From the Trenches World Report

RT News

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel’s reported plan to scale back the US Army to its smallest numbers since World War II, as well as slashing pay and perks for service personnel, promises to be an uphill battle in Congress.

After more than a decade of fighting two protracted wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the US military is showing some wear and tear, at least on the budgetary front. In an effort to adhere to President Obama’s pledge of scaling back military operations abroad, compounded by the grim reality of austerity measures following years of prodigious spending, the epoch of expensive US overseas military occupations appears to have waned, according to the New York Times.    Continue reading “US military plans steep cutbacks, roils ranks”

RT News

Gun makers in the United States produced a record number of weapons in 2012, as new government data suggests Democratic presidents may actually be a boon to firearms manufacturers.

According to numbers released by US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, more than 8.5 million guns were produced in 2012, compared to about 6.5 million in 2011. That’s a 31 percent increase, and the highest number recorded since the agency began tracking gun production in 1986.   Continue reading “Gun production in US sets new record with 30 percent increase”

WND

Lt. Gen. Ion Mihai Pacepa was the highest-ranking Soviet bloc intelligence official ever to defect to the West. He exposed the massive crimes and corruption of his former boss, Romanian President Nicolae Ceauescu, giving the dictator a nervous breakdown and prompting him to post two different million-dollar bounties on Pacepa’s head and send assassination squads to the U.S. to find his former spy chief and kill him. Pacepa, at 85, today lives in the U.S. as a “proud American citizen.”   Continue reading “Ex-commie spymaster warns of rapid ‘American descent’”

The Truth Wins – by Michael Snyder

Is Pope Francis taking steps that are laying the groundwork for the emergence of a one world religion?  If that question sounds quite bizarre to you, I urge you to read the rest of this article.  We live at a time when globalization is advancing rapidly.  The global economy is more integrated than it has ever been before, and with each passing year new economic treaties tie us even more closely together.  And “global governance” (as the elite like to call it) is also steadily gaining ground.  Through a whole host of global institutions such as the United Nations, the World Bank, the IMF and the Bank for International Settlements, global governments are working together to a degree that is unprecedented.  Well, what about religion?  Is there evidence that we are also witnessing the globalization of religion?  Well, yes there is.  In fact, it appears that Pope Francis intends to lead the way.   Continue reading “Pope Francis And The Emerging One World Religion”

Truth Dig

Lest we forget that religion can provide a powerful cover for those looking to abuse the trust of believers, The New Jersey Star-Ledger reports that a local archdiocese built a lavish addition to an archbishop’s retirement home two years after closing a school for alleged lack of funds.   Continue reading “Newark Archbishop Gets $500K Home Upgrade After Parish School Closure”

IPS – by Carey L. Biron

WASHINGTON, Feb 19 2014 (IPS) – An estimated 400 million acres of farmland in the United States will likely change hands over the coming two decades as older farmers retire, even as new evidence indicates this land is being strongly pursued by private equity investors.

Mirroring a trend being experienced across the globe, this strengthening focus on agriculture-related investment by the private sector is already leading to a spike in U.S. farmland prices. Coupled with relatively weak federal policies, these rising prices are barring many young farmers from continuing or starting up small-scale agricultural operations of their own.   Continue reading “Half of U.S. Farmland Being Eyed by Private Equity”

Reuters UK

TRIPOLI (Reuters) – Libya’s 340,000 barrels-per-day El Sharara oilfield has been completely shut down since Thursday night due to violent clashes with protesters, the state-run National Oil Corporation said on Saturday.

The key El Sharara field located in the remote south has been repeatedly closed by armed groups and protesters as a way to pressure Libya’s weak central government into political and financial demands.   Continue reading “Protesters shut Libya’s El Sharara oilfield in setback for government”

Aydinlik

In what has become a routine occurrence in Turkey, riot squad police attacked demonstrators, citizens and tourists alike in an attempt to suppress a protest against the recently-passed internet law.

Turkey continues sizzling with anti-government protests. The most striking in recent history began In June 2013 over plans to demolish the only remaining tree-filled area in Taksim, Istanbul. Nine months and several government scandals later, a similar feeling is in the air, this time over the internet censorship implemented by President Abdullah Gül on 18 February.    Continue reading “Istanbul and Ankara Internet Protests Suppressed”

Truth Dig

Failing to win a mandate from Venezuelans in elections over the last few years, the leaders of the country’s mainstream, U.S.-backed opposition are exploiting discontent among the population in an effort to topple the democratically elected government, sociologist Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya writes.   Continue reading “‘What You Should Know About the… Protests in Venezuela’”

Alt Thai News

February 23, 2014 (ATN) – Coordinated grenade and gun attacks have been carried out across Thailand by the regime ofUS-backed Thaksin Shinawatra and his nepotist proxy, sister Yingluck Shinawatra in an attempt to quell growing dissent that now includes rice farmers once considered the foundation of the regime’s support. Among those dead and maimed were children. A grisly attack in the eastern province of Trat left scores maimed and a five-year old girl dead. A similar attack carried out in Bangkok left many maimed along with a woman and 12 year old boy dead.   Continue reading “Thailand: Regime Terror Campaign Intensifies”

Natural Society – by Christina Sarich

Whole Foods maintains a list of ‘Unacceptable Ingredients” which includes everything from MSG to high fructose corn syrup. It also includes artificial colors, artificial preservatives, hydrogenated fats, etc. You can see the whole list, updated periodically, here. But did you know that about 54% of the products sold in stores like Walmart would be banned from Whole Foods due to containing dangerous ingredients? Check out the real differences below.   Continue reading “Dangerous Ingredients: 54% of Food Sold at Walmart is Banned by Whole Foods Market”

Jon Rappoport

A recent study proposes that gluten intolerance and celiac disease are on the rise as a result of glyphosate, the main ingredient in Monsanto’s Roundup herbicide.

The National Library of Medicine states that celiac disease “damages the lining of the small intestine and prevents it from absorbing parts of food that are important for staying healthy. The damage is due to a reaction to eating gluten, which is found in wheat, barley, rye, and possibly oats.”   Continue reading “Study: Monsanto’s Roundup causes “gluten intolerance””

RiaNovosti

WASHINGTON, February 23 (RIA Novosti) – A senior US official on Sunday warned Moscow not to send troops into Ukraine amid the political crisis gripping Russia’s ex-Soviet neighbor, saying such a move would constitute a “grave mistake.”

“It’s not in the interests of Ukrainian or of Russia or of Europe or the United States to see the country split. It’s in nobody’s interest to see violence returned and the situation escalate,” White House National Security Adviser Susan Rice said in an interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press.”   Continue reading “Obama Official Warns Russia on Military Action in Ukraine”

Zero Hedge – by Tyler Durden

Before the Ukraine, there was Syria. Before Syria, there was Iran. For over 30 years, Iran was the perpetual strawman of every attempt to escalate hostilities in the middle east. One only needs to recall that the original “red line” was not Obama’s but that of Israel’s PM Netanyahu referring to Iran’s nuclear program (which most likely was under the control of Stuxnet, and thus the NSA, more than it was Iran’s to begin with).   Continue reading “US And Israel Quietly Provide Military Support And Parts To Iran, Which In Turn Is Arming Syria”

Daily Sheeple – by Lily Dane

The New Mexico State Police and the Albuquerque Police Department have come under fire in recent years for unjustified use of excessive force and for police-involved shootings.

Incidents have occurred with enough frequency in the state to trigger a Department of Justice investigation that launched in 2012 and is still ongoing.   Continue reading “Warning to Residents of New Mexico: Your Police Are Being Taught to Use More Deadly Force”