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Picturing US Influence (In One Cartoon)

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/12/2014 13:38 -0400

"and as if by magic..."

Source: Investors.com

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Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:40 | 4651371 rtalcott

And it's about time this finally happened...

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:47 | 4651392 Skateboarder

Okay, and what about the 1500 military bases and a killing machine that does not rest? Surely that doesn't just "POOF!" away.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:49 | 4651400 Boris Alatovkrap

Easy like in Crimea military installation, just kick out previous inhabiting force and changing of flag. "Under New Management"

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:00 | 4651412 Two-bits

As long as there is a live feed.

edit:

I have not been here long enough to omit this- /sarc

My apologies

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:07 | 4651449 SafelyGraze

just a reminder of what an excellent secretary hilray was

_{never send a ponyshow to do a woman's work}

two-bits: *always* include the /sarc when you post here

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 15:04 | 4651572 zerozulu

Are you talking about Secretary of state Ms Hilarious Clinton?

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 16:10 | 4651728 disabledvet

"ain't no luck. I learned to duck."
very good reflexes...something a lot of humanity might be needing to emulate soon.

We can only hope otherwise of course.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 23:16 | 4653072 Manthong

need to stick a 12 inch wide jengis conn rod of victory into the horse face.

Sun, 04/13/2014 - 04:08 | 4653377 jeff montanye

and to think he was the alternative to four more years of george w. bush. he was a contender(!).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QsNXd57Ppw

instead of a (multimillionaire) bum which is what he is.

what may have been his stupidest looking moment was "riding" the motorcycle onto the leno show combined with the salute and "reporting for duty". what a buffoon.

how shabby and mendacious the owners' front people seem, as the years go by

Sun, 04/13/2014 - 00:53 | 4653226 Element

All neocons plants to high orifice now have to attend a half-day shoe-ducking induction session.

Maybe try a horse shoe next time ... better kinetic effect with flatter trajectory.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:53 | 4651415 Algosaurus Rex

POTUS & company have become impotent and irrelevant...

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 16:15 | 4651756 disabledvet

life was much simpler when Russia and the USA simply agreed to run the world "and did the best they could."

This "we won, you lost" world is very confusing. Have "we lost and they won"?

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:11 | 4651462 Leaping Lizard

Actually, Boris, the major military bases in Crimea always flew the Russian flag. Funny you should forget that.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 20:57 | 4652688 Boris Alatovkrap

History is sadly for Ukraine, is fly flag of Poland, Hapsberg (Austro-Hungary), German, Soviet SSR, Rumania, and now is Russia (Federation). Galician Ukraine is long time fight valiant for independence, but is now mostly dead and displace. Soviet Pogram of displacement is much for heralding of success like ancient Babylon and Assyria.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 15:23 | 4651601 Libertarian777

it wasn't a 'crimea military installation'... it always was a RUSSIAN naval port.

But since you're taking that angle... is Guantanamo flying the Cuban flag? hmm...

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 15:41 | 4651654 graneros

Putting a Boris/Knuckles 2016 bumper sticker on my pickup.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 16:45 | 4651876 The man with po...

Boris may be eligible as I suspect he's an American posting as an linguistically challenged Russian. I have had my suspicions you know.

/sarc

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 17:15 | 4651985 Boris Alatovkrap

Boris is more America than is Barry Soetoro!

(* only because cousin Andrei is make better quality Certificate of Living Birth)

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 19:17 | 4652342 PT

He remembered to "Save As" jpg instead of psd?

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 20:01 | 4652507 Boris Alatovkrap

PSD is not problematic, is use of microfiche page scan on flat fishbone template for background and bad bad job for altercation of date and signature. Evidence is of using Acrobat or Illustrator for placement of forgery article.

... but what is Boris know?

Sun, 04/13/2014 - 05:27 | 4653438 PT

At the very least, it was still a blatant sign to take a closer look

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 16:01 | 4651704 Mad Muppet

Hey Boris, if you have any relatives in the Russian military, can you give me a heads-up on when uncle Vladimir going to kick off the invasion? I need to change some of my positions. I'd be happy to share the windfall. yrs, the Mad Muppet.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 20:53 | 4652669 Boris Alatovkrap

Boris' ancestor is mostly for living in West Ukraine in Bokevina. Family are uncouth peasantry, now disperse by Russian during soviet period. Sorry, is not for insight on military movement, but Boris is give good information on location of low depth buried copper deposit near urban proximity!

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:53 | 4651411 Winston Churchill

787 bases I believe.

I think many will be invited to leave over the next year.When they don't ,it will get interesting.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:00 | 4651436 Skateboarder

Thanks for the real figure. 1500 was some number I saw on ZH comments at some point - kinda stuck in my head. I was only off by half an order of magnitude. ;-)

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:21 | 4651489 Winston Churchill

Its still a helluva lot thats for sure.

I wonder if the remains of them will last like the Roman fort in a town I used to live in

in the UK.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 16:18 | 4651770 disabledvet

the only alliance that matters as far as Americans are concerned is the Russian one.

"That one has lasted forever" actually.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 17:29 | 4652027 Winston Churchill

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:25 | 4651500 GooseShtepping Moron

Actually, you were only off by a factor of 2. Half an order of magnitude above 787 would have been (7870/2)=3935. You were much closer than that.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:55 | 4651554 nevadan

Actually not.

An order of magnitude is a scale of numbers with a fixed ratio, often rounded to the nearest ten.

The orders of magnitude are written in powers of 10. For example, the order of magnitude of 1500 is 3, since 1500 may be written as 1.5 × 10³.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_magnitude

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 15:16 | 4651588 Skateboarder

Correct.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 20:56 | 4652707 Boris Alatovkrap

You are make fancy reference, but Boris is relate order of magnitude for Walmart shopper basing on chassis sag of store scooter.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 23:34 | 4653110 old naughty

Ha. +10 to 10.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 15:16 | 4651587 813kml

Ron Paul has claimed that there are about 900 overseas bases (click link), and that's probably underestimating. Not to mention the number of warlords, mercenaries, and corrupt officials on the US gov payroll.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 17:27 | 4652025 Winston Churchill

I think that figure was before the last round of closings.

A base could have only 3 people as its muster, so the whole thing is a little subjective

as to what is meant by a base.That varies by branch of course as well eg

a minimum infantry division(10k) for the army, after allowing for rotation ,and self defence

is a minimum to count as a forward base.

787 is supposedly the official number,but they lie about everything, so who truly knows,I doubt even

the Pentagon does.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:43 | 4651530 agNau

The "POOF!" is a bookmark in time.
A chapters end taking place before our eyes......and not yet written in a real, "non orwellian" history book.

Behold THE GRECIAN URN!

"Beauty is truth, truth beauty," - that is all
Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know.

The urn holds the false promise......both inside and outside the land of the free.

"Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses, yearning to breath free."

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 16:13 | 4651744 Eeyores Enigma

I predict that the next big catalyzing event that brings the world to war will be done openly by the US and it will be the American public that demands that it be done.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 23:38 | 4653114 aardvarkk

Maybe...but I don't think so. Or at least, it won't be a MAJORITY of the American public. The majority here right now is kind of shellshocked by the combination of stupidity and hubris in Washington right now. A lot of us are in the process of actively withdrawing our consent to be governed by those assholes. I know that the one person I'll be voting for in a national race in 2014 (for representative) is neither a Dem or a Repub. There is a senate race in my state, but I see no reason to vote for either of the major-party jagoffs. Nor do I see anybody in either party, with the possible exception of Rand (and I haven't examined him all that closely and he'll probably be off the table once I do) that I could vote for for president in 2016.

Maybe I just run in strange circles (a distinct possibility) but I see a lot of cynicism in many people...something I saw a lot less of in 2012 and earlier elections. The interesting thing is that I see a lot of it in people that are or were both Dem-leaning and Repub-leaning.

I guess we'll see. But I suspect if the US does something stupid, it won't be at the overwhelming demand of the American Public. And in that case I suspect there will be a SIGNIFICANT movement here to politically force whoever made it happen to "take it back", if such can be done. And if THAT was ignored then I think we'd see something approximating Civil War version 2.0.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:48 | 4651394 Boris Alatovkrap

Cartoon is reminding Boris of dead horse.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:14 | 4651470 KickIce

Except Kerry has yet to realize trophy has disappeared and refuses to STFU.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 19:33 | 4652397 djcando

I thought the horse was holding the trophy!

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 23:36 | 4653112 old naughty

When most seen only the lamp with/without genie.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 15:44 | 4651657 midtowng

When you torture, start illegal wars, and ship your industrial base to other countries, that sort of thing happens.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 16:21 | 4651782 disabledvet

well..."we are the greatest power in world history."

sometimes a setback or two (trillion) is to be expected.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:41 | 4651376 Al Capowned

Annnnnd Its gone ..

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 16:22 | 4651789 disabledvet

preeeeeeeecisely.

Sun, 04/13/2014 - 23:49 | 4655777 MeelionDollerBogus

uhhh...what?

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:41 | 4651377 buzzsaw99

emerging market eCONoMEs should be glad the maggots are exploiting their labor and their resources. Actually, we're doing them a favor. Yeah, that's the ticket!

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:42 | 4651381 SmilinJoeFizzion

Secretariat of State

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:50 | 4651402 Boris Alatovkrap

You are smart funny! Boris is laugh, but this is "beating dead horse", no?

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:56 | 4651425 toadold

Only the back half of the horse.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 16:07 | 4651720 Mad Muppet

Secretariat of State

With your permission, forevermore that will be the new name for Sir Horseface. I'm forever in your debt.

Sun, 04/13/2014 - 04:21 | 4653386 jeff montanye

imo that was too good a horse to be kerry's face. more like sparkplug.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/360899352468?lpid=82

Sun, 04/13/2014 - 00:40 | 4653215 Manic by Proxy

Let's rein in these insults to Kerry's elongate visage.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:46 | 4651389 oklaboy

well we still have a nobel peace prize.....

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:54 | 4651414 A_Nejad

Don't remind me of that!! Jävla Norrmman!

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:47 | 4651393 BullyBearish

The world's response to the USA of today:

“I and the public know
What all schoolchildren learn,
Those to whom evil is done
Do evil in return.”

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 15:35 | 4651628 813kml

Unfortunately, revenge may come in the form of an atomic wedgie.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 15:48 | 4651671 graneros

...and said wedgie may arrive on a Boeing 777 that's sporting a faded Maylasian Airlines logo.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:48 | 4651396 ebworthen

"Poof!", just like the lives of our young service Men and Women sacrificed for M.I.C. proxy wars for oil and poppy fields.

Meanwhile, back home, the N.S.A. rapes the 4th Amendment and Posse Commitatus is violated for our "safety" (serfdom).

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:51 | 4651404 thamnosma

They did an awful job in securing the oil if that was their aim. As for the poppy fields, much more successful.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:05 | 4651447 logicalman

When the US were doing their thing in Vietnam-Laos-Cambodia, most of the world's H was coming from the Golden Triangle.

Now the US are doing their stuff in Afghanistan, most of the world's H comes from there.

Is this a coincidence?

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:14 | 4651468 Leaping Lizard

Definitely! I am a coincidence theorist as it the presstitute MSM.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 15:03 | 4651569 Al Huxley

Very nice - I'm trying hard to join the herd and become a 'coincidence theorist' myself, as it appears to be a much less stressful and angering position to hold.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 16:31 | 4651820 cynicalskeptic

Twelve years ago - when the Taliban had pretty much eradicated opium production in Afghnaistan - you didn't hear much at all about heroin. Now - after the US has been there for a decade ther's a heroin 'epidemic' that's so bad it's killing kids in suburbia.

Coincidence? I think not.

Gotta love our intelligence agancies and their covert ops. Great cover for running drugs - as in Vietnam, Iran-CONTRA and now Afghanistan......

Welcome to a Brave New World where the masses actually pay their enslavers for the SOMA that keeps them docile.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:52 | 4651406 thamnosma

Is Kerry sporting a moustache these days or is the cartoonist just taking a few liberties?

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:54 | 4651417 Colonel Klink

No, Kerry just hadn't wiped his lip from kissing Obama's ass.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:53 | 4651409 Colonel Klink

Kerry, tongue punching our our enemies fart box.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:53 | 4651410 Charles Wilson

As long as the Rolex on his left hand doesn't go *Poof* as well, Mr. One-Trick-Pony won't care.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:54 | 4651416 FieldingMellish

Good thing yachting season starts soon...

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:55 | 4651420 Oh regional Indian

Neigh it ain't sow!

John Kerry, where US credibility went to die.

ori

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:58 | 4651432 Winston Churchill

Aw come on on.Hitlary got the ball rolling.

A million miles flown with only a murdered ambassador to show for it.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:10 | 4651459 Oh regional Indian

Simply cannot argue that WC....

Hitlary shat on it, Kerry is giving it the flush...

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:59 | 4651565 blindman

colin powell.
"Don't let your ego get too close to your position,
so that if your position gets shot down, your ego
doesn't go with it.
Colin Powell
.
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/c/colin_powell.html

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 15:04 | 4651570 blindman

"You don't know what you can get away with until you try."
Colin Powell

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 16:00 | 4651701 toady

Yeah, old Colon at the UN, selling the Iraq debacle, was the beginning of the end of US prestige.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 16:24 | 4651794 Offthebeach

First US Army officer assigned to investigate a report at a South Vietnam village called My Lai.

Yup.

Found nothing.

Old Colon always knew to "Shu'nuff" his masters.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 17:13 | 4651803 blindman

the secretary of state is there to explain the u.s.
foreign policy, as far as i care to tell. therefore,
it is perfectly predictable that the person in that
position will be revealed to be a fool and a liar because
the u.s. foreign, and domestic, policy has been
historically insane to comport with the desires
and wish/demands of the
paranoid and inbred oligarchs of the world.
that makes the u.s. nothing more, despite the law and constitution
(piece of paper), than a tool of enforcement for
the ignorant and demented psychopathic narcissists
of the world.
.
Jesse Winchester - "That's What Makes You Strong"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yoD-7QpcqI&list=PL29010266CED59FEA&inde...

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:55 | 4651422 syntaxterror

Those faggots still have a pretty big influence on the Free Shit Army.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 13:56 | 4651423 Citizen_x

Owings Mill MD,

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2014-04-11/news/bs-md-co-shooting-20140411_1_fbi-agents-federal-agents-side-door

Newer, expensive Infiniti SUV

NY Plates GAK 3121

Home of T Rowe Price

Maybe the latest banker fatality

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:09 | 4651456 magpie

Cant let Joe live.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 15:09 | 4651579 erkme73

Bet my next paycheck... all officers cleared.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:00 | 4651435 Joe A

A horse walks into a bar, says the bartender "what can I get you Mr. Kerry?".

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:37 | 4651515 messymerry

A horse walks into a bar backwards, says the bartender "what can I get you Mr. Kerry?".

FTFY, ;-D

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:56 | 4651556 Joe A

Hehehe. Horse shit coming out of either end anyway.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 16:43 | 4651871 NuYawkFrankie

Worth repeating

Kerry walks into bar - bartender says: "Why the long face?"

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:03 | 4651441 toadold

Meanwhile with US "influence" gone every country that can will be manufacuring, buying, or stealing nukes for "self defense." Which geiven human natures tendency to mess up could lead to a mushroom Kapboom some place thus rendering the Nobel Peace into an even sicker joke than it is already.

Given what's going on in Nevada there could be some states in the US going Nuke to protect themselves from the Federal government.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 18:45 | 4652236 Bazza McKenzie

That was one of Obama's lessons to the world. Ghaddafi gave up his nuclear plans once Bush II went into Iraq. He also started cooperating on fingering terrorists.

Obama/Clinton showed him and everyone else what a dumb policy that was.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:14 | 4651469 Last of the Mid...

Kerry, Reid, Pelosi, ad nauseum, proof positive money corrupts absolutely and above that concentrates absolute incompetence in the upper reaches of government. What a buffoon.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 14:38 | 4651517 NoWayJose

Any coincidence that US influence is fading, while at the same time there is an increase in new anti-bullying laws?

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 15:29 | 4651615 besnook

kerry is the fall guy but this policy is the responsibility of shrub and the handover of all us foreign policy to the neocon pnac group who think the world centers around the mid east and a particularly shitty little country filled to the brim with shitty little people. nuke israel for world peace.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 16:29 | 4651807 graneros

Bullshit. You wanna carry water for Kerry, Obama and all the other progressive assholes that's your business but I, and I'm sure not alone, am sick of this "it's Bushes fault" crap. I don't like Bush or any other neocons and I despise their wars and policies but the group we have in there now make the old regime look like... well Bush leaguers. THIS IS OBAMA AND KERRY"S RESPONSIBILITY PERIOD.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 16:54 | 4651905 besnook

you don't understand how foreign policy is developed in the usa. it is the one area where there is general agreement between the parties concerning the goals and strategy of foreign policy. a change in policy does not normally happen in a bubble as it did when shrub turned foreign policy on its head with its new mid east as the center of the world with israel at the centerr of the policy. the argument for change being spearheaded by 9/11 conveniently.

blaming this on kerry and obambam exclusively is ignorance of how the world works, of how the usa works as the ruler of the world, of how the world could care less that it is obamabam and kerry leading the show as much as the world knows it must multipolarize the world(counterbalance usa power) to save itself from usa hegemony.

if anything, obambam has purposely diminished the power of the neocons and israel by dissing israel in syria, iran and now the neocons in ukraine. it has either been on purpose or by incompetence borne of arrogance but it is good for the world.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 18:43 | 4652224 Bazza McKenzie

Reagan's foreign policy was totally different from Carter's. He created it and implemented it over the whining of the DC establishment that said it couldn't be done.

So let's not pretend Obama and Kerry are just the innocent victims of other big bad forces. The fact is they're just incompetent thugs with no concerns about the interests of the majority of Americans.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 19:06 | 4652305 besnook

carter initiated the afghan polkicy of training and arming freedom fighters to fight for their freedom against the ussr. reagan escalated the assault on the ussr with the continuation of the afghan operation and the initiation of the star wars policy, the initial encirclement of the ussr by missiles, all the while keeping a lid on israel vis a vis oil in the mid east. even bush,sr knew the danger of the neocon crowd dubbing them the crazies in the basement(of the state department when thestate department was filled with arabists). so not much changed in usa foreign policy until shrub unleashed the crazies in the basement upon the world.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 22:54 | 4653027 Bazza McKenzie

Everything Carter touched he bungled, just like you know who.

Carter was shown the door with public approval rating of 34%. When Reagan stepped down after two terms, his approval rating was 63%. That was after winning 49 states and a record 525 electoral votes in his second campaign. Must have done something right in the eyes of the public at the time.

Reagan knew the difference between Russia and its people, and the USSR that subjugated them and threatened the US. He would know who the real enemy is today.

Sat, 04/12/2014 - 21:04 | 4652731 kurt