Tuesday Open Comments

Why the US has been in Niger.  Really.  According to Leo.

Fighting terrorism?  Nope.  Uranium? Yep.

…The full story would be too harsh for the American masses to process but I’m going to give it to you because I know my audience can handle it.

The CIA, in cooperation with other Western intelligence assets, created al-Qaeda and ISIS and the real reason it built a $100 billion base in Niger has nothing to do with eliminating Islamic terrorism. The real reason that base is there, and why the French have been there for even longer, is because Niger is rich in Uranium and has vast untapped oil reserves, gold-mining operations, coal mining and other resources that the West has been exploiting for decades. And when I say “exploiting,” I mean in the worst way.

Here’s the dirty little secret I found hiding in plain sight on the website World Atlas, among other places on the Internet:

“Niger’s mineral sector faces several challenges such as the employment of children in the mines and fluctuating prices of minerals in the international market. …estimated that more than 40% of children younger than 14 were working in mines. About 5% of the children were involved in hazardous activities….”

Gold mining causes lead poisoning in kids, and uranium mining is even worse.  And the US had a hand in it.  Despite all of its natural resources, desired by so many major nations, Niger is still considered one of the poorest countries in the world.  Now that Russia has offered Niger a better deal, we’re leaving the country and, like Afghanistan, leaving major assets behind for our enemies to find and reverse engineer or exploit for themselves.

While staying silent about the West’s history of stripping Niger of its resource wealth and focusing instead on the “terrorism” angle, The Hill reports that “the U.S. withdrawal plan from Niger is for most equipment to be airlifted from the country before September,… Military infrastructure and some items too large to transport will be left to the Nigerien military…  The coming withdrawal is another setback for the U.S. in the African Sahel region, which has experienced multiple coups in the past few years that have ultimately benefited Russia.”

And what is the end result for us?

…maybe the biggest part, of the post-World War II liberal rules based order has been about protecting the world’s resources for Western commercial interests. This has led to cheap electronics and other goods for America,… etc. As that world order gets upended and shifts to a more bipolar arrangement, I anticipate the American standard of living will further decline and eventually collapse. The dollar’s role as the world’s reserve currency has also allowed the U.S. to run up an insane amount of debt, and that is getting ready to come to an end as well.


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54 responses to “Tuesday Open Comments”

  1. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    Today is Runoff Election Day in Texas. The True Texas Project has their list here. The lame internet is full of left-of-center media voter guides.

    Ballotpedia may be the only straight, unbiased site out there. It is difficult to find any conservative runoff election recommendations for Texas. The internet is full of mainstream media recommendation lists and of course you can always go to the Texas Tribune and vote the opposite of what they recommend. Even Texas Scorecard didn’t publish anything.

  2. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    Here is the new chairman of the Texas GOP, elected this past Friday. Here is the Wikipedia bio on him.

  3. Super Dave Avatar
    Super Dave

    More required reading. Well it’s a cool 66 here after the thunder showers of last night. We did get .34″ of rain to go with the .56″ on Saturday so the grass is happy. I’ll be getting the big mower out later in the week.
    Mornin’ Gang

  4. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    Yes, it will be interesting to see if the Karl Rove/George Bush wing of the party can save Speaker of the House Drunk Dade Phelan.

    1. Bonecrusher Avatar
      Bonecrusher

      Karl Rove/George Bush wing of the party

      Also known as the backstabbing, freedom destroying, big government worshipping, corrupt SOB wing of the party. They are a bigger threat than the Ds.

    1. Tedtam Avatar

      He just never gets old.

    1. Texpat Avatar
      Texpat

      Every mention of Bill Walton’s name brings back memories of America fixated on Patty Hearst and the Symbionese Liberation Army terrorists. I was 21 years old, living in Southern California and Hearst was 19 in February 1974, 50 years ago.

  5. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    From the Leo Hohman article in the header.

    The CIA, in cooperation with other Western intelligence assets, created al-Qaeda and ISIS…

    I’ve seen other writers, on the Right and the Left, toss out this throwaway line. It’s easier than actually understanding and explaining history. The US did not create al-Qaeda.

    After the 1979 USSR invasion of Afghanistan, America stepped in to aid and supply the local guerrilla fighters in their war to drive the Leonid Brezhnev’s Communist forces out of the country. It was a logical and legitimate thing to do during the Cold War.

    These fighters were called the “mujaheddin” and as we learned years later, they are historically fierce and tough. Different versions of mujaheddin have been fighting foreign invaders for centuries, most famously the British, Tsarist Russia and lately, the USA.

    A very wealthy, charismatic heir from Saudi Arabia, Osama bi Laden, organized these rough people into what amounted to a cultish gang and then expanded the roster dramatically by recruiting disaffected men from across the Islamic world, convincing them to come to Afghanistan for the adventure of fighting the American kaffir. There is your al-Qaeda. American intelligence agencies ignored this development despite being repeatedly warned while thousands died and were injured as a result.

    Here is a fairly short primer on the Russian invasion and occupation of Afghanistan.

  6. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    I am glad Leo Hohmann brought this up so we can clear the air.

    If the USA imported $8.55 million for an entire year from Niger when they had total exports of $3.24 billion, where is this vast exploitation by America ?

    The real reason that base is there, and why the French have been there for even longer, is because Niger is rich in Uranium and has vast untapped oil reserves, gold-mining operations, coal mining and other resources that the West has been exploiting for decades. And when I say “exploiting,” I mean in the worst way.

    A. The US base was built there for a very specific geopolitical reason. It is the southern Sahel and sits in the perfect south/central position. We needed a base there and politically, there was no way Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia or Libya would ever allow a US base there. Look at this map.

    B. On the accusation of the USA exploiting Niger, I had to laugh. Here is an Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC) page on Niger’s economy, imports and exports from 2022.

    Total Niger Exports $3.24 billion
    USA Imports from Niger $8.55 million (0.26% of total exports)

    The main countries of destination for Niger exports are:
    United Arab Emirates $3.24 billion
    China $290 million
    France $291 million
    Nigeria $91.6 million

  7. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    I am not trying to beat down Mr. Hohmann, but he makes the same common mistakes a lot of writers do and since he showed up here today, I offer a rebuttal to some, not all, of his statements.

  8. Tedtam Avatar

    Just finished my today time, of to my post op checkup. I’ll be back.

    Whether you like it or not.

  9. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    Losing the huge base and investment in Niger is another foreign policy disaster on the part of the Blinken/Biden sh*tshow. We really needed that base since China and Russia are working very hard to drive any American influence out of Africa.

    The second reason is it a forward anti-terrorist facility that also places US forces next to Chad and Sudan strategically west of the Red Sea.

    Also, there has been a lot of domestic political pressure on Congress to do something to help the Christians being enslaved, raped and slaughtered in Africa.

  10. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    Interesting little journey today.
    I’m at the Houston Health Department Bureau Of Vital Statistics near NRG Stadium.
    To get a Long Form Certified Birth Certificate.
    Long Form certificates need to be obtained from the City in which you were born. You can do it online but it takes a month at least.
    So now I will have a long and a short form Certified Birth Certificate.

    The drive here (1 hr 10 min) was a breeze utilizing Sam Houston and Westpark tollways, avoiding the West Loop entirely.

  11. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    Michael Walsh:

    Hell-bent on committing political suicide, Britain’s Conservative Party, known as the Tories, has called a snap election for the Fourth of July, in all likelihood cementing its legacy of utter failure since Boris Johnson won them a smashing victory in 2019. What at the time appeared to be a realignment of traditional constituencies, many of them voting Tory for the first time in generations, may well turn out to be the last flicker of the Old Blighty flame as the party hands far-left Labour a governing mandate under Keir Starmer, the leader of the opposition. God save the King.

    This is not only bad for the Brits, it’s bad for America, too. For Israel, worst of all since the Labour Party will immediately recognize Palestine as a legitimate nation.

    Despite the Tories’ promise to address the issue of economic migration, the situation has only gotten worse in the decade since that article in The Guardian was published, and their repeated failure (despite the Brexit victory) to do so has left them on the edge of political purdah. A Labour government, which now seems inevitable, will most certainly continue Blair’s social policies, even though they couldn’t save Blair or his successor Brown but — like Attlee when he unhorsed Winston — will focus on the Socialization of Britain, maintaining the repressive anti-speech ukases already in place as it pursues a globalist agenda that features more immigration from non-Western countries.

  12. Tedtam Avatar

    I managed to water my plants with my eggshell based calcium acetate fertilizer. I picked one tomato with the slightest indication of blossom end rot.

    I just processed a heckuva lot more eggshells, so I need to make more It takes 2 weeks to process, so I should’ve had another jar going. I have plenty of jars (I keep most of my jars), so I could easily start a new batch every week.

    I also watered with my sweat. It’s wissing hot out there.

  13. Tedtam Avatar

    My post-op checkup went well. I’m being handed off to a new resident, as both of my dental caregivers at the dental school are graduating. I’m hoping the new folks are just as competent and friendly as the past ones.

  14. Tedtam Avatar

    Harvested today: banana peppers, beans (the bush beans are winding down), 1 tomato, and two caterpillars.

    The ‘pillars landed in the yard, of course. I didn’t bring them inside. The birds can thank me later.

  15. Tedtam Avatar

    My stitches starting to resorb and fall out last night. I have this one suture that’s driving me nuts. The outside stitch has resorbed, and now I have this long string inside the gum, next to my tongue. Where it’s still connected is painful when the string gets pulled.

    “Don’t play with the sutures,” I was told this morning. Yeah, easier said than done. Between eating and usual tongue movements, it’s hard to avoid. I hope it falls out today.

  16. Tedtam Avatar

    Here’s today’s roundup from the C&C:

    Good morning, C&C, it’s Tuesday! I hope everyone enjoyed a thoughtful and reflective Memorial Day, even though some high-ranking U.S. officials don’t apparently know the difference from Veteran’s Day. This week will close out the month of May, and may see a verdict in the Trump Trial. So today’s essential news roundup includes: Biden prepares big post-trial Oval Office address; Kafkaesque Trump trial update-slash-preview; commenters pounce too fast on Supreme Court precedent; the odds trend toward Trump benefiting from conviction; Trump election lawyer beats disbarment in Texas; Buttigieg sent up for losing eight billion in the federal couch cushions; and South Park once again says the inconvenient stuff everybody is thinking about our healthcare system.

  17. Tedtam Avatar

    I think Mr. C. sums up the Trump trial well:

    In one of the most hilarious facets of this ridiculous political show trial, trying to jail Trump for up to 134 years for victimless bookkeeping offenses, prosecutors have offered three different possible underlying crimes as the predicate to transform Trump’s brief check stub notations from misdemeanors into a life-sentence felony.

    In other words, the trial is over, and Trump still doesn’t even know exactly what crimes they’ve charged him with.

    

    Like hot dishes on a statutory Golden Corral buffet, prosecutors have served jurors with a cafeteria of underlying crimes — it could be a violation of state election law, federal election law, or a tax avoidance crime, you choose! According to a truly awful ruling by Judge Merchan, jurors can pick one, two, or three of the offered crimes, or can even dream up a whole different crime they thought of themselves — and they don’t even have to agree.

  18. Tedtam Avatar

    Mr. C. asks this interesting question:

    The most mind-bending question is: would Trump’s odds of winning be higher or lower if he weren’t facing conviction?

    • I’ve seen videos of blacks, especially black men, who connect to Trump by seeing another victim of “the system”.
    • Then there are those on both side who are disgusted with the blatant lawfare.
    • And then, Trump’s base is fired up over the persecution of the prosecution.

    I wonder – what WOULD his numbers be without the struggle against TPTB?

    1. Texpat Avatar
      Texpat

      Surreal. Beautiful and scary all at the same time.

  19. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    One thing this whole circus in Manhattan has exposed is the utter, complete corruption of the New York State judicial system. I’ve never seen anything like this in my life. I thought the defamation case by the certifiable lunatic E. Jean Carroll was the height of absurdity, but no, New York has decided to double down on stupid.

  20. Tedtam Avatar

    It’s getting darker at the Dome. Not hunkering down yet, but casting a wary eye at the sky.

  21. GJT Avatar
    GJT

    Pretty good storm coming through here, a big limb from my sycamore tree is down and next to it is the top of a pine tree but I can’t tell if it’s mine. Pulled the power line down from across the street.

  22. Tedtam Avatar

    Really darker now, and we’re getting thunder. I may go sit on my porch and enjoy the storm for a bit.

  23. Tedtam Avatar

    Getting a stiff breeze. I love a good storm.

  24. Tedtam Avatar

    Just got a heckuva down burst. Here comes another one. Reminds me of Ike.

  25. Tedtam Avatar

    Decided to come inside when the trees started doing the samba. I can hear stuff falling.

  26. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    I think the weather people kinda blew today’s forecast.

  27. Adee Avatar
    Adee

    Finally we are in the middle of a cloudburst heralded by thunderclaps and a most vigorous wind pickup that had large trees waving their leaves hither and yon but not coming loose. Several dry old small branches have come off the trees and bounced briefly on the ground.

    Our resident deer have taken some cover under large trees in our back pasture. They knew this was coming and acted to head for the best places just minutes before everything broke loose.

    Fortunately we are on the tail end of the storm width, and things have settled down quickly once the tail has gone by. Now clearing from the west.
    Temp went down from 95 to 70 so far, and 0.53″ rain carrying nitrogen the plants love.

    I have an errand to do later this afternoon, so perhaps I shall see how the neighborhoods around us fared.

  28. Adee Avatar
    Adee

    Rain just started up again, and the sky has stopped clearing. Weather folk predict more rain is coming this afternoon and possibly into tonight, covering a large area.

  29. Tedtam Avatar

    We need more babies! I look at the falling (and failing) birthrates and I remember the famous rat experiment, where the rat colony, despite having no lack of food or shelter, at some quit reproducing, developed individuals with perverse behavior, and eventually died.

    The data, pronatalists fear, points to a looming crisis. As societies become more prosperous, people are having fewer children; after 200 years of overwhelming population growth, birthrates are plummeting. An average of 2.1 babies needs to be born per woman for populations to remain stable; in England and Wales the birthrate is currently 1.49, in the US it is 1.6, in China it’s 1.2. Politicians in South Korea have referred to their birthrate as a national emergency: at 0.72 (with 0.55 in the capital, Seoul) it is the lowest in the world. According to a paper published in the Lancet in March, 97% of the planet – 198 out of 204 countries – will have fertility rates below what is necessary to sustain their population by the end of this century. In the short term, this is creating a pension timebomb, with not enough young people to support an ageing population. If current trends continue, human civilisation itself may be at risk.

  30. Bonecrusher Avatar
    Bonecrusher

    I took a day today to wait for the delivery of my tri-fuel generator and a consult from an electrician. The electrician showed up 5 minutes before the appointed time. The effing generator is still ‘out for delivery’ even though I had a 10am appointment. During all of this I had to rebuild the bed where a very large pine tree was removed last Tuesday.
    PSA: Moving 5-700 lbs of loose, crushed, marble is a pain in the back, neck, arms, shoulders, and butt.

    thatisall

  31. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    Just FYI
    Those folks at the Houston Health Department Bureau of Vital Statistics run a pretty tight operation. I was in and out in about 40 minutes.
    Going there the day after a holiday may have been an accidental good thing.
    They do gig you for $4 parking in their garage.
    You only need your current TDL and hopefully you know the name of the Houston hospital in which you were born.
    If you were born outside COH, but in Harris County, there is a different County office for you.

  32. GJT Avatar
    GJT

    After the weather chilled out was able to go survey the damage, it was the across the street neighbor’s pine tree that fell, taking down the power line at the transformer – also took an a massive limb on my sycamore tree. San Bernard and fire department actually picked up the pine and debris in my yard, last time I had to do it. They didn’t get the sycamore limb as it’s still attached, way up there. I’ll have to call the pros for it, can’t climb a ladder that high anymore. Oh, and power restored within 2 and a half hours, San Bernard rocks.

  33. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    The polls close soon and I want to know if Phelan is still a curse on Texas.

    Here is the Texas Tribune statewide election result page.
     

    1. Dr phil Good-E=1984 Avatar
      Dr phil Good-E=1984

      The curse continues.

  34. Tedtam Avatar

    Oh, sweet relief! The flapping piece of suture on the inside of my gum disappeared. It’s amazing how much pain something so small can cause. A few more pieces and I’ll be suture free. I actually ate fake keto noodles as a pasta dish tonight, a step above scrambled eggs and cottage cheese.

  35. Tedtam Avatar

    While I was making the keto “noodles,” I used the leftover cream cheese and added some sour cream to make some cream cheese desserts for myself. Flavored it with some water flavor enhancers.

  36. Dr phil Good-E=1984 Avatar
    Dr phil Good-E=1984

    Republican primary runoff RESULTS ARE COMING INAn estimated 53.98% of votes have been counted, according to the Associated Press. No projected nominee has been called yet.
    CANDIDATESVOTESPCT.
    RDade Phelan Incumbent. 8,473 57.4%
    RDavid Covey 6,294. 42.6

    The primary looks rigged to me just like the entire apparatus is.
    rigged.
    the dizzy dunce bush Crawford cowboy gang rides again.

    I’m the decider.

  37. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    It does seem though there are a number of Republican incumbents getting their butts kicked by new opponents endorsed by the True Texas Project.

  38. Tedtam Avatar

    One of my favorite lines ever from a TV show (Stargate, in this case):

    “Maybourne, you are an idiot every day of the week! Why couldn’t you have taken just one day off?!”

  39. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    Latest reports from Texas House District 21:

    Phelan – 9,694 – 52.7%
    Covey – 8,706 – 47.3%
    67.27% of precincts reporting

  40. Tedtam Avatar

    Hallelujah! The last of the stitches, finally! Now, just gotta finish getting through the tender stage.

  41. Dr phil Good-E=1984 Avatar
    Dr phil Good-E=1984

    MAJORITY OF RESULTS HAVE COME INAn estimated 99% of votes have been counted, according to the Associated Press. No projected nominee has been called yet.
    CANDIDATESVOTESPCT.

    RDade Phelan Incumbent 12,813. 50.7%
    RDavid Covey 12,447. 49.3

    looks like the WEF installed totalitariancrat will steal it by 336 votes.
    as usual.
    keep counting until the tcrat wins.
    Dud Phlegmlan is a tcrat.

    I wonder if those 336 votes were in the canned ham’s trunk.

    the slimy weasel is installed again for now.
    it keeps the border open and the blood money flowing.

  42. Dr phil Good-E=1984 Avatar
    Dr phil Good-E=1984

    Phlegmlan steals a win.

    the curse of Texas is upon you
    all the live long day
    the curse of Texas is upon you
    forever he will stay

    the busted borders, you never will escape them
    in a million nights and a million morns
    the curse of Texas is upon you
    til Gabriel blows his horn

  43. Tedtam Avatar

    It looks like a lot of the incumbants are on their way out, though. And Phelan won’t be speaker again, I’m sure.

    No politician is perfect, and neither is any election cycle. There’s enough political clout in the wrong hands, and enough “lack of logic” in too many voters’ minds.

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