USA
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Kevin is here to help US–China relations
With the United States and China locked in an ongoing battle and no solution in sight, Kevin Rudd from Queensland is here to help. His new book explains President Xi Jinping’s thinking and suggests a way forward. Are people paying attention? If they are, will they learn anything useful? Continue reading »
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Threat of North Korean soldiers is based on U.S. info campaign
Earlier this week I pointed to a Ukrainian (South Korean, U.S.) propaganda campaign which claims that thousands of North Korean soldiers will soon fight with on the Russian side against Ukraine: Continue reading »
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20,000 members of the American Nazi Party once rallied in Madison Square Garden. Could it happen again?
On October 10, The Atlantic premiered ‘A Night at the Garden‘, an unsettling seven minutes and five seconds long video made of film footage that American documentary filmmaker Marshall Curry had accidentally found. Continue reading »
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Could it happen here?
Inauguration Day for the new President in 2025 will mark the 90th anniversary of the publication of Sinclair Lewis’ It Can’t Happen Here. Continue reading »
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US is spending $28 billion on Sinophobic propaganda to colonise your brain
Whoever owns the narrative owns the world – and things just got a lot tougher for those of us opposed to the metastasising brain cancer known as US influence campaigns – or “perception management”. Continue reading »
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Powder keg in the Pacific
While the world looks on with trepidation at regional wars in Israel and Ukraine, a far more dangerous global crisis is quietly building at the other end of Eurasia, along an island chain that has served as the front line for America’s national defence for endless decades. Continue reading »
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The ghosts of 1982
The ghosts of 1982 are hovering over Beirut. Continue reading »
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American censorship of the ‘Pikidon’ and genocidal intent in Gaza
In 2024 the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Nihon Hidankyo, the grassroots collective of Hibakusha and Hibakusha Nisei (first and second generation surviving the atomic bombs). Continue reading »
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US boots on the ground in Israel demolishes international law
The US decision to send troops to Israel has upended the focus of attention for all those, globally, who have attempted to stop both the ongoing genocide in Gaza, and the determination of the current Israeli government to create Eretz Israel: a territory incorporating – at minimum – all Palestinian land now occupied by Israel, Continue reading »
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How Zionism proselytises
In her recent acceptance speech as recipient of British PEN’s Pinter Peace Prize, writer Arundhati Roy made special note of President Biden’s words on his visit to Israel shortly after 7 October 2023. Continue reading »
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US arms dealers witness ‘record profits’ from Israel’s year-long genocide in Gaza, war on Lebanon
The US and Israel’s ongoing military escalation across West Asia has helped the aerospace and defence industry outperform expectations. Continue reading »
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Taiwan: Is reunification with China a dead issue?
On January 13 this year, Taiwan, amid high hopes in the ruling party, held its quadrennial presidential/vice presidential/legislative election. It was expected to be a very consequential election. Taiwan’s future was said to be at stake. Continue reading »
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Anxious Democrat voters find new ways to self-medicate as election looms
Standing in the tiny foyer of a small theatre that had seen better days on a residential street in inner-city Philadelphia, I asked a fellow theatre-goer standing next to me, “Are you looking forward to some comic relief?” Continue reading »
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The unresolved tension at the core of Australia’s strategic policy
Australia wants to constrain China, but without tying itself to America’s own ambitions and all that might mean. Continue reading »
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Kishore Mahbubani: China’s ‘wiser’ long-term strategy paves way to No. 1 world power
Veteran Singapore envoy on what the West gets wrong about China, ASEAN as a bellwether region and why the US should prepare for No. 2 status. Continue reading »
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Meta is aggressively censoring criticism of US-Israeli warmongering
I am at risk of getting banned from both Instagram and Facebook as both Meta-owned platforms keep censoring my criticisms of Israel’s US-backed atrocities in Gaza and Lebanon, placing strikes on my accounts in the process. Continue reading »
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Australia poised to enter another US-led Middle East war
With less than two months to go, voters may go to the American polls while their nation is at war. If they do, there is a significant chance that Australia will be dragged in, and in accordance with imperial tradition be sent to fight in the Middle East. Continue reading »
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As US ally blows up the Mideast, China preserves Asia’s prosperity
Launching Cold War 2.0 against a reluctant Beijing while enabling Israel to set fire to an entire region is now official American foreign policy. Continue reading »
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The impact of China’s rising soft power
A recent article in the US journal Foreign Affairs, written by Daniel Mattingly of Yale University argues persuasively that: “China’s Soft Sell of Autocracy is Working”. One reason is that China’s soft power today relies on an unmatched performance scorecard. Continue reading »
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How civilisation could end – an all-too-possible nuclear scenario
On 12 September, Vladimir Putin threatened retaliation, not excluding nuclear, against NATO countries if Washington allows Ukraine to attack targets inside Russia with US missiles. President Joe Biden backed off – for the moment. But the doomsday clock of the Atomic Scientists now stands at 90 seconds to midnight, the closest it has ever been Continue reading »
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Why Donald Trump could win the US election
How do we understand the appeal of Donald Trump to more than 45% of American voters? Here are some reasons why he could win the 2024 presidential election. Continue reading »
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Australia-America odd couple relationship needs repair
The largely unrecognised risk to Australia that our powerful ally will strategically collapse through internal political stresses is greater than the much discussed threat of war with China. Allan Behm, Director, International & Security Affairs Program, The Australia Institute, in conversation with Michael Lester about his new book The Odd Couple: The Australia-America relationship (Upswell Continue reading »
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Does Trump want both mass deportation and remigration?
Donald Trump’s desire for a mass deportation program for about 11 million undocumented migrants in the US (he says the number is much bigger) is well known. According to some polling, around 54% of US citizens support such a program even if they have no idea how it would be implemented, how it may affect Continue reading »
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On war crimes and Western hypocrisy
The death toll has risen to 12 from Israel’s terror attack in Lebanon on Tuesday which detonated explosive materials hidden in thousands of pagers. Another 20 people were then killed in another attack on Wednesday with a second wave of explosions, this time using walkie talkies and home solar energy systems. Continue reading »
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The Forever War: America’s unending conflict with itself. Reviewed by Braham Dabscheck
In the aftermath of the attempted assassination of Donald Trump, our need to understand the US feels more immediate than ever. Continue reading »
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What would a second Trump presidency mean for the global economy?
Donald Trump inherited a strong economy from President Barack Obama and managed it poorly. Continue reading »
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Dependency or protectorate?
It is understandable that people around the world obsess about US elections given the cultural and political impact the country has on the rest of us. Continue reading »
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Would Trump or Harris keep the US out of new wars?
Donald Trump wants to end the conflict in Ukraine, but would have fewer guardrails in office. However, Kamala Harris might take a harder line on China than we think. Continue reading »
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Kamala still facing electoral college hurdles
Kamala Harris was, to my mind, a clear winner of the first debate between herself and Donald Trump. As things stand, however, I reckon that Trump must be still regarded as the favourite to win a majority of the state electoral college votes, and thus become the next president. I hope I am wrong, but Continue reading »
