CIA Releases Files That Describe Ruthless Chilean Dictator Pinochet As 'Warm' and 'Mild-Mannered'

 Another shameful example of our meddling in other countries.  How much blood is on our hands and when will it end?

CIA Releases Files That Describe Ruthless Chilean Dictator Pinochet As 'Warm' and 'Mild-Mannered'

by Matt Novak on Paleofuture, shared by Matt Novak to Gizmodo

Gizmodo / 2016-10-18 12:03

Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet in 1974 (Associated Press)
Augusto Pinochet was a ruthless dictator who, with the CIA's help, overthrew the democratically elected government of Chile in 1973. But what did the CIA really think of Pinochet? Newly released biographic reports use words like "warm," "mild-mannered," and "businesslike."
I recently filed a Freedom of Information Act request for the CIA's biographic reports on Pinochet from 1972 to 1976. Pinochet's regime oversaw the torture, rape, murder, and disappearance of thousands of Chileans during his rule from 1973 until 1990. But his anti-communist attitudes were enough to make him a strong American ally for almost two decades.
Pinochet's dictatorship institutionalized acts of domestic terrorism through murder and rape in at least 17 torture centers across the country. Yet the CIA's reports from 1976 claim that while he's "not a charismatic man, he is nevertheless genuinely popular in Chile." It also notes Pinochet's hatred for Senator Ted Kennedy, who wanted to stop the flow of American money to Chile.
Portion of a CIA biographic report on Augusto Pinochet dated April 27, 1976 and released to Gizmodo in 2016 (CIA)
The CIA's biographic report, dated April 28, 1976, acknowledges that while Pinochet can be "outwardly tough" and "rigid" he's also "warm and fatherly." Again, the CIA is talking about a man with domestic centers where at least 35,000 people were subjected to brutal physical and psychological torture, and systematic rape.
Portion of a CIA biographic report on Augusto Pinochet dated April 27, 1976 and released to Gizmodo in 2016 (CIA)
One of the most interesting quirks in the reports is that the CIA repeatedly insists that Pinochet has no real interest in politics, but then goes on to explain how the dictator plans to wipe out any trace of Marxist influence in the country. Apparently, in the eyes of the CIA, one can be "not political" while trying to destroy anyone with a very specific set of political ideas they don't agree with.
Another fascinating aspect of the file comes from November, 1974—one year after the bloody coup that ousted socialist President Salvador Allende in September 1973. As shown below, the CIA formerly redacted portions of that file that called Pinochet "quiet," "mild-mannered," and "businesslike." They also redacted portions of the file that referred to his drinking and smoking.
Peter Kornbluh, a reporter from The National Security Archive who helped expose just how substantial the CIA's involvement in the 1973 coup was, published an earlier version of that file in 2006, shortly after Pinochet died. But Kornbluh's version had some redactions about Pinochet's personal life, as you can see below.
Portion of a CIA biographic report on Augusto Pinochet released in 2006 versus a file just released to Gizmodo in 2016 (CIA)
The CIA reports note again and again just how "apolitical" Pinochet was. But one version of the biographic report from May 1976, and newly released to Gizmodo, describes Pinochet as an "inflexible anti-Communist."

A man known for his toughness, he will not tolerate any opposition to the government.
[Augusto Pinochet] is an inflexible anti-Communist, and dislikes politicians of all persuasions, blaming them for the chaos that necessitated the Allende overthrow.

The CIA then acknowledges in the same report that international critics consider Pinochet to be "the personification of all the evils they see in Chile." How does the CIA feel about this? The files generally have a tone of condescension, calling him "unsophisticated in international relations" when it comes to human rights. But the agency is clearly defensive on his behalf, even using the word "abusive" to describe "personal criticism from abroad."
Portion of a CIA biographic report on Augusto Pinochet dated May 17, 1976 and released to Gizmodo in 2016 (CIA)
Pinochet left power in 1990, allowing Chile to ostensibly become a democracy, while leaving some of his top torturers in power with police positions. But in an extraordinary move, prosecutors in Spain tried to extradite Pinochet in October of 1998 while he was having surgery in London.
Pinochet was arrested, which set off an international firestorm as a criminal head of state was about to be brought to justice. He remained under house arrest in England for over a year, where he even received friendly guests like Margaret Thatcher. But political wrangling by British politicians, in opposition to their own High Court, ultimately allowed Pinochet to flee to Chile in March of 2000. Pinochet died in 2006.
On a related note, Henry Kissinger—the American who helped orchestrate the 1973 Chilean coup, starting with the assassination of a top military officer in 1970—is still walking around a free man.
I've uploaded all the CIA biographic reports from 1972-1976 here.

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The Story Changes: The Pentagon Is No Longer Sure Yemen Fired Missiles At A US Ship

The Story Changes: The Pentagon Is No Longer Sure Yemen Fired Missiles At A US Ship

by Tyler Durden

Zero Hedge / 2016-10-17 14:47

Last Thursday, after two consecutive missile attacks on the US Navy ship USS Mason, which allegedly were launched by Houthi rebel forces in Yemen, the US entered its latest military engagement in the middle east, when the USS Nitze launched several Tomahawk cruise missiles aimed at radar installations located by the Bab el-Mandab straight, and which enabled the launch of at least three missiles against the U.S. ship.

The USS Mason (DDG 87), a guided missile destroyer
As Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said, "these limited self-defense strikes were conducted to protect our personnel, our ships and our freedom of navigation," adding that "these radars were active during previous attacks and attempted attacks on ships in the Red Sea," including the USS Mason, one of the officials said, adding the targeted radar sites were in remote areas where the risk of civilian casualties was low. That said, as we highlighted, the U.S. said while there growing indications, there was no official proof that Houthi fighters, or forces aligned with them, were responsible for the attempted strikes which targeted US ships. Still, the lack of concrete proof did not bother the US which, cavalier as usual, unleashed the missile assault on Yemeni territory, breaching the country's sovereignty and potentially killing an unknown number of people.
However, today - four days after the US "counterattack" - the story changes. According to Reuters earlier today the Pentagon declined to say whether the USS Mason destroyer was targeted by multiple inbound missiles fired from Yemen on Saturday, as initially thought, saying a review was underway to determine what happened.
"We are still assessing the situation. There are still some aspects to this that we are trying to clarify for ourselves given the threat -- the potential threat -- to our people," Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook told a news briefing."So this is still a situation that we're assessing closely."
And yet, the US had no problem with "clarifying" the source of the threat on Thursday when it fired American cruise missiles at Yemeni targets.
At this point we refer readers to what we said on Thursday, when we once again put on the cynical hat, and voiced what those who have not been brainwashed by US media thought, to wit:

In retrospect one now wonders if the "cruise missiles" that fell close to the US ships were merely the latest false flag providing the US cover to launch another foreign intervention.To be sure, the Houthis, who are battling the internationally-recognized government of Yemen President Abd Rabbu Mansour al-Hadi, denied any involvement in Sunday's attempt to strike the USS Mason.

A few days later, we have the closest thing possible to a confirmation that, even as the Pentagon itself admits, the "open and closed" case that Yemeni rebel fighters would, for some unknown reason, provoke the US and fire unperforming cruise missiles at a US ship, has just been significantly weakened. Of course, it if it wasn't Yemen rebels, the only logical alternative is the adversary of Yemen's rebels: Saudi Arabia. Although with the Saudis in the press so much as of late, almost exclusively in a negative light, we doubt that the Pentagon's "assessment" would ever get to the point where it would admit that America's Saudi allies launched missiles at US ships in a false flag attempt to get the US involved in the Yemen conflict by attacking the Saudi opponents and in the process aiding and abetting the Saudi execution of even more "war crimes."

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Russia Today: NatWest To Close Russian Channel's UK Bank Accounts

Russia Today: NatWest To Close Russian Channel's UK Bank Accounts

Slashdot / 2016-10-17 13:32

According to the editor-in-chief of state-run broadcaster Russia Today (RT), NatWest bank froze its account. Margarita Simonyan said, "They've closed our accounts in Britain. All our accounts. 'The decision is not subject to review.' Praise be to freedom of speech!" The Guardian adds: Russia has angrily accused Britain of trampling on freedom of speech after NatWest said it was closing down the bank accounts of the Kremlin TV channel Russia Today (RT). Russian MPs, the foreign ministry and human rights officials all condemned the move, and said the UK government was guilty of violating press freedom and of double standards. Simonyan said she had received a letter out of the blue from NatWest saying that it was pulling the plug on the broadcaster's accounts from mid-December. "We have recently undertaken a review of your banking arrangements with us and reached the conclusion that we will no longer provide these facilities," it said.

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US Navy commissions the Zumwalt, a destroyer like no other

 $4.4 billion?  Really!?!?!?

US Navy commissions the Zumwalt, a destroyer like no other

by FoxNews.com

BGR / 2016-10-17 18:32

Image Source: (U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class George M. Bell/Released

The U.S. Navy commissioned the stealthy, futuristic-looking battleship the USS Zumwalt on Saturday, a powerful new vessel that the Navy calls its "most technologically advanced warship."
The ship is 610 feet long, weighs almost 15,000 tons, and cost a minimum of $4.4 billion, according to the Associated Press. Its distinctive, smooth appearance minimizes its radar signature.
"This ship is an example of a larger initiative to increase operational stability and give the U.S. a strategic advantage," Ray Mabus, the secretary of the Navy, said in astatement. "Our Navy and our Marine Corps, uniquely, provide presence — around the globe, around the clock — ensuring stability, reassuring allies, deterring adversaries, and providing the nation's leaders with options in times of crisis."
The highly-automated destroyer needs a crew of only 147 people, and the Associated Press reports that it will carry a variety of weapons, like cruise missiles and anti-submarine rockets. The Navy is proud of the ship's integrated power system, which it said can produce about 78 megawatts of power, approaching the capacity of a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. According to the Navy, the Zumwalt's power system is robust enough to power its own systems "and still generate enough electricity to power a small town."
The ship is named for Admiral Elmo R. Zumwalt, Jr, who served in the Navy for more than three decades and died in 2000.
"This destroyer, like the others in our fleet, is capable of projecting power, no doubt," Mabus said, in the statement. "The Zumwalt-class is much larger than today's destroyers with a considerably larger flight deck — enough space to operate host Joint Strike Fighters, MV-22 Ospreys, and unmanned systems and a Vertical Launch System second to none."
After being commissioned in Baltimore, Md., the ship will travel to San Diego, Calif.
The ship's appearance isn't the only futuristic thing about it. Its captain has a name straight out of science fiction: James Kirk.
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UK spies violated privacy laws with bulk data collection

UK spies violated privacy laws with bulk data collection

Engadget Full RSS Feed / 2016-10-17 09:50

Ever since Edward Snowden's leaks came to light, UK spy agencies have responded to accusations of surveillance overreach with a common boilerplate statement: that their activities are lawful, necessary and proportionate. However, they can't always use that justification any more. The Investigatory Powers Tribunal has ruled that key GCHQ, MI5 and MI6 bulk data collection programs violated privacy protections in the European Convention on Human Rights. Both a Bulk Communications Data effort (which covers data such as visited websites, email metadata and GPS locations) and a Bulk Personal Datasets initiative (covering biographical details like your communications and financial activities) didn't have proper oversight until 2015, when some safeguards came into place. That's particularly damning when BCD was had been in place since 1998, and BPD since 2006.
There weren't sufficient codes of practice covering either program, the Tribunal says. Moreover, there isn't enough evidence to suggest that there was "effective independent oversight." Commissioners had an inherently limited ability to verify how spies collected, stored and destroyed data, and didn't conduct detailed audits. Also, the public didn't know or expect that these surveillance systems were in place -- you can't consent to a program when you don't realize it exists.
The Tribunal is "satisfied" that the newer protections are following European Convention rights. However, the watchdog group Privacy International (which launched litigation to reveal these flaws) isn't happy. It believes that authorization and oversight are still "deeply inadequate," and that the government "barely touched" on its data collection practices even when given a chance. We'd add that the timing of the ruling is ironic, too. The Tribunal is accusing agencies of violating rights just as they're about to get expanded powers under the Investigatory Powers Bill -- while this includes explicit oversight, many are concerned that the UK's privacy intrusions are only going to worsen.
Via: BBC
Source: IPT, Privacy International (Medium)

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Retired Green Beret Warns "We Haven't Been This Close To Nuclear War In A Long Time"

Here is a conspiracy theory for you......
Zero Hedge Retired Green Beret Warns "We Haven't Been This Close To Nuclear War In A Long Time"
Submitted by Jeremiah Johnson (Nom de plume of a retired Green Beret of the United States Army Special Forces) via SHTFPlan.com,

As can readily be seen by the current events, the world has not been this close to a nuclear war and World War 3 in a long time.  There are four major flashpoints right now that could easily escalate and ignite a powder keg, transforming from a regional conflict or conflicts into a world war: Syria, the South China Sea, Ukraine, and North and South Korea.  The "reconstruction" of a Cold War-type faceoff, initiated by the U.S. and NATO building up forces in Eastern Europe and facing off against Russia.
A nuclear war will be initiated by an EMP (Electromagnetic Pulse) detonation over the continental U.S., followed by a nuclear exchange and a war with conventional forces.
As of this writing, the U.S. has "mistakenly" bombed Syrian governmental military forces, causing at least 60 deaths with more than 100 others wounded.  The Russian government is sizzling, especially with the response by (of all people) Samantha Power, U.S. Ambassador to the UN had this to say to the media, as reported by CNN:

"We are investigating the incident.  If we determine that we did indeed strike Syrian military personnel, that was not our intention. And we of course regret the loss of life."

True humanitarians, all, and especially she, the wife of Cass Sunstein and a true Marxist disciple of the Weather Underground (along with Cass) regrets the loss of life.  The airstrikes occurred just two days before the U.S. and Russia were supposed to have joint airstrikes against ISIS.  As ISIS is a creation of the U.S. State Department and the administration, it seems the U.S. decided to strike their true intended target…the Assad government forces…as it wants to topple Syria, and escalate things with the Russians.
Meanwhile last week, the U.S. flew two B-1B nuclear bombers along the DMZ to bluster North Korea with a show of force in response to the nuclear bomb test they conducted just a week prior.  South Korea also threatened to reduce Pyongyang to ashes, while North Korea prepares for yet another nuclear test in the near future.  More than 20 missile tests have been conducted by North Korea just this year alone.  This is not counting the satellite launch at the beginning of the year in which they placed their second satellite into orbit…a path of trajectory, mind you, that takes it over the continental U.S. several times per day.
Ukraine cease fire agreements between the populist forces (rebels) in the eastern provinces and the U.S.'s puppet Poroshenko-government has been violated innumerable times as the fighting in Donetsk continues.  In the meantime, the IMF just approved a 2-billion-dollar loan to Ukraine and the U.S. is supplying Poroshenko's government with "nonlethal" U.S. military equipment.  Russia has been posturing a tremendous number of troops (some DOD estimates range as high as 150,000) on its western border facing Ukraine: they have conducted military exercises, including some within Crimea, which they annexed from Ukraine in 2014.
The United States has been beefing up its presence in the Baltic States of Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia, as well as in Poland and Moldova, the latter emplacing U.S. missile systems for "defense" that can be converted to offensive, nuclear missiles in hours.  In addition to this, the U.S. is deploying B-61 nuclear bombs to Germany's Buchel airbase.  Russia has countered with ordering the deployment of the Iskander-M missiles to Kaliningrad, Russia's westernmost military base in a direct standoff against the U.S. buildup in Germany and Eastern Europe.
Meanwhile things in the South China Sea are heating up as the U.S. has moved naval assets into the area in a show of force in support of Japan over the disputed Senkaku islands face-off between Japan and China.  Last week the Russian navy linked its assets with China's in the two countries' joint naval exercises that could turn into a combat operation and a Chinese invasion at the drop of a hat.
There is a slow buildup and preparation of media coverage that is trying to paint Russia in the leading role of the aggressor in all of this.  It isn't working, except with those who are ill-informed.  The bottom line: with the U.S. election year in complete disarray and civil unrest lurking as a result of social and economic breakdowns, a war would be the perfect thing to justify suspension of the elections and the inculcation of martial law in the "interests of national security."  The general civilian publics of all of the nations would be the ones to suffer, and it wouldn't be the first time that it happened.  Politicians – the ones who "regret the loss of life" in a war – are not the ones to lose their own lives or the lives of their children when the balloon goes up.

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Venezuela's Nightmare Government Will Not Get a Recall Vote This Year

Venezuela's Nightmare Government Will Not Get a Recall Vote This Year

by Anthony L. Fisher

Reason.com Full Feed / 2016-09-22 09:57

Venezuela's National Election Council has rejected opposition calls for a referendum on President Nicolas Maduro to be held this year, which virtually guarantees that Maduro's Socialist Party will remain in power through the end of 2018.
Had the recall vote been held in 2016, a new presidential vote would have to be held—one that the Socialists would likely lose, particularly after being trounced in the 2015 National Assembly elections. But by delaying a possible vote (contingent on the opposition collecting enough to represent about 20 percent of the voting populace) until 2017, even if Maduro were recalled, his Socialist vice president would succeed him, leaving the unpopular party which has presided over the country since 1999 in power for the remainder of Maduro's term.
Opposition leaders claim the election council is aligned with Maduro and is denying the will of the 80 percent of Venezuelans who want the Socialists out of office. Earlier this month, hundreds of thousands (some estimates went as high as 1 million) of demonstrators took to the streets of Caracas to demand a referendum. In the days leading up to those protests, Venezuelan government authorities arrested a number of protest organizers, including 2008 Cato Institute Milton Friedman Prize winner Yon Goicoechea—a longtime advocate of peaceful protest whom the government accused of being in possession of explosives.
Maduro—who has been president since the death of Hugo Chavez in 2013–has presided over an economy that only three years ago was described by leftist Western journalists as an "economic miracle," but which has since completely collapsed. Under Socialist rule, the oil-rich country has spent tens of millions on propaganda movies which never get made and race car drivers who never win races, while hospitals go without electricity, food and basic household items are scarce, and the rule of law has essentially collapsed—evidenced by widespread looting and lynchings of petty thieves.
The government's response to such crises has been to ban the dissemination of video footage of the violence, and to outlaw lines outside bakeries, which it believes is a "strategy of generating anxiety" perpetuated by the opposition and their imperialist puppet-masters in the U.S.
And what socialist "economic miracle" would be complete without forced labor, which Maduro's government has also decreed can be forced on citizens for up to 60 days, "if circumstances merit."
A massive protest today by bus drivers demanding "better pay, more security against violent crime and spare parts for their buses," has choked traffic to a halt in Caracas, according to Al-Jazeera.

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