Short Takes – 2-11-23

US teases more China tech sanctions, this time to deflate balloon-makers. TheRegister.com article. Pull quote: “The balloon clearly meets the same threshold [see White House Fact Sheet], so sanctions of the sort imposed on Huawei, ZTE, and other Chinese companies would seem to be a proportionate response to a spy balloon being deployed towards sovereign airspace.”

Mike Pence Gets a Grand Jury Subpoena. Here’s What That Likely Means. StatusKuo.Substack.com article. Pull quote: “Wait, what? Why would they do that [Pence’s office actually aske for an official subpoena]? For one simple reason: Pence does not want to look like he is voluntarily cooperating with authorities, because the insurrectionist Trumpers might try to hang him again. Instead, he wants it to look like he was forced to testify. The subpoena gives him political cover.”

U.S. Shoots Down High-Altitude Object Over Alaska. NYTimes.com article.  Pull quote: “He [John F. Kirby, a White House spokesman] added that pilots confirmed it was unmanned before bringing it down over the Arctic Ocean near Canada.” But it is still ‘unidentified’?

Blowing Holes in Seymour Hersh's Pipe Dream. OAlexanderK.Substack.com article. Pull quote: “When first reading through Hersh’s account of the events, the level of detail he provides could add credence to his story. Unfortunately for Hersh’s story, the high level of detail is also where the entire story begins to unravel and fall apart. It is often stated that people who lie have a tendency to add too much superfluous detail to their accounts. This attempt to “cover all bases” is in many cases what trips these people up. Extra details add extra points of reference that can be crosschecked and examined. In Hersh’s case, this is exactly what appears to have happened. On the surface level, the level of detail checks out to laymen or people without more niche knowledge of the subject matter mentioned. When you look closer though, the entire story begins to show massive glaring holes and specific details can be debunked.”