The John Batchelor Show

Tuesday 2 June 2015

Air Date: 
June 02, 2015

 
Photo, left: Noctilucent clouds (blue) observed in front of the moon, taken from the International Space Station. also: The full Strawberry Moon and noctilucent clouds.
JOHN BATCHELOR SHOW
 
Hour One
Tuesday  2 June 2015 / Hour 1, Block A:  John Batchelor, in re:  Operation Overlord, 6 June 1945. Original recordings from CBS; of Gen Eisenhower; "The hour of your liberation is at hand." Commentary.
Tuesday  2 June 2015 / Hour 1, Block B: John Batchelor, in re:  Operation Overlord, 6 June 1944. Original recordings from CBS. Major George Fielding Elliot: CBS Coverage of June 6, 1944
www.ohio.edu/people/gulino/.../CBS_1944-06-06.html  Ohio University. CBS News broadcast by Bob Trout;   unconfirmed reports of the  invasion;  ... by CBS ("Columbia") military analyst Major George Fielding Elliot; decision by ... Bob Trout news break-in with "communique #1" by Colonel R. Ernest Dupuy.  "Uncertainty of the location of Allied landings" on the French coast; Normandy.  Allied landing near the estuary of the Somme?  Cherbourg.  "As we learned at Anzio, it's not safe to leave this to the mercies of the weather. . . .  any military analysis must remain uncertain" as to where the main landing was taking or would take place – this continued for weeks.  Hitler was fooled.
Tuesday  2 June 2015 / Hour 1, Block C: Paige Winfield Cunningham, Washington Examiner, in re:  King v Burwell and the Affordable Care Act. Sticker shock is uneven across the country. Insurance rates spiraling upward right now. Over half the enrollees are over age 44; also, special funding was supposed to help insurers make up costs, but that funding is now being phased out.  Massive increases in costs of prescription drugs; and ACA demands coverage of more benefits.
Tuesday  2 June 2015 / Hour 1, Block D: Sarah Westwood, Washington Examiner, in re:  the unusual reports on the Clinton Foundation:  merit of those pushed to the front of the line?  Bldg a new embassy in Oslo. Norwegian govt rejected it, and State funding was limited, but the US nonetheless spent $200 million on a project that still seems entirely unnecessary. Saudis paid Bill Clinton a princely sum to speak, then US operations jumped from $18 million to $68 million immediately after the payment for the speech.   Irregularities and uncertainty over transfer of email list from PAC to campaign. Legal insulation – but the foundation did obtain the list, not known if that was done for less than full market value, which would constitute a violation.
The full Strawberry moon and noctilucent clouds.
 
Hour Two
Tuesday  2 June 2015 / Hour 2, Block A: Stephen F. Cohen, NYU & Princeton professor Emeritus; author: Soviet Fates and Lost Alternatives: From Stalinism to the New Cold War, & The Victims Return: Survivors of the Gulag after Stalin; in re: Hacked Emails Expose George Soros As Ukraine Puppet-Master (Zero Hedge) According to the leaked documents, Soros supports Barack Obama's stance on Ukraine, but believes that the US should do even more.     'Self-appointed advocate of new Ukraine': Soros emails leaked by anti-Kiev hackers RT ; Value Walk: George Soros' 'plan' for Ukraine reportedly leaked Kyiv Post (1 of 4)
Tuesday  2 June 2015 / Hour 2, Block B: Stephen F. Cohen, NYU & Princeton professor Emeritus; in re: Zee News, Minsk: Kiev on Tuesday accused Moscow of sabotaging Ukraine crisis talks, after a meeting in Minsk aimed at resolving the conflict in eastern ... ; UN finds signs of Russian involvement in Ukraine fight The Japan News ;  Ukraine caught in a cross-fire between Russia and West, Business Standard  ;  Civil Society Is Saving Ukraine from Chaos  Opinion-The Moscow Times ;   UN says almost 7000 killed in Russia-Ukraine conflict In-Depth   ;  UN rights office: Death toll in Ukraine conflict tops 6400   Opinion-Boston Herald ;   Explore in depth (2 of 4)
Tuesday  2 June 2015 / Hour 2, Block C: Stephen F. Cohen, NYU & Princeton professor Emeritus (3 of 4)
Tuesday  2 June 2015 / Hour 2, Block D: Stephen F. Cohen, NYU & Princeton professor Emeritus; in re: III. The short-term: the next three months   A. What Ukraine must deliver  1. Restore the fighting capacity of Ukraine without violating the Minsk agreement.  2. Restore some semblance of currency stability and a functioning banking system.  3.  Maintain unity among the various branches of government.  4. Preserve the institutional integrity and independence of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU)  5. Provide tangible evidence that the government knows where the leaks in the budget are and knows how to stop them.  6. Prepare and initiate a convincing economic and political reform program that both donors and investors would find attractive. 7. Present an impressive case at a donors’ and investors’ conference in three months' time with two months' leeway.
B. What the allies must deliver
1. Help restore the fighting capacity of the Ukrainian army without violating the Minsk Agreement. The allies must imitate Putin in the practice of deniability to deprive him of his first-mover advantage.
2. Europe must reach a new framework agreement that will allow the European Commission to allocate up to €1 billion annually to Ukraine Draft Non-Paper/ v14 3 charging only 9% to the budget and to use it also for other than balance of payments support. This requires a political decision by Chancellor Merkel and President Hollande, as signatories of the Minsk Agreement, and the expenditure of considerable political capital to overcome legal hurdles and reach unanimity.
3. Be ready to commit some or all of these funds if the Ukrainian reform program justifies it. To turn the tables on Putin, Ukraine needs to be converted from a source of political risk to an attractive investment destination. That will require larger EFF’s and reinsurance for political risk insurance at attractive rates  (4 of 4)
 
Hour Three
Tuesday  2 June 2015 / Hour 3, Block A: Dog Company: The Boys of Pointe du Hoc--the Rangers Who Accomplished D-Day's Toughest Mission and Led the Way... by Patrick K. O'Donnell (1 of 4)
Tuesday  2 June 2015 / Hour 3, Block B: Dog Company: The Boys of Pointe du Hoc--the Rangers Who Accomplished D-Day's Toughest Mission and Led the Way... by Patrick K. O'Donnell (2 of 4)
Tuesday  2 June 2015 / Hour 3, Block C: Dog Company: The Boys of Pointe du Hoc--the Rangers Who Accomplished D-Day's Toughest Mission and Led the Way... by Patrick K. O'Donnell (3 of 4)  
Tuesday  2 June 2015 / Hour 3, Block D: Dog Company: The Boys of Pointe du Hoc--the Rangers Who Accomplished D-Day's Toughest Mission and Led the Way... by Patrick K. O'Donnell (4 of 4)
 
Hour Four
Tuesday  2 June 2015 / Hour 4, Block A:   Salena Zito, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, in re:  “Beginning today I am the only candidate in the Democrat primary that has actually run a big city, and run a state. I have done that. That is 15 years of executive experience, of a proven executive method that has been emulated as the new way of governing” Martin OMalley  A work ethic and values learned from his father's blue-collar Pittsburgh upbringing will bolster former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley in his run for the presidency, he told the Tribune-Review.
Tuesday  2 June 2015 / Hour 4, Block B:   Tunku Varadarajan, Hoover & Politico, in re: We need a new “constitutional conference” for FIFA. In his resignation statement, Blatter indicated — somewhat astonishingly — a few changes that he’d like to see that would make FIFA more transparent. These suggestions should be ignored, given their tainted source. But the FIFA manual needs to be torn up into little pieces and rewritten from scratch: a transparent, honorable Constitution for a brave, new, post-Blatter world. “We the people of the Beautiful Game, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure international transparency, provide for the common pleasure, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Soccer to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the Federation Internationale de Football Association.”[more]
Tuesday  2 June 2015 / Hour 4, Block C: Aaron Klein, KleinOnline and Investigative Radio, in re:  Islamic State Attacks Israel: ISIS Supporters Threaten Hamas, Take Credit for Launching Rocket From Gaza  International Business Times: It's unclear how many ISIS supporters there are in Gaza, or if they have solid relations with ... ; Hamas kills ISIS supporter despite 48-hour ultimatum given by ISIS supporters' in Gaza Ynetnews - Hamas kills ISIS supporter despite 48-hour ultimatum given by ISIS supporters' in Gaza - ‪Undetered by statement sent to media demanding end to crackdown, Hamas kills a 27-year-old ISIS leader; statement also includes unconfirmed claim of responsibility for rocket fire on Israel last week. Gaza: Isis Assassinates Senior Hamas Commander; Threatens to Kill More 'One by One' International Business Times, India Edition
Tuesday  2 June 2015 / Hour 4, Block D:   John Bolton, AEI & The Weekly Standard, in re: "Lessons from a Non-Candidacy"  - the GOP field gets a little less crowded
 
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