A delightful, fruitful conversation hosted by Gonzalo Lira with the esteemed Michael Vlahos. It was my first virtual introduction to Michael, but I have been aware of his scholarship and commentary over the years. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Gonzalo has a knack for putting together great discussions while coping with genuine air raid sirens.
Thank you.
All you guys are great. Gonzolaga needs to lay off the cancer sticks, but I guess everyone smokes in a war zone.
Details of Putin speech. Massive rearmament of Russia’s Hypersonic missiles with Nuclear Warheads. Conventional warheads being removed and Nuclear warheads installed. Kinzal, Zircon, Poseidon Torpedo’s and the 9m730 bureveStnik missiles.
Immediate mass production of nuclear hypersonic missiles.
Will return to classic nuclear testing no more simulations.
He will now arm Iran with Nuclear weapons and technology.
This is a huge rapid vertical escalation to begin immediately.
These new hypersonic nuclear missiles, America has no defense against them so far.
They travel at Mach 9.
The Burevestnik is a nuclear powered missile of unlimited range
Plus very likely a new mutual defense pact with China.
https://warnews247.gr/apantisi-v-poutin-sto-nato-me-diatagma-etoimotitas-chrisis-stratigikon-oplon-fortonoun-pyrinikes-kefales-stous-mi-anaschesimous-burevestnik-kinzhal-zircon/
Whatever, Putin wont even take out ISR targeting donesk civilians and Russian formations. You seriously think they are worried about nukes? Putin all show no go.
Yeah, Putin lots of talk and not so much walk; just a slow meandering crawl, occasionally, like a pre-toddler, rising to his feet and then falling back to all fours again. This time we really really extra double dare you cross my heart swear to die to violate this new red line! A 5D chess playing, uniquely Russian crawl? Time will tell. Is the ground frozen yet? Turns out it doesn’t matter. 5D Russians are happy to fight huge Ukronazi annihilating offensives in the mud too. All of the sudden, their super superior tanks, not like stupid American tanks, are immune to mud (see recent Macgregor).
This “war” is starting to look like some kind of weird theater in the fake Covid-19 genre.
….sad that the only reality to this war is the pain and death; real people suffering and dying needlessly. As far as I can see, neither Putin nor the US have any idea what they are going to do with this tiger they have all idiotically grabbed by the tail. They’ll talk and talk big talk to their own people and threaten each other with all kinds of scary escalations and kill yet more stupid Ukrainians and some Wagner prisoners hoping to earn their freedom, while the pundits punditize and the oligarchs on both sides get richer. This war is going nowhere, except stalemate. Neither side has what is needed to conclude it, not materially nor the will to fight to the finish nor the common sense to talk and make peace.
Putin cannot articulate what winning looks like – if it’s all Ukrainian military dead and all of Ukraine submitting to whatever Putin says, then Putin is nuts. That’s not going to happen – and the US’ vision of victory is a ridiculous fantasy too.
Eric, sounds like 5g warfare has gotten you into a confused state where you have forgotten the real timelines involved.
Here’s a list of countries the US has divided up and destroyed via internal chaos. Libya, Afghanistan, Iraq, Soviet Union (indirectly), Korea, Germany.
Do you need more?
Totally valid here the critics of Putin, maybe.
My take is that when Rx feels that the moment has finally arrived, all hell is going to break loose. And nobody will have seen from where it came.
Just a mass of blank stares.
Maybe, but there are a lot of screwed-up narratives that have been operating for the past year. They’re like smoke and mirrors obfuscating reality and making people say dumb stuff and misunderstand the situation.
Like Russia had its back against the wall b/c NATO was expanding into Ukraine and that posed an existential threat to Russia. Yet same people say that NATO can’t fight Russia b/c NATO can’t produce ordnance and the force is too weak. If NATO troops went into Ukraine, they’d be slaughtered. So how was NATO ever an existential threat to Russia?
If NATO is somehow an existential threat to Russia, then how come Russia didn’t attack Ukraine like it is facing an existential threat? Why didn’t Russia put a precision guided missile right up Zelensky’s ass in the first minute of the invasion? Why didn’t Spetznatz wipe out Zelensky’s cabinet and impose a new non-NATO friendly government on day 1? Why weren’t the power, communications and transport systems shut down on day 1? Why were dedicated Russian forces so light weight for the mission?
How was this allegedly pathetic NATO going to “break up” Russia and divide the spoils among favored partners? How? I mean that is a monumental task.
Lots of people excusing Russian tactics saying it doesn’t care about territory, yet same people saying that Russia must seize Odessa. I think Odessa counts as “territory”.
The reverse is true as well, like NATO saying Russia must be stopped before Putin, in his imitation of Peter The Great, takes all of Europe, yet out of the other side of their mouth deriding Russia as incompetent and easily thwarted by Ukrainian forces.
Russia is going to take Bakhmut. They’re on the offense! Yawn. Look at a map. Bakhmut is a little spot. Ok. Then What? If it takes months to seize the territory of Bakhmut, how on earth is Russia going to take Odessa any time this century?
NATO is going to go on the offensive with Ukraine and take Crimea back. Yeah sure. They’ve been unable to achieve any meaningful gains over the past year.
I could go on. I’m coming to the conclusion that all sides in this conflict are full of BS and, other than their BS, have no idea what to do with this mess they have found themselves in.
Sure, the Russian leaders present better on a stage, but n actual performance are about on the same level as the US.
And now Putin apparently cannot deliver enough ammo to Wagner. So bad a situation that Wagner went public bitching and moaning to the high heavens about the shortages.
Running out of ammo is something that can happen to anyone, not just Ukrainians, especially when you need to fire huge amounts of it to support a slow grind approach to war. Where did the idea that Russia has unlimited stores of ammo and factories running 24/7 churning out surpluses even come from?
The Russian invasion is starting to fall apart. It’s a race to the bottom between Russia, Ukraine and NATO. I’m starting to think that Russia gets there first. They may have blown it.
Is all this true?
Excellent discussion. Thank you
Gonzalo has a knack for putting together great discussions while coping with genuine air raid sirens.
Yes he does. Shame he can’t keep them down to an hour or less, I’d watch a lot more of them if he could.
Increasing speed and turning on captions can help a bit.
Excellent. Thx
I spent a good part of my afternoon watching the video, time well spent, thanks Larry! I’m very much interested in how the American public will view a likely NATO defeat, will it awaken them to the truth that our current foreign policy may not be in the best interests of the USA? -sure hope so.
I suspect the next few days are going to be very interesting.
Nuclear war is like poker in that you must convince other side you have the nuts and Putin is a very bad poker player. I promise he will back down before Biden.
Guerra nuclear não é poker, é xadrez. Jo3 “mijando na botina”B1den joga xadrez? Put1n joga. E bem.
Really? Nuclear war is like POKER!!?? Well thank goodness nobody loses easily at that. Just a shout to all those who only live in the Western mind set where ‘poker’ is such an important and hugely valued, I don’t know, ‘thing’… Russians study chess, many many moves ahead.
FFS
QK
Steve… Nuclear war is like you and your enemy in locked root cellar, where each of you has a grenade. Go ahead Steve and pull the pin on your grenade to kill your enemy.
If the USA fired all its nukes and Russia didn’t fire any, in two weeks all fallout will poison the US and a great dust cloud would block the sun and all plant life would die on Earth.
See how suicidal it is to pull the pin on your pineapple.
Guerra nuclear não é poker, é xadrez. Jo3 “mijando na botina”B1den joga xadrez? Put1n joga. E bem.
The ironic thing about the idea that Israel has penetrated the US intelligence is that US policy leads or leaves Israel into ever increasing danger. Presumably, the statements about Israeli influence is meant to suggests that it sways American policy to serve Israels interests.
Is that not the way it has always been, Israel places it’s hope for safety in the hands of powers other than God. Is the US just the most recent Pharaoh ?
I find Gonzalo chain smoking distracting but otherwise he is pretty switched on…yet I’m puzzled how he is still on air after being picked up by Ukrainian security services in Kharkov…but I think the most telling part of the interview was Michael recalling the conversation with Doug McGregor where there is concern about an intervention and the number of 250,000 troops was mentioned after some prodding….half being fighting echelon…. potentially being “possible” ….(which I take as earmarked and ready)..where Gonzalo interjected that such a massing would take 6 to 9 months and would be prohibitive etc…..and I think Michael was biting his tongue for some reason….my opinion. For several months alternative patriot news channels have been awash in first and second person reports of a clandestine mobilization of forces and prepositioning of logistics… mostly in Romania. McGregor can’t release classified information but he knows exactly what is where….and as the last defensive lines are about to breached and Russia reconfigures it’s BTG into much larger conventional formations….and Russians are stacking towards Melitopol…..and Moldova is making waves and getting special attention by the commander in thief….. I think Transnistria is in the cross hairs of all sides
His status as an American citizen buys him protection.
He was born in California but it was the Chilean government that went ape shit….turns out he is Chilean dual citizen but his family is deeply rooted in Chile…. in the actual formation of the country itself through the Carrera family..alot of connection to government and industry there
I told my forces working in Ukraine to get the SBU to release him unarmed, and a few days later he went back online.
Same reason why his internet is working better than some in Kharkiv.
Although his frequency dropped going low with lazerpig on that round table, so he was putting himself in danger with that one.
Dear Joe, I was biting my tongue because, as (I hope) an uncompromised analyst, this is all speculative and propositional – in spite of very real discussions within the Pentagon and Imperial Court. Your point on Transnistria is spot on– check out the pro-Russian demonstrations and rallies in Moldova:
https://twitter.com/RadioGenova/status/1628396694684463107
This could be a flashpoint for the next big escalation.
I was biting my tongue because all of this is speculative and propositional – even if it is happening right now in the precincts of the Imperial Court and its Pentagon. Your comment about Transnistria is spot on, however, as witnessed by big rallies in Moldova in support of Russia:
https://peacediplomacy.org/michael-vlahos/
Another point of imminent escalation!
Great conversation – scary as shit the ambassador’s message as I think there are elements in the Biden administration who would welcome a reprisal attack on a US continental military facility – a modern Pearl Harbor; however, such a wake-up call would find the US has no manufacturing base to wake up and a largely overweight, adderall-ed, trashed immune system thanks to being vaxxed, gender pronouned, population to attempt to build a military out of.
Larry, I’m a fan of yours, a subscriber, and I always look forward to listening to and reading your thoughts and analysis.
But I have to tell you, Golanzo Bonzo has dug himself into a hole with me.
I began to view the “Roundtable” and just couldn’t take Golanzo.
He was pretty calm today. But I understand.
He dramatize and hogs, but you are right, these 2 hours were tolerable. I have switched off some Duran discussions with him out of displeasure.
Mecorius is the champion hogger and irritating to an extreme for me at times. He just cannot shut up and listen. I have often commented but to no avail. Even he cannot refrain from constantly interrupting his colleague, who often is quite gifted.
I often wonder why they have a guy on like, Robert Barns, who is a genius, and London cannot shut up long enough to hear him out. Anyway.
Hehe, I think that Alex Christofouro is more often than not wonderful, doesn’t take himself too seriously and has moments where he displays absolutely appropriate irreverence.
Alexander Mercouris on the other hand . . . . . . when discussing him with my wife, I call him “dancing Nancy” . . . . . his constant fidgeting and gesticulations detract from having to listen to and watch him for fifty-seven minutes in order to get the five minutes of information that you clicked into his stream to obtain. 😉
Mercouris’ videos are more “radio style”, and there isn’t anything to look at (no maps, screenshots, videos). One can increase speed, put them in the background, and listen while watching videos from voenhronika.ru or something similar.
Agreed,
Mecorius is passive aggressive.
Got something to prove.
Very repetitive but useful.
I watched the 2 hours…. Michael was great but I think he hogged a little too much. Next time Larry should jump in more.
Gonzalo seems well placed in a honcho role, as a guest on other podcast he has a tendency to hog.
Overall very informative although nothing new, only Larry’s bombshell that if the Empire of Chaos doesn’t back off, Rx is gonna hit where it hurts. Some serious fireworks are in order if his reading of that warning proves correct.
USA became really juts in these last three years. This group was right on the edge of nailing down the primary suspect as to why, but it’s a topic that is still too hot to handle yet. There are some residual goings on in America (UCLA and Harvard professors tribulations) and elsewhere (Barcelona) that if incubated to frutation, may be the harbinger of better news. Although as Larry points out, the only hope for a revitalized and controlled CIA is to tear it down, the same applys to the stranglehold that the foreign entity has over USA, it must be brought to heed. Speaking about existential? For USA its life or death.
Dr. Vlahos was great add. Nice interaction. I agree with some other commenters that Gonzalo should let the guests talk. He should be adding topics for his guests to talk about and ask clarification where appropriate. It’s hard to be a host when you have strong opinions.
mr. Johnson – Gonzalo posted this a few days ago. takes balls to do this. i am trying to spread it far and wide. look forward to listening to this conversation
2023.02.19 White Man Walk Out
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6k-bGcJ_v0
regards,
ralph
I am listening now. Larry, you should interrupt and insert your views more often 😎
Dear Larry, I truly enjoyed our conversation! I hear your readers/listeners comments, and I promise next time to exercise a bit more forbearance in my comments. I am used to going on for minutes at a time on The John Batchelor Show, and I must confess to being new to a YouTube give-and-take.
All this notwithstanding, it was a real treat to be able to talk with you, and I hope will revisit such things again very soon!
All my best,
Mike
Not a problem. I enjoyed listening. I used to do Batchelor every week. I think he grew tired of me. In any event, I look forward to another joint appearance.
I am looking forward to the next discussion with two of you!
As far as Moscow not doing enough, I’m not so sure: The Ukr army is dying every day on the frontlines, I read the combat reports & you have to wonder when they will try re-animating corpses! My reading of Putin’s speech suggests the Russians know the location of every US operative in the Ukraine & if there is another escalation, they will be hit. Finally, I’m reevaluating everything military after reading the latest on electronic intelligence; it seems likely that everybody military around Ukraine knows what everybody else is doing, no more surprises! This is a very dangerous period, I’m sure Moscow does not want Biden & co to get excited & panic; if the nukes fly, any left living will envy the dead.
Gonzalo Lira, I love your commentary but I would love if you would please stop using our our Lord’s name in vain.
Ironically, God is listening, so he is not using the name in vain.
Just a 4th wall violation.
Great show Larry. Dr. Vlahos was great too. While the current conflict is deadly serious, I also enjoyed you two old CIA hands reminiscing.
I saw this brief video for the first time today and a certain VVP came to mind.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=a5RUbAP3xlQ