Peru, China, and the Pentagon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlZl-NkrdNk

Dina Boluarte spent years on the Far Left connected to Marxist movements within Peru and from 2021-2022 she served as a high-ranking official in the Castillo administration. Beset by political turmoil and an ongoing constitutional crisis - including attempts to impeach him, Pedro Castillo attempted to dissolve congress, seize control of the courts, and order a national curfew. He reached too far and did not have sufficient support - especially from the military. Even though she was his first vice president, Dina Boluarte did not support him or stand by him. Castillo's plan quickly collapsed leading to his arrest and impeachment in December 2022. He remains in detention as of this writing.

The Fall of Phnom Penh: Short Memories and Outright Spin

https://europeanconservative.com/articles/commentary/the-fall-of-phnom-penh-the-left-has-a-short-memory/

Lately, I've been reading a lot of articles at The European Conservative and similar publications, trying to get inside the heads of these people and how they frame history and revise it. This article was no exception to what seems to be an established rule.

Morales and the Struggle for Bolivia

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/oct/27/bolivias-evo-morales-vehicle-gunfire-political-tension-rises

This story of attempted assassination has all but dropped out of the news even while pro-Morales protests continue in Bolivia. It would seem that a Morales return remains a threat and as such he's been targeted. But by whom?

Memories of Dictatorship in South Korea

https://consortiumnews.com/2024/12/03/south-koreas-6-hour-martial-law/

In what seemed like a power grab, President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law but when challenged he backed down. Now the fallout.

Gülen Coverage and Lies of Omission

https://theworld.org/segments/2024/10/21/turkish-cleric-accused-of-orchestrating-a-coup-attempt-dies-in-pennsylvania

I caught this story the other day on PRX's The World. It more or less typifies what's wrong with shows like this. Twenty-five years ago I was excited to have access to this show as international news was hard to get. The show frequently carries interesting stories but there's a terrible pro-Western bias in all its coverage and this story was no exception.

Cheney May Oppose Trump but is still Loyal to the Right

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/sep/15/liz-cheney-ginni-thomas-january-6-investigation

Since opposing Trump, participating in the January 6 investigation, and be ousted from office, Liz Cheney is often presented as some kind of moderate. In reality she remains a Far Right member of the Republican Party and an advocate of the Neo-Conservative policies championed by her father. She rejects Trump and his movement but this does not make her a centrist. One might argue that right or wrong she retains some principles and convictions as opposed to the raw fascistic power-grab represented by Trumpism. It's a case of Bush-era Far Right politics vs. outright fascism.

Türkiye and BRICS

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/turkey-applies-to-join-china-and-russia-in-brics-economic-bloc-kremlin-says

https://www.dailysabah.com/opinion/op-ed/turkiye-and-brics-step-toward-more-multipolar-future

https://www.trtworld.com/turkiye/turkiyes-brics-bid-is-response-to-eu-membership-delay-18210122

Erdogan announced that Türkiye would be joining the ever expanding BRICS bloc in 2022, but just last month (September 2024) he made it official and Ankara has now officially applied for membership.

Coveting Serbia's Lithium

https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3274031/thousands-protest-lithium-mining-serbia-officials-call-it-coup-plot?module=top_story&pgtype=subsection

This author and many others have been writing for years about the tug-of-war in Serbia. The Atlanticist plan in the 1990's was to break up Serb-dominated Yugoslavia and bring all the pieces into the EU and NATO orbit. This largely succeeded except with Serbia itself which remains outside the bloc and friendly to its historical ally in Moscow.

Israel, Death Squads, and Colombia

https://consortiumnews.com/2024/05/13/the-secret-history-of-israels-role-in-genocide-in-colombia/

https://www.democracynow.org/2024/6/12/chiquita_funding_death_squads_in_colombia

I post this must-read article because I believe it's important for Christians to have a better understanding of what has happened in Colombia and the role of US policy, the US military - and the outsourced role Israel often plays at the behest of Washington.

Niger Turns Against Washington and Yellow Cake 2.0

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-68590531

Niger it seems has grown weary of Washington's presence in West Africa. Having ousted the French in 2023, the situation with both Paris and Washington remains tenuous. Tchiani remains in control and yet he faces hard questions concerning the economy of his country. From Niger's ties to the franc to its close uranium-related trade ties with France, it's hard to imagine that Paris will simply let Niger go. The junta leaders will be looking over the shoulder to say the least.

New Information Regarding the 2004 Coup in Haiti

https://thegrayzone.com/2024/03/01/secret-cable-cia-haiti-coup/

See also: https://proto-protestantism.blogspot.com/2021/11/a-dominionist-evangelical-distortion-of.html

This piece from The Grayzone is timely as we see the US is poised to insert itself once again into the politics of Haiti. This time the US is attempting to utilize a proxy and has put a great deal of pressure on Kenya to take the lead in peacekeeping. Why? Because the US public does not want to see American soldiers on the ground in Haiti - at least not in significant numbers.

Mike Johnson, the Evangelical Speaker of the House

https://www.npr.org/2023/11/15/1211536399/speaker-johnson-christian-nationalism-evangelical

With so much happening in the news, stories like this have almost slipped under the radar. Four months into his tenure as Speaker, some refer to Johnson as a moderate and when compared with some of the Trumpites in Congress he seems rather tame, and yet this misleading.

The Age of Lithium, India, and Argentina

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/eye-on-china-india-inks-first-overseas-lithium-mining-deal-for-five-blocks-in-argentina/articleshow/106874549.cms?from=mdr

Milei is eager to please the Western and international banking establishment and he needs to generate revenue for the coffers of the Argentinean state.

Covering Up the Far Right in Ukraine

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1B41Ux-2xP8

Generally speaking Amy Goodman of Democracy Now! is so hostile to Russia that she has been more than a little susceptible to the official narrative provided by the American government with regard to not just the invasion and the nature of the fighting – but its context as well.

Romney's Revelations

 https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/4202800-mcconnell-didnt-reply-to-romneys-text-warning-about-jan-6-book/

https://www.npr.org/transcripts/1207962313

Last month, Romney: A Reckoning was published, a biography by McKay Coppins of The Atlantic. In connection with this, there were reports concerning the fact that Romney was warned beforehand about January 6 and tried to reach out to Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell – who refused to speak to him.

Biden and the Rules of War

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmBOMK_-zcU

Responding to the 7 October attack on Israel, US president Joe Biden condemned Hamas and rightly so. But then he proceeded to make some rather astonishing remarks – remarks that should offend anyone who has followed events for the past several decades, anyone in possession of a conscience.

Spinning and Ignoring the Georgia Plea Deals

As October 2023 winds down, there have been significant developments in the case against Trump et al. in the state of Georgia. After Sidney Powell flipped and took a plea deal, the Trumpian edifice began to crumble.

Another French Defeat and Growing Uncertainty in North Africa

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-66907517

This story is already falling out of the news cycle especially with all the other things happening in the Middle East.

After the July coup in Niger there was a great deal of focus on the country and the new ruling junta. The signs were bad (from a Western perspective) when Deputy Secretary of State Victoria Nuland made a trip to Niger and was effectively rebuffed.

Pakistan's Internal Affairs

Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has been arrested again and has now been sentenced to prison. Ousted from office in April 2022, he has repeatedly insisted the US played a role in what many view as a bureaucratic coup.

The Context of the Niger Coup

Coups in Africa are by some estimates far from unusual. There have been many in recent years and while often mentioned, the news coverage in the West is minimal. Africa does not generate a great deal of interest to Western audiences and for many it's impossibly complicated and they are unable to follow the stories or contextualize them.