How many watched the Richard Engel special on MSNBC ?

[kentuck]

I kept thinking about it after it was over. It was thought-provoking.

What if the Russians have already accomplished what they wanted, he asked?? As the media and the Congress keep searching for the fire, perhaps it was the smoke and the confusion and the chaos that was the intended goal?

We are now, as a nation, in a state of confusion and chaos, there is little doubt.

It was interesting how they recruited and used Carter Page to serve their purposes. They thought he was an "idiot". Even today, Carter Page is in denial that he was used by the Russians. He showed how, during the campaign, when Trump was asked about his foreign policy advisers, he responded, "Carter Page, PhD". Where did he get that name??

It was an eye-opening expose, in my opinion.

[Ilsa]

1. Yeah, I saw it.

Frightening. And Putin isn't done with us yet. Donald is still a useful idiot.

[Pachamama]

2. I was very impressed how he handled Kaspersky

I thought about it a lot too after the show and wondered much of the same - that the Russians already achieved what they wanted. And meanwhile imagine how wide spread the Kapersky labs software (and malware?) is spread

[Little Star]

3. I watched & it was really informative......

Here's a short clip:

[kentuck]

4. +100

Thanks Little Star!

[mountain grammy]

5. Thanks for that.. I'll be looking for the entire interview.

Yes, they've already won.

[wishstar]

6. Carter Page is deliberately cultivating the nutty persona- he is no dunce

He is protecting himself with the goofy interviews, so no one takes seriously the idea of him being involved in the Trump/Russia collusion. Here are some of his credentials:


Page is a 1993 graduate of the United States Naval Academy. He served in the Navy for five years, including a tour as a Marine intelligence officer in the Western Sahara.After leaving the Navy, Page completed a fellowship at the Council on Foreign Relations. In 1994, he completed a master of arts degree in National Security Studies at Georgetown University.

Carter W. Page is Founder and Managing Partner of Global Energy Capital LLC, a New York-based financial institution and investment fund focused on energy investments in developing markets. He is the former Chief Operating Officer of the Energy & Power Investment Banking Group at Merrill Lynch and Deputy Branch Manager of the representative office in Moscow.

Carter is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, where he was previously an International Affairs Fellow and Co-Director of the Council’s study group on Caspian Sea energy development. He is an Adjunct Associate Professor in the Center for Global Affairs at New York University and a Fellow at the Center for National Policy in Washington.

Carter is a Distinguished Graduate of the US Naval Academy where he was a Trident Scholar. He holds an MBA from New York University’s Stern School of Business and a PhD from the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies.

[flamingdem]

7. Thanks for posting this. I agree but wonder why he was considered an idiot

by the Russians.

Not all brainy people have common sense.

Still, I think you're on to something. He may not be what he seems.

[Ilsa]

9. Thank you. I thought he was just strange,

maybe having issues with dealing with media, etc.

But it turns out that he's an actor, behaving with a veneer of innocence. He is not innocent, but calculating.

[Grammy23]

13. If he was acting, he needs to be nominated for an academy award!

I saw the interview with Chris Hayes on All In and wondered how the guy found his way out of the rain. I kept thinking ...but this guy has a PhD. How can someone with that level of education be so naive? I've known a few people with doctorates and few of them could be considered stupid. Strange? Maybe. Dumb? Uhm, no.

So maybe he has pulled off the best acting job in the world. I don't know. But if anyone ever needs an example of "useful idiot", hunt up Carter Page, PhD. He sure acts like one, even if it is just an act. I wonder if his act will keep him out of hot water with the Feds. 😂😂😂

[Justice]

8. It was very informative.

Engel builds on layers from Rachel's show. Much seems like hiding in plain sight.

See this article about Kaspersky
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-kasperskylab-probe-idUSKBN1AD2H0
Exclusive: Congress asks U.S. agencies for Kaspersky Lab cyber documents - Kaspersky not supposed to be used on US govt. equipment but no one knows about subcontractors

Committee making request is U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Science, Space and Technology - not Intelligence?

Kaspersky Lab, founded in 1997 and now counts over 400 million global customers. Launched free anti-virus software offering yesterday!

[Adrahil]

10. Yes. Chilling. NT

[Borchkins]

11. Scary shit.

[Polly Hennessey]

12. I did.

Very good; very frightening.

[politicat]

14. I did, and keep thinking about it.

In no particular order:

1) Kaspersky himself desperately *WANTS* to believe that he's independent and not in the thrall. He's absorbed the geek ethic. But he's self-deluding. He knows his hands aren't in the code anymore. He should know he cannot guarantee that his company hasn't been infiltrated and flipped. If he was serious about the source code offer, it would be on GitHub now. He's not, because he has to have doubts, no matter what he wants and needs to believe, and so can't test his faith. There's almost zero chance that some developers and QA at K haven't been flipped.

2) The senator is either delusional about actual international law or lying. Any country can make banking regulations for their own country, which is what the Magnitsky Act does; that other countries choose to abide by those regulations is not us making law for the world, it's the world choosing to follow the same regulations. Also, any country can seize property if it is being used in the service of espionage or other crimes. They violated our laws in our land. He can be offended all he likes, but the International Courts have ruled on this multiple times.

3) Russia doesn't much care about outcome; it's all about the chaos. They've got a lot of pent-up resentment because nobody recognizes their greatness. It's a larger, but somewhat quieter version of what Lil Kim of the DPRK is doing -- yelling until someone respects mah authoriteh!! But we also underestimated them by writing them off as a gas station posing as a nation. They're not. They're a smaller economy than California, have fewer people than the US on either side of the Mississippi, have minimal global industry now (no major pharma, tech, manufacturing, or other industries other than oil and weapons) and don't have the internal resources to be an empire because they don't have the population or the infrastructure to support an empire. They know they can't win, but if they can bring the playing field down to their level, they might be able to compete. And by enveloping us in internal chaos, they're bringing down the field.

4) Carter Page is desperately clinging to the idea that he hasn't been used. He's like someone who knows their minister has been diddling the little kids and embezzling the collection plate, but he really believes in the church, and so is dealing with a conflict by denying there is a problem. It's not that he's stupid; it's that he is not introspective and thinks he must believe everything he thinks. He is supersaturated in issues; if he allows even a molecule of doubt into his perspective, his entire worldview will crystallize into Oh SHIT. So he's willfully denying everything to preserve his own self-concept.

[Raster]

15. I recommend THIS POST!