[00:11] Good morning and thanks for tuning into the program with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou. I'm Ted Rall. There's John. >> I'm John Kiriakou. How you doing everybody? Good and it's good to see you John. Enjoying a nice sunny day here on the East Coast even though a little brisk. We're here of course following the war between Iran and Israel and the United States. Pentagon officials have gone to Congress. They say in the first six days alone the minimum cost of this war has already been 11.3 billion dollars.
[00:43] Remember that the next time that the government tells you they can't afford to do something you care about. Trump and the and the Iranian government both seem to be at completely different opinions about who's winning. Trump told the G7 Iran is about to quote on quote surrender. But Arab diplomats who say that they've been in touch with the Iranians say the Iranians think they're winning and they requiring a lot of very steep preconditions for even discussing a ceasefire.
[01:13] Two a KC-135 refueling aircraft crashed into another US plane in Iraq killing four out of the six crew members. There were terrorist [clears throat] attacks at a synagogue in Michigan and at Old Dominion University yesterday that apparently seem to be related to the Iran war. The Taliban and the Pakistanis are still fighting it out. It's been three weeks and that war has been totally overshadowed by what's going on in Iran and in the Middle East. I always like to remind people
[01:43] Afghanistan is not in the Middle East. Um No. So although every Americans always like to say that it is and it's a little disturbing. But anyway, please like, follow and share the show. Thanks so so for your support. We're going to maybe I don't know figure out some way to figure out another way to take questions in the off hours. So for those of you who missed the AHA slides, we'll work on that. Okay, so lots of questions to pile There's a few questions piled up from yesterday. There's many in the queue, but please feel free to pipe in
[02:16] with your questions in the YouTube and the Rumble chat. John and I love those. And all right, away we go. John, what do you want to talk about first? We probably should talk about Donald Trump's assertion to the G7 that the war is just about over. Uh we won. And the new Ayatollah Khamenei is disfigured and probably comatose. Mhm. Yeah. Uh no, no, and no
[02:48] are my responses. So I mean, you look at the situation on the ground. There's no indication by any metric that this war is near its end. The The Iranians are incredibly resilient. They can take a pounding. This This country is the size of the entirety of Western Europe. And um no, it's not almost over. It's not It's not a victory for the United States. And
[03:19] the Iranians, as you as you said just a moment ago, Ted, the Iranians are demanding as preconditions for talks about a ceasefire that the US has to stop attacks right now. Mhm. That the US has to withdraw from all bases in the Middle East. Mhm. Although that one seems to be a little bit wobbly. Yeah. That there be guarantees of no future attacks, which will never ever happen.
[03:51] And what was the last one? Reparations. Yeah. Yeah, so so the I mean that those are those are not the words of a country that thinks it's losing or in a weak position. No, those are solid demands. Yeah, and those are not demands for public consumption. It's not on their Iranian version of truth social. This is what they're conveying to intermediaries who are trusted. Would these be the Omanis? Probably. Probably the Omanis.
[04:22] Could be the Algerians, but likely the Omanis. Let me ask you a quick question, too. Um these these reports about Ayatollah Khamenei, and I'm going to look at the Associated Press. There was just a report just minutes before we went on the air that Khamenei is disfigured. Here, Hank Seth says Iran's new supreme leader is wounded and likely disfigured. Yesterday, the administration said that
[04:53] he was severely wounded on the first day of the war and he's been comatose ever since. Does that make any kind of logical sense to you that if he were severely wounded, comatose, and disfigured, that that would be the guy that they choose to be the new supreme leader? Or are we just being propagandized by the Defense Department? Yeah, I mean obviously it's I'll take B for $100, Alex. Yeah, I mean for sure it looks like I mean look, there's there's no reason
[05:23] to believe any of that. Certainly he was there, you know, when his father was killed. Yeah. And by the Iranians' own account, his legs were injured. But but here's the thing, I think what they're doing, and this is really infantile, I think the Americans are trying to troll Khamenei and them to come out and reveal himself. They want a picture so that they can try to figure out where he is so they can follow him. Yes. It reminds me a little bit it's like the Iranian version of this is how there's been reports of Iranian cyber
[05:55] hackers who have been tapping into traffic cameras in countries like Bahrain to try to see where like to help them with their targeting and say like you know, oh so okay. So that's over there. This is about I mean this is a war about trying to figure out where your enemy is and so of course it's like look in the same way that nobody knows where Bibi Netanyahu is at any given time. Of course the Iranians like you just killed the guy's dad. You think he's going to
[06:25] come out and give you a give you a selfie? [ __ ] you. No, that doesn't make any sense at all. No, it's it's totally ridiculous and of course I just want to point out before we move on to some questions John that it's there's no more dangerous posture in any kind of military conflict than when both adversaries believe that they're on the verge of winning. Then there is there's no room for reconciliation, right? You guys don't have the same understanding of the facts
[06:56] and and therefore you have nothing to talk about. That's what it comes down to. The two sides are so far apart on the listen, there's no there's no middle ground when the one side says we're not going to leave until you're all dead and a pro-American pro-Israeli government is in place. And and then the other side's position is we're not going to stop until you all leave the area and leave us alone in perpetuity and pay for all the damage. >> [laughter] >> Right, yeah. Yeah, and that's why this
[07:29] war is not going to end soon. I mean in my view I think that the Trump administration is blinking because they've made so many signals about wanting this to be over and there's so many reports that they really are you know rhetoric aside really shocked by what's happened to the securities markets and the oil futures markets and they're really worried now about $200 a gallon I keep saying gallon a barrel oil and you know I don't look even if we even if it just stays over a hundred that's
[08:00] catastrophic just a reminder we were at 60 a week ago 60 you know Yes. A hundred is a 70% increase almost I mean that is massive and it's going to have ripple effects in terms of you know I mean it's it's at the base of everything right it's transportation manufacturing requires energy >> manufacturing that's right. >> Everything trans you move something I mean even just stuff that you might think you're safe because you're in you know you work for a tech firm and it's all intellectual properties and zeros
[08:32] and ones but that stuff requires power generation like massive amounts right so it's going there's no one gets off scot-free here. That's right and I know we have a ton of questions so I'm going to move really quickly [clears throat] I wanted to say I spoke with senior people in both the UAE and Qatari governments yesterday. And um you know for for the first week and a half of this war
[09:04] their position was oh crap now what have the Americans gotten us into now the position is we need to destroy Iran before they destroy us so positions are hardening which has kind of surprised me a little bit I I would have expected that governments would be a little more a little angrier with the United States because we just did this unilaterally or bilaterally with the Israelis and we sucked these other governments into a conflict that they had no national interest in carrying out. Number one. Um
[09:35] number two is that there are not US ambassadors in many of these countries. Remember, a year ago Donald Trump fired dozens and dozens of career ambassadors. They were never replaced. And so one of the one of the senior government officials, senior government officials, said to me, "Listen, I know you have contacts at the White House. We don't know what these people are doing. We don't know what US policy is. You've
[10:07] got to tell the White House we have to have an ambassador here." Well, yeah, you're in the middle of a war. You know, well, speaking of of conflicts and yeah, like you said, we have to get to the questions, John. Um you know, one one misunderstanding or misapprehension that I you know, I I keep focusing on is the Iranians think are saying and messaging that if you are, say, Cutter and you have a US military base on your on your territory, and they target that base, that that that's a legitimate I mean, it
[10:39] is a legitimate target in a in a military conflict, especially when attacks are against you are originating from that base. But, um the Cutters are kind of like, "You're attacking Cutter territory here." And the Iranians are kind of like, "No, we're not. We're attacking a US military base that happens to be on your territory." And those those two those two viewpoints of view world views are not reconcilable. No, they're not. The Cutters the the Cutter position, just like the Bahraini position, the Emirati position,
[11:10] the Saudi position, the Kuwaiti position, is that these are attacks on those individual countries. And so I can see I can see the argument on either side, right? >> Yeah. Yeah, they're compelled to respond. Um okay, let's let's shall let's get into some questions. Um hello, John. This is from yesterday. Love your content. I've been watching you for 4 months now. Question is, what do you think of the counter-terrorism TV show 24 from 2001 to 2010 that was keeping >> We used to laugh at the agency I was
[11:42] still at the agency when that was on TV. We used to laugh at how absurd it was. Like I remember this one like particularly egregious claim where what's his name? Jack Bauer? Yeah. Um he's on the metro. He's got a gun. He's on the metro. And people are just kind of sitting there looking at him like, "Hmm. This guy's got a gun." Which was preposterous. And then he jumps off the metro at the Arlington Cemetery stop,
[12:13] which nobody uses except the occasional tourist. And he's like, you know, this. And it's like, "Dude, what are you doing?" On so many levels. First of all, you're under arrest because you can't carry a gun in the United States. You're not a law enforcement officer. You have no right to carry a gun, let alone on the subway system. And secondly, yeah. Secondly, you're at Arlington Cemetery stop. It's like the central tourism stop of, you know, of the blue line, number two. Number
[12:46] three, point that gun down, you idiot. Did you not pay any attention in training? They will escort you out if you walk around like this cuz you're going to shoot yourself in the in the face or shoot somebody else. The gun always has to be pointing down at the ground. Oh my god, that show was so bad. And also the And of course the ticking time bomb. Which is not real life. Yeah, I mean that's like that's what they always do, right? I mean you know, my my grandfather was in the resistance in
[13:16] France and he and he and but this was he the stuff he told me I've read is like every underground organization uses which is and basically let's say someone fails to show up for a meeting. Um and well, whatever plans they were involved with are considered off. They're blown. All future meetings with that person are canceled. Uh we you assume all of his comrades go to ground and assume that that guy is being tortured and telling everything he knows. So, in 24, the idea is you you know, Jack
[13:49] Bauer has captured the bad guy who knows where the bomb is under Times Square and he's got to get the information out of him, right? Yes. If that guy is following even 1942 protocols, right? All his plans have been canceled. Right? You can say that again. Okay. All right, just checking. Um okay, try Conrad This is from yesterday and thanks so much for the 999 super chat. I watched John's 2007 ABC interview and obviously you have to carefully select your every
[14:19] word. How would you have changed how you approached the interview today knowing that you would be charged regardless? Yeah, that's a great question. And I'll tell you what, in terms of like going back and changing history, I think about that moment the most. So, thank you. Who asked that question? Uh Brian Stroud. Thank you, Brian Stroud. That's an outstanding question. I would not have tried to hedge my language. I would have just come out and said,
[14:50] "The CIA's torturing. Torture's illegal. They're still doing it and everybody's involved. Congress knows, the White House ordered it. Everybody's involved and it's a criminal act." Instead of saying, "Well, you know, there's this, there's that, there's that the other thing." No. I tried to pussyfoot around the issue. That was wrong. Besides the fact that the CIA was lying to us internally. I said that I was a beta was waterboarded once. He was not waterboarded once. He was waterboarded 83 times. But they had told us that he
[15:21] was waterboarded once. Mhm. So, I I should have just just gone whole hog and I didn't. I tried to be >> conversely counterfactual? What if he just had refused to talk to the ABC or anyone else? What do you think would have happened? They would have done a story saying that the CIA was torturing its prisoners and John Kiriakou was the one torturer that they were able to identify. Oh, wow. That's why I went on. Got you. I said, "Your source is either a liar or he is gross grossly mistaken."
[15:53] Big Nick 137, thanks for the $5. John recently recommended the book House of Saud recently on Deep Focus. Do you recommend any books? Do you recommend any other books? The libraries near me don't have it. By the way, may I just recommend interlibrary loan. Go to your librarian and just if they don't have the book at your local library, they can get it from one 30 miles away. It might take a week or two. >> You know what? Rather than just wing that question, why don't we you and I talk about it and we can come up with a list? Oh, yeah.
[16:24] We'll do the Yeah, we'll do a reading list. Yeah, let's do that cuz there are a lot of really terrific book. I would I Well, I won't waste time cuz we we're pressed for time with the questions, but yes, we'll come up with a comprehensive list. Good idea. And also for if you're in a hurry and don't want to wait for that, we have a Rumble Premium episode where it's I think it's called like Ted and John talk about books or something like that. And so, if you're a Rumble Premium member, that's available right now online. So, um Manchild 5000, thanks for the $9.99. Hilarious username. Hey fellas, what's
[16:55] the likelihood of Iran using its uranium stockpiles for dirty bombs in Israel and elsewhere here? I guess we should probably define what a dirty bomb is for those who don't know. Also, John, I really enjoyed your interviews with Biden Warak. Oh, thank you. Um so, a dirty bomb is basically where you don't have a traditional nuclear detonation. Detonators are actually hard to build and to obtain. And you just basically just use a conventional bomb to blow up a radioactive substance. And then it still
[17:27] makes one hell of an ugly mess. Um, you know, what do you think? I mean, you know, obviously Iran would have to get smuggle the uranium into Israel. So there's the question of could they and would and then the question of would they? In other words, would it be something they viewed as a country that has a fatwa against nuclear weapons, would they view that as immoral or would they view that as all's fair in love and war? Yeah, that that's a good question. Um, I think that if they had the capability to do it, they would do it. Um, Israel
[17:57] is is tough to get into. Um, they may may not be able to get into Israel, but they may be able to do it in a place a soft target where they have diplomatic relations where they could put something into a diplomatic pouch, send it out, have it arrive in, you know, let's say Vienna, Austria, and just get on a train and and, you know, take it to wherever, London, Paris, Brussels, wherever. I mean, it has to be in in some kind of pretty big container, right? Because >> have to be. But you can send, I mean,
[18:29] you diplomatic pouch doesn't have to be a physical pouch. That's that's kind of what people imagine it being. It can be something the size of a room. You know, it can be office furniture. It can be a It can be a skiff that you're shipping out in one piece. Um, It's just got to It's just labeled but that it's like it says diplomatic. That's right. That's exactly right. So it's like So yeah, I could I could see it happening. And I think that that yeah, you know, fatwas can change from from person to person. And there's a new
[19:01] leader now. And so all he has to do is revoke the old fatwa and issue a new one. But the old the old fatwa stays in force until it's revoked, yeah? Yes. I mean, cuz sort of like the one against Salman Rushdie still remains in force. That's right. That's Ayatollah Khomeini. Yes. >> Um Uh A A V N G R 22, thanks for the $25. Fancy coffee's on me, boys. Keep up the good stuff. Thank you very much. I already had a triple shot and I desperately need another triple shot. [laughter] Did not sleep. >> this Friday. Uh Waterways, thanks for
[19:32] the $5. Is the only way to return to a sense of normalcy will include closing US bases in the Middle East? Is there a future where the Gulf kingdoms can disintegrate can disentangle from US military presence? I mean, I would love to see that, but what do you You know, funny thing, in the 1980s and until the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, there were no US military bases in the Gulf except for Bahrain. Right? Bahrain has always been the the site of the headquarters of the Fifth Fleet, but it was offshore. Right? There
[20:04] was a ship out there, I forget the name of it now, and that one ship was the headquarters of the Fifth Fleet. It just happened to be off the coast of Bahrain. The Bahrainis didn't want us on land. And then when Iraq invaded Kuwait, literally the entire region changed and it never changed back. And so we have multiple military bases in Saudi Arabia. We have an army base in Kuwait. We have the navy base now takes up half of Manama and it's onshore and we donated that
[20:34] ship to the Bahraini navy. We have the world's largest air force base in Qatar. We have multiple army bases in in the United Arab Emirates and in and in Oman even. So it's been decades now since the First Gulf War and it's not changing back. That That was Yeah, that's what I really wanted to know. And And why wouldn't it change back? I mean, could there be I mean, with um you know, these countries becoming Iranian targets uh uh because
[21:06] of these bases, right? I mean, the Iranians have said so, like if it wasn't for these bases, we wouldn't be targeting you. Do you think the these countries don't believe the Iranians or Yeah, they don't believe the Iranians. Plus, look at it this way. Iran under the Shah repeatedly threatened to invade and annex Bahrain. Repeatedly, and that was under the Shah. Now, the the the Ayatollahs in Iran have repeatedly tried to overthrow the Bahraini
[21:37] government. Uh they've sent uh covert action teams into the Emirates through businesses in Dubai. It doesn't matter who happens to be in charge in Iran. The Iranians genuinely believe that those Gulf states are illegitimate countries and that if anything, they belong historically to Iran. So, the Iranians are always going to be a threat to the region. >> claim there historically? Oh my god, they go back like 2,000 years, 2,500 years, and like this was all part of greater Iran. It should be Iran today.
[22:09] If you look at their DNA, they're Iranian. You hear it all the time. >> Wow, they have a lot more in common with the Israelis than you would think. Similar very similar argument. Um You know, the Greeks the Greeks will whisper to you that in a perfect world, Constantinople would be ours, but we don't really care about anything else other than Northern Cyprus. Well, yeah well, and I can see yeah, and obviously, you know, Greece means that back. Um Ashurkid hi both one for John currently listening to doing time like a spy.
[22:40] Do you think this war causes tension with prison inmates? Yes. That's a great question, too. Yes. You know, the Nation of Islam is huge in prison, and it's it's it's seen as a religion less than it's seen as a gang. Um it's it's listed as a prison gang uh the website of the Bureau of Prisons. Wow. >> And so um Yeah, I mean you know it's funny Nation
[23:11] of Islam guys don't really know if they're Sunni or Shia. They didn't realize that they had to pick one and I I'll tell you another thing when when I first arrived they were group of Nation of Islam guys they were praying right outside my cell. And they were on their they were on their knees and they just kept repeating Allahu Akbar Allahu Akbar Allahu Akbar Allahu Akbar Allahu Akbar Allahu That's not the That's not the prayer. You're just making asses of yourselves by repeating God is great God is great God is great God is great. That's not
[23:43] the prayer. There's there are actual prayers. So I went up to the leader and I said listen I've got a degree in Middle Eastern studies and and I studied Islam and I speak Arabic. I can help you with the prayers and he goes step back inward. And I said you're right none of my business. Mhm. Yeah. [laughter] So they I let them make asses themselves for the next two years that I was there. But yeah they take this seriously even if they don't understand why they're taking this seriously.
[24:14] Human beings are awesome. Yeah. Maybeth 12 thanks for the five bucks. Good morning everyone John and 10. Have either of you heard or read the articles claiming US military units were told that this was God's divine plan and that this was the holy war. Yeah 100%. >> read that. Yeah we discussed it a little bit. Yeah. I mean it is disturbing right? I mean there is uh you know we're we're a secular country supposedly. Uh you know evidence even though the but the Trump administration is their messaging externally through their Twitter feeds
[24:46] um and internally through the military is very you know sort of what Chris Hitchens would call Christianist. Right? I mean it's >> Yeah. It's it's radical. Uh it's it's it's millennial. And I mean, do you think it's I mean, I think it's a problem, but I'm an atheist. Do you think it's a problem? You're a man of faith. Yeah, I think this is a big problem. There's got to be Chinese wall in between church and state. There has to be. You know,
[25:19] my brother is an atheist, which would drive my parents crazy, but he he's very generous in his donations to a group called freedom from religion. And this is something that bothers him very, very much. You remember during the the very early days of the first Trump administration, there was a retired, I think he was a lieutenant general from the military, who was heading a company that made scopes for sniper rifles. And so when you look through the scope, on the inside of the scope they had
[25:51] etched For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son. Yeah, and people are like, what the [ __ ] is that? In the sniper rifle, in the scope. So there was talk about recalling them and they had to be, you know, they had to grind it out of the I wouldn't have done that. I just wouldn't have ordered any more. And and then the Pentagon was like, no, no, that's okay. That's fine. That's Yeah. Well, I mean,
[26:22] yeah, I mean, it's just like a it's a I don't know how we ever, you know, get right with the Muslim world this way. >> Yeah, seriously. You know. Okay. Tammy Landragin. Tammy, you make me laugh, Tammy. That's that's that's funny. Um, Louis Farrakhan is most definitely not a CIA asset. >> [laughter] >> Frank and McDonough, thanks for the 10 euros. Did the CIA operate in Ireland during the Troubles? The Clintons take credit for the peace treaty and I never knew why. Also, who's your favorite Irish folk a singer? Pete Seeger loved the Clancy
[26:53] Brothers. Oh my god, the Clancy Brothers. And what was what was his name who just died a couple of years ago? Hold on a second. I'm going to look because this is important. Here's my YouTube playlists. It is Uh yes, of course. Liam Clancy specifically. Liam Oh my god, the Clancy Brothers were the greatest ever. But in my view, Liam Clancy was the greatest of the great.
[27:24] Yeah. Um okay, so let's see. Um Uh thanks for the uh $9.99 from TJ. Hey guys, what are each of your general politics aside from campaign finance reform? What do you think would turn around the US's decline? Universal health care, free higher education, etc. Thanks. Um well, I mean Uh you want to take that first, John, or shall I? >> Yeah, I My politics have changed dramatically. Um I consider myself uh myself a leftist
[27:56] libert- libertarian. And I know that sounds contradictory to some people. I believe what Ronald Reagan said, that government is the problem, it's not the solution to the problem. And I believe that there is a role for government, and that is creating the social safety net. But otherwise, I want the man off my freaking back. And taxes are too high because the taxes are going to pay for the war machine. Well, I disagree with none of that. Um and uh and you know, I'm Look, in a in
[28:29] an ideal world, I'm a communist. I don't think that a janitor works any less harder than a CEO. In fact, I think he works harder. And and I think they should earn exactly the same amount of money. Um and um and I think that we're all created equal, whether you believe it's under God or just under this under our big the big blue sky. Um, but in terms of within our existing system, my basically my my basic feeling is that anything that is essential to human existence should be covered or subsidized by the government. So, I mean
[29:01] things like health care, housing, food, education, transportation. Uh, if you want to buy, you know, a second house, that shit's on you. But like if you have no house, the government should be responsible for making sure that you have a place to live. Uh, maybe not to own but to rent at an affordable rate. So, I mean basically, uh, I feel like and when it comes to the uh, I have no trust like you at all, John, for the government when it comes to surveillance or, you know, the police state and all
[29:32] that. I'm radically, uh, you know, paranoid of the government and I think they are not here to help. >> We've given up our liberty. We've just We've just decided to voluntarily give up our liberty. Somebody just, uh, just said in the in the chat, um, like bottom of the political compass. I've taken a a number of those tests and and it's it's farther to the left and bottom of the political compass on
[30:03] the libertarian side. So, yeah. >> I'm more like left and top. >> people are joking, you know, communist John and stuff. Um, no, I I mean I've studied I've studied Marxism in depth. I've studied communism and that was all a part of going to college. Uh, but no, I'm I'm most decidedly not a communist. I I know Ted's a Marxist, but I'm I'm a capitalist. Sorry. Well, I mean, you guys are winning the argument these days. [laughter] Um, although although frankly, things are looking good for my side. Yeah, they
[30:33] are, actually. Anyway, uh, hey John and Ted, hope you are you guys are doing well. Um, could you share your thoughts on the US oil tanker blown up by the IRGC. Thoughts on the real threat to other tankers in the area. Thanks for all you guys do. #pardonjohnasap. Thank you. Um I think we're going to see a lot more attacks on oil tankers. This is 1985, 1986 all over again. And the attack on the on the Bridgeton. You know? The The
[31:05] Iranians we should not underestimate the Iranians here. If they say that they have made a decision to close the Straits of Hormuz, the Hormuz is going to be closed. All you have to do is sink one ship and it's closed. The The shipping lane gets so narrow because it's so shallow. Mhm. That just sink one ship and it's all over. That's what people don't understand, right? Like so at the narrowest point, my understanding is that there's a 6-mi wide Yeah. >> And so that sounds like a 6-mi, man. No ship is 6-mi across. But like you said,
[31:38] that most of that 6-mi >> is not navigable. >> navigable. Right. Um John is a geopolitical professor Gion on target. Thanks for the $9.99 from Lorraine Frost, by the way. Very popular. He has several YouTube accounts. Yeah, very popular. I only learned of him about a week ago and started watching him. I don't agree with everything he says, but yeah, he's he's credible. He's I think he's going to be increasingly out there because he's figured out how to take advantage of social media. Something I'm still struggling with.
[32:09] By the way, I do want to answer that question like what would turn around the US's decline, John? I mean I mean I think if the United States started prioritizing and investing in its citizens and in its infrastructure, that would turn us around. >> 100% agree. Basically, we should just look at what China is doing and do And do that. >> And just do that. Um Uh let's see. Um John, this is from Firmware. Thanks for the fiver. Please remind me of your remind us of your pal who does secure phones. I will then be
[32:39] able to take my dogs to the park. This is not a non sequitur. Um Shawn O'Brien is his name and you can reach him at ivycyber.com. i v y c y b e r dot com. And he's Ted's friend, too. That's true. Uh okay, James Kelly, thanks for the 20. Do you guys think that Israel is purposely degrading the global standard of the United States to become a replacement as superpower? Trying to figure out the end game of all this. Also, Lindsey Graham
[33:09] saying move everything over there was weird. Um Israel can't possibly be the mouse that roared. You're not You're not going to get >> have like what? How many million people in Israel? >> 10? That's what I thought. Yeah, like 10. No, like yeah, there's no [ __ ] way. It's the size of New Jersey. Be serious. >> Yeah, but still they're able to play us like a fiddle and when you have these queens like Lindsey Graham just getting on his knees in in front of the great Benjamin Netanyahu, you know the
[33:40] country's in deep deep trouble. It is [ __ ] It is [ __ ] sad and pathetic. Um you know, I mean just think about like we thought it was sad that Tony Blair was like, you know, gobble gobbling Bush's [ __ ] back in the day. And like who does that with England, Yeah, at least that was England. That's right. Um and they and they were you know, had to kowtow to the US, of course. Um Thanks for the Wow, thanks for the $50 from Olin Jones. As a Gen Z Greek American, I was always curious how Turkey has evaded the settler colonial
[34:11] label despite clear examples i.e. ethnic cleansing of the indigenous Greeks of Imbros and Tenedos. Oh man, now you're going to get my heart racing here. Imbros and Tenedos are the only two Aegean islands that belong to Turkey. Belong to Turkey thanks to the the the corrupted treaty of uh uh of um what was it? Not Versailles, the treaty of anyway, one of these treaties that ended the uh
[34:43] the Greek-Turk conflict of the early 1920s. Um I couldn't agree more. Cyprus of course is the obvious example. But so is Eastern Thrace, Thraki. Uh so are Imbros and Tenedos. Uh the fact that that the Ecumenical Patriarch of the Orthodox Church has to be a Turkish citizen, cannot be a citizen of any other country, has to be a Turkish citizen. All the Turks have to do is not give any of these Greek clerics citizenship.
[35:15] And then the Ecumenical Patriarch goes to the Vatican. >> Sorry, do you think Turkey avoided this um label because of the timing of these uh of this territorial expansion? I mean >> Yes. Like cuz before that we have classic 19th century European and so uh colonialism. Yes. >> And then later, you know, we have sort of the uh you know, the Israeli settler colonialism. But this is sort of in between at a you know, Yes. >> when that happened and the world was preoccupied with other things at that time. And it really is colonialism. If
[35:47] you look at Northern Cyprus, the occupied part of Cyprus, um there are more Turks there now than there ever were Turkish Cypriots. Mhm. So it's almost impossible to be able to come to a peace agreement because you're not dealing Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots. You're dealing Greek Cypriots and Turkish settlers. Cameron, thanks for the 999. John Ted, I think both of you would have a unique view on this and I would love to hear
[36:17] your thoughts. As someone with minimal education and resources, what can someone like me do to make change? Thanks. That's a big question. It's a big question, but you know, look at something that Brian Becker has done with the Answer Coalition. Brian never went to college. And he's one of the most brilliant people I've ever encountered. He has a very deep deep understanding not just of these issues, but of history. And he's the best organizer I've ever met. I mentioned the other day, maybe maybe it
[36:47] was even last week on the show that that as soon as October 7th happened, Brian could see what this was going to turn into. And so he literally ran to the to the Department of the Interior and got a permit for a demonstration, the counter demonstration. And he expected, I think it was like 15 to 20,000 uh people. 300,000
[37:17] people showed up and stretched from the White House to the Capitol. Another thing, when Donald Trump was in his first term, uh he wanted to have this giant military parade, you might recall. Oh, yeah. Remember that? Yeah. And so Trump picked >> Yeah, what ever happened? We never did That never happened, right? >> I'll tell you why. Okay. He picked a date and Brian got up extra early. He went to the to the
[37:47] Interior Department and he stood at the window for demonstration permits before it opened, like hours before it opened, calculating that nobody in the Trump administration would have gotten permits yet. Mhm. And he got It was something like 14 separate permits for all the possible dates and for all the possible parade routes. What a What a What What a beast. Because Brian controlled the permits,
[38:20] Trump never got his military parade. Oh my God, that is hilarious. Um, well, I mean deep respect for Brian Becker. Yeah, so the second part kind of, you know, undermines what I was going to say about the first part. But I mean, okay, I'm going to be a cynical bastard. 300,000 people marched against the genocide in Gaza. And it's still going on and it didn't change a [ __ ] thing. Um, you know, even after Joe Biden was forced out, uh, Kamala Harris still
[38:51] refused to distance herself from the Israelis. I mean, do you think I'm I'm not sure OG peaceful peace peace police protests work or have any effect whatsoever anymore. I I agree. I agree. But with that said, what can we do but take to the streets, you know, write, speak, lobby, march. My answer to this to to this questioner is simply like, you know, Lenin tried
[39:23] to, uh, have a revolution before it was time, right? And and went to jail for his trouble. Um, and he, you know, and he later wrote, you know, the job I thought the job of a revolutionary was to start revolution. The job of a revolutionary is not to start revolution. The people start the revolution. The job of the revolutionary is to notice when a revolution is occurring. So, I guess it's basically a lot of watch, wait, educate yourself, be aware. Be like Brian Becker, be opportunistic. Um,
[39:54] Jake Decker, thanks for the five. Was Iran really going to make weapons of mass destruction? Will this war stop them indefinitely or temporarily? Um, I had a guest on DMZ, uh, Iranian cartoonist, um, Nick Kowsar. And like he he hates the regime. He earned it honestly. They they imprisoned him for drawing cartoons. Um, he thinks like for sure that, you know the that Iran was going to develop a nuclear weapon. What [snorts] do you I mean that's not the assertion of the
[40:25] intelligence that's not the conclusion of the US intelligence community, right? Um That's right. What do you think? >> [sighs] >> I Who knows, right? >> Who knows? Yeah, it's like it's impossible to say. I mean there's just there's I would just say that no evidence no solid evidence >> That's that's the best way to say it. to to to confirm that. So >> That's right. I mean yeah. I mean I would think that if the Iranians really were serious about it that this would have happened by it would have happened
[40:56] by now. Mhm. Um You know in looking back on on the history of our terrible relations with one another my God there are more missed opportunities than than we could count. Well, that's the >> I I remember when we were getting ready to attack Iraq in 2003 we secretly the CIA we secretly went to the Iranians and we said look we're going to attack Iraq. We're going to overthrow Saddam Hussein. This has nothing to do with you. We mean
[41:26] you no harm here and we're going to tell you in advance that some of our fighter jets may accidentally cross into Iranian territory. It's going to be an accident. Please don't shoot them down. And the Iranians said you guys do whatever you want just leave us out of it. >> Mhm. And and that worked. And we never tried to build on that. Yeah, or the time that the during the US invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 that we lost a fighter pilot in a jet over Northwestern
[41:56] Afghanistan. >> Right. The Iranians went in there and cooperated with Ismail Khan the warlord of Herat to go and rescue our guy. And they dutifully turned him in posthaste. You know we were like thank you but again that was a goodwill gesture. We chose not to follow up on it." >> Um That's right. We ignored it. Robbie has a question. You said, "If the idea is to get liberal Iranians to overthrow their government here, why are we bombing the liberal Iranians? Seems
[42:27] counterproductive." Yeah. Yes. That's right. See, but this is This is an indication of how bad we are at regime change. We're just bad at it. It never works out. It's easy to overthrow a government. We just bomb the [ __ ] out of them. It's really, really hard to install another government that's going to be stable and popular. Hard to the point where we shouldn't be doing it cuz it just doesn't work. >> Although, I guess we did it in 1953.
[42:59] Well, that was a temporary situation, though. I mean, he only lasted but 25 and 1/2 years. Yeah, but by with the American mindset, that's that might as well be an eternity. They're only thinking about the next election. Um Robbie, do you have Do you have an ad by any chance? Uh we do. I will throw that through. Let me go ahead and do a little bit of housekeeping real quick since I'm here. Uh first, we if we miss any of y'all super chats, please take a screenshot and email me so that we can put it top at the top of the stack on the next show. westglaciergaming@gmail.com.
[43:33] That's the easiest way to make sure that it doesn't get missed. We appreciate y'all's donations. Uh second, if you're going to try to troll either John or or Ted in the chat and you spell like my cat does, um all you're doing is showing how much of a [ __ ] dick you are. So, don't even try. All you're doing is showing the world that you're stupid. So, get a dictionary, then write your insult, and then send it off. And if it's funny, I'll I'll post it. And All right. And I'll get that ad for you now. Thank you. Thank you, Robbie. >> [snorts]
[44:03] >> Uh okay. Um Thanks for the $9.99 for Brenton Trap. What do you make of the administration from my perspective at least blatantly lying about the asymmetrical war they are describing? I mean yeah, you've seen all the the videos and the game videos that they've released. It's like target acquired, game over. Like yeah, it's so embarrassing. I hate that. And and I especially hate that people are releasing what is obviously clips from from military games and
[44:34] saying the Pentagon just released this from Iran. Check out how we destroyed 12 of their tanks all in a row. It's like no, dude, this is clearly from a video game. >> [laughter] >> What are you doing? Yeah. Like I'm 61 years old and I recognize it's from a video game. Uh Reza Kamonas, thanks for the 5 euros. There are assumptions that Netanyahu's video released yesterday was made with AI. What do you think? Well, it's becoming increasingly hard to tell the difference, but I don't think so. It looked real to me. What do you think,
[45:05] John? I thought it looked real. I I kind of try to be on the lookout for for AI, but I agree with you, Ted. It's I mean it changes almost month-to-month where it makes it that much harder to figure out if it's AI. I will say I believe very strongly that Netanyahu is a coward and that if he had any balls at all, he would go back to Israel from wherever his little hiding place is and lead his country. Well, yeah, and you know, look, I'm consistent on that, too. Every leader who drags their country into a stupid
[45:36] [ __ ] war should be there with their people. Um you know, I didn't like when George W. Bush was zigzagging all over the United States on 9/11. Uh I didn't like when Trump started this war and he was nowhere to be found. I don't like the fact that he hasn't given an a prime-time Oval Office address to the American people. I don't like that he hasn't given a proper press conference that should range for hours properly answering the media's questions. So, yeah. Agreed. Thanks F U So for the $2.
[46:07] Religion conditions people to believe claims without evidence, which they called faith. This mentality bleeds into politics. True. Ask 8420, thanks so much for the 10 euros. T and John, how do you view the future of Mexico with all that's going on? And what are your main sources for live news? Thank you. I'm I'm deeply worried about Mexico. Um I think that the Mexicans have gotten to the point where um where it's a matter of survival. You
[46:38] know, there was this this uneasy kind of truce between the government and the uh and the um cartels, and now it's not so much of a truce, especially with the Americans being involved. And so, I I fear it spinning out of control. We were under threat from the Jalisco cartel when I was there uh in in Baja filming that movie back in October. I mean, they even sent in a specific very specific threat to the local newspaper in Los Cabos saying that if we weren't out by Friday, that they were going to start shooting us. Well,
[47:09] we had wrapped up production. We were leaving Tuesday, half of us on Tuesday, half of us on Wednesday, anyway. But uh this is a problem. I've been to Mexico many, many times. Been all over Mexico except for Chiapas. I've never been to Chiapas. But um I I just feel like it's not worth the threat anymore. We should I I I could get a plane ticket if George [laughter] is if it's insanely That's America's top national security priority. We have a huge border with this country. We've had
[47:41] massive migrant flows over the border that border. We want a stable, prosperous, wealthy Mexico on our southern border. We're going to lose our ad. Okay. All right. Oh, my apologies. Um you know, I get so carried away. Uh here's a little inside scoop that many creators are talking about inside the behind the scenes. It's actually one of the reasons I'm using Rumble or we're using Rumble. They made a way to super chat creators so we get paid immediately and without any fees. YouTube and Twitch take up to 50% fees when you're tip when you tip creators. This method takes
[48:12] none. That's right, the platform takes a zero fees. We keep nearly 100% of what you send us. You can super chat with Bitcoin, Tether, US dollars, or even Tether gold stable coins. The tip will show up um directly uh over the Rumble chat which we will do our our best read. All you need to do is I don't know what that means. All you need to do is download the Rumble wallet on the App Store and then to send the tips to your favorite creators. You go to to wallet.rumble.com or you can download the app directly
[48:43] from the App Store. Seriously, what an amazing way to get rid of the middle man and help the creator economy. Shout out to Rumble for for the making this disruptive technology. Uh, John, we have so many just even just doing the just the super chats. It's like the and the and the Rumble uh premiums. We've got to fly through these. Um We on 420, thanks for the 20 bucks. Thanks Ted for everything you guys do. Nice to hear sober voices. How do you think this conflict will end with the current state of things? It seems like things can only escalate from here. I agree with that.
[49:14] I think we are going to see escalation and then when it's all said and done, status quo. I don't think anything's going to change. >> It's just that more people will be dead and more buildings will have fallen. >> who are going to be dead. And some Pentagon stocks will be I mean some defense stocks will be up. >> Yep. Um, Sodom, thanks for the 1999 again. Good morning, gents. Really upset on how the Republicans and the president are going full uh I'm throttle on I don't know what that means. Um, uh on guys like Massie with his record. I'm really disappointed with the Trump
[49:44] with Trump. What do they have on him? Sheesh. #aipac fueled. Yeah, that that's what it comes down to, I think, is AIPAC. Thomas is one of the very, very few people of principle on Capitol Hill. >> I disagree with him on a lot, but he is a man of principle. >> I'll tell you I've said this to my friend Bruce Fein, one of my close friends. Bruce's dad was a a third baseman for the Brooklyn Dodgers back in the '50s. And and so Bruce is a lifelong baseball fan.
[50:16] He has season tickets to the Washington Nationals. We go to a lot of games. And every year Massie goes to a couple of the games with us. And he's just an awesome guy. He looks like he's cool. He's yeah, he's a great guy. Yeah, I believe it. Um, I'm sorry we got so many to go through, John. Uh, Joe Shanahan, thanks for the $4.99. If we generate enough super chats to make it worth your time, would we do an extra Q&A episode? Uh, if so, what's your number? Yes, we we will. Uh, we will. We will. Uh, we're already talking about
[50:46] that. JP Caldwell, thanks for the $9.99. Uh, Mr. Adam, uh, thanks for the uh, SAR 50. I don't know what a South African um, Rand. Rand. Uh, John, people can are so apathetic and it seems like any rule can be broken. 2008, Epstein, Maduro, war after war. If people let everything slide, where do we go next? Ramadan Kareem to you and Ted. Um, well, that's a that's of course the 60 That is the $11 billion a week question, John. Yeah. Papadopoulos, uh, thanks for the 6
[51:17] euros. John, do you think there'll be a conflict in Cyprus between Greece and Turkey due to the rising military presence nowadays respecting the North Epirus. I don't believe that there could that there will be a conflict in Cyprus because of the military activity in the Eastern Mediterranean. I do believe that there could be a conflict in Cyprus because Turkey is jealous that Cyprus has found that it is sitting on an ocean of natural gas. JP Caldwell, thanks for the $4.99. If the US is a war-based economy, shouldn't they start to profit from this new war?
[51:49] Shouldn't it help the economy? There's more than one economy in the US. Part of the economy is a war-based economy and it drags down the rest of us, I think. Totally. >> helping ordinary people at all. Um, you know, I mean, no high-speed rail, you know, nothing. Uh, Firmware, thanks for the five uh five bucks. Thanks for the info. We're off. See you. Okay, enjoy to whatever you're doing. Uh, Effie so shut down capitalism is the only way the elites listen. Do the Canadian trucker thing. Thanks for the dollar. Um,
[52:19] Templar, thanks for the $4.99. Whatever happened to those protests in Hong Kong right before COVID broke out? Everybody got arrested and convicted and they're all in prison. Hey John, Papadopoulos, thanks for the $6. Do you think Oh, we already talked about that. >> Um, Adrian, thanks for the tenner. John, your constant optimism in times like these helps me. I'm not sure it's just I'm sure not just me, but a lot of people listening. Keep keep it up. You're awesome, man. Thank you. Uh, It's a struggle. Keep up the fight. Hog Hog's
[52:50] Candyland, but I like I like being in R&D. Uh, do you Mega Mega Megora, 5.99 euros. Do you think Iran might strike the American base in Kosovo since there have been rumors about the base being used for jets? I don't know if they can reach it. Oh, oh, they can reach it through proxies. Okay. Uh, this was a problem for us going back to the '90s was the Iranian proxies in Kosovo. It's a big problem. Uh, [snorts] John, have you tried Yes Hummus for
[53:22] breakfast? Uh, this is for I think $5.99 Australian. Regularly. I had hummus for breakfast this morning and a little bit of tzatziki with some pita bread. Excellent. My breath is terrible, but totally worth it. >> [laughter] >> I bet. You got to brush your teeth so thoroughly after that [ __ ] Uh, Donnie Daze, $9.99. Thank you so much. What do you think about Venezuela? I hate Trump but was happy Maduro was out. However, Delcy her bro and Diosdado are much worse. Love the show guys. Listen to it every morning. I mean, Maduro was a
[53:53] douche but there was what we did was really really [ __ ] wrong. Um, you know, it didn't follow a process. I mean, I mean, you know, it's like it's for the Venezuelan people to handle. You know, I mean, they're smart people. We know they know how to have a revolution. They've had one. I don't know. Venezuela's back burner now, right? It just goes on. It is and nobody's even talking about it right now. >> No one gives a [ __ ] because it's just Americans can only keep track of one story at a time. >> [snorts] >> Um, Sir Sethly, thanks for the $4.99.
[54:24] What do you make of Trump's comments on delaying the midterms? Haha, you're talking Ted Rall's subject here. If he did that, I don't know I don't see how this could end without a revolution. Anarchism, baby. Um, anarchism, baby. >> this is not good. Um, I look, I think Trump is seriously contemplating that. Um, and he has he has the motives, he has the ability, and I don't think anything would happen and I don't think there would be a revolution. I agree.
[54:55] Um, did you see the 60 Minutes piece, CT Golan, thanks for the $4.99 on AHI and Havana syndrome? Any thoughts or feelings on the program, device, or treatment of the victims? I I did see it. How about you, John? Yeah, I did see it. And and I'll say that the the people that were interviewed on it are very serious people. They're highly respected, serious, accomplished people. And if they're saying that they have Havana syndrome and that Havana syndrome is a CIA directed energy weapon, I believe them.
[55:27] John, question for you from Sweets, $4.99. You've mentioned that the US never spies on Israel, yet many Israeli agents, Jonathan Pollard, have been identified in the US. Are we justified to spy and if so, why not? 100% yes. But why don't we? >> be on the Israelis like white on rice at the very least for counterintelligence purposes. >> [snorts] >> Absolutely, yes. So, why wouldn't we? Cuz AIPAC would just kill us. Um Sabre Fink 444, thanks for the
[55:57] Emirati dirhams, there's 74 of them. Hey John, what are your thoughts on the Beirut explosion? I was there and have some interesting info. Have you looked into it? Um not any more than what's been uh reported in the Western media. Um I mean, it kind of points to a breakdown in in the entire uh Lebanese government. There could have been something covert about it. At least that's what some of the accusations have been. But um but it looks like it was it was a giant shipment of chemicals that were improperly stored in the heat and
[56:27] it went off. That's happened before. That happened in Aqaba a couple of years ago as well. And John, Toby suggesting that you start a clothing brand. Thanks for the 299. But John, thanks for the 5 [snorts] euros. Do you think uh John, do you think that we'll have a conflict in the Balkans since Kosovo, Albania, and Croatia made a military alliance, Serbia is scared. I'll tell you, if I were the Serbs, I'd be scared cuz the Serbs also have the Kosovars to worry about. And um and you know, Kosovo's little, Serbia's big, and
[56:58] Kosovo still bloody Serbia's nose every once in a while. It's not good. Um yeah, I I wouldn't be surprised if we saw a little bit of a you know, kerfuffle. As we head into the weekend, John, um let's let's we did manage to catch up with the super chat questions, but not all the questions. Um can um what do you think we're going to what do you expect to see from Iran and the the ongoing conflict between the Taliban and Pakistan? Um Taliban and and Pakistan, I think are
[57:29] going to continue randomly bombing each other. Um we're seeing, you know, two, three, four, five dead a day. Not huge numbers. A shame nonetheless. I think that's going to continue. We're not going to see invasions or, you know, attempts to overthrow governments. It's just going to be kind of a warm conflict. And Iran, don't expect any changes. More of the same. Well, Trump's promising some big bang bang over the weekend. Um do you think it's just [ __ ] or >> Yes. I do.
[58:00] >> [snorts] >> Cuz if you really have it, you don't announce it, right? >> No, you don't announce it. Just do it. Looks like there might be one more question here. Um let's see. Uh oh, John, you look healthier now compared to photos from years ago. Uh question for Robbie. Uh well, we're going to have to We're going to have to leave that. Uh listen, guys, if we didn't get There's a few more questions that we didn't get to from the super chats. Uh please uh Robbie, explain what people can do about that. Yeah, sure. I mean, the the best thing
[58:31] you can do is just email me just a screenshot of your of your super chat or your rant. Uh westglaciergaming@gmail.com. I'll post it at the stop the uh top of the stack on Monday. We'll get those questions first, and that way your dollars aren't wasted. Thank you very much, Robbie. Thank you, John. Uh we will be back on uh Monday morning, 9:00 a.m. Eastern time. We're here Monday through Friday for Deep Program with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou. >> [snorts] >> Appreciate you guys a lot. Have an awesome weekend. And if you are still moved, please stay tuned for the TMI
[59:01] show with myself and Manila Chan coming up right now. Bye, John. Bye. >> [music]