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Send us a textStrap in, kids—this episode is a buffet of DoD chaos, spicy geopolitical moves, and “WTF are we even doing?” headlines. Jared unleashes on everything from the sketchiest Air Force One replacement idea ever (thanks, Qatar) to Golden Dome missile pipe dreams and the absolute circus that is Cyber Command's latest identity crisis.We're also sending ICE to Marine bases, cutting 14% of Space Force civilians (brilliant), and relying on $26 million to keep Reserve pilots in the sky. Oh, and if you thought privatizing base lodging was gonna save anyone money—LOL, you're adorable.All this while the Air Force plays catch-up with drone integration, and Netflix somehow makes the Thunderbirds look cost-effective. Welcome to another day in the Pentagon's magical clown tent.
Ralph speaks to law professor, Barbara McQuade, who specializes in national security issues and has written a book that outlines the very real threat to American democracy, “Attack From Within: How Disinformation Is Sabotaging America.” Also, Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson sums up Israeli goals in its war on the Palestinians with three words “eradication, elimination, and expulsion.”Barbara McQuade is a professor from practice at Michigan Law School. Her interests include criminal law, criminal procedure, national security, data privacy, and civil rights. From 2010 to 2017, Professor McQuade served as the US attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan. As US attorney, she oversaw cases involving public corruption, terrorism, corporate fraud, theft of trade secrets, civil rights, and health care fraud, among others. She also serves as a legal analyst for NBC News and MSNBC. Barbara McQuade is the author of Attack from Within: How Disinformation is Sabotaging America.I think people are still bewildered about how to respond to Donald Trump. I think the media is bewildered because we've never seen anything like him—he's an absolute disruptor of how our system works. And so, he's a big bully who runs around and says all kinds of mean things and nobody knows how to deal with it. I think the media still struggles to decide how do you cover someone—when we've been trained to get both sides of an argument which presumes that both sides are engaging in good faith—when instead you have someone who is not engaging in good faith, engaging in lies, making inconsistent statements.Barbara McQuadeWe need to demand truth. We can't allow ourselves to engage in fiction, even if we believe it is to advance our ends. The ends can never justify the means. Our country is built on integrity in the rule of law and we need to demand truth if we are going to have a democracy and effective self-government.Barbara McQuadeYou don't want to go down in the mud with people. But when the national press begins and continues to be [Trump's] bullhorn, verbatim, repeating it, repeating it, giving no right of reply, there's no way you can simply say, “I don't want to go to his level,” because the press has raised it to a level that is devastating to our democracy.Ralph NaderLawrence Wilkerson is a retired U.S. Army colonel. Over his 31 years of service, Colonel Wilkerson served as Secretary of State Colin Powell's Chief of Staff from 2002 to 2005, and Special Assistant to General Powell when he was Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from 1989 to 1993. Colonel Wilkerson also served as Deputy Director and Director of the U.S. Marine Corps War College at Quantico, Virginia, and for fifteen years he was the Distinguished Visiting Professor of Government and Public Policy at the College of William and Mary. He is currently a Senior Fellow at the Eisenhower Media Network, senior advisor to the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, and co-founder of the All-Volunteer Force Forum. The media is an Israeli agent when they do give some kind of deference to “the other side,” as it were, it's always in words and terminology and short sentences that make you know that “they are balanced.” “They are fair and balanced.” They're about as fair and balanced as my left foot. That's the way it is. The purpose here is eradication, elimination, or expulsion, period. Eradication, elimination, or expulsion.Colonel Lawrence WilkersonWe all need to wake up, and we need to start taking actions such as we can locally—whatever's within our purview and power to do. Because we're losing this country. We're losing it to the moneyed oligarchy. We're losing it to the unprecedented amount of money, because of Citizens United, that's pouring into the political coffers of people who have no interest in what you want…These people are basing their decisions on money. Money—not you. They're not the people's representatives… They're the representatives of the deep state, which is the oligarchy. Colonel Lawrence WilkersonIt's all these people with these unprecedented amounts of money who can influence anything, anytime they want to with a few telephone calls. That's what's running your country. And the predatory capitalism that they're advancing is running the world into the ground.Colonel Lawrence WilkersonIn Case You Haven't Heard with Francesco DeSantisNews 3/6/241. Just before the Michigan primary, President Biden implied that a ceasefire in Gaza was imminent. However, many believed at the time that Biden was simply trying to blunt the potency of the “Uncommitted” vote in that contest. The promised ceasefire never materialized, apparently confirming those suspicions. Yet, with “Uncommitted” winning over 100,000 votes in Michigan, the administration has begun using ceasefire language – a major rhetorical shift, but seemingly one without much corresponding action. Phyllis Bennis, writing in Al Jazeera, argues that “Whatever the language of Washington's proposed UN Security Council resolution and likely the possible temporary truce deal as well, the words of National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby continue to resonate as a better reflection of the Biden administration's policy: ‘We're going to continue to support Israel… and we're going to continue to make sure they have the tools and the capabilities to do that.'”2. Following the self immolation of Aaron Bushnell, activist Talia Jane has shared a letter from active duty U.S. Military personnel calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. In this letter, the anonymous signatories write “it is undeniably evident that the Israeli Defense Forces are repeatedly and systematically committing war crimes in Gaza. Support for the conduct of the IDF is unacceptable and inconsistent with our values in the US Armed forces.” Talia Jane reports that “over 100 active duty military across Air Force, Navy, Army, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, as well as reservists and National Guard, and their families, have endorsed this open letter.”3. J Street, the preeminent liberal Zionist group, has finally begun using the word ceasefire – while still only supporting a temporary truce. In a note to their members, J Street wrote "This move is not a change in policy. It is a decision to begin using a word that is fraught with meaning and implications in the context of the Gaza War," Daniel Marans of the Huffington Post reports. J Street has deep ties to the administration, so whether they are taking their cues from the administration in characterizing a temporary truce as a ceasefire – or vice versa – it is significant that this is the new line from mainstream liberal Zionists.4. Max Tani of Semafor reports that the NewsGuild of New York has sent a letter to the New York Times accusing the ‘Grey Lady' of racially profiling their staff as they seek to hunt down the source of a leak exposing their shoddy – possibly completely false – reporting on sexual violence committed by Hamas. Per the letter, “Management's investigators have questioned employees about their involvement in The Times' internal Middle Eastern and North African Times Employee Resource Group (known as the MENA Collective), ordered them to hand over the names of all of the MENA Collective's active members involved in group discussions, and demanded copies of personal communications between colleagues about their shared workplace concerns…The Guild intends to vigorously defend our members and their rights, and ensure that all our members are protected in a workplace free from harassment and racial profiling.”5. According to NBC News, “The biggest labor union in Washington state endorsed voting ‘uncommitted' in the state's Democratic presidential primary next month, citing concerns about President Joe Biden's political strength and his support for Israel's war in Gaza.” UFCW Local 3000 has over 50,000 members, making it the largest state chapter of the United Food and Commercial Workers union. NBC also reports that “The Stranger, a prominent alt-weekly publication based in Seattle, also endorsed the idea of voting ‘uncommitted,' expressing disappointment in the options of Trump and Biden, whom it referred to as the ‘two genocidal geriatrics leading the polls.'”6. Amid humiliatingly low poll numbers, Democratic-turned-Independent Senator Kyrsten Sinema has dropped out of the 2024 Arizona Senate race, the Arizona Republic reports. Senator Sinema, you will not be missed.7. In Manhattan, over two-thirds of houses sold last quarter were purchased in cash, rather than via mortgage, per the Financial Times. In other words, the preponderance of homes were purchased by the very rich. Pamela Liebman, the chief executive of real estate brokerage firm Corcoran, told the paper “High mortgage rates are creating a real void for people who don't have the strong finances that are required to buy in cash…It's driving people who would be home buyers in New York into renting.” This piece further notes that “rents rose to an all-time median high of $3,950 [per month].”8. West Virginia News reports “Kroger union members have voted in favor of authorizing a strike at 38 stores in West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio.” As this piece notes, this vote gives the bargaining committee authorization to call a strike at any time, but the workers are not currently on strike. In a statement, UFCW Local 400 said “This vote has sent a powerful message to Kroger that they must do better if they expect us to ratify a contract…Now, we are ready to sit down with the company and negotiate an agreement that we can recommend for ratification. If not, we are ready to continue to do whatever it takes to get a fair contract. By sticking together, we will win.”9. Family Dollar has been hit with a $42 million fine in a food safety case after the company was found to have been “storing food, drugs, and cosmetics in a rodent-infested warehouse in Arkansas,” according to More Perfect Union. An FDA investigation revealed “live rodents, dead and decaying rodents, rodent feces, urine, and odors, and evidence of gnawing and nesting throughout the facility.” Family Dollar had been aware of the infestation since 2020, and continued shipping merchandise – often eaten into by the rodents – to 404 stores throughout the region. This is the largest ever criminal fine in a food safety case.10. Finally, on February 27th MyHighPlains.com reported that a nuclear weapons factory in Texas was forced to cease operations in light of the state's massive wildfires. According to Hans Kristensen, Director of the Nuclear Information Project of the Federation of American Scientists, “This is America's main nuclear weapons factory. Nearly 20,000 plutonium cores are stored there [and] full-scale production of B61-12 bomb & W88 Alt370 warheads are underway.” While this critical situation was resolved without injury, it highlights the interrelation between climate change and national security. We urge military and civilian leadership to view this near-miss as a chance to finally take the climate crisis seriously.This has been Francesco DeSantis, with In Case You Haven't Heard. Get full access to Ralph Nader Radio Hour at www.ralphnaderradiohour.com/subscribe
Dans le contexte international très tendu du moment, marqué notamment par la guerre en Ukraine et le conflit au Proche-Orient, la dissuasion nucléaire semble plus d'actualité que jamais.Les deux puissances nucléaires que sont la Russie et les États-Unis essaient ainsi de s'impressionner mutuellement. En effet, les Russes viennent de mettre au point un nouveau missile nucléaire intercontinental, capable de rayer de la carte un territoire de la taille de la France.Mais les Américains ne sont pas en reste. Ils sont en train de développer une nouvelle bombe nucléaire, la B61-13, qui devrait remplacer, d'ici 2040, la version précédente, la B61-12, qui équipe les bombardiers américains.Une bombe beaucoup plus puissante que la bombe d'HiroshimaCette nouvelle bombe, toujours larguée par avion, aurait une puissance 25 fois supérieure à celle lancée contre Hiroshima. Elle serait dotée de dispositifs de guidage très sophistiqués, qui permettraient un ciblage plus précis des objectifs.L'adoption de cette nouvelle arme nucléaire, qui a encore besoin de l'approbation du Congrès, pourrait remplacer une autre bombe encore plus meurtrière, la B83-1, trois fois plus puissante que la nouvelle bombe mise en chantier. La mise au point de la bombe B83-1 est en effet l'objet, depuis des années, d'une vive controverse entre républicains et démocrates.La puissance et le mode de largage de cette nouvelle arme nucléaire offriraient, selon le Département de la Défense américain, davantage d'options tactiques aux militaires. Certaines cibles seraient ainsi plus facilement atteintes.La mise au point de la bombe B61-13 s'inscrit ainsi dans le cadre d'une dissuasion nucléaire marquée notamment par la course aux armements menée par des pays comme la Russie et la Chine. Les autorités américaines précisent cependant que la mise en service de cette nouvelle bombe n'aurait pas pour résultat d'accroître l'arsenal nucléaire du pays.Dans la mesure, en effet, où elle remplacerait des armes anciennes, comma la bombe B83-1, l'arrivée de cette bombe B61-13 n'augmenterait pas le nombre des armes nucléaires dont disposent les États-Unis, qui pourraient toujours compter sur un peu plus de 3.700 missiles et autres projectiles nucléaires. Hébergé par Acast. Visitez acast.com/privacy pour plus d'informations.
Dans le contexte international très tendu du moment, marqué notamment par la guerre en Ukraine et le conflit au Proche-Orient, la dissuasion nucléaire semble plus d'actualité que jamais. Les deux puissances nucléaires que sont la Russie et les États-Unis essaient ainsi de s'impressionner mutuellement. En effet, les Russes viennent de mettre au point un nouveau missile nucléaire intercontinental, capable de rayer de la carte un territoire de la taille de la France. Mais les Américains ne sont pas en reste. Ils sont en train de développer une nouvelle bombe nucléaire, la B61-13, qui devrait remplacer, d'ici 2040, la version précédente, la B61-12, qui équipe les bombardiers américains. Une bombe beaucoup plus puissante que la bombe d'Hiroshima Cette nouvelle bombe, toujours larguée par avion, aurait une puissance 25 fois supérieure à celle lancée contre Hiroshima. Elle serait dotée de dispositifs de guidage très sophistiqués, qui permettraient un ciblage plus précis des objectifs. L'adoption de cette nouvelle arme nucléaire, qui a encore besoin de l'approbation du Congrès, pourrait remplacer une autre bombe encore plus meurtrière, la B83-1, trois fois plus puissante que la nouvelle bombe mise en chantier. La mise au point de la bombe B83-1 est en effet l'objet, depuis des années, d'une vive controverse entre républicains et démocrates. La puissance et le mode de largage de cette nouvelle arme nucléaire offriraient, selon le Département de la Défense américain, davantage d'options tactiques aux militaires. Certaines cibles seraient ainsi plus facilement atteintes. La mise au point de la bombe B61-13 s'inscrit ainsi dans le cadre d'une dissuasion nucléaire marquée notamment par la course aux armements menée par des pays comme la Russie et la Chine. Les autorités américaines précisent cependant que la mise en service de cette nouvelle bombe n'aurait pas pour résultat d'accroître l'arsenal nucléaire du pays. Dans la mesure, en effet, où elle remplacerait des armes anciennes, comma la bombe B83-1, l'arrivée de cette bombe B61-13 n'augmenterait pas le nombre des armes nucléaires dont disposent les États-Unis, qui pourraient toujours compter sur un peu plus de 3.700 missiles et autres projectiles nucléaires. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The NIDS Team debates the plans for the new B61.
This is the continuation of last week's episode of interviews from my week at the International Peace Camp in the Netherlands. Go back to the last episode to get the background of why we were there and actions we did, and those stories. And without further ado, here are the rest of the conversations. 45 of us from around Europe and the U.S. gathered together for a week of actions in protest against the U.S. Nuclear bombs stored at the Volkel Air Base. The Netherlands is one of five NATO members to host US nuclear weapons on its territory as part of a nuclear-sharing agreement. The Dutch air force is assigned approximately 15 B61 nuclear bombs, which are deployed at the Air Base. And The F-35 and F-16 fighter-bombers emit over 10 tons of CO2 per flight hour practicing to bomb the world with new, even ‘better' nuclear bombs in the next war. And during the week, we heard those fighter-bombers practicing numerous times a day. First is Marion Kuper from Germany who is speaking at our gathering on Hiroshima Day about the nuclear free work in Germany and reads some of the Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT), then we talk with Judith from Germany, Hubert from Germany, Vera from the U.S., Brian from the U.S., Onnau from Germany, Ria from Germany, Theo from the U.S. and then Susan from the U.S. These are just a few stories and testimonies from the week there. You can check out the links below to learn about why we were there and nuclear sharing in general. There is also some background noise, since I record this in person with people, so I apologize for that. News coverage: https://www.democracynow.org/2023/8/10/nuclear_protests_netherlands
This week's episode is a compilation of short interviews from my week at the International Peace Camp in the Netherlands. 45 of us from around Europe and the U.S. gathered together for a week of actions in protest against the U.S. Nuclear bombs stored at the Volkel Air Base. The Netherlands is one of five NATO members to host US nuclear weapons on its territory as part of a nuclear-sharing agreement. The Dutch air force is assigned approximately 15 B61 nuclear bombs, which are deployed at the Air Base. And The F-35 and F-16 fighter-bombers emit over 10 tons of CO2 per flight hour practicing to bomb the world with new, even ‘better' nuclear bombs in the next war. And during the week, we heard those fighter-bombers practicing numerous times a day. First is Marion Kuper from Germany who is speaking at our gathering on Hiroshima Day about the nuclear free work in Germany and reads some of the Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT), then we talk with Judith from Germany, Hubert from Germany, Vera from the U.S., Brian from the U.S., Onnau from Germany, Ria from Germany, Theo from the U.S. and then Susan from the U.S. These are just a few stories and testimonies from the week there. You can check out the links below to learn about why we were there and nuclear sharing in general. There is also some background noise, since I record this in person with people, so I apologize for that. Since this episode ended up being about an hour long I cut it into two episodes so look out for part 2 in two weeks. More on the international camp: https://noelhuis.nl/peace-camp-volkel-2023/ https://www.icanw.org/netherlands News Coverage: https://www.democracynow.org/2023/8/10/nuclear_protests_netherlands
Susan Crane is a Peace Activist. Susan and I met last year at the 2022 International Peace Delegation in Germany. This year that same peace delegation will be held again in the Netherlands at the Volkel Air Base. The 2023 Volkel Peace Delegation will focus on the climate and a nuclear free world. Activists from the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, the United States and possibly other countries get together for these days of action. The Netherlands is one of five NATO members to host US nuclear weapons on its territory as part of a nuclear-sharing agreement. The Dutch air force is assigned approximately 15 B61 nuclear bombs, which are deployed at Volkel Air Base. And The F-35 and F-16 fighter-bombers emit over 10 tons of CO2 per flight hour practicing to bomb the world with new, even ‘better' nuclear bombs in the next war. And when those nuclear bombs are used, it is very harmful to the climate and to all life on earth. With Susan we talk about the delegation, actions that will take place, the main objectives, why nonviolence, and more. Contact and connect with Susan: susan.s.crane@gmail.com More on the international camp: https://noelhuis.nl/peace-camp-volkel-2023/ https://www.icanw.org/netherlands
- Trong 1 bước đi đầy bất ngờ, Mỹ mới đây quyết định đẩy sớm kế hoạch triển khai loại bom hạt nhân được nâng cấp tại châu Âu. Cùng với các cuộc tập trận hạt nhân của Nga và NATO thời gian gần đây, bước đi này của Mỹ được xem là có thể đẩy tình hình an ninh ở châu Âu leo thang lên bước nguy hiểm mới khi các bên dường như đang nỗ lực răn đe lẫn nhau bằng vũ khí hạt nhân. Những động thái này phải chăng là bước thụt lùi của kế hoạch giải trừ vũ khí hạt nhân mà cộng đồng quốc tế đang theo đuổi? Chủ đề : bom hạt nhân, Mỹ, Nga, B61-12 --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/vov1sukien/support
My guest today is Paul Ingram, who is the Academic Programme Manager at the Centre for the Study of Existential Risk (CSER) at the University of Cambridge. Up to a few months ago, he was also the Director of Emergent Change, which he established to further the understanding and practice of the Stepping Stones Approach (SSA) to nuclear disarmament. Prior to that, he was the Executive Director at British American Security Information Council (BASIC) where he developed the Stepping Stones Approach along with his colleagues from the Swedish Foreign Ministry. Throughout his extensive career, Paul has worked across the world on many projects related to nuclear disarmament. Some of the topics we covered are: Paul's journey into research of existential risk Likelihood of getting rid of atomic weapons Whether existing global structures can help mitigate catastrophic risks The importance of context and history when dealing with rogue actors Importance of inclusion and diversity Challenges of quantifying risk of nuclear war Explanation of how nuclear deterrence works What happens if Russia, as we know it, collapses? NATO , US, and B61-12 nuclear bombs Nuclear weapon command systems and current safeguards Nuclear disarmament and the ‘Stepping Stones Approach' I made mention in the preamble about a report on the Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference. You can find that report here. You can also find out more information about Russian nuclear weapons in this article by Hans M. Kristensen from 25th February 2022. If you like what you've heard, please consider liking and reviewing the show wherever you get your pods. You can also support the show on our Patreon page here.
In this re-release episode I talk with John LaForge who is the co-director of NukeWatch. We highlight his work advocating the issue of the U.S. nuclear bombs in Germany. To give some historical background, Despite the end of the Cold War, about 20 US nuclear bombs are still deployed in Germany. German pilots are both trained and obligated to take off with these bombs in their Tornado jet fighter-bombers and, if the orders come from a US president through NATO, to use them on their targets. This terrifying NATO war plan is part of the “nuclear sharing agreement” between the US and Germany, and includes a first-strike option. NATO calls this nuclear proliferation “Power and Burden Sharing.” Because of this every year a Peace Delegation is held in Germany to bring together people and organziations to send the existing U.S. nuclear weapons back home, and to halt production of the new B61-12 nuclear bomb to be deployed in five European countries as well as to pressure the government and remind lawmakers to permanently remove the US weapons.I will be attending the Germany Peace Delegation at the Büchel Air Base from July 11-17th to participate in direct actions towards this goal. With John we talk about Germany and the US relationship with nuclear weapons, differences in direct actions between the two countries, the goals of the Peace delegation they hold every year, if Germany is making itself a target by having these nuclear weapons, and the relationship Germany has with other NATO countries. Contact and connect with John: nukewatch1@lakeland.ws NukeWatch: https://nukewatchinfo.org/category/nuclear-weapons/ US and Germany history/ background: https://nukewatchinfo.org/category/direct-action/us-bombs-out-of-germany/ https://www.dw.com/en/us-set-to-upgrade-controversial-nukes-stationed-in-germany/a-52855886 Nonproliferation Treaty: https://www.un.org/disarmament/wmd/nuclear/npt/ Germany's progessive stances: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2015/11/germany-renewable-energy-revolution/ https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/index.php?page=view&type=99&nr=24&menu=1449 Germany Peace Delegation: https://nukewatchinfo.org/action-alerts/ Two Plus Four Treaty: https://www.deutschland.de/en/topic/politics/germany-europe/two-plus-four-treaty
Photo: B61 Thermonuclear Bomb. The B61 nuclear bomb is designed for carriage by aircraft at supersonic flight speeds and is the primary thermonuclear weapon in the U.S. stockpile since the end of the Cold War. The weapon was designed and built by the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico beginning in 1961 and has been produced in several versions. Russia and PRC trash-talk nukes. Rick Fisher @CSIS, senior Fellow of the International Assessment and Strategy Center. @GordonGChang, Gatestone, Newsweek, The Hill. LA https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-chinas-potential-long-game-first-dominate-russia-then-on-to-the-arctic/
On this week's comic book review podcast: GI Joe: Castle Fall IDW Written by Paul Allor Art by Chris Evenhuis Snow Angels #1 ComiXology Written by Jeff Lemire Art by Jock The Immortal Hulk: Flatline #1 Marvel Written and Art by Declan Shalvey HAHA #2 Image Comics Written by W. Maxwell Prince Art by Zoe Thorogood King in Black #4 Marvel Written by Donny Cates Art by Ryan Stegman Batman/Catwoman #3 DC Comics Written by Tom King Art by Clay Mann Savage #1 Valiant Comics Written by Max Bemis Art by Nathan Stockman Guardians of the Galaxy #11 Marvel Written by Al Ewing Art by Juann Cabal Stillwater #6 Image Comics Written by Chip Zdarsky Art by Ramón K. Perez Future State: Superman Worlds of War #2 DC Comics Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson, Brandon Easton, Becky Cloonan & Michael W. Conrad, Jeremy Adams Art by Mikel Janin, Valentin de Landro, Michael Avon Oeming, Siya Oum Future State: Immortal Wonder Woman #2 DC Comics Written by Becky Cloonan & Michael W. Conrad, L.L. McKinney Art by Jen Bartel, Alitha Martinez Future State: The Next Batman #4 DC Comics Written by John Ridley, Vita Ayala, Paula Seven Bergen Art by Laura Braga, Aneke, Emanuela Luppachino Future State: Catwoman #2 DC Comics Written by Ram V Art by Otto Schmidt Future State: Nightwing #2 DC Comics Written by Andrew Constant Art by Nicola Scott Future State: Shazam #2 DC Comics Written by Tim Sheridan Art by Eduardo Panic Thor #12 Marvel Written by Donny Cates Art by Nic Klein Excellence #10 Image Comics Written by Brandon Thomas Art by Khary Randolph Once & Future #16 BOOM! Studios Written by Kieron Gillen Art by Dan Mora X-Men Legends #1 Marvel Written by Fabian Nicieza Art by Brett Booth Aria: Heavenly Creatures Image Comics Written by Brian Holguin Art by Jay Anacleto with Brian Haberlin The Last Ronin #2 IDW Story by Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird and Tom Waltz Script by Tom Waltz & Kevin Eastman Layouts by Kevin Eastman Pencils & Inks by Esau & Isaac Escort, Ben Bishop and Kevin Eastman Black Widow #5 Marvel Written by Kelly Thompson Art by Elena Casagrande w/ Rafael De Latorre Sabrina: The Teenage Witch #5 Archie Comics Written by Kelly Thompson Art by Veronica Fish and Andy Fish SUBSCRIBE ON RSS, ITUNES, ANDROID, SPOTIFY, STITCHER OR THE APP OF YOUR CHOICE. FOLLOW US ON TWITTER, AND FACEBOOK. SUPPORT OUR SHOWS ON PATREON. Full Episode Transcript Alex: What's up, everybody. Welcome to The Stack. I'm Alex. Justin: I'm Justin. Pete: I'm Pete. Alex: On The Stack, we talk about a bunch of books that have come out this week. Let's kick it off, because we got a packed stack. Justin: Oh, yes. Alex: [crosstalk 00:00:19] G.I. Joe: Castle Fall from IDW, written by Paul Allor, art by Chris Evenhuis. I got to tell you, never in a million years would I have expected that a G.I. Joe book would be at the top of my personal stack, but that's where we are. This book is what a lot of what this book has been leading up to. Cobra has taken over the entire world. Finally, G.I. Joe gets an in to fight back. It doesn't go exactly how you think it's going to go. There's a big twist there. This book is great. Justin: I got to say, I mean, I was not allowed to watch G.I. Joe as a child because they had guns in their hands. Pete: Here we go. Jesus Christ. Can we talk about G.I. Joe one time without you dropping that? Justin: What? I'm just saying. It was just sort of an introduction to say that I also love this book. I also wasn't allowed sugary cereals, which led me to enjoy a lot of Grape Nuts. Pete: And you also had to drink well water, and your teeth are falling out. Alex: Don't spoil. The next book we're talking about is Grape Nuts #1, which is also very good. Justin: That's going to be good. It's going to be good. Just put a little honey on it. No. This book is so good, and what I love about it is they've been building up to it over the course of all these smaller issues and books to get here, and each one, for the most part, has been excellent, and the fact that they're building this whole little universe around G.I. Joe is something that … Again, I don't know if I said. I never watched as a kid. Pete: Oh, my god. Fuck, I hate you. I mean, this is great. I mean, you get to see Roadblock fucking pick up a fucking giant cannon of a gun and just fucking shoot. It was great. Yeah. The art's really good. The storytelling, the plot's impressive. It's a lot better than a lot of the cartoon's plot, but I thought this was- Alex: Not all of it. I would say like 50 percent of the cartoon's plots. Most of the cartoon's plots were very good, as we all know. Pete: Sure. Sure. Because we all watched them as kids. Alex: I never watched it. Justin: It must have been fun for you, Pete, to see your favorite Joes, like soup can, hub cap. Pete: So far you haven't named one. Justin: Dance party. Pete: Nope. Justin: Hat hair. Hat hair is so good in this issue. Pete: No. Justin: He's so good because he's like [crosstalk 00:02:30]- Pete: Did you see? My favorite scene in the issue is when load-bearing beam really brings the hurt down. Justin: That guy is so tough. Pete: [crosstalk 00:02:39]. Justin: He's got the weight of the world on his shoulders. Pete: I'm the only one who knows the names, and you guys are still doing bits. It's just ridiculous. Alex: Well, what I love about this is I, again, I have no interest in G.I. Joe particularly because of the names, because they're so silly and over the top, but every character is so distinct, from the art, to the writing, to their motivations here, including the villains as well. The way that they fleshed out Cobra here and made them interesting rather than just going “I'm a serpent name, and I have a mask, and I'm evil,” and that's pretty much my whole impression of Cobra Commander. I think there's two of them, right? Pete: Oh, my god. Justin: No. There's more. You need 20 minutes. Alex: There's Destro and also Cobra Commander? I don't know how this works. Pete: Okay. All right. Destro does not talk like that. Alex: Everyone's shit. Pete: There's Serpentor. Alex: I'm Destro. Pete: Oh, my god. All right. You are killing me. Alex: I'm the Baroness. Pete: Okay. All right. First off, let's back up the truck. If you're going to do bits about their names, know the show, because one of the funniest things is they would do PSAs after the show, and there would be a character whose name is Barbecue, and he has a flamethrower on his back, and then he's like “Hey, kids. If you have a house fire, you should run away,” and it's like “Hey, Barbecue. How did that house fire start? You have a flamethrower, and you're standing next to a fire. This isn't cool, man. You shouldn't set people's houses on fire and then teach kids about fires.” Justin: It's very funny to me that you were like “Justin, you're making fun of this by saying the names you said. If you said the name Barbecue,” who's the hero you like's name, because when I said hub cap, you were like “That's stupid,” but you said Barbecue, and you were like “That's good. Hub cap is bad, but Barbecue-“ Pete: I mean, Snow Job's a real … That's a real name. Justin: What about tippy toe? I really like tippy toe. Pete: Oh, my god. Alex: This book is fantastic. Definitely pick it up, even if you don't know anything about G.I. Joe. Alex: Moving on to Snow Angels #1 from ComiXology, written by Jeff Lemire, art by Jock. I said this on the live show, but I'll stick with it. That team is on a book, and you're in no matter what, but thankfully this book is great and weird anyway. It's about a world, maybe a world, that has been covered in ice. All that exists is this snow trench. There's a family, a father, and two daughters who are skating through the trench for one theirs 12th birthday, and things get weirder and deadlier and more dangerous from there. This feels like the perfect gelling of these two creators' tastes. Pete: It seems like it's Snowpiercer 2, where after the train's gone, now they're just living on the tracks. You know what I mean? And that's where this takes place. Justin: Withering criticism from Pete LePage. Alex: But you say that about anything that involves snow. You said that when you saw the Michael Keaton vehicle Jack Frost as well. Justin: Yeah. No. Pete: The Michael Keaton vehicle. Justin: When the Weather Report came out, Pete screamed at the TV. It's like “Snowpiercer. Get out of here.” I like this book a lot. You said it best, Alex. It's such a great combination of these two creators' work. A lot of great blood splatters on this, and very few snow angels, and ice skating is hard, and these characters do it constantly. Pete: Yeah. Yeah. I mean, growing up in upstate New York, you needed to kind of … You might as well put skates on, because you're walking around so much ice, but I did really … All joking aside, I really love the last-page reveal. The art's unbelievable. This is a very unique, cool kind of world that we're kind of thrown into here. I thought it was an amazing first issue of getting you established with what's going on and then kind of raising the stakes. I thought this was really fantastic book. Alex: Next up, the Immortal Hulk: Flatline #1 from Marvel, written and art by Declan Shalvey. This is another, as you can probably tell from the title, spinoff of the Immortal Hulk doing one-shot stories about him here. Bruce Banner meets one of his old teachers. Things don't go that well over the course of the issue. How do you think this held up to the high standard of Immortal Hulk? Justin: I like this a lot. Declan Shalvey has been talking about this book a lot online. There's a lot of pride and just love for this book coming from the creator. So I really appreciate that, and it's a great story. It feels like a classic Hulk story that we haven't seen in a while, because the main book has been so focused on just straight-up horrifying imagery. So this takes it back a little bit and really says “Hey. Be nice to your teachers, because they might come at you from some gamma-irradiated vision and really fuck up your life if you're not careful.” Pete: Yeah. Teachers will haunt you for the rest of your life, man. You got to be careful. Justin: Yeah. Alex: Totally agree. Haha #2 from Image Comics, written by W. Maxwell Prince, art by Zoe Thorogood. This is the second issue, of course, from the creator of Ice Cream Man. It is an anthology about clowns. Here, we're getting to meet a character who … It's not revealed until the end of the issue exactly what she's doing, but as a child, she ran away with her mom, who had a bit of a psychotic break and thought she was a clown, wanted to go away to a fun time happy land. Things do not end up fun time or happy. How'd you feel about this one? Justin: So good. Haunting. We love W. Maxwell Prince's work on Ice Cream Man, and to see it sort of grounded in a weird way … I didn't expect this series ostensibly focusing on clowns to be the more grounded version of his storytelling, but it really is. It's sort of real-world stories of people going off the map a little bit with their choices, with clown imagery, and there's such a melancholy to all of this work, and I really like that. Alex: Pete? Pete: Yeah. This is so haunting and messed up in ways that I wasn't ready for. This mother-and-child-like relationship was very scary to me, and I kept waiting there to be kind of fun moments, and so far it's just a fucking nightmare, and I'm scared to keep reading this comic, because it was like … I feel like Ice Cream Man kind of encouraged this, and I'm a little worried about what the payoff is going to be. Justin: Encouraged it. Alex: I don't think there's going to be a payoff. I think it's just an anthology of stories. Pete: I think maybe the people reading it will slowly start to go insane and then paint their faces like clowns and then die horribly. Justin: I guess the payoff is when you show up to do the show in full clown, which honestly I think we're pretty close to. Alex: What if all of these people in this book joined together in some sort of book, all of these crazy people who are clowns forming a group together. It would be some sort of insane clown posse. I mean, just to throw something out there, I feel like that's maybe how it could work at the last issue. Justin: Huh. That'd be quite a league of extraordinary clowns. As long as they aren't fueled by some sort of small-market soda, I think we'll be fine. Alex: King in Black #4 from Marvel, written by Donny Cates, art by Ryan Stegman. This is a big issue here where once again Donny Cates redefines the Marvel universe, does a little bit of the old retcon action to come up with an explanation for something that has not made a lot of sense. Eddie Brock is lying dying. Dylan Brock, his son, has been trapped by Knull, the King in Black. All of the heroes are trying to fight back, and they finally get a foothold here as we enter the endgame of this title. What'd you think about all the twists and turns? Justin: I love the reveal at the end of the issue. When I first started reading comics, and I will spoil this sort of twist at the end right now, but Captain Universe was what was on the stands right then. Spider-Man had just had the Captain Universe powers, and he was recovering form that, being sort of de-powered. I think the first Spider-Man issue I ever read, he was shooting upwards into space, having just lost the Captain Universe powers, and trying to web himself to a passing airplane, and so to have that make sense and maybe join the Marvel universe with Eddie Brock at the helm I thought was great. It was crazy to see the heroes turn it around so hard in this issue. Pete: Yeah. I really thought this was great. Lot of cool reveals in this issue. The good guys are getting their butts kicked for a long time now. It's nice to see what kind of cards we're going to play here. So I was really, really impressed with this issue, a lot of cool stuff, and I can't wait to see how this whole thing unfolds. I went from being like “What is this?” to really I'm bored with this kind of event. So I feel like it was really cool, and then the backup story, the Demon Days, was also really cool as well. Alex: That was very fun. That seems to be a title that we're going to see going forward that is a Japanese, I would say, art-style-inflected X-Men tale, which I thought was kind of neat. Justin: Yeah. Pete: Yeah. Alex: Next up, Batman / Catwoman #3 from DC Comics, written by Tom King, art by Clay Mann. We're continuing this time-hopping story of Batman and Catwoman as they fight a war on three different fronts. I like this one. I felt like I had a better handle on what's going on in this issue than I did necessarily in the first two issues. How'd you guys feel about it? Pete: I love this. I thought this was really amazing. I love the kind of tone that's even set up in the beginning with the double play, the double-spread title page of Bat and Cat. I think this is such a cool area to explore. If the Bat and Cat are together, how do they exist? You know what I mean? Is Catwoman have to be more good? Does Batman have to try to be more bad? How do they exist? Pete: I think this is a very interesting position to put Batman and Catwoman, and the kind of reveal of Joker in the money suit … I lost it. I thought that was so funny and hysterical, and that whole “Paul Fleischman is dead. Oh, god. No. Who's Paul Fleischman?” … I'm really having a lot of fun with this book. I'm very, very impressed with it. Yeah. I can't say enough nice things about the art and everything that's going on. Justin: Yeah. The art is so stylized. It's so composed in such a specific way, especially a story that moves around so much. It's so nice to see the art really reflecting a meticulous design style, but yeah. This reminds me of, oddly, the last episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, the jumping between- Alex: Oh, okay. I can see that. Justin: … jumping between different eras, telling one story, because it almost feels like in this comic that the characters are aware of the time jumps. I don't think they actually are, but it feels like they're very complicit in telling the story in this particular way, and I think that's what allows it to hang together so well as opposed to … Because it's jarring, jumping between the different time frames in this. There's very little visual direction, but there's just so much emotional direction where we're seeing so much happen at once, and at the same time, we're introducing Mask of the Phantasm here, which is a horrifying character [crosstalk 00:14:58]. Alex: I got to say that's the one thing for me that is not quite working about this book is I really like the Phantasm. It just right now feels like this element that I don't quite get how it fits in and how it's part of the story. Pete: Just wait for it. All right? Don't- Alex: I'm sure. Yes. I know. It will pan out, and it's fine, but the Joker stuff in both the past and the present seems to connect. I get that the Phantasm is this outside thing, but it's such an out-sized presence, perhaps given because of its real-world weight of Batman: Mask of the Phantasm being the best Batman movie, that I felt like “Oh. This is its own story. What is going on with the Phantasm? Why are we not telling this story? Why is this only one third of the book?” Pete: Yeah, but- Justin: I think that is that exterior pressure, because to me, and I'm someone that didn't … I didn't watch that when I was younger. So it's not something I revere maybe as much. So just seeing the imagery that's there to be scary as opposed to being like “Look. I'm this character you know,” … I think it's working. Alex: All right. Fair enough. Pete: Yeah. I agree. Just because something was amazing, don't let it hurt this story before we get what it's about, but I understand what you're saying and it makes sense. I'm just so happy we're getting this story, because we got little teases of it, and then DC was like “No. We're kind of doing something else.” So I'm so glad that, in this Black Label thing, we get this story that we were kind of given a little bit and then taken away. So I'm just so happy right now with what's going on in this book. Alex: Next up, Savage #1 from Valiant Comics, written by Max Bemis, art by Nathan Stockman. In this, we are picking up with Savage, a wild little boy who was left in a dinosaur land and came to the present. Now he's a social media star. Don't worry. There's still dinosaur battles in this book. I thought this was a lot of fun. What did you guys think? Pete: Yeah. I- Justin: Yeah. This … Pete: Go ahead. Justin: This is a lot fun. It reminds me of back in the day, the Ultraverse line of comics. This feels like strong pitch, strong concept, mixing a classic sort of comic book trope with a modern spin on it, and then the story's just really fun. Pete: Yeah. I agree. It's fun to see kind of Savage exist now and how that would kind of look a little bit, but I'm glad that we still get to kind of see Savage do what Savage enjoys doing- Justin: What Savage do. Pete: … and it was … Yeah. The art's unbelievable. This is a very visually pleasing book, and it really delivers. Justin: Oh, pleasing. So pleasing. Pete: Yeah. Alex: Pete's not having any of it tonight. Justin: Yeah. Alex: All right. Let's move on, talk about- Justin: He's displeased. Pete: Also, I'm very excited. We talked to Cullen Bunn about Shadowman, and we get a little peak of this in this. So I'm very excited about what that's going to be like. Alex: There you go. Guardians of the Galaxy #11 from Marvel, written by Al Ewing, art by Juan Cabal. In this issue, this is the second-to-lat issue, I believe, of this run on Guardians of the Galaxy. They are facing down dark olympian gods. Star Lord has been through some very weird stuff that's affecting him here. I know we haven't really can keeping up with this book. So what'd you think about this issue? Justin: I feel like the Guardians of the Galaxy are the most emotional team in comic books. They're an emotion-first team, and this book is it. All the characters are just wide open talking about what they're going through, and they're like “We have to fight, but I really want to talk about this,” and I appreciate that. They're fully therapeutic. They're getting it out there. They're telling it like it is, and the art's wonderful. It really is a ragtag group of characters. Just it's used very well. Alex: Yeah. Pete? Pete: Yeah. I mean, it's a lot of fun. Art's unbelievable. Yeah. Alex: Great. Great stuff. Stillwater #6 from Image Comics, written by Chip Zdarsky, art by Ramón K. Pérez. This is a big flashback issue kicking off of the cliffhanger from the last issue where a bunch of military dudes were right outside the town where nobody dies. In this issue, we find out how they got there, what's going on with it. As we talked to Chip Zdarsky about on the live show, the danger and the action ramps up in a big way in this book really quickly, which I continue to find very impressive. Justin: Yeah. He's really done a good job of setting up a very explosive environment, the politics of Stillwater. Now we have these military guys on the outside of town. Our main character sort of doesn't want to be there, is unsettled. That combined with Ramón Pérez's very pastoral art, I think, makes for just a nice juxtaposition, and I like this book a lot. Pete: Yeah. I agree. Just when you think “Okay. This is what's going,” it really amps it up even more. Art is unbelievable, and the kind of going between times, the adjustments it makes there, but also just in its storytelling and its panel movement … I cannot believe “Okay. Oh, sure. Yeah. Nobody dies. Okay. Oh, yeah, but now we're going to deal with this thing.” It's like “Wait. What?” It just keeps kind of keeping the action going, and it's crazy in all the right ways. Alex: All right. Now it is time for our Future State block as we have been doing the past couple of weeks. We've read through every single issue that came out from DC in Future State this week. We're not going to talk about all of them, but we're going to talk about some highlights, but if you're wondering what came out, we got Future State: Superman: Worlds of War #2, Immortal Wonder Woman #2, The Next Batman #4, Catwoman #2, Nightwing #2, and Shazam #2. So let's call some stuff out. Pete just dropped something on the floor. I don't know what's going on. Pete: Yeah. I just accidentally dropped a pencil. I- Justin: A pencil? Pete: Yeah. Justin: Oh, no. Alex: Were you writing on your phone with a pencil? Pete: No. Justin: But Pete, what about your sketching? Pete: [inaudible 00:21:27]. Alex: Not a lot of people know this, actually, but Pete does these very funny caricatures of us during taping The Stack, and it's a delight. Justin: You got to release those, Pete, because honestly, you're like the Colossus, famously a painter, of the podcast. Pete: Sure. Sure. Anyways, so I really liked The Next Batman #4. I mean, having a black Batman is a great idea, but the part where Batman's just like “Listen. I'm going to be real with you guys,” I was like “Oh, this is so much fun,” but I really like how this is different. You know what I mean? Because Batman in this book has parents and is willing to maybe stab his mom to get what he needs to get done and keep Gotham safe, and I don't know if our Batman would do that. Pete: So it's nice to see this Batman really stepping it up and be like “Sorry, ma. Sometimes you got to stab somebody for your beliefs,” and I don't know. I just think this is … The Future State here, I'm still having a lot of fun with the choices that they're making with these heroes, and this, The Next Batman, I'm having a great time with. Justin: Well, it wasn't my favorite of the week, but I want to throw it to Nightwing #2, just piggybacking on Pete's comment, because Nightwing #2 features of this new Batman and Nightwing, and I love the dynamic that's created here, where our new Batman is sort of deferential to Nightwing. He's like “I'm just sort of figuring this out right now,” and Nightwing's like “I get it,” but our new Batman refuses to leave his side despite the fac that Nightwing … It's a great flip of the dynamic of Batman usually being in the leadership role and Nightwing being more of a sidekick. I just hadn't seen that before, and it really caught me off guard in a good way. Alex: So what was your favorite of the week then, Justin? Justin: Superman: Worlds of War #2. This story- Pete: Oh, yeah. Can we talk about it? Justin: This story by Phillip Kennedy Johnson at the front end of this book is so fucking good. He just boils down Superman and Clark Kent to just … I'll tell you about what happened if you haven't read it. There are these two kids are sort of in Smallville exploring the area. They walk to the original Kent farm. In this world, obviously Superman's revealed that he's Clark Kent. Justin: So they're trying to find the original Kent farm, because everybody knows he's Superman, and the main girl is recounting an article she read that Clark Kent wrote about the town, and it's so good, so interesting, about a soldier that went to war and how it affected his life, juxtaposed with images of Superman on Warworld just fighting, sacrificing everything to free some people who have been captured on Warworld against Mongul, and it's just … It's beautiful. It's drawn beautifully. It's so smartly written. It's so good. Pete: I want to take a moment just to talk about the art alone. I mean, unbelievable, just absolutely. The character designs, Mongul and Superman, their faces … Just it fits so well with the story in such a great way. The paneling, the art flow … It's really, really well done. I was really impressed with this book. Alex: I'm surprised, Pete, that you didn't call out Michael Avon Oeming's art on the Midnighter story towards the back of this book, because we get kind of a little Midnighter going through time, and that seems exactly your jam. Pete: Oh, yeah. Yeah. I mean, yeah. If we can talk about that for a little bit, I mean- Justin: No. I'm so sorry. We just ran out of time [inaudible 00:25:19]. We don't have time to talk about it. Pete: Yeah. I thought that was unbelievable. Obviously, I'm a huge Midnighter fan, but just what a cool concept, and Oeming … His art is just fantastic. Justin: I particularly like the old and young Midnighter versions that Oeming draws here. Alex: Super fun. It was really hard for me to choose, this week. I think, again, this is a very strong week for the Future State books. I kind of want to go for Immortal Wonder Woman #2 just because- Justin: Another great book. Alex: … I think it was a gorgeous story, Becky Cloonan and Michael W. Conrad, art by Jen Bartel, of Wonder Woman being the, I guess, second-to-last person in the universe, and it's just, like a lot of these things, a mission statement on Wonder Woman and what she means, but the one that I kind of left until the end and that I was like “Oh, right,” … The first issue of this was awesome, Shazam #2- Justin: I knew you were going to say it. Pete: Yeah. Alex: … by Tim Sheridan and Eduardo Pansica. Fucking great. So good. Justin: Dark. Dark take. Alex: Oh, so dark. This is like the darkest Shazam story I've ever read in my life, but I love it, and I love the cliffhanger that it ends off up on, the way that the characters are drawn, just terrifying throughout, of Shazam and Billy Batson being split apart, where it leaves off, where it's leading into this Future State Black Adam book. Just put it in my veins. I'm having a blast reading it. Justin: I agree. I liked that too, and I know we weren't going to talk about all of them, but I got to throw it out to Future State Catwoman #2 as well- Alex: Great. Justin: … because it's a great story. It's a train robbery. We get to see Batman, Bruce Wayne, show up. Everyone thought he was dead. Catwoman reunites with him, such a great moment, great action. Onomatopoeias there for some reason, but it's very cool. It was just great. Alex: Yeah. I've been reading this book. The fact that it's all set on a train, did you feel like it was more of a Snowpiercer kind of book? Justin: Oh, yes. That's what. I was like “Where's all the snow? They should be just piercing each flake?” Pete: I did want to ask. In Immortal Wonder Woman, the art is so amazing, and I was like “What is this reminding me of.” It reminds me a little bit of She-Ra: Princess of Power on Netflix. The way the art kind of jumps off the page is really impressive, and I really liked it. Alex: Good stuff. Justin: It reminded me a little bit of the Green Lantern book that we love so much, Far Sector. Pete: Oh, yeah. Alex: All right. Let's move on, because we have a lot of other books to talk about. Thor #12 from Marvel, written by Donny Cates, art by Nic Klein, another one of my favorite books of the month, because you got Throg and Lockjaw in a huge fight with Donald Blake, who has [crosstalk 00:28:03]. So much fun just fighting through dimensions, just a blast to read, also so dark, but great. Pete: The art and the way Throg is drawn … Some of the action stuff is just so phenomenal, like him catching the hammer. I had so much fun with this book. I didn't know it would be this great. I was really, really impressed. This was such a great comic. Justin: I mean, time to redo your frog power rankings- Pete: Yeah. Dude, are you kidding me? Justin: … because Throg's rise, overtaking the WB frog, Kermit the, really just jumping in here with a big hammer swing. Alex: I want to give a particular shout out though to the first double-page … I think it's a double-page [inaudible 00:28:48], or maybe it's a single page, which shows a dissected, cut-open frog- Pete: Oh, no. Justin: Yeah. It's the first page of the issue. Alex: … with Throg's narration, and it's talking about the legacy of Throg and all the things that he's done and how he'll always be remembered, and you're reading that, and you're like “No. What happened? What did I miss? This is terrible,” and then if you flip to the next page, it's like “But he will not die today,” and you're like “Oh, you son of a bitch, Donny Cates.” Great, just a great, fun little feint right there at the top of the book, just delightful to read. Justin: Well, it's very fun to have Throg be such a badass but also Throg get his little tail-less ass kicked in the middle of the issue, but Donny Cates is having so much fun in all of his work, really, but this issue particularly, and then the last panel I thought- Pete: Oh, man. Justin: I thought it was so cool, and this is a shout out to anybody, I don't know, for maybe one person who listens to this podcast, but Odin at the end of this issue looks like Key lime pie Steve, who drinks in B61 back in the day, a bar I used to bartend at, so much that it took me out of the issue for a hot sec. Pete: Wow. Alex: That's amazing. Let's move on to another book then, Excellence #10 from Image Comics, written by Brandon Thomas, art by Khary Randolph. We've been loving this book, which is a very different, very spectacular take on magic. In this book, our main character is still on the run, still in bigger trouble every single issue. As we talked about with the last couple, they not exactly stepped away from this, but sort of layered this in without explicitly saying how much this book was about race and racism, and now they're starting to hit it hard, and it is so good. Pete: This is phenomenal. I mean, the art and the paneling and the storytelling is great, the action sequences. I mean, there's this one page where someone gets just Street Fighter punched and is like “Fuck what you thought.” I've wanted to do that to somebody for so long. It's just so great, so much fun. Justin: Sonic boom. You want to sonic boom someone. Pete: Oh, man, do I. Justin: Yes. I mean, I agree. The way this comic approaches race is so smart, so good, but I don't want to lose the other side of it. The way this comic approaches magic is also just a philosophizing about it and really going deep on all of the subjects that are sort of on the table in this comic. It really just is such a smartly written book and beautifully drawn. One of my favorites. Alex: Next up, Once & Future #16 from Boom! Studios, written by Kieron Gillen, art by Dan Mora. Pete, there's a badass grandma in this one. You want to talk about this book? Pete: I mean, if you're not- Alex: You love grannies. Pete: If you're not reading this book- Alex: You've got a real grandma fetish, one might say. Go ahead. Justin: Yeah. Pete: If you're not reading this book at this point, I don't know what's wrong with you. This book is just magic. Every time, every issue, unbelievable art, unbelievable storytelling, action packed, twisting and turning stories that you know and love in different ways. Yeah. I cannot wait for this to be a movie or a TV show. I need more Once & Future in my life. Justin: “If you're not dating a badass grandma at this point, what are you doing with your life,” Pete says and wonders. This is maybe the most consistent comic book on the stands right now, and I mean that in a good way. Alex: Yeah. I agree. This issue continues to be great, unfolding the mythology of the book. Super, super fun. Alex: Let's move on to one I'm very excited to chat with both of you about for very different reasons, X-Men Legends #1 from Marvel, written by Fabian Nicieza, art by Brett Booth. Here's what this book is. First of all, this is a new book that Marvel is launching which finishes or continues stories that are in continuity. This is an in-continuity X-Men story that Fabian Nicieza began almost 30 years ago and never got to finish about the third Summers brother, which, spoiler, we get confirmation here is in fact Adam X the X-Treme. Justin: Finally. Alex: Finally. So the thing that I'm very curious about is this felt like the perfect synthesis of things that the two of you like about X-Men. Pete, it's a bunch of X-Men killing each other and fighting each other in classic style. Justin, Adam X the X-Treme is in it. What'd you guys think about this book? Justin: I will not rest until Adam X the X-Treme is hanging out on Krakoa, because this guy's going to be the number-one get on fuck island. Alex: Didn't you like him? Am I wrong about that? Justin: No. I mean, it's a very '90s character. He's a backwards- Pete: It's Justin turned up to 11 is what it is. He's got his hat backwards. He's doing hand stands, wearing tight T-shirts. This is all Justin. Justin: That's very funny, Pete, and maybe makes me rethink a lot of my self worth, but yeah. I mean, I do like the character. I liked the introduction of this character back in the day, and so I appreciate that they're going back and making it real, and also this comic looks like it happened already. This looks like it's straight out of the '90s. Pete: Yeah. That's what I thought. Justin: [crosstalk 00:34:20]. Alex: I got to tell you. When I was putting together the stack and sending stuff to you guys, I looked this is, and I was like “Is this a reprint? What's happening? Is this a reprint? What's going on?”- Pete: Yeah. That's what I thought. Alex: … and I did way too much research for just sending you guys a comic to be like “I got to make 100 percent sure this is actually a new book and not something that came out 30 years ago.” Justin: But let me say the meticulous dedication to the poses that Cyclops is in are straight out of the '90s. Cable shows up here for sort of no reason. The Starjammers are in this, and it's like “Oh, of course. Why not?” They're just hanging around. It's perfect. It's a perfect version of what it is. Pete: I thought this was a reprint, and then I scrolled down. I was like “Oh. Jordan D. White. This is real. Let's go.” Alex: What'd you think, Pete? Pete: This was just '90s, over-the-top stuff, and I was just like “You know, it's a fun blast from the past,” like “Oh, I remember when comics-“ Alex: What do you want, Pete? What do you want out of an X-Men book? Justin: What makes you happy? Alex: I don't even understand at this point. Pete: You know, I was like “Yeah, but we've evolved from this. Why would you go back here?” Justin: What? Just because hub cap and tippy toe and the other Joes aren't in this, can't you enjoy this for what it is? Pete: First off, G.I. Joe and X-Men are completely different. How dare you? Alex: Are they? They both have very stupid names. Pete: Sure. Sure. That doesn't mean that they are stupid though. Justin: That's true. The thing is, all the X-Men are named non-compound words, and all the G.I. Joes are named compound words. Pete: Yeah. Yeah. Alex: Great. I'm glad we settled that. Let's move on and talk about Aria: Heavenly Creatures from Image Comics- Pete: Oh, here we go. Alex: … written by Brian Holguin, art by Jay Anacleto and Brian Haberlin. This is a very Top Cow book. Pete: What is this? What did you make us do here? Alex: It's a very Top Cow book. It's about- Justin: Perhaps the most Top Cow book. Alex: Yes. It's a fairy teaming up kind of with a witchblade, but not exactly a witchblade, in Victorian times, and it's a little bit sexy, but not too sexy. So you can feel okay reading it but be like- Pete: No. You shouldn't. Alex: … “Oh, this is sexy.” Pete: You shouldn't feel okay reading it. Alex: I don't know. I enjoyed reading this. I was surprised how much by the end I was like “Yeah. This is silly, but I'm having a fun time.” Justin: Alex has been missing watching soft core pornography, apparently- Pete: Yeah. I think so. Justin: … because that's very- Pete: This is just fucking boob comics. Justin: Alex, because you put this in the stack, you should have to go read this on the Subway right now. Pete: Yeah. You should. Yeah. You should- Justin: You should have to go ride the Subway and read this. Pete: … [crosstalk 00:36:54] up and down the line. Yeah. Alex: Yeah. Watching a little Skinemax on my phone while I'm doing it. Justin: Just listening. Just listening to the Skinemax. That's all you need. Alex: Yeah. Okay. Pete: Yeah. Watching USA Up All Night. Alex: Great. Justin: Pete. Alex: Thanks for the review, guys. Justin: No. I mean, the heart of this book … This book is … It has such a vibe. Pete: It's just boobs. Justin: Well, but there is a lot of that, but it has such a vibe, which I recognize that, and the art is so specific to what it is. I liked reading it. I'm not shitting on it, but it's very funny that you're like “This is good,” because there's a lot of poses where people be showing off their bodies. Alex: Me? No. I'm not saying it's good, necessarily. I'm just saying I had fun reading it. Justin: This is the- Alex: There's a big Victorian werewolf who eats people. What? Justin: Yeah. That part's cool. This is the OnlyFans of comic books, if you want to get in on that. Alex: The Last Ronin #2 from IDW, story by- Pete: Here we go. Alex: … Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird, and Tom Waltz, script by Tom Waltz and Kevin Eastman, layouts by Kevin Eastman, pencils and inks by Esau and Isaac Escorza, Ben Bishop, and Kevin Eastman. This is, of course, continuing the story of the last turtle left alive. We got a cliffhanger in the last issue that April O'Neil is also alive, and we find out a lot more about that here. Pete, over to you. Pete: All right. So first off, you can't have enough varying covers. You need varying covers. you need tons of them, and you need like 20 pages of it. No. I'm just so happy that Eastman and Laird have teamed back up to give us another turtle book. I could give a shit if it's any good or not. This is good. I'm loving every single moment of it, and it goes back to the black-and-white stuff. I am just in heaven, and it's just so great. I feel like I'm back in time and a little kid reading this in my bed. So it's just glorious, and I don't care if anybody doesn't like it or not. This is just my jam. Justin: It's very funny that you say you feel like you're a little kid reading this, because this book is about being old, the images of Michelangelo, no longer a party dude, where he's just super wrinkly, he's all wrinkles, and they're just like “Remember? Oh, it's so great to be alive. Now we're old. I have a robot hand.” It's a wild read, but it's good. Alex: Yeah. I like this a lot. Definitely when it got to the flashback portion and the old-school turtles title, I was like “Oh, Pete's going to like this.” Pete: Oh, my god. It was so great. Alex: But it's good. Like you're saying, there's a lot of danger there. There's a lot of nostalgia there. It's definitely way better than it could have been for a story that they had sitting on the shelf for decades at this point, but a lot of fun. Alex: Let's move on, talk about Black Widow #5 from Marvel, written by Kelly Thompson, art by Elena Casagrande with Rafael de Latorre. This, hands down, these fives issues, is one of the best Black Widow stories I have ever read in my entire life. Justin: A hundred percent. I have loved this series so much. My favorite issue of the week. The way that this took Black Widow, who has sort of really tread this ground of “Well, someone captured her and erased her memories and reset her in a way that is difficult for her to come to grips with,” took that premise, and just emotionally elevated it to a point where you really feel for these characters, all of them. Even we have Hawkeye in here, who is straight up killing people, which I didn't know he did all the time. Maybe that was a special. Alex: Do you think he just kind of tapped people with his arrows? Pete: Yeah. How did you- Justin: Well, he usually hits them in the shoulder or the knee. In this, he's just like “Sorry, dude. Right in your frigging eye.” But you get to see him- Alex: Your good eye too. Justin: Your good eye, your shooting eye. You get to see him be emotional here. You get to see Winter Soldier, which I love the Black Widow Winter, Soldier relationship. I look back fondly on the Ed Brubaker days of that, and to have it be sort of touched on here is super sad, but really, Black Widow … You're just feeling so much for her. I love the setup of the multiple Black Widows going forward. Truly, pick up this series. Alex: Pete? Pete: Yeah. I mean, it's really great. The art's unbelievable. Amazing story, very touching. I really hope the movie is exactly like this run, and I will be very happy. Also- Justin: Pete, that movie came out last year. Did you not watch it? Pete: I didn't. I didn't. I was- Alex: Oh, really? It perfectly set up Falcon and the Winter Soldier, which also came out last year. Pete: Huh. I guess I just was born today then, I guess. Alex: I guess so. Justin: That's true. Alex: Anyway, before we- Pete: I just want to point out though, they're on a carousel for one panel here, and there's a cat with this fish in his mouth, and I was just on a carousel with a cat and a fish in his mouth, and I didn't know that was a thing. So that was weird seeing that it's a real thing. Did you know that was a thing? Alex: What? Justin: I don't know that what you just said is a thing. I don't know the words you said is a sentence. Pete: Well, usually when you go on a carousel, they got horses, you got different animals you can ride, but I was like “Why the fuck is there a cat with a fish in its mouth that you can ride? This is crazy.” I've never seen it before, and then I went from riding that cat with a fish in his mouth to then seeing it in this comic book, and I was like “Life is weird.” Alex: Why were you at a carousel in the middle of a pandemic? Justin: That's the real question. Pete: Valentine's Day, and we had the carousel to ourselves, motherfuckers. Justin: I bet you took- Alex: Oh, that is very romantic. Justin: Yes. I bet you took a lot of carouselfies. Alex: Nice. Before we wrap up here, let's finish up with an accidental Kelly Thompson block. Sara the Teenage … Sara. Justin: Sara. Pete: Sara. Alex: Goodnight. Goodnight. Justin: Sara the Teenage Human. Alex: Sabrina the Teenage Witch #2 from Archie Comics, written by Kelly Thompson, art by Veronica Fish and Andy Fish. This is finishing up the Something Wicked arc. Pete, you are showing us pictures of this cat and fish, but we cannot see them. They are too bright. Justin: Yeah. Pete- Pete: Okay. Well- Justin: … I don't want to see all these Valentine's Day pictures. I know you have an active love and sex life. Please keep it to yourself. Alex: This is a good wrap-up to this book. I've really enjoyed it. I think, like we've talked about before, it's the perfect fusion of the Archie Comics style and the TV show style. It hits the nice middle ground there, and that continues with this issue. There's also a nice cliffhanger here that made me very poignant for the end of the Netflix series. Pete: Yeah. I love this. This is really great, and to me, sometimes when you have these characters that are way in over their heads and fighting these battles they don't really belong in, Sabrina really pulls it off in a way that you can get behind and don't think it's like “Oh, this is just weird.” I'm really impressed with the way that they do Sabrina, not only in this comic, but in this run. So great. The art's unbelievable. Really fun storytelling, and makes me miss the TV show. Justin: Yeah. Talking cat, but still good. Pete: Oh, yeah. The talking cat was great. That line was really funny. Alex: If you'd like to support our show, patreon.com/comicbookclub. Also, we do a live show every Tuesday night at 7:00 PM to Crowdcast and YouTube. Come hang out. We would love to chat with you about comics. iTunes, Android, Spotify, Stitcher or the app of your choice to subscribe and listen to the show, @comicbooklive on Twitter, comicbookclublive.com for this podcast and many more. Alex: Until next time, we'll see you at the virtual comic book shop. Justin: Hub cap. The post The Stack: GI Joe, Snow Angels And More appeared first on Comic Book Club. Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/comicbookclub See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Die Zeiten, in denen Atomwaffen ausschließlich als Mittel der Abschreckung dienten, sind weitgehend vorbei. Die großen Atommächte, Russland und die USA, haben ihre Arsenale auf kleinere und in regionalen konventionellen Konflikten einzusetzende Systeme umgerüstet. »Man hat die Hemmschwelle für den Ersteinsatz von Nuklearwaffen abgesenkt«, sagt Dr. Jana Puglierin. Sie ist Direktorin des Berliner Büros des Think-Tanks »European Center for Foreign Relations« (ECFR). So seien die zur politischen Abschreckung dienenden Atombomben zu taktischen Kriegswaffen geworden. Das gilt für die russischen SSC‑8 Raketen wie für seegestützte Mittelstreckenraketen der Vereinigten Staaten und weitere in Auftrag gegebene Systeme. »Si vis pacem, para bellum« (»Wenn du den Frieden willst, bereite den Krieg vor«) – Gibt es Auswege aus diesem von John H. Herz beschriebenen klassischen Sicherheitsdilemma? Immerhin sind von den weltweit einst 70.000 Atomwaffen heute nur noch 14.000 geblieben. Abrüstungsverträge und der von der überwältigenden Mehrheit der Staaten unterzeichnete Atomwaffensperrvertrag haben ihren Teil dazu beigetragen. Wie aber steht es um die »Nukleare Teilhabe« der Bundesrepublik Deutschland? Die Bundeskanzlerin betont, für Deutschland gebe es keine Sicherheit ohne die USA. Macht dieses Bekenntnis automatisch auch den Ankauf von 40 US-amerikanischen F18-Jets notwendig, die im Einsatzfall die auf deutschem Boden lagernden amerikanischen B61-12-Atombomben transportieren müssten? Frau Dr. Puglierin ist davon überzeugt. Diese Folge ist eine Kooperation mit dem neuen Podcast „Erststimme – Der Podcast für alles außer Corona“ des Büros Bundesstadt Bonn der Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung.
John LaForge is the Co-Director with NukeWatch and is currently working and advocating in Hamburg, Germany. Nukewatch has been working for a nuclear-free future since 1979, they bring critical attention to the locations, movements, dangers, and the politics of nuclear weapons and radioactive wastes. The US is the only government that deploys nuclear weapons in other countries. US B61 nuclear gravity bombs are deployed in Holland (20), Italy (40), Belgium (20) Turkey (50-90), and Germany (20). Currently, The United States provides about 60 tactical B61 nuclear bombs for use by Germany under a NATO nuclear weapons sharing agreement. The bombs are stored at Büchel Air Base and in time of war would be delivered by Luftwaffe Panavia Tornado warplanes. Many countries believe this violates Articles I and II of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), where Germany has committed: which states "... not to receive the transfer from any transferor whatsoever of nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices or of control over such weapons or explosive devices directly, or indirectly ... or otherwise acquire nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices ...". With John we talk about Germany and the US relationship with nuclear weapons, differences in direct actions between the two countries, the goals of the Peace delegation they hold every year, if Germany is making itself a target by having these nuclear weapons, and the relationship Germany has with other NATO countries. Contact and connect with John: nukewatch1@lakeland.ws NukeWatch: https://nukewatchinfo.org/category/nuclear-weapons/ US and Germany history/ background: https://nukewatchinfo.org/category/direct-action/us-bombs-out-of-germany/ https://www.dw.com/en/us-set-to-upgrade-controversial-nukes-stationed-in-germany/a-52855886 Nonproliferation Treaty: https://www.un.org/disarmament/wmd/nuclear/npt/ Germany's progessive stances: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2015/11/germany-renewable-energy-revolution/ https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/index.php?page=view&type=99&nr=24&menu=1449 Germany Peace Delegation: https://nukewatchinfo.org/action-alerts/ Two Plus Four Treaty: https://www.deutschland.de/en/topic/politics/germany-europe/two-plus-four-treaty
Episode 8 of The Non League Review on Switch Sport comes from Bromsgrove Sporting Manager Brendan Kelly, talking all things Bromsgrove, on and off the pitch! Following Step 4 playoff success, The Rouslers boss lost his talisman Jason Cowley to Stevenage and new faces started to arrive in the summer of 2019! An opening day draw, was followed up with 4 points against Tamworth and Coalville, 2 teams who would compete for the playoffs with The Rouslers. After a decent start to the season, The Rouslers boss made improvements in the front line with Greg Mills and Mikey Jarell heading to the VG. Whilst 2019/20 was expunged with the Rouslers in the playoffs, we cover the whole journey of his time in B61 from step 6 to step 3! After 2.5 seasons in the managers hot seat at the VG, we cover everything on and off the pitch all about The Rouslers. Make sure you are following Switch Sport on: https://twitter.com/switchsport and https://www.facebook.com/SwitchSport/
in which a dude runs down local pinball competition results, reviews B61 in Cobble Hill as a pinball venue, and discusses how to rally when you start off badly in a pinball tournament.
Ventesima rubrica della quarta stagione (2018/19) della trasmissione radiofonica Equilibrium Network: https://www.facebook.com/EquilibriumNetwork/In collaborazione con Geopoliticalcenter.com: https://www.facebook.com/GeoPoliticalCenter/TEMI TRATTATI: - L'arsenale nucleare USA- Il dibattito assente- Le nuove armi B61-12- L'arsenale russo- La Cina e le sue armi- Le altre potenze nucleari- I sistemi ABM- Il pericolo aumenta...In onda ogni martedì, dalle 22:00, su NeverwasRadio: https://www.facebook.com/neverwasradio/ Conduttori della trasmissione EQ Network: Alessandro Leonardi e Fabrizio Pizzolato
Ventesima rubrica della quarta stagione (2018/19) della trasmissione radiofonica Equilibrium Network: https://www.facebook.com/EquilibriumNetwork/In collaborazione con Geopoliticalcenter.com: https://www.facebook.com/GeoPoliticalCenter/TEMI TRATTATI: - L'arsenale nucleare USA- Il dibattito assente- Le nuove armi B61-12- L'arsenale russo- La Cina e le sue armi- Le altre potenze nucleari- I sistemi ABM- Il pericolo aumenta...In onda ogni martedì, dalle 22:00, su NeverwasRadio: https://www.facebook.com/neverwasradio/ Conduttori della trasmissione EQ Network: Alessandro Leonardi e Fabrizio Pizzolato
This week, Jon and Vinny break down the week 9 NFL matchups, along with AJ, who finds a few seconds to gloat about the Red Sox. Recorded at B61 bar in Brooklyn. p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #454545} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #454545; min-height: 14.0px} This weeks episode is brought to you by draft.com Use promo code "bettingman" and qualify for one free draft with a deposit today! Rate us on iTunes! Insta us @ifiwasabettingmanpodcast Email us: ifiwasabettingmanpod@gmail.com
1) CHE FACCIAMO? ACCETTIAMO LE NUOVE BOMBE ATOMICHE A CASA NOSTRA? B61-12: bombe nucleari nuove di zecca a guida Gps, che gli Stati Uniti vogliono dislocare in Europa, e in Italia. Testate, in giugno, nel deserto del Nevada, le B61-12 dovrebbero entrare in servizio tra due anni, nel 2020. Andranno a sostituire le vecchie B61 gia' presenti nelle basi americane in Italia, Germania, Belgio, Paesi Bassi e Turchia. La richiesta formale, fa sapere una fonte diplomatica a Ria Novosti, potrebbe arrivare tra una settimana, durante il vertice della Nato a Bruxelles. Staremo a vedere come rispondera' il nuovo governo. Ma, stanti le dichiarazioni della ministro della Difesa e del Premio Conte, le accoglieremo nelle nostre basi Nato e nelle loro basi americane. 2) LA MONETA CINESE VA Giù. LA GUERRA COMMERCIALE VA SU. La caduta dello yuan, ora a circa 6,7 per dollaro, solleva allarme su tutti i mercati mondiali. Il governatore della Banca Centrale cinese, Yi Gang, promette che non si saranno altri scivolamenti e giura che non si tratta di mosse deliberate nella guerra commerciale in atto con gli Stati Uniti. Ma la tendenza è visibile. Lo yuan ha perso il 3,7% verso il dollaro nel corso delle ultime tre settimane. Nonostante le smentite della Banca Centrale Cinese, a Washington crescono i sospetti cheIl movimento verso il basso della moneta cinese non sia del tutto spontaneo. 3) . IERI (2011) BOMBARDAMMO. DOMANI MANDIAMO FRONTEX PER FERMARE I MIGRANTI.Le guardie di frontiera e costiere dell'agenzia europea Frontex, che entro il 2020 contera' 10 mila unita', potrebbero condurre operazioni all'estero per il contenimento della migrazione illegale verso l'Europa. Di quali operazioni si tratterà non è del tutto chiaro. Ne ha parlato Jean-Claude Juncker nella seduta plenaria di martedi' dell'Europarlamento, precisando che simili operazioni saranno concordate con le autorita' del Paese interessato. Se l’Italia avesse rifiutato di prendere parte alla rapina a mano armata contro Gheddafi, oggi probabilmente parleremmo d’altro. 4 ) RIVOLTA DEI BISCAZZIERI UNITI CONTRO IL “DECRETO DIGNITA' DEL GOVERNOContro il “Decreto Dignità” del governo giallo-verde insorgono i “biscazzieri uniti”. In nome dell’”industria del calcio”. Industria tanto fiorente fiorente che ci ha lasciato fuori dai mondiali. E si capisce. 12 società della Serie A italiana hanno sottoscritto accordi con aziende “betting”, insomma scommesse a gogo. A occhio e croce 102 miliardi di euroPoverini, dicono che si troveranno in svantaggio rispetto ai club europei. Questo governo ha deciso- —giustamente— di difendere i propri cittadini dai danni sociali, sanitari e mentali della dipendenza patologica da gioco d’azzardo. Loro, in nome dei loro profitti, chiedono di continuare a lucrare sulle debolezze dei poveri cristi.Si arricchiscono con la pubblicità e con il gioco.E la pubblicità è il loro veleno. Il PD e la Confindustria stanno dalla parte dei biscazzieri. 5) INDIPENDENZA STRATEGICA DELL’UE? UNA FAKE NEWSApprovato in via definitiva dal Parlamento europeo il programma Edidp per lo sviluppo di iniziative industriali nel settore della difesa, con un budget di 500 milioni di euro per il biennio 2019-2020. Il programma, dice Strasburgo, può essere visto come il progetto pilota del prossimo Fondo europeo per la difesa che, con una proposta di bilancio pari a 13 miliardi di euro in 7 anni, dovrebbe contribuire all'indipendenza strategica dell’Unione. Ma se non esiste un progetto di indipendenza militare, come potrà esserci un’indipendenza strategica? Ovvio che è una fake news.
1) CHE FACCIAMO? ACCETTIAMO LE NUOVE BOMBE ATOMICHE A CASA NOSTRA? B61-12: bombe nucleari nuove di zecca a guida Gps, che gli Stati Uniti vogliono dislocare in Europa, e in Italia. Testate, in giugno, nel deserto del Nevada, le B61-12 dovrebbero entrare in servizio tra due anni, nel 2020. Andranno a sostituire le vecchie B61 gia' presenti nelle basi americane in Italia, Germania, Belgio, Paesi Bassi e Turchia. La richiesta formale, fa sapere una fonte diplomatica a Ria Novosti, potrebbe arrivare tra una settimana, durante il vertice della Nato a Bruxelles. Staremo a vedere come rispondera' il nuovo governo. Ma, stanti le dichiarazioni della ministro della Difesa e del Premio Conte, le accoglieremo nelle nostre basi Nato e nelle loro basi americane. 2) LA MONETA CINESE VA Giù. LA GUERRA COMMERCIALE VA SU. La caduta dello yuan, ora a circa 6,7 per dollaro, solleva allarme su tutti i mercati mondiali. Il governatore della Banca Centrale cinese, Yi Gang, promette che non si saranno altri scivolamenti e giura che non si tratta di mosse deliberate nella guerra commerciale in atto con gli Stati Uniti. Ma la tendenza è visibile. Lo yuan ha perso il 3,7% verso il dollaro nel corso delle ultime tre settimane. Nonostante le smentite della Banca Centrale Cinese, a Washington crescono i sospetti cheIl movimento verso il basso della moneta cinese non sia del tutto spontaneo. 3) . IERI (2011) BOMBARDAMMO. DOMANI MANDIAMO FRONTEX PER FERMARE I MIGRANTI.Le guardie di frontiera e costiere dell'agenzia europea Frontex, che entro il 2020 contera' 10 mila unita', potrebbero condurre operazioni all'estero per il contenimento della migrazione illegale verso l'Europa. Di quali operazioni si tratterà non è del tutto chiaro. Ne ha parlato Jean-Claude Juncker nella seduta plenaria di martedi' dell'Europarlamento, precisando che simili operazioni saranno concordate con le autorita' del Paese interessato. Se l’Italia avesse rifiutato di prendere parte alla rapina a mano armata contro Gheddafi, oggi probabilmente parleremmo d’altro. 4 ) RIVOLTA DEI BISCAZZIERI UNITI CONTRO IL “DECRETO DIGNITA' DEL GOVERNOContro il “Decreto Dignità” del governo giallo-verde insorgono i “biscazzieri uniti”. In nome dell’”industria del calcio”. Industria tanto fiorente fiorente che ci ha lasciato fuori dai mondiali. E si capisce. 12 società della Serie A italiana hanno sottoscritto accordi con aziende “betting”, insomma scommesse a gogo. A occhio e croce 102 miliardi di euroPoverini, dicono che si troveranno in svantaggio rispetto ai club europei. Questo governo ha deciso- —giustamente— di difendere i propri cittadini dai danni sociali, sanitari e mentali della dipendenza patologica da gioco d’azzardo. Loro, in nome dei loro profitti, chiedono di continuare a lucrare sulle debolezze dei poveri cristi.Si arricchiscono con la pubblicità e con il gioco.E la pubblicità è il loro veleno. Il PD e la Confindustria stanno dalla parte dei biscazzieri. 5) INDIPENDENZA STRATEGICA DELL’UE? UNA FAKE NEWSApprovato in via definitiva dal Parlamento europeo il programma Edidp per lo sviluppo di iniziative industriali nel settore della difesa, con un budget di 500 milioni di euro per il biennio 2019-2020. Il programma, dice Strasburgo, può essere visto come il progetto pilota del prossimo Fondo europeo per la difesa che, con una proposta di bilancio pari a 13 miliardi di euro in 7 anni, dovrebbe contribuire all'indipendenza strategica dell’Unione. Ma se non esiste un progetto di indipendenza militare, come potrà esserci un’indipendenza strategica? Ovvio che è una fake news.