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IOL News
3 days ago
- Politics
- IOL News
Epstein and the collapse of the empire
A protester sits with a sign outside Manhattan Federal Court. The Donald's reign will soon disintegrate, brought down by a Schrodinger cat called Jeffrey Epstein, which is both dead and alive at the same time. Image: Mike Segar / Reuters JEFFREY Epstein is a particularly unique individual. In his rudely interrupted yet controversial life, he has been associated with so many impactful episodes of our contemporary history that have conspiratorially, if not fortuitously, led to the occupancy of the White House by the most divisive political figure, Donald J Trump. And there is no convenient starting point. In 1975, Epstein was looking furtively at His Excellency, Al Hadji, Big Dada Idi Amin Oumee, the Conqueror of all Beasts on Land and in the Seas, at a press briefing at the United Nations (UN) saying things about the illegality of Israel's creation in 1948, the wholesale murder of Palestinians and a two-state solution. It must have been Jeffrey in the shadows of the pictures or persons who subsequently gave him and his friends the instruction to promote Zionism in France, the United States and everywhere else besides. To the question of whether or not Epstein can collapse the most violent empire in the 21st century, Epstein himself has not disagreed. He is busy spending his money in the British Virgin Islands, or so it seems. A whole $800 million has been spent from his bank account by last Friday since he was declared dead. He spends a lot of dough for a dead man, or at least for a guy who is said to have committed suicide in prison, where cameras seldom work. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. 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Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ He and his Italian friends, at least those he gratuitously introduced to Trump, were selling atomic munitions to Libya. But Hillary Clinton, the war-mongering lady, angered by a beret-wearing intern having sex with her husband in the Oval Office, had to murder Gaddafi, no matter who was in the White House. And live on technicolour, the Lion of Sirte was violated with a sword, prompting her to declare chivalrously, that 'we came, we saw and murdered him' to her derisive laughter. Big Dada Idi Amin and Gaddafi were wondering, who was Jeffrey Epstein, and why was he doing all these things? Neither of them could rationally cohere his designs. They were already dead. But before Ronald Reagan could interject and give a full address on his knowledge of Epstein's machinations and Robert Maxwell, Ghislaine's father, in the entire Iran-Contra scandal, Trump couldn't wait to interrupt. His friend, Epstein and Flávio Briarote were busy organising Bunga Bunga parties for the Italian Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi, with underaged girls who were trafficked from modelling agencies owned or facilitated by those implicated in the ring. But Epstein had no stomach for arms dealings in the former Soviet territories or Iran, nor was he competent in said respect, Mossad operatives claimed. Rather, he chose a somewhat unique intelligence facility. Sex for political blackmail. There was a lot of sex organised by this non-descript circle, so much of it resembling the 1926 Traumnouvelle translated into Stan Kubrick's last epic movie starring Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman titled Eyes Wide Shut. The plot was simplistic in its objective more than it was simple in its operandum. It is to organise sex orgies for the powerful and thereafter 'remind' them to do whatever it is that was required for the purpose. This was a powerful instrument at Epstein's disposal, as old as Methuselah. You know, Suzie Wong style! It is not certain that during his reign, Epstein had Afrforum and AWB in contemplation. But the method of his operation and the gruesome death of Eugene Terre Blanche, especially associated with targeting Zimbabwean male farm workers on his North West farm, are not dissimilar. As for Afriforum, which regularly jets into the US for consultations with Trump, Epstein's major associate and his allies or both, they may find that at the hands of acute historic analysts, their relationship with such characters will forever burden their conscience. And for those who need reminding, relying on the US is a terrible gamble. In 1975, Washington DC instructed the apartheid regime to attack Angola, turning them into a Ukraine-like facility against what they called Soviet expansionism into Africa. When misadventure turned deadly and became the most epic military defeat in modern African warfare, South Africa and all the young blood and treasure that was lost could not be replaced. Ask Elon Musk! Again, in 1988, in a secret meeting in Washington DC, apartheid South Africa was instructed to open a forward assault front in Cuito Cuanavale in Southern Angola. They lost at great cost to men and material. The US simply shrugged in exasperation and told them to surrender to the Cubans, in what is now known as the Washington Agreement. Namibia got its independence, and so did the South Africans a few years thereafter. Pity our home-bred neo-Nazis and other Ossewa Brandwag leaning Afrikaner far-right parties! Now they have been promised something even greater than Angola and Namibia by the same people. ANC Regime change! Fool me once, shame on me. Fool me twice, shame on apartheid! Is this thrice? But Epstein had a lot of secrets. Small wonder the billionaire who made him a billionaire, bothered about a girl called Virginia Giuffre. With all those peccadilloes lingering carelessly around, the free billions launched a brand called Victoria's Secret. Lord, mother of God, whatever Victoria were they hiding? Trump came into power with a secret. The empire had to go. He had powerful friends to help him out, Epstein and Netanyahu. It is possible to imagine that these two were obsessed with sex, or Monica Lewinsky for that matter. But so many things point to the contrary, however. Probably JP Morgan as a bank and Ehud Barack, former Prime Minister of Israel and former Israeli Defence Minister, or most of the billionaires who entrusted their money to Epstein, had no inclination towards the secrets of the undergarment. This may be the reason for Kash Patel, the CIA head, to declare that there is no Epstein list. Patel may be responding to a different enquiry. Sad though that hitherto, nobody had let him into the secret yet. Whitney Webb has the list. The quintessential question is which one? But in the terrifying circumlocution of the scandal and the preoccupation of the White House to arrest Barack Hussein Obama, Kash Patel and his deputy, Dan Bongino, cannot find Whitney's phone numbers. Yet, Epstein, dead or cash lavishly alive, speaks with a voice of the dead. He is beyond the reach of mortals and speaks with impunity. When Jean Luc Brunel got arrested for Epstein-related crimes, he too is said to have committed suicide, much the same way the New York Post came with the scoop of Epstein pics on his deathbed. Have pity for the New York Post. If they had the scoop on Epstein's death, they are struggling to come up with the scoop on Epstein's funeral. Trump is worried, however. And President Emmanuel Macron of France knows it. For reasons which Candace Owens has shared with the world, Trump knows what Macron is worried about. Trump wants the Epstein story to go away. And Macron, for his part, wants the Candace story to go away, also. Both men are convinced that filing litigation, meritoriously or otherwise, may yield miraculous results. After meeting at the White House, Trump announced on Truth Social that he will be suing the Wall Street Journal. And Macron, in his irritation, serves legal notice against Candace Owens from the state of Delaware. But that is just the quid. The pro quo is a whole 'nother story. Both leaders may win if they were to somehow skip the pre-trial discovery obligation. Court process or not, both leaders imagine that no court will compel them to reveal facts material to the facts in issue, especially because they are world leaders. And there is a reason why. Discovery will undress both Trump and Mrs Macron. That's a lot of balls, one would imagine. Simply, it would be ugly. South Africans keep wondering, however, what Epstein told Donald Trump about them? No matter the gods, South Africans pray too, whether the real ones or the ones referring to some Palestinian fellow of immaculate conception, the sanctions are coming. Harsh. Deep. And escalatory. First, President Cyril Ramaphosa and his top six in the people's liberation movement may be targeted. So would be Julius Sello Malema. They would be barred from going anywhere, also. This would include all the places where uncle Johan Rupert would not be able to negotiate their entry without them being arrested. The only hope is that Jacob G Zuma would not be included on this targeted sanctions list, especially if Israel's proxy, Morocco, would seek his absolution from the Donald on his behalf. The Nigerian senators, for their part, are wondering in silence. They were probably right all along that there are hundreds of offshore accounts hosting laundered proceeds from MTN operations in Nigeria. Eric Holder, former US Attorney General under President Barack Obama, convinced them otherwise. So did Muhammadu Buhari. May His Soul Rest in Peace. Epstein knows about all that laundered money in all those offshore accounts, but so does the CIA. The sooner such money moves and the accounts are closed, the better! The South African story keeps unfolding. The Donald's reign will soon disintegrate, brought down by a Schrodinger cat called Jeffrey Epstein, which is both dead and alive at the same time. The South African neo nazis and their leaders in the GNU will meet their ultimate US betrayal. The only victors who will savour the taste of triumph will be the South African people. * Ambassador Bheki Gila is a Barrister-at-Law. ** The views expressed here do not reflect those of the Sunday Independent, Independent Media, or IOL. Get the real story on the go: Follow the Sunday Independent on WhatsApp.
WIRED
14-07-2025
- Politics
- WIRED
It's Not Just Epstein. MAGA Is Angry About a Lot of Things
Jul 14, 2025 2:16 PM Pockets of Donald Trump's most loyal base are increasingly angry at what they view as the administration's failure to fulfill its promises. Photograph:When President Donald Trump loses the support of posters on The Donald, it's notable, to say the least. The ultra-pro-Trump message board, whose members were accused of helping plan the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol, has been one of the most loyal corners of the internet for the president. But just like many other parts of the MAGA universe as of late, many users have had enough. 'So disappointed in Trump on this one, it's inexcusable,' a user wrote in the early hours of Monday morning, echoing widespread anger and resentment at the Trump administration's handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case. Trump and his allies had promised Republicans that once they took office they would release explosive revelations about what really happened when Epstein, the accused sex trafficker, died in custody in 2019—and his supposed 'client list.' But last week, the FBI and the Department of Justice issued a memo concluding that there was no cover-up and that Epstein had died by suicide. Even worse, the memo stated that the Epstein 'client list' that attorney general Pam Bondi had said was on her desk in February didn't actually exist. The outrage was instant and overwhelming, as grassroots supporters, right-wing influencers, and conservative media outlets fumed. It wasn't just about Epstein. It was, to them, a denial of the alleged child abuse rings that have become a cornerstone of conspiracy theories related to Epstein. The anger intensified further after WIRED reported that surveillance footage from a camera positioned near Epstein's prison cell the night before he was found dead had likely been modified. Trump has been scrambling to dismiss the criticism and defend Bondi, writing in a Truth Social post on Saturday that 'selfish people' were trying to harm his administration 'all over a guy who never dies.' The uproar around Epstein is just the latest in a number of bubbling Trumpworld concerns. For Tucker Carlson, the former Fox News host who now streams on X, it was the bombing of Iran. For Laura Loomer, a noted conspiracy theorist who has Trump's ear, it was Trump's acceptance of a luxury plane from Qatar. For Ben Shapiro, a pro-Trump podcaster, it was tariffs. For Joe Rogan, a massively popular podcaster, it was ICE raids targeting noncriminal, migrant workers. For Elon Musk, who recently left his role in DC as a special government employee, it was the Big Beautiful Bill. To date, most high profile right-wing media figures have stopped short of attacking Trump directly, focusing their anger instead on Bondi or other administration figures. But as resentment continues to grow in these communities who feel betrayed by Trump, that could change. 'The potential is a death by thousands cuts scenario, where enough criticism hits from enough different angles that the calculus switches for a lot of the more influential figures in the movement,' Matthew Gertz, a senior fellow at progressive media watchdog group Media Matters for America, tells WIRED. One of the first signs that the current Trump administration would not be able to keep all its supporters happy came when Secretary of Health Robert F. Kennedy Jr. endorsed the MMR vaccine in the face of a deadly measles outbreak in Texas that began in January. Kennedy was hailed as an anti-vaccine hero by the alternative health community upon his appointment, but many of those same people were furious following his vaccine recommendation. 'I'm sorry, but we voted for challenging the medical establishment, not parroting it,' Mary Talley Bowden, a doctor who criticized COVID vaccines, wrote on X in April, echoing many other angry responses. Last week, conspiracy theorists who believe the government is secretly controlling and manipulating the weather to control the US population began to turn on Trump. Lee Zeldin, the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, posted a video saying that his agency would release 'everything we know' about geoengineering. When the subsequent webpages went live with information debunking the 'chemtrails' conspiracy theory, Trump supporters were not happy. The chemtrails conspiracy theory falsely claims that the straight-line condensation trails visible behind aircraft are actually clouds of toxic chemicals sprayed by government-controlled planes in order to infect the population. 'Zeldin is engaged in a pitiful attempt at damage control due to the rapidly growing awareness of the weather warfare raging in our skies,' Dane Wigington, who writes a conspiracy-laced geoengineering blog, wrote on X. Even Trump's key conservative platforms are drawing critique. Though Trump's embrace of ultra-hardline immigration practices and far-right policies like remigration seemed to be the answer to the wishes of even the most extreme far-right figures, some are concerned the deportations are not happening nearly fast enough. 'Mass deportations are a lie,' white nationalist Nick Fuentes wrote on X last week, later adding: 'At a certain point you can't keep blaming the 'bad advisors' or personnel around Trump. We have been playing this game for +10 years now. Who appointed all of the personnel anyway? There are no excuses left.' This sentiment was shared among many far-right communities online. 'Trump needs to just do it. We elected him because he said he would. Just do it,' one member of The Donald wrote. 'When do the mass deportations start?' David Freeman, a pro-Trump influencer known online as Gunther Eagleman, wrote on X earlier this month to his 1.4 million followers. Some influencers have started to directly call out Trump. 'He's doing the exact opposite of everything I voted for,' Andrew Schulz, a comedian and one of the high-profile podcasters who interviewed Trump in the lead up to last year's election, said during the most recent episode of his 'Flagrant' podcast. 'The risk for Trump would be if the grassroots people who spend money on subscriptions and who watch YouTube videos and listen to podcasts start demanding something else from the people in the influencer class,' says Gertz. 'The influencer class is going to have to adjust to what would be a new paradigm in the way right wing political media is functioning. I think we're certainly nowhere near there yet but if that does ever switch, I would imagine it would happen pretty quickly as different figures see others having success with it.'
Spectator
11-06-2025
- Business
- Spectator
In defence of the Trump playbook
The standard explanation for why charges for plastic bags reduced waste is economic. People were reluctant to pay 10p for a bag and so brought their own instead. This is partly true. But it would still be highly effective if the charge for a bag were merely 1p. That's because charging any amount, however trifling, was sufficient to change the implicit assumptions about normal retail behaviour. Previously, if you went into Boots and bought, say, a toothbrush and a tube of Anusol, the default was for the cashier to put them in a new bag – it would have seemed rude not to do so. Suddenly, however, the imposition of a charge meant that shopkeepers had to ask whether you wanted a bag or not. Often the answer was 'no'; you had one already, or, if you were a chap, your clothing was miraculously equipped with things called 'pockets'. There are many ways in which you can achieve large changes in behaviour without imposing large economic penalties. For instance, I contend that you could significantly reduce intergenerational inequality simply by the imposition of a property tax of 0.1 per cent annually on all homes. The relatively small amount raised could be hypothecated to fund child benefit, or to reduce the income tax burden on the young. For the purposes of comparison, the typical property tax levied by those well-known leftists in the State of Texas is slightly over 1.8 per cent. Bear me out. I am borrowing here from the Donald Trump playbook. This is an under-rated approach to legislation where you impose taxes not for their direct effect, but for their symbolic value. By sending a surprising signal, you can change behaviour by unseating the unthinking assumptions people hold about the future. You don't necessarily have to do anything massive – you simply raise the possibility you might. Most human behaviour runs on implicit deterrents of this kind. By sending a surprising signal, you can change behaviour by unseating the unthinking assumptions people hold Before The Donald, it had become an axiomatic assumption in all businesses that no democratic government of any political stripe would ever deviate from the smug Davos neo-liberal globalist consensus in any shape or form. This artificial certainty meant that for decades you could offshore employment with abandon and treat your native staff fairly shabbily, without fear of any adverse consequences. Today it's different: even if you later reduce many tariffs to near zero and stop randomly abusing Canada, the signal has been sent. I hate to say this, but this approach could work well to solve many other problems. For instance, Britons have been lulled into planning for their future on the assumption that three unwritten rules underpin the tax system. 1) If you actually get up in the morning and do some useful work for which you get paid, you'll be taxed to buggery; 2) If you acquire wealth and then ride the wave of asset-price inflation (i.e. you have more money than you need 'cos you're old), you will be treated very generously; 3) If the asset in question is your own home, you won't be taxed at all, and nor will your good-for-nothing kids when they inherit it all. A large part of the reason why young people cannot afford to buy homes is nothing to do with the use value of a home – it is driven by the as-yet-unshaken belief that residential property has been sanctified as an asset class. It is this belief which possibly accounts for 25 per cent of the price of a home and a similarly large part of oldsters' pathological reluctance to downsize. Residential property is seen as Britain's only tax haven. To unseat this assumption, you don't need to rewrite the whole tax code, or go full Henry George – much as I would personally support this. You just have to make the unthinkable suddenly thinkable.
The Age
14-05-2025
- General
- The Age
A tarrific piece of marketing
Of all the nations at odds with The Donald, it has always seemed that the Scots are the most creative with their abuse. Terms like 'Wee orange rodent', 'Hamster heedit bampot' and 'Mangled apricot hellbeast' are just a few that come to mind. However, Jim Dewar of Davistown notes that they will happily utilise him in the name of tourism: 'Arriving in Turriff, a small town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, visitors are greeted by a recently erected roadside sign: Turriff - A Beautiful Thing.' There are plenty of C8-ers with a tale to tell of the Rawleigh man (C8), Janita Rankin of North Dandalup (WA) being one of them: 'We lived in a village with a small general store, so travelling salesmen were welcome, none more so than the Rawleigh man. While my mother served tea and cake, I sat enthralled as an array of ointments, balms and liniments were displayed. He also managed to fit seasonal gifts, ribbons and utensils in his suitcase. One product in particular, Goanna Salve, got my attention. I'd seen goannas in our yard and could not understand how he got one into a small tin.' 'My mother remembers the Rawleigh man,' says Nick Bencsik of Hunters Hill. 'In fact, she still has a tin of Rawleigh's Antiseptic Salve in her pantry. She's not sure how old it is, but it's still going strong!' Judy Jones of Thornleigh recalls that 'the Rawleigh man sold Man and Beast Ointment, the one ointment, but, I must hasten to add, he was preceded by the Watkins man. He had wonderful aromas from all the bottles of cooking essences floating out the back doors of his little van. I likened him to Aladdin.' 'I bought a new sewing machine for my wife for Christmas (her request), and the very lovely and knowledgeable ladies at the sewing store in Waratah supplied a beautiful pair of scissors (C8) as a complimentary gift,' writes Tony Bennett of Broke. 'I was informed quite firmly and without discussion to NEVER cut paper with them as paper blunts sewing scissors. Incidentally, they are also referred to as shears, not scissors.'
Sydney Morning Herald
14-05-2025
- General
- Sydney Morning Herald
A tarrific piece of marketing
Of all the nations at odds with The Donald, it has always seemed that the Scots are the most creative with their abuse. Terms like 'Wee orange rodent', 'Hamster heedit bampot' and 'Mangled apricot hellbeast' are just a few that come to mind. However, Jim Dewar of Davistown notes that they will happily utilise him in the name of tourism: 'Arriving in Turriff, a small town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, visitors are greeted by a recently erected roadside sign: Turriff - A Beautiful Thing.' There are plenty of C8-ers with a tale to tell of the Rawleigh man (C8), Janita Rankin of North Dandalup (WA) being one of them: 'We lived in a village with a small general store, so travelling salesmen were welcome, none more so than the Rawleigh man. While my mother served tea and cake, I sat enthralled as an array of ointments, balms and liniments were displayed. He also managed to fit seasonal gifts, ribbons and utensils in his suitcase. One product in particular, Goanna Salve, got my attention. I'd seen goannas in our yard and could not understand how he got one into a small tin.' 'My mother remembers the Rawleigh man,' says Nick Bencsik of Hunters Hill. 'In fact, she still has a tin of Rawleigh's Antiseptic Salve in her pantry. She's not sure how old it is, but it's still going strong!' Judy Jones of Thornleigh recalls that 'the Rawleigh man sold Man and Beast Ointment, the one ointment, but, I must hasten to add, he was preceded by the Watkins man. He had wonderful aromas from all the bottles of cooking essences floating out the back doors of his little van. I likened him to Aladdin.' 'I bought a new sewing machine for my wife for Christmas (her request), and the very lovely and knowledgeable ladies at the sewing store in Waratah supplied a beautiful pair of scissors (C8) as a complimentary gift,' writes Tony Bennett of Broke. 'I was informed quite firmly and without discussion to NEVER cut paper with them as paper blunts sewing scissors. Incidentally, they are also referred to as shears, not scissors.'
