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Forget Aircraft Carriers or Stealth: Here Come China's Special Forces
*Michael Peck* *Security, Asia* Special forces are becoming more heavily relied on by modern militaries. *Key point: *Special forces have become America's instrument for waging small wars on the cheap, using small numbers of elite soldiers rather than large numbers of expensive -- and politically sensitive -- regular troops. Some special force units get all the attention. America’s Delta Force, Russia's Spetnatz and Britain's SAS have glamorous reputations. When was the last time you heard about China's commandos? But Chinese special forces exist, and they have been growing in si... more »
Narrative Managers Claim White Helmets Founder Was Driven To Suicide By Syria Skeptics
Imperialist spinmeisters are trial-ballooning a new Syria narrative that is so breathtakingly stupid it needs its own article solely for the purpose of mockery. On Christmas Eve PBS aired a bizarre segment on the death of James Le Mesurier, the former military intelligence officer who […]
Forgotten History: In 1943, America Gassed Its Own Troops With Deadly Results
*Michael Peck* *Security, Europe* Within a day, medical personnel were puzzled by strange symptoms appearing among sailors, rescuers and Italian civilians. *Key point: *In the end, the mustard gas shipped to Bari proved unnecessary. What a perfect night for a weapon of mass destruction. It was December 2, 1943. And the Nazi bomber crews flying over the Italian port of Bari might have wondered whether they were actually in a war zone. Gleaming below, despite the wartime blackout, was a harbor so brightly lit that it illuminated more than than thirty ships supplying the Allied armi... more »
The Battle Of Coral Sea Turned The Tide Against Japan's Push For Pacific Domination
*Michael Peck* *Security, Asia* After Coral Sea, it was Japan that was thrown off-balance. *Key point: *Japan lost the momentum at Coral Sea. Many history books say the turning point of the Pacific War was the Battle of Midway in June 1942. But a month before Midway, in a patch of ocean 3,500 miles away near the coast of Australia, there occurred another battle that could also be termed the turning point of the Pacific. The Battle of the Coral Sea (May 4–8, 1942) has always been portrayed as the prologue to Midway—a sort of Midway-lite. Like Midway, it was a battle sparked by d... more »
U.S. Soldiers Learned Fast That World War II Was A Battle For Survival
*Warfare History Network* *History, * The fate of the world was at stake. Private Armand Lorenzi and his fellow soldiers were advancing through a snowy German forest when enemy machine guns opened fire. It was Lorenzi’s first time in combat. He started scraping a shallow foxhole until he heard German mortars and artillery exploding and rockets screaming in. Then he started digging desperately. “You learn fast,” he recalled. The Germans fired Nebelwerfers, rockets that made a high-pitched scream as they roared to target, earning them the name “Screaming Mimis.” One rocket exploded... more »
The US Navy's Newest Missile Is Ready For Action
A US Air Force crew member moves a Long Range Anti-Ship Missile for a test flight at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, February 2015. US Air Force photo *Business Insider/Task & Purpose*: *The Navy's newest ship-killer missile is ready for a fight* * The Navy this month announced that its new anti-ship missile reached early operational capability with the F/A-18 fighter in August. * The Long-Range Anti-Ship Missile can deliver a 1,000-pound penetrating warhead at a range of up to 500 nautical miles and has a unique sensor and targeting system to hone in on targets in even the most co... more »
11-Page Outline of Trump Administration Accomplishments…
A Twitter account named @RobbyStarbuck compiled a list of President Trump accomplishments that now extends to 11 pages of bullet-pointed references. SEE HERE SEE Remarkable List HERE
The Daily Brief 2019-12-27
This is a summary of 19 AMN articles on the following subjects: Idlib, Syria, Libya, Turkey, Tripoli, US, Douma, OPCW, Russia, Armenia, Iraq, Lebanon, Ansarallah, Yemen. Categories covered in this brief: Syria, North-Africa, Turkey, World-News, Iraq, Lebanon, Yemen Let us know how you like this brief in the comments below. — The AMN Live Team […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز - The Arab Source
New video of Turkish-backed Syrian militants in Libya
BEIRUT, LEBANON (10:00 P.M.) – A new video has surfaced on social media today showing the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) inside of Libya. In the video, an SNA faction is seen at the gates of a camp in Tripoli after recently arriving inside Libya. A video shows members of the #Syrian_National_Army mercenaries fighting in […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز - The Arab Source
The 2020 Deck of Cards Is Being Shuffled Right Now
I've been telling my readers that momentous events are coming in 2020, which is now mere days away. As one example, consider the following article, which appeared today in one of the major newspapers here in Ecuador. Read this: https://lahora.com.ec/noticia/1102295723/salario-basico-sube-6-dolares-y-solo-beneficia-al-6_-de-ecuatorianos- For those who do not read Spanish, the gist of the story is that the government has just raised the minimum wage by $6 per month, or to a total of $400 per month. Now, many readers may be thinking: "How can people live on $400? That's not very much!... more »
The US Army's New 50mm Cannon Is Ready
Reuters *National Interest: **The Army's Next-Generation 50mm Cannon Is Ready To Destroy* The blast effect, weapons developers explain, is precisely the intent for the Army’s new 50mm weapon – to bring a longer-range, more-lethal measure of firepower to medium caliber armored vehicle attack. As a small ball of fire shot out of the end of a new 50mm cannon, a cloud of smoke filled the air and, in what seemed like less than one second, an explosion of smoke and fire destroyed a mock enemy target from hundreds of yards away -- on the other side of an Arizona desert valley. The explo... more »
Paying It Forward
A Gulf Breeze, Florida man who once spent a Christmas without electricity is paying it forward, literally. He paid the power bills for 36 families with past due accounts. Mike Esmond’s kind-hearted deed is just one of the many selfless acts good people do for less fortunate others, especially at Christmas time. So, why did I single his story out ? Because this is my hometown. These are my neighbors. Mike is a person I know and have had business dealings with. And though he never asked for any special recognition, I wanted to give him a pat on the … Continue reading →
Report: Senate GOP Unites on Plan for Senate Impeachment Trial…
It looks like the beginning of a united plan for the Senate impeachment trial is in the works. According to a New York Post article the House impeachment managers would present their prosecution case; then President Trump’s designated lawyers will … Continue reading →
Boat with human remains washes up in Japan
Just In - 2 hours ago
The remains of up to seven people are found on a boat, believed to be from North Korea, that turned up on the coast of Japan.
The tiny desert community that could hold the secret to how language first spread
Researchers believe a tiny desert community in northern Western Australia could tell us how language first spread around the world.
If you see a sleepy lizard road sign, you have a seven-year-old reptile lover to thank
A sleepy lizard road sign, inspired by a seven-year-old animal lover, pops up in a South Australian national park and is catching on elsewhere in the state.
Andy Murray out of Australian Open with pelvic injury
Just In - 2 hours ago
Andy Murray made a successful return to tennis in 2019 after hip surgery — but now the three-time major title winner says he can't play in next month's Australian Open due to a pelvic injury.
RFS refuses to rule out cancelling Sydney Harbour NYE fireworks
The City of Sydney Council says the New Year's Eve display will go ahead as scheduled, but the Rural Fire Service says it will have the final say.
Eat Less Meat And Save A Glacier
Originally posted on NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE KNOW THAT: By Paul Homewood h/t Tony Heller Laura Tobin is weather girl on Good Morning Britain, which apparently makes her an expert on climate change as well: https://twitter.com/Lauratobin1/status/1210594797884497920 (BTW – that photo is fraudulent – it is not a “glacier”, merely a patch of…
Two more degrees by 2100!
Originally posted on Climate Etc.: by Vaughan Pratt An alternative perspective on 3 degrees C? This post was originally intended as a short comment questioning certain aspects of the methodology in JC’s post of December 23, “3 degrees C?”. But every methodology is bound to have shortcomings, raising the possibility that Judith’s methodology might nevertheless…
No, The World Is Not Headed Into A Quantum Computing Future
*Subhash Kak* *Security, Americas* It's due to hardware. *Key point: *The mathematics that underpin quantum algorithms is well established, but there are daunting engineering challenges that remain. Google announced this fall to much fanfare that it had demonstrated “quantum supremacy” – that is, it performed a specific quantum computation far faster than the best classical computers could achieve. IBM promptly critiqued the claim, saying that its own classical supercomputer could perform the computation at nearly the same speed with far greater fidelity and, therefore, the Goog... more »
Why Did Game Of Thrones' Biggest Battle At Winterfell Go So Poorly For Humanity?
*Sebastien Roblin* *Game of Thrones, * Here are four ways they could have better prepared. *Key Point: *Why did humanity not come up with a better strategy? The Game of Thrones episode "The Long Night" features the last stand of a fantastical medieval army against an implacable horde of White Walker zombies led by the chilling undead Night King. It also showcases a series of terrible command decisions made by its protagonists, Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen, squandering their forces lives in poorly thought-out gambits. These episodes of military ineptitude may be one of the TV... more »
Trump is Right: America Needs a Space Force
*William Giannetti* *Security, Americas* [image: Flickr / U.S. Air Force] Why is having a separate branch of the military focused solely on outer space a vital national interest? THERE WAS a short but solemn White House Rose Garden ceremony on a warm, late August day in 2019. In attendance was President Donald Trump; his head of the National Space Council, Vice President Mike Pence; Secretary of Defense Mark Esper; and U.S. Air Force General John Raymond. The proceedings were a “big deal,” said the president during his remarks, and a bold, “landmark moment” for America’s armed fo... more »
6th Generation Jet Fights Will Leave Russia's Su-57 And America's F-35 Far Behind
*Sebastien Roblin* *Security, * The future is coming. *Key point: *Sixth-generation fighter programs remain strictly conceptual today, especially given the enormous expenses and effort devoted to working out the kinks in the Fifth-Generation. The American development and deployment of Fifth-Generation stealth aircraft like the F-35 Lightning is one of the central stories of today’s security zeitgeist. But behind the scenes, several countries are already looking ahead to the design of a Sixth-Generation jet. The relentless pace of research is arguably driven less by combat exper... more »
Strange Looking Gun: What's The Deal With The Revolver-Shotgun Craze?
*Kyle Mizokami* *Security, * Is it worth your time? *Key point: *The proliferation of revolver shotguns shows these unique firearms hold real appeal and are here to stay. One of the most interesting trends in the world of handguns is that the revolver not only uses handgun ammunition but also shotgun shells. The ability to shoot both high-powered handgun ammo above .40 caliber and small caliber shotgun shells makes these revolvers far more versatile than most. Although seemingly a new phenomenon, the development of handheld shotguns actually goes back to before the U.S. Civil Wa... more »
U.S. Contractors Sued For Paying Protection Money To The Taliban In Afghanistan
GK Sierra Security Contractors in Afghanistan. Wikipedia *CNBC:* *US contractors sued for allegedly paying ‘protection money’ to the Taliban in Afghanistan* * U.S. and international companies helped finance a “Taliban-led terrorist insurgency” in Afghanistan that killed or hurt American service members and civilians, according to a new lawsuit filed Friday. * The suit alleges that the contractors made protection payments to the Taliban because they had “lucrative businesses in post-9/11 Afghanistan, and they all paid the Taliban to refrain from attacking their business interests.” ... more »
Face recognition bans, and an ad-based Internet. Is there no end to foolishness?
There is no more important news, and they hope we won't notice:* 'In a free speech ruling that contradicts six other federal circuit courts, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals - based in Missouri... has upheld a district court ruling that says Americans do not have a first amendment right to videotape the police, or any public official, in public.' *This is of course a blatant attempt to reverse the most important year for civil liberties in this century, when courts and the Obama administration declared a universal right of citizens to record (and hold accountable) encounters with ... more »
BIDEN'S ORIGINAL SUBPOENA RESPONSE WAS WRONG -- BUT...
Yesterday, Joe Biden said he wouldn't comply with a subpoena to testify in the Senate impeachment trial: In a meeting with the editorial board of The Des Moines Register, whose endorsement in the Iowa caucuses is coveted by presidential hopefuls, Mr. Biden argued that complying with a subpoena and testifying would essentially allow Mr. Trump to succeed in shifting attention onto Mr. Biden and away from the president’s own actions. “The reason I wouldn’t is because it’s all designed to deal with Trump doing what he’s done his whole life: trying to take the focus off him,” Mr. Biden ... more »
North Korea Could Possess As Many As 100 Nuclear Warheads By Next Year
*National Interest*: *North Korea Could Have 100 Nuclear Warheads (And Soon)* *What can America do?* *Key point:* President Trump's denuclearization effort is not going well. By 2020 North Korea could possess as many as 100 nuclear warheads. That's the startling conclusion of a January 2019 report from RAND, a California think tank with close ties to the U.S. military. "North Korean provocations and threats have created an unstable environment on the Korean Peninsula," RAND's report explains. "North Korea’s ongoing development of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles increases th... more »
So How Many More Seats Will The Democrats Win In Texas Next Year?
*John Cornyn and Cristina Ramirez* It’s bizarre predicting who will win congressional seats even before primaries determine who the candidates will be in November. Texas has especially spirited primaries all over the place, starting with the Senate race. Incumbent John Cornyn isn’t especially popular but Texas is still a Republican state and it’s hard to imagine a Democrat beating him-- unless it’s the right Democrat rat with the right strategy and execution… and a nice healthy Democratic wave. Cristina Ramirez might be just the right person to do that. She’s easily the best of the ... more »
Report: FBI Looking Hard at Ghislaine Maxwell in Epstein Case
[image: report-fbi-looking-hard-at-ghislaine-maxwell-in-epstein-case] If British party girl Ghislaine Maxwell has any sense, she’ll get her affairs in order before the FBI locks her up in connection with the Jeffrey Epstein’s sex-trafficking operation.
Texas Megachurch Leaves UMC Over Looming LGBTQ Issue
[image: texas-megachurch-leaves-umc-over-looming-lgbtq-issue] A Houston megachurch is the latest congregation to exit the UMC over the denomination’s ongong debate concerning homosexuality.
North Korea's Ruling Party Meets To Dicuss Policy Matters
*Reuters: **North Korea's Kim holds ruling party's plenary meeting before year-end deadline* SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un convened a meeting of top ruling party officials on Saturday to discuss important policy matters ahead of the year-end deadline set by Kim for the United States, the state news agency said on Sunday. Kim, chairman of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), guided the first-day session of the plenary meeting to discuss "important matters arising in the party building and activities and in the building of the state and national defense," K... more »
The Air Force Almost Brought Back America's World War II P-51 Mustang
*Michael Peck* *Security, * A World War II legend. *Key point: *While a propeller-driven aircraft might be useful to organizations like Special Operations Command that fight small wars in remote locations, America is not about to send upgraded Second World War aircraft against China or Russia. The North American P-51 Mustang was one of the greatest fighters of World War II. Had life worked out differently, the Mustang could also have fought in Vietnam and flown against a Soviet invasion of Western Europe. In fact, it might even have replaced the A-10 Warthog. The Piper PA-48 E... more »
5 Reasons Why You Won't Beat Israel in a War. Period.
*Kyle Mizokami* *Security, Middle East* You'll lose. *Key point: * Much like the Israeli Air Force, the Israeli Army came from humble—but more established—beginnings. Israel’s ground forces had their origins in the Haganah, a Zionist paramilitary force created in the early 1920s to protect Jewish interests. The Haganah cooperated with British authorities, but turned hostile in 1944 when the Axis neared defeat and the need for a Jewish state became increasingly clear. In 1947 the Haganah was reorganized into regular army units, and renamed the Israeli Army two weeks after the fo... more »
OAN Three Part Investigative Report on Ukraine, Corruption and Biden Family – Rudy Giuliani and Chanel Rion Travel to Ukraine…
One America News produced a three part series on the Biden family financial attachment to the corruption in Ukraine. Each segment in the series is nearly an hour long; they are presented below for viewer/reader reference and review. One America … Continue reading →
UK Government says sorry after accidently posting Elton John's address online
Just In - 5 hours ago
The first version of the New Year honours list contained the home or work addresses of more than 1,000 recipients, including singer Sir Elton John, and was visible for around an hour, according to the BBC.
Peter Siddle announces retirement from international cricket
Just In - 5 hours ago
Peter Siddle calls time on his international cricket career, ending more than 11 years of donning the Baggy Green for Australia.
Kimberley cruise operators concerned as more tourist fees are flagged by native title holders
A West Australian tourism body warns that an increasing number of access fees charged by traditional owners could make cruises along the coast unaffordable.
Live: Pattinson rips through NZ's top order as Australia pushes for series win
James Pattinson takes three quickfire wickets to demolish the Black Caps' top order after New Zealand was set a mammoth target of 488 runs to win the second Test,. Follow along in our live blog.
The forbidden city: When Indigenous people were banned from Perth
For almost 30 years, Indigenous people without a permit were banned from large tracts of Perth — from Victoria Park to City Beach, North Perth to Floreat — and many were jailed for entering the exclusion zone.
'We love this property': Bushfire destruction fuels rethink of how to build safer houses
Standing in a pile of rubble, Faith Gordon is still coming to terms with seeing her house destroyed by fire. She vows to rebuild in the bush, with her next house hopefully built to survive a bushfire if it happens again.
'Extreme' fire risk prompts cancellation of Falls music festival
Just In - 5 hours ago
Organisers of the music festival near Victoria's Great Ocean Road cancel the rest of the event due to "potential fires, smoke, severe winds and tree hazards", as firefighters battle a number of blazes across the state.
'They're in desperation': Women breaking the law to treat endometriosis pain
Just In - 5 hours ago
A study suggests one in 10 women with endometriosis use cannabis to self-manage their pain, but whether legalising cannabis in Canberra will benefit women doing so remains a question.
Venezuela Is Rapidly Becoming The World's Biggest Refugee Crisis
*Zero Hedge:** Venezuela Is Fast Becoming World's Biggest Refugee Crisis* According to UN data, Venezuela is fast becoming the world's biggest refugee crisis. By the end of 2020, 6.5 million Venezuelans are expected to have been forcibly displaced outside of their home country. This is up from just 300,000 in 2017. Syria, the biggest global refugee crisis to date, reached its height in 2018 with 6.7 million displaced people. With resettlement programs ongoing, that number is expected to have been reduced to 5.6 by the end of 2019 and might further fall in 2020. *Read more* .... *... more »
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