Play Nice Random Chat Thread IV

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U.S. Unsuccessfully Tried Killing a Second Iranian Military Official
from nytimes.com



Trump said on Friday that a senior Iranian general killed by a U.S. drone strike had been planning attacks on four U.S. embassies, a claim made to justify the decision but that was at odds with intelligence assessments from senior officials in Trump’s administration.

I can reveal that I believe it probably would’ve been four embassies,” Trump said.
But a senior administration official and a senior defense official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss classified information, said they were only aware of vague intelligence about a plot against the embassy in Baghdad and that the information did not suggest a fully formed plot. Neither official said there were threats against multiple embassies.

The senior administration official said that Trump has been fixated on not allowing an attack on a U.S. diplomatic facility, out of fear of being compared unfavorably to his predecessor.
Trump is “totally obsessed with not letting something like Benghazi happen to him,” the official said, referring to the 2012 attack on a U.S. facility in Libya that has achieved totemic status among Trump allies, who see it as evidence of former president Barack Obama’s alleged weakness in the face of terrorism.
The embassy in Baghdad did not receive an alert commensurate to the threat Trump described, said a person familiar with the situation, who was not authorized to comment publicly. When the U.S. government has specific information about threats to embassies, warnings or alerts are often sent to embassy personnel to be vigilant.

washingtonpost.com
He was always a target. Just after he was assassinated, my first thought was because he was finally out in the open and that he was a high value target of what the USA considers a terrorist organisation, rather than simple payback. Bolton is an offensive realist and has a strong voice in the administration.

My original assessment about the unlikelihood of a broader ‘world’ war was proven right, thankfully for us.
 
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He was always a target. Just after he was assassinated, my first thought was because he was finally out in the open and that he was a high value target of what the USA considers a terrorist organisation, rather than simple payback. Bolton is an offensive realist and has a strong voice in the administration.

My original assessment about the unlikelihood of a broader ‘world’ war was proven right, thankfully for us.
I’ve heard Bolton called a lot of things an offensive realist is a new one.
he’s the ultimate war hawk, no compromise and he has had his sights set on Iran for years.
 
I’ve heard Bolton called a lot of things an offensive realist is a new one.
he’s the ultimate war hawk, no compromise and he has had his sights set on Iran for years.
Offensive realism is an IR (theoretical) approach which informs many of Bolton’s Hawk actions.


In very basic terms, it is shifting power dynamics and balances through offensive actions and putting seemingly ambitious regional rivals on the defensive. But it’s up to you to research further if you are truly interested.

Trump shares some characteristics of offensive realism, in particular the emphasis on power, the international arena being more anarchical and distrust of internationalism.
 
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Meanwhile


Jan12, 2020 at 11:06 a.m. GMT+8
At least a dozen Saudi military trainees in the United States could be sent back to their home country after an FBI investigation found connections to extremist rhetoric, possession of child pornography, and a failure by a small number of people to report alarming behavior by the gunman who killed three people last month at a Pensacola, Fla., military base, according to people familiar with the matter.
Federal law enforcement and military officials are preparing to announce developments in the case in a matter of days. The FBI has been treating the shooting as a terrorist incident, particularly after discovering an anti-American screed posted by the gunman just before the December shooting, according to the people familiar with the matter. They spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss decisions by government officials.

washingtonpost.com
 
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True. He wants the whole military privatised doesn’t he? The US use Princes private army a bit already. Gives plausible deniability.
Trump being a libertarian puts an interesting spin on it, as you could argue the military is the last great bastion of state power.

privatise it and you’ve effectively nullified government.
 
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Prince reckons he is a libertarian.

He's also heavily committed to China isn't he?
Prince is committed to two regions in China, HK and Xinjiang. The fact he openly stated he wants to restart the east India company is a pretty big give away, he’s a Wolfe in sheep’s clothing for Winnie the Pooh’s government.

So im not surprised at all, that’s where the trouble is..
 
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interesting development, British Iranian Ambassador arrested for being at anti gov protests.. :think:

there’s no such thing as grass roots movements when it comes to these things.
 
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