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gypsy33's avatar

Unless you are Palestinian (Amerikkkan) as I am, you have no idea exactly how dehumanizing this is.

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Davina's avatar

Sorry I haven't been able to keep up to date with you, Gypsy33, not at all well with the worst cold ever, which has caused co junctivitis in both eyes that are so red and swollen it's hard to see. First time with conjunctivitis and pray it ne er happens again.

So, you'll have to be there for both of us until I get over this. Take care, girl.

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Antonio Brownlowe's avatar

I am actually not a Palestinian, but I have Ancient Ancestral ties, and I feel just as strongly about Palestine and the Palestinian People as these Colonial occupiers feel about their own people

4519 BC(Mota1)Ancient PALESTINE Genetic Distance: 5.948-Y-DNA:Elb1a2b2b Mt-DNA-L3x2a2b: Archeological ID-Mota1-My African Ancestors. The first and oldest Humans on Earth

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Joy in HK fiFP's avatar

Assuming the west still has them, let journalists into Gaza!

Here’s a petition sponsored by Drop Site News:

https://actionnetwork.org/forms/demand-israel-immediately-lift-its-ban-on-foreign-journalists?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email

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Spunty's avatar

Western media report upon their return to Gaza:

"Nothing to see here"; or

"Hamas has tunnels"; or

"Israel denies..." or

"Palestinians destroy all the buildings in Gaza"; or

Insert more bullshit here:.............

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SW's avatar

Public support for Israel has collapsed in spite of their manipulation of MSM and aggressive smears of Palestinians as terrorists. The bipartisan support in Congress along with Trump’s keeps the money and arms shipments flowing despite the majority of Americans wanting it to stop. I do think the tide is slowly turning and when the politicians are afraid they’ll lose their jobs by taking money from AIPAC and voting for more and more for Israel, maybe then they’ll change - but not before. Hakim Jefferies was confronted at the National Cathedral by angry protesters for taking $900k. There’s a huge opportunity for challengers to take their seats if AIPAC doesn’t get to them first.

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Rhys Stanley's avatar

Sadly, they have 'got to' 86% in the current government, both Senate and House, so that is only likely to rise under the narcissistic Trump.

The staggering thing is that in most other countries, I believe, such political graft, because that is what it is, would be subject to a criminal procedure as it is certainly not democracy as I understand it to be.. One vote, one person.

How the hell is that democracy when you buy political power? And to add insult to injury, from the proceeds of gambling in Los Vegas.

The US Constitution. Something of a joke in the USA, able to be twisted to suit the climate.

A total rewrite seems warranted. SOON.

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letterwriter's avatar

No, not a rewrite. Enforcement.

I get what you're saying, but a rewrite of anything is an open opportunity for finagling and deal-making to craft language beneficial to this or that interest group.

We do not currently have politicians who are skilled, literate, and ethical enough to stave off such attempts. Culturally, we are too used to that sort of corrupt deal making, masked as "meeting in the middle".

But it's not needed. What is needed is enforcement. Specifically, the Establishment Clause.

Second, Citizens United, and the administration's recent attention to biological facts will help enormously with that, even though they probably didn't expect it.

Everything else flows from there.

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Rhys Stanley's avatar

Thanks for the comment, letterwriter.

I am not familiar with all the separate sections of the US Constitution, much to my shame, but it obviously covers the items you mentioned relevant to my "one vote, one person" statement and therefore well known to those cabinet members among the Trumpelstilzchen anti-social club.

I am not from the USA but from one of its unfortunate acolytes / puppets / bag carriers and now highly motivated to see if similar irregularities are practiced in my country.

What is happening to your once fine democratic country, letterwriter, is so sad.

I read an article this morning about the fact that the use of drones over American cities is now a common practice......and expanding. That, together with the National Guard forces, military forces and ICE bully boys is making America a likely rewrite for a new novel, "Shades of1984.... in 2025".

George Orwell not being available for such a rewrite, sadly.

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letterwriter's avatar

I appreciate your reply to my reply, Rhys. And I'm just as unfamiliar with almost all other countries' Constitutions or articles of confederation or whatever they have.

So I'm very curious about whatever you might find!

I am familiar with the fact that although the UN made the condition that the Zionists would have to create a Constitution which wouldn't disenfranchise or dispossess the Palestinians, the Zionists have fsiled to make one. They just have an incomplete set of Basic Laws and the Palestinians are not treated as equals. Is that a surprise to anyone? I doubt it!

The drones are not a surprise, either. The technocrats who strolled into power get all their ideas about cool ways to run a country from science fiction-space western pulp novels. It's pretty bad here right now. And our citizens are flummoxed and checked out.

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Feral Finster's avatar

The US Constitution has long been a dead letter.

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denise ward's avatar

It matters not a whit what they do. What matters is what we do, we, the people. People may cry about wars but they're still funding the state and the banksters. That's almost as culpable. Then the people go fight these atrocious wars, why? For a paycheck. Talk about mercenaries all round.

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Mary Wildfire's avatar

Maybe. But this has been going on for a long time; it's been well established that in any subject area, not just Israel/Palestine, if you sell your constituents down the river, you are MORE likely, not less, to be reelected--because you were handsomely paid for that sale and election turn primarily on who spends the most money. Interest groups behind that "donation" manipulation can also alter public opinion directly through PR, ads, and owning the media. I think in this particular case, though, there is another factor--bullying, with many US politicians compromised by the Epstein files--Epstein was working for Mossad--and where that's not enough, and bribery isn't sufficient, they use old-fashioned physical threats, including against one's family.

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Diana van Eyk's avatar

Good point. Western media has been dehumanizing the people of Gaza, and thereby enabling Israel to continue with its slaughter and destruction.

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Nancy's avatar
12hEdited

Because of its truth, this is hard to read. Thanks for highlighting the difference in coverage with this article, Caitlin. I remember reading an op-ed in the WaPo maybe about a year ago. The author (I think he was a journalist, though he might have been a doctor) wrote that it was important to describe what Israel was doing in Gaza as a genocide. He was not a regular contributor to the WaPo. The op-ed was written after South Africa had filed its suit with the ICJ, but before many human rights organizations and scholars had weighed in with their pronouncements of genocide. Because the op-ed was “controversial, the author was interviewed afterward, and I happened to catch the interview. Despite the op-ed, which was an anomaly, the WaPo continued, as you noted, to avoid the use of the word genocide and also continued the use of passive voice in its coverage. When confronted with evil of this magnitude, it is very difficult to face the fact that our collective and personal efforts so far have failed to bring a stop to the killing, much less self-determination for the Palestinians. I see some progress on the electoral front in the U.S., although not nearly enough, in that candidates who have taken money from the Israel lobby and have voted accordingly are increasingly becoming pariahs. A major challenge is getting out the incriminating information about them to a mass audience.

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Arch Stanton's avatar

Having to live with open eyes and ears is a terrible, and some might say tragic, thing. To watch the world burn around you while everyone sleeps can be maddening. Then you get old and it all seems to matter less. The fact is there is nothing new in any of these events. Only the scale has changed since the dawn of civilization.

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denise ward's avatar

I hope we feel buoyed by the fact that we are here living in this and therefore have the opportunity to change it. Start thinking about how you would like the world to be.

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Francis/Clare's avatar

It just keeps getting more horrifying to me.

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Lise G's avatar

I feel things matter more, but you have less room for hope. 🙂

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CK's avatar

There have been several successful re vo loo shuns in the recorded history of the past 5,000 years.

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Jo Waller's avatar

It's not actual journalism in Sudan. It's just doing what the narrative wants. The US interests want the world to see the destabilisation and chaos in Sudan. They're taunting Iran, a strategic ally of Sudan, to react. The US can openly attack Venezuela and the US can openly stir up terrorism, via the UAE, to bring down the government in Sudan. The urgency and terror that they want to use; they want reported on.

It's not actual journalism in Sudan and not journalism in Gaza.

It's simply journalists doing and reporting what they're told to, in the way that they're told to.

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Mary Wildfire's avatar

Oh shit. You're probably right. I was thinking, reading Caitlin's post, "but isn't RSF supported by the US?" But maybe WAPO was told to report this bluntly as an example of what happens to those who stand up to the Washington-centered empire.

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Jo Waller's avatar

Yep.

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Niemoller's Ghost's avatar

Our Media has spent decades becoming used to Rupert Murdoch's deliberate, systematic lying. About Climate Destabilization and fossil fuels, about the US Invasion of Iraq and the security sector's coup on our human rights, about a thousand lies fed to the public, on behalf of powerful investors. The Zionist Genocide is just the cost of Neoliberalism fanning the embers of racism and imperialism to get another few trillion in arms deals, while we live in austerity without enough Public Health, Public Education, or Public Housing. The investors couldn't give a shit about your human rights, why would they care about Palestinians? They only time your local psychopathic oligarchs will care about external proletariat is when they want to enlist them in the local military and/or security forces (which their campaign donations give them undue influence over) to keep the rest of us internal proletariat obedient to their twisted, inhumane profit ventures. Welcome to the US empire, Papua New Guinea. You'll be reporting to the Australian sub-imperial appendage, who will report to Imperialism Central: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09-14/australia-and-png-defence-treaty-to-integrate-military-forces/105770088

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Dr.Who's avatar

The Sudan reporting covers savage-on-savage violence while the coverage of Gaza *covers* civilized-on-savage violence.

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Jo Waller's avatar

Yes, the Sudan coverage is not actual journalism because the US interests want it reported the way that it's being reported. The Sudan reporting is of extremists, savages, terrorists and a country of uncivilised people at war with itself. The US can openly stir up extremism, via proxies of UAE or Saudi Arabia, and hide it in plain sight.

The coverage distracts from Gaza and taunts Iran who are strategic allies of Sudan.

In both Sudan and Gaza Western journalists are simply doing their job- propagating the narrative.

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David 1260's avatar

Who are you calling "civilized?" I'm guessing I disagree strongly with your characterization.

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Slightly Lucid's avatar

That was sarcasm, friend.

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Jo Waller's avatar

Dr Who means civilized ironically, as in how the US based white western people see themselves.

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Indu Abeysekara's avatar

Thanks Caitlin & Tim.

Very timely observation on your part to alert us to the media's manufacturing of consent. While they took pains to hide an Israeli genocide , it looks as if they are being honest with Sudan. But before we let them off the hook, we should question their motive, are they really being an honest and factual media?

Remember Noam Chomsky and Edward Herman's idea of " worthy and unworthy " victims. The "unworthy victims "- the Palestinians - were left to be slaughtered and starved for two long years. The media contorted and lied about what really was happening under the vile Israeli regime.

Now it seems the media cannot say enough ( as if to absolve themselves !) about a mass killing in Sudan, somewhat belatedly. Never fear, it still is a conjuring trick because the hired gun - the US client Arab states and the thugs they arm - are blamed, not the godfather.

Also like all good colonisers they could portray the blacks and the browns as ' waiting to be civilised'.

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Jo Waller's avatar

We know from experience that there is no honestly in MSM, the mouth piece of the US based industry interests. The journalists are merely doing their job. The narrative wants outrage at the US backed atrocities and break down of society in Sudan. Perhaps it's a limited hangout. Everyone knows the US is backing the genocide in Gaza.

The US is now openly attacking Venezuela with the flimsiest of excuses- it's all in plain sight. It's taunting and jeering at us as it jerks our emotional chains this way and that.

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Slightly Lucid's avatar

Sadly, I am pretty sure this “coverage” is just more cover for Israel. The genocide in Sudan (backed by allied states) has been on and off for decades - now, it’s being covered to distract us from Gaza.

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The Revolution Continues's avatar

"There’s a discrepancy in the reporting because there’s a discrepancy in the propaganda needs of the western empire."

How sad that it is soooo obvious how the Western mainstream media have been puppets of the Israeli genocidaires. Have they no pride? No integrity? I guess not.

At least the story in Sudan is getting out in a less duplicitous manner. May there be peace there soon.

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denise ward's avatar

I wish everyone would notice that if we want to point fingers at the culprits of disasters, it comes down to this - almost always it is men. Armies consist of men, weapons collectors consist of men, rapists, killers, beaters of the vulnerable, etc. It's so funny that we notice the Jews but not that it's men who cause almost all the trauma.

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The Revolution Continues's avatar

The IDF drafts women to the front lines as well. Genocidaires come in all genders, all colors, all races. The only unifying factor is the lack of empathy, compassion.

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Feral Finster's avatar

MSM journalists know full well what kinds of stories earn awards and plum assignments, and what kinds of stories earn you closed door meetings with editors to talk about your career.

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Rodolfo Marusi Guareschi's avatar

For a long time, all powers (legislative, executive, judicial, and informational) have responded to the interests and will of those who, through the banking system, control money created from nothing through interest-bearing loans. And this is possible because those who represent those powers are designated (chosen) and/or financed and/or arranged for financing by those who control the money. And what to the normal human conscience is genocide, to the cynicism of those who control the money is a necessity, or at least a side effect, of all strategies to maintain power.

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Rannahs's avatar

Proving once again the deep complicity of the majority of mainstream media, particularly western "media" in the israeli genocide of Palestinians. May they be held accountable. May they be shamed. May they feel one tenth of what Palestinians have endured.

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Antonio Brownlowe's avatar

I am just about total exhausted by the blinding double standard and Hypocrisy of the highest order,of US and Western MSM reporting the full facts on News.

Modern day US and Western Media MSM is unreliable to depend on tell the whole truth and facts.

They make sure to Minimize and soften Crimes by Israel ,but they Boldly Emphasize the horrors and atrocity in detail of others.

They make sure there is do doubt about who the victims are and who is committing the Crime. They say they have a Ceasefire in GAZA, how can it be a Ceasefire

when Israel has never stopped Bombing Gaza since Oct 2023?

What they show the world is that a Genocide being carried out in Sudan Africans against Africans is a Genocide,but a Genocide being carried out against

the Palestinians ,by ISRAEL is Self Defense, and so can not be a Genocide

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Eat me's avatar

Democracy Now. Drop site news. Two of the best. The rest biased to issreshell . CNN article's on Gaza's genocide: 2000 lb amerikan bombs used on crowded areas, intentionally targeting and murdering innocent unarmed civilians at food aid sites, idf thugs destroying hospitals. CNN article's did cover these well.

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CK's avatar

The Intercept and The Atlantic have also provided some coverage. Also, Chris Hedges and Ralph Nader have broadcast interviews with witnesses.

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Berit Westby's avatar

Also check out zeteo.com

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