Badlands News Brief
Badlands News Brief
Playing the Opposite Game with Deep State Propaganda
The News Cycle is almost impossible to track these days. At least, to do so fully.
That’s where we come in.
In the Badlands News Brief, the Badlands Media team hand pick news items of interest from the previous days to give you an overview of the biggest goings-on relevant to the Truth Community with some Badlands flavoring to help wash it down.
But before we get onto the Brief, we want to introduce you to a new Sponsor of the Badlands Substack: Ascent Nutrition, who are offering the Badlands audience 15% off their Pine Needle Extract using the promo code: “Badlands.”
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Now, onto the news from Monday, September 2 …
Biden and Netanyahu at odds again after US president says Israeli PM not doing enough in ceasefire-hostage release talks
President Joe Biden said Monday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is not doing enough to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas and added he is “close” to presenting a final deal to negotiators working to strike a hostage and ceasefire agreement in Gaza.
The president’s comments came as he was returning to the White House to huddle with American officials who have been working to secure a deal that would pair a release of hostages held in Gaza with a pause in the fighting. Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee for president, also attended the meeting before joining Biden for a campaign event in Pittsburgh.
The hostage release efforts gained new urgency over the weekend with the discovery of the bodies of six hostages in a tunnel beneath the southern Gaza city of Rafah, including the Israeli-American citizen Hersh Goldberg-Polin.
The deaths have sparked outrage inside Israel, leading to enormous protests and a nationwide strike Monday. Demonstrators have called on Netanyahu to put aside political ambitions to strike an agreement that would allow hostages to be released.
Asked Monday whether Netanyahu was doing enough to reach an agreement, Biden said simply: “No.”
His one-word answer kept with Biden’s reluctance to criticize Netanyahu in public, but nonetheless reflected deep frustrations inside the White House at how the Israeli leader has handled the conflict and the hostage talks. — CNN
Our Take: If you want to know what Deep State kayfabe looks like, this is it.
As Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson told Judge Napolitano last week, the US has all the power in the world to stop the conflict in Gaza right now. All Biden has to do is pick up the phone and tell Netanyahu that he isn't getting another bullet from us, and Netanyahu would be forced to withdraw from Gaza, and ration his munitions in preparation of the "imminent" attack coming from Iran at any minute.
It's been 34 days since Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran. I was told there would be an Iranian response.
Bibi's decision to kill Haniyeh in that exact moment—they could have killed him on October 8th, had they actually wanted—was all about subverting China and giving Xi the middle finger. You may recall that just days before Haniyeh's untimely end, it was reported that China was hosting reconciliation talks between Hamas and Fatah, the two political factions that make up the Palestinian Authority (the Palestinian government).
What you may not know is that President Abbas and Fatah really don't like Hamas. The major reason likely being that it is a creation of Mossad, intended to subvert the authority of Fatah, and win over support of the people, so that a kinetic conflict between Israel and Palestine can be justified—but the more specific reason is that back in 2018, when Abbas sent his Prime Minister to Gaza to meet with Hamas, his armored caravan was attacked by a Hamas roadside bomb.
“We are fully aware that Hamas is the one who stands behind that incident and carried it out,” Abbas said.
This led to Abbas—who is normally a calm and peaceful man—going apoplectic, demanding that Hamas immediately surrender all authority in Gaza, and sanctioning them, which meant that Fatah would not be giving them any more cash from the government coffers. (Fatah and Hamas had already, in principle, agreed in 2017 that Hamas would transfer all ruling authority over to Fatah, so they could start providing actual services to the heavily oppressed people of Gaza— since, you know, Hamas is basically a street gang with CIA resources.)
This effort by Abbas to financially strangle Hamas was subverted by—guess who—Bibi Netanyahu. Netanyahu's cabinet came up with the brilliant and highly sophisticated plan to literally walk briefcases full of cash into Gaza and hand them out to targeted families with known ties to Hamas.
Abbas actually called out Netanyahu, publicly, for doing this in December 2018.
So just remember that Hamas technically works for Netanyahu. I suspect that Soleimani did, as well. That's likely why Netanyahu backed out of the operation to kill him. How much longer are we going to continue to indulge this Deep State nonsense? —
California Democrats Vote Down ‘No Tax on Tips’ Bill Proposed by Republicans
California Democrats voted down a Republican proposal last week to end the state’s tax on tips, casting Vice President Kamala Harris’s commitment to the policy in doubt.
As Breitbart News noted, former President Donald Trump has championed the idea of ending taxes on gratuities for months. Harris copied the proposal last month, seeking to capitalize on the popularity of the idea.
The Center Square reported:
In a mirror of national politics, California Republicans followed former President Donald Trump’s lead by proposing to end taxes on tips. While Vice President Kamala Harris, who formerly represented California in the U.S. Senate, embraced the measure, California Democrats said no, shooting down the proposed amendment in the California Senate.
“Even Trump and Harris both say we should eliminate the ‘tip tax,’” said the California Senate Republican Caucus in a statement.
Trump has said that while Harris is copying his “no tax on tips” idea, only he will actually pass it. Republicans say they are ready to pass it through Congress if he wins the election. — Breitbart
Our Take: Writing “vote Trump, no taxes on tips” was an organic movement of the people before the Trump campaign formally picked up the tactic. Trump’s wildly popular policy proposal set a brushfire in the minds of Americans. The democunists freaked out.
Of course they did. There is nothing more terrifying to the regime than real world populism—a coming together of the people in opposition to subjugation.
Naturally, as a result, inauthentic Kamala impulsively adopted the position as her own. Communist economists cautioned Harris away from the proposal, but the damage was done. The people want tax relief. Further, this vote in California proves that Harris is just lying. She isn’t going to alleviate your tax burden, she’s going to expand it while also continuing to dilute the purchasing power of your dollars.
Unfortunately, for Harris, Americans of all stripes are imagining what can be, unburdened by what has been. Walking back her promises is going to hurt her already minuscule chances of (legitimately) winning this election.
Just wait until these authoritarian demons realize we’re moving to abolish the federal income tax entirely.
Make America Great Again. —
US seizes Venezuelan leader Maduro's plane in the Dominican Republic
The United States seized a plane owned by Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in the Dominican Republic, Fox News has confirmed.
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) flew Maduro's personal plane back to the United States Monday morning, when it landed in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and is now in U.S. custody, a U.S. official told Fox News following an initial report by CNN.
The plane, described by officials as Maduro’s version of "Air Force One," is used for Maduro’s state visits around the world and was seized in the Dominican Republic after it was purchased through a straw company in violation of sanctions laws and export controls, the official said. U.S. authorities cited a specific violation of U.S. executive order 13884, signed by former President Donald Trump in 2019.
The plane, valued at $13 million, is a Dassault Falcon 900-EX. The seizure was a result of a joint investigation with HSI and the U.S. Department of Commerce.
"This morning, the Justice Department seized an aircraft we allege was illegally purchased for $13 million through a shell company and smuggled out of the United States for use by Nicolás Maduro and his cronies," U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement. "The Department will continue to pursue those who violate our sanctions and export controls to prevent them from using American resources to undermine the national security of the United States." — FOX News
And …
Maduro Orders Arrest of Rival to Quell Venezuela Dissent
Venezuela ordered the arrest of presidential candidate Edmundo González, an escalation of the government’s crackdown on dissent in the wake of a disputed election.
The move is likely to draw further outcry from the US and other countries that have concluded González was the winner of the July 28 vote. Venezuelan authorities have declared instead, without evidence, that President Nicolás Maduro was reelected to a third term.
Prosecutors are accusing González of breaking the law because the opposition uploaded voting records to show he won in a landslide. González is accused of crimes including forging a public document, incitement to disobedience of laws, conspiracy and sabotage, according to the arrest warrant published Monday on the Prosecutor’s Office Instagram account.
Thousands of citizens, including children, have already been arrested as the regime sought to silence protests in the wake of the election. At least 25 have died, according to human-rights groups. While banned opposition leader María Corina Machado has attended three opposition protests, González hasn’t appeared in public since two days after ballots were cast. — Bloomberg
Our Take: I find this sentence very tilting:
"Venezuelan authorities have declared instead, without evidence, that President Nicolás Maduro was reelected to a third term."
Suddenly the shameless communists in the corporate media are interested in seeing "evidence" of an election victory from the self-proclaimed winner? Hah!
Now do the 2020 election, guys.
But seriously, why don't these communists like Nicolas Maduro? Don't they claim that he is also a communist? Seems like a match made in heaven—unless, of course, they have been lying to us about Maduro and what he really is.
The Sovereign Alliance loves Maduro. They all have his back on this election dispute. A month ago, I did a deep dive on Maduro's efforts to prosecute corrupt oil executives, which started in 2017. The civil action lawsuit filed in US court by Maduro against those 40 executives back in 2018 seem to be connected to the recent arrest of former Glencore oil executive, Alex Beard.
We also have reports of Maduro ordering the arrest of this Edmundo González fella—the guy who ran against Maduro. The entire corporate media, Uniparty mouthpieces, and globalist jackals are insisting that Gonzales won the election, which is pretty suspicious. It's also suspicious that Gonzales presented his own election results that showed that he won 80% of the vote. If that were the case, wouldn't we be seeing mass unrest in Venezuela? The corporatists are claiming that there is unrest happening there—but where are the Telegram videos corroborating those claims. Do they even know the first rule of the internet? (pics/video or it didn't happen)
What's even more suspicious is that this Gonzales fella attended, as a young lad, the American University in Washington DC. According to its Wikipedia page, "American University was chartered by an Act of Congress in 1893 at the urging of Methodist bishop John Fletcher Hurst, who sought to create an institution that would promote public service, internationalism, and pragmatic idealism."
I dunno, sounds pretty gay.
Gonzales also served as the Ambassador from Venezuela to the United States in 1978, which means he was living and working in DC as an operative in 1978. Do you understand the significance of this time?
Zbigniew Brzezinski (father of Morning Mika) was the National Security Advisor, Iran-Contra was in full swing, the CIA was arming and training Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan to fight the Soviets via Operation Cyclone, and also preparing to overthrow the Shah of Iran—because he was getting a little mouthy about Israel, after the whole Yom Kippur War and coercive Petrodollar deal with the Saudis in 1974, which was negotiated by Bzrezinski's master, Henry Kissinger. (A year later, the CIA murdered the Saudi King, who had been endeared to and inspired by JFK.)
You're telling me that this Gonzales fella attended college in DC, then went back and worked there during the most critical time period in Deep State history, and now he has suddenly emerged out of nowhere to run for President in Venezuela, and is being propped up by the same communists who ran an actual coup against President Trump?
And how about these jerks thinking that they can just meddle in the elections of foreign countries? Regardless of what actually happened in Venezuela, how insane is it that they are seizing the assets of the leader of a sovereign country? Because he won an election?
This is what communism looks like. This is what communism feels like. Judging by all the rainbows, it looks and feels pretty gay. —
US Soldiers Assaulted By Turkish Mob After Navy Ship Makes Port Call At Izmir
On Monday a mob of Turkish men attacked American soldiers who had been walking the streets of Izmir in southern Turkey, apparently as the US personnel were on liberty after the USS Wasp which they are attached to made port call.
Social media video shows a group of men surrounding one US soldier and while violently constraining him. The Turkish men then stick a white bag over his head in an effort to humiliate and possibly kidnap the American and those with him. The brief clip then shows a couple more US troops jumping in to push the Turkish men off their fellow soldier.
Reuters has confirmed of the incident, "A nationalist Turkish youth group on Monday physically assaulted two U.S. soldiers in western Turkey, the U.S. Embassy in Turkey and the local governor's office said, adding that 15 assailants had been detained over the incident."
The same report says that a total of five other US soldiers quickly came to their fellow servicemember's aid to fight off the attackers, after which local police quickly intervened.
The US Embassy in Turkey has subsequently confirmed the American personnel are safe after the incident, "We can confirm reports that U.S. service members embarked aboard the USS Wasp were the victims of an assault in Izmir today, and are now safe," it said on X. There was no mention of injuries. — ZeroHedge
And …
Turkey Bids to Join BRICS in Push to Build Alliances Beyond West
Turkey has formally asked to join the BRICS group of emerging-market nations as it seeks to bolster its global influence and forge new ties beyond its traditional Western allies, according to people familiar with the matter.
The view of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s administration is that the geopolitical center of gravity is shifting away from developed economies, according to the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they aren’t authorized to comment.
The country’s new diplomatic push reflects its aspirations to cultivate ties with all sides in a multipolar world, while still fulfilling its obligations as a key member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, they said.
Straddling Europe and Asia, Turkey submitted an application to join BRICS some months ago amid frustration over a lack of progress in its decades-old bid to join the European Union, the people added. The bid is also partly a result of rifts with fellow NATO members after Turkey maintained close links with Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the people added. Turkey’s foreign ministry and presidency declined to comment.
“Turkey can become a strong, prosperous, prestigious and effective country if it improves its relations with the East and the West simultaneously,” Erdogan said in Istanbul over the weekend. “Any method other than this will not benefit Turkey, but will harm it.” — Bloomberg
Our Take: Well … if this isn’t a perfect example of a shot-chaser combo in the Info War …
Pattern recognition will avail you far better than analysis when it comes to navigating the madness.
Earlier today, I saw the sensational headlines about US soldiers being "assaulted" by a Turkish mob. (Of course, there were no injuries and nothing of actual consequence happened ... which is akin to saying nothing actually happened at all.)
And yet ... the emotional reaction to the deployment spread like wildfire on social media, all amidst fertile narrative ground relative to the US MIL, who are especially sensitive right now due to the Arlington Cemetery PsyOp on the even of another 9/11 remembrance.
But the pieces didn't truly come together until you follow the shot with the chaser that Turkey has now officially applied for BRICS membership.
Are you beginning to see?
Turkey is turning on NATO. NATO is pre-empting the turn.
Everyone is still EXACTLY who they were yesterday. Stop being an NPC.
"When you know the way broadly, you can see it in all things." - Miyamoto Musashi —
Russia to change nuclear doctrine upon examination of West’s actions — senior diplomat
Russia will change its nuclear doctrine based on the analysis of the latest conflicts and the West’s actions in regards to the special military operation, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov told TASS.
"As we have repeatedly said before, the work is in the advanced stage, and there is a clear intent to introduce a correction [to the nuclear doctrine], caused, among other things, by the examination and analysis of development of recent conflicts, including, of course, everything connected to our Western adversaries’ escalation course in regards to the special military operation," the deputy minister said.
He explained that the corresponding document is being finalized, but it is too early to talk about a specific timeframe for its completion.
"The timeframe for its completion is a rather complicated issue, considering that we are talking about the most important aspect of our national security," Ryabkov noted.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said earlier that the Russian nuclear doctrine is a live document, which could be amended if necessary. Meanwhile, the Russian leader underscored that Moscow assumes that a nuclear exchange will never happen. — TASS
Our Take: I've been digesting a lot of analysis on this development.
What I have discerned is that Russia is posturing to nuke the United States—or at least posturing to threaten to nuke the United States. But don't take my word for it, listen to what Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has to say about it.
It's important to note that Lavrov is widely considered the elder statesmen of international diplomacy. He is the "cooler head" in every room, and never blusters or bloviates like the peacocks in DC. This is him being level-headed and straight-forward.
As all of you know, we don't believe Russia and the US will enter an actual kinetic conflict, though I do think the narrative of an imminent war makes a lot of sense—so I expect things to accelerate and escalate. —
US School Districts Rush to Spend Pandemic Relief Funds as Deadline Looms
Many school districts across the nation could be required to return millions of dollars to the U.S. Treasury if they don’t spend their remaining post-COVID relief grant money within 30 days, according to federal data.
Georgetown University’s Edunomics Lab tracks the spending of American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds, which the U.S. Department of Education distributed to school districts over three phases since 2021.
The $122 billion program aimed to boost learning recovery in the wake of the pandemic, partially rebuild the educator workforce, and help schools operate safely. The Edunomics Lab previously reported that most of the money was spent on labor, including additional teachers, counselors, classroom aids, tutors/reading coaches, subject area specialists, and administrators. — The Epoch Times
Our Take: This is why we can’t have nice things. ‘School districts…are in a mad dash to spend their remaining post-COVID relief grant money, or they have to return it to the US Treasury.’
They got more money than they needed, but they really like money, so they’re going to make it rain rather than return the money to US taxpayers. At least, in theory, it would go back to taxpayers and alleviate their burdens in other areas…like all the wars. And, let’s be honest, theoretical fiscal responsibility is the only kind we have in 2024 America.
All bureaucrats agree, it’s better to spend the money than act honorably and return it. Notably, if the need was actually there, the money would already have been spent.
Further, ‘most of the grant funds were spent on labor, including additional teachers, classroom aides, counselors, tutors, reading coaches, subject area specialists and administrators.’ Again, if the need was currently there…
In Milwaukee, the federal money was a windfall, as the district was ‘providing Chromebooks for students, upgrading athletic facilities, tutoring services, learning camps that took place when school wasn’t in session, mental health services, afterschool clubs, free sports physicals, and free drivers’ education classes.’ For Covid. Make it make sense.
In the corporate world, this would be called a boondoggle, ‘an unnecessary or wasteful project or activity.’ It still is a boondoggle; in fact, in the age of public private partnerships, there’s no other name for it.
As your life becomes increasingly less affordable, take comfort in the fact that your sacrifices allow failing American schools to update their sports facilities. —
BONUS ITEMS
Kamala Harris Deploys Joe Biden on Trail as Campaign Enters Home Stretch
Vice President Kamala Harris and President Joe Biden co-headlined a campaign event on Monday in Pennsylvania, a critical battleground state, as they celebrate labor unions while reinforcing Biden's legacy with workers.
The pair attended Pittsburgh's Labor Day parade and delivered remarks, marking the first time they have shared a speaking slot on the trail since the surprising election shakeup that injected fresh enthusiasm into the 2024 race some six weeks ago.
Harris and Biden also attended an event at a local union hall alongside Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and Senator Bob Casey, who is seeking re-election. Local and national leaders from major unions, including the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, the A.F.L.-C.I.O., and the United Steelworkers, were present. — Newsweek
Former GOP officials sound the alarm over Trump’s Orban embrace
The Conservative Partnership Institute, a nerve center for incubating policies for a second Trump administration, co-sponsored a discussion in October 2022 about how to bring “peace in Ukraine” featuring Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs Peter Szijjarto.
Audience members included conservative policy and national security officials and GOP strategists, according to a person familiar with the meeting. Once seated, they were given pamphlets pushing unabashedly pro-Russia talking points.
“Russia has the will, strength, and patience to continue war,” warned the document, which was given to POLITICO by a participant. “U.S aid to Ukraine must be severely constricted and Ukrainian President Zelensky should be encouraged by U.S. leadership to seek armistice and concede Ukraine as a neutral country.”
“If the U.S. continues to enable war, it will result in the destruction of Ukraine and provoke further Russian aggression toward the West, with the potential for nuclear conflict,” it said.
Months before, Russian President Vladimir Putin had awarded Szijjarto an Order of Friendship medal, the highest Russian state decoration that can be given to a foreigner. — Politico
We hope you enjoyed this brief look back at the major news items you might have missed in this ever-escalating and ever-accelerating news cycle as the Information War continues to rage on around us.
As always, if you have any thoughts on these news items or the MANY others swirling in the digital ether, drop into the comments below to share them with your fellow Badlanders.
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I just read this news brief which I liked a lot. GBPH talked about talks of nuclear war escalating - talks that is. I’m very happy that GBPH differentiated between the escalation of talks from escalation of actual war. Thank you Ghost of Based Patrick Henry.
Being here in Taiwan I’m noticing hardly anyone talks about China attacking Taiwan any more. That’s a nice change. I have said over and over that it’s not going to happen, and it hasn’t. I think the same way about the possibility of nuclear war. It’s not going to happen. Fear-mongering by the right is just as bad as fear-mongering from the left.
I would love to see the money spent on more equipment for the students (sports facilities included). My district schools are falling apart and what do we have? State of the art DEI departments and more administrators. Please no more administrators!