This broadcast commemorates the lives and passing of Peggy and Sterling Seagrave, investigators, journalists, authors and heroes.
A peripheral internet search conducted while re-reading Gold Warriors yielded the sad news that both Peggy and Sterling Seagrave had passed. Peggy passed away in 2016 and Sterling in the spring of 2017.
Authors of a number of ground-breaking and overlapping historical/political exposes, they culminated their remarkable careers with Gold Warriors, which Mr. Emory feels is as important a book as has ever been written and is a MUST read for anyone genuinely concerned with the state of world affairs, past, present and future.
More admirable than even their consummate investigative and literary skills is the fact that they continued their research and reporting in the face of serious death threats and attempts, as well as lethal consequences visited on some of the participants in the “Black Gold” transactions and, apparently, on some of those investigating the machinations of the nations, commercial institutions and individuals involved with the operations.
(FTR #‘s 427, 428, 446, 451, 501, 509, 688, 689 deal with the subject of the Golden Lily program successfully implemented by the Japanese to loot Asia. That loot was merged with Nazi gold, became the Black Eagle Trust, which not only financed Cold War covert operations but underwrote much of the post-war global economy.)
In FTR #‘s 446 and 509, we highlighted and reviewed the death threats and hands-on interference experienced by the Seagraves in response to their investigations. In 509, we also noted the suspicious circumstances surrounding the death of the heroic Iris Chang, who aided the Seagraves in their Gold Warriors project. Having authored a book on the Rape of Nanking and working on another about the Bataan Death March, Ms. Chang had crossed the very power structure delineated at length, depth and detail in the Seagraves volume.
In our last visit with the Seagraves, a 2009 interview that was the focus of FTR #689, Sterling expressed anxiety about the proximity of their residence in Southern France to the Spanish border and the formidable presence of Opus Dei in Franco’s former domain.
(The Vatican’s relationship to fascism, including Opus Dei and the Ustachi in Croatia, is highlighted in, among other programs AFA #17.)
The remarkable Severino Santa Romana, prime mover in the Black Eagle Trust operations in the Philippines and the gold recoveries in those islands was, in addition to his work for U.S. intelligence, an operative of the powerful Vatican order Opus Dei. It appears that Opus Dei was Santa Romana’s primary affiliation and his U.S. intelligence connections were derivative.
With strong connections in Spain, dating to the Franco fascist regime (which maintains powerful presence in contemporary Spain), Opus Dei is a major factor in the contemporary political scene. Sterling opined in FTR #689 that his and Peggy’s proximity to the Spanish border might expose them to violence.
His fear turned out to be prescient. On Christmas Day of 2011, he narrowly escaped assassination while returning home. He felt that the attempt on his life may well have been motivated by the publication of the Spanish language edition of Gold Warriors.
After detailing the attempt on his life, we set forth Santa Romana’s relationship with Opus Dei. Santa Romana’s Opus Dei operations were essential for the fiscal reinforcement of the Vatican’s financial institutions, which benefitted from the Golden Lily-derived treasure from the Philippines.
We have discussed the Vatican bank in, among other programs, AFA #18.
In FTR #446, we highlighted the serious death threats, harassment, and covert disruption experienced by Peggy and Sterling Seagrave in connection with their writing. In 509, we also noted the suspicious circumstances surrounding the death of the heroic Iris Chang, who aided the Seagraves in their “Gold Warriors” project. Having authored a book on the Rape of Nanking and working on another about the Bataan Death March, Ms. Chang had crossed the very power structure delineated at length, depth and detail in the Seagraves’ volume. In our last visit with the Seagraves, a 2009 interview that was the focus of FTR #689, Sterling expressed anxiety about the proximity of their residence in Southern France to the Spanish border and the formidable presence of Opus Dei in Franco’s former domain. His fear turned out to be prescient. On Christmas Day of 2011, he narrowly escaped assassination while returning home. He felt that the attempt on his life may well have been motivated by the publication of the Spanish language edition of “Gold Warriors.” Peggy passed in 2016 and Sterling in the spring of 2017. Listeners/readers may honor these heroes by reading their consummately important books.
These programs highlight features of an apparent coup d’etat in Bolivia, emphasizing the individuals and institutions figuring in the coup itself, as well as the underlying dynamic of the development of Bolivia’s enormous lithium reserves. Central to the discussion is the fact that lithium is essential for the development of electric car batteries and that technology is important to any successful “Greening” of the global economy.
Fascists from Latin America and Europe networked with transnational corporate elements and some U.S. intelligence cut-outs to oust Evo Morales and his government.
Although Morales had violated constitutional norms on term limits in order to extend his governance, his political agenda had greatly benefited Bolivia’s poor and its historically oppressed indigenous population, in particular. The country’s mineral wealth has been exploited by foreign companies and select members of the Bolivian elite to the detriment of much of the population. Even the conservative “Financial Times” has noted that Morales restructuring of the Bolivian economy–mineral extraction, in particular–has significantly improved the country’s economy and reduced poverty.
This element of discussion involves many subjects covered at length over the decades and featured in the archives:
1.–Material about Klaus Barbie and the European fascists in his “Fiances of Death” (or “Bridegrooms of Death”) mercenaries can be found in, among other programs, AFA #‘s 19 and 27.
2.–The Vatican’s relationship to fascism, including Opus Dei and the Ustachi in Croatia, is highlighted in, among other programs AFA #17.
3.–Information about the re-emergence of the Ustachi can be found in, among other programs, FTR #‘s 49, 154, 766, 901.
Key individual and institutional players in the development of, prelude to, and execution of the Bolivian coup include:
1.–Luis Fernando Camacho, a wealthy Bolivian described in the Panama Papers, Camacho is: ” . . . . an ultra-conservative Christian fundamentalist groomed by a fascist paramilitary notorious for its racist violence, with a base in Bolivia’s wealthy separatist region of Santa Cruz. . . .”
2.–He is heir to a tradition of wealth, the nation’s natural gas business, in particular: : ” . . . . Camacho also hails from a family of corporate elites who have long profited from Bolivia’s plentiful natural gas reserves. And his family lost part of its wealth when Morales nationalized the nation’s resources, in order to fund his vast social programs — which cut poverty by 42 percent and extreme poverty by 60 percent. . . .”
3.–Prior to the coup, Camacho: ” . . . . met with leaders from right-wing governments in the region to discuss their plans to destabilize Morales. Two months before the putsch, he tweeted gratitude: ‘Thank you Colombia! Thank you Venezuela!’ he exclaimed, tipping his hat to Juan Guaido’s coup operation. He also recognized the far-right government of Jair Bolsonaro, declaring, “Thank you Brazil!’ . . .”
4.–A marginal figure with little public gravitas, including on social media, Camacho was moving to neutralize the Morales government before the coup itself. His political presence and base of support is a Christian fascist organization: ” . . . . Luis Fernando Camacho was groomed by the Unión Juvenil Cruceñista, or Santa Cruz Youth Union (UJC), a fascist paramilitary organization that has been linked to assassination plots against Morales. The group is notorious for assaulting leftists, Indigenous peasants, and journalists, all while espousing a deeply racist, homophobic ideology. . . .”
5.–The UJC: ” . . . . The UJC is the Bolivian equivalent of Spain’s Falange, India’s Hindu supremacist RSS, and Ukraine’s neo-Nazi Azov battalion. Its symbol is a green cross that bears strong similarities to logos of fascist movements across the West. And its members are known to launch into Nazi-style sieg heil salutes. . . . Even the US embassy in Bolivia has described UJC members as ‘racist’ and ‘militant,’ noting that they ‘have frequently attacked pro-MAS/government people and installations.’ . . .”
6.–Camacho was allied with a wealthy Croatian named Branko Marinkovic: ” . . . . Camacho was elected as vice president of the UJC in 2002, when he was just 23 years old. He left the organization two years later to build his family’s business empire and rise through the ranks of the Pro-Santa Cruz Committee. It was in that organization that he was taken under the wing of one of the separatist movement’s most powerful figures, a Bolivian-Croatian oligarch named Branko Marinkovic. . . .”
7.–Marinkovic is one of the prime movers of a secessionist movement for the Santa Cruz area: ” . . . . Camacho’s Croatian godfather and separatist power broker Branko Marinkovic is a major landowner who ramped up his support for the right-wing opposition after some of his land was nationalized by the Evo Morales government. As chairman of the Pro-Santa Cruz Committee, he oversaw the operations of the main engine of separatism in Bolivia. In a 2008 letter to Marinkovic, the International Federation for Human Rights denounced the committee as an ‘actor and promoter of racism and violence in Bolivia.’ The human rights group added that it ‘condemn[ed] the attitude and secessionist, unionist and racist discourses as well as the calls for military disobedience of which the Pro-Santa Cruz Civic Committee for is one of the main promoters.’ In 2013, journalist Matt Kennard reported that the US government was working closely with the Pro-Santa Cruz Committee to encourage the balkanization of Bolivia and to undermine Morales. . . .”
8.–There has been speculation that Marinkovich may be descended from Croatian Ustachis fascists: ” . . . . But even some of his sympathizers are skeptical. A Balkan analyst from the private intelligence firm Stratfor, which works closely with the US government and is popularly known as the ‘shadow CIA,’ produced a rough background profile on Marinkovic, speculating, ‘Still don’t know his full story, but I would bet a lot of $$$ that this dude’s parents are 1st gen (his name is too Slavic) and that they were Ustashe (read: Nazi) sympathizers fleeing Tito’s Communists after WWII.’ . . . .”
9.–Marinkovich’s activism in the Santa Cruz area is part of a fascist political landscape in that area that dovetails with Klaus Barbie (of whom we spoke in–among other programs–AFA #19): ” . . . . In a 2008 profile on Marinkovic, “The New York Times” acknowledged the extremist undercurrents of the Santa Cruz separatist movement the oligarch presided over. It described the area as ‘a bastion of openly xenophobic groups like the Bolivian Socialist Falange, whose hand-in-air salute draws inspiration from the fascist Falange of the former Spanish dictator Franco.” The Bolivian Socialist Falange was a fascist group that provided safe haven to Nazi war criminal Klaus Barbie during the Cold War. A former Gestapo torture expert, Barbie was repurposed by the CIA through its Operation Condor program to help exterminate communism across the continent. . . .”
10.–The coup follows by some years an attempt by a group of international fascists to murder Morales: ” . . . . In April 2009, a special unit of the Bolivian security services barged into a luxury hotel room and cut down three men who were said to be involved in a plot to kill Evo Morales. Two others remained on the loose. Four of the alleged conspirators had Hungarian or Croatian roots and ties to rightist politics in eastern Europe, while another was a right-wing Irishman, Michael Dwyer, who had only arrived in Santa Cruz six months before. The ringleader of the group was said to be a former leftist journalist named Eduardo Rosza-Flores who had turned to fascism and belonged to Opus Dei, the traditionalist Catholic cult that emerged under the dictatorship of Spain’s Francisco Franco. . . .”
11.–Eduardo Rosza-Flores had fought in the former Yugoslavia on behalf of the neo-Ustachi regime that ultimately came to power: ” . . . . During the 1990s, Rosza fought on behalf of the Croatian First International Platoon, or the PIV, in the war to separate from Yugoslavia. A Croatian journalist told Time that the ‘PIV was a notorious group: 95% of them had criminal histories, many were part of Nazi and fascist groups, from Germany to Ireland.’ By 2009, Rosza returned home to Bolivia to crusade on behalf of another separatist movement in Santa Cruz. . . .”
12.–Rosza-Flores had no money, yet his group of would-be fascist assassins were well funded. Marinkovic appears to have been among the funding sources: ” . . . . Marinkovic was subsequently charged with providing $200,000 to the plotters. The Bolivian-Croatian oligarch initially fled to the United States, where he was given asylum, then relocated to Brazil, where he lives today. He denied any involvement in the plan to kill Morales. As journalist Matt Kennard reported, there was another thread that tied the plot to the US: the alleged participation of an NGO leader named Hugo Achá Melgar. . . .”
13.–Hugo Acha Melgar was networked with the Human Rights Foundation, a right-wing organization with strong links to U.S. intelligence and financed in part by Peter Thiel. The Human Rights Foundation is involved in the Hong Kong turmoil. ” . . . . Achá was not just the head of any run-of-the-mill NGO. He had founded the Bolivian subsidiary of the Human Rights Foundation (HRF), an international right-wing outfit that is known for hosting a “school for revolution” for activists seeking regime change in states targeted by the US government. HRF is run by Thor Halvorssen Jr., the son of the late Venezuelan oligarch and CIA asset Thor Halvorssen Hellum. . . . . He launched the HRF with grants from right-wing billionaires like Peter Thiel, conservative foundations, and NGOs including Amnesty International. The group has since been at the forefront of training activists for insurrectionary activity from Hong Kong to the Middle East to Latin America. . . .”
14.–Proxy presidential candidate Carlos Mesa is heavily networked with the Inter-American Dialogue, financed in considerable measure by the AID: ” . . . . Today, Mesa serves as an in-house “expert” at the Inter-American Dialogue, a neoliberal Washington-based think tank focused on Latin America. One of the Dialogue’s top donors is the US Agency for International Development (USAID) . . . .”
Central to the multi-national dissatisfaction with Evo Morales is his nationalization of some of Bolivia’s mineral resource industry. And central to the Bolivian mineral resource inventory is lithium, essential for the manufacture of electric car batteries: ” . . . . The main target is its massive deposits of lithium, crucial for the electric car. . . .”
Bolivia has been reported to hold up to 70 percent of the world’s lithium, and the Morales government’s pivot toward developing those reserves in tandem with Chinese firms, rather than Western transnationals, may well have been the central dynamic in his ouster. ” . . . . Over the course of the past few years, Bolivia has struggled to raise investment to develop the lithium reserves in a way that brings the wealth back into the country for its people. Morales’ Vice President Álvaro García Linera had said that lithium is the ‘fuel that will feed the world.’ Bolivia was unable to make deals with Western transnational firms; it decided to partner with Chinese firms. This made the Morales government vulnerable. It had walked into the new Cold War between the West and China. The coup against Morales cannot be understood without a glance at this clash. . . .”
The complexities of the Salar de Uyuni salt flats–location of much of Bolivia’s lithium reserves–mandate the technological involvement of foreign firms. A deal reached with German ACI Systems (heavily subsidized by the German government) was negated by protests on the part of local residents in the Salar de Uyuni area. Chinese firms were poised to fill that vacuum, offering the possibility of a more equitable development of the mineral. ” . . . . Last year, Germany’s ACI Systems agreed to a deal with Bolivia. After protests from residents in the Salar de Uyuni region, Morales canceled that deal on November 4, 2019. Chinese firms—such as TBEA Group and China Machinery Engineering—made a deal with YLB. It was being said that China’s Tianqi Lithium Group, which operates in Argentina, was going to make a deal with YLB. Both Chinese investment and the Bolivian lithium company were experimenting with new ways to both mine the lithium and to share the profits of the lithium. The idea that there might be a new social compact for the lithium was unacceptable to the main transnational mining companies. . . .”
After the ouster of Morales, the value of Tesla’s stock increased dramatically.
The ACI/Bolivia deal had heavy backing by the German government and featured the planned export of lithium to Germany and elsewhere in Europe. ” . . . . With the joint venture, Bolivian state company YLB is teaming up with Germany’s privately-owned ACI Systems to develop its massive Uyuni salt flat and build a lithium hydroxide plant as well as a factory for electric vehicle batteries in Bolivia. ACI Systems is also in talks to supply companies based in Germany and elsewhere in Europe with lithium from Bolivia. . . . Wolfgang Schmutz, CEO of ACI Group, the parent company of ACI Systems, said more than 80 percent of the lithium would be exported to Germany. . . .”
Of particular significance for the discussion to follow is ” . . . . China’s dominance in the global lithium supply chain and its strong ties with La Paz. . . .”
Shortly after the ouster of Morales, Tesla announced that Tesla would locate a new car and electric battery factory near Berlin. If the ACI lithium development project in Bolivia is resuscitated, the Tesla move will give the firm access to the Bolivian lithium.
Might that have been the reason for the rise in Tesla’s stock? Might there have been some insider trading?
The programs conclude with review of the rebirth of Cambridge Analytica as a synthesis with British “psy-op” development firm SCL. A key director of Emerdata–the new firm–is a Hong Kong financier and business partner of Blackwater chief Erik Prince, the brother of Trump Secretary of Education Betsy de Vos. Noting the firm formerly known as Blackwater’s deep involvement in the world of covert operations and former Cambridge Analytica lynchpin Steve Bannon’s pivotal role in the anti-China movement, it is not unreasonable to ask if Emerdata may be involved in the Hong Kong turmoil.
We also review China’s leadership in the development of Green technologies.
Picking up where FTR #844 left off, this program examines developments in Indonesia after the 1965 CIA coup that deposed Sukarno. An apparent participant in an unsuccessful 1958 attempt against Sukarno was Lee Harvey Oswald. Before tackling the bulk of the Indonesia material, Peter notes that the supposed “Communist” Oswald actually had connections to Nazi elements. After an encapsulation of the Japanese Golden Lily program that looted much of Asia, the program sets forth some of the mysteries that unfold in connection with the disposition of Sukarno’s “Revolutionary Fund.” Apparently comprised of both Golden Lily treasure and war loot transported to the Asia by the Third Reich, the Revolutionary Fund has defied efforts by Sukarno family members and associates to obtain some of the wealth. Among the cast of characters winding through the mysterious corridors of the Revolutionary Fund investigative maze are: a mysterious Dr. Poch, alleged in an Indonesian best seller by Dr. Susro Husodo to have been Adolf Hitler; the professional frustration and mysterious demise of Dr. Edison Damanik, who attempted to obtain some of the Revolutionary Fund loot; arms dealer Soeryo Goeritno, who suffered a disabling stroke or seizure when he attempted to navigate the perilous waters of the Revolutionary Fund and its tributaries.
Fascist dictator Francisco Franco passed away decades ago, yet his political legacy lives on. Throughout Spain, memorialization of Franco and his soldiers continues. The perpetuation of that legacy is evident in the political resume of Mariano Rajoy, the son of a Franco judge. Rajoy’s Popular Party is a “kindler, gentler” edition of Franco’s Falange. In addition to jingoistic saber rattling at the British territory of Gibraltar, Rajoy is joining with Argentina to pressure the UK over the Falkalnd Islands. By dancing in tandem with Argentina, Rajoy is embracing the geo-political legacy of Hitler, who selected Spain as his first target for control because of its influence in Latin America–Argentina in particular.
When “God’s Senator”, Sam Brownback, became “God’s Governor” of Kansas back in 2010 it was clear some pretty big changes were on the way for Kansas. After all, when a GOP member of Opus Dei is your new governor, some form of austerity for the masses is probably in the cards. And following the 2012 intra-GOP “moderate” purge, austerity for Kansas has arrived in full force. As once might expect, this includes the austerity that comes with refusing to accept the Obamacare Medicaid expansion. Utterly pointless, yet still painful, self-flagellation. And that’s just the beginning...
The startling resignation of Pope Benedict XVI (nee Joseph Ratzinger) brings to mind a number of considerations. Ratzinger was something of a caretaker, charged with sustaining the Opus-Dei style reaction gripping the Vatican and keeping the lid on potentially damaging inquiries.. He took office with the Holy See engulfed in scandal and inquiry, including the burgeoning priest molestation investigations, renewed inquiries into money laundering by the Vatican Bank and inquiries concerning the Vatican’s behavior during and after World War II. Might some of those issues overwhelmed his papacy, forcing the first Papal resignation in history?
Red Alert: this is one helluva conspiracy theory. In fact, it is–as the title indicates–a conspiracy theory within a conspiracy theory. Newtown shooter Adam Lanza existed in an environment inhabited by pedophile priests, apparently enjoying tacit support from the Church hierarchy in the area, something that has been largely eclipsed by other points of debate. Neil Allen has chronicled the presence of serial pedophile priests in the church and Catholic school Lanza attended. IF Adam Lanza was molested by Castaldo and/or others as Neil Allen has hypothesized, we wonder if that may have helped to precipitate the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI in February of 2013. Lanza was apparently preoccupied with pedophilia.
The Jerry Sandusky/Penn State child molestation case appears to have political implications beyond what has come to light so far. Endorsed by the elder George Bush, the Second Mile Foundation served as the vehicle for systematic molestation of young boys. The late Joe Paterno’s choice of counsel is significant. He chose J. Sedgwick Sollers, who once represented George H.W. Bush in the Iran-Contra affair. A cover-up may involve murder. After investigating Sandusky et al, the late Ray Gricar disappeared from the face of the earth–his body has never been found.
How many of the emerging child-molestation scandals emerging actually overlap and what sort of power-political interests have been utilizing those enmeshed in the affairs for blackmail and political and/or economic gain? The Opus-Dei linked GOP senator Rick Santorum was a promoter and defender of convicted child molester Jerry Sandusky. Is there a Vatican link to the Penn State scandal? Disgraced British Cardinal Keith O’Brian was close to the late Jimmy Savile, a Vatican knight who was an inveterate pedophile.
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