The latest mantra of CIA-linked media since the “Pizzagate” leaks of data alleging that Hillary Clinton Campaign Manager John Podesta and other highly influential political persons in Washington were connected to an unusual pizza place near the White House run by a 41-year old James Achilles Alefantis called Comet Ping Pong, is the need to crack down (i.e. c...
On December 8, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorist group launched a major offensive in a bid to recapture the ancient city of Palmyra, which was otherwise lost to the Syrian Army earlier in March this year. ISIL managed to not only muster between 4000-5000 fighters, but managed to travel across the eastern Homs desert unnoticed until they...
It is too early to conclude what happened with this aircraft, but since I have been asked about this by email, here are my own, personal and provisional, thoughts: Mechanical failure: unlikely. The Tu-154 is a three engine aircraft and an extremely strong beast. Its safety record is comparable to most aircraft of its time, even though it was often used in ex...
On December 19 an armed man murdered Russia’s Ambassador to Ankara Andrey Karlov in cold blood during the speech that the victim was delivering to honor the opening of the photo exhibition “Russia through the eyes of the Turks” in the Turkish capital. It’s been reported that there were three other...
Al Qaeda’s virulent offshoot, Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS; Arabic, Dawlat al-Islamiyah f’al-Iraq w Belaad al-Sham, Daesh), currently under stress owing to combined operations by Russia and the Syrian Arab Army of President Bashar al-Assad, poses a threat to the world as its foreign cadres flee back home. The New York-based Soufan Group estimates...
This is a long story which extends over fifteen years. NATO first attempted to silence those citizens who were trying to discover the truth about the attacks of 11 September 2001. Then it turned on those who contested the official version of the “Arab Springs” and the war against Syria. One thing leading to another, it then attacked those who denounced the c...
The approaching end of the disastrous Obama administration leads to the revaluation of his legacy both in the US and outside it.
The UN’s Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) has even drafted a special report that evaluates the damage inflicted upon the Middle East by the so-called “Arab Spring” revolutions, which were staged durin...
There are clear signs that the Neocons running the AngloZionist Empire and it’s “deep state” are in a state of near panic and their actions are indicating that they are truly terrified. On the home front, the Neocons have resorted to every possible dirty trick on the book to try to prevent Donald Trump from ever getting into the White House: they have - orga...
The Modi government has lost the plot on demonetization. The ‘surgical strike’ on corruption, terror funding and fake bills has turned into promotion of cashless transactions, cheered by powerful commercial interests. Issuers of credit cards and debit cards are smiling from ear to ear. Promoters of payment companies and money changers...
I learned of Trump’s choice for his ambassador in Tel Aviv ten days before it was announced (and published that in Russian), so I had enough time to discuss the nominee with Palestinians and Israelis, as well as with Russian diplomats. The nomination of David Friedman horrified liberal Israelis, cheered Palestinian activists, befogged the Israeli and Palesti...
In recent times, and probably since the establishment of universal voting, presidents-elect have systematically violated or broken their promises to their supporters. This essay begins with the campaign promises of the outgoing President Barack Obama and the President-Elect Donald Trump. We will then examine the reasons why rhetorical populist, peaceful and ...
It is so dark now in the North. The Sun rises at 10 am to go down at 3 pm. White and plentiful snow and glorious stars outside and Christmas trees indoors make this darkness bearable – just. Here one understands why the people of the North had viewed Yuletide with great anxiety: they never were quite sure whether the Darkness would actually lift and pass awa...
Q: Have there been any recent incidences of human rights abuses perpetrated by the LTTE? (Such as for example extra-judicial and targetted killings, arbitrary arrest and detention, forced recruitment or abuses of deserters, or forced displacement)
A: No; not in Sri Lanka. However, Tamil political trends indicate a tendency to perpetuate the glory of its...
The Rig Veda, the sacred book of the Hindus, has since the last few hundred years been variously interpreted by philosophers and Vedic scholars writing for English-speaking readers. The most recent work in this genre is David Frawley’s Vedic Yoga (2014). It presents a Mantric theory of Being and an account of cosmogenesis. The word ‘ontology’ means ‘theory o...
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayaram Jayalalithaa, interred on December 6 after a State funeral attended by both the President and Prime Minister of India, was a complex personality who has left behind a mixed legacy. Surprisingly for one mired in controversy during her roller-coaster life, her final departure was accomplished with unexpected grace, with...
As President-elect Donald Trump and incumbent President Obama work out details of a smooth transition, Americans and the world at large will keenly follow how the incoming administration takes shape and influences their lives.
Many challenges await the new administration. Hot button issues on the domestic front will undoubtedly dominate Trump’s attention. A...
The world can say “So long Francois Hollande – we hardly knew ya”. Hollande, after all, was a purely national-level politician when he won office. His big gig had been heading the Socialist party for 11 years, until his ex-partner Segolene Royal lost to Nicolas Sarkozy in 2008.
Hollande’s similarities with former US First Lady Hillary Clinton run even deepe...
Jallikattu has been a part and parcel of the Hindu traditional practices of Tamils for thousands of years. It is conducted as a thanks-giving to the local village deity to which the village bulls are betrothed. The occasion is used to honour bulls belonging to the temple and the village.
The ‘Vadi’ (start-gates) for Jallikattu are constructed...
There is no denying that some of the observations made by the honourable judges of the Supreme Court of India regarding Jallikattu have deeply hurt Tamil sentiments. It is because these observations have exposed how little understanding the judges, lawyers and the so-called animal rights activists have regarding Jallikattu and its vitality in preserving and ...
Double jeopardy: No one shall be liable to be tried or punished again for an offence for which he has already been finally convicted or acquitted in accordance with the law and penal procedure of each country. International Covenant on civil and political rights, Article 14(7).
To say that many Sri Lankans who voted the President Maithripala Sirisena-Prime ...
The Dakota Pipeline protests have gathered steam as a galaxy of celebrities – from politicians to movie stars - have joined the ranks. Senator Bernie Sanders was one of the latest to join the protests as he addressed a group protesting in Washington DC. Although the protests have been going for several months, they had largely been ignored by mainstream cabl...
The Western media are unable to explain the wars which are shattering the “complicated Orient” because they refuse to see them in the regional context. Rather than discussing whether the events in Syria are a revolution, a civil war or an aggression, or whether or not the repression in Turkey is justified, Thierry Meyssan proposes another reading of the fact...
Demonetisation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s most daring initiative so far, looks all set to end up as just another amnesty scheme. With the latest modifications, it will certainly garner tonnes of money for the government as tax revenue and, more importantly, offer those sitting on loads of black money and desperately looking for an escape route to salvag...