RUSSIAN REQUIEM: Putin's crumbling mafia state worse than USSR posted at 18:16:02 UTC via torontosun.com
RUSSIAN REQUIEM: Putin's crumbling mafia state worse than USSR
COME BACK, LEONID, ALL IS FORGIVEN: A new study says things are now worse in Russia than during the Cold War. Former Soviet pooh bah, Leonid Brezhnev.Come back, Leonid Brezhnev, all is forgiven.
Security experts say in a new report, Vladimir Putin’s Russian World Turned Upside Down, that things are now much worse in Russia than during the implosion of the Soviet Union.
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Russia’s ill-starred invasion of Ukraine — destined to make Vladimir Putin’s country an international pariah for generations — has only exposed its shambolic demise.
Professor David Gioe, from King College London, and former British defence official, Dr. William Styles, argue Russia is going down the drain.
TRUST ME: Russian President Vladimir Putin gives his annual state of the nation address in Manezh in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, March 1, 2018.
Photo by Alexander Zemlianichenko
/AP
THE WAR IN UKRAINE 1.0
The paper argues that the bloodbath in Ukraine — which has seen Putin’s military slaughtered by the thousands — was a “strategic blunder of such magnitude” the country is in its worst shape in a generation.
“Putin’s miscalculation in Ukraine has weakened Russia at an elemental level, setting it back decades across all measurable and intangible axes of political, military, and economic power, hobbling Russian statecraft and strategic action for decades,” the new study said.
Russian Foreign Ministry is seen behind a social advertisement billboard showing Z letters — a tactical insignia of Russian troops in Ukraine and reading “Victory is being Forged in Fire” in Moscow on Oct. 13, 2022.
Photo by ALEXANDER NEMENOV
/AFP via Getty Images
WAR DEAD
Putin’s disastrous invasion has seen a staggering number of casualties and is being compared to Hitler’s 1941 invasion of Russia in terms of military folly. The study estimates at least 65,000 casualties so far, but Kyiv has put the death toll around 80,000. Thousands of tanks and helicopters have also been lost. It notes: “Russia has irredeemably failed.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin is seen on a screen set at Red Square as he addresses a rally and a concert marking the annexation of four regions of Ukraine Russian troops occupy — Lugansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, in central Moscow on Sept. 30, 2022.
Photo by ALEXANDER NEMENOV
/AFP via Getty Images
IT’S THE ECONOMY, STUPID
Russia’s humiliation hasn’t just been just on the battlefield. Western sanctions that kicked off soon after Putin slammed Ukraine have pulverized the Russian economy. The warlord can’t even access key components to make weapons of war.
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In short: “Put simply, there is no military, economic, intelligence, diplomatic dimension, and no aspect of Russian civil society, that will not be negatively impacted, if only indirectly, by Putin’s misjudgment in Ukraine.”
Russian soldiers stand on Red Square in central Moscow on Sept. 29, 2022, as the square is sealed prior to a ceremony of the incorporation of the new territories into Russia.
Photo by ALEXANDER NEMENOV
/AFP via Getty Images
PARIAH 2.0
Russia’s stature on the diplomatic front is also at low ebb because of the attack on Ukraine. “[Putin’s] blunder has caused catastrophic harm to Russia across every facet of statecraft in the short term, and, moreover, has imperilled Russian development and prosperity for the future,” the report said.
“The ever-larger accounting of crimes and atrocities has further damaged the legitimacy of Russia as a state in the international system, cementing its pariah status.”
INTELLIGENCE FAILURE: Natasha, Boris and Fearless Leader. JAY WARD
SPY VS. SPY
Experts have pointed to lousy intelligence for Russia’s quagmire. “Typically Putin’s favourite tool on the international stage, internal squabbling and blame shifting has severely damaged Russian intelligence capabilities,” the report said. “It has also faced considerable crises in the way of cyberattacks exposing vast swathes of data on the Kremlin’s security apparatus.”
Plus: Ukraine decapitated Russian intelligence operations before the invasion.
CORRUPT? WHO? US? The alleged head of the Russian mafia, Semyon Mogilevich, who is currently under investigation by the FBI and Interpol. That is if he’s alive.
McMAFIA
Russia as a country is “fundamentally kleptocratic and corrupt.” This thievery has left Putin’s forces underequipped, with little food and triggered a slew of other logistical nightmares. His vaunted but “totally chaotic” conscription drive has left the newbies using Cold War-era equipment.
Russian President Vladimir Putin watches a test launch of the Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile at Plesetsk cosmodrome in Arkhangelsk region, via video link in Moscow, Russia, April 20, 2022.
Photo by Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev
/Kremlin via REUTERS
VLAD ALONE
Increasingly isolated, Putin’s decisions are said to be “uninformed” because of obsequious cronies telling the aspiring czar only what he wants to hear. “The [Russian] morale has gone,” the report said.
“You’ve got soldiers who simply don’t want to fight — these guys were told they would be welcomed with open arms by cheering crowds and the so-called ‘Ukrainian Nazis’ would collapse. Why should they die for Putin’s adventure?”
WINTER IS COMING: Russia will find the going hard this winter, as the Night Watch did in Game of Thrones. HBO
WINTER IS COMING
“If the winter is cold enough for the ground to freeze, then the Ukrainians will keep motoring,” Sir Richard told The UK Sun Online, adding that the famous “rasputitsa” rains will turn battlefields into a muddy nightmare.
“The Ukrainians are well-prepared, they’ve got the clothing, they’ve got the kit, and they’ve got the morale and the motivation — they are not going to stop.”
bhunter@postmedia.com
@HunterTOSun
RUSSIAN REQUIEM: Putin’s crumbling mafia state worse than USSR Toronto Sun
The post RUSSIAN REQUIEM: Putin’s crumbling mafia state worse than USSR – Toronto Sun first appeared on The Brooklyn Guide.
The defense chiefs exchanged views on being “careful and cautious about provocations” that would worsen the security in the region, as the Russia-Ukraine fighting enters its 242nd day. A view of the village, located in the border of the Kherson region where the control was again taken by the Ukrainian forces (Metin Aktas / File […]
The post Live blog: Turkish, Russian defense chiefs discuss security, Ukraine war first appeared on The Brooklyn Guide.
The defense chiefs exchanged views on being "careful and cautious about provocations" that would worsen the security in the region, as the Russia-Ukraine fighting enters its 242nd day.
A view of the village, located in the border of the Kherson region where the control was again taken by the Ukrainian forces (Metin Aktas / File / AA)Sunday, October 23, 2022
Turkish National Defence Minister Hulusi Akar and his Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu exchanged views on bilateral, regional defence issues, including ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, authorities said.
In a phone call, Akar said that Türkiye is ready to do its part for a ceasefire in the Russia-Ukraine war, as well as peace and stability in the region.
Shoigu also held calls with French Defence Minister Sebastien Lecornu and UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace.
In the three calls, Shoigu conveyed "concerns about possible provocations by Ukraine with the use of a 'dirty bomb'".
He also spoke to US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin in their second call in three days.
Russia builds defensive lines
Russian authorities are building defensive positions in occupied areas of Ukraine and border regions of Russia, reflecting fears that Ukrainian forces may attack along new sections of the 1,000-kilometre front line of a war nearing its ninth month.
Kirill Stremousov, the deputy head of the Russian-backed regional administration in Kherson, said in a radio interview that Russian defensive lines “have been reinforced and the situation has remained stable” since local officials strongly encouraged all residents of the region's capital and nearby areas on Saturday and Sunday to evacuate by ferry to the river's east bank.
Ukraine urges global ban of Russia's RT
Ukraine branded the Russian state-controlled RT media outlet as an inciter of genocide after a presenter said Ukrainian children who saw Russians as occupiers under the Soviet Union should have been drowned.
In a show broadcast last week, RT presenter Anton Krasovsky said children who criticised Russia should have been "thrown straight into a river with a strong current".
"Governments which have still not banned RT must watch this excerpt," Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said in a tweet that linked to a clip of the interview.
Governments which still have not banned RT must watch this excerpt. This is what you side with if you allow RT to operate in your countries. Aggressive genocide incitement (we will put this person on trial for it), which has nothing to do with freedom of speech. Ban RT worldwide! https://t.co/xJC371rqyg
— Dmytro Kuleba (@DmytroKuleba) October 23, 2022
Ukraine will do its best to 'pass IMF monitoring programme'
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the head of the International Monetary Fund that Ukraine would do its best to "pass the IMF monitoring programme properly" and move to the new one as soon as possible.
"Had a call with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva. Emphasized the importance of the donor coordination platform for Ukraine. Grateful for $1.3 billion in emergency aid," Zelenskyy said on the Telegram messaging service, without elaborating.
Russia continue attacks
Russia's defence ministry said its forces had continued to launch attacks against Ukraine's energy and military infrastructure over the last 24 hours.
Russia also said it had destroyed a large ammunition depot in Ukraine's central Cherkasy region and had repelled Ukrainian counter-offensives along the frontlines in southern and eastern Ukraine. Reuters could not independently verify the claims.
Russia damages 40% of Ukraine's energy production infrastructure in two weeks. TRT World's Obaido Hitto has more pic.twitter.com/cEiqWJBhbd
— TRT World Now (@TRTWorldNow) October 23, 2022
Russian military plane crashes
A Russian military plane has crashed into a two-storey residential building in the Siberian city of Irkutsk, the region's governor Igor Kobzev said in a post on Telegram.
He said he was on site, and had no information about casualties.
It was the second such incident in six days, after a fighter plane crashed into an apartment block in the southern city of Yeysk, near Ukraine, last Monday killing at least 15 people.
Military think tank: Russia withdraws officers from Kherson
Russia’s military leadership has withdrawn its officers in the Russian-annexed city of Kherson across the Dnieper River in anticipation of an advance of Ukrainian troops, the Institute for the Study of War think tank said.
To delay the Ukrainian counteroffensive as the Russians complete their retreat, Moscow has left newly mobilized, inexperienced forces on the other side of the wide river, it added.
Scheduled power cuts introduced in Kiev
Scheduled "stabilisation" power cuts have been introduced in the Ukrainian capital after repeated Russian strikes on the country's energy infrastructure, Kiev's energy operator said.
"On October 23, stabilisation shutdowns were introduced in Kiev by national energy operator Ukrenergo to avoid accidents," energy company DTEK said in a statement.
It added that the blackouts should last "no more than four hours" but may be longer "due to the scale of damage to the power supply system".
Zelenskyy: We can down most Russian missiles
Zelenskyy has alleged that Russia had launched strikes on infrastructure on a "very wide" scale and pledged that his military would improve on an already good record of downing missiles with help from its partners.
"The geography of this latest mass strike is very wide," Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address, citing regions in western, central and southern Ukraine.
"Of course we don't have the technical ability to knock down 100 percent of the Russian missiles and strike drones. I am sure that, gradually, we will achieve that, with help from our partners. Already now, we are downing a majority of cruise missiles, a majority of drones."
G7 slams Russia's 'kidnapping' of Ukraine nuclear plant leadership
Group of Seven (G7) industrialised nations have condemned what they say was Russia's kidnapping of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear powerplant leadership and called for the immediate return of full control of the plant to Ukraine.
"We condemn Russia's repeated kidnapping of Ukrainian ZNPP (Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant) leadership and staff," G7 Nonproliferation Directors General said in a statement.
"We urge Russia to immediately return full control of the ZNPP to its rightful sovereign owner, Ukraine," it said.
Ukraine plane engine builder head held
A former owner of a prestigious aircraft engine builder in central Ukraine has been detained on treason charges, Ukrainian media reported, quoting security sources.
Several of Ukraine's most prominent media outlets said Vyacheslav Boguslaev, the "honorary head" of the Motor Sich company in the central city of Zaporizhzhia, had been detained and was being taken to Kiev in a convoy.
The reports quoted security sources as saying Boguslaev, a former member of parliament, was suspected of collaborating with and assisting Russian forces occupying parts of four Ukrainian regions, including Zaporizhzhia region.
For live updates from Saturday (October 22), click here
Source: TRTWorld and agencies
By Michael Novakhov (Mike Nova) September 20, 2022
The #FBI FBI agents' job is to investigate, not to produce the broad overreaching political assessments.
MY OPINION #MYOPINION:
#FBI A half of the FBI are unhappy, frustrated, B & C #MovieActors. And this is a #huge #problem. Another half thinks that they are the Cowboys fighting the Indians, while in fact THEY ARE THE #INDIANS, played with by the #COWBOYS, the Russian #MobIntel. | #FBI #CABAL #FBICABAL #Trump #Election2016 fbi CABAL helped Trump in Election 2016 | #FBI DOJ #DOJ #CIA CIA The purpose of Putin's KGB in facilitating and enabling the FBI's obsession with "child pornography" was exactly this: the DIVERSION OF RESOURCES. Apparently they use this tactic quite often, and very likely used it before the 911. | #FBI FBI #DOJ DOJ #ChildPornographyLaws Child Pornography Laws The #false and #baseless accusations of "child pornography", based on the recent #laws of the very #questionable #legality are very #shameful for the #US and global #legalsystems & are the product of #Putin's #KGB.
The #FBI FBI agents' job is to investigate, not to produce the broad overreaching political assessments. These "whistleblowers" look more like the Trump agents in the FBI, the "CABAL" e.g. James Kalstrom, Rudy Jiuliani. It was instrumental in the #ELECTION2016.
Michael Novakhov (Mike Nova), Blogger | 10:44 AM 9/20/2022
___________________________________________
 | Michael_Novakhov shared this story . |
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ЛЛОЙД ОСТИН, ФОТО GETTY IMAGES
Глава Минобороны США Ллойд Остин после телефонного разговора с российским коллегой Сергеем Шойгу провел также разговор с министром обороны Украины Алексеем Резниковым.
Об этом сообщает "Европейская правда" со ссылкой на пресс-релиз американского Минобороны.
В Пентагоне отметили, что Остин "подтвердил непоколебимую приверженность США поддержке способности Украины противостоять российской агрессии".
"Министр обороны Остин также отметил неизменную поддержку международного сообщества в развитии прочности Украины и обеспечении ее способности защищать себя в будущем, о чем свидетельствуют обязательства по предоставлению помощи в сфере безопасности, взятые на себя союзниками и партнерами на последнем заседании Контактной группы по вопросам обороны Украины 12 октября этого года", - отмечается в сообщении.
Дополнено. Резников в Twitter также рассказал о разговоре с главой Пентагона. По его словам, речь шла об усилении системы противовоздушной обороны Украины, а также ситуации с безопасностью.
"Глава Пентагона заверил меня: несмотря на то, кто с кем ведет переговоры, поддержка Соединенными Штатами суверенитета и территориальной целостности Украины остается непоколебимой", - добавил он.
Напомним, перед этим российское Минобороны сообщило, что Шойгу и Остин обсудили "актуальные вопросы международной безопасности, включая ситуацию в Украине".
Последний раз о разговоре Шойгу и Остина сообщалось 13 мая. Это был первый разговор глав оборонных ведомств РФ и США после начала российского вторжения в Украину.
Министр обороны России Сергей Шойгу поговорил по телефону с британским коллегой Беном Уоллесом о ситуации на Украине. Об этом сообщает ТАСС со ссылкой на Минобороны РФ.
Глава российского оборонного ведомства довел до Уоллеса информацию о возможной украинской провокации с «грязной бомбой».
В воскресенье РИА Новости сообщили, что на Украине готовится провокация с использованием «грязной бомбы» - более примитивного аналога ядерного оружия. Целью, по словам источников информационного агентства, является дискредитация России перед политическими союзниками.
Ранее Сергей Шойгу проинформировал главу минобороны Франции Себастьяна Лекорню о возможной провокации с «грязной бомбой» со стороны Украины. Также Шойгу провел телефонные переговоры по этому поводу с турецким коллегой Хулуси Акарой.
The battle over Ukraine extends across the world: Information warfare is quickly evolving as key nations seek to influence public opinion and gain political support.
As during the Cold War, Russia and the United States are the two main combatants. Some efforts are clandestine, but plenty of material is broadcast to the public as each country attempts to, in the words of political linguists, “constrain the power and influence of the other … and win ‘hearts and minds’ … around the world.”
Key government-sponsored media outlets in the current battle are Russia Today, often known as RT, and two US government-backed operations, Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
But it can be hard for many people to tell the difference between these outlets and independent news. As a propaganda scholar, I believe citizens of all nations deserve to know how their media have been filtered and when governments are seeking to influence their views.
My colleague Weston Sager and I developed a test for determining whether a particular media outlet is, or is not, a government mouthpiece. We examine key factors such as government control, funding, attribution and its resemblance to news.
At their best, these types of outlets provide official government information – at worst, blatant propaganda. Here’s how the main players in the US and Russia measure up.
Russia Today: Propaganda with some facts sprinkled in
RT is a multilanguage international media broadcaster that claims to be an “autonomous, non-profit organization.” But in reality, it has officially declared to the US State Department that it is an arm of the Russian government.
In lockstep with the Kremlin, RT has supported the 2008 Russian invasion of Georgia, the 2014 Russian invasion of the Crimean peninsula of Ukraine and the 2022 Russian invasion of mainland Ukraine.
The outlet has a history of publishing sensationalized and biased articles promoting Russian policies and accentuating the perceived failings of the United States and its allies. For example, in 2015, RT devoted extensive coverage to the Occupy Wall Street movement. Not only did this storyline allow RT to selectively showcase people protesting in the United States, it helped further Russia’s narrative that its economic system is superior to US capitalism.
More recently, RT has, without credible evidence, accused the United States of developing bioweapons in Ukraine and testing them on people there.
But this doesn’t mean that RT is “able to dispense with facts all together,” as propaganda often leverages truthful bits of information, nor that it is strictly anti-American. In 2010, for instance, RT published an interview containing accusations that the Republicans were exploiting racial fears ahead of midterm elections.
Then RT publicly defended the Obama administration against Fox News host Glenn Beck‘s accusations that Obama was turning the United States into a socialist country. Propaganda works by supporting themes that are in popular discourse at the time. It does not necessarily follow a linear path and may be counterintuitive at times.
In the wake of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, RT was blocked in many nations around the world to limit the spread of Russian propaganda. Nevertheless, RT continues to publish its content, especially in less developed countries where the Russian government is working to increase its international reputation and influence.
Voice of America is headquartered in the Wilbur J. Cohen Federal Building in Washington, D.C. AP Photo/Andrew HarnikMajor US outlets present mostly facts – that support American values
Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty are the US government’s primary international media outlets, though there are other channels as well.
In 1942, during World War II, the US government established VOA to broadcast pro-Allied messages and to combat Nazi propaganda abroad. In the 1950s, the CIA founded RFE/RL to counter Soviet propaganda in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union.
Both outlets are now overseen by the US Agency for Global Media, a part of the executive branch of the federal government. The agency receives over US$800 million in annual funding from Congress.
Similar to RT, VOA and RFE/RL claim that they are independent media outlets. In support of that claim, they often point to a vaguely defined “firewall” that is supposed to shield their editorial integrity from US government influence.
But the firewall is often strained under the weight of political pressure. In 2020, President Donald Trump’s newly appointed CEO of the US Agency for Global Media rescinded the firewall regulation, which compromised VOA’s independence in advance of the 2020 US presidential election.
In 2021, the firewall was legislatively strengthened, but questions remain about its effectiveness at preventing government influence.
Governmental influence over the editorial direction of U.S. state media can also come through legislation. In 2021, Congress introduced a bill that would instruct the agency to “facilitate the unhindered dissemination of information to Islamic majority countries on issues regarding the human rights and religious freedom of Uyghurs.”
From this rooftop in Prague, RFE/RL broadcasts across Eastern Europe and into Russia. Photo: AFP via Getty Images / Michal Cizek / The ConversationAdditional editorial pressure comes from federal law. VOA material must be “consistent” with US foreign policy objectives, “represent America,” “present the policies of the United States clearly and effectively” and include editorials that reflect the views of the US government. Under the same law, RFE/RL is required to support the US government abroad.
Additionally, federal law also more pointedly provides a new pathway for folding this into a larger outlet that would be expressly required to “counter state-sponsored propaganda which undermines the national security or foreign policy interests of the United States and its allies.”
VOA and RFE/RL have a history of providing slanted and incomplete portrayals of major events and issues. Scholarship has highlighted how, during the Cold War, RFE spread “rumors as fact” and displayed a “consistent pattern of downplaying or ignoring evidence that contradicted RFE’s vision of Eastern Europe as a totalitarian dystopia” early in the Cold War.
US government editorial pressure has also come indirectly through funding cuts, which VOA experienced after senators balked at spending tax money to produce “unpleasant news” surrounding Watergate. The Reagan administration was known to object to critical VOA coverage and also steered its “editorial voice” to align with the administration’s political agenda.
Today, VOA often publishes stories about the United States that promote American values, such as recent articles titled “Refugees Shape America” and “US International Festival Celebrates Traditional Food, Dance.”
On the other hand, RFE/RL is more focused on countering propaganda. It includes coverage that is often critical of US adversaries, such as “‘We Have To Pay For Our Indifference’: A Russian Deserter Speaks Out After Ukraine War Memoir Hits A Nerve” and “Putin Hints At ‘Changing Routes’ For Ukrainian Grain Exports, Warns Of Food ‘Catastrophe’.”
Even though VOA and RFE/RL sometimes publish pieces that show unflattering aspects of the United States, such as “The Global Legacy of January 6,” this is by design, as the outlets would lose credibility if they ignored important topics covered in independent media.
Concealed influence
Because VOA and RFE/RL rely on facts, the US State Department has argued that US government media are less threatening than Russian “disinformation.”
But the US approach is still risky: VOA and RFE/RL content more closely resembles independent news, so it is more difficult for readers to identify it as government-run media. This is especially problematic in cases in which the outlets are targeting US citizens, who may not be able to tell that they’re interacting with their own government.
Despite what VOA and RFE/RL claim, they are not independent. Both are funded by the US government and are used to deliver US policy abroad. Even though VOA and RFE/RL may look like news, they aren’t; like RT, their underlying purpose is to bolster their government’s influence around the world.
Weston Sager contributed to this article.
Jennifer Grygiel is Associate Professor of Communications (Social Media), Syracuse University
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
This piece contains editorial comments that belong to the U.S. veteran who wrote this story.
In what appears to be another attempt to weaponize federal law enforcement against those who tell the truth and push back against the progressive narrative, Chris Burgard recently received a visit from the FBI at his Texas ranch.
Here is what led to that encounter.
In November of 2021, Burgard released a documentary called Capitol Punishment. His film featured what he saw at the US Capitol on January 6th, He combined the footage of what he captured outside with cell phone video shot by individuals who went into the building, showing numerous perspectives that were not shown by the mainstream media.
The poster for the film is headlined:
EVERYTHING THEY TOLD YOU IS A LIE
Ironically, the very agency that is now looking into Burgard has seemingly ignored his movie from an evidentiary point of view.
“Capitol Punishment” director Chris Burgard described the chilling visit he allegedly got from the FBI after making his movie about January 6 and said “if this can happen to me, it can happen to anybody.”https://t.co/vVSdtPytaX
— OregonTeaParty (@OregonTeaParty) October 22, 2022
As stated in an interview with Burgard and his wife by PJ Media:
“Despite never having entered the Capitol building himself, the FBI has now come to Burgard’s ranch in Texas to interrogate him. As one might imagine, after filming extensive interviews with victims of the FBI witch hunt, this left Burgard, and his family shaken.”
They described the encounter.
On August 4th, an FBI agent went to their home, leaving his card on the door.
It was not clear from the interview if the agent simply left it on the door and drove away, or if he attempted to speak to someone but found no one at the home.
Lisa Burgard said that the entire process left her “unsettled.”
“There was no note attached, so I wasn’t sure, like, was it for Chris, was it for me, was it for the whole family? Were we supposed to call them back? I really didn’t know what to make of it, but it was a warning. I mean, I’ve never had anything like that happen before.”
Chris Burgard continued discussing the impact that this was having on his entire family.
“We had to have a family meeting afterwards because, you know, from doing the movie, my daughter knows those other girls that had their house raided and pulled out into the street. One of them was handcuffed. They were flash-banged.
And my daughter’s like, ‘Dad, you think they’ll raid us tomorrow? Should I keep the dogs in my room? Cause I don’t want them to shoot my dogs.’ I can’t tell you the stress this caused my family.”
Keep in mind, Burgard was privy to watching video after video of the FBI’s pre-dawn raids of the homes of individuals they believed to be associated with January 6th. He included those aspects in his documentary.
Agents shut down streets. They used “flash bang” grenades to stun and disorient the residents of those homes as they made entry.
Given his knowledge of FBI tactics surrounding, it stands to reason that he and his family might be scared of what might be coming their way.
During their family meeting, their 18-year-old daughter moved her father to tears.
“[She] says, ‘Dad, you can’t stop. Because people have to know that, even if you do stop, they’re still going to come after you.’ That was our decision to move forward.”
That is when Burgard lawyered up. His attorney assisted him in responded to the Bureau.
When the agent that left his card told them he only had three questions, the attorney told him to request to be able to respond in writing, which the FBI acquiesced to. Turns out, those three questions wound up being a total of nine.
He answered them and the FBI accepted is response. He has not received any indication that the inquiry into him has been closed.
For now, Burgard and his family still live with the uncertainty of what might happen next. Given the number of American citizens that are still being held without bond in prisons for what some believe amounts to nothing more than trespassing, it is easy to understand the trepidation they face each day with.
“It was very intimidating,” Lisa said. “We are law-abiding citizens and of course, we would cooperate. But it was with so many in our film, they just took it to an extreme. You never know who’s going to be next. It’s still unsettling and I don’t know how I feel about it. I hope that it’s going to be resolved soon and it doesn’t escalate into anything more.”
To the FBI’s credit, Burgard and his attorney both praised the field agents for how they conducted themselves.
Pointing out that the average rank-and-file agents are not aware of how deep the scope of this thing goes at the highest levels of FBI and DOJ administration, attorney Brian Chavez Ochoa also said:
“I think your on-the-street agents are dedicated and are loyal to the oath they took when they were sworn in.”
It remains to be seen of Burgard and his family are awakened early one morning to the sound of clash shattering and a grenade exploding as the FBI makes entry into their home, or if his written statement truly sufficed.
Law Enforcement today will continue to follow this story and will provide updates when available.
Former NYPD intelligence officer: You’re being lied to about what really happened on January 6th, 2021. Here’s the truth.
Like most Americans, I watched the events that unfolded on January 6th, 2020 and was truly disgusted. What started out as a peaceful rally, quickly devolved into chaos with protesters unlawfully entering the Capitol building, some damaging property, others assaulting Capitol police officers.
Once inside, some of the protesters entered the Well of Congress, others their office space, posing for pictures of themselves and posting on various forms of social media. At one point, a group of protesters attempted to break down a barricaded door that was flanked by several uniformed Capitol Police officer.
For some unknown reason, the Capitol Police officer’s left the barricaded door position and moved to another location. The same group of protesters then became more aggressive, pushing and striking the glass window of the door with what looked like flagpoles or clubs.
A man stationed on the interior side of the door, later identified as Lieutenant Michael Byrd of the Capitol police fired one shot from his service weapon, striking Ashli Babbit in the neck, an injury that proved to be fatal.
Much has been said about Lt. Byrd, his use of deadly physical force and the justification to shoot Ashli Babbit who was unarmed at the time of the incident. Videos collected from the scene before the fatal shooting appeared to show Ashli’s attempts to stop some of the other protesters from causing further damage and entering the barricaded door.
On Thursday, June 9th, 2022, hearings regarding the January 6th, 2021 Committee, were broadcast live from Capitol Hill, with members of congress making their oral arguments and displaying edited videos from the rally.
A Capitol Police Officer by the name of Caroline Edwards gave testimony on what she experienced and witnessed from the events from January 6th, including how she was knocked unconscious by a bicycle rack thrown by protesters.
Officer Edwards states that after she regained consciousness, she and her partner Officer Sicknick were sprayed with a chemical irritant, adding “It was carnage…It was chaos”.
Former Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund acknowledged that a warning from the FBI field office in Virginia that read in part “Forecast in detail, the chances extremists could commit “War” was issued but that it wasn’t received until the following day (01-06-21).
The FBI disputed that claim by Chief Sund and was able to verify that the warning was in fact passed on to a Capitol Police officer assigned to the Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) prior to January 6th. Chief Sund states never read the report and wasn’t aware of the warning until after the rally had occurred.
In a separate Senate hearing held on January 11th, 2022, Senator Cruz questioned FBI Executive Assistant Director of National Security Branch Agent Jill Sanborn on whether the FBI agents or confidential informants actively participated in the January 6th riots, Agent Sanborn refused to answer the question stating “I can’t answer that”.
Senator Cruz asked Agent Sanborn “Who is “Ray Epps?” Agent Sanborn replied “I’m aware of who he (Ray Epps) is but I don’t have the specific background to him”.
Senator Cruz then displayed several still enlarged pictures on posters of Ray Epps captured from video recorded on the night before (January 5th ) the January 6th rally with the captions from Mr. Epps that read “Tomorrow, we need to get into the Capitol, into the Capitol!”. In response to Mr. Epps, the crowd shouted “Fed, Fed, Fed, Fed, Fed, Fed” the assertion that Mr. Epps was an FBI Agent.
Senator Cruz asked Agent Sanborn “Is Ray Epps a Fed?” her response was “Sir, I cannot answer that question”. Senator Cruz then presented a 2nd poster with pictures taken from video that depicted Mr. Epps whispering into the ear of another protester.
Within 5 seconds, both Mr. Epps and two other protesters began tearing down a barricade stationed in front of the Capitol. Senator Cruz asked Agent Sanborn “Did Mr. Epps urge them to tear down the barricade?” Agent Sanborn replied “Sir, similar to the other answers, I cannot answer that”.
Finally, Senator Cruz that displayed an FBI Wanted poster published on January 8th that depicted Mr. Epps picture on it along with several other protesters that offered cash rewards for information leading to their arrests and asked: “Did federal agents or those in service of federal agents actively encourage violent and criminal conduct on January 6th?
Agent Sanborn’s response: “Not to my knowledge Sir”. In the following poster presented by Senator Cruz, Mr. Epps picture was removed from the wanted poster on July 1st, 2021 without explanation.
As of this writing, the FBI has arrested 862 protesters from the January 6th rally with the most recent occurring on the morning of June 9th of Michigan GOP Gubernatorial Candidate Ryan Kelly, hours before the January 6th Select Committee was to begin their first hearing.
In anticipation of the large crowd, the Trump administration is on record in having offered National Guard Troops to DC Mayor Muriel Bowser and Speaker Nancy Pelosi, days in advance of the rally voicing security concerns. Both Mayor Bowser and Speaker Pelosi declined the assistance.
Having served 20 years in the NYPD, I’ve lost count of how many protests I have worked throughout NYC. From the riots in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, to Washington Heights in upper Manhattan to the Iraq War that began in front of the United Nations with well over 100,000 people in attendance. In all of these protests, the appropriate planning and resources were allocated and adjusted as necessary.
As a former member of the NYPD Intelligence division, I frequently conducted plain clothes operations at these very same events as well as the use of confidential informants, to collect intelligence and address potential hotspots in order to maintain crowd control.
If the January 6th Select Committee is truly serious about finding the truth, about meeting out justice, there needs to be full transparency not deflection and obfuscation…we owe that to the American people…Especially for Ashli Babbit.
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Christopher Strom is a US Marine, NYPD Intelligence Officer and author of “Brooklyn to Baghdad: An NYPD Cop Fights Terror in Iraq”. Mr. Strom is also a frequent guest on major news media outlets, giving context on Counter Terrorism and Policing in America.
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“Thousands of documents are great, but millions of lines of data are better. And so when you look at call detail records or open source intelligence research or you look at social media, those types of things can tell you a lot,” Riggleman says. “And I think it can actually direct the way that you investigate more than bringing people in who lie, plead the Fifth, or sometimes conveniently forget things.”
The real story, Riggleman contends, isn’t Trump. (“If you indict Trump, his polling numbers are going to go up,” he says. “So good luck.”) Trumpism is now gospel to an online army of devotees, hundreds of whom are now running for state and local offices. No matter which party comes out in control of Congress once the dust settles on Election Night, the next Congress is guaranteed to have Donald Trump’s stamp on it. The GOP candidates on the ballot next month include 291 who say they wouldn’t have certified Biden’s 2020 victory, according to the Washington Post. Of those, 171 are running in safely Republican districts.
As a former member of the House Freedom Caucus who has deep libertarian leanings (he farms his own hemp), Riggleman is worried about the digital takeover of a party he used to love, respect, and doggedly fight for. “You also have to figure out who the hell is pushing these radicalizing ideas over digital channels because that’s where it’s happening too,” Riggleman says.
Thousands of Trump supporters took his post-January 6 deplatforming as their cue to follow their leader off Twitter and Facebook and into a new world of almost-anything-goes social media apps, like Trump’s own struggling Truth Social, or Parler, which Kanye “Ye” West plans to buy. Those apps suck up the most recent coverage, but other apps continue to attract new and frustrated users.
There’s Gab (where QAnon devotees feel safe discussing ever-evolving conspiracy theories), GETTR (a “free speech”-focused app founded by former Trump aide Jason Miller), Rumble (think YouTube for the far right), MeWe (think Facebook for Trump Republicans), and CloutHub (if Twitter and Facebook had a baby). Even Reddit is helping Trump successfully spread ungrounded conspiracies about ballot-stuffing in Arizona.
Many on the right are also increasingly employing popular messaging apps like Telegram, which allows private groups to include as many as 200,000 members, and Signal, popular for its promised end-to-end encryption. That includes many of Trump’s most motivated followers, which we know from the dramatic spike in users they both attracted after Silicon Valley firms started their post-insurrection purges.
Then there are forums like 4chan, 8kun, and Endchan. Movement-inspiring memes, dangerous conspiracy theories, celebrations of violence and violent rhetoric all abound on these hubs connecting kindreds who proudly consider themselves social outcasts set on upending the “normie” society most of us inhabit.
As the select committee now prepares its final report on the preparation and planning leading up to the savage assault on the Capitol on January 6, 2021, the right has moved on. And in laying the groundwork to leave a Trump-sized imprint on this year’s midterms—including upending voting laws in countless battleground states and recruiting thousands of new pro-Trump poll workers to “police” local polling locations—the former president’s acolytes are also proving to be a few steps ahead of their opponents in their plan to capture the White House in 2024.
Just as an escalator helped Trump glide into the center of US politics, Riggleman says, the real story is the online gears, lubricants, chains, and steps lurking just under our feet. Likewise, unless more attention is paid to these means of political production, this new political order is something we all should get used to.
“We’re in a post-truth era, but we’re also in a post-Trump world—where those belief systems are baked in, and we’re going to have to deal with this for decades,” Riggleman says. “We need to look at going faster, harder, and better with more technology and more resources in that arena.”
Russian residents in the city of Belgorod have been left puzzled after a pillar of light was spotted rising up into the cloudy night sky.
Numerous possible explanations have been put forward for the lights, including a Russian laser weapon or a natural phenomenon.
Belgorod is located about 25 miles north of the border with Ukraine.
The Claim
On October 4 and October 5, images and videos were posted to social media from residents in Belgorod showing how a yellow beam of light was shining high into the dark sky. The sky around the beam also appears to glow yellow.
The source is not clear in any of the images as buildings typically cover the lower part of the beam before it meets the horizon.
Multiple possible explanations have been put forward as to the cause of the beam, with many military in nature, given Russia's ongoing conflict with Ukraine.
"Over Belgorod works 'Peresvet'," wrote one Twitter user, referring to Russia's Peresvet anti-satellite laser.
Daily Russian tabloid newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda uploaded a video of the light to YouTube, and wrote in the description, translated from Russian: "A test of a top-secret weapon or a common natural phenomenon? Residents of Belgorod are at a loss."
The Facts
A suggestion that the lights may be lasers was published by Moscow newspaper Moskovskij Komsomolets in an online article on October 5. The article claimed that military correspondent Andrey Rudenko had said the military was using "the latest weapons of the Russian Federation" that day. Rudenko added: "Due to the circumstances, we are unlikely to find out, but many people saw the glow in the sky today."
This might suggest the lights could be attributed to the use of the Peresvet laser, but very little is known about it and it is unclear whether it would produce a yellow beam.
According to military news website ArmyRecognition.com, Peresvet is in service currently with development having been announced by Russian president Vladimir Putin in 2018. It can reportedly 'blind' satellites at a distance of 930 miles.
However, some social media users also noted that it would be unlikely that a beam targeting a moving space satellite would be fixed in position and pointing directly upwards.
Another potential source of the lights is a natural phenomenon known variously as a light column or light pillar.
This explanation was put forward by Russian news outlet RBC, which cited Mikhail Leus, a specialist at the Phobos weather center, as saying, translated from Russian: "In fact, the light pillars observed in the sky are an optical phenomenon in the atmosphere, which bears such a name 'light column'.
"Light pillars in the atmosphere are an optical phenomenon, a type of halo created by the refraction of light on ice crystals."
This can happen when the sun or moon is located low above the horizon around sunrise or sunset. Other sources include greenhouses, of which there is an abundance in Belgorod, according to local media reports, with some allegedly owned by Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich.
Russian state media RIA Novosti, citing scientists at the Belgorod University, also concluded that the "halos" were likely caused by the greenhouses in the area.
Ken Carslaw is a professor in the Institute for Climate and Atmospheric Science at the University of Leeds in the U.K. Speaking to Newsweek, he also said this natural phenomenon was a possibility.
"These occur in clouds with flat ice crystals that are horizontally aligned so that they all reflect downwards in the same direction above a light source," he said.
"Obviously to see this phenomenon you need ice. It's currently about 11C in Belgorod, which means these clouds must be at least 1 km above the ground or probably more—ice in clouds usually doesn't form until much lower temperatures.
"If there were any images showing this beam at much lower altitudes, then I wouldn't have an explanation."
Similar columns of light above Belgorod have been reported before—yellow columns stretching into the sky—and have been explained by local media as a meteorological phenomenon, an explanation that appears the most likely in this case too.
The Ruling
Unverified.
The source of the beams of light seen in Belgorod, Russia, on October 4 and October 5 is unclear, but they are probably meteorological. Experts in meteorology have confirmed it is possible the lights are a natural phenomenon, and they have been noted to occur in the region in the past. While a Russian newspaper has alluded to reports of weapons tests, and Russia does claim to have top secret anti-satellite lasers, based on the evidence available this explanation seems unlikely.
FACT CHECK BY NEWSWEEK
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