I agree. It’s like a badly written made for tv movie, except it’s real. I believe that the warnings in this piece are not an overreaction, rather an essential call to arms (not literal arms).
We’ve been an empire in decline for 10(?) years or more and most have closed their ears, hearing only the endless chants of “we’re number 1”, refusing to consider the possibility (the reality in some areas) that we are no longer number one in many things. The areas where we are number 1 aren’t anything to brag about
A. percentage of population incarcerated (recently surpassed China),
B. infant and maternal mortality (higher than any other industrialized country and climbing)
C. Number of gun related deaths
Additionally,
D. Life expectancy in decline
E. our educational achievements are falling behind in essential areas of math and science
F. Income inequality as bad or worse than in the times of robber barons
And the list goes on. If you look at our foreign policy the evidence is even more stark. The illegal war on Iraq, reputedly at Israel’s behest, was a disaster. We sacrificed thousands of American lives and billions of dollars and coined the phrase “collateral damage” to describe the hundreds of thousands (at least) of innocent Iraqi lives lost. We didn’t even call them human deaths. Did we honestly believe that a system of government capable of murdering innocent people abroad wouldn’t be equally cavalier about the deaths of “the great unwashed” here? If we needed further proof we need only look at two administrations, republican and democrat, who have committed genocide without a thought for the murder of innocent women, children, elderly, disabled, and yes, men. They’ve done this and continue to do this, even condoning the starvation of these people, all in full view of the entire world. Neither international law nor US law has been sufficient to end the slaughter. They’ve threatened the members of the ICC, their families, and ICC staff. They’ve criminalized free speech, police brutally attacking unarmed protesters, and now illegally deporting (kidnapping) innocent people. Now we have an administration that says American citizens may suffer the same fate. Our universities and colleges are abandoning their missions and deserting their students to placate the government (democrat and republican) in its moves to control higher education and thought.
The laws have always been enforced unevenly, percentage of people of color incarcerated has borne that out for many years. Each successive administration has wrung their hands, at best, over mass shootings, claiming there’s little or nothing that can be done. Every other wealthy country has been able to curb these senseless deaths but ours is so beholden to the gun lobby and a base that loves their guns that they are helpless. Even the deaths of small children aren’t sufficient for them to give up the campaign financing and risk defeat at the ballot box. If our government doesn’t care about the deaths of children here how can we expect them to care about the deaths of children elsewhere, especially when those children have brown skin?
Our police forces have been training with Israel since 1999. Much of that training in OPT where the people have no rights. Should we be surprised that Americans are treated as if they also have no rights? It’s not a coincidence that training often occurs in the occupied territories. We are now the occupied.
Congress has been controlled by lobbyists for many years and it’s only gotten worse. The website, Open Secrets, tracks all reported campaign donations. One only needs to look at these donations, voting records, and constituents demands to see that our “representatives” do not represent us but, rather, the wishes of their contributors. With the exception of a handful of members of Congress, they have been bought and paid for by, among others, the Israel lobby which has a stranglehold on our foreign policy and a very real control of domestic policy with police enforcement.
We’ve seen that tens or hundreds of thousands of protesters in the streets, here and around the globe, have had little to no effect on the US and western governments. They have near absolute control and our concerns or demands mean nothing. We are no more than an irritating fly buzzing in the room, easily defeated by a flyswatter.
The signs have been there for years but, as the impact was mostly felt by “others” who have had little to no voice, most of us have been able to live our lives without being inconvenienced. Those days are long gone. The battle won’t be won easily as the systems that produced our current situation have been in place for a long time. There have been people calling out the inequalities in the judicial system, income distribution, education, healthcare, climate, voting rights for years but the government has been able to ignore them, in part, by distracting us from the real issues by talking about bathroom access and drag queens. If the issues involve cost of living they’ve been able to convince those struggling to make ends meet that the problem lies with those below them on the ladder, insuring that they never look up to see what those at the top are doing. They’ve made “divide and conquer” an effective tool, limiting our ability to solve our common problems
The media has been complicit for most of my adult life. They are corporations like any other. Their mission is profit with real journalism no longer necessary. Media is now in the hands of a few. I don’t remember the exact date of the demise, when one corporation could own all news outlets in a given area. I believe it was during the Reagan reign. Previously no one company could own all outlets - radio, print, tv- in a geographic area. Hence, no one corporation could control what people were told. I believe that currently all major media is owned by 6-7 companies. Those companies had absolute control over information distribution until the advent of personal computers and social media. The internet certainly has its issues, especially platforms owned by large corporations with their algorithms that control content and users alike. The availability of excellent independent media has increased dramatically over the years with more and more people turning to it for accurate information. They play a crucial role in defeating the fascism we are facing today. The above post is an excellent example.
We must all fight the good fight which means finding common ground with those on the other “side”. As in most cases, we have far more in common than we have differences. Even starting in small local groups, bringing together people who are neighbors, members of a church or group, a community, to discuss our common problems and to band together around those issues. We can share available resources for accurate information. Most candidates for office value winning over any ideology and we should use that venality against them. If they feel their seat is endangered by enough voters, more than money can overcome, they will be amenable to change. I have no confidence that legality, justice, or equality will be enough as it hasn’t worked up to this point. We must threaten their place in government. We can’t compete financially but we can compete with numbers.
Thanks for continuing your work, it is helpful guidance when everything seems bleak. I wanted to add the https://generalstrikeus.com/ might be another good resource to include in your list.
It was expected that capitalism would come to this, and Trump is simply taking a larger step than his predecessors. But Trump and his Nazi minions are small in number and could easily be thwarted but for those public servants in policing and enforcement who are “just doing our jobs”, “just following orders”. The Nazi cannon fodder also “we’re just doing our jobs”, “just following orders” and they were held responsible at Nuremberg. Hopefully the same fate awaits these folks.
The weakness of “law” has been on clear display as we’ve watched the attempts to hold Donald Trump to account for his many crimes. Every step of the way is delayed, obstructed, then appealed. Every court decision and ruling is appealed. Only once, in Georgia, was Trump arrested, mug-shot, and fingerprinted (we think that happened.) This is one of many ways in which the LAW and “the legal system” is twisted by the rich and powerful so that they never suffer its judgements.
Im curios how you chose the orgs to list at the end? Black liberation is vital if we are to be free. I see no orgs/groups listed here with that as their center.
The author is a radlib, so predictably they are following the dominant tendency of erasure of militancy & anti-u.s. radicalism—any real engagement with those politics would necessarily include Black liberationists.
Not sure if you're looking to join something, give logistical/financial support, or something else, by depending on what I could probably make some suggestions.
It's fascinating to me how so many Americans cling to their right to bear arms in case they need to protect themselves from an authoritarian government, yet those same people don't notice when the rights they claim to want to protect are stripped from them.
We've become too fat and comfortable here in the USA, while so many other countries have been bearing the brunt of it. Our senses and good sense are dulled. We can't muster the courage and strength to stand up to all the crimes and outrage of the past decade. And I'm sorry to say, we deserve what's happening to us and the world now for being asleep for so long
Dear god, what has America become? I think that the election of Agent Orange (a friend’s name for your Tangerine Tyrant) is the logical conclusion of the direction that the US has been heading in for several decades, at least. It’s impossible to only pay lip service to principles like democracy and representation of the people while simultaneously acting against them and not expect disaster. The nakedly greedy capitalist chickens have come home to roost. I’m writing from Britain, where we have our own problems, ut I would say that your Democrats are just awful and deserved to lose. Genocide Joe and Automaton Kamala? In a country with a huge population like yours? Please! Perhaps the silver lining of this evil administration coming to power is that it will, at last, woke up the American people. Here’s hoping, because there are far too many good, kind people there to give up.
The irony of Patel saying no one is above the law. His cult leader is.
So disgusting. These people literally make me ill.
I agree. It’s like a badly written made for tv movie, except it’s real. I believe that the warnings in this piece are not an overreaction, rather an essential call to arms (not literal arms).
We’ve been an empire in decline for 10(?) years or more and most have closed their ears, hearing only the endless chants of “we’re number 1”, refusing to consider the possibility (the reality in some areas) that we are no longer number one in many things. The areas where we are number 1 aren’t anything to brag about
A. percentage of population incarcerated (recently surpassed China),
B. infant and maternal mortality (higher than any other industrialized country and climbing)
C. Number of gun related deaths
Additionally,
D. Life expectancy in decline
E. our educational achievements are falling behind in essential areas of math and science
F. Income inequality as bad or worse than in the times of robber barons
And the list goes on. If you look at our foreign policy the evidence is even more stark. The illegal war on Iraq, reputedly at Israel’s behest, was a disaster. We sacrificed thousands of American lives and billions of dollars and coined the phrase “collateral damage” to describe the hundreds of thousands (at least) of innocent Iraqi lives lost. We didn’t even call them human deaths. Did we honestly believe that a system of government capable of murdering innocent people abroad wouldn’t be equally cavalier about the deaths of “the great unwashed” here? If we needed further proof we need only look at two administrations, republican and democrat, who have committed genocide without a thought for the murder of innocent women, children, elderly, disabled, and yes, men. They’ve done this and continue to do this, even condoning the starvation of these people, all in full view of the entire world. Neither international law nor US law has been sufficient to end the slaughter. They’ve threatened the members of the ICC, their families, and ICC staff. They’ve criminalized free speech, police brutally attacking unarmed protesters, and now illegally deporting (kidnapping) innocent people. Now we have an administration that says American citizens may suffer the same fate. Our universities and colleges are abandoning their missions and deserting their students to placate the government (democrat and republican) in its moves to control higher education and thought.
The laws have always been enforced unevenly, percentage of people of color incarcerated has borne that out for many years. Each successive administration has wrung their hands, at best, over mass shootings, claiming there’s little or nothing that can be done. Every other wealthy country has been able to curb these senseless deaths but ours is so beholden to the gun lobby and a base that loves their guns that they are helpless. Even the deaths of small children aren’t sufficient for them to give up the campaign financing and risk defeat at the ballot box. If our government doesn’t care about the deaths of children here how can we expect them to care about the deaths of children elsewhere, especially when those children have brown skin?
Our police forces have been training with Israel since 1999. Much of that training in OPT where the people have no rights. Should we be surprised that Americans are treated as if they also have no rights? It’s not a coincidence that training often occurs in the occupied territories. We are now the occupied.
Congress has been controlled by lobbyists for many years and it’s only gotten worse. The website, Open Secrets, tracks all reported campaign donations. One only needs to look at these donations, voting records, and constituents demands to see that our “representatives” do not represent us but, rather, the wishes of their contributors. With the exception of a handful of members of Congress, they have been bought and paid for by, among others, the Israel lobby which has a stranglehold on our foreign policy and a very real control of domestic policy with police enforcement.
We’ve seen that tens or hundreds of thousands of protesters in the streets, here and around the globe, have had little to no effect on the US and western governments. They have near absolute control and our concerns or demands mean nothing. We are no more than an irritating fly buzzing in the room, easily defeated by a flyswatter.
The signs have been there for years but, as the impact was mostly felt by “others” who have had little to no voice, most of us have been able to live our lives without being inconvenienced. Those days are long gone. The battle won’t be won easily as the systems that produced our current situation have been in place for a long time. There have been people calling out the inequalities in the judicial system, income distribution, education, healthcare, climate, voting rights for years but the government has been able to ignore them, in part, by distracting us from the real issues by talking about bathroom access and drag queens. If the issues involve cost of living they’ve been able to convince those struggling to make ends meet that the problem lies with those below them on the ladder, insuring that they never look up to see what those at the top are doing. They’ve made “divide and conquer” an effective tool, limiting our ability to solve our common problems
The media has been complicit for most of my adult life. They are corporations like any other. Their mission is profit with real journalism no longer necessary. Media is now in the hands of a few. I don’t remember the exact date of the demise, when one corporation could own all news outlets in a given area. I believe it was during the Reagan reign. Previously no one company could own all outlets - radio, print, tv- in a geographic area. Hence, no one corporation could control what people were told. I believe that currently all major media is owned by 6-7 companies. Those companies had absolute control over information distribution until the advent of personal computers and social media. The internet certainly has its issues, especially platforms owned by large corporations with their algorithms that control content and users alike. The availability of excellent independent media has increased dramatically over the years with more and more people turning to it for accurate information. They play a crucial role in defeating the fascism we are facing today. The above post is an excellent example.
We must all fight the good fight which means finding common ground with those on the other “side”. As in most cases, we have far more in common than we have differences. Even starting in small local groups, bringing together people who are neighbors, members of a church or group, a community, to discuss our common problems and to band together around those issues. We can share available resources for accurate information. Most candidates for office value winning over any ideology and we should use that venality against them. If they feel their seat is endangered by enough voters, more than money can overcome, they will be amenable to change. I have no confidence that legality, justice, or equality will be enough as it hasn’t worked up to this point. We must threaten their place in government. We can’t compete financially but we can compete with numbers.
Also regularly practice mutual aid! Even if just with your neighbors. Normalize it and use it as an alternative.
Thanks for continuing your work, it is helpful guidance when everything seems bleak. I wanted to add the https://generalstrikeus.com/ might be another good resource to include in your list.
It was expected that capitalism would come to this, and Trump is simply taking a larger step than his predecessors. But Trump and his Nazi minions are small in number and could easily be thwarted but for those public servants in policing and enforcement who are “just doing our jobs”, “just following orders”. The Nazi cannon fodder also “we’re just doing our jobs”, “just following orders” and they were held responsible at Nuremberg. Hopefully the same fate awaits these folks.
The weakness of “law” has been on clear display as we’ve watched the attempts to hold Donald Trump to account for his many crimes. Every step of the way is delayed, obstructed, then appealed. Every court decision and ruling is appealed. Only once, in Georgia, was Trump arrested, mug-shot, and fingerprinted (we think that happened.) This is one of many ways in which the LAW and “the legal system” is twisted by the rich and powerful so that they never suffer its judgements.
Im curios how you chose the orgs to list at the end? Black liberation is vital if we are to be free. I see no orgs/groups listed here with that as their center.
The author is a radlib, so predictably they are following the dominant tendency of erasure of militancy & anti-u.s. radicalism—any real engagement with those politics would necessarily include Black liberationists.
Not sure if you're looking to join something, give logistical/financial support, or something else, by depending on what I could probably make some suggestions.
It's fascinating to me how so many Americans cling to their right to bear arms in case they need to protect themselves from an authoritarian government, yet those same people don't notice when the rights they claim to want to protect are stripped from them.
We've become too fat and comfortable here in the USA, while so many other countries have been bearing the brunt of it. Our senses and good sense are dulled. We can't muster the courage and strength to stand up to all the crimes and outrage of the past decade. And I'm sorry to say, we deserve what's happening to us and the world now for being asleep for so long
Dear god, what has America become? I think that the election of Agent Orange (a friend’s name for your Tangerine Tyrant) is the logical conclusion of the direction that the US has been heading in for several decades, at least. It’s impossible to only pay lip service to principles like democracy and representation of the people while simultaneously acting against them and not expect disaster. The nakedly greedy capitalist chickens have come home to roost. I’m writing from Britain, where we have our own problems, ut I would say that your Democrats are just awful and deserved to lose. Genocide Joe and Automaton Kamala? In a country with a huge population like yours? Please! Perhaps the silver lining of this evil administration coming to power is that it will, at last, woke up the American people. Here’s hoping, because there are far too many good, kind people there to give up.
Built on “gentlemen’s” agreements.