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    Event Extra: Taliban Rule Takes Profound Toll on Afghan Women and Minorities – United States Institute of Peace - August 20, 2022 by Mr HomeBuilder

    The Event Extra podcast offers one-on-one interviews with some of the policymakers, practitioners and leaders who spoke at U.S. Institute of Peace events. Each episode highlights their ideas on areas of conflict and how to achieve peace.

    Adam Gallagher: Welcome, let me introduce us. Youre Rina Amiri, the U.S. special envoy for Afghan Women, Girls and Human Rights. And I'm Adam Gallagher, managing editor for USIP.org. This week marks the one-year anniversary of the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. Many expected that when they swept into power, the Taliban would reprise the repressive rule of the 1990s. Despite pledges of moderation and reform from some Taliban factions. One year later, those predictions have turned out to be prescient. They have swiftly reinstated many of their harshest policies pushing women out of public life and brooking dissent. Special Envoy Amiri, many of the hard-won gains made for Afghan women over the last 20 years are eroding before their eyes. Can you talk a little bit about how their lives have changed in the last year, and also what the picture is like for minorities and their rights?

    Rina Amiri: Well, first, thank you very much, to you and to the U.S. Institute of Peace for continuing to keep the spotlight on the situation in Afghanistan. The last year has been nothing short of devastating for women, ethnic and religious communities. But I would say that for the population as a whole, I also hear from men, that, you know, that they're in a desperate situation. So it's, you know, it's a context in which is even more devastating, because I think that the population, what I hear over and over again, that, despite the tremendous devastation of war. Think how things have turned out. There is still some element of hope that the promise of a reform Taliban would materialize, and that they would be better than in the 1990s. And the last year, I think, has and many respects have been, the scenario that is far worse than any had had prepared themselves for, you know, for women and girls, I think that the whole world saw that overnight, they were stripped of their fundamental rights. You know, and of course, I want to qualify that. Certainly, the picture was very mixed. And that an urban centers, the women and girls had better opportunities, more advantages than those in the rural parts of the country. But when I talk to women, you know, from throughout the entire country, what I hear is devastation over the situation and that they've lost the right to work, they've lost the right to get their daughters educated, they have lost any sense of hope for the future. And for ethnic and religious communities, what they note is that they live under the shadow of threat. They don't feel safe in their communities, they don't feel safe in their homes. They don't feel safe sending their wives to give birth because of attack, the attacks on, terrible attacks that have taken place against maternity wards. They fear for their children when they send their children to school. That pervasive sense of threat is a shadow that has overtaken with their calculations and the way that they live their lives. And particularly for the Hazara community. You know, I read an assessment that there have been over 15 attacks. And it's not just the Hazara community as a religious community, but as an ethnic community where they are being specifically targeted and where they are, if they feel that they are being left as soft targets. And we hear the same thing from the Hindu and Sikh community, the Sufis, you know, just across the country of those that do not fit within the narrow confines of what the Taliban identifies as people that are aligned with what their view of the world that they are suffering tremendously right now.

    Adam Gallagher: And yet over the last year, despite this sort of shadow of threat that looms over Afghan women and minorities, many have protested the Taliban rollback of their rights, including a demonstration over the weekend that was met with Taliban violence. I'm wondering if you can talk a little bit about what you see Afghan women and minorities doing to protect in their promote and promote their rights amid this sort of terrifying landscape.

    Rina Amiri: I think what the world needs to take away from what we have seen from the Afghan population is that they are not a -- you know, we see that there's a narrative around Afghans as victims, but Afghans, I think are the most resilient people in the world. And the most, you know, some of the most courageous people in the world. And certainly we have seen that demonstrated, and foremost among them, I would have to say, have been Afghan women. They, we have seen over and over again, despite the tremendously harsh crackdowns by the Taliban against not just the women but against their families, that they continue to go out and protest. And they're not just protesting for their rights. They're protesting for the vision that all Afghans aspire towards, which is a peaceful Afghanistan and inclusive one on one which one which is going to be economically viable. You know, I spent a lot of time talking to Afghans both inside and outside the country and online. And they tell me that this is not this is not just a choice for them, you know, that it's not that they're not fearful. But there are some things that are more important than fear. And that is what gives them the courage that they go out. And what they're fighting for is they're fighting for the children, they're fighting for the future of the country. You know, and there are a lot of painful stories that I come across, I come across women who say that, you know, up until, like, a year ago, there were judges, there were parliamentarians, there were doctors, and now they have to go through the indignity of, you know, they put on a burqa, and they go out and they're looking for, they're put in a position of being beggars. And they know that the Taliban are more prepared to provide support for them as beggars than allowing them to be agents of their own future. And as active agents in society where they can contribute to the to the economy of the country. They're also, you know, they're incredibly pragmatic. They're not, they're not looking at this as a black and white situation. Where they find Taliban that are positioned are prepared to engage with them and to create entry points for them to work to get or to do anything constructive. They're willing to work with those Talibs. So I think beyond the, what we, what I take away is that their vision is both defined by pragmatism, as well as principles and tremendous courage. And they want the world to understand that they are not victims, that they need our support. They need us to engage them as agents of their own future, and to look at a very targeted way of how we can support them, whether that's through diplomatic engagement with the Taliban, or otherwise, but that it should not just stop just because the Taliban are being resistant to any type of movement in a positive direction.

    Adam Gallagher: Yeah, and that's a good segue into my final question. But I also just want to mention that I think that point about pragmatism is so important. And you have to wonder why the Taliban can't sort of reciprocate that pragmatism, understanding that they're hamstrung, hamstringing their own economy by shutting women out of public life in this way. But to go back sort of on what you were closing there, and I'm just wondering if you can expand a bit more on how the United States and the international community can help Afghan women and minorities in this really, really tough situation. And then also, I'm wondering if you can touch a little bit on the U.S.-Afghan consultative mechanism that was launched at USIP in late July.

    Rina Amiri: I think that those that understand the situation of why this issue of women's rights and human rights are important, don't approach it just from a moral or normative perspective, but from a strategic perspective, that the role of women -- we have the data, we have the data from just really very compelling evidence from all over the world. But the best way, the most economically effective way, the one that doesn't require a large intervention in the future is one in which we equip women to advance the society. And that's where we're coming from, I think, it informs why, you know, our approach. And the U.S.-Afghan consultative mechanism -- one, that it should be Afghan women and civil society, Afghan voices that are at the forefront of this discussion. They, we will be capable of making much better policies if their voices are in the lead. If they guide our assessment, if they guide our understanding. Our policies are grounded in a solid understanding and a solid engagement strategy with Afghans themselves. We seek to use their voices, to profile their voices to bring them in, in a consistent and systematic way. With the U.S. government officials across the government sitting across from Afghan women leaders, human rights, the human rights community, civil society, as equal actors trying to work together on what the specific challenges and identify solutions to develop a coherent approach to systematically engaging them, rather than having one-off consultations with Afghan women and civil society that, where the impact might be lesser than something that's more systematic.

    Adam Gallagher: Thank you so much, Special Envoy Amira, for joining us this week, during this sort of somber anniversary. We really appreciate your time.

    Rina Amiri: Thank you very much.

    Watch the original event Engaging Afghan Women and Civil Society in U.S. Policymaking.

    Read more from the original source:
    Event Extra: Taliban Rule Takes Profound Toll on Afghan Women and Minorities - United States Institute of Peace

    Andrew Watkins on the One-Year Anniversary of Taliban Takeover – United States Institute of Peace - August 20, 2022 by Mr HomeBuilder

    U.S. Institute of Peace experts discuss the latest foreign policy issues from around the world inOn Peace, abrief weekly collaboration with SiriusXM's POTUS Channel 124.

    Julie Mason: Joining me now, Andrew Watkins is a senior expert on Afghanistan for the U.S. Institute of Peace. Here to discuss the one-year anniversary of the fall of Kabul. Andrew, good morning.

    Andrew Watkins: Good morning. Thanks for having me.

    Julie Mason: What a dire situation there. People are starving. Their economy is in ruins. The setbacks for women. Ugh.

    Andrew Watkins: It really is terrible in so many ways. The Taliban are showing the world and the Afghan people that they understand the scope of the problems that they're facing. But they've also revealed, over the last year, just how little that they can do to grapple with the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

    Julie Mason: What is the situation there? What are the conditions?

    Andrew Watkins: The conditions are pretty horrific. And it's only due to the intervention of Western powers like the United States and European allies, that the country hasn't reached a critical mass of starvation everywhere. But the United Nations and other aid organizations say that there are more people going hungry in Afghanistan than anywhere else in the world in Asia and Africa. This is a result of an economy that completely collapsed. When the U.S. left Afghanistan, it wasn't just our military presence, it was all of the aid and the economic assistance that had been turning their whole economy into one giant bubble.

    Julie Mason: The Taliban have consolidated, sort of, security in the country. They do have that on lockdown. No major threats to their rule of the country.

    Andrew Watkins: It's true. A lot of what we're seeing in the news usually has to do with fighting that's still going on in Afghanistan. There are a lot of people, for maybe obvious reasons, who don't like the Taliban, and they're trying to do something about it. But to put it in perspective, all of this is really small scale. The fact is there are people trying to resist the Taliban. From the left and the right, you have people affiliated with the former government, you have our former Afghan allies, and then all the way on the other side of the spectrum, you have terrorists who are part of the Islamic State network around the world. But the Taliban have consolidated control around the country, and they're going to control it for the foreseeable future.

    Julie Mason: And the Taliban hiding al-Zawahiri or giving him safe haven in Kabul, what is your interpretation of the relationship now, between those two groups?

    Andrew Watkins: Yeah, I mean, the Taliban themselves have really been caught between a rock and a hard place. It's always been a complicated relationship. You can go back to 2001 and if you look at interviews and cables from the State Department, there were a lot of people in the Taliban who didn't agree with their leader's judgment to keep bin Laden protected. And there are a lot of people in the Taliban for the last 20 years who have kind of resented the relationship with al-Qaida. Because why should they have lost everything and had to suffer through 20 years of war just for the sake of keeping a lot of people from the Arab world safe when their fight is a different fight? But at the end of the day, as a friend who's very close to people in the Taliban told me, if there are some people in the Taliban who don't like that relationship with al-Qaida, there's one thing that everyone in the Taliban likes less. And that's the idea of helping their former enemy, the United States, hunt al-Qaida down.

    Julie Mason: Very interesting, because I mean, after all that money, after all those lives lost, after all those U.S. promises, to have withdrawn and then al-Qaida still operating in Afghanistan. Like what exactly was achieved?

    Andrew Watkins: Yeah, I mean, that's especially hard to ask when we look at everything else, right? There were a lot of mistakes made and there was, you know, countless corruption, from the money that we spent, to what Afghan politicians did with it, but there were improvements made and we're seeing even those erode, you know, across Afghan society.

    Julie Mason: Right? Exactly. Everything we said like, If you just vote. If you just turn out. If you just you know, do this, then you're gonna have all these benefits. And now, people are starving and there's nothing. That's really grim on a Monday morning but tell us about the supreme leader of the Taliban, Andrew.

    Andrew Watkins: Yeah, so this is the most interesting thing we've gotten to see over the last year. The Taliban calls their government the Islamic Emirate and the head is a leader called the emir that they say has supreme authority. He acts with the authority, you know, of God himself. The reality is, though, for the last 20 years, to survive in their war against the U.S., the Taliban had to grow very flexible. They've always said in theory that their leader had supreme authority. But in reality, if you wanted to sign up with them to fight against the Americans, they were pretty flexible. They gave you a lot of autonomy to do things in your little corner of Afghanistan the way that you wanted. Since taking over the country last year, the emir has been trying in a lot of different ways to reassert his authority and become that supreme leader that they've always said he is.

    Julie Mason: And how does he occupy that job? Like, what are his edicts?

    Andrew Watkins: Well, the most interesting thing is that he doesn't occupy that job with the rest of the government that's based in the capital, Kabul. He sits down in the southern city of Kandahar, which now kind of has a mystique in the Taliban because it's where their first emir, and the guy who founded the Taliban, Mullah Mohammed Omar, it's where he sat for over four years. He had this attitude, you know, not that much different than how some Americans might feel about Washington D.C., that the capital, as the hub of politics, was a corrupt and sinful place. And so, he avoided it entirely. So, this guy is styling himself in the same way, there's a lot of mythology that the Taliban tell about themselves.

    Julie Mason: Other matters, meanwhile, the Taliban stalling out in critical aspects of government. As we mentioned, [there is] near universal poverty in the country. And it's an interesting policy question, right? Because, Andrew, no country really seems to want to have any sort of diplomatic relationship with the Taliban, but there's still a great deal of sympathy for the people there.

    Andrew Watkins: It's true. I mean, looking forward, this is really the United States struggle: how to continue to provide support for the Afghan people and completely work around the government, you know, the political force that's running the country. It's an unprecedented situation. The Taliban can't seem to make up their mind on some of the most important issues to run the country. And where they do seem to have made up their mind, it's making the wrong decisions, like hosting al-Qaida. And so, you've got a United States, and of course, we still have this huge obligation to the Afghan people with everything we invested, but trying to figure out how to remain engaged without it benefiting the Taliban, while they still figure themselves out on their path to becoming a really kind of warped version of government.

    Julie Mason: Andrew Watkins is senior expert on Afghanistan at the U.S. Institute of Peace. Andrew, thank you so much for your time this morning.

    Andrew Watkins: Thanks for having me.

    Julie Mason: Really great to talk to you.

    Read the original:
    Andrew Watkins on the One-Year Anniversary of Taliban Takeover - United States Institute of Peace

    Refacing the Cabinets Can Enhance the Most Important Areas of the Home – Digital Journal - July 26, 2022 by Mr HomeBuilder

    California residents have great choices when they are thinking about renovating their homes. They can replace old kitchen or bathroom cabinets or choose to have them refaced and save money. Finding one company that can deal with either choice and provide new granite countertops is a good decision.

    Choosing a Remodeling Company

    In California, residents have many remodeling companies to choose from. But, those remodeling companies are not all equal. It is important to check different remodeling companies out online and with rating services to find a company that does a good job for a reasonable cost. Granite Transformations is one company to check out for home renovations that take less time and result in less mess while providing great results.

    They offer kitchen and bathroom renovation services that are cost effective and beautiful. Start the research process by going to https://www.granitetransformations.com/ and finding out about the company and its locations and services. Any company chosen for kitchen and bathroom renovation projects should offer design services to the homeowner along with no-cost, in-home consultations. A visit to the showroom to choose materials in person is also important.

    About Granite Transformations

    Go to https://www.granitetransformations.com/about-us/ to find out important information about this company. They have been in business since 1996 and have served over one million customers in that time. They have the experience to get the kitchen or bathroom remodeling job done quickly and right. Granite Transformations has joined with TREND to become Granite and TREND Transformations. they specialize in kitchen and bathroom transformations that involve little or no demolition.

    Refacing Existing Cabinets to Save Money

    One way to save money is to reface existing cabinets rather than replace the cabinets with new ones. For this method to work well, the cabinets need to be well-constructed and in usable shape. Refacing existing cabinets is also a good idea when the existing cabinet layout works well.

    Though there are limits to what a homeowner can do with cabinet refacing, a company such as Granite Transformations has the know-how and products to make the most of this renovation option. When refacing the cabinets that are well-constructed, they can entirely change the door style, finish, and hardware.

    What is the Cabinet Refacing Process?

    During the cabinet refacing process the cabinet doors and drawer fronts are removed. Then, the face frames and side panels are cleaned and roughed up so they will accept the new finishes. Next, a new finish or veneer is glued or nailed over the old finish, and nail holes are filled and all edges are finished. The cabinet undersides and the base cabinet toe kicks get new finishes. Finally, the cabinets get new door and drawer fronts with new hardware. When the job is done, the cabinets look new.

    One problem to consider is if the renovated kitchen needs additional matching cabinets. The kitchen renovation contractor should be able to furnish new cabinets to match the newly refaced ones. All the cabinets should get new countertops that match. When the kitchen or bathroom is done, it should be exactly what the homeowner asked for.

    Media ContactCompany Name: Granite TransformationsContact Person: Media RelationsEmail: Send EmailPhone: 707-200-4813Address:3485 Airway Dr., Suite A City: Santa RosaState: CaliforniaCountry: United StatesWebsite: https://www.granitetransformations.com/

    See more here:
    Refacing the Cabinets Can Enhance the Most Important Areas of the Home - Digital Journal

    ‘Stopping Putin in Ukraine Will Send a Message to Xi Jinping’ – The Dispatch - July 26, 2022 by Mr HomeBuilder

    Hello and happy Thursday!

    The Kitchens are on vacation this week and were having a wonderful time. The picture below is from the dueling grounds at Weehawken, New Jerseywhere Alexander Hamilton was shot by Aaron Burr.

    As we continue our travels I thought itd be nice to provide a condensed and edited transcript of my recent interview with former Trump national security advisor, Robert OBrien. We spoke last week on the Dispatch podcast (listen here) and we cover a lot of different topics of interestincluding China, Ukraine, and the January 6 riots at the Capitol.

    Before diving in, a few listeners have said I should have pushed OBrien harder on his January 6 comments. Perhaps. Im certainly not a hard-nosed journalist like many of my fellow Dispatchers. But if Im honest, I also have to admit that I was a little sympathetic to his cause. The reality is that the political rally and the other events that day were not under the purview of the national security adviser. Those were political decisions being made by political operatives and by the president.

    Its also true that it was the intelligence community that was raising many of the alarms about how the protests could get out of hand and Im sure OBrien was making those assessments known. Even more, when his deputy, Matt Pottenger, resigned that afternoon, OBriens hands were pretty much tied because national security doesnt take a time out when things go sideways domestically (in fact, they get even more serious). The nation would have genuinely been less safe if he had resigned prior to the Biden administration taking officeand the fact that OBrien was the last senior executive at the White House on Inauguration Day reinforces this point.

    Having said all of that, heres the transcript and I hope it gives you a little bit of insight into a job that is hugely important and often very difficult.

    See ya next week!

    KLON: Robert, thanks for taking time to join me for a conversation.

    ROBERT OBRIEN: Great to be with you Klon, thank you.

    KLON: You were the fourth NSA to President Trump, is that right?

    ROBERT O'BRIEN: I was, so wed had Michael Flynn and H.R. McMaster and John Bolton.

    KLON: Talk a little bit about the presidents general approach to national security and foreign policy, the types of work that you were advising him on.

    ROBERT O'BRIEN: So, the job of the assistant to the president for national security affairs, or the NSA job, is to be the principal foreign policy and national security adviser to the presidentand I took a little different view of my work than I think my predecessors did. I told the president this in the interview (and I think maybe one of the reasons why he asked me to do the job) is I felt that President Trump had a very well-defined foreign policy. I thought he should get the best options and best advice on whatever issue he was facing, and then once he made a decision the departments and agencies should implement that decision. I didn't view my job is trying to educate him on what his policy should be, I didn't come to the job with a foreign policy agenda've got well-thought out views on a lot of issues, but again, I was staffing the president. I wasn't a principal, and I hadn't been elected by anybody to put my foreign policy in place. My job was to make sure the president gotwhether it was a long term issue that we were facing, great power competition for example, or an immediate crisis like COVID or the Baghdadi situationto make sure the president got the absolute best advice from his Cabinet secretaries. And if he wanted my opinion at the end of the day after hearing from everybody else, and everyone having had their day in court, I'd give my advice. And then once the president made a decision on how to proceed, our job with the NSC was to coordinate with the Cabinet and the Cabinet secretaries and and their departments and agencies to make sure that the presidents foreign policy was implemented.

    KLON: That sounds very reminiscent of the way Secretary[Condoleezza] Rice would talk about her role when she was the NSA. That she wanted to make sure that the president was getting as diverse and as deep a counsel as he could on those issues. You know, let's put Michael Flynn aside, but you can see how McMasters and Bolton both came in with a very developed, comprehensive, and public kind of world view on foreign policy issues, and I can see the daylight between how you're describing your approach and perhaps how they might have. I think, from at least open press reporting, why the president kind of chafed against some of that. He probably didn't want to feel like he was being kind of lectured to, he wanted the implementation of his view.

    ROBERT O'BRIEN: No, I think that's right. And you know I worked for Condi at the State Department when she was secretary, and she was one of the first visitors I had I think. I took office on a Tuesday and she flew back to see me on a Sunday. We sat in her old office (my new office) and she very generously gave me a couple of hours of her time, and I think Condi tried to follow, and I tried to follow, a model established by Brent Scowcroft, whod served twice as national security advisor under both President Ford and President BushH.W. Bush. And every national security adviser when they come office invokes that, it's kind of a mantra that you know we're going to do the Scowcroft model, but I think it's been followed in the breach more than the regular order.

    So I really did try to restore the Scowcroft model, and I think when you look at what we did with a slimmed down NSCI mean when I got there there was still almost 200 policy professionals, Condid had 106 at the height of Afghanistan, Iraq, the global war on terror, great power competition, shed had half that and I kind of took that as my model as wellwe got a very efficient NSC. We had an NSC that really ran on process where, again, all the Cabinet agencies and departments had their data to give their best views and best options. If there was a split opinion Id have each side elect a representative, so it might be Pompeo on one side and Mnuchin on the other, and wed go see the president and Id make sure the president heard both sets of views. But for the most part, we were able to drive consensus and go to the president with a set of options that we thought were best for the American people, and again that was derived out of deputies committee meetings and weekly principal committee meetings where we got the best input fromwhether it was Treasury or Commerce or State or Defense or the IC. And I think of the results of what we did with NATO funding, with getting Baghdadi, with putting Iran in a box, with the new consensus on China, certainly on the peacemaking front with the Abraham Accords, with Serbia-Kosovo, with healing the Gulf rift and even Afghanistan, I think the results were pretty impressive, and in eighteen months.

    KLON: Im curious about our perspective on the state of the intelligence community. Whats your take on the IC? Hows it doing? Are there specific ways that it needs to evolve to be more aligned to modern statecraft and policymaking?

    ROBERT O'BRIEN: So I think when it comes to collection, were second to none. Its pretty impressive what we can pull together. And I think the IC, like anything else, its a tremendous tool. They have great abilities with their SIGINT or ELINT or even human intelligence. However we think of it, and however we collect, it gets the policymakers people like me, the secretary of state, the CIA director, the folks that have to advise the president and advise Congress on what we should be doing it gets us what we need.

    I think one thing thatsthere are a couple of issues with the intelligence community. One, I think its like any big bureaucracy, becomes a little risk-averse. And sometimes we need people thatlleven if theyre wrongthatll step up with an innovative or thoughtful theory that may not fall with conventional wisdom. You always worry that people might not want to be the outlier because they're afraid of how itll affect their career, but we need the outliers. Even if the outliers are wrong, theyre provocative and they cause us to think about things, that maybe look at things a different way and come up with a different solution.

    Weve got a lot of people who are highly skilled and spent the best years of their life in places like Jalalabad and Kandahar and Anbar and Fallujah, places like that, and know that part of the world incredibly well. But the world is changing. And those places remain important to the United States, we cant ignore them, but our existential threat comes from the Communist Party of China and their Ministry of State Security on the IC front. Those guys are deadly and serious, and of course we still have what was the former KGB, the FSB and SVR now with the Russians, and the Iranians have the MOIS. So we need to start shifting our focus both as a government to the Indo-Pacific, but also to Russia in Eastern Europe and keep an eye on Iran. And so we want to make sure were not just living in the surge in 2006, in the glory days of Baghdad and the second Bush term.

    KLON: So as you were in your position, what types of domestic threat work were you engaged in? What did that look like? What were the kinds of concerns that developed over the course of your time at the White House?

    ROBERT O'BRIEN: Yeah my biggest domestic concern, Klon, was the CPC (the Communist Party of China) and the Peoples Republic of China and their infiltration into the U.S. which is extensive, pervasive, there are cells everywhere, they have an unbelievable ability to track their students who are here, to enforce their party orthodox on Chineseeven second- and third-generation Chinese that are hereto collect intelligence, to steal our IP. Christopher Wray talked about this in the summer of 2020 in a speech he gavewe gave a series of four speeches, Bill Barr, Chris Wray, myself and Mike Pompeo each gave a speech on China, we each took a different area and kind of laid out the threatand Chris Wray made a statement in his speech that I thought was really interesting. I've repeated it several times. The Chinese IP theft is the largest transfer of wealth in human history. In other words, the Chinese are taking more money and value out of the U.S. over the past 40 years through theft of our intellectual property than any sack of Rome, Trajans campaign in Dacia.

    Look, there are certainly threats here. We have an Antifa threat, you know we had domestic terrorism on the left, were seeing now some of the reports about the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys and some of these threats on the right. And those are things we need to keep an eye on, and I dont want to minimize those threats, but I think the threat that were facing from the Communist Party of China is a threat to our way of life and our future liberty. And I think weve got to be careful about, you know, sending FBI agents out to school boards to watch parents protesting about CRT when they really ought to be trailing Chicom agents who are operating here that we know aboutand weve got to be careful not to let our domestic politics influence how the IC does our counter-intelligence here in the US. So that was my biggest concern, and again not that other concerns arent important, but when we think about our kids having liberty and the ability of the pursuit of happinessnot just in America but in the other democracieswere facing an existential threat right now.

    KLON: But it does seem over the last several years to have adjusted to some of thewhat well call politically right-wing groups that you mentioned, and that are in the news right now obviously with Oath Keepers and Proud Boys and the like. Not only them, but certainly them. How did that come up as an issue for you to deal with?

    ROBERT O'BRIEN: You do. In my case we had a great attorney general in Bill Barr, and Chad Wolf was our acting homeland security secretaryboth very capable men. And so for the most part we sort of coordinated the advice they got, but we left that to the FBI and the DOJ and Homeland to do most of those briefings. I would of course be there, and again the threats we saw changed even over the year and a half that I was national security advisor. At the outset we had the BLM movement and a lot of Antifa, so I mean you had situations where you know, pallets of bricks were being delivered close to the White House and a really impressive logistics chainnot impressive in that it was a good thing but impressive in that these Antifa folks were very good at logistics and created massive damage, I mean far greater damage than happened on January 6 (which again I condemned at the time, in real time, and was a terrible thing to happen to our country). But we also facedI mean, I was taken to an undisclosed location at least two times because of attacks on the White House by Antifa that havent been covered to the same extent as some of the other outbreaks. So both on the far left and the far right, whether youve got Antifa or these Proud Boys typesand you know I dont even think its fair to call them far left or far right because I think its unfair to liberals or conservativesbut just these domestic extremists, and certainly theyre being radicalized and coordinating and we know this from both types of groups.

    KLON: Yeah. I think you're exactly right in the sense that no political faction, wherever it is on the spectrum, has a monopoly onunfortunately on political violence and extremism right now. It does seem to be this proliferating challenge and it has evolved over the course of even my time kind of engaging in these issues. YouI just want to touch on this brieflybut you bring up January 6. What was your day like that day? Like, how did those events unfolding what does that look like from your perspective in the White House?

    ROBERT O'BRIEN: Yeah so I was actuallyand this hasnt been publicly reported on and I dont spend a lot of time talking about itI was in Florida at SOUTHCOM. But thats where I was on January 6, I was actually in a SCIF most of the day until I was pulled out of the SCIF by my staff to let me know what was going on. We finally made it back to Washington late that night, but look in real time I put out tweets on my personal Twitter account and I was impressed by the courage of the vice president staying there. I spoke to a number of our senators, I was waiting for my Coast Guard plane to get me home, and I certainly condemned the protesters and did all of that very publicly. It wasas I said, I think that day it was an utter disgrace, what those people did in the Capitol.

    KLON: So we can transition now to a couple of the key hot spots. When you think about China and the possible move on Taiwan, do you see that as a growing possibility? What were the types of briefings that you were getting while you were NSA?

    ROBERT O'BRIEN: Thats a great question. Look, its a very serious concern. Its theit might be the most pressing concern that Jake Sullivan (the current national security advisor) and the president face, Lloyd Austin the [secretary of defense] and Tony Blinken. We know from Admiral Davidson, Admiral Davidson who was thecombatant commander for the INDOPACOM AOR out in Hawaii (Pearl Harbor), he said a couple of years ago that he had thought it was a five- to seven-year window for the Chinese to invade. In the last days I was national security adviser I said, Look, I think its going to be shorter than that, and since President Bidens taken office and as the Chinese watch whats happening in Ukraine, there are folks nowI saw a headline that one analyst is predicting in October 2022 an invasion of Taiwan, and were seeing that the Chinese put everything in place to be able to do so.

    KLON: And so do you think thatit depends on how we define success, but do you think that a successful Chinese invasion of Taiwan isthat theres a potential there for kind of a fait accompli where they could act in such a way to where they can act quickly enough and decisively enough before the United States could really respond, to where it just becomes a done deal? Is that a possibility?

    ROBERT O'BRIEN: Thats our play book. I mean the good news is, without getting into details, weve got a few things up our sleeve as well. Were notwe dont lack all capability to defeat a Chinese amphibious invasion. Weve got some exquisite capabilities of our own, many of which arent public. And so I dont think the Chinese canI think theyre trying to put themselves in a position to do that kind of invasion and hit fast and accomplish their goals before we can get into the theater, but weve got somethings that could interrupt that planning and that sort of an operation. Ill leave it at that.

    KLON: Okay, so lets now kind of turn to Ukraineand as we talk about Ukraine, I think one thing that would be especially helpful is if you could obviously give us your insights terms of what youre seeing and what youre anticipating, but also there is a growing movement on the kind of right side of the political aisle toward what they euphemistically refer to as restraint. Theres a growing kind of restraint movement particularly in conservative politics where you know, with the recent $40 billion supplemental bill that was passed eventually for supporting Ukraine, there was a lot of disagreement on the political right about this. And I think that is in fact emblematic of this growing voice within Republican and conservative circles. Im curious about your thoughts on that, and then thekind of the broader Ukraine challenge and where you think the United States should be aligning its time and resources on Ukraine.

    ROBERT O'BRIEN: Well let me address the political issue first.I talk about what Ronald Reagan talked about which is peace through strength. You know, the way to stay out of a warand people are exhausted by the wars, these are the folks that have sent their kids off to go fight in places like Jalalabad and Fallujah and Anbar and the Sahel in Burkina and Niger. These are the people that sent their sons and daughters out to go fight those wars, and so there is a concern and exhaustion that America is overextended, and that were perhaps fighting in wars that we shouldnt be involved intrying to turn Afghanistan into Sweden or that sort of thing. And thats a legitimate concern, and I understand the folks who raise those issuesbut Ukraine is a very different situation. You know Ukrainethe Ukrainians are fighting for themselves. The Ukrainians arent asking for American airmen to enforce a no-fly zone. Theyre asking for MIGs so that their own pilots can enforce a no-fly zone over their own country. Theyre fighting out on the front lines in Donbas, and under incredibly trying circumstances, and fighting for their own country; and theyve got massive enlistment, theres no lack of morale, theres no lack of dedication to fighting. But what theyre asking for is for America to be the arsenal of democracy. And if we dont stand up for freedom here, and if we dont provide folks in Ukraine or other places with the tools and equipment they need to stop Russian aggression, you know eventually its going to be up to Americans to go do it. And soyou know once you have that conversation, Ive found very little disagreement when Americans understand that Ukrainians are fighting for themselves, and all theyre asking from us is for us to give them the tools to fight the Russians. And I think you get a very different response than maybe your standard, Tucker Carlson monologue; and again I havent found whether its in Oklahoma or Nebraska or Idaho or Utah, any of these places Ive been that are very conservative and very much folks that believe in America Firstwhen you explain the stakes that are at issue, when you explain that this is the first time since the 1930s that a bigger neighbor has decided to invade a smaller neighbor just because they want their national resources, they want their population, they want that might makes right, that they can expand their empire through conquest, we havent recognized territorial expansion through conquest at least since the U.N. charter but even 100 years before that. So the idea that this is happening today is very bad. And when they understand that Xi Jinping in Beijing is watching to see how the West reacts to Putins invasion of and attempt to occupy Ukraine, hes watching that to measure what hes going to do in Taiwan. And when Xi Jinping attempts to take Taiwanand if the Chinese communists are successful at taking Taiwangeopolitically thats an absolute disaster for the U.S. We could maybe survive Ukraine being taken over by the Russians, it would be very very difficult in the Indo-Pacific and for our allies to survive a Chinese takeover of Taiwan. Thats the cork coming out of the champagne bottle of the Pacific, and the champagne (in which there is the Peoples Liberation Army and Navy) will spill all out into the entire Pacific from the Aleutians to Hawaii, the Midway to Wake, to California, South, to all the islands that our grandfathers and great uncles fought for in World War II. The Chinese are going to control the Pacificits such a critical island in Taiwan, and thats the most important economic zone in the entire world for the future of our economy, so that would be a travesty. So stopping Putin in Ukraine will send a message to Xi Jinping that you know, might stop him in Taiwan, and avoid a real catastrophe for America and our allies in the Pacific.

    KLON: Putin has given every indication that if he were able to roll through Ukraine, that eventually hes going to gohes going to continue on the expansion. All the same rationales that he used for Ukraine would exist with other countries, including NATO-bordering countries. And so eventually, you know, if Vladimir Putin is not sufficiently chastised and kind of pushed back into his hole, hes going to take an action that even the most restrained kind of individual wont be able to kind of look away from, right? I would say that Ukraine already constitutes a significant national interest on our partin part because of the way youve described itbut then too, even if you dont, he will continue to push and he has made that very clear. And so unfortunately we dont have an option of kind of avoiding a kind of conflict because the other guyin this case Putinhe gets a choice. And hes making that choice, and hes making it very clearly and publicly, and sometimes you just have to accept reality. So youve got to engage it.

    ROBERT O'BRIEN: Youre 100 percent right, by the way. I mean look, he's threatening Poland. The reason the Finns joined NATO is because he said Finland was part of the Russian familyI think the Finns woke up after that speech and said what the heck? Hes threatening the Baltics, I mean these are NATO allies, certainly Moldova and Georgia. So were going to end upif we dont stop him in Ukraine, we are going to have American soldiers engaged with Russian soldiers in one of these other countries. And at that point, the risk of escalation is so high that youve got two massive nuclear powers in a land war, and the risks to America at that point are extraordinary. So we are far better offas you point out, Klon, 100percentletting the Ukrainians try and push the Russians back in Ukraine without asking for American troops on the ground. And if we get them the tools and the platforms they need, I think they can get the job done. The problem is were just not doing it.

    Theyre talking the talk but theyre not walking the walk. For example, the MIGswhy werent the Polish MIGs given to Ukraine in month one? That wasnt going to spur nuclear war between the US and Russia. You know, keep in mind, a lot of our grandfathers and fathers fought in Korea and Vietnam. They were shot at every day by Russian MIGs. I mean there were Russian MIGs in Korea, there were Russian MIGs in Vietnam, we didnt launch a nuclear war or say that was some sort of red line. If the Poles wanted to give the Ukrainians 29 MIGs, why didnt we facilitate it? I mean, I kind of think back on our administration, you know Gina Haspel is so clever. Gina would have sold the planes to the Ukrainians through a Russian middleman, Putin would have gotten his 10 percent cut of it, and they would have been in Ukrainian livery the next day and no one would have known what happened. And instead we had this big, public debacle on the MIGs. So lookweve got to cut off the Russians, weve got to get the Ukrainians the MIGs already, and weve got to get them the long-range artillery and let them defend their country against the Sovietthis Russian invasion.

    KLON: Yeah. Robert, you and I could keep going, theres a ton of things that we could talk about but youve been very generous with your time already and were bumping into an hour so I want to kind of bring it to a close. But listen, being the national security adviser to a U.S. president is a big job, its a tough job. And you know look, I think the nation owes you an appreciation for the work that you did under difficult circumstances on some very difficult issues. I appreciate you taking the time to have this conversation with me.

    ROBERT O'BRIEN: Thank you, honor to be with you Klon, you served a long time as well and so thank you for your service in the IC and in government.

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    'Stopping Putin in Ukraine Will Send a Message to Xi Jinping' - The Dispatch

    Heatwave myths busted as July reaches scorching temperatures – The Mirror - July 8, 2022 by Mr HomeBuilder

    Brits will face sweltering weather in July, according to Met Office forecasts. Here are four myths about heatwaves you need to be aware of to handle the heat safely

    Image: Getty)

    Heatwaves are becoming a norm this summer across Britain. After a scorching June, the Met Office is predicting that early to mid July will be equally hot with temperature highs of 34 degrees.

    While many of us enjoy the sunshine, experts have issued warnings against common mistakes people make when it comes to handling the heat.

    Luxury bathroom specialist Big Bathroom Shop and Dr Luke Pratsides, lead GP at Numan health clinic have teamed up to debunk four myths about coping with heatwaves and sun exposure.

    John Lawless of Big Bathroom Shop said: "Brits often make the same mistakes when it comes to protecting against heat and sun, so we have been speaking with Dr Luke to provide some guidance on how to handle the heatwave, treat sunburn and safely enjoy the sunshine this weekend."

    Image:

    Taking cold showers is a simple yet effective method to keep cool and soothe your skin after sun exposure, which Dr Luke Pratsides confirms has been recommended by the NHS.

    John Lawless also advises: "You may find that a lower pressure showerhead is more soothing on skin that has been exposed to the sun. A cool bath may provide more relief and you can use a sponge to target areas that are causing discomfort."

    Many think that icing a sunburn is good for you, but putting ice directly on sun-exposed skin is actually warned against.

    Dr Luke Pratsides explains: "You should never put ice directly on your skin as this can cause damage. You might suffer from an ice burn or frostbite."

    Instead, Mr John recommends using ice wrapped in a soft hand towel and placing this on the skin, adding: "Only leave on the skin for a minute or two at a time."

    Keeping your windows open to stay cool only works if it's cooler outside than inside. If you're facing the sun, it's actually better for you to keep your blinds closed to block out direct sunlight.

    Mr John Lawless adds: "Upstairs rooms tend to get hotter in the summer months, keeping bedroom and bathroom windows open with blinds shut is key to keeping air circulating through the house during a heatwave."

    Similar to ice, don't apply petroleum jelly to sunburns, as its oil-based. Dr Luke Pratsides advises that we should use strong moisturising lotion, after-sun lotion or aloe vera instead.

    John recommends: "Store after care creams in a cool dark place in your bathroom like a vanity or a storage cabinet."

    Read More

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    Heatwave myths busted as July reaches scorching temperatures - The Mirror

    Kitchen Magic Defines the Hybrid Kitchen – PR Newswire - July 8, 2022 by Mr HomeBuilder

    Top Reasons Why a Hybrid Kitchen Makes Perfect Design Sense

    Essentially a hybrid kitchen is a design plan that combines both refacingand custom cabinetry. Refacing saves substantially on budget, allowing you to reinvest in other features and upgrades. Additional custom cabinetry or a new island creates valuable additional storage space and that visual change homeowners often want.

    The new cabinetry added into a hybrid kitchen remodel will perfectly match the refaced, existing cabinet boxes.

    The result is a highly personalized and transformative kitchen design.

    This hybrid approach improves the aesthetics and function of a kitchen, while also increasing the property value should you decide to sell down the road.

    The 2022 cost vs. value report saysthat a minor kitchen remodel will return74.7% of the investment

    Make it personal

    A hybrid kitchen can include any type of custom-built cabinets, a desk, or a customized display case that match the refacing cabinets for a unified space.

    Our design consultants often propose creative ideas for storage solutions, addressing issues you may not have even known you had. A good example of that might be creating a designated storage space for dry goods, spices, cooking essentials, and other everyday items. All of these improvements go a long way in helping you stay organized.

    How to hybrid

    Hybrid kitchens are a top trend in Kitchen Magic kitchens, and most homeowners utilize a hybrid design model to one degree or another.

    Designers do not see that trend slowing since the outcome is a custom solution for every customer. Even with the pandemic in the rear-view mirror, many homeowners still have enhanced storage on their wish lists.

    We've outlined several of the most popular design scenarios for which a homeowner embraces a hybrid design plan:

    Pass on the peninsula

    Adding a custom kitchen island instead of a peninsula is more conducive to gatherings. Homeowners with older homes often bid adieu to their kitchen peninsula, as the U-shape is a configuration that tends to "trap" people into a particular prep or dining area.

    Instead, allow your kitchen design team to create a kitchen island for increased workflow. A kitchen island is also a user-friendly layout for dining and social gatherings.

    Storage space galore

    Stock up and add a bank of cabinets, a buffet, a credenza, or a pantry. Copious storage is more critical than ever as remote work and more time at home have become permanent for many. A top request of homeowners is additional storage for dry goods, small appliances, and cooking equipment allowing them to keep stocked up and maintain a high-functioning kitchen.

    An empty corner can become that creates a personalized focal point for your new kitchen design.Imagine a coffee station, device charging zone, bar area or even a display case as an empty corner becomes your 'statement' corner.

    Working from home

    A built-in deskoffers a welcome addition to working and learning at home.On those days you can avoid the commute and stay just as functional with an additional work-from-home zone. Reface the existing cabinets and add a custom deck that suits your home office needs.

    Design details

    A hybrid kitchen design allows you to claim extra space and even double your existing space with smart storage solutions, Whether you plan to add a pantry, credenza, or a mudroom with cabinets, the sky's the limit with the help of the skilled craftspeople and designers at Kitchen Magic.

    Up your design game withglass-front cabinets flanked by new pantry cabinets to increase storage and still showcase your new finds.Mix and match colors and textures for a unique design. A woodgrain display cabinet or island can add flair when paired with a white kitchen for a beautiful timeless look.

    When you're ready

    At Kitchen Magic, our signature refacing consists of premiumNorth American lumber and solid veneers that set the tone for a quality, functional design. Our custom cabinetry is all USA Made, hand crafted in our factory in Nazareth, Pennsylvania.

    To explore how you can transform the way your kitchen looks and functions with a free in-home design consultation. It's fun, informative, and completely free! Give us a call at 866.437.6147, or click here to schedule your free design consultation with us today!

    Linda FennessyPublic Relations ManagerKitchen Magic800.237.0799x 4155[emailprotected]

    SOURCE Kitchen Magic, Inc.

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    Kitchen Magic Defines the Hybrid Kitchen - PR Newswire

    N-Hance Canada Grows in Six Provinces and Aims to Introduce 20 Territories, with Expansion Plans in Western Canada – Business Wire - July 8, 2022 by Mr HomeBuilder

    OAKVILLE, Ontario--(BUSINESS WIRE)--N-Hance Canada Wood Refinishing provides an innovative, durable, and affordable kitchen cabinet refinishing service, which is in high demand with the record-breaking heights of the home improvement industry in Canada.

    As the national leading wood refinishing company, N-Hance Canada continues to see advancements in growth, efficiency, and nationwide reach through continuous investment in research and development, new products and innovations, and in-demand services.

    N-Hance Canada launched new products and innovations at their largest and most successful annual convention in May, in scenic Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON. The President of N-Hance Canada, Mr. Ahmad El Hamad, spoke of the multi-day event as an opportunity to reflect on the accomplishments and success of our franchisees, but exceedingly a chance to move forward, innovate, and discover opportunities for greater value, where previously unnoticed.

    The rapid expansion of the N-Hance Canada network over the past few years speaks to the success of its innovative business model, its exceptional and driven franchise owners, and the first-rate efforts of the corporate team. The N-Hance brands mark on the home renovations and franchising industry has been recognized by Entrepreneur Magazines prestigious Franchise 500 rankings for its outstanding growth and brand power.

    The N-Hance brand has ensured tremendous geographic growth across Canada, servicing the provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Ontario, Saskatchewan, and Quebec. With its swift expansion in the national capital region of Ottawa, N-Hance is growing from coast-to-coast, and offers entrepreneurs a lucrative opportunity to be part of a thriving brand in a billion-dollar industry.

    About N-Hance

    N-Hance Canada is part of the N-Hance family. N-Hance Wood Refinishing has more than 500 franchises across North America and has been featured in Martha Stewart Living, Better Homes and Gardens, HGTV and more. Using a proprietary refinishing technique that requires little sanding, it restores the natural beauty of wood surfaces, offering a factory-style finish at a fraction of the cost of traditional re-facing or replacement. Its powerful Lightspeed U.V. curing technology shortens the refinishing process and produces less dust, mess and odour than traditional methods, making it ideal for homes and businesses. Please visit http://www.nhancefranchise.ca to learn more about franchise opportunities.

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    N-Hance Canada Grows in Six Provinces and Aims to Introduce 20 Territories, with Expansion Plans in Western Canada - Business Wire

    Budget measures on cost of living will have ‘immediate impact’, says Taoiseach – The Irish Times - July 8, 2022 by Mr HomeBuilder

    Measures in the budget will have an immediate impact this year, Taoiseach Michel Martin has pledged as he insisted the Government is correct in its strategy to wait until the autumn for further measures to ease the cost of living.

    His remarks come as inflation in Ireland hit 9.6 per cent and Electric Ireland announced price increases that will kick in next month.

    Fianna Fil held a half-day parliamentary party meeting focused on the budget on Friday.

    Mr Martin said a budget package must be developed that does not add to inflation and create second and third rounds.

    Fianna Fil, he said, wants to target measures on households with low incomes and the squeezed middle.

    He said the partys TDs and Senators made about 110 budget proposals on issues such as childcare, pensions, housing and education.

    At a press conference, Mr Martin promised a substantial budgetary package including income tax and expenditure measures to respond to the cost of living.

    Asked whether it is sustainable to tell the public to wait until September or October for the budget given the rising energy bills and rate of inflation, Mr Martin said the Government has already brought in 2.4 billion in measures.

    He said the Government is correct in its strategy as it will be a long winter and the big fear in the autumn is that Russia may cut off gas supplies to Europe with the consequential prices.

    He said the budgetary strategy is to have a package that can have immediate impact once the budget is announced on people, certainly within this calendar year.

    Mr Martin said: We have to work out whats the best way to alleviate the pressures on households in terms of their disposable income and a way that doesnt further exacerbate the inflationary round.

    He said one key objective of Government is to marry some cost-reducing measures with climate action such as reducing transport costs.

    Minister for Public Expenditure Michael McGrath said the Summer Economic Statement will be brought to Cabinet on Monday.

    It will take account of the current economic circumstances and it will go beyond the package that was envisaged in the Stability Programme Update that we published in April, he said.

    Mr McGrath said the package had been based on the medium-term fiscal framework adopted in last years Summer Economic Statement.

    The principal reason for a change is that when it comes to public spending, for example, the rule at the time was based on about 5 per cent growth, which is linked to the trend growth rate in the economy.

    And that was predicated on about 2 per cent inflation and then 3 per cent real growth.

    Of course we are now in a very different space in the context of the level of inflation that were facing.

    So we will be changing the parameters and the exact details of that will be available on Monday.

    Asked how concerned he was at the 9.6 per cent inflation rate in June, Mr McGrath said it reflects the living reality, it reflects the prices that people have been paying in recent weeks and it is exceptionally high.

    He said 10 of the 19 eurozone countries have a higher rate than Irelands but added: Thats no consolation to people who have to pay those high prices.

    He said it underlines the need for the Government to respond in a very significant way and that measures to respond to the cost-of-living crisis will have to be implemented really quickly.

    Mr McGrath also said: This is a level of inflation we havent seen for four decades.

    The Governments response has to be commensurate with that and reflect that.

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    Budget measures on cost of living will have 'immediate impact', says Taoiseach - The Irish Times

    The Tragedy of Martha is That Her Story Had Been Hijacked So Thoroughly by the White Men Around Her: Anne Alvergue and Debra McClutchy on The Martha… - May 2, 2022 by Mr HomeBuilder

    Per Wikipedia, The Martha Mitchell effect refers tothe process by which a psychiatrist, psychologist, mental health clinician, or other medical professional labels a patients accurate perception of real events as delusional, resulting in misdiagnosis. Per Sundance, Full Frame, Hot Docs, and ultimately Netflix, The Martha Mitchell Effect is one must-see doc.

    Running at just under a brisk 40 minutes, Anne Alvergue and Debra McClutchys all-archival short which recently screened at the virtual Full Frame in the NEW DOCS section and is set to play in the Persister Shorts: Mothers Day program at the hybrid Hot Docs spotlights the titular figure, once only known to the public as the outspoken (read out of bounds when it came to the women of her day) wife of President Nixons attorney general (read criminally convicted henchman). The Arkansas-born, paparazzi-loving socialite was also a heck of a brave soul, whose inability to ignore her moral compass may have brought down the entire Nixon administration. (At least Tricky Dick thought so. Then again his many failed efforts to silence her including drugging and kidnapping may have played a role in that vitriol.) Her rectitude did, however, most assuredly bring down Martha Mitchell herself.

    Its a tragic tale made all the more poignant by the filmmakers deft mixing of Mitchells many controlled interviews and television appearances with her off-the-cuff phone calls. (The UPIs Helen Thomas was both a trusted confidant Mitchell could dial up at all hours and one of the few journalists to actually take her seriously.) With a face that belied an emotional truth deeper than words, Mitchell was equal parts media savvy and heartbreakingly honest. Someone whose trauma had always been hiding in plain painful sight.

    Fortunately for history, we now have a doc-making duo that bothered to look. The Martha Mitchell Effect debuts online April 28 at Hot Docs (geo-blocked to Canada, unfortunately) before heading to Netflix.

    Filmmaker: So how did this film originate? Was the idea sparked by the Watergate-level corruption of the Trump years? The anti-gaslighting groundswell of MeToo?

    Alvergue: Yes and yes. We were both devastated by the 2016 election and looking to tell a female-driven story that could shed light on the present. Marthas story really checked all the boxes. But more than anything we were captivated by what a savvy, hilarious and telegenic person she was; and dismayed by how effective the gaslighting campaign to silence her had been. She is truly a hidden figure of the Watergate era. Now seemed the time to resurrect her story and restore her agency.

    McClutchy: Yes, the impeachment scandals of the Trump administration clearly resonated, as did the reckoning around MeToo. We were fascinated with how this conservative Republican wife became one of the first prominent figures to call out the Nixon administration and the retaliation that followed. She was the unlikeliest of people to do it and had a lot to lose. When I first heard her story I was floored.

    Filmmaker: How exactly did you acquire the archival material? Is it all in the public domain?

    Alvergue: I wish! We first started at the Nixon Library. We knew about the Haldeman Super 8 collection, which is a treasure trove of home movies shot by Nixons young cabinet members. That is in the public domain. But unfortunately, and not surprisingly, there isnt much of Martha there as they were not big fans of hers.

    So we knew we would have to seek out primarily news stories to visually illustrate her journey. Luckily, the press followed Martha everywhere once they discovered how outspoken she was, and she in turn would play to the press. But so much of the visual archive in the early 70s has been lost; there was a lot of footage we knew about that we couldnt exhume. It really was a two-year research expedition to uncover sources, ranging from national to local news outlets, YouTube to eBay. As well as mining the archives of journalists. One found an interview tape in his attic that hadnt been broadcast since 1972.

    McClutchy: We also took an early research trip to the Library of Congress where we uncovered rarely heard interviews that Martha had given. Its such a thrill to find these gems of archival material. It makes the hunt for more all the more exciting. And then prior to the pandemic both Anne and I researched in person a couple of times at the Nixon Library, which became our main and crucial resource. Were archival nerds and absolutely loved researching there in person. Once the pandemic hit, we still hadnt completed our research. It was only through the Herculean efforts of archivist Ryan Pettigrew that we gained access remotely to even more material.

    But our research also extended far beyond the Nixon Library. There were many hours spent on the internet digging in archives, library collections, news outlets and more. It was always the random research finds that were the most thrilling.

    Filmmaker: I found your editing choices quite remarkable. The decision to close in on Marthas face, for example, making us aware of the heavy emotional toll speaking truth to power takes on the individual, really prioritizes the woman over the media circus perpetually surrounding her. So as the editor, Anne, can you talk a bit about what that process was like?

    Alvergue: We knew from the start we wanted to prioritize the archival and immerse the viewer in Marthas world. Given that her version of events was buried under the prevailing Watergate narrative, we also wanted to lead with her voice as much as we could to return some agency to her own story. But we were limited by the archive. There were some great pop cultural TV show segments, but most of what we uncovered were news stories; there was very little verite footage of Martha, and no home movies.

    For Nixon we had the Haldeman Super 8 collection we could pull from, so his story feels much more observational. What raw footage we could find of Martha was mostly interview outtakes. But we were lucky enough to work with the incredible editor Toby Shimin for a week in the final stage of the edit. She really mined these outtakes, slowing down the closeups of Martha to highlight her pain and frustration, particularly during the height of the gaslighting campaign. You can almost see her reacting as if in real time. And by staying within the native 43 aspect ratio of the footage we could focus on Martha and Martha alone in these key emotional scenes.

    Filmmaker: When it comes to the historical record, the tragedy of Martha is that her story had been hijacked so thoroughly by the white men around her, her narrative told almost solely through the white male gaze (despite legendary journo Helen Thomass Sisyphean efforts). So was it difficult to even locate enough material to reflect a more nuanced perspective?

    Alvergue: Part of the story of this film is how Martha was framed by the media and the White House, which was told predominantly from a male gaze. But we knew we could counteract that somewhat by isolating her interview bites and foregrounding her voice throughout the narrative to tell her side of the story.

    We also had the White House tapes, which were much more revealing than the official party line, and allowed us to investigate the media machinations of Nixon and his cabinet; and how they orchestrated public information vis a vis Watergate and Martha. For me, one of the biggest revelations from the tapes was how much Nixon gossiped about Martha pre-Watergate, and then was obsessed with containing her post-Watergate. There was a lot of fear surrounding her and what she might expose.

    McClutchy: Were also incredibly lucky that intrepid women journalists back then like Helen Thomas and Winzola McLendon took Martha seriously and listened to her. Without them, we wouldnt have the record we do in order to tell a more nuanced story. And Martha was savvy in developing these relationships with the press so that she would have some agency in telling her story. So these were women who were proactively building this historical record together.

    Filmmaker: Upon her death a floral arrangement spelling out Martha was right was sent anonymously to her family, and yet in the decades since shes mostly been forgotten as a heroic American. That said, there does seem to be something of a Martha revival lately, with Julia Roberts even playing her in the Starz seriesGaslit(based on theSlow Burnpodcast) premiering this month. Any thoughts as to why shes being resurrected at this moment?

    Alvergue: I think this country is so divided politically that Americans are now thirsty for outliers individuals who are brave enough to cross party lines and risk it all to speak truth to power. And for those few who do speak out we are seeing the same blowback now that we saw then, particularly against women. Treating your opponent as an existential threat, to be dehumanized and then marginalized, is a political tactic used time and again.

    I also think we are in a period of looking back at the past through different lenses, and seeking out those who were lost to history. Watergate was one of the 20th centurys biggest political scandals, and yet we know nothing of the women that were involved. As the 50th anniversary of the break-in approaches, we have an opportunity to revisit who was overlooked and in Marthas case, silenced for political gain.

    McClutchy: Fifty years after Watergate were facing another existential crisis in our democracy. Its not surprising to me that a story like Marthas is capturing our collective imagination. People are looking to history to help navigate where we go from here.

    We were actually at a film festival recently and a young liberal filmmaker said to me, I just really want my conservative Republican dad to see your film so we can talk about Martha. And I thought, yes! Please connect and have that conversation with your dad. If our film can spark a dialogue then thats one small step to a healthier democracy.

    Link:
    The Tragedy of Martha is That Her Story Had Been Hijacked So Thoroughly by the White Men Around Her: Anne Alvergue and Debra McClutchy on The Martha...

    Boris Johnson is no Churchill and can resign during a war, say baffled historians and diplomats – iNews - April 19, 2022 by Mr HomeBuilder

    Has Russias invasion of Ukraine saved Boris Johnsons premiership? Listening to some Conservative MPs, it sounds that way: he broke the law over Partygate, they admit, but Britain couldnt possibly have a change of prime minister at a time of war.

    The Daily Mail agrees, having run the front-page headline: Dont they know theres a war on? Even vehement critics of Johnson, such as the Tory MP Sir Roger Gale and the Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross, who had both previously called for him to stand down, say now is not the right time.

    This argument has baffled some of the countrys leading historians and diplomatic experts, who are also unconvinced by Johnsons efforts to portray himself as a latter-day Sir Winston Churchill.

    Britain is not at war, says Leo McKinstry, author of Attlee and Churchill, so this argument seems very specious. Every prime minister faces problems at home and conflict abroad. For 30 years, prime ministers faced conflict in Northern Ireland, so its a pretty dubious argument that the pressure of events mean he cant possibly resign.

    He adds: Its a life-and-death struggle for Ukraine, but its not for Britain.

    The mechanics of government would continue during a change in leadership because weve got a very good Defence Secretary, Ben Wallace, and the logistical system has been set up to supply Ukraine.

    And even if the UK were fighting, he tells i, it is ludicrous to suggest that the occupant of 10 Downing Street cannot change it has happened many times before.

    Simon Fraser, a former Permanent Secretary at the Foreign Office during the Coalition government, tweeted: If the argument that you should not change PM during a war had applied in 1940, Boris Johnsons hero Churchill would not have become PM (And then, unlike now, we actually were at war).

    This wasnt for lack of trying by No 10s incumbent at the time, says McKinstry. Neville Chamberlain presented the Boris-camp argument on 10 May 1940, saying that with the invasion of France and the Low Countries, this wasnt the time to change prime ministers. The Cabinet said this is exactly the time were facing the greatest crisis in the history of Britain, we need the best possible leader and youve proved youre not that man. Churchills time had come.

    Not only did Churchill enter Downing Street during the war, he left with potentially months of bloody fighting still ahead in the Far East. When the public elected Clement Attlees Labour government by a landslide in July 1945, people had no idea that two atomic bombs still secret at the time would end the war within weeks.

    That was a great argument that went on within the coalition: is this the time to hold an election with a potential change in government? People argued: surely we should wait until Japan is beaten? says McKinstry.

    But one of the great strengths of democracy is that it carries on even in wartime. Think of Franklin Roosevelt having a US presidential election in 1944. And in a way, thats what Ukraine is fighting for against Russia. If that seems an odd argument that you have to suspend democracy because youre in the middle of a conflict.

    Indeed, many have pointed out that France is going through a presidential election now, with Emmanuel Macron facing off against Marine Le Pen for a run-off vote on 24 April.

    Peter Ricketts, a crossbench peer who served as National Security Adviser to David Cameron and in high-ranking diplomatic roles for Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, tells i that the normal rules of politics should continue to apply, and theres no reason for suspending them because of Ukraine.

    Lord Ricketts, the author of Hard Choices, explains: John Major replaced Margaret Thatcher in November 1990, when the Conservative Party had no scruples about making a change right in the middle of the final build-up for the Gulf War, where very large numbers of British forces were preparing for combat. They didnt have a problem then.

    He adds: David Cameron won the 2010 election when the armed forces were heavily committed in Afghanistan. I dont think anybody said you couldnt change the government in the middle of a serious military operation. And while Johnson has been effective on Ukraine, he is not irreplaceable.

    Both McKinstry and Ricketts underline that they do not necessarily think Johnson who maintains that he did not knowingly mislead Parliament over Partygate should resign or be ousted. Nor do they predict that he will.

    I dont think this fine in itself disqualifies him from being Prime Minister but it poses a question to the Conservative Party: do they still think hes a fit person? says Ricketts.

    Do they think this is enough to cause them to set in motion a Major-for-Thatcher kind of change? If they dont, in the end the electorate will decide in 2024.

    McKinstry says: Johnson is the first prime minister to be convicted of breaking the law, but some might say that other prime ministers have committed far greater offences like Tony Blairs war in Iraq which many would say was illegal, Thatchers leaking of documents in the Westland crisis, Antony Edens invasion of Suez, Churchill and Attlee for the strategic bombing of Germany. You might say that those are greater moral offences than attending a birthday party during lockdown.

    Perhaps the most outrageous example of a leading politician remaining in office despite a very dodgy record is David Lloyd-George.

    When he was Chancellor of the Exchequer, he offloaded lots of Marconi shares when he had inside information, explains McKinstry.

    That was a great stain on Lloyd George. Looking back, it seems inexplicable that he didnt end up in court on charges of insider dealing. How did he survive? That was in 1913. Three years later, Lloyd-George succeeded Asquith in running the Liberal-led wartime coalition. Will Johnson take inspiration from Lloyd-Georges brazen behaviour?

    For those who think that drinks gatherings in No 10, even if they were illegal, should not be resigning matters, history also bodes well.

    McKinstry names Archibald Primrose, the 5th Earl of Rosebery, as the only modern Prime Minister since the mid 19th century I can think of who resigned over not a major issue. He stepped down in 1895 after his Liberal government lost a vote on the supply of ammunition to the British Army. He wanted to get out anyway, so he just took it as an excuse to say: Theyve lost confidence in me, says the historian.

    Every prime minister since then has either resigned because they lost an election, they lost the confidence of their party, they had ill health as in the case of Henry Campbell-Bannerman and Andrew Bonar Law or the major central plank of their policy was last, like Theresa May over Brexit.

    Following visits to Kyiv by the prime ministers of the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovenia last month, Johnson was widely applauded for travelling to the Ukrainian capital at the weekend to meet President Zelensky, who urged the world: Be brave like Boris.

    Commentators such as is Ian Birrell have little doubt that, while this was an important and admirable show of support for Ukraine by Johnson, he has also used Russias invasion opportunistically for his own political ends, portraying himself as a Churchillian wartime leader. Bloomberg declared that Boris Johnson Is Having His Winston Churchill Moment because in standing next to Zelensky, the Prime Minister knows that reflected glory is often the best way to come by extra kudos.

    If these fines have been imposed to two or three months ago, his position would be far more precarious but he shored up his authority a bit with his statesmanlike leadership in the crisis, and that footage of him walking through Kyiv with Zelensky certainly did him no harm, says McKinstry.

    He thinks criticism of Johnsons behaviour on Ukraine is harsh.

    Hes surprised even his critics by his stature and the strength of his leadership. The Ukrainian government openly says that Britain has been their staunchest ally. There are all these problems at home, with transport chaos and inflation, but the actual organisation logistically of Britains military support for Ukraine has been very effective, from the anti-tank equipment to the Starstreak anti-aircraft missiles. Zalensky has been full of praise for him. Its not just an invention that he has proved himself an effective leader in a crisis overseas.

    Nevertheless, he feels there are few genuine parallels to be made between Johnson and Churchill, beyond the fact they are both maverick, colourful characters whose careers recovered after wilderness years, and their oratory skills when able to write their scripts in advance.

    Ricketts is also frustrated by misleading comparison between Johnson and Churchill. Churchill was leading the UK in an existential war for survival. Boris Johnson has not committed British Armed Forces to conflict, he says.

    Johnson has long encouraged the public to think of him as a Churchillian figure. In 2016, he even wrote a biography of the man The Churchill Factor in which he referred to himself 30 times in the introduction alone.

    The book says perhaps less about Churchill than it does about the ambition and self-image of Boris, concluded Sonia Purnell in her review.

    Some will point out that many aspects of Churchills life mean he is not necessarily a good person to be likened to. Reviewing the book Churchills Shadow, in which Geoffrey Wheatcroft sought to cut through what he sees as blinkered idolisation of the man, a New York Times review summed up its argument that Churchill was not just a racist but a hypocrite, a dissembler, a narcissist, an opportunist, an imperialist, a drunk, a strategic bungler, a tax dodger, a neglectful father, a credit-hogging author, a terrible judge of character and, most of all, a masterful mythmaker.

    But McKinstry says that as an overall characterisation of Churchill, this would unfair with no doubt that he was a truly great leader with tremendous judgment of military strategy and prescience.

    The idea that he was just this drunken bore who invented stuff about himself is so absurd.

    Ultimately, can analysis of the past offer us any guidance on what will happen next for Johnson? The author Sir Simon Jenkins thinks not. Boris Johnson is not Churchill or Pericles, he wrote in The Guardian this week, adding: As a guide to the present, let alone the future, history is for smart alecks and podcasts. It is bunk.

    McKinstry agrees. History never repeats itself, and one of the great failings is always looking for parallels with the past. You get unstuck because theyre not exactly the same This is going to be decided by the Tory MPs.

    Whats going to be a huge influence on their judgement is the outcome of the local elections. So in a perverse way, democracy is going to have the final say. If the Tories do really badly in the local elections, what seems possible, that would probably sound the death knell for Boris. In a way, it is quite democratic that its going to be the court of public opinion that will probably decide this.

    Attlee and Churchill: Allies in War, Adversaries in Peaceby Leo McKinstry (10.99, Atlantic Books) and Hard Choices: The Making and Unmaking of Global Britain by Peter Ricketts (9.99, Atlantic Books) are both on sale now

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    Boris Johnson is no Churchill and can resign during a war, say baffled historians and diplomats - iNews

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