Of course we are. The paradox of thinking about foreign policy, defense and intelligence at the strategic level is that if you don’t think of the enemy as having a clear order of battle, a strong focus, and hidden capabilities, you will get fucked. If you think that they DO have all of those characteristics, you will be overly gunshy and miss chances to fuck with your adversaries.
― El Tomboto, Friday, 1 December 2017 00:47 (six years ago) link
I thinks it’s clear which side of that Janus coin ShariVari and I represent; I respect his correctives but I also used to think that way and, well, see
― El Tomboto, Friday, 1 December 2017 00:57 (six years ago) link
Sorry, that’s presumptive re SV.
― El Tomboto, Friday, 1 December 2017 03:31 (six years ago) link
http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2017/11/30/president_trump_reportedly_keeps_pressing_senate_republicans_to_end_russia.html
― reggie (qualmsley), Friday, 1 December 2017 04:07 (six years ago) link
Xp
Strategically it makes sense not to underestimate the capabilities of any notional threat but the default assumption of ‘organised state actor vs organised state actor’ has huge problems unless it’s grounded in something solid, imo.
That’s for a variety of reasons - if the threat comes from a diffuse, unconnected net of grifters and opportunists rather than a top-down government structure, responding to it as though it is a top-down structure isn’t necessarily going to be effective. You can’t address the fact that Montenegrin teenagers or Russian troll factories can monetise millions of clicks with news stories about Clinton having Morgellons by restricting the press access of Russian journalists, you can’t stop the shady commercial activities / lobbying of bit-part goons out to make a quick buck by sanctioning Rosneft, or w/e.
Another risk is that the absence of hard evidence of an organised plot with Trump collusion, should that be the case, might allow the clearly corrupt, entirely inappropriate, activities of his team to be spun as a ‘fake news’. Anything less than nailing him for the worst case scenario allows him to present the more lurid allegations as a witch hunt.
The article a few days ago about Russian liberals being disappointed in the tone of the coverage had some problems but one of the key things that rings true is that the ‘organised threat’ theory has massive echoes of Russian thinking on the risk posed by the US. Call it paranoia or sensible strategic thinking but the assumption that every embassy worker, every American journalist, every US politician, every US NGO and every Russian with ties or sympathies to them are part of a Washington plan to bring down the government has contributed to a fairly toxic environment for Americans and, if there was Putin vision of getting Trump into power, was probably the main driver. In that scenario, the outcome wasn’t gun-shyness, it was a completely unnecessary and counterproductive escalation.
― Wag1 Shree Rajneesh (ShariVari), Friday, 1 December 2017 07:49 (six years ago) link
Putin is no arch strategist, but someone who acts on compulsion, and often at cross-purposes with himself.
sounds like someone else we know
― "Taste's very strange!" (stevie), Friday, 1 December 2017 10:46 (six years ago) link
goin' with "something" today
― she carries a torch. two torches, actually (Joan Crawford Loves Chachi), Friday, 1 December 2017 15:03 (six years ago) link
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/12/11/michael-flynns-guilty-plea-sends-donald-trumps-lawyers-scrambling
― reggie (qualmsley), Saturday, 2 December 2017 19:40 (six years ago) link
Shortly after the news broke, Comey, referring to the Biblical Book of Amos, tweeted, “But justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”
actually it was on instagram FAKE NEWS
― Dic Space has been contacted for comment. (bizarro gazzara), Saturday, 2 December 2017 20:08 (six years ago) link
also that's totally a piss tape reference right
― Dic Space has been contacted for comment. (bizarro gazzara), Saturday, 2 December 2017 20:09 (six years ago) link
he cross-posted to twitter /factcheckingcuz
― shackling the masses with plastic-wrapped snack picks (sic), Saturday, 2 December 2017 20:36 (six years ago) link
It’s a pretty corny and self-aggrandizing tweetagram wherever it was posted.
― New Jersey (treeship 2), Saturday, 2 December 2017 22:11 (six years ago) link
That deal [Trump Tower Moscow] never came to fruition, but the intent expressed on both sides is deeply troubling.
vlad is maybe waiting on don to deliver rosneft from sanctions, jeff
― reggie (qualmsley), Saturday, 2 December 2017 22:40 (six years ago) link
picture yourself at the great gates of kiev, an exhibition of baba yaga huts
rolling trump-russian collusion
― reggie (qualmsley), Saturday, 2 December 2017 23:51 (six years ago) link
let's hear it for the "something" voters
― she carries a torch. two torches, actually (Joan Crawford Loves Chachi), Wednesday, 18 July 2018 14:22 (five years ago) link
pretty sure even I did not vote "nothing"
― Simon H., Wednesday, 18 July 2018 14:25 (five years ago) link
i bleeve everyone knew about his money laundering dating back to the '80s
― the ignatius rock of ignorance (Dr Morbius), Wednesday, 18 July 2018 14:26 (five years ago) link
he's still president last time i checked
― Hazy Maze Cave (Adam Bruneau), Wednesday, 18 July 2018 14:30 (five years ago) link
big oaks from little somethings grow
― A is for (Aimless), Wednesday, 18 July 2018 18:08 (five years ago) link
donald trump: a grower not a shower, asserts ilxor dot com poster ‘aimless’
― BIG RICHARD ENERGY (bizarro gazzara), Wednesday, 18 July 2018 18:13 (five years ago) link
an oldie but goodie
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2018/03/a-series-of-revelations-about-jared-kushner-have-added-further-credence-to-a-key-claim-of-the-steele-dossier.html
― reggie (qualmsley), Friday, 9 November 2018 15:18 (five years ago) link
Also note - unlike the NYT reporters, who tweeted their correction - @joshtpm never bothered to note the central claim of his viral tweet about Manafort & Deripaska was retracted. It wouldn't have mattered - retrations are ignored - but it's good to pretend to care about accuracy pic.twitter.com/Wr7T9lPwCj— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) January 10, 2019
― a Mets fan who gave up on everything in the mid '80s (Dr Morbius), Thursday, 10 January 2019 12:30 (five years ago) link
fail dive
― Hunt3r, Thursday, 10 January 2019 12:47 (five years ago) link
Enjoy this one as wel. 'The essence of Russia-gate' loll:
The essence of RussiaGate - over and over and over and over and over: pic.twitter.com/4JrgD1OHGu— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) January 10, 2019
Just a reminder that Greenwald himself took information from Russian intelligence to spread no-stories about Hillary.
― Frederik B, Thursday, 10 January 2019 13:49 (five years ago) link
get adopted by the Clintons, boy
― a Mets fan who gave up on everything in the mid '80s (Dr Morbius), Thursday, 10 January 2019 13:49 (five years ago) link
Pathetic stuff from GG, thanks for sharing, Morbz.
― by the light of the burning Citroën, Thursday, 10 January 2019 14:04 (five years ago) link
i'm sure that factual error was not reported here, so i was compelled
― a Mets fan who gave up on everything in the mid '80s (Dr Morbius), Thursday, 10 January 2019 14:54 (five years ago) link
The original story was hardly reported here...
― Frederik B, Thursday, 10 January 2019 15:17 (five years ago) link
no collusion! build the wall!!
― reggie (qualmsley), Thursday, 10 January 2019 15:49 (five years ago) link
Weird how Glenn clings to every minor correction to the story he’s been insanely wrong about for two years.
― Nerdstrom Poindexter, Thursday, 10 January 2019 16:23 (five years ago) link
Well, yeah. The underlying point is that The Intercept got the story catastrophically wrong in 2016, and instead of admitting to having fucked up they've ever so slowly moved the goalposts, while Glenn claims to be a voice of moderation on the issue.
― Frederik B, Thursday, 10 January 2019 16:36 (five years ago) link
Weird how you guys have what my late papa would call an eternal "hard-on" for GG.
― a Mets fan who gave up on everything in the mid '80s (Dr Morbius), Thursday, 10 January 2019 16:40 (five years ago) link
Jealous
― fuck the NRA (Neanderthal), Thursday, 10 January 2019 16:54 (five years ago) link
given you shared the GG tweet that started this revive even you must know this is ridiculous
― Bênoit Balls (stevie), Thursday, 10 January 2019 17:36 (five years ago) link
at least benghazi had bodies
― (ADVANCE) (320k vbr) (--V2) (aps) (diVX) (2CD) OST - SB (2019) (esby), Thursday, 10 January 2019 19:01 (five years ago) link
SB, your posts seem to be based in a senseless contrarianism and knee-jerk cynicism, backed by no discernable position. whyzatso?
― A is for (Aimless), Thursday, 10 January 2019 19:15 (five years ago) link
lol
― (ADVANCE) (320k vbr) (--V2) (aps) (diVX) (2CD) OST - SB (2019) (esby), Thursday, 10 January 2019 19:19 (five years ago) link
sorry *conforms to ilx poster mentality* trump met with six russians while he was shitting and peeing all over himself!!!!!! tax returns !!!
― (ADVANCE) (320k vbr) (--V2) (aps) (diVX) (2CD) OST - SB (2019) (esby), Thursday, 10 January 2019 19:20 (five years ago) link
sb is the non-awaited return of libtriggering mra renegade and general edgebore esleeping byag? If so this more clownish iteration is an improvement
― Pierrot with a thousand farces (wins), Thursday, 10 January 2019 19:23 (five years ago) link
stevie, to make it clear, the meaning of "hard-on" there is animus
― a Mets fan who gave up on everything in the mid '80s (Dr Morbius), Thursday, 10 January 2019 19:24 (five years ago) link
xp when live cod were shipped to Asia from North America, their flesh ended up gross and mushy from inactivity. In order to keep the cod active, the fisherman started putting catfish in with the cod to nip at their tails and keep them active.
― (ADVANCE) (320k vbr) (--V2) (aps) (diVX) (2CD) OST - SB (2019) (esby), Thursday, 10 January 2019 19:29 (five years ago) link
That’s what I’m saying, Bumblebee Guy but dressed as a gadfly
― Pierrot with a thousand farces (wins), Thursday, 10 January 2019 19:32 (five years ago) link
but SB, you post only to the most active threads
― A is for (Aimless), Thursday, 10 January 2019 19:34 (five years ago) link
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selection_bias
― (ADVANCE) (320k vbr) (--V2) (aps) (diVX) (2CD) OST - SB (2019) (esby), Thursday, 10 January 2019 19:51 (five years ago) link
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_troll
― A True White Kid that can Jump (Granny Dainger), Thursday, 10 January 2019 19:53 (five years ago) link
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/im-not-owned-im-not-owned-i-continue-to-insist-as-i-slowly-shrink-and-transform-into-a-corncob
― (ADVANCE) (320k vbr) (--V2) (aps) (diVX) (2CD) OST - SB (2019) (esby), Thursday, 10 January 2019 19:54 (five years ago) link
anyway sorry please continue to discuss dr morbius retweet from glenn greenwald about trump russia
― (ADVANCE) (320k vbr) (--V2) (aps) (diVX) (2CD) OST - SB (2019) (esby), Thursday, 10 January 2019 19:56 (five years ago) link
You are literally the Tubgirl of ILX
― fuck the NRA (Neanderthal), Thursday, 10 January 2019 19:56 (five years ago) link
Emptywheel seems to think this does a good job of summing up her own suspicions:
Morning epiphany: @emptywheel was right and the whole Carter Page - Man of Mystery - was an elaborate distraction, an illusion used by the magician to make us look for fake conspiracy instead of at the real one. The Russians were clearly onto Steele and fed...(1/14)— Larisa Alexandrovna (@larisa_a) February 6, 2019
tldr It was always about money
― Josh in Chicago, Wednesday, 6 February 2019 18:50 (five years ago) link
this has been more or less what I've always thought.
― Scam jam, thank you ma’am (Sparkle Motion), Wednesday, 6 February 2019 18:58 (five years ago) link