The Cold War provided a solid generation of unfettered government growth in the US on the pretext of the Russian threat, and over the past few years American officials have relished at the new round of tensions with Russia, and the budget-busting spending it has permitted.
They’re hoping to make that permanent, with a new bill called the STAND for Ukraine Act aiming to make temporary measures imposed during Ukraine’s regime change permanent, and hamstring all future governments from a diplomatic rapprochement with Russia.
The new push centers in part on the fear that some future president might be less on-board with open-ended hostilities. Current Republican nominee Donald Trump has expressed doubt about the current acrimony, and said if elected he would be open to lifting sanctions on Russia.
It’s not just about Trump, however, and aims to preclude any president at any time in the future from such considerations, making the sanctions a permanent aspect of American policy. While there’s a lot of taxpayer money to be frittered away on preparing for war with Russia, however, those aren’t the only moneyed interests at play here.
The US-Russia Business Council is fighting vigorously against the bill, and the sanctions, with ExxonMobil’s agreed to $500 billion drilling deal with Rosneft at risk if the sanctions become permanent. Even this enormous deal could potentially just be the beginning, as the Russian Arctic contains untold oil wealth, and American oil giants are the best positioned to get it out of the ground.
This puts two wildly influential lobbying powers, America’s military contractors, and its oil industry, directly at odds with one another, and with massive sums of money ultimately at stake.
Oil wins until the military figures out how to make jets and tanks run on something else.
I might suggest a few things that the MIC can run on, bull pucky, horse feathers, and the gullability of the American sheeple.
The problem is though that there are more of the “unhinged” at the top of the military food chain than the oil industry. And betting that the over-testosteroned nutcases in the military leadership won’t go postal and do something supremely irrational and ultimately catastrophic for the rest of mankind is not a bet I want to take.
It isn’t the oil. That is the excuse. It is the big defense idea itself. They seek to avoid the big run down that occurred right after WW2. That run down was reversed by the Korean War, and spending kept going at high levels ever since by the “threat.” When one threat ended, another had to be found to keep DoD going at current levels spending going ever higher.
Trump says he wants a much stronger military . I hope that does not mean he is going to increase military spending , which is a usual republican plan . I hope he runs our military like his campaign Take the lead without spending the money
US Congress=s: Facists
NATO = NAZI
This is more likely to get a running start for Hillary, to set up momentum she won’t try to stop.
I am afraid that it is not military contractors that are yielding the power. It is the neocon money-making schema for syphoning the money away from any real military purpose, and into lucrative business of regime change, such as NGO business, consultants, and foundations — from Soros to Gulen. The money cannot be easily traced, the real costs vs. syphoning off, impossible to audit, and the results cannot be measured. Oh, what happiness. And with Russia, there is an added advantage of trying to get back at the wrongs Russia did to their ancestors. They better watch out. Because Russia can come back and demand of the overly excitable families to pay back for the hundreds of years of selling Russian slaves. There is plenty of dirt there, but neocons do not mind stepping into it — for as long as the gravy train continues. When will American man or a woman catch on — this is a private business, private settling of historic scores, but being made into American security issue.
Meanwhile, the non-invaded Ukraine which US taxpayers shall STAND with is proving to be wildly democratic:
http://www.unz.com/akarlin/long-live-euromaidan/
This will prove to be another STAND with nasty STDs the morning after.
Wildly democratic like the Baltic countries we just garnered into NATO . every one can vote that can trace their ancestry back to before 1940 ,This prevents their large Russian populations from be allowed to vote . If Russia put the fear of God into these NAZ NATO countries it would not bother me one bit
The USG Congress is filled with whores and prostitutes,
pimped by the Military Industrial Complex, whose goal
is perpetual war and stealing from USG taxpayers; and
Big Business, whose goal is to grab and plunder all the
natural resources it can on the planet.
Yes, the rest of the world know that.
But we also know that Trump has set himself up as the one who answers to all the ills and the complaints. And he does it for all Americans, no matter who you are or what you want from him.
He’s the perfect huckster who has no feeling for the people who support him and no feeling for what he is promising.
He’s the perfect example of what blowing a dog whistle means. The dogs hear him when he says something for them but they don’t hear when he says something they don’t want to hear.
The big trouble is, he’s taken his routine much too far and it’s becoming very dangerous for the future of the world. Now he has to be stopped and it must be accepted that the only candidate that even comes close to holding the office is Clinton.
After Clinton becomes the president, the leftover groundswell of idiocy that supported Trump can perhaps be redirected into doing something about Hillary. If that happens then something good can come out of a mad narcissistic psychopath running for president.
Isn’t that what Americans want? All you have to do is get past the false hope that Trump has given you. Just come to understand that any madman could have offered you the same things. And understand that he never did have any intention of making anything happen.
“Mommy, can we feed the troll?” “You know son you’re not supposed to.” “Yes, mommy, I know, but he looks so sad and hungry.” “Well, of course son, he’s a troll. Way down on the Maslow scale. Emotionally starved. That’s why he’s sad and grouchy.” “What’s the Maslow scale, mommy?” “Well, you see, there was this man named Abraham Maslow and he …. hmmm, never mind. Here are some Truthy Nuggets,… go ahead, feed the troll.”
Trump is a builder not a destroyer. He has ***exactly the skill-set necessary to rebuild America. He wants nothing to do with foreign military adventures, nothing to do with regime change, nothing to do with inventing boogeymen to justify the military industrial complex, the “one percent”, and the pro-Israel fifth column continuing to feed on the American people.
Without the “psychopath” baloney — pure, unfounded fear-mongering from the Ambassador from the planet Woo Woo — Trump’s goal to rehabilitate the criminalized American political system becomes a rational, reality-connected path for the restoration of responsible governance to the neglected and long-suffering US citizen of Main Street.
Promoting the general welfare, keeping Americans safe and taking care of Americans first. What a concept!
Peace with Russia, peace with China, peace with everyone except radical Islamic terrorists! What a concept!
You say you’re against war, Don. Well, consider: Trump gets supermodel sex whenever he wants it, Hillary hasn’t been serviced since inauguration night, January 1993. Who is more inclined, sexual-frustration-wise, to want to make war on the rest of humanity?
Cheap shot? Maybe, but reality-based just the same.
luv from planet Earth.
“[Donald Trump wants] nothing to do with inventing boogeymen to justify the military industrial complex” — Jeff Davis, 08/19/16
“We will spend what we need to rebuild our military …. We will develop, build and purchase the best equipment known to mankind. Our military dominance must be unquestioned, and I mean unquestioned, by anybody and everybody.” — Donald Trump, 04/27/16/16
Your point is well taken, Thomas. Trump has said he’s the most militant of all the folks running for president. Trump has said he will rebuild the military from its current state of — according to him — decrepitude. Make it bigger and badder than it ever was. But then, he has also said that he believes the military should be used defensively, judiciously, with genuine American interests in mind, and with a corresondingly greater respect for the lives of American military personnel who would be put in harm’s way.
In his first foreign policy speech he said he would kick the neoconservatives to the curb, those people with perfect resumes but catastrophically bad judgment. Then he turns around and speaks approvingly of arch-Neocon John Bolton.
Trump has said a lot of different things at a lot of different times. Is he just learning to do the political thing, telling people what they want to hear? Or is he speaking from the heart?
It’s a helluva spectacle. An unprecedented electoral phenomenon. We have political revolutions on the left — failed — and on the right — still in play.
Campaigning is a word fest, a prologue to the main event, which is governance. Governance is action, real and substantial. What precisely is the relationship between the words it takes to win a campaign, and the actions that will follow and determine the future of the nation? What would Trump actually do? Conventional mediocrity? Paralyzed greatness? Effective greatness? Catastrophic evil?
The country is in the mood for a revolution. With Trump, maybe it could happen. With Hillary, well,… we know exactly what will happen with Hillary. More of the same old same old. More of the same dreary disappointment. More of the same failed, expensive, military adventurism. With Hillary there will be no “Morning in America”, only mourning in America.
Jeff,
I just really hate the choices. It feels like a choice between:
1) Every day for four years, Hector “Macho” Camacho tracks us down wherever we are and spends about 30 seconds working us over; or
2) Once a day for four years, we play one round of Russian roulette with a six-shot revolver that has one round in one cylinder.
Option #1 is going to suck and it’s going to hurt like hell, but we can probably survive it if we run as soon as we see Camacho coming every day and he’s usually only able to get one or two punches in before the bell.
Option #2 isn’t going to hurt at all. But there’s a good chance it’s going to kill us.
The Donald was taken out of context. Come on man, start cherry picking and you too will convince yourself that the Donald isn’t actually a babbling moron.
Out of context and cherry picking? You can’t win with the likes of that kind. As you said, if they’re wtih Trump now then they will stay with trump. Too bad you didn’t get the undecided right.
you are supposed to be a moderator . I may have been banned from using discus on the daily times .I can’t get any comments to work unless it says comment as a guest but my comment are always waiting moderation . can you cure my problem . facebook won’t let me on they say i’am already logged in on another account . I can’t teach you guys anything if I don’t get to comment .
Eric,
Disqus installations are separate from each other, so being banned at the Daily Times (is that the Pakistani paper?) would not affect your status here at Antiwar.com.
You seem to have been commenting here via Disqus for months, and to be doing so right now, so I’m not sure what “problem” you’re asking me to “cure.”
Talking about Hillary and Trump being serviced is just what I would expect from a Trump supporter.
Proving my point, one ugly message at a time.
Trump hasn’t given ‘me’ anything. Like I told you several times
before, (neither) party in my (opinion) is worth a damn for the
USG citizen. Both give (us) slop from the same pig trough.
The ‘Dog and Pony Show’ called the 2016 U.S. Election will come down to an arrogant demigod, and pathological liar.
Not that it will make a dime’s bit of difference, I plan to vote for Jill Stein of the Green Party, or Libertarian Gary Johnson.
“Not that it will make a dime’s bit of difference…”
You got that right. Damn shame, too. Jill Stein is a near perfect candidate. Sad and astonishing that we don’t/can’t have a slate of Jill Stein-quality candidates to choose from.
No escape from the Moron planet.
If Americans, in their grand wisdom, believe that Jill Stein is the best candidate then she will win.
Which would be fine but unfortunately she won’t and the main reason is that the approach is all wrong. When the US learns to embrac socially responsible capitalism then the ‘third’ party will win. That’s what is is known to Americans as socialism.
The US is far from ready by the sound of it.
I’d say Congress is our permanent enemy.A bunch of Lochtes.
Yep
Be careful of what you believe. Lochte is getting all the heat because he is safely home. That’s a coordinated effort to take the heat off the other perps who didn’t make it out in time.
This is almost certainly in part a retribution for the 5+1 agreement with Iran. Although I have not seen the actual text I believe that ” hamstring all future governments from a diplomatic rapprochement with Russia” is clearly unconstitutional and can be ignored by every future president.
ha, the real enemy is the israeli firsters in the american government today, these are youe real enemies,they are screaming to start a nuke ww3, and for those thayt believe this story, ask yourselves, what will you do when a nuke strikes your home town, you will be dead
https://theuglytruth.files.wordpress.com/2016/04/propaganda-tv-media.jpg?w=620
“The future’s so bright…I gotta wear shades…”
The US gvt “mouth breathers in congress” have been demonizing Russia, because Russia had the temerity to keep its word with their defense pact with Syria. Which predated any of the US bs in Syria by at least 20 years.
The US gvt has hired, trained, paid, supplied a proxy army to attack Syria and Russia ruined their plans to get rid of Syria’s democratically elected president Assad,. The only reason the US is attacking Syria is CONGRESS is bought and paid for by ISRAEL and ISRAEL has plans to incorporate Syria into what is called GREATER ISRAEL!
If you don’t know what the “greater israel plan is” do a bit of research and you’ll know all the who’s, where’s, why’s of all the problems in the middle east right now!
The only thing I would differ with is that Israel is to blame for all the problems in the ME. It’s the US that is to blame mainly, not just for making Israel the criminal nation that it is but also for propping up and empowering Israel to use it as an excuse to be in the ME.
Small disctiction maybe but at least a good reason to turn this one from Raimondo into something to do with the antiwar cause.
let me guess, you never bothered to research “the greater israel plan”, did you!
I have done a little research I think greater Israel would be a great plan It is even mentioned in the Bible . Yet I don’t see Israel is acting on this plan . Somebody has to control, the Jihadists or they will control us . I don’t buy your idea Israel is the cause all the problems in the middle east .I think Muslim terrorism in the Philippians , Kosovo , Bosnia ,Afghanistan ,Russia ,England , France , Germany , United States or where ever Muslims are allowed freedom to do what they believe is their road to heaven is the problem not Israel .
you don’t see it? really? willful ignorance should be a crime!
Russia is learning not to care anymore. So are its friends.
Good for northrop grumman, bad for mankind.