Ana Kasparian, John Iadarola. Trump says North Korea is no longer a threat. Saudi coalition bombs Doctors Without Borders building in Yemen. More than 100 Mexican politicians have been killed since September. Scott Pruitt uses aides and GOP donors to find his wife a job.
Comments
But why are the audio version of shows only available on iTunes? Why not MP3 as well?
Am I missing something?
I absolutely love shows with just John and Anna!
I don’t think there is anyone saying that things on the Korean Peninsula are now solved…except for Trump or are saying that you just “need to stand up and applaud”. I think people are relieved that the tone has changed significantly from where it was in February, and that is a huge sigh of relief for me at least. When two idiots are trying to out macho each other with nuclear weapons and then it turns to bro hugs, I’ll take the bro hugs every time.
There is obviously still a very long way to go. The criticism given on the air yesterday about stopping war games was what I found objectionable. How would we feel as a country and as individuals in this country if China was practicing invading us from Mexico several times a year? Stopping that activity for the time being can only be a good thing
Additionally: a reasonable reaction of North Korea to the “why are you starving people, why are you committing summary executions, why are you imprisoning so many of your people?” could be: “The same reason the United States does”
I think it is a distinct possibility that Kim delivered a message from Putin to trump.
I would like to have you reminded that North Korea does not have military troops stationed in Japan. It does not control Seoul, its proxies are not fighting off wars in Guam and Philippines. Comparing Iran’s situation with that of North Korea is the gravest and the most uninformed commentary ever made. Iran controls Hamas and Hezbollah. Hezbollah on its own has more arms than 70 countries in the world combined. Illegitimate Iranian funded and supported rebels in Yemen are targeting Saudi cities with ballistic missiles. Tens of thousands of Iranian troops are stationed in Iraq and Syria. It destabilises Bahrain almost on a monthly basis. It is in direct coordination with Taliban. It harbours Al-Qaeda leaders in Tehran right now and its underground networks of terrorism have been busted and exposed in Kuwait, Morocco, Azerbaijan, Saudi Arabia and so on.
I do not support military solutions to the issue Iranian encroachment in the Middle East. Almost all of these are primarily caused by our own interventions in the region.
But the sheer comparison of Iran’s situation with North Korea is indicative of grave ignorance and lack of knowledge.
On the other hand, North Korea has nukes and Iran doesn’t yet. If Trump supporters AGREE with his efforts to denuclearize the NON-THREATENING country of North Korea, why would they applaud his decision to withdraw from a deal that PREVENTS the THREATENING country of Iran from obtaining a nukes? I think this is what they were getting at.
I’m just using threatening and non-threatening because that is more or less what you seem to be getting at. I don’t find either particularly threatening to the US. Iran has armies that don’t attack on our soil. North Korea starves people who are not on our soil and puts them in concentration camps. You could say both are responsible for deaths that are not on our soil. You are right that Iran’s armies may be a threat to our soldiers but who says they have a right to be there anyway?
Both countries are unlike the United States who has in the past overthrown the democratically elected leader of Iran and killed millions of Koreans. We are more a threat to both countries than they are to us.
Where I think the commentary is naive is that they seem to imply South Koreans wouldn’t want the war games to stop. I’ve heard that most South Koreans supported the meeting between Kim and Trump and want war time to end. Many Korean families are split up and haven’t seen each other for decades. Maybe they don’t criticize Trump for calling off the war games simply because they don’t have any criticism on this issue.
I realize my comparison of North Korea and Iran both being responsible for deaths is simplified.
I guess my thought was that neither is a threat to the US – why is violence caused by one country worse than the starvation and poverty caused by another? Especially considering that Iran is surrounded by countries who have similar practices while North Koreans suffer for no real purpose?
Your description of the situation with regards to Iran is what Europeans are advocating for and is a case that is rather understandable. It may not be correct – which is a subjective matter – but it is at least a legitimate argument. The case is that TYT’s analysis even falls short of this simple mode of explanation. If you have listened to them in the past few months, they are chasing their own tails – every single day – providing the best explanation as follows; “Trump is dumb and whatever he does is wrong.” That is the main theme. It is truism and obvious beyond the shadow of any doubt that what is Trump’s administration – and the US foreign policy apparatus in general – is after is pushing Iran to the breaking point which results in two scenarios: 1) total economic breakdown that will bring them back to the table like 2013-2014-2015 where their economy shrunk by 10 percent or 2) they will have internal crises. This has been laid out clearly in their 3 point manifesto released in 2017, and was clearly stated in Pompeo’s interview with VOA last month. In TYT’s echo chamber, you hear none.
As of your point in the case of Iran’s nuclear program, it is important to bear in mind that they were on the cusp of it. Iran is capable of enriching Uranium to 20 percent which is ONE cycle short of a 90+ percent U-235, which could be used for both domestic and military capabilities. Also keep in mind that North Korea and Iran cooperate very very closely on their ballistic and nuclear programs.
What makes the two different again is that Iran’s threat is strategic. Iran is sitting over the Strait of Hormuz, where 25-30% of the entire world’s oil passes through. It is wrapping its noose around Israel’s neck. Its forces in Yemen are targeting Saudi Arabia’s capital – meaning they will not hesitate to threaten Saudi refineries. It is establishing headquarter’s on the Mediterranean Sea along the coast of Tarsus in Syria. Iran’s rise – be it a responsible or irresponsible international player – is monitored seriously both in Washington and across the world. The ultimate aim of Obama’s agreement should have been – and some argue that in fact was – to bring Iran alongside the international community. This has failed and the “sunset clause” in the agreement which you rarely ever hear about on TYT clearly indicated that Iran could continue its nuclear program as early as 2025. That clause alone rendered the entire agreement worthless.
I am not in support or against the policies advocated by Trump’s administration in any case. I am though in favour of comprehensive, honest and unbiased coverage of the news. I am struggling to find TYT capable of offering that.
The bombing in Yemen is such a tragic waste of human potential…. the kids there could be put to work assembling Ivanki Trump fashions and accessories at $.02/hour instead, gaining valuable work experience while working for someone famous! Now those kids are dead and can’t be slaves for ANYONE. No one wins, and that’s SAD!
The solutions to the political and criminal problems Anna was describing in Mexico (and every other problem we have in our society) will be solved the best ways possible when we implement the Justice Democrats platform at:
https://justicedemocrats.com/platform/
They are like the commandments for social sanity that need to be hammered on the same way Bernie repeats the problems we have and the solutions to those problems.
Another thought to consider, regarding the drug cartels, is did we have a hand in training any of them.
PLEASE read up more on the Yemen conflict. There are things you either got wrong or always leave out that are important. First stop saying the Houthi rebels, the Houthis are a part of the rebels, the main part of the Yemeni military is on their side. Don’t worry most major news outlets miss that as well. That is why they are so well equipped. Saudi and the UAE just say that they get their weapons from Iran to scare the West into supporting them. There has never been any actual verification that Iran offers more than simple lip service and token military advisers. Also it is important to note that the Houthis are not religiously the same as Iran. They are similar but about as different as the Houthis and Wahabbism are. And finally you mentioned that al Qaeda and ISIS were part of the rebels and they are not. They are ideologically opposed and located in different parts of the country. The war against the Hadi opposition has actually taken the eyes off of al Qaeda and allowed them to grow and also allowed for the formation and growth of DAESH. Thanks
Stop being stupid! We are participating in the conflict in Yemen (and Rawanda, and wherever else) because there aren’t any other wars to feed the military-industrial complex.
It looks like yesterday’s criticism has been acknowledged, at least.
Firstly, listen to Jeremy Scahill’s Intercepted podcast and his interview with Sandra Hong. It reflects the sort of tone and nuance that the TYT critics were arguing for yesterday. https://megaphone.link/PPY8677121055
Secondly, America doesn’t need to take a big role in this. Ceasing war games polls VERY well with South Koreans. It gives them room to sort it out themselves, instead of treating them like tame imperial subjects. America won’t be able to force a structured denuclearization and enshrining of human rights, but it’s going to help Moon immeasurably in his goal of materially improving North Korean lives, and easing the threat of conventional weapons to Seoul.
Kim and his nukes are going to be there for a while, there won’t be a Nuremberg style justice anywhere in the foreseeable future. Which sucks.
Let’s not focus on Trump the dumbass not knowing how to do diplomacy. Let’s focus on the ghouls in his administration who are going to try and undermine this opportunity by insisting the US needs to play a bigger part, or refusing to implement these initial concessions.
(The Intercepted podcast also sort of addresses how the SK defence force is basically under direct control of the American armed forces, so they can’t stop war games until they’re ordered to)
That would be a plausible explanation for using cuck unironically.
You need to put johns show on the site for the members, i keep looki g everyday and dont understand why its not there
They won’t be putting the video of his show, or Anna’s show, or Bret’s show, on the site for the members. They are exclusive shows for the Youtube TV agreement. Not for their members, only available by subbing to YouTube TV for like $40/month.
The only way members can get that content is by listening to the audio through the new audio link.
Two notes on the Mexico story:
1. Cartels existed long before the war on drugs and they began as classic criminals, thiefs, murderers, smugglers etc. Their real strength began with the breakdown of the Mexican society during the Mexican civil war when the Mexican state allowed militias to rise up and protect landowners from the communist insurgents and unaffiliated outlaws. After the end of the war the Mexican state resigned its duty of protecting the citizenry and cut deals with those militias which became gangs and then cartels that made their money first by typical mafia rackets and later on through drugs. Now drugs are barely a third of their income.
2. The gang problem in central American states is a direct result of a broken society on all levels. When the civil wars ended the losers refused to accept that they lost the war and therefore engaged in other forms of anti-state behaviour and the state was too complicit in that since it only looked after the affairs of the elites.
What can the US do? Nothing really. Unless those countries are willing to elect politicians who are willing to crack down on crime hard there is no hope.
Those gangsters are irredeemable.
I just read this article about how America is a major problem for Mexico’s efforts to enforce gun control. Super interesting: http://www.latimes.com/world/la-fg-mexico-guns-20180524-story.html
How out of touch with modern technology is Scott Pruitt that he thinks having a sound proof phone booth will prevent anyone from eaves dropping on his phone calls? He must be thinking “cold war spy stuff” and that someone could ‘bug’ his office but not the overpriced phone booth.
TYT goes full-on Neo-Con! Great! Smart move, career wise at least. Fuckin’ libs who want peace on the Korean peninsula are cucks. Glad to know TYT are jingoists! Good job, Ana. Keep it up!
that’s literally the opposite of what neo con means.
Kwknight is ambien-commenting again
I was going to ask if he kisses his saintly old mother with that mouth?
Uhhhhhh….what is so ridiculous of wanting there to be peace on the Korean peninsula? Really? Neo-cons are the ones all for the no peace, so I’m confused here of what you are trying to get at.
Almost feels like it was written by a bot. Throw in a couple catchphrases here and there. It’s a little frustrating that these people just keep piling on the strawmen. Guess blind rage is easier than actually understanding and working on real issues.