Regardless of the issue, the title of this piece is a good rule of thumb to apply when you are reading “breaking news.” I am not talking about your conventional “car runs over pedestrian” or “dog licks own testicles story.” I am talking about reports like today’s news that there are US boots on the ground in Ukraine:
American military personnel are now in Ukraine to help keep track of the billions of dollars’ worth of weapons and equipment the United States has sent since the start of the Russian invasion, a senior U.S. defense official and senior U.S. military official said.
Led by Brig. Gen. Garrick Harmon, the U.S. defense attaché to Ukraine, the inspections have already begun with the help of the Office of Defense Cooperation personnel who have returned to the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine, the officials said.
Yes, why now? This story is curious not only for its content but its timing. Let me start with content. Concerns were raised starting last Apriln about the corrupt diversion of U.S. military supplies to criminal organizations inside Ukraine. That is why CBS produced a 60 Minutes piece that aired in August with the inconvenient claim that a good portion of U.S. weapons never made it to the front. Within days of this story’s publication, CBS News deletes tweet claiming only ‘like 30%’ of US military aid for Ukraine ever reaches the front lines. (You can read my original piece here.)
If the U.S. was serious about ensuring the weapons paid for by U.S. taxpayers actually wound up in the hands of Ukrainian soldiers, it would have been very easy to put in an audit system and verify periodically that there was no chicanery going on. How should you do this? Here is one possibility–When every plane touches down and cargo is off-loaded the Ukrainians should have been required to identify and record in a joint database where those items would be stored and who would be receiving them ultimately. You demand that records be kept detailing when, where and to whom those weapons/supplies are delivered. Then you conduct periodic audits (one every three weeks) verifying those facts. Apparently, no one on the U.S. side felt the need to do this and the crooked Ukrainians did what they do best–they looted the stockpiles, at least initially.
But we do have a pretty strong hint that the Pentagon realized they had a serious problem by May and made some unusual, quiet moves to address the situation. Let us examine the career of Brigadier General Garrick Harmon, who reportedly is helping the Ukrainians keep track of the U.S. largesse.
| Start | End | Duty Assignment |
|---|---|---|
| Jul 22 | Present | Senior Defense Official and Defense Attaché, United States Defense Attaché Office, Ukraine |
| May 21 | May 22 | Commanding General, United States Army Security Assistance Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama |
| Aug 20 | Apr 21 | Special Assistant to the Deputy Chief of Staff, G-3/5/7, United States Army, Washington, DC |
| Oct 18 | Aug 20 | Senior Defense Official and Defense Attaché, United States Defense Attaché Office, Russia |
| Aug 17 | Oct 18 | Deputy Director, Strategy, Plans and Policy, Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G-3/5/7, United States Army, Washington, DC |
Normally, someone like General Harmon would do a two year tour as the Commanding General of the United States Army Security Assistance Command at the Redstone Arsenal in Alabama. He was reassigned after only one year. Why? Take a look at his bio and previous assignments. He spent almost two years in Moscow as the U.S. Defense Attache. According to his bio he majored in Russian studies at West Point and speaks Russian. But little attention was paid to his arrival in Kiev in late July. Only now is his name being bandied about. Why?
For starters, General Harmon speaks Russian and should be able to communicate easily with his Ukrainian counterparts (who also speak Russian). Second, he should some relevant knowledge about the Russian Generals that are directing the campaign in Ukraine. That could be helpful to Ukrainian military planners. Most civilians may assume that Generals populate Defense Attache slots around the world. Not so. Most of those positions are staffed by Lt. Colonels and Colonels. Putting a General in charge is not common.
While it is possible that today’s story about U.S. troops on the ground carrying out audits of U.S. military supplies delivered to Ukraine is genuine, I have my doubts. Soldiers ostensibly detailed to carry out audits could in fact be diverted to help man M777 batteries, HIMARS rocket launchers, HARM missile launchers or operate combat drones. Declaring the purpose as “audit” could just be a thin form of cover to avoid admitting that the U.S. has troops in combat.
One possibility for the timing is to provide an explanation for U.S. casualties from recent Russian attacks that have not been publicized. One of the articles describing General Harmon’s inspection mission indicated that the U.S. troops were not being sent to the front lines and therefore are safe. I call bullshit. There is no safe place in Ukraine that Russia cannot hit with one of its cruise missiles. NATO troops learned this the hard way last March with the devastating hypersonic missile attack on Yavoriv.
Inspecting U.S. supplied weapons means that the auditor either is visiting a warehouse (which the Russian are hitting with regularity) or going to where those weapons are deployed, which means they are vulnerable to Russian fires.
If General Harmon’s primary mission is auditing the disposition of U.S. weapons supplied to Ukraine, this is a tacit admission that the original CBS story on diverted weapons was accurate and the United States is trying to get the worms back into the can. But if that is the case, why wait more than three months to let the press know that the United States was acting to prevent corruption? Why?
Me thinks you’ve nailed it once again. He’s got the right ribbons and prior assignments to support your projections and hypothesis.
Good on ya mate.
Dog
Maybe he was killed in Ukraine from Russian strikes. Releasing this now will give US government time to release his death and reason behind it, in other word killed while auditing US weapons.
Staff officer… and West Point… need I say more.
How is it that on the ships I was stationed on, we kept track of every single weapon, down to individual .45 bullets! And now we lose $billions in Afghanistan and Ukraine. They’ve made a mockery of us who served before, and I highly resent it.
You served during Ye Olde Colde War, I take it? That was back when the US navy was a serious fighting force and not a boondoggle? So I’d say you answered your own question.
This is an old story. During the Chinese Civil War, the Communists used to say that America was their armorer and that Chiang Kaishek was their quartermaster.
True. General Vo Nuygen Giap and the Viet Minh received 105mm Howitzers made in the US and captured by the Chines in Korea or from the Chinese Nationalists. The French were a might pissed off when they found out the Viets artillery was a lot newer than theirs. The French were using left overs from WW2 that had seen some serious use in that war. Also during the Vietnam War (or as the Vietnamese refer to it – The American War) you could buy anything (and I mean anything) on the black market. There are dozens of stories of Australian and New Zealand soldiers becoming the proud owners of an M-48 tank, a Huey Helicopter, and anything else they could swap for a pair of Australian Boots or better yet a Slouch Hat, or even a case of Australian beer. EVERYTHING that the US sent to Vietnam was automatically written off…….. and thus fair game. For example the unit I was in had a load of .50 Cal, .30 Cal plus An-PRC-25 and 547 Radio Sets above our establishment when we returned from Vietnam. Probably half had come from write of from damaged vehicles. The rest – “acquired”. Shit hit the fan when the Government auditors found out.
Yeah. The “shit really hit the fan when the Government auditors found out.” [heavy sarcasm]
The “shit really hit the fan . . . .” More like: “I’m shocked! Shocked to find gambling going on in this casino!”
the disappearance of weapons is a feature not a bug in the system.
“Tactically acquired” is the Marine term for it.
In the Australian Army – look what I scored………
The perfumed princes of the Pentagone lost over $2 Trillion, announced on 9/10 or have we forgotten.
The weapons have been sold to for starters, the Chechens. There is a video on Rumble with the Chechens troops ready to mobilize in a parade ground and you can clearly see that the Javelins are standard issue. Now, some could have been captured, but for sure some have been sold.
We used to have Soviet Cruisers and AGI’s “take station” to the port and starboard quarters of our Battle Groups and follow us everywhere. It was a bit of a joke during watch turnovers that the Soviets were maintaining station!
They were always polite on the bridge-to-bridge radios and never got in our way. That was the old days when we actually tried to avert conflict.
The US Navy didn’t get the message even after they had a Soviet Corvette sitting on the fantail of a Ticonderoga Class CG. Very little dame to the corvette – something to do with the fact that all Soviet/Russian ships have reinforced bows so they can plough through ice.
When can start we calling this WWIII?
Since June 20, 1948 …
(The currency reform of 1948 came into effect on June 20, 1948 in the trizone, Germany’s three western occupation zones. From June 21, 1948, the German mark (“DM,” also “D-Mark”) was the sole legal tender there.)
Good answer . Personally I would date it a bit earlier , but the currency reform is a prime candidate .
Incidentally , the US had printed the new notes some time before . However , we (i.e. the Brits) were not on board so this had to be kept secret .
You can start calling it “the last war the US ever fought, and lost again…..”
Never.
The fully owned US mainstream media will never allow it. The US could invade Russia, be wiped out to the last freak flagger, and we would never know about it.
I believe General Harmon’s primary mission to the Ukraine is to collect dead American bodies and return them secretly to unmarked graves here at “home.” Why? I have no idea anymore. Somebody in our fully dysfunctional government must have gotten the idea that the graves of dead American soldiers found in the Ukraine might be bad PR. I just don’t get it. Easier to hide the graves of dead American soldiers on US soil? The Government doesn’t give a shit about us.
“Thank you for your service.” [heavy sarcasm]
When Taiwan attacks North Korea.
That General was groomed. Originally artillery, given only 3 duty stations as an artillery JO, he likely became a pro staff officer as an O-3. A couple stints at G-3/5/7 and NATO. He’s a spy in uniform.
Larry: They waited 3 months only because the press found out about it. If it weren’t for the CBS news story, this General wouldn’t have been sent to Ukraine at all, and the loot of US weapons would have continued.
CBS is part of the fully captured US mainstream media. Something else is going on.
Larry, once again you touch it with a needle. Unlike most of us, however, you have experience with the Federal bureaucracy. The rest of us can only intuit.
Question 1: What is the primary motivation for the release of information at this level? Is it not CYA?
Question 2: What is the primary motivation for the release of information in the immediate prelude to a shift in power at the federal level, especially when then information does not have the power to effect that shift? Is it not also CYA?
Question 3: Why does the military feel the need to account for military aid when the U.S. Senate specifically chose to forgo the appointment of an inspector general to keep track of that aid? Is it not also CYA?
So, the military anticipates blowback from the pending Republican oversight of the corruption associated with the Congress’ Ukrainian aid, yes? And they are attempting to shift the blame to the other players, perhaps the civilian intelligence agencies?
1. Yes, I think it is some form of CYA.
2. Ditto.
3. Military will be able to testify that they took necessary steps to monitor. They may throw Biden under the bus for preventing the appointment of an IG.
Please post your specific CYA theory when you close the thread. You obviously have something interesting in mind.
I take it that CYA is Cover Your As* in US military speak.
We used ABC, Always Be Covered. I’ve been doing that ever since I left the military back in 87.
If they can drill that into a 17 y\o recruit, why can’t our leaders learn this shite?
Yes, he is essentially the CO for shipping American bodies back to Dover.
BTW, whatever happened to the foreign Azov mercenaries captured by Russia? They weren’t all killed by the Ukies.
Larry — the story may have been released by people trying to nail down the democrats as the ones responsible for malfeasance concerning government funds approved for weapons supplied to Ukraine. (A huge amount of money. US soldier deaths? Yes, a huge deal especially if it was covered up and purposely unreported. But we don’t know on that last as of now. Elections in less than a week. If as is rumored the gop wins the midterms they may clean house with an eye on impeachment of the president. So it’s preparation. This story appears with less than a week remaining.
US troops on the ground in Ukraine are deadly enemies of Russia. Period.
Cleaning latrines, enemies.
Quit beating around the bush.
I think its obvious – Mission creep. Just like Vietnam? And we know how that turned out. Stupid is as stupid does.
Mission-creep implies a long term commitment, I don’t think “Ukraine” will exist this time next year. The US may try to mire Russia in a long drawn out terrorist campaign but I believe the Russians are far too intelligent for that trap…. and judging by the state of things, both financially and politically in the US, I’d imagine that they will have more pressing things to concern themselves with.
Agree. These weapons seem to be turning up in our new NATO partner’s countries, hence all along the newly expanded borders, closer to Russia.
Plausible Deniability. “But we didn’t put those weapons along your borders. It was those pesky Ukrainians.”
Wonder who are the recipients, specificly. There are immigrant gangs through the EU who will follow any profitable agenda. Terror attacks on Russian soil is one. Terrorizing the native population for Davos is another. In either case it’s intentional. The possibility that they are just stupid is always on the table and that criminals gonna criminal. Might be a little bit of all of the above. Do note that media pictures showing the influx from our southern border try to include women but when it’s a group of thousands headed that way you can see the dominant demographic is military aged males. The NGO recruiters know exactly what they are doing. Time to mind the home front and leave Europe to its demise. One thing can be stated as fact, we know who is not getting those weapons.
The Russians have a singular way of dealing with terrorists.
In 1985, four (4) Russian diplomats were kidnapped in Lebanon by Hezbollah. The KGB then apparently kidnaped and killed a relative of an unnamed leader of the Shias’ Hezbollah (Party of God) group, a radical, pro-Iranian group that has been suspected of various terrorist activities against Western targets in Lebanon.
Parts of the man’s body, were then sent to the Hezbollah leader with a warning that he would lose other relatives in a similar fashion if the three remaining Soviet diplomats were not immediately released. They were quickly freed.
I don’t think terrorists want to tangle with the Russians.
Nobody in their right mind wants to tangle with those Russians right now. But they are. Charles Bukowski said that the problem with the world is that the smart people are full of doubt and the dumb people are full of confidence. An apt simplification and not incorrect. NATO could just about whip each other about now unless they wanna go for all the marbles. They think that they will rise from their bunkers but it will be their security teams and remote peoples who will repopulate the world. Their last days will be spent figuring how to make the security team believe that they need them.
“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.” — Albert Einstein.
I was about to write the same thing. We even have some attempts at modern version of Gulf of Tonkin incident.
What I think we see is lack of a coherence, oscillating rapidly between madman strategy and “we are not directly involved” narrative. Neither is accurate. More likely it is nefarious and conniving thinking with bumblingly incompetent execution.
What’s too say he’s not already KIA?
Same as when a high profile person gets charged with crimes. The questions should not be what did s/he do? and how were they caught?, but why are they being prosecuted? and why now?
I suspect that there is a fear the republicans are going to come after the Biden admin on this issue should the Rs gain the house and senate – of which I am skeptical due to election fraud, but maybe will be allowed to happen as an off-ramp to Ukraine and other hideously destructive and unsustainable policies the “progressive” democrats have inflicted on us.
There are a few variants in play here. One is the Syrian model that USA may be hoping to “implement” in western Ukraine – Russians and Americans have the Syrian experience in de-escalation and controlling portions of the same country without getting into each other’s hair. I think Russia actually may not mind this if America can stick to control of Lviv etc. but not go to Odessa. I would not be surprised if Shoigu and Austin discussed such a scenario in their last call under the “cover” of nuclear de-escalation talks, which was what the public was fed as being the main topic of the call.
Another possibility is that the 1-star general is a forward contingent preparing the ground for many more “coalition of the willing” forces to enter Ukraine and prevent Russia from taking Odessa. This would be a foolish move but judging by how EU/USA have been run in the last few years, can anyone say it is impossible?
Finally, it could be a “flexing our muscle” story for the American public pre-elections. It makes the administration look like they are doing something about where our tax moneys are going and at the same time it is putting the Russians on notice (not that they care, they know NATO forces would be breakfast in Ukraine for the Russians but average American-Joe doesn’t know that).
The 4th possibility – that this contingent is actually doing what they are advertised to be doing (arms control) – we all know that is not true. If our government was so transparent and so diligent about where all our money was spent, well, we would be in a much better place now…
I’ve been wondering the same thing.
Why would the Russians reinstate grain deal shipments when, after the Sebastopol attack, they had the perfect excuse to starve the west to death?
Has the food crisis gone away?
Same thing with Russian crude oil. The Russians were exporting sanctioned crude oil to Saudia Arabia, who then turned it around, relabeled it as Saudi oil, and re-exported it to the United States.
Has the energy crisis gone away?
Something else is going on we just don’t know about.
Good points. Re question 1, it seems like the West can provoke Russia and stomp all over it’s red lines in total impunity, and all Russia does is to angrily denounce them and then let it pass. Everyone has been saying “Russia will soon turn up the pain dial” for months now but the West is getting away with murder (literally) and Russia just takes it on the chin. This is not serious.
I have not seen the Russians get very angry.
Not since 1960, and the famous incident of Nikita Khrushchev banging his shoe on a UN Assembly table have Russians come anywhere close to a display of anger. And who hasn’t wanted to bank their shoe at a UN General Assembly? Khrushchev himself said the shoe banging thing was just for show.
I think the Russians are making a list and checking it twice, making sure who has been naughty or nice. “Unfriendly countries.”
One explanation: to provide a casus belli for an open intervention when these troops get denazified by Russia.
Another: Harmon has already been denazified, and he’s being named so that it can be claimed those Evil RuZZians murdered him when he was only grunt to keep the freedom loving democratic west safe from MANPADS in the hands of terrorists.
Well why did Pelosi go to Taiwan when she did?
Maybe they are all just crazy
That is a great question, and they are not crazy. As always, follow the money.
Well I know..but you got to follow “the votes” too.. as Cuba found out to its cost. Ah “The Excited States of America”… gotta love it.
Pelosy went to Taiwan at the service of her Chinese masters. She provided them with the exuse to flex their muscles, make some threats, draw red lines and make the US so called leadership try to state their unformed position(s).
She enabled China to escalate where it was really not possible before. Markey too. Paul got a transfusion of young blood, testocerone injection and a bottle of Viagra before she left.
The U.S. military — the largest money-laundering scam in American (if not world) history — has never, ever, not even one time successfully run an audit of itself. So sending a U.S. military officer to ostensibly run an audit of another corrupt government’s inept military reeks of pompous pretension beyond measure. Manufactured Mendacity and Managed Mystification on the grandest of scales.
Still waiting on that audit of all that gold that’s supposed to be in Fort Knox.
Still waiting for that audit of the Federal Reserve….
Well, the audit would get a head start, as all of the gold airlifted out of Ukraine from their central bank to the US right after the coup was undoubtedly already tabulated.
Creeping normalcy.. subconsciously forming a narrative in the collective psyche …and….mission creep as U.S boots on the ground near Ukrainian military installations accidentally unavoidably and tragically get turned inside out by Russian munitions….in a warzone….oh why oh why did this happen? Crocodile tears in front of the green screen as the Nation is worked into a self righteous frenzy as the demented predator in chief calls for WAR
Has the US ever been opposed to giving weapons to unsavory characters? We gave them to drug gangs in Mexico. We gave them to a few distinctly different sets of terrorist/freedom fighter in Iran, Syria, Iraq, The horn of Africa nations, Guaido’s Venezuela, South Vietnam, Central America, South America, Georgia, etc. How long is this list really? There are dozens of nations and hundreds of special interest groups that get weapons all the time.
Didn’t we recently give a large amount of Russian weapons to Ukrainian troops?
Seems like policy rather than an accident.
If ISIS or Boko Haram suddenly seem to be bringing the heat, then you have a clue as to where the weapons ended up. Or in Syria or Yemen. Or Mindanao. Someone somewhere wants to buy some weapons.
Or Mozambique because the rebels there seem to have some fine equipment.
Everything that has come out of the White House in recent weeks is closely linked to the elections! Just this! Especially in the usual newspapers! In Europe everyone has been talking for months about the black market full of American weapons to Ukraine! Finland has just proved it! And today no one knows the level of corruption in Ukraine better than the US! Which also only proves that more than the attempt to bleed Russia to try a regime change in Moscow, the main objective of the conflict was always to sanction Russia and disconnect the EU from Russian gas! Namely sabotaging Nord Stream II and the German economy and thus taking the EU economy hostage! The US has long known that the conflict in Ukraine is completely lost.
But what is most astonishing in the midst of all this is the ability to lie and the brazenness of Western political leadership today. And you will excuse me here but even more in the Anglo-Saxon world, US and UK! Biden was a lifelong corrupt lobbyist with a low media profile. But look at BoJo. Deceiving and lying to the English for decades. In other words, for all the jobs and public positions he went through. In the media, in the EU, as Mayor of London and finally as PM! And the worst thing is that the people continued to vote for him?! It seems that the curriculum of the rulers does not matter at all?! And so, they also never mend! In the previous post when I asked if BoJo had asperger’s I wasn’t kidding. He is certainly hyperactive and in Europe there are many cases where the drug Rivotril for a long time did even more harm. Boris is typically a run-down kid with no sense of responsibility.
Only that will allow you to lie continuously and not feel remorse to the point that you can no longer distinguish good from bad conduct! How is it possible to this day BoJo still think he has the conditions to be elected PM again? And the media continue to cover it? 30 years ago he disappeared from public life and no one ever knew about his life again. The family doesn’t even talk to him anymore! This is a fact! Yet there are still Englishmen willing to vote again for the greatest crook in the history of politics in England! Which is the only thing that scares more than having cheating rulers. Having voters who think it’s normal to have cheating rulers. That as a PM I didn’t even know that England depended a lot on gas and oil from Russia! How could the West not be in frank decline….
I recently watched the video of BoJo talking to a journalist, I think it was on this site. He reminded me of nothing so much as a spiv on the con. A charming smile spouting a line of bull. The issue is not whether he believes what he’s saying as much as this is all he knows to do. A sad, little man with dreams of Rule Britannia when the truth is that when Prime Minister he couldn’t even rule Britain.
Acho que não é Rivotril e sim Ritalina.
Damn — that was good analysis! A question for me has always been “what about NATO casualties?” It is pretty clear that NATO has large numbers of people on the ground manning NATO weapons. It is also clear that they are losing a lot of people. Of course, it is unlikely that a dead NATO soldier has NATO ID tags! The Brits surely lost some personnel in the recent strikes on Ochakiv. But you aren’t going to here about it. NATO has a big problem. Having entered the war with boots on the ground, how do they hide the fact? Over at MoA, B. has written an article about the US bruiting Russian intentions for nuclear war — again. If NATO troops can be shown to be active in the Ukraine that must regarded as casus belli and the Russians would be justified in taking out a few Polish bases. So the US trashtalks like a schoolyard bully — and takes steps to hide NATO casualties.
There are videos of Americans, wearing Ukrainian uniforms, fighting in Ukraine. Casually going about their business.
Mercenaries? “Your mission, if you choose to accept it . . . . If you are captured or killed your country will disavow you were ever there.”
General Harmon’s primary mission is to bring dead Americans “home.” There’s just too many of them at this point.
Yes of course the purpose of mentioning Americans in Ukraine is to explain away dead ones.
US domestic politics rules – just think how a negative story of dead US mercs/recently discharged would play before Nov 8th.
The real news here is that pre-election focus groups are showing no support for US policies in Ukraine – hence the other leak Larry wrote about recently about Biden shouting at Zelensky. Even that is only news to his Democrat handlers – most people knew Ukraine had no support months ago.
Biden yelled at Zelensky happened back in June, and is only coming out now?
More smoke screens and propaganda covering for yet another arms shipment, covering for the 101ST Airborne being stationed near the Ukrainian border, covering for the 82ND Airborne showing up in Kiev, covering up for a Pentagon official admission of there being Boots on the Ground in the Ukraine, covering up for this Brig. Gen. Garrick Harmon’s so-called mission to collect dead Americans and bring them “home.”
The story about Biden yelling at Zelensky was nothing but a cover-up for Mission Creep. Same thing happened in Viet Nam.
Larry, you too caught a whiff… Notably, the weapons and air defense systems being sent have more and more need for trained (US) operatives. Slouching into a direct confrontation on Russia’s doorstep. What could go wrong as more and more replacements are needed to be sent? At some point, I do think logistical centers outside Ukraine will get hit.
Everything that has come out of the White House in recent weeks is closely linked to the elections! Just this! Fix what is possible in the last few weeks! Especially in the usual newspapers! In Europe everyone has been talking for months about the black market full of American weapons to Ukraine! Finland has just proved it! And today no one knows the level of corruption in Ukraine better than the US! Which also only proves that more than the attempt to bleed Russia to try a regime change in Moscow, the main objective of the conflict was always the economic sanctions against Russia and above all disconnecting the EU from Russian gas! Namely sabotaging Nord Stream II and the German economy! And therefore take the EU economy hostage! The US has long known that the conflict in Ukraine is completely lost.
But what is most astonishing in the midst of all this is the ability to lie and the brazenness of Western political leadership today. And you will excuse me here but even more in the Anglo-Saxon world, US and UK! Biden was a lifelong corrupt lobbyist with a low media profile. But look at BoJo. Deceiving and lying to the English since forever. And even the corelegionaries in the Tories. In other words, for all the jobs and public positions he went through. In the media, in the EU, as Mayor of London, in the Brexit campaign and finally as PM! And the worst thing is that the people continued to vote for him. It seems that the curriculum of the rulers does not matter at all. And so, they also never mend! In the previous post when I asked if BoJo had asperger’s I wasn’t kidding. He is certainly hyperactive and in Europe there are many cases where the drug Rivotril for a long time did even more harm.
Boris is typically a spoiled kid from Eton yet with no sense of responsibility in the adult world. That alone allows him to lie continually and not feel remorse to the point where he can no longer distinguish good from bad conduct! A perfect sociopath who likes to scratch his ass in public. How is it possible to this day BoJo still think he has the conditions to be elected PM again? And the media continue to cover it? 40 years ago he had disappeared from public life and no one ever knew about him again. When the family doesn’t even talk to you anymore! Which is an indisputable fact that the family made a point of conveying to the media! However, there are still English people willing to vote again for the greatest cheater in the history of English politics?! Which is the only thing that scares more than having cheating rulers. Having voters who think it’s normal to have cheating rulers!? That as a PM I didn’t even know that England depended a lot on gas and oil from Russia! How could the West not be in frank decline….
Good read and worth it.
Like a matador’s bull, fatally wounded but still dangerous, however it’s slow death is assured. Putin knows it, the Chinese are loving it and the rest of the world is watching it.
PS
Apparently the cameras at Nancy’s house where not recording and no security was watching. Kinda sounds like a bull slowly dying, then all of a sudden.
So much fake news 24/7 makes Trump look good again and correct the first time.
Duplicate comment?
Never heard of literary works worth reading twice? I’m joke. But if there’s one thing about this conflict that never gets repeated, it’s the lies that are repeated 24/7 in the so-called “free world”. In a disinformation campaign that every journalist alive says they’ve never seen! And how they lied in the Invasion of Iraq! To the point of completely destroying the NU! And that is the only fact that truly sustains this war that has already put us all on the brink of WWII, not to mention the nuclear abyss if the US decides to put its boots on the theater of operations! Because it radically changes the opinion of the populations that could demonstrate against the war from the 1st day, as is obvious. A 200% economic war for the US! It is only a question of maintaining the unipolar world and the hegemony of the US, especially the dollar as the great world monetary reference! Otherwise, who finances the US debt? It is only a question of disconnecting the EU from gas from Russia and from the Eurasian project with China, which is worth twice the GDP of the US! On Brandon’s shift! Cheers.
Another proof that the sanctions are only for Europe. Bloomberg has been realizing for months that the US never stopped buying Russian oil. Also because without Russian or Venezuelan oil there is no diesel or gasoline in the US!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAFxjXdHarM&t=88s
I’d like to know where all that Syrian oil being pulled out under US ops is going. Turkey? Pakistan? Greece? Israel?
Yes, and the Netherlands just exempted 91 of their companies from the coming Russian oil import sanctions. Oil for me, but mot for thee.
Here’s one. You cannot make diesel from US Shale Oil. Fracked oil here in the US is light oil. Heavy (or crude) oil is needed to produce diesel. Russian oil is primarily the “good stuff” — heavy oil.
Now, I don’t know if the diesel shortages here in the US are real, or just more propaganda. I guess we will see when the next group of sanctions on Russian oil take effect on December 5TH.
The timing seems to be a combination of:
1. The military seeking political cover for its incompetence/negligence, on the slim chance the elections do bring in some real change of oversight (not holding my breath, no matter what happens in the election).
2. The administration and military seeking deniability about the combat roles of KIA US officers and troops – “No, they were only there as non-combat inspectors.”
(As always, even as inspectors I fail to see how this wouldn’t be the nth violation of Putin’s farcical “red line” about NATO interference. What a pathetic joke that turned out to be.)
3. It’s election propaganda, geared to whatever portion of the voters support the US war but may be getting concerned about where all the money and weapons really are going.
Maybe the goal is to stop the winter offensives (that are set to commence once the ground is frozen, or so I’m told), by putting American troops directly in their intended pathways, the thinking being, the Russians would never roll over and crush the American tripwire/inventory clerks — as if they weren’t even there – on their way to their to designated targets.
Whatever those might be. Odessa? Ukraine’s westernmost border? London? All those and more?
Afterall, I’m pretty sure the Pentagon knows where the winter offensives are likely to be headed. Hell, I think I have a pretty good idea just from watching YouTube videos of trains loaded with Russian military hardware rolling day and night through Kursk, Rostov-on-the-Don, various parts of Crimea, and to a lesser extent, Belerus.
I think the 40 Mile Long Menacing Do Nothing Column to the West of Kiev, the one that was forced to ignominiously retreat in good order to Belerus under heavy Ukraine fires in April, is still up there, near their original starting positions, so no need to reinforce them all that much. Hence, the lower number of train videos from that locale.
Meanwhile, all is quiet along the contact line.
More or less. The loudest sounds at moment perhaps being those of the Russians digging in. Which does seem a like a paradoxical undertaking for an army about to go over to the attack.
But should we expect anything less at this point, is this odd little big war?
Perhaps some (not insane) top dogs in US Army Combatant Command decided they needed a higher profile at Keiv’s headquarters to exert some control over the rapidly degrading internal command and control of the regime. After all, the US is the primary funder of this little SMO, despite the Brits running the board on the ground. We see the Nasties faction infighting with the regular military and the mercs, the Brits and Mi6 pushing self-defeating stunts that screw the Ukies (and the US), the influx of terrorist merc groups of every stripe, the CIA and state dept doing who knows what (besides laundering money, weapons, and drugs), with military grade munitions, dirty bombs and bio/chemical weapons on the loose, and an impending defeat and collapse that will end quite a few careers.
In short, the lid is bubbling off this pot and there’s gonna be hell to pay…so much for the bashing of the Putin pinata.
Oops! Forgot the US Delta CC operating system hack. Wonder what genius let that happen?
Weapons inspections lol…WW3 is upon us. Y’all really didn’t think Western elites would just allow Russia to just roll Ukraine with this mobilization did you? They say out loud they won’t. Putin didnt fall after sanctions…didnt after mobilization… so let’s try fighting them directly. They are “all in” now and when missiles start falling it’s probably what they want anyway since they hate whom they govern and they will survive. The elites have multi generational compounds unlike most of you. Fixes lots of issues they fret about as a bonus – from climate change to finding jobs for people with billions less “useless eaters” among us. We probably deserve it since no one is out in the streets stopping this.
Hello Larry! It looks like an admission of mission creep; also found this video titled: SOCOM Requests 7.62×39 Conversion Kits For “Developing Requirements”? – by Magic Prepper: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQ7vT4QWv94
If true it might mean the folks doing mission creep are looking for plausible deniability, for what? I don’t know yet.
The source seems to be a US oriented military blog of some sort?
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/tiny-rattler-rifles-for-u-s-special-operators-may-be-adapted-to-fire-soviet-ammo
Douglas MacGregor on Redacted last night opined that these inspectors or auditors may really be an advance party for a deployment of troops into western Ukraine.
The announcement now would therefore be a way of conditioning the public for further deployment.
His views are always worth listening to (and usually accurate) and he clearly knows how the bureaucracy works. Such a deployment would be crazy but given where we are, crazy seems likely.
I agree. “Mission Creep.” The US Government pulled the same crap in Viet Nam. Started with a few advisors. Then tens of advisors. Then hundreds of advisors. Then thousands of American soldiers.
“Concerns were raised starting last April [sic] about the corrupt diversion of U.S. military supplies to criminal organizations inside Ukraine.”
Even when the Ukraine was Russia’s problem (before the former Soviet Union fell), the Ukraine was known as one of the biggest deadbeats, parasitic, corrupt, failed states out there. An argument could very easily be made that Russia neglected to fulfill its responsibility to get the Ukraine’s vagrant house in order back then, but didn’t, and now here we are.
Over 30-years later, nothing has changed, except the Ukraine is now “governed” by a drug addicted, cross dressing, moocher, midget, with delusions of grandeur. And things are better?
The Ukraine has summoned the devil, in the form of the “Empire of Lies.” The Ukraine let the devil move in and take control. The “Empire of Lies,” a civilization known mainly for its endless wars and endless warmongering, whose people have been driven to insanity.
Finally, Mom and Dad, (Russia), have taken notice that something must be done about an errant, out of control, trouble making child (the Ukraine), who has fallen in with the wrong crowd.
Let’s hope it’s not too late. [heavy sarcasm]
My understanding is that all NATO/Western weapons have RFID devices installed by the manufacturer. Should be easy to track every weapon sent to Ukraine. Using the inspectors as weapons handlers is spot on Larry!
Senator Rand Paul blocked the first major aid bill and demanded some form of oversight of the spending which was at that time a combination of monetary and military aid, and was howled down.
Anybody assigned to Paul’s task had it been accepted would of necessity had boots on the ground in Ukraine and had to oversee the hardware’s arrival and disbursement.
So it’s not as if the issue of accountability was not raised and rejected outright – including oversight of the spending – so the potential issue of misdirected dollars is yet to rear it’s head.
Covid’agony
operation covid is adrenochrome operating system
https://www.bitchute.com/video/2xfFpwNKIXuI/
Question on all this accounting errors. No idea on weapons of which the Military has control of? So how does one know what the true price of oil is when Russia and China are not using the USD to trade it? How does one believe any numbers churned out by any country at this point? Thanks
There is not true price of oil. Some pay more for it, some pay less.
John Helmer’s website has an extensive new post on what is known (apparently nothing) about the very large amounts of IMF and other international financial support for Ukraine.
At one point he notes that social media reports by Ukraine troops indicate that much pay (to the extent they are actually getting paid) is being appropriated by higher ups that continues to flow to dead soldiers….
Just for the record, I beat Larry to this Breaking News a day before he did: https://sonar21.com/mentally-ill-illegal-alien-drug-abusing-nudist-is-really-a-trump-stooge/ 🙂
A forum would grow this group of Patriots, IMO. And I don’t know what all the blogs offer but I recommend an old fashioned forum, i.e., vBulletin.
Of course, Larry and the rest of you know one million times more than I do, and Larry may have good reasons not to opt for a forum.
I find surveillance to be omnipresent for everyone but especially for people like Larry and the rest of you.
Freedom seems to be in decline while authoritarian totalitarian rule surges.
Y’all know a lot more than you are saying! Admit it.
If Larry had a forum, I would start a thread entitled Kari Lake. 🙂 (I wonder what Kari Lake’s view is of Ukraine/Russia? I have no idea. I believe we definitely live under a uniparty system. And we have dementia Joe for one primary reason, the Republican Party!)
I just tweeted the following:
Kari,
I saw a U.S. Marine in Mississippi recently and he initially told me, “All politicians are shit.” But the second time I saw him, I repeated to him what he had told me and the U.S. Marine told me Kari Lake in Arizona is an exception to that rule.
Good luck!
https://twitter.com/RebelArmydotcom
Terrific piece. People in the Pentagon and State Department are not stupid. They know exactly what is going on. Ukraine is one of the most corrupt countries in the World. The US has been arming Ukraine since the US-engineered ‘Revolution of Dignity’, aka
Maidan coup in 2014; supplying more than $50 billion in ‘aid’. (See- https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2022/11/02/ukra-n02.html). American taxpayers are little more than an ATM providing endless amounts of money to bail out Wall St and support the Pentagon. Indeed, American taxpayers have provided more than $21 trillion for post-911 conflicts (debacles?) in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria, Horn of Africa/Yemen, Eastern Europe and Taiwan Strait.
Another ‘breaking story’ is that the Islamic Republic of Iran ‘may’ attack the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). (See- https://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2022-11-01/saudis-tell-us-that-iran-is-prepping-attack-on-kingdom). Why now? The Biden Administration wants regime change in Iran. Also, KSA has been seeking closer relations with Russia and China and is considering joining the BRICS+ and SCO. The US dollar has been able to maintain its status as reserve currency because it is the primary currency used for energy transactions (petrodollar). The US ruling elite are petrified that KSA will conduct energy transactions in alternative curries, such as the Chinese yuan, threatening the dollar and the very survival of the American empire.
Your wrong Larry. This is a story of US tax payers and the US military licking neocon testicles.
Pelosy went to Taiwan at the service of her Chinese masters. She provided them with the exuse to flex their muscles, make some threats, draw red lines and make the US so called leadership try to state their unformed position(s).
Excellent commentary from Mr. Johnson as usual. Draft Johnson 2024!
As Larry points out it would have been very simple to set up a basic inventory audit system. Why wasn’t this done? Could it be that the suppliers were getting a cut of the illegal sales?
Why now? Maybe it is because the number of US troops that have been KIA is getting to large to hide? If so the thugs who got us into this mess can claim that they got killed while running audits.
Let’s go Brandon!
I note that Douglas MacGregor has another interesting take on this inspection of lost weapons – as in how does one find weapons that have already been stolen and are likely already out of the country? He suggests that the “inspections” may be setting up a preliminary study for a US/multinational forces to set up in Western Ukraine. The worry here is about the incompetence factor based on a stupid assumption that these multinational forces would not immediately come under attack by Russia. Of course they would, and that would mean a higher risk for Washington to really do something stupid….
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4yt16j-Ah8
FWIW,
I’m sure we will hear of a helicopter crash with US troops on board in Ukraine soon enough to hide the truth
More “military advisors” deployed : It looks more and more like the Nam. It just miss the napalm burned kids running everywhere.
The BBC reported as early as 2014 that British and American special forces were operating in the Donbas, fighting against the Donbas militias. If we suffered any casualties then, it was never reported. Shouldn’t there be some record of bodies brought home? What were the relatives told? Training accidents?
The US tightened up coverage of the repatriation of dead service members some time back. So, mostly you will never hear or see anything in the way of coverage of these events
There was a slip up in this policy awhile back when Biden was in attendance at a repatriation of dead service members, I believe for those killed in the Skeedaddle from Kabul. Instead of respectfully and reflectively standing there as the coffins were removed from the airplane, the asshole kept periodically, and compulsively, consulting his fucking wristwatch. What’s the matter, Brandon, afraid you’re going to miss Happy Hour at the ice cream parlor? I’m not sure if he even could be arsed to salute.
As others have said, disclosures such as this, whether true or not, likely have more to do with Republican takeover of Congress and the possibility of related investigations than anything else. Except for neocon warmongers among their ranks, many conservatives have been against this war and its tremendous costs and risks, especially in light of economic hardship at home.
Anyway, I had to laugh and roll my eyes recently when the ACLU, which has been MIA (at best, traitors at worst) in recent years, tweeted that government has no business dictating what people are allowed to read or think – a remark made in response to news the US government and Big Tech are in collusion regarding censorship (quelle surprise). Again, this renewed concern about civil liberties is surely in anticipation of soon-to-be Republican control of Congress.
Saw a tv commercial last night for that very same “ACLU”. It was nauseating. Where have they been when the Covidian autocrats were trampling all over the civil rights of citizens who got crosswise of these autocrats’ diktats? Well, nowhere to be found, of course. And likewise with the J6 attendees caught up in the Deep State/Stasi trap. Nowhere…
So, “ACLU” I’ve got another acronym for you right here; namely, GTFO, you feculent posers.
I recently read a book called “Massacre on the Mountaind” published in about 1890.. and the Indian wars in the US West after about 1820. Fascinating.. and it details how funds were sent to Indian Agents.. and they would just basically take the money gor themselves… then after a while Congress woukd send someone to audit the situation… but no-thong would change. Different Day.. same old sheet.
We can go back to the end of the Vietnam war, Admiral Poindexter and some General named Secord too, and ask what happened to all the weapons removed from theater by naval ships to, I don’t know, Thailand, the Philippines and elsewhere. Those guys went from active duty to active arms dealers. I think Secord even incorporated an arms business. Nice be nice to have zero cost for your complete inventory. Generals and Flag Officers make bank. Who profits from stolen Syrian oil? Well, protection must be paid for.
Re: “the corrupt diversion of U.S. military supplies to criminal organizations”
So the military supplies we’re sending to the criminal organization we installed are being diverted to the criminal organization we installed?
This is confusing.
It’s quite likely now that the number of U.S. Soldiers KIA is in the Hundreds, if not over a Thousand. While they were/are acting as “Mercenaries”, there still is the problem of what the Families of these victims are told. Numbers are Way Beyond a random Helicopter Crash or three.
Also, it’s likely that the Red Army, or Donbass Militia Groups, have some American (as well as British, Polish, etc.) POW’s, and my guess is, Russia, unlike the Soviet Communists after Vietnam, are not just going to make them “Go Away” for political reasons.
Another aspect of why now is to normalize American boots on the ground in the Ukraine.
Colonel McGregor is concerned that this is actually an advance unit to identify the best area to house a large grouping of soldiers such as the 101st.
This isn’t your grandfather’s war. Cruise Missiles. Space weapons. ICBMs. There are no safe places, no “best area to house a large grouping of soldiers such as the 101st.” Now everything is potentially located on a front line. That’s what Putin was referring to when he said, in this conflict, the United States could no longer depend upon being safe “at home” any longer.
“If acts of aggression that risk turning [Britain] into a direct party in the conflict continue, the British side will solely bear the responsibility for their negative consequences and the increase in tensions between our countries,” the ministry said.
Statement by the Russian MOD who suspect UK special forces involved in Crimea attack.
That’s fighting talk.
Looks like the Biden regime is now using the UK as a proxy as well, getting yourself killed fo ryour own nation is one thing, but getting yourslef killed for “Ukraine” a nowhere place in the middle of nowhere is simply peak stupid.
It is clear and obvious that a fraction of the US miliray aid has been diverted !
There is a very important question that was not made for anyone yet : Where the US weapons and others elements of military aid allegedly sent to Ukraine were diverted to ?!?!?!
Speculation:
It is possible that the U.S. is counting on an imminent collapse of Ukraine. The USA would like to prevent a second Afghanistan. They do not want state-of-the-art weapons with their technology and worth several billion dollars to fall into the hands of the Russians. Perhaps the US troops are covering the withdrawal of these weapons?
Indeed, it a lot of cash has been spent since August 2021…
https://www.state.gov/275-million-in-additional-u-s-military-assistance-for-ukraine/
According to Mr Blinken’s statement on October 28, two initial NASAMS were ready for delivery to Ukraine “next month” i.e. November.
However, Raytheon claims to have delivered those “initial” NASAMS to Ukraine already on October 26:
https://www.armyrecognition.com/norway_norwegian_army_missile_systems_vehicles_uk/nasams_norwegian_national_advanced_surface_to_air_missile_system_data.html
From MI Spooks:
Stewart Rhodes’ (Yale Law School) Oath Keepers would always be highly suspicious to me as a sting operation designed to identify disaffected military leaders.
>>And what about those officers above that rank?<<
I already explained this to you in the past. And more than once.
end
While I am a dummy and admit it, no one here is better than MI Spooks and that's saying a lot. No disrespect intended.
"Also, Field Grade officers are: Major – Lt.Col. – Col…. Lower officers are 'Company Grade' and higher are 'General Grade'."
Rank seems to matter a lot in the military. MI Spooks always liked Field Grade Officers the best.
BTW, I interviewed Stewart Rhodes long ago.
Very solid article, Larry! indeed, a lot of reports as to why this is coming out now:
In that sense, this report reflective as to where is the money going. For anyone without the rabid “we stand with Ukraine” biden bull s—must be asking that question:
http://johnhelmer.org/
A new report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) reveals that the Ukraine has become a thieves’ paradise in which corporate loan defaults are written off; embezzlement from banks is not traced; the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) no longer audits the country’s bank liabilities and reserves; and the IMF admits it cannot tell how much of the $35 billion in foreign cash grants and loans promised to Kiev has been disbursed, or to whom.
“Uncertainty” is IMF officialspeak for black hole. “The balance of probabilities,” according to the staff paper dated October 3, “would suggest that Ukraine has an unsustainable level of debt.” According to the Fund rules, this should suspend or stop IMF and all other foreign government cashflows.
Harmon is a talking point. Congress is finalizing the next $50B behind closed doors. It will be passed between November and January…after the elections but before the new congress is seated. The general will be used by both Dems and Reps to deflect criticism of their “yes” votes.
Here is where some of those trafficked weapons from Ukraine have been winding up, precisely in the wrong hands.
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/finland-says-ukraine-arms-ending-hands-criminal-gangs
And now, I want to suggest that you take the time to carefully read and digest this following post. It is an interview with a French expert on security and military matters. The interview is dense with information and speculation about what this information suggests about what may lie ahead in Europe. But if you think that it may have no relevance about matters in North America, well, don’t be too sure about that.
https://www.thepostil.com/what-ukraine-tells-us-about-the-coming-war/
In this time of the decay of the power of individual nation states (to a substantial degree traceable to neoliberal aggrandizement against the primacy of nation states, and in Europe to the pretensions of the European Union to superseding authority over its constituent nation states in matters such as immigration policies, and jurisprudence), there are arising dangers from sub-national forces, and international criminal organizations with which the weakened nation states are now increasingly unable to contend. There exists a real danger of a resurgence of various forms of warlordism, a dramatic lurch backwards to pre-Westphalian times. But these dangers also exist in the increasingly splintered “United” States, and Canada, divided comprehensively along cultural lines, and becoming increasingly fraught as large bodies of non-compatible ethnic and religious groups are being forced upon our nations by “Elite” fiat.
I commend a close reading of this interview, particularly with an eye toward the forthcoming effects of the deliberately engineered economic and demographic collapse in Western nations on this developing instability.
no doubt in my mind. vaguely placed boots on the ground with a general. i laugh the laugh of someone who is resigned to the possibility of being nuked. one for the cause.
My Ukrainian brother fought for Ukraine from 2014 to 2016, and he told me they had to return and account for all their weapons, equipment, and even the holes in their uniforms. I don’t buy this sudden weaponry unaccountability, but only by special design.