The Long Arm of the Clintons

Ecuador's government acknowledged on Tuesday that it cut off WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's internet access at its embassy in London after the whistleblowing site published a trove of damaging emails from Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign.

The recognition of the reprimand comes less than 24 hours after WikiLeaks tweeted that Ecuador had cut off Assange's access to the Internet on Saturday after the publication of Clinton's speeches to Wall Street investment bank Goldman Sachs.

In follow-up messages posted Tuesday, the group claimed U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry had personally intervened to ask Ecuador to stop Assange from publishing documents about Clinton.  

Associated Press

I may not be questioned... Peons.

"I will not allow my commitment to Israel to be questioned by anyone, particularly for partisan, political purposes,"

HUBRIS: excessive pride or self-confidence; arrogance.

Apparently partisan questioning for political purposes extends to a long list of fellow democrats and members of the Israeli government.

Sen Barbara Boxer: "nonsensical and ridiculous", Rep Nita Lowey: "irresponsible, inaccurate, and counterproductive", Moshe Yaalon, the Israel Defense minister “Kerry cannot teach me anything about the conflict with the Palestinians.”  In truth the outrage over Kerry's statement has been fairly bipartisan, with both Democrats and Republicans coming out against him.

Kerry's apology was ham-handed at best, at worse, detrimental. But what is he apologizing for?

“A two-state solution will be clearly underscored as the only real alternative. Because a unitary state winds up either being an apartheid state with second-class citizens – or it ends up being a state that destroys the capacity of Israel to be a Jewish state.”

Kerry might be a stuck-up prick as illustrated by his "apology", but he did not call Israel an apartheid state. 

Thoughts? 

 

Cry Havoc! and let slip the dogs of war

Kremlin.ru

The dogs of war won't negotiate
The dogs of war don't capitulate,
They will take and you will give,
And you must die so that they may live

Russian Democracy Comes to the Ukraine

Reuters - Daily Mail

On the eve of the referendum vote in Crimea, Russian forces seized the town of Strilkove in Kherson outside of Crimea and its natural gas distribution facility.  Meanwhile Balaclava masked members of the Berkut are here to assist you in your vote:

1. Are you in favor of the reunification of Crimea with Russia as a part of the Russian Federation?

2. Are you in favor of restoring the 1992 Constitution and the status of Crimea as a part of Ukraine?

Reuters - Daily Mail

 GO ON... VOTE

Retaining Crimea’s current status,  is not an option. NYT

Here is a little light music to vote by:

“You just don’t in the 21st century behave in 19th century fashion by invading another country on completely trumped up pre-text,”  John Kerry

Really? I'd like to ask John Kerry, who told you the rules had changed?   Where power, wealth, or land can be seized by force absent resistance it will be, and no amount of idyllic utopian dreaming is going to change that basic premise. 

The problems with pacifism aren't pacifists, it's everybody else.