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Robbing Peter To Pay Paul

Michael Cessna January 12, 2024

It would seem that 2024 is off with a bang, if the Reader will forgive the pun.

Beginning on October 7^th of 2023, of course, Hamas launched its suicidal Don Quixote war with Israel, showing that the debased savagery of the Islamic State is alive and well. Shortly after, on October 13^th, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abey Ahmed announced what can only be termed a policy of “lebensraum” for Ethiopia, demanding free access to the Red Sea. And, as if on cue, the Houthi rebels in Yemen began attacking any unarmed commercial vessels they could draw a bead on in the nautical chokepoint of the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait, controlling the southern access point to the Red Sea.

Now, as the second week of January 2024 closes, Iran has entered the fray, seizing the oil tanker St. Nikolas off the coast of Oman, in the Arabian Sea, significantly widening the security problem – and potential naval combat area. Iran’s explanation for the seizure is a flimsy claim to Iranian ownership, a claim even flimsier than the excuse of the Houthi’s for attacking ships in the Red Sea.

Obviously, as we reported last week, all of this military action has begun to significantly impact world commerce, as increasing numbers of shipping lines abandon the critical Red Sea route, opting for the much longer transit around the Cape of Good Hope.

The question for most Readers is, obviously, “Where is the US Navy in all of this?” Good question.

The United States Navy is, unquestionably, the most powerful navy the world has ever seen. Disputing that statement is, frankly, ludicrous. The United States currently operates more aircraft carriers for fixed-wing operations than the rest of the world, combined…and this is before the various US Marine Corps aviation squadrons are added to its figures. It operates some seventy-six Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, regarded as the most capable destroyer class ever designed. Likewise, the US Navy maintains amphibious and supply forces that no other nation can match, giving it a truly global reach. It is not an exaggeration to say that a US Navy carrier battle group can deploy more firepower to a region than can be mustered by most nations’ entire militaries.

So – handling the Houthi’s, or even Iran, should present no great trouble for the United States, right?

Well…it’s complicated.

While the United States does, indeed, have a vast and capable military, like the armed forces of Great Britain before it, it has a major problem. It is not really a question of how good your weapons are; the greatest warship ever designed is completely useless if it isn’t where you need it to be, when you need it to be there.

The US military, and specifically the US Navy, cannot be everywhere at once. Aside from the chronic, military-wide problems with both recruiting and retention of personnel, the political leadership of the United States has, for the preceding forty years or so, almost uniformly failed to make even reasonably good choices in economic, military, social and foreign policy decisions. These failed policies have led to critically short numbers of personnel in almost all of the armed services, which translates into too few forces being available to deal with multiple threats. Indeed, while the US Navy, as of 2019, had some four hundred and eighty ships in commission, it could only deploy about two hundred and ninety.

What does this mean in the modern day, of January 2024?

As US and Western industry still struggles to supply the war in Ukraine, that situation is now worse, as the limited supply of ammunition is further divided to support Israel in its war against Hamas. Added to this, is the double threat from Iran and it’s Houthi proxies, a threat that is already damaging world commerce.

And then – there is Communist China…more on that, later.

Many people fail to grasp the impact of world shipping. Like it or not, everything you rely on is tied into global commerce in some way. Even if nothing you directly interact with physically transits the Red Sea, the major delays created will affect the prices of the everyday item you pay for. Likewise, the rising interest and insurance rates caused by the fighting will impact the Reader in a very real way, as those industries have to spread out the damage.

And then – there is Communist China.

A week ago, Communist leader Xi Jinping launched a purge of the upper echelons of the Communist state’s military leadership. While a relatively common practice among Communist states, it remains to be seen if Xi will go to the extent of other Communist dictators.

The end result of actions like this, is universally bad for the capabilities of a nation’s military forces, overall, as it significantly hampers military initiative, in favor of rigid obedience to political dogma – translation: Scare your military enough, and they will be too busy avoiding being shot by your political officers to fight your actual enemies.

However, there are many forms of warfare, and Communist China has learned that throwing money at a problem can make that problem either go away, or at least not bother it…and undermining an enemy while doing so is icing on the cake.

The bottom line? The West is failing. It is failing partially from it’s own success, but mostly from too many decades of throwing pasta at walls to see what sticks. The desire for profit beyond the dreams of avarice has led to a simultaneous weakening of Western industry, and to “good enough” levels of technological and industrial capacity leaking out to nations and groups who hate the West.

In a word: they hate you. It’s not so much that they hate you, personally – but they hate the society you grew up in, and are more than happy – and capable – of burning the world to the ground to spite you.

As of this writing, there are two hundred and ninety-seven days to the 2024 election. One way or another, you need a plan for what happens when we get there.

Assuming, of course, that we get there.

*The Freedomist — Keeping Watch, So You Don’t Have To*

The Lion Stirs – The Murky War Upsetting World Commerce

Michael Cessna January 5, 2024

In the week before Christmas of 2023, there are several large-scale wars going on, with several more potential wars in the making: Russia-Ukraine; Israel-Hamas/Hezbollah; the ongoing offensive of pro-democracy rebels closing in on the fascist junta in Myanmar/Burma; the never-ending battles across the African Sahel region, and the potential Venezuelan invasion of Guyana.

But, lurking in the background is another potential conflict, one that may be impacting and aiding the neo-con agenda: Ethiopia vs. Eritrea.

Ethiopia is unique in history, as the only African state that was never colonized by any European power. Although conquered and occupied by Italy in the years immediately preceding World War 2, that occupation was short-lived, as the country was fully liberated from Italian rule by 1943.

A truly ancient state, Ethiopia maintained its status as an imperial monarchy until 1974, with the Communist revolution that placed a brutal Marxist-Leninist government in charge of the country. This government would, in turn, be deposed in another revolution in 1989, as part of the wave of Communist states around the world that collapsed as the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact imploded, leaving Communist “economies” to wither on the vine.

In the aftermath of the Derg’s collapse, Ethiopia was left unable to stop a popular referendum in one of its most critical provinces – Eritrea – that resulted in that state becoming independent in 1993. While this may seem like a random “factoid”, it is actually of enormous significance.

Eritrea – long part of Ethiopia – occupies the coast of the Red Sea, and as such, was Ethiopia’s only access to world commerce…and after a series of wars in the 1990’s and early-2000’s, Eritrea has effectively blocked Ethiopia from using its Red Sea ports. With a population of over one hundred and seven million, Ethiopia ranks 13^th in the top fifteen nations in the world by population – and is the only one of those states that is completely landlocked.

This translates to Ethiopia being forced to pay exorbitant, even “extortionate”, fees to export its goods to market through its only access to the Red Sea, via the Port of Djibouti, which handles an estimated 95% of Ethiopia’s foreign commerce.

Ethiopia’s Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed, takes this issue seriously…seriously enough, that he made statements on the 13^th of October of 2023, that explicitly underlined Ethiopia’s ‘right to access’ to the Red Sea. Understandably, this rattled every other nation in the “Horn of Africa”, all of whom are vastly outnumbered in both population and military capacity by Ethiopia.

These remarks came less than two weeks after the Hamas terror attacks on Israel that commenced on October 7^th. As a result, the wider world – obviously – paid little the comments little attention. But then, the Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen chose to insert themselves into that conflict on the side of Hamas, on October 19^th…clearly a coincidence, surely.

And then, on January 1^st, Ahmed dropped another bombshell, announcing that Ethiopia had inked a deal with the breakaway Somali province of Somaliland to use their port of Berbera to access the Gulf of Aden – well outside the current shooting gallery – reputedly in exchange of recognition of the breakaway state. This has obviously infuriated Somalia, which has never relinquished its claim to the province, despite the region being de facto independent since 1991 and the region’s independence being ratified in a referendum in 2001.

Now, in the first week of 2024, the Houthi missile attacks and piracy have attracted the attention of major powers around the world, many of whom have joined “Operation Prosperity Guardian”, in an attempt to guarantee safe passage through the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait…albeit too late for world shipping giant Maersk, who announced on January 5^th that they were ordering all of their vessels not already in the Red Sea to divert around southern Africa’s Cape of Good Hope, to avoid the fighting. While this, alone, will cause serious disruptions to global trade, many more cargo carrier lines are virtually certain to not take the risk and divert their vessels, for the same reason as Maersk. This could easily lead to a reprise of the shipping disruptions that happened at the height of the COVID pandemic.

As a result, there are increasingly serious calls within Washington circles to attack Iran directly, as they are the Houthi’s major source of money and weapons. This would be a Godsend to neo-con chickenhawks desperate to finally get the United States into their long-desired war with Iran…

…Which brings us back to Ethiopia’s moves on its future access to the Red Sea.

Ethiopia has three options: they can a) maintain the status quo, with limited access to world shipping solely through Djibouti’s port; b) conclude their deal to access breakaway Somaliland’s ports; or – c) invade at least part of Eritrea, to capture at least that nation’s port of Assab.

Obviously, the status quo is not working for Ethiopia; if it were, there would have been no need for the deal with Somaliland. Djibouti’s port is increasingly limited in capacity, and has little physical room to expand operations, which will soon severely stunt Ethiopia’s economic output…Conversely, the deal with Somaliland risks war with Somalia, as recognition of Somaliland’s independence would almost certainly gut Somalia’s hopes at stabilizing their nation, which was only reunified in 2012. Somalia would have to launch a military campaign to invade the territory to bring it to heel, presenting Ethiopia with the option of going to war with Somalia in support of a breakaway province, something Ethiopia would be loath to encourage, considering recent history.

As well, invading Eritrea to capture Assab carries significant risks on its own, because – all other things being equal in the absence of the current conflict in the Bab-el-Mandeb – Ethiopia could well face a UN-led coalition of military powers “riding to the rescue” of what has been described as the “North Korea of Africa”.

None of these seem like viable solutions, on their own…Unless the world is focused on a different series of conflicts that would combine to divert attention away from Ethiopia “readjusting” the local map, and allowing Addis Ababa to present the world with a fait accompli in the aftermath of the Houthi’s inevitable neutralization, as well as the likelihood of a massive US-Iran war…

…While the foregoing may sound like the implication of a dastardly plot on Ethiopia’s part, it is not…well, mostly “not.” But, the timeline of Ethiopia’s rhetoric regarding its right-to-access to the Red Sea is certainly suspicious, and indicates some level of foreknowledge of events beginning ion October of 2023, and having active plans and options ready to go.

There are plenty of players in this global chess tournament, and too many “leaders” in the West – and elsewhere – are arrogantly blind to the knives in the dark, thinking that “bit players” cannot harm them.

…Rather like Britain, France and the United States from the 1950’s to the 1980’s.

Word to the wise.

Iran Escalates Red Sea Tensions

Michael Cessna January 1, 2024

The Islamic state of Iran has significantly escalated tensions in the Red Sea, by deploying the warship Alborz to the crucial Bab el-Mandeb Strait a day after US Navy helicopters drove off Iranian-backed Houthi pirates of Yemen following their attempted seizure of the Singapore-registered container ship Maersk Hangzhou, sinking several Houthi boats and killing an estimated ten pirates, on December 30, according to CENTCOM.

This also comes some 10 days after the Liberian-flagged tanker MV Chem Pluto was struck by a suspected Iranian drone while at sea, en-route from Saudi Arabia to India on December 23rd.

The Alborz, an Alvand-class frigate, was originally bought by the Imperial Iranian Navy in 1971.

The move by Iran raises the distinct possibility of hostile action between the Iranian vessel and the various, dozen-or-so warships of Operation Prosperity Guardian, assembled in late-December to counter repeated missile and boarding attacks on international shipping, claiming to be countering the Israeli response to the unprovoked attack on its civilians that began on October 7 by the Hamas terrorists operating in the Gaza Strip.

The Freedomist will continue to monitor the situation as it develops.

Updated at 5:50pm CST, with information and links to the attack on MV Chem Pluto.

Maine Joins Seditious Movement to Remove Trump from Ballot

Paul Collier December 29, 2023

If you can’t beat them, ban them. At least that’s what the Secretary of State of Maine has decided when she unilaterally decided to remove the leading candidate for President of the United States in 2024 from the Maine ballot. As Trump is booted from ballot, he is restored in another, the Colorado ballot, pending the SCOTUS appeal.

Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows made her decision based on the 14th Amendment, which bans “insurrectionists” from running for President. The major unconstitutional problem with her unhinged, seditious decision is Trump has never been charged with, let alone convicted of, “insurrection.” If anything, she joins the Colorado Supreme Court in committing an overt insurrectionist action, seeking to remove a candidate from the ballot purely to prevent them from winning in 2024. GO DEEPER

She attempted to cover up for her public declaration that she no longer operates under the American rule of law, but instead is attempting to overthrow the republic and replace it with a one-party totalitarian state, saying, “I do not reach this conclusion lightly. Democracy is sacred … I am mindful that no Secretary of State has ever deprived a presidential candidate of ballot access based on Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment. I am also mindful, however, that no presidential candidate has ever before engaged in insurrection.”

Donald Trump has not engaged in insurrection, for the record, nor has he been charged or convicted of such an action. This woman should be immediately be removed from office, arrested, and charged with sedition and high crimes and misdemeanors against the American republic.

As the state’s Attorney General, Aaron Frey, belongs to the party of sedition, the Democratic Party, this insurrectionist Secretary is not going to have to worry about facing the charges she should be facing.

California Town Purges Woke

Paul Collier December 28, 2023

Over the objections of the seditious members of the DNC-CCP still serving on the council a GOP-majority city council in California voted to remove all wokeness from the government, including holding events that glorified far left activism, like Pride Month, Black History Month, etc. The city is Huntington Beach. It will replace these events with events highlighting the history of the country, the state, and the city.

The events the city supports will not include any that showcases identity politics, or any political agenda at all.

From The New American:

As California City News (CCN) reports, “The Huntington Beach City Council voted Tuesday [12/19] to repeal and rescind the city’s celebration of Black History Month, Women’s History Month, Hispanic Heritage Month, Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, Pride Month, and other months recognizing diversity and heritage” (read: other months encouraging division and balkanization).

“Instead, the city council will adopt a new 12-month celebratory history schedule developed by a panel of appointed members,” CCN continues. “The new agenda would ‘be free of any identity politics and political agendas,’ according to a city staff report.”

“‘I’ve been amazed to learn just how much of our rich history I was unaware of,’ said Councilman Casey McKeon from the dais on Tuesday night,” commenting on the history schedule, relates Voice of OC. “‘We wanted to focus on 12 themes a year instead of dozens to help city staff get on the same page.’”

The vote to remove wokeness from the city’s agenda went down party lines, with the DNC-CCP members voting against the measure, desperately seeking to hold on to the anti-American ideology they place over the American republic itself. Wherever Democrats have power, America’s rule of law suffers.

Let us pray the GOP members of this council hold on to power and the DNC-CCP members continue to be rightly voted out. There is no place in the American republic for “democrats” anymore.

The Mass Migration Invasion Strategy of the U.S. Exposed

Paul Collier December 27, 2023

According to a report released by Muckraker, the wave upon wave of human beings pouring across America’s intentionally unguarded borders is not an organic happening, it’s planned. The proof that this is a planned, coordinated assault on American stability comes from the discovery of pamphlets being handed out in multiple countries in South and Central America that promise rewards and offer methods of making it to American soil.

These pamphlets are being distributed by NGOs (Non-governmental Organizations) with ties to far left groups in America, as well as to foreign governments. According to Muckraker, “the collapse of the U.S. southern border is the result of a carefully planned and deliberately executed industrial mass migration program.”

The enemies of the American republic, from within and without, appear to be working in collusion with the seditious Biden administration to flood America with millions of people it cannot take care of, creating instability for all, and also importing de facto soldiers who can add to the instability by committing acts of terror and violence against the American people.

This writer believes the “mass migration” is a mass invasion being orchestrated by the Biden administration in collusion with foreign powers and seditious far left “American” groups. It is an act of high crimes and misdemeanors against the American republic committed by the far left and its foreign partners, all sharing the same enemy, we the American people.

From blacklistednews.com:

What’s becoming increasingly evident is that a network of NGOs funded partly by the US taxpayer but by other countries and corporations are covertly facilitating the invasion of illegals at the US southern border, as well as distributing them across the US into progressive metro areas.

According to an August report by progressive left-leaning media watchdog organization Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting, President Biden’s Department of Homeland Security allocated $363 million to NGOs to assist illegal aliens once in the US.

This is nothing short of an act of war by America’s enemies from within, the DNC and its far left NGOS, and without, the NGOs funded by foreign governments like China and Russia.

SCOTUS Denies Jack Smith an Early Victory

Paul Collier December 27, 2023

The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to expedite considering the immunity of Donald K Trump from the type of prosecution he faces from lawfare assassin and hired DNC-CCP gun Jack Smith, meaning the trials strategically activated by the lawfare assassins and their DNC-CCP-owned judges to interfere with Trump’s ability to campaign against Mass Mailer President Joe Biden will not happen.

Instead, the Trump team can delay these trials most likely until after the election while the issue of his immunity works its way through the appeals court process until it eventually reaches the Supreme Court.

NBC News made this claim in their article covering this decision, “ Steering clear of a political firestorm for now, the Supreme Court said Friday it would not immediately decide the key question of whether Donald Trump has broad immunity for actions he took as president challenging his 2020 election loss.”

This, of course, is not the case, and it makes the reader believe the court hasn’t made a strong political statement in its ruling, which, of course, it has. The decision throws a monkey wrench into the lawfare assassin’s plans to interfere with the 2024 election using trial schedules to do so.

This writer believes SCOTUS knows full well the actions by the lawfare assassins and their collusionist judges do not meet basic constitutional requirements. Their ruling portends their eventual ruling, but they want to make sure before they make such a monumental ruling that the arguments for and against have been fully flushed out so that there is no doubt as to the legal efficacy of a SCOTUS ruling to come that will essentially blunt the most potentially damaging lawfare assaults on the former President.

Of course, NBC, a content marketing company for the DNC-CCP, and overt seditionist against the American republic, isn’t giving up hope that SCOTUS could STILL deliver the type of quick action they hope will happen: As a result of the court’s refusal to intervene, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit will take first crack at the issue; it is scheduled to hear oral arguments on Jan. 9.

Once that court rules, the Supreme Court could act quickly on whether to take up the case.

In asking the court to step in on an expedited basis, Smith said the case “presents a fundamental question at the heart of our democracy: whether a former President is absolutely immune from federal prosecution for crimes committed while in office.”

Trump’s lawyers argued in court papers that Smith had given “no compelling reason” why the Supreme Court should immediately step in ahead of the appeals court.

This is not reporting, this is performing, performing for the DNC-CCP in the interest of a Progmerican Empire they dream will come, which is no America at all.

Jordan Accuses DOJ of Spying on Congress, Wants Answers from Garland

Paul Collier December 21, 2023

House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) is accusing the Department of Justice of spying on members of congress, and he wants the head of the DOJ, Merrick Garland, to answer for it.

He wrote a letter to Garland saying, “The Committee on the Judiciary is conducting oversight of the Justice Department’s use of its law-enforcement authority to obtain the private communications of Members of Congress and congressional staff members… On November 8, the Department informed the Committee via e-mail of ‘a change to the Department of Justice’s policies and procedures in criminal investigations involving Members of Congress and their staff’ that ‘impose[s] new requirements to consult with, or receive approval from, the Public Integrity Section.’”

Jordan Subpoenas AG Garland Over Alleged DOJ Effort to Spy On Congress – conservativebrief.com

Excerpt:

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) has issued a subpoena to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland to appear before his panel and explain alleged efforts to surveil members of Congress and congressional staff, which included during the so-called “Russiagate” scandal when then-President Donald Trump was in the White House.

“The Committee on the Judiciary is conducting oversight of the Justice Department’s use of its law-enforcement authority to obtain the private communications of Members of Congress and congressional staff members,” a letter from Jordan to Garland began.

Read Full Article

Norwegian Tanker ‘Strinda’ Struck By Houthi Missile

Michael Cessna December 12, 2023

RED SEA, 12.12.2023, 1100hrs CST – The Japanese-owned, Norwegian-flagged general oil and chemical tanker MK STRINDA was struck by a missile fired by Houthi rebels in Yemen, while transiting the Bab el Mandeb strait, late on the 11th. the ship reported damage and a fire, but reported no casualties.

The Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Mason responded to the tanker’s distress call, and is rendering assistance as of press time. The Mason, along with other US Navy warships, have engaged Houthi missiles and drones fire at Israel as part of the Houthi’s

This is the latest in the escalating piratical activities of the Iran-backed terror group in recent weeks, including their helicopter assault to seize of the M/V Galaxy Leader and their attempted seizure of the M/V Central Park.

The Houthi group is a religious sect that is the main party in a civil war that has raged since 2014. Although the hard-line Shi’a Muslim group is reported to be receiving assistance from many corners, no state has recognized them as a legitimate state. They were, and remain, a group of bandits, pirates and terrorists.

The Freedomist will continue to monitor the situation.

Houthi Goverment in Yemen Announces Blockade of Bab el-Mandeb

Michael Cessna December 10, 2023

YEMEN – In a press release dated December 9th, the rebel Houthi government of Yemen announced its intention to blockade the Bab el-Mandeb strait, at the southern entrance to the Red Sea, in order to halt all maritime commerce going to or from Israel, including – significantly – vessels of any nation, including any vessel owned by Israeli companies or individuals. This presents a direct and immediate threat to the Freedom of the Seas doctrine of international law, as there is no way to verify the details of vessels in the Red Sea without physically stopping them. This also places a considerable portion of world commerce in immediate jeopardy, as the Red Sea is one of the main conduits of global commercial traffic, not simply limited to the oil industry.

This comes after weeks of rising tensions, as the rebel Houthi regime has repeatedly attacked and captured commercial vessels in the Red Sea, while firing ballistic missiles supplied by Iran towards Israel. Both United States and French Navy warships have fired in defense of vessel attacked by Houthi forces. These rash actions could lead to an all-out naval war in the Red Sea.

*Red Sea, 2005. Photo credit: NASA. Public Domain.*

As of press time, the United States has not issued a statement on the situation, although rumors swirl about some form of joint, direct-action against the Houthis.

Keep watch here for further developments.

EDIT, 12.11.2023, 1700hrs CST

A link from the Telegraph shows an estimate of the world’s shipping container traffic – some 12% of the world’s shipping containers, roughly 15 million units – that could be impacted should fighting in the Bab el Mandeb escalate…..