Back Story Newsletter
Good morning,
Another Day, Another Party
Yet another revelation of a party at Number 10 Downing St. in Britain, the P.M.’s official residence. This one was a birthday party for Boris Johnson in June of 2020, again during a lockdown which made gatherings for the rest of the country illegal.
The P.M. liked to have his cake and eat it too in the pandemic.
It now appears during the pandemic there were a string of parties at Number 10, while the rest of the nation was facing pub closings, restrictions against meeting people in parks, even stringent measures prohibiting people from visiting dying relatives in hospitals.
There is outrage, and this during a week an investigation into the parties by a civil servant is due to be made public. Boris Johnson may survive the scandal, or he may not, but his party is plunging in the polls and he has become a political liability as more MP’s call on him to resign.
Ukraine
U.S. President Joe Biden held what he called a “great” call with European leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, as western nations struggle to have unified position on Russia.
Germany for instance still won’t agree to send arms to Ukraine, while other nations have been flying in tons of lethal supplies in recent days including Britain and the U.S.
My sources tell me the 8500 U.S. troops now on stand by alert, to deploy to NATO forward countries, are most likely the 82nd Airborne in Fort Bragg N.C., and in Vicenza Italy the 173rd Airborne Brigade is also on stand by.
The 82nd Airborne would like send a Battalion or Brigade Airborne Combat Team that is in the rotation for highest level of readiness.
NATO is not considering a direct armed defense of Ukraine but would bolster Poland, Latvia, Lithuanian, Estonia and others all feeling vulnerable to Russian aggression especially as Russian troops have moved into ally Belarus, and Russia is not being clear or truthful about its intentions.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Washington and NATO were escalating tensions through "information hysteria" and adding that the risk of an offensive by Ukrainian troops against Moscow-backed separatists was "very high."
Translation - The Kremlin may claim Ukraine moved into rebel areas as a pretext for a limited invasion using 100 thousand Russian troops massed on Ukraines border. That’s called a false flag operation. And western leaders warn it won’t wash, and will trigger massive sanctions against Russia.
More and more analysts believe Russia is unlikely to go for a full invasion of Ukraine, but is looking to bolster independence claims in Eastern Ukraine, and Russian troops would be used to further invade those zones around Luhansk and Donetsk. Then like Crimea Russia would supervise a public referendum for annexation that Ukraine and the international community would refuse to recognize.
Some Nato members, including Denmark, Spain, France and the Netherlands, are already planning or considering sending fighter jets and warships to eastern Europe to bolster defences in the region.
Biden and Fox
The U.S. President Biden was caught on yesterday angrily reacting to a question shouted by the right wing Fox News cable channel during a cabinet meeting.
Fox News' Peter Doocy asked the president whether he thought inflation would be a "political liability" ahead of November's midterm elections. Biden's reaction was caught on a hot mic.
"That's a great asset, more inflation," Biden said. "What a stupid son of a b----."
Fox and the Democrats never have love ins at the White House, so this actually is a fairly typical attempt buy Doocy to get a video grab for his right wing channel, without really hoping for any information from the President.
We live in the days of cable news reporters trying to grand stand for headlines, and the W.H. having to stomach the confrontations. Although no one would say Biden responded in a suitable or dignified manner.
International Markets
Japan stocks dropped more than 2% as Asia-Pacific markets plunged on Tuesday after a volatile session on Wall Street.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 2.13% as auto and tech stocks were largely down, and the Topix fell 2.13%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index lost 2% before recovering slightly to decline 1.65%.
In the U.S. the Dow was down more than 1000 points before recovering as investors bought up tech stocks they perceive to be at valued pricing.
There is a lot of nervousness over a possible war in Europe, and in the U.S. the Fed is tightening interest rates at a time the economy is slowing. Experts say some of the earnings in U.S. companies are disappointing, and the Omicron variant spread has contributed to economic problems.
New Telescope In Place
"We're one step closer to uncovering the mysteries of the universe. And I can't wait to see Webb's first new views of the universe this summer!"said NASA’s Bill Nelson.
The James Webb telescope has fired thrusters to be in place a million miles from Earth, and begin sending back images of the Universe the likes of which have never been seen. It is one of the most expensive scientific platforms ever built.
Have a good day everyone, and please subscribe to this newsletter and share it! By the way, its free but you can become a paying subscriber to support my time and effort!
Dana
https://www.france24.com/en/americas/20220124-nasa-s-new-space-telescope-arrives-at-its-destination-in-solar-orbit
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2022/jan/24/boris-johnsons-lockdown-birthday-party-pm-faces-anger-from-mps-and-bereaved
https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2022/01/24/kremlin-says-nato-ramping-up-ukraine-tensions-with-deployments-a76129
https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2022/01/24/biden-insults-peter-doocy-hot-mic-over-inflation-question/9204632002/
https://money.yahoo.com/why-stock-market-tanking-investors-185941168.html