TONIGHT: The show begins in the future after a Russian victory in Ukraine, asking what would Ukraine look like, what would Europe look like, what of NATO? From the panicky factory managers of Shanghai to the new Senior Scientist of Astrobiology at NASA in DC. From the tunnels of Gaza to the Yemen mountains hiding the Houthis. From the evacuated North Border of Israel to the stringest horse in the Middle East. From Ottawa to Santiago. From the Red Sea to the South China Sea. With special attention to the fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989.

1849 China cat market

CBS EYE ON THE WORLD WITH JOHN BATCHELOR

FIRST HOUR

9-915

1/2:: #Ukraine: Simon Kuper aska what a Russian victory means for Ukraine, for Europe, for NATO? Anatol Lieven, Quincy Institute.

https://on.ft.com/3NAyIim

915-930

2/2:: #Ukraine: Simon Kuper aska what a Russian victory means for Ukraine, for Europe, for NATO? Anatol Lieven, Quincy Institute.

https://on.ft.com/3NAyIim

930-945
#PRC: #ScalaReport: Factory managers panic; Beijing blocks rare earth exports. Chris Riegel, Scal.com #Stratacache.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-12-21/china-bans-exports-of-some-rare-earth-processing-technologies-lqf1pzw8?sref=5g4GmFHo

945-1000

#"HotelMars: #NASA: Welcoming the new Senior Scientist for Astrobiology Strategy, Dr. David Grinspoon, NASA.

https://funkyscience.net/news/#

SECOND HOUR

10-1015

#Gaza: Sinwar in his private tunnels. Major Doron Spielman is a reservist spokesman in the IDF’s spokesperson’s unit. In his capacity as an IDF spokesperson,.. Malcolm Hoenlein @Conf_of_pres @mhoenlein1


https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/israel-offers-one-week-cease-fire-in-exchange-for-more-hostages-336ae59a?mod=hp_lead_pos4
https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/gazans-are-starting-to-blame-hamas-for-wartime-suffering-066256b0?mod=mhp

1015-1030
#Houthis: Thugs from the mountains looking for pelf. Haisam Hassanein, FDD. .His current research focuses on commercial diplomacy in the Middle East.. Malcolm Hoenlein @Conf_of_pres @mhoenlein1

https://nationalinterest.org/feature/can-saudi-arabia-forge-israel-palestine-peace-208044
https://www.reuters.com/world/us-red-sea-taskforce-gets-limited-backing-some-allies-2023-12-20/

1030-1045

#Hezbollah: "It's not normal." Lieutenant Colonel (Res.) Sarit Zehavi is the founder and president of Alma – a nonprofit and an independent research and education center specialized in Israel’s security challenges on its northern border. Malcolm Hoenlein @Conf_of_pres @mhoenlein1

https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/israel-hits-hezbollah-with-fresh-strikes-after-attacks-on-north/
https://israel-alma.org/2023/12/20/daily-update-israel-at-war-day-75-dec-20-2023-2000-pm-israel-time/
https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/mapping-clashes-along-israel-lebanon-border


1045-1100

#Israel: The strongest horse. Jonathan Ruhe- Jonathan Ruhe is Director of Foreign Policy at JINSA, the Jewish Institute for National Security of America. Malcolm Hoenlein @Conf_of_pres @mhoenlein1

https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/gaza-diplomacy-cements-qatars-global-mediator-role-29e0ffb7
https://www.wsj.com/business/energy-oil/red-sea-attacks-on-ships-are-alarmingbut-markets-arent-panicking-07f32936?mod=hp_lead_pos5
https://www.fdd.org/analysis/op_eds/2023/12/20/deterring-the-houthis-wont-be-easy-for-the-red-sea-maritime-task-force/



THIRD HOUR

1100-1115

#Canada: #Israel: Justin Trudeau disappoints with a ceasefire remark. Conrad Black, National Post.

https://nationalpost.com/opinion/no-excuse-for-trudeau-turning-his-back-on-israels-just-war

1115-1130

Two steps forward, two steps back. Mary Anastasia O'Grady, WSJ

https://www.wsj.com/articles/can-chile-escape-stagnation-new-constitution-economic-deregulation-freedom-6c165b0c

1130-1145

The number of ships at sea cannot meet guarantee the freedom of the seas. Jerry Hendrix, Sagamore Institute

Jerry Hendrix, Sagamore Institute

https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-naval-deterrence-is-going-going-maybe-even-gone-iran-houthi-attacks-red-sea-097cf61f?mod=commentary_article_pos7

1145-1200

#USN: #RedSea: What is to be done? Jerry Hendrix, Sagamore Institute.

Jerry Hendrix, Sagamore Institute

https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-naval-deterrence-is-going-going-maybe-even-gone-iran-houthi-attacks-red-sea-097cf61f?mod=commentary_article_pos7

FOURTH HOUR

12-1215

1/4 The Picnic: A Dream of Freedom and the Collapse of the Iron Curtain Hardcover by Matthew Longo (Author)

https://www.amazon.com/Picnic-Dream-Freedom-Collapse-Curtain/dp/0393540774/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

In August 1989, a group of Hungarian activists organized a picnic on the border of Hungary and Austria. But this was not an ordinary picnic―it was located on the dangerous militarized frontier known as the Iron Curtain. Tacit permission from the highest state authorities could be revoked at any moment. On wisps of rumor, thousands of East German “vacationers” packed Hungarian campgrounds, awaiting an opportunity, fearing prison, surveilled by lurking Stasi agents. The Pan-European Picnic set the stage for the greatest border breach in Cold War history: hundreds crossed from the Communist East to the longed-for freedom of the West.
Drawing on dozens of original interviews―including Hungarian activists and border guards, East German refugees, Stasi secret police, and the last Communist prime minister of Hungary―Matthew Longo tells a gripping and revelatory tale of the unraveling of the Iron Curtain and the birth of a new world order. Just a few months after the Picnic, the Berlin Wall fell, and the freedom for which the activists and refugees had abandoned their homes, risked imprisonment, sacrificed jobs, family, and friends, was suddenly available to everyone. But were they really free? And why, three decades since the Iron Curtain was torn down, have so many sought once again to build walls?
Cinematically told, The Picnic recovers a time when it seemed possible for the world to change. With insight and panache, Longo explores the opportunities taken―and the opportunities we failed to take―in that pivotal moment

1215-1230

2/4 The Picnic: A Dream of Freedom and the Collapse of the Iron Curtain Hardcover by Matthew Longo (Author)

1230-1245

3/4 The Picnic: A Dream of Freedom and the Collapse of the Iron Curtain Hardcover by Matthew Longo (Author)

1245-100 am

4/4 The Picnic: A Dream of Freedom and the Collapse of the Iron Curtain Hardcover by Matthew Longo (Author)