Geopolitics, The Escalation Scam, And More

We’ve been watching the collective West’s drive to escalate for weeks now. But, is that exactly the right way to describe what’s going on? Let me try to explain what I mean.

The collective West’s actions—provision of increasing amounts of weapons and of NATO boots on the ground, increasingly sophisticated technical support, increasing direction, outrageous actions such as sabotage on Russian territory (most recently, the Kerch bridge), and most egregiously the sabotage of the Nordstream pipeline—have all been gauged to provoke a major reaction from Russia. A reaction that could prove terrifying to the public of the collective West. Some of have suggested that, if Russia cannot be provoked into the desired level of reaction to these provocations, there might be the possibility of a false flag tactical nuclear event being staged inside Ukraine that could be blamed on Russia.

What is the object? Could it be to justify actual NATO direct and overt involvement in the fighting? That seems hard to believe—the military consequences might prove extremely dicey, not to mention uncontrollable. Could the thinking be that major Russian reactions might justify the provision of more strategically—as opposed to tactically—capable weapon systems? Systems that could reach inside Russia? That too, while more likely, seems hard to believe. To do so would invite even more serious Russian retaliation and a cycle of escalation that could, once again, spiral out of control.

Note one feature of all this. The party must likely to suffer the gravest effects from provoking Russian reaction on a major scale is … Ukraine. Russia is not likely to attack NATO members directly on their own soil, although covert operations or third party involvement is not out of the question.

This leaves us with the suspicion that the purpose of seeking to provoke significant reactions from Russia is aimed primarily at the domestic public in the collective West. The object being: To convince the public that Putin is such an existential threat that they have no choice but to tough it out through the coming long, cold winter. By the same token, this dynamic explains why Putin continues to decline to accept the collective West’s escalation gambit. He wants the public in the West—which is increasingly disenchanted with the backfiring sanctions, not to mention alarmed at what is shaping up for the future—to understand that there is an off ramp to all this. The decision is up to the political ruling elite, but public pressure can help clarify these issues in ways that even the ruling elite cannot mistake.

Pepe Escobar points to this dynamic in an article about the pipeline sabotage:

Escobar: Nord Stream 2 Offers Germany A Date With Destiny

The twists and turns of the Nord Stream 2 (NS2) saga have yielded yet another stunning game-changer...

It started with Gazprom revealing that the Line B string of NS2 is intact; not only it escaped Pipeline Terror but may “potentially” be used to pump gas to Germany.

That confirms once again that NS2 is an engineering marvel. In fact the whole system: the pipes are so strong they were not broken, but merely punctured.

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Novak followed up, with a caveat: restoration of the whole system, including NS, is possible, and “requires time and appropriate funds”. But first, in Russia’s order of priorities, the perpetrators must be conclusively identified.

Sources in Moscow confirmed Gazprom’s assessment of NS2. Even Bloomberg had to report it.

Subsequently in Vienna, attending the Opec+ meeting, Novak remarked the Russian Federation is “ready to supply gas through the second line of Nord Stream 2. This is possible if necessary”.

So we know it’s possible. “Necessary” will depend on a political decision by Germany.

Novak also sharply noted that neither Russia nor the Nord Stream operators are allowed to investigate Pipeline Terror. Russia insists that without its participation the investigation is flawed.

In other words, the German public is being informed that all adverse consequences—and they will be many and severe—will be the result of deliberate choice on the part of their rulers. The German public can make their own choice: Grin and bear it or … take more direct action to change things.

Now, here’s an interesting segment from Joe Rogan. It’s only 14 minutes long. If you choose to watch it, be sure to watch to the end. I happened to particularly like the part where Lindsey! is talking to the Ukies. Instead of Su casa, mi casa he tells them: Your fight is our fight. By “our” he means you and me and the rest of America. And, no, we don’t get to vote on that. There is no vote on that. Because. Other people decide that stuff, and consultation and so forth simply gets in the way. I’d seen the clip before, but the reminder is always welcome. It’s from 2017. This has been in the works for many years.

Speaking of nukes and all that jazz … this article has two nice graphics re, who has ‘em and where they are:

Here's Where US Nuclear Bombs Are Stored In Europe

Now, on to broader culture war issues—but, as we saw yesterday, it all ties in together.

At Rorate Coeli, a Catholic site, there’s an item today that addresses the current crisis in what used to be known as the Catholic Church—if you don’t like what I’m saying, talk to Cardinal Mueller about it. I bring this item up because it addresses the way in which late medieval Nominalism fed into Modern subjectist philosophies, especially the German ones. This development had wide ranging effects in all areas of life—culture, politics, education, you name it, as I tried to express yesterday:

60 Years of Vatican II - ‘THE COUNCIL AND THE ECLIPSE OF GOD' by Don Pietro Leone - CHAPTER 10: The Causes of Council Teaching

For Catholics and non- alike I say, be patient and you’ll see why I’m recommending this. It may take a bit of effort.

As it happens, Rod Dreher today makes a brief reference to the same topic (Fighting For The Real). I’m not interested in defending everything Dreher says. The point is that the historical context he’s referring to is absolutely crucial to understanding why the collective West is the way it is today:

One of the most difficult things to get used to as a Western convert to Orthodox Christianity is that the Orthodox mind has never accepted the sacred-vs-secular model. McGilchrist is not a theologian, and doesn’t get into nominalism, voluntarism, and the other developments in late medieval Western theology that did not affect the Christian East, because of the Great Schism. I first became truly aware of the shift when I read Dante for the first time, and encountered a metaphysical scheme that was recognizably Orthodox. Dante’s theological mind was certainly formed by Scholasticism, but he wrote just before nominalism and voluntarism burst onto the scene, and began (unintentionally) the desacralization and disenchantment of the Western mind.

If you want to read more from the original Meaning and History blog you can start here and explore via the tags at the bottom of the entries. This link may be even better—if you’re interested.

Finally—and this is definitely not just for Catholics—there’s a video at The Remant (45 minutes) that may prove rewarding for many readers. I can’t embed it, so you’ll need to follow the link. It’s a good illustration of how just about everything that’s going on in the collective West fits together, like a complicated jigsaw puzzle:

THE GREAT RESIST: From Cardinal Müller to Giorgia Meloni & from Musk to Putin

In this special edition of The Remnant Underground, Michael Matt looks at the conservative political figures Pope Francis has tried to destroy---from Trump, to Le Pen, to Salvini and now to Georgia Meloni, Italy's new Catholic prime minister.

Why does Francis hate all the good guys?

Plus, a startling speech by Vladimir Putin on September 30, 2022 in Moscow -- combined with a Biden/Zelensky move to bring on World War III -- shakes down the whole Ukrainian narrative, and forces us all to ask the hard question: "You don't suppose we're the baddies?"

Finally, an blockbuster interview shakes down Pope Francis's entire synodal Church of Accompaniment. You don't want to miss the former head of the CDF Gerhard Cardinal Müller's declaration of war on those inside the Vatican who are "occupying the Catholic Church" and in fact engaging in a "hostile takeover."

Warns Müller: If we don't RESIST, Team Francis will destroy the Catholic Church!

As with Dreher, I add that I don’t endorse everything that Matt says.