Crisis Point: Putin, The West, and the Game Being PlayedJames Holbrooks The West is closing in. Ive heard Vladimir Putin referred to as The Chessmaster. Ive never sat at the board with the man so I cant say for certain this is apt. But it does seem like the Russian leaders moves of late have been carefully thought-out and even more carefully executed. In September of 2013, as the United States war machine was pressing for military intervention in Syria in the wake of a chemical gas attack on that countrys people, Russia swooped in with an offer to oversee the destruction of Syrias chemical weapons. In the face of such blatant sanity, the American warmongers had no choice but to agree to the proposal. Just a few months later, in December, Russia offered its struggling neighbor and former Soviet fellow Ukraine a $15 billion bailout if it would reverse its march toward the European Union. This forced the war architects hand. By February of the following year a Western-backed coup had ousted the democratically elected Ukrainian president, and a pro-Western puppet by the name of Poroshenko was installed in June. Now, after another year of Western provocations including everything from military exercises to accusations that it helped blow an airplane out of the sky, Russia has finally struck. On Wednesday Europeans received a jarring wakeup call when Putin ordered state-run energy giant Gazprom to cut its flow of natural gas to Ukraineand through Ukraine, much of Europedue to nonpayment. Hence forth, says Putin, the gas will flow through a planned pipeline toward Turkey. If Europe wants to tap into that pipe theyll need to build the infrastructure needed to link up. End of discussion. Bam. The effects were felt immediately and the whole situation highlights the type of game being played here. The American-led West charges forward in show after show of brute strength, only to be rebuffed at each turn by a calculated move from the Russian president. Chessmaster? I cant say. But hes putting up an impressive defense. Not that the Gazprom move was breathtakingly insightful or anything. The EUs dependence on Russian gas was a soft spot Putin couldve hit blindfolded. The EU as a whole, in fact, has become a sizable weakness in the Western armor. And perhaps some of its member nations are beginning to realize this. Wasnt it the French leader a couple weeks back who was suggesting it may be time to end the EU sanctions against Russia? Id ask Hollande, but hes busy dealing with a bout of terrorism right now. Funny timing, that. The sheer recklessness of the Western assault can be seen in whats happening to the price of oil. In a move meant to hurt the Russian economy, American ally Saudi Arabia began flooding the oil markettoward the tail end of 2014 in order to slash the price of crude. The idea was that Russia, heavily dependent upon oil exports, would suffer. What the geniuses crafting US strategy apparently failed to consider, however, was that China, the worlds number one oil importerand Russias strongest allywould reap huge savings in the process. Not to mention the fact that lowering prices have had adevastating effect on the once-booming shale oil industry here in the states. None of this is news to anyone even half-assedly paying attention to geopolitics. But heres the thing They cant stop. The West needs war. Its doomed without it. The central banking scam upon which its power is rooted has reached its absolute limit. And with Russia and the other BRICS nations New Development Bankemerging as a serious threat to their global dominance, the solution has been nail-bitingly clear to Western oligarchs for quite some time. Warin particular, a world war with those countries who would dare turn from the dollarwould reset the books. The problem, as earlier stated, is that The Chessmaster sees this as clearly as anyone. Hes studied the board and is three moves ahead of his enemy. The West is simply outclassed, and they know it. But they cant stop. War is an imperative. And so they inevitably resort to the method employed by thieves and liars throughout the agesthey cheat. The downing of MH17 in July, which US officials immediately blamed on Russian-backed rebels, wassoundly proven to have been pulled off by the American-backed junta in Kiev. Remember all the screaming from those same officials about how the Russian military was building up along the Ukrainian border? Well, teams of international inspectors who repeatedly visited that border reported that, yeah, not so much. And does anyone recall that Russian aid convoy purported to have been smuggling military personnel into Ukraine last August? Turns out the trucks were full of things like medicine, baby food and sleeping bagsthe type of stuff Russia had been claiming was in the trucks all alongmeant for the war-torn people of eastern Ukraine. And through it all the Western corporate media was there to toe the line. Thing is, were a bit too savvy these days. You know, the global political awakening and all that jazz. And yet, they cant stop. War is an imperative. So the question we should be asking ourselves is the same one the architects have been asking, I suspect, for a while now What is it gonna take? They can no longer lie us into war, but they can no longer survive without it. So whats to be done? Unfortunately forwell, everyonehistory has shown us that nothingabsolutely nothingis beyond the will of the cabal of psychopaths thatve gripped the planetary reins for centuries now. Not even world leaders are off the table for these people. They tried to take out Andrew Jackson after he was re-elected on the slogan of Jackson and No Bank. They succeeded in popping Lincoln when he refused their loans during the War of Northern Aggression. They took out Franz Ferdinand to kick off the First World War. Then theres JFK and his heretical monetary ideas. And do we need to go through the list of Middle Eastern and African leaders thatve been, shall we say, replaced? America needs war, and they need it now. Nothing theyve tried thus far has gained traction. They need to go bigger. And in most American minds it doesnt get any bigger than the Oval Office. So the question Im asking now is Are they desperate enough to assassinate a sitting president of the United States? As insane as that may be to read, believe me, it was just as insane to write. But I think its a question worth considering. Look at the hyper-nationalism that took hold after the September 11 attacks. Thats what they need: a citizenry so traumatized and enraged that the warmongers can point to something, anything (such as a certain Eurasian country), as the culprit. Maybe, just maybe, they think taking out a president would finally get us to go along. Its the Petraeus thing that did it. Just doesnt wash. You want me to believe theyre trying to bring thehammer down on the former Director of the CIA for the egregious crime of having pillow talk with his girlfriend? I dont buy it. And something else occurs to me. Remember Obamas purge of top military brass in 2013? At the time, speculation as to motive ran wild, from something as frightening as a conspiracy involving nuclear weapons to something as relatively benign as Obama simply feeling the axed werent politically correct enough. Whatever the case, it was clear that the boss wasnt happy and had no qualms about making a scene. But dont worry. Im sure the sweethearts of the military-industrial complex were cool with that whole deal. Look at history. Look at half the plots in military science fiction novels. It isnt exactly a foreign concept. First comes the purge from the paranoid leader, then comes the coup from the disrespected commanders. And that leads me to this I see striking parallels between the situation with Petraeus, a four-star general and one of the most highly decorated military figures in America, and that of Marine Corps Major General Smedley Butler, who at the time of his death in 1940 was the most decorated marine in United States history. In 1934 Butler testified before a special committee of the House of Representatives. He claimed hed been approached by a group of powerful businessmen about leading a military coup against Franklin Roosevelt with the end result being the installation of a fascist dictatorship. All of the accused denied the charges and Butlers account was ridiculed in the media, though the committees final report suggested there was much truth to the war heros story. Indeed, the fact that the two-time Medal of Honor award winner isnt a household name on par with Eisenhower and Patton speaks volumes. Petraeus isnt squawking about some grand conspiracy, of course. At least, not that we know of. But think about it. If the call was yours to make, who would you get to lead a coup against the president in a climate of endless war, spying, intelligence gathering and blackmail? At a minimum, the director of the Central Intelligence Agencyand, up until an ugly scandal, an honored military manwould be on a very short list of names for the job. Blackmail. Now theres a thought. Could that be what these pending charges against Petraeus are really about? Are they using the threat of the cage to remind him to keep his mouth shut? This man was masterminding military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan before he ascended to the helm of the CIA. Can you imagine the secrets stored away in his head? Does he know what was truly behind Obamas military purge? Was he approached about leading a coup against the president? Is he being hung out to dry now because he refused the offer? And if so, why now? The affair with his biographer was made public back in 2012. Why the threat of charges here in 2015? Is something about to happen? I know what youre thinking. Im thinking it, too. Crazy, right? But lets be honest, its happened before. Theres no reason to think it couldnt happen again, especially considering the crisis point at which the power junkies appear to have found themselves. And at the end of the day, can we really put it past them to try such a move? And theres something else. Another potential gain that couldve been factored into the cost-benefit analysis regarding the assassination of Barack Obamadivision. Its clear they want a race war in America. They want the lines to be drawn between colors, and they want us to draw those lines ourselves. Its the strategy of divide and conquer, and at the moment their tool of choice seems to be law enforcement. Through racially-sensitive cases such as that of Mike Brown and Eric Garner, theyre working to make us believe police abuse is solely about skin pigment. It was recentlyrevealed that liberal billionaire and oft-accused globalist conspirator George Soros bankrolled dozens of different groups of Ferguson, Missouri demonstrators, to the tune of $33 million, so as to push the national debate about institutional racism. Imagine now, in the midst of this orchestrated racial hysteria, that the first mixed-race president of these united states is assassinated. Imagine, if you dare, how they might use such an event. This is just one guy talking out loud, of course. Just someone making observations. And in truth, I hope Im wrong. About all of it. The world would be a much safer place if that were the case. But ultimately, it doesnt really matter what I think. It does, however, matter what The Chessmaster thinks. And I wonder How many moves ahead is he in the game? Does he see the threat of being tied to a presidential assassination, and if so, what type of action is he planning to counter it? I believe these questions matter. Because, when you strip away the nonsense, the most important relationship to the health of the planet is the one between the United States and Russia. Theres simply no way around that. And heres something else theres no way around Vladimir Putin is a thug. Hes a monster like all the rest. The fact that hes a far more cunning and intelligent monster is no reason to celebrate him. That would be a mistake on our part. I focus on him here only as a means to shed light on a deadly situation. But we should never forget that given the chance, Putin would be every bit the dictator that John McCain dreams about being every night. How does the saying go? Those who seek power are those least worthy of it? Its something like that. I swear. James Holbrooks is a professional writer and editor. You can find his work or hire him atHolbrooksWordsmithing.com where this article first appeared. Follow James on Twitter. great article, thanks for sharing Seems plausible, but there many other ways this could go down, like another 9/11 false flag. Maybe Petraeus is resisting letting this happen. Wouldnt Biden be a lose cannon? Hang onto your hats[ guns] boys its gonna be a bumpy ride. Well written and well thought out. There is just one problem with this theory, though. Fat-ass Americans couldnt, or wouldnt, be bothered. Another US president assassinated? Yawn. Plus Obama is a clone so there would be no blood. They would just ramp up their laboratories and manufacture another Obama making sure this time to get his ears in the right place. I like your writing James Holbrooks. I think you are on the right track. There is something coming and most (like myself) are pointing at a nuclear war (on American soil, as I see it). But something is not right about this theory as well. My thinking was that USA would nuke itself. A false flag to top all the recent false flags that seem to be happening on a daily basis. But then, no. Its something else. CERN going bezerk and wiping out the universe as one desperate act of war against the human race, planet Earth and a great loving God who seems to have gone walkabout (but has not).does come to mind. Look for the link between Petraeus and the dead chief investigator in France http://www.whatdoesitmean.com/index1831.htm Seems plausible, indeed. I could see an assassination being blamed on home-grown islamic extremists, giving the PTB an excuse to write up a new, improved version of the Patriot Act one that allows them to quash any resistance they can (now) go freely looking for. Simple as, You dont agree with what were doing?! EXTREMIST!!! Not terribly interested in the possibility of an American assination on home soil, though I guess it could happen. The reaminder of article I found interesting. Not sure about the thug bit though Yes Putin appears very clever, though after reading the following link, I would venture to say that he is colluding with others in coming up with these clever strategies. it all ties in with SOC and even Turkey (that the writer noted) is closely tied in with SOC, although not yet a fully fledged member. The following article should put everyone in the picture of the battle between East and West and what is being done by the East to avoid war at all costsnot becaue they couldnt necessarily wion on that front (I think they could though) but to effectively destroy the IMF/WorldBank Nato thuggery and enslavement that currently grips and strangles most nations.. Do see this..if you dont yow will hear all about it in the near future anyway.. http://www.silverdoctors.com/united-eurasia-pt-2-the-powerful-organization-that-no-one-is-talking-about/ Putin did not stop the flow of Gas to Ukraine! He is going to have all gas go through Turkey. To understand Putin read Mike Kings The War Against Putin you can find it on Amazon. Israel is behind all of it, those Zionist Jews own all of it, including the Banks. The Same coin but a different face: Mossad, CIA, M5, M16. James Holbrooks: Vladimir Putin is a thug. Hes a monster like all the rest. The fact that hes a far more cunning and intelligent monster is no reason to celebrate him. That would be a mistake on our part. I focus on him here only as a means to shed light on a deadly situation. But we should never forget that given the chance, Putin would be every bit the dictator that John McCain dreams about being every night. Sure, Putins a monster (with an 82% approval rating!) There are still people in Russia who approve of and are nostalgic about Joe (killed at least 20 million) Stalin. Approval ratings are bull. The low down on Putin is extremely difficult to gauge. In the analysis of politicians one almost always finds a psychopath/sociopath. And this is probably a given about Vlad. He sure aint gonna be St. Vlad, not if he started out as a KGB operative in communist West Germany. Dimitri, dont compare Vladimir Putin to the mass murderer (20+ million) Josef Stalin. Stalin was an evil, paranoid monster; Putin is not. He may have started out as a KGB officer in W. Germany; but the position he held was that of an ANALYST, not an agent. In other words, he sat behind a desk; he didnt go around snooping on people or killing them. I picture Putin in a room ordering false flag attacks to be blamed on Chechens, as he did, and then ordering the assassination of whistle blower Alexander Litvinenko via radioactive polonium poisoning. I also picture Putin calling for IMF international bankster intervention in the Ukraine, passing draconian laws against peaceful protesters, and signing into law a requirement that all bloggers register with the Russian government. He has millions of dollars in banks outside of Russia and is chummy with Henry Kissinger. Putin is on record saying regional governments must be formed as essential bricks in the new international economic order, is on board with Agenda 21, smart grid, FATCA, G20 FSB bail in provisions, and global tax proposals. And much more that tells us he serves the international bankers. You dont think the apex globalists who provided essential financial and material support to Hitler and the Russian Bolsheviks (communists) and created and control modern day China wouldnt have been continuously working behind the scenes to capture Russias political and economic foundation? We are dealing with a global mafia playing elaborate rounds of good cop bad cop theater domestically and internationally. If the masses get wrapped up in one layer of theatrics in the apex globalists N-dimensional chess game putting all their energy into a major distraction and scapegoat creation for more of the same, it will be to our detriment as freedom activists. BTW, the end game is Technocracy and that requires a minimum level of per capita resources, capital, and energy. The fragile global economy and necessary infrastructure cannot withstand an engineered large scale war (WWIII scenario) and still support the endgame, hence we have Gladio 2.0 and Biowar (Ebola) 1.0. Good article but I dont agree with your final assertion that Putin is a thug and monster. Putin is the JFK of this century taking on the banksters and their western Zionist puppet leaders. Putins Russia and China are the biggest threat to the elites global govt NWO Exactly. Do you think the Rothschilds could be over levered in their over confidence in trying to control the planet. Could the Rothschilds be over extended in their devilish plans for control of this planet? Why would the NWO create China and at the minimum support the Soviets only to have them become their biggest threat? Take a look at the work of academic Antony Sutton and those who followed through on his research. The world and the history of geopolitics is far more complicated than you realize or acknowledge. The war on terror is bogus, its all manufactured Zionist terrorism Of course war on terror is bogus, thats red pill 101, right? Yes the international banksters who rule the world are evil incarnate Zionists, among other apt descriptions. That does not change the FACT that these same banksters control Chinas and Russias elite. You are buying into good cop bad cop geopolitical theater, right out of Orwells 1984 faux rival superstates meme. Theres tons of evidence, follow the trail, its there but it takes time and discernment. Start with James Corbett, think deeply about Suttons research, check out the work of Patrick Wood mentored by Sutton, and others. CMRedwood clearly sees the bigger picture. There are no good guys only the evil NWO. youre an idiot Anyone who thinks Putin is not a thug clearly have not studied the mans past. Monster? Well, who isnt at some level?Monster is a childish adjective. Please read up the history of Putin. (such as it is).he is indeed like the rest of them, but has a better PR guy. Im totally with you on this one, Brian. Putin is no thug; a chessmaster, yes, but no thug. Hes a heralded statesman, a saviour of Russia, after the disastrous rule of his predecessor, Boris Yeltsin. Putin can be best compared with the murdered 35th POTUS, John F. Kennedy, who also took on the banksters and their best ally, Israel. As you said, Russia and China are the biggest threats to the elites global govt NWO. The taken out leader of the African country that wanted to have a gold based currency, was not a thug. He would have saved Africa from the rape of the city of London, and the over levered Rothschilds Just saying.. Its very easy. Speaking about V Putin, Its a typical American way of judging somebody without understanding and studying such a figure in the historical context. You described all geopolitical events around the world in black and white, with all the neo colonial brutality of Anglo Saxon group toward their vassals but its a little bit more complicated. What we is observing right now is the crushing of a one polar world of domination and slavery headed by USA and slow moving toward a new political and economical system of a fair cooperation based on a mutual respect, recognition of sovereign rights and self determination. War of Northern Aggression? Homeschooled much? Would you rather call it the war of the Federal government against the states? All the states. At the end of that illegal war of aggression by the war criminal Lincoln, all the states had lost their sovereignty. You must have been schooled in the government indoctrination centers known as public schools. So was I but I never let my schooling interfere with my education. Putin is a thug, just smarter at it than the western morons. We are all dead. Extremely speculative, as noted by the author himself, but I believe someone else- Paul Craig Roberts?- also mentioned America was about due for a major false flaggy incident. I dont think Obama would be the target considering over half the country would basically applaud it. Maybe blowing up a national monument or a big mall attack killing civilians, although I guess a national monument would probably include civilians too, so, win-win for tptsb. Whats clear is nothing is sacred to the psychopaths in charge but power, American power, and if war is needed, they need to galvanize public support for a major war, and what better then the tried and true. I suspect that the end-game is far less speculative. Poroshenko is beginning his ethnic cleansing programme in E Ukraine. Putin has said We will not allow this to happen. He knows that Russia will not forgive him if he allows fellow Russians to be butchered. He also knows that if Novorossiya goes down, Crimea will be next on the agenda. I agree we are at the gates of global war, but I fully expected a Russian military response during the first Ukrainian offensive, which never happened- just underground, stealthy, apparently private-run arming and training of Novorossian forces plus volunteers from the Russian army and others from around the world, fully of their own free will, and Im certain plenty of intel and maybe some advisers. So, I dont exactly EXPECT a military response from the RF unless theres a slaughter of the Russian people in East Ukraine, forcing Putins hand. The Donbas forces proved their medal by repelling the idiotic full-frontal assaults of the Ukie army and associated Nazi battalions, and I hope they will again, although since the ceasefire the Ukes have had plenty of time to receive more training, weapons, and planning from NATO/US/Blackwater/CIA goons, and replenish their decimated forces, although as Saker points out, screw all the weapons and tech and give me motivated fighters defending their homeland, thats the key. I havent been following the Ukraine situation much since said ceasefire so if youve got anything to add, or points against my argument, Im more than happy to listen- Im not exactly trying to dispute youre contention or argue, I guess Im going off what happened before. I do agree in the medium to long run it looks like there will be armed hostilities with Russia, its just the timing I wonder about and the trigger event, which really could happen at any moment simply by mistaken/misinterpreted actions by either side. Time will tell. Aw, you were doing well until you got to the end and returned to your regularly scheduled programming. Yes, a well-written, even entertaining article but why spoil it by denigrating Putin in the last few lines??? I first surmised it was sarcasm, but then, NO it was not. Mr Holbrooks, Putin is NOT a thug, never was or will be, no matter how the pathetic a holes of the West shout and scream that he is Brian Concannon, you said it well and your response, in essence, should have been Holbrooks tailpiece, but unfortunately he killed his essay stone dead by resorting to, what is known globally as common Putin bashing, which can never diminish the stature of a global statesman such as Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin. The world not only respects Putin. They love him. Very simple. That is how disinformation works. Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin are working towards one goal the destruction of the New World Order. Putin stands up for his people and country, that is more than can be said for any puppet head of state in the NATO nest of vipers. Ever after the obamister was placed in office, I had an uneasy feeling that the man behind the curtain might have ill plans for him in order to start a race war in America. Never considered they might blame it on Russia and Putin. Now I am worried. American sheep need to understand that the so called American empire has never been about or for the benefit of the American sheep. American sheep would be much better served to follow George Washingtons advice and avoid all foreign entanglements. Come back inside our borders and work at taking care of our people and repairing the crumbling structures of business, roads and such. If Americans keep their noses clean for a few centuries, perhaps the rest of the world will forgive the evil that has been done in Americas name. Good independent thinking in this article however presidential assassinations are so last century and as far as a coup goes with the 2000 election of Bush it can be said been there done that. The thugs are in DC/Tel Aviv/UK This man was masterminding military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan before he ascended to the helm of the CIA. Masterminding is not a word I would use to describe the guys handling of these pseudo wars. Zero gain other than lots of dead people. To then proceed with the obligatory vilification of Putin, well, that dog dont hunt from my perspective. It should be Putin the mastermind and Petraeus the thug and monster. For that matter, the squeaky clean General Butler would be astounded to find himself compared to the shifty Petraeus. The dual citizen scum in Washington and their goose stepping peers definitely see war as a way out of a hanging, Ill give the author that. If there is any conspiracy to overthrow the elected government of the US, methinks Petraeus would be PART OF IT, not opposing it. Your revelation that Putin is a thug is outrageous and discredits your article with that assertion. You accuse him of thuggery and yet, you give no proof. Just another well times smear campaign to cover your ass with everything you said before that assertion. If Putin wanted to be a dictator, he could have easily done so in the past few years. Russia is known for its coups and plots in the past when it was the Soviet Union. Putin might still be the one man that can save the planet from extinction with the war the Americans are frothing at the mouth for. Be thankful he is there! After reading through the comments on this post I am surprised at how many readers took offense over Putin is a thug. There seems to be so many apologists for a man that is certainly part or the upper level (elite) class. He is the leader of one of the worlds superpowers a position not achieved with a rainbow and lollipop personality. He was a high ranking member of the KGB what some would call a more brutal version of the CIA. So yes Putin is surely a thug, just like Obama, just like McCain or any other politician you can name. Come on people! At least read the comment in this thread by CMRedwood for a brief introduction. The real losers in this chess match are the innocent victims of the world whose name all these atrocities are committed in. We need to stop bickering over which elitist is better than another and start fighting for the billions of innocents. Holbrooks, I was reading you OK until you called Putin a thug. It lowered the tone of an otherwise thoughtful article by 75%. Pity. Putin a thug? Show us the evidence. You fall for the same trap the lame stream media does. Accusations without evidence. In truth, Putins Russia is probably more free market than the US. And more democratic as well (although that isnt saying much). Russia, under Putin, has invaded no country. Putin did inherit a very bad situation nearly 100 years under jewish Bolshevik communist rule and the Yeltsins drunken welcoming of western fascist trojan horses in Russian banking and industry. The truth is that Putin has performed a near miracle in a very short time. Pinheads in the US government who appear inept at even checkers may resort to war, but they will lose AGAIN! The author should know as he lives in a country that has had thug after thug as its leaders! The writer gave us a beautiful full course meal, but then he ruined it with a poop-pie for dessert at the very end. ..:Vladimir Putin is a thug...What idiotic rubbish! Google: The War Against Putin Amazon Putin is not a thug. Long live Mr Vladimir, only leader who makes intelligent moves __ voltairenet.org/en jaysleftist.info/invade.htm Putin is a thug? Putin is a Russian that loves his country and trying to protect his country from the zionist thugs. http://wakeup-world.com/2015/01/21/stop-nuclear-war-ahead Most insightful article that Ive read. Something really big is going on and it wont end well. James Holbrook, please can you give us an example of Putins thuggery as a statesman? I sure havent seen it. 