GEOPOLITICAL UPDATES;

Filling in for George, John B. Wells welcomed author and international crisis manager Dr. Steve Pieczenik for a discussion on various geopolitical issues. Pieczenik warned of serious problems in Middle East that will eventually develop into full-scale war between Iran and Saudi Arabia. Iran and Turkey will ultimately dominate the region, while Russia gains control over much of the Mediterranean, he predicted, noting that Iraq will not be a player and has essentially been annexed by Iran. Involvement by the United States will be limited as the impending Middle Eastern conflict poses no national security risk to the nation, Pieczenik said. He pointed out how the issue of the so-called War on Terror has been overblown and used as a pretext for the U.S. military to develop bases in Iraq near Iran and Afghanistan. Pieczenik argued against the need for America to have several hundred military bases in 234 countries. "Are there really 733 points where there are terrorists?" he questioned. Pieczenik encouraged listeners to challenge government decision-makers not only on what exactly the U.S. military is doing around the world but also whether the Central Intelligence Agency should even exists given how much outsourcing the organization does. He expressed a similar distrustful sentiment about the National Security Agency (NSA) and its need for so much information under the guise of protecting American citizens from terrorist threats. On a side note, he revealed that Osama bin Laden had actually died of degenerative disease known as Marfan Syndrome shortly after 9/11. Pieczenik called the ever-continuing expansion of federal powers abusive, blaming it on a collusion between legislators and the military–industrial complex. Citizens must confront those in government and work to cut off funding to wasteful and dysfunctional organizations, he suggested. Pieczenik expressed his doubt on some of the details surrounding the Edward Snowden case, including how he was able to get a top secret clearance job at the NSA with no education and reportedly negative sentiments about the U.S. government. USIS, the federal contractor that conducted his background check, and Booz Allen Hamilton, the company where Snowden was working, should be fired, he said.