Porkins Policy Review
No Mike Swanson this week. So keeping with the Tuesday tradition on the show of being highly informative, Chuck and Pearse packed as much news and information into two hours as they could
From Bill Barr on Capital Hill to Explosions in Iran, Porkins and Ochelli covered the wild world on sportsman-like conduct without touching upon organized sports.
Show Notes can be found here I will be adding them to this post in the next few days.
This week Kevin Gosztola joined me to discuss the Trump-Ukraine whistleblower case and the possibility of a presidential impeachment. Kevin started by laying out what we know about the CIA whistleblower in question and what is in his complaint. Kevin described how the whistleblower went through the proper channels, and how this was handled by the Director of National Intelligence. We also discussed the allegations in the complaint and discussed why government employees blow the whistle in the first place. We argued that people who blow the whistle tend to believe very strongly in the construct of government and feel strongly about corruption. We also touched on how this whistleblower, as an employee of the CIA, may have viewed this conversation as an affront to the CIA’s stated goals in Ukraine. Kevin and I also looked at some of the secondary figures named in the complaint like Kurt Volker whose connections to Raytheon and NATO might have more to do with this story than meets the eye. We also discussed the possibility of impeachment and the political nature of impeachment and how this could backfire for the Democrats in the future.
Show Notes:
Obstruction Of Whistleblower Complaint Leads To Pelosi Announcing Trump Impeachment Inquiry
New York Times Outs Individual Behind Ukraine Call Whistleblower Complaint, Sparks Outrage
Conflict of interest questions add to scrutiny of Trump’s Ukraine envoy
This week Robbie Martin joined me for the first installment in our new monthly series which looks at the Qanon conspiracy theory and its impact on society at large. We started by discussing the fact that Q has not posted anything since August 1st (due to the 8chan’s removal). Robbie talked about how the Qanon community has handled the absence of “Q drops.” This has mainly taken the form of Q followers believing that Trump’s tweets are now coded messages from Q. We then looked at how Trump himself has become an active participant in the conspiracy theory. Robbie talked about how unprecedented it is to have a sitting president seeding a conspiracy theory, and simultaneously being viewed as the hero in the narrative. Robbie also discussed the historical roots of the Qanon theory and its connections to PizzaGate. He talked about how Qanon evolved out of PizzaGate and the possible role that people like Erik Prince and Steve Pieczenik have played in promoting it. We finished off by looking at how the Qanon theory has influenced the public’s understanding of the recent scandal involving Trump, Biden, and Ukraine.
In the second hour I open the phone lines. Jon Gold called in and gave us an update on the ongoing 9/11 lawsuit against Saudi Arabia. We talked about Barr’s decision to release the name of the high ranking Saudi official who was overseeing the two San Diego hijackers. Later, I talked about the allegations that Iran was behind the recent attack on two Saudi oil facilities. I laid out my reasons for why the US was so quick to shift blame away from the Houthis. I also explored the idea that Iran was behind the attack.
Show notes:
This week JP Sottile joined me for the first hour to discuss the climate catastrophe. We started out by discussing how many people, including myself, have long ignored this issue. We talked about how daunting and overwhelming the crisis is, and how this has led many to feel as though they can’t do anything to make a tangible change. We talked about Sottile’s recent op-ed in Truthout.org which links climate change to the spread of empire. JP talked about the link between US imperialism, the growth of the oil industry, and the damage is has wrought on the environment. We touched on how the Pentagon outwardly acknowledges climate change but continues to exacerbate the underlying problems. We illustrated these points in a discussion on the melting Arctic and the scramble to control its oil. Closing out the first hour, JP touched on the dangers of oil-related products such as plastic.
In the second hour, Jon Gold joined me to discuss some of the latest developments in the unending quest for truth and accountability with 9/11. We started off the the news that Attorney General William Barr has until Friday to decide to release the name of the high ranking Saudi official who oversaw the handling of 9/11 hijackers Khalid al-Mihdhar and Nawaf al-Hazmi. Jon talked about how listeners can get involved in pushing Barr to release the name. Later we talked about a U.S. federal judge ordering the FBI to release documents related to a probe of the the al-Hijji family in Sarasota, Florida, and its “many connections” to the hijackers including Mohammaed Atta. We finished the conversation by talking about the military trial of Khalid Shaikh Mohammed and four others, which is set for January 2021 at Guantanamo Bay.
Show Notes:
We Can’t Confront Climate Change While Lavishly Funding the Pentagon
U.S. Attorney General to decide whether a key name in 9/11 case is a ‘state secret’
Trial for Men Accused of Plotting 9/11 Attacks Is Set for 2021
Spy Culture
The Age of Transitions
The New Great Game
Traces of Reality
American Freedom Radio
Open Minds Foundation
Themes and Memes
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
Black Listed News
Inner City Press
The Rancid Honeytrap
The Ochelli Effect
The Opperman Report
Long War Journal
The Underground Bunker
OJSimpson.co
WideShut.co.uk
Intel News
Surviving Scientology
The Scientology Money Project
Growing Up In Scientology
Borderland Beat
Anti- Imperialist U
Shadow Proof
Moon of Alabama
History Commons
Uncle The Podcast
Investigating The Terror
Pied Piper
The Cycling Podcast
A Podcast of Ice and Fire
History of Westeros
Vassals of Kingsgrave
You Must Remember This
Porkins Policy Review