BRICS, Brazil, and the Dollar

https://www.agweb.com/markets/pro-farmer-analysis/brics-nations-accelerate-shift-away-u-s-dollar-global-trade

https://trt.global/world/article/b73a9e89ed67 

The lead-up to the July 2025 BRICS summit in Rio de Janeiro was the source of a great deal of hype and speculation. Would the BRICS bloc make a more aggressive move against the dollar?

The Mainstream Media has Turned John Bolton into a Centrist, a Voice of Reason and Moderation

https://www.npr.org/2025/02/11/g-s1-48112/john-bolton-greenland-national-security

I've been touching on this lately - but here's another example. The mainstream media (following the DNC) is tacking Right when it comes to economic and foreign policy issues.

Stefanik's Anti-Semitic Connections and Confused Catholicism

https://religionnews.com/2024/11/14/elise-stefanik-jews-united-nations/

I recommend this article because even though it's far more pro-Israel than I would be, and far more critical of Anti-Zionism than I think warranted, the author nevertheless is sceptical of Elise Stefanik and her supposedly pro-Jewish credentials.

South Africa and the American Empire

https://www.news24.com/citypress/news/us-politicians-call-for-review-of-relations-with-sa-for-supposedly-undermining-national-security-20240210

South Africa is the weakest of the BRICS nations and has over the past several years angered Washington. Not only has it joined BRICS, it has tacitly supported Russia, and now has generated a great deal of anger by leading the charge against Israel in the ICJ. It was only a matter of time before the US acted – the goal is to punish South Africa and generate upheaval within its society and political system. The campaign is under way.

Mass Killing by Knife and Evangelical Gun Culture

https://www.news10.com/news/rensselaer-county/police-deescalate-hostage-situation-at-troy-stewarts/

You don't read about mass killings by knife too often do you? I've written about this before, as have many others. Here's another recent case, pertinent in light of the recent wave of mass shootings in the United States.

The Death of Madeleine Albright (1937-2022)

Universally praised by the Western Establishment and viewed as a vigilant defender of the weak in the face of authoritarian regimes, the narrative concerning Madeleine Albright is little more than a packaged lie.

The Myanmar Coup and China

There have been repeated hints made in Western media that Beijing is somehow behind the coup in Myanmar (Burma). While the ruling party (CCP) of China is undoubtedly an evil organisation, I was immediately sceptical of the claims. Once again, just because Xi Jinping is an evil persecutor of the Church does not mean that we as Christians need to hop on to the Western propaganda bandwagon. We need to hold the truth and remember that just because the Chinese government is evil – it does not follow that Western powers like the US or UK are somehow 'good'.

Samantha Power: A Right-wing Democrat

https://theintercept.com/2019/09/11/a-memoir-from-hell-samantha-power-will-do-anything-for-human-rights-unless-it-hurts-her-career/

The review provides some interesting insight into one such as Power. During her tenure she was viewed by the Right as a Leftist, part of a Far-Left administration. As I and others continue to insist, today's DNC is not really a Left-wing political entity. There's a Left-wing within its ranks, one that duplicitous figures like Sanders and Warren are labouring to keep within its larger sphere. And yet there are also Centrists and then there are those that could be called Democratic Right. And they're not a small faction. In fact they dominate the party.*

Apartheid Mercenaries: The West and Africa

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jan/20/south-africa-weird-sinister-apartheid-mercenary-saimr-keith-maxwell

Was Dag Hammarskjöld assassinated in 1961? His DC-6 went down over Northern Rhodesia under suspicious circumstances and his death proved convenient to some who opposed his mission.

It's been a longstanding question and yet to some there's little question at all. There's a long history of South African, Rhodesian, Francophone and Portuguese African mercenary figures directly or loosely connected to the military and intelligence agencies of their respected 'fatherlands', whether Belgium, France, Portugal, the UK or the United States.

An Army for Kosovo

https://www.euractiv.com/section/enlargement/news/belgrade-and-washington-have-differing-views-on-kosovo-army/

Of course Washington and Belgrade have different views on whether or not Kosovo should have its own army. Serbia is but one of many nations that have refused to recognise the 2008 Washington created Pristina regime. Though the Western public has moved on, not everyone accepts the results of NATO's wars against the Serbs.

Trump +346: UN Funding, the American Empire and the Rise of Multipolarity

The Trump administration recently declared it would further cut US payments to the United Nations. This is particularly damaging to the international body as the US pays a significant portion of its budget. American conservatives have long argued that the UN works against American interests and thus they are particularly bitter about the fact that US tax money helps to fund the organisation.

UN Sanctions and Israeli Settlements

Obama finally did it. He stood up to Israel's Likud Party.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/23/world/middleeast/israel-settlements-un-vote.html?_r=0

Nothing has happened as of yet. The UN condemnation is symbolic at this point but you can be sure Netanyahu and the Israeli Establishment are somewhat shocked and certainly livid.

Obama, frustrated and angered by his dealings with Netanyahu fired something of a Parthian shot as his administration fades into the sunset.

He didn't 'do' anything. It's what he didn't do.

China, the US, UNCLOS and Australia

The UN Conference on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) represents a classic case of US manipulation and hypocrisy. Washington helped to craft the treaty and has utilised it as a standard by which to judge and even coerce other nations.

But the United States itself refuses to be party to it. The US instead plays by a different set of rules and extends its boundary waters far beyond the claims of any other nation.