st meeting

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has met with Chinese State Councilor and Minister of National Defense Wei Fenghe amid heightened tensions between the two countries over recent remarks regarding the Taipei regime.

US, China military chiefs trade barbs at 1st meeting

Related:

China warns US it will not hesitate to start war over Taiwan

“If anyone dares to split Taiwan from China, the Chinese army will definitely not hesitate to start a war no matter the cost,” Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe said during a meeting with his American counterpart Lloyd Austin on Friday.

‘We’re Fed Up With It’: Survivors of the USS Liberty Look for Answers 55 Years Later

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

In Section 34, at the center of a green oasis on the south side of Arlington National Cemetery, about 50 men and women gathered around a stone slab with six names on it. Many sought shelter on chairs in the shade and others wavered, rocking on sea legs and canes, in the June heat.

‘We’re Fed Up With It’: Survivors of the USS Liberty Look for Answers 55 Years Later (archived)

Previously:

The story of when Israel attacked America, and the US government sided with Tel Aviv

The US is heavily reliant on China and Russia for its ammo supply chain. Congress wants to fix that.

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)1 Comment

The US is heavily reliant on China and Russia for its ammo supply chain. Congress wants to fix that.

Related:

Antimony is a critical mineral commodity for advanced technological uses and the U.S. imports over 70% of antimony consumed domestically. Most of our imported antimony comes from China, which is beginning to reduce its production. Understanding of the origin of this deposit, the largest known antimony deposit in the U.S., would aid in future exploration for undiscovered deposits of this type, both domestically and internationally.

[2018] Source – US Geological Survey

Congress has repeatedly authorized multimillion-dollar sell-offs of the U.S. strategic minerals stockpile over the past several decades, but Washington’s increased anxiety over Chinese domination of resources critical to the defense industrial base has prompted lawmakers to reverse course and shore up the reserve.

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The stockpile was valued at nearly $42 billion in today’s dollars at its peak during the beginning of the Cold War in 1952. That value has plummeted to $888 million as of last year following decades of congressionally authorized sell-offs to private sector customers. Lawmakers anticipate the stockpile will become insolvent by FY25.

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“A lot of what happened is Congress just getting greedy and finding politically convenient ways to fund programs that they weren’t willing to raise revenue for,” said Moulton.

Congress and Pentagon seek to shore up strategic mineral stockpile dominated by China

They only have themselves to blame!

America, Meet Your New Dictator-in-Chief: The President’s Secret, Unchecked Powers

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)1 Comment

by John W. Whitehead & Nisha Whitehead | June 01, 2022

America, meet your new dictator-in-chief.

As the New York Times reports, “Newly disclosed documents have shed a crack of light on secret executive branch plans for apocalyptic scenarios—like the aftermath of a nuclear attack—when the president may activate wartime powers for national security emergencies.”< The problem, of course, is that we have become a nation in a permanent state of emergency. Power-hungry and lawless, the government has weaponized one national crisis after another in order to expand its powers and justify all manner of government tyranny in the so-called name of national security. The seeds of this present madness were sown almost two decades ago when George W. Bush stealthily issued two presidential directives that granted the president the power to unilaterally declare a national emergency, which is loosely defined as “any incident, regardless of location, that results in extraordinary levels of mass casualties, damage, or disruption severely affecting the U.S. population, infrastructure, environment, economy, or government functions.”

America, Meet Your New Dictator-in-Chief: The President’s Secret, Unchecked Powers

Missing Links/Links Behind Paywalls:

Secret Emergency Orders May Include Focus on Internet, New Files Show

Report: Military may have to quell domestic violence from economic collapse

Known Unknowns: Unconventional “Strategic Shocks” in Defense Strategy Development (PDF)

End the Imperial Presidency Before It’s Too Late

Too Much Presidential Power — We’ve Got to Address the ‘Unitary Executive’ Question

‘Nuclear Winter’ Discussed in Newly Released Reagan-Era Documents

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)1 Comment

Newly released government documents from the 1980s outline the devastation that would be wrought on the planet if nuclear superpowers go to war—which should serve as a reminder for policymakers to prioritize peace negotiations as the war in Ukraine rages on, according to Scott Horton, editorial director of Antiwar.com.

‘Nuclear Winter’ Discussed in Newly Released Reagan-Era Documents

Related:

Nuclear Winter: U.S. Government Thinking During the 1980s

American Shooter: The Intersection of Alienation and Desperation Under Capitalism

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)1 Comment

American Shooter: The Intersection of Alienation and Desperation Under Capitalism

Universal Healthcare and Easy Access Mental Health Services

59% of gun deaths are suicides. Getting healthcare in the United States is nigh impossible for many people whether it be the cost of services, lack of insurance, or the stigmatization that comes from seeking medically necessary mental health services. We need to make concerted efforts to ensure that anyone who needs healthcare can walk into a facility and get the help they need with no questions asked nor strings attached. Whether it is nationalizing healthcare or instituting dual power healthcare structures we need to get this done and we need to do it now. Getting people the healthcare they need drastically reduces rates of mental illness while also reducing the rates of economically motivated crime which is sometimes violent in nature.

In May 2002, The Secret Service published a report that examined school shootings. Among much else, they found that the majority of school shooters had difficulty coping with loss and personal failures, attempted suicide, felt persecuted, and exhibited alarming behaviors toward those around them. All of these are signs to immediately provide accessible healthcare, particularly mental healthcare. We need to be proactive about getting people the help they need. Simply scapegoating mental health issues as the conservative gun lobby does is about as helpful as thoughts and prayers. We need to directly address mental healthcare and build the systems that prevent violence.

Stable Food and Housing

Violence is quite often a symptom of economic distress. Ensuring the stable material conditions of a community not only reduces the incentive to commit economically motivated violent crime, but it also reduces interpersonal violent crime. We need to build communities that have affordable housing and accessible food. The fastest and easiest way to work towards both is to ban R1 zoning because this form of zoning creates food deserts, makes communities car dependent, and skyrockets the cost of housing. This is not to say that we should not be working on dual power structures in housing. We also need free lunch and breakfast programs run by local radicals and community-powered housing programs.

Source: Socialist Rifle Association

Elon Musk Is Not a Renegade Outsider – He’s a Massive Pentagon Contractor

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)1 Comment

Elon Musk’s proposed takeover of Twitter has ruffled many feathers among professional commentators. “Musk is the wrong leader for Twitter’s vital mission,” read one Bloomberg headline. The network also insisted, “Nothing in the Tesla CEO’s track record suggests he will be a careful steward of an important media property.” “Elon Musk is the last person who should take over Twitter,” wrote Max Boot in The Washington Post, explaining that “[h]e seems to believe that on social media anything goes. For democracy to survive, we need more content moderation, not less.” The irony of outlets owned by Michael Bloomberg and Jeff Bezos warning of the dangers of permitting a billionaire oligarch to control our media was barely commented upon.

Elon Musk Is Not a Renegade Outsider – He’s a Massive Pentagon Contractor