War, just a headline away?

Does it matter if the mainstream media lie to you?

No one trusts the media any more, do they?
And yet, the moment there is something like an election, or a fire in a high-rise building, or a plane that goes missing, we all have to turn to the media to find out what is going on. If lies and truth are woven together in a compelling narrative, and our subsequent behaviour is influenced – even if we know that certain media sources are not always trustworthy – then it does matter what the main stream media says.

The Russiagate controversy is unravelling.

This is happening at a very significant time when, for the first time in a generation, the possibility of a war between America and Russia is being spoken about openly. This war might involve those two countries directly, in which case the much lauded Mutually Assured Destruction becomes a distinct possibility. More likely, the war will be fought between proxies, as is happening to some extent already in Syria.

If such a catastrophic outcome arose from false news, then much respected prime media outlets with internationally known names, like the BBC, the New York Times, The Washington Post and other sources of record, would bear a very considerable amount of responsibility. The way in which the ‘Russia hacked our election’ meme has spread, without much critical investigation, has created the most dangerous period that this writer can remember, since the confrontation over Cuba in the 1960s. Then, there was reasonable proof that Russia had installed, at the request of its client state, missiles aimed at the heart of America. Had it not been for the extraordinary self-control shown by John F. Kennedy, and the back channels to the resourceful and wise, Khrushchev, then it is highly likely that our planet now would be some toxic orb spinning, sightless, in space.

It was only because neither of those leader followed the promptings of the warmongers of their day, that we have had no world wars then. The restraint of those who followed, meant we had not much talk of world war since. Yet here we are, once more, speaking of another world war. It seems we are doing so based on a concoction of lies.

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Three alternative sources of news have, recently, demonstrated how the narrative about Russia has served very dubious ends.

1.

One, the weakest that will be dealt with last, indicates that cable news (and probably newspapers too) finds the Russiagate narrative increases ratings and therefore advertising revenue. It also means that other stories that the powers in the land do not wish to be considered closely, are ignored.

2.

Two, in a long article for Consortium News, Robert Parry, an experienced and respected journalist, compares the current spat about Russia and the alleged hacking, with the real crimes that were investigated as part of the Watergate and the Iran-Contra scandals. His excellent article can be found here.

As he points out, in both cases the scandals have their roots in election machinations. These aspects of the stories have been all but forgotten. In the case of Watergate, Nixon had been involved in prolonging the Vietnam War for various interests. If the Democrats been able to demonstrate this, his re-election would have been doomed. This was the reason for the two break-ins to the Watergate building, using ex-CIA operatives, who were caught the second time round.

Better remembered, is the fact that Reagan made sure that the hostages held in Teheran were not released while Jimmy Carter was still President. Had that happened, Carter would have almost certainly been re-elected. What is much less well-known is that Reagan had been involved, through Israeli intermediaries, in supplying arms to the much reviled Iranian regime.

These two examples of real malfeasance, with what verged on treasonous activity by two previous Presidents, are contrasted by Parry, with the current confetti of unproven allegations circulating about Russia. This article is highly recommended.

3.

Three, in a separate piece, written by the self-described ‘rogue journalist’, Caitlin Johnstone, and headed The Big Fat Compendium Of Russiagate Debunkery,  she provides detailed arguments as to why the Russia story, while being ubiquitous, simply has no legs. Her article can be found here.

In a much less temperate piece, published yesterday by the same rogue writer, she opines on the damage the Democratic Party have done to themselves, by using this false narrative to avoid looking at the real reasons that Hillary Clinton failed to win the Presidency. This second more recent article can be found here.

In this article she quotes another investigative journalist, who has produced a video, shot undercover, where a relatively junior producer, shares his views in some detail that CNN have used the Russia story to increase their ratings at a difficult time.

A good summary of all these points was provided by the incomparable Peter B Collins, in his pod cast yesterday. He is a “must listen to” for anyone who wants to keep up with a progressive viewpoint on American politics, without falling into the traps set by Rachel Maddow  and other apologists for what masquerades as centrist politics in the USA. He has consistently held the view that if the powers that be in America wish to prove the collusion between current Trump administration and Russia, in undermining the recent presidential election, it would be very easy to produce incontrovertible data by using evidence that we know is collected by the NSA. He maintains, as does the current writer, that given this proof would be easy to release, the very fact it has not happened, suggests that the evidence simply isn’t there.

Here is a summary of the points made by Caitlin Johnstone.

1. There is no proof
2. The NSA could at any time provide public proof of Russian hacking without compromising intelligence sources
3. This is all coming from the same people who told us, incorrectly, that Russia hacked the French election
4. The “17 intelligence agencies” narrative was a lie
5. The CrowdStrike report on the alleged DNC hack is extremely suspect
6. There is no good reason to believe the Russians, or anyone else, hacked Podesta’s emails
7. Many experts doubt the hacking narrative
8. The CIA are known to have the ability to forge the signs of Russian cyber attacks
9. It is simply a lie to suggest the WikiLeaks emails didn’t contain anything incriminating
10. There is evidence that the Clinton camp was constructing the Russian narrative long before it was released to the public
    

Her full article is worth reading for the evidence that she presents

Here, is the video she references

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So does any of this matter?

Well, in the humble opinion of this writer, if the Russia story is as false as it certainly appears to be, and yet it is influencing everyone who talks about Russia and Putin, using terms like “evil” and “monster” – and yet these epithets are based on a confection of lies – then it is very serious. No nation likes to go to war. When those who benefit from war seek to back their investments with the lives of young men, they first have to produce a convincing narrative.

The very fact that English readers will struggle hard to find this story relating to Russia,  considered critically in The Guardian, The Times of London, the BBC or even Channel 4, should raise considerable alarm.

The fact that in America, this weak and unfounded story of the Russian hacking, still bereft on 29th June 2017 of anything approaching evidence, is largely believed by a great swathes of the American population who pay any attention, and has barely been challenged by the political class, should give all of us pause for thought.

The narrative about Fake News has come from the mainstream media, and been directed at the alternative sources of news to be found on the Internet. And yet it appears at least in this instance, that the Fake News about Russia has been promulgated in the Main Stream Media for a number of reasons beneficial to certain very powerful interests.

If,  as these ‘rogue’ and alternative journalists like Parry, Johnstone and Collins believe, the Russiagate story is collapsing under its own contradictions, then those who pay attention to these matters will know for sure that the mainstream media it is no longer served by great warriors for truth as in the past, but has degenerated into a parody of the fourth estate.

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Why this sad decline has taken place is a story for another time.