“You can’t even engage in direct action like blocking the weapons shipments and sabotaging the arms manufacturers unless you’re prepared to do some serious prison time.”
Precisely what we have been and are doing. Look up Palestine Action (in the U.K.). The state is having us arrested and charged, only for our Jury system - made up of our peers - to keep acquitting us at trial. We’ve “encouraged” u.k. companies to cut ties with Israeli companies, with some success. We’ve also repeatedly closed down Elbit - the main Israeli weapons manufacturer - along with causing damage to their factories and offices costing them millions of pounds. It may seem hopeless at times, but doing nothing really does give no hope.
Salute to those who put themselves out to show rejection of Israeli genocide. What is needed is to get men to stop going into the military. To make it a shameful thing to do. Which it is. Killing people for the state.
I think a strong, radical Black movement like in the 60s against the Zionists calling out their racism, colonialism, and the apartheid nature of their state. But most black candidates in the Dem party have to rely on Party Money. Stop giving to the Dems, at least those funded by AIPAC. Demand action.
Also the shutdown of the port of Eilat must hinder the genocide somewhat and the growing refusal of Israelis to continue the slaughter as it tired them out and begins to nauseate them! Only a matter of time and consciousness.
Dock workers in Spain and Greece have refused to serve ships carrying weapons and fuel to Israel.
If port workers and ship crews around the world did that, it would go a long way.
Also if managers in banks etc did their jobs and stopped transactions with Israel based on the ICJ judgement, that would be that be that. Banks do have war and human rights clauses that they are not activating here, that they did activate for Myanmar, for example.
I totally agree, but I recall a dockworkers strike a few weeks back where the union said, they would, of course, allow military weapon shipment to go forward, while blocking all else. The indoctrination is near absolute, but cracks are appearing. Time to pry away.
Caitlin, THe sense of powerlessness is a correct and useful feeling. The sense of being powerful by means of ones vote and access to world information via the media is to have one's senses having been caught by persuasive illusion . To shake that off and find oneself is captive in a world of evil is totally disturbing and engenders that feeing of helplessness. But as bad as it is it is also step one on the way to freedom. Now begin to act with others in nonviolent direct opposition to the persuasive evil and open other eyes on that painful and even maybe dangerous journey through life.
Yes. Here in Aotearoa New Zealand our frontline thug police fired pepper spray directly into our eyes. In my case they were trying to prevent me filming as they pushed a protester to the pavement and pressed on his chest. Several of our Palestine Soldiarity Network Members were arrested. But in better news our Christchurch City Council has voted to stop trading with the illegal Israeli occupier. No business for genocide.
I faced some flak by a couple of people on George Saunders' substack recently when I criticised Harris for her genocide-as-usual approach to this issue. It is a shame I feel the need to call on my Jewish ancestry to stand with Jews for peace and show I am not anti semitic, so much false flag waving. I keep pointing out that this is humanitarianism. That it is wrong for any one group to take power over another, to view itself as superior to another. It is not only wrong, it is a crime.
The expansionism and extermination and all the many cruel weapoons of colonisation and financial capitalism that fuel inequity must cease. We must decide whether we want a fair world for all our children and all of theirs and to stand alongside mother nature. It is time to unite together for a very just cause.
Good for you! I have brought up this issue as well. In the discussion on the De Maupassant, Saunders asked "Is it really the case that not a single one of these people would be capable of seeing what he or she has done," I replied, "Such a good question. We could ask that question of today's mainstream media, and politicians who, it would seem are incapable of calling out genocide."
Why is the media calling out the genocide more important than the politicians breaking off all diplomatic relations with Israel and expelling every single Israeli citizen from the country, eh?
Focus on the people who matter and demand that Israel become a pariah nation in diplomatic terms and promote UN resolutions to throw Israel out of the UN. Oh, it will be veteod by the USA, but a vote of 150+ in favour would tell Israel in no uncertain terms that they are no longer a nation people want to interact with.
Exactly! Thank you. It is staring us in the face, this parallel, the point of De Maupassant's piece, surely is that people let terrible things happen. Someone accused me of disrupting their safe space when I pointed out that we can crush time between then and now. It seems to me, sadly, the call to vote for Harris is a call to keep the status quo, business-as-usual for the exterminators. Hideous! We should all have the capacity of imagination which is the vehicle for empathy and put ourselves in the skin of those in Gaza. Thanks again. It is good to find like minds on here.
All that is true, but the Israelis vs non-combatants is rather like First Peoples vs murderous Europeans during history.
Who won?
Sooner or later, someone will have to ask what military casualties Israel will have to suffer to surrender without 'the final solution' being enacted upon them?
They won't come to the table to negotiate, not unless they get all the land in Palestine. That's their minimum acceptable war outcome. What they actually want is Eretz Yisrael, achieved through mass genocide.
It's not acceptable to hear people saying 'the Israeli people brought their government down' if the Israeli people don't have to pay to reconstruct Gaza, don't have to serve the Palestinian survivors for the rest of their days. There cannot be an outcome which involves expansion of Israeli territory through war crimes and genocide.
I understand in the city, Madison WI, there are protests daily. The media doesn't cover them. You think Bill and Melinda Gate's ever popular in Madison NPR would cover the Gaza genocide fairly??? The Post and LA Times are run by oligarchs, and they have people wound around their fingers, entertaining them into fear and anger. But then I understand that really TEN PERCENT OF THE POPULATION, THE INDEPENDENT, DETERMINE ELECTIONS. I guess if Cheney and Bush support Karmala, and she will continue the wars and genocides, I better vote for change. That's big as I also dislike Trump enormously.
I wouldn't vote for a man who boasted that he could molest any woman he wanted, who doesn't represent the poor and who is a megaolamaniac akin to his cousins Netanyahu and Putin. Were I in the US I would throw my vote to the alternative that represents neither of them, someone who stands for real change, and a change of system.
So boycott the Post and the LA Times. Don't give them a dime of your money. Let their advertising revenues dry up as their circulation plummets. Just let them go belly up.
I’m hearing that Iran has made a demand that the Zionists genocidal government stop the slaughter. They are trying to put a stop to the killing and have the might of missiles to threaten the occupiers sufficiently enough that they will have to listen and stop. We will see, but it seems this is possible or we might see the end of this genocidal regime through force. Iran has the backing of the BRICS nations and they all agree the genocide has to stop. Isn’t it ironic that the so called enemies of the Western nations will be the ones who finally put an end to the atrocities. Who is showing the world a greater concern for humanity now? It has been revealed to the world who the real terrorist are and have been for a long time. We are seeing a shift that is beginning to change the way nations think.
The US has no more capability than Israel to fight Iran. Plus we have multiple military bases in the region that are easily hit. And if Iran really wants to hurt us, they can take out all the oil fields in the region in one blow, which would completely cripple the US economically (which is all we really care about) and deal a final blow to US dollar hegemony. The US will never risk that for Israel. In the meantime, Israel is failing. I'm sure more Israelis will leave permanently after they realized they cannot hurt Iran. Therefore, unless they can put their leadership all in jail or a terminal mental hospital, they have to stop pretending they have a viable state that can protect them. And they will leave. Israel is destroying itself. This is what happens when the far left or far right are allowed free rein. Moderation in all things. Only for Israel, if they had followed the moderate course, eventually Palestinians would have outnumbered them 2 and 3 to 1. That is why the complete eradication of Palestinians is the logical thing for them to do. But in doing so, they destroy themselves. They are in a catch-22. They actually had only one choice which their ethnosupremacy does not allow them to consider. They should have just given the land back to the Palestinians and left quietly, gradually, and with honor and generosity. We have plenty of power. And we're exercising it right here in substack comments. You have no idea how bad Western attitudes towards Palestinians USED to be in the West 50, 100, 150 years ago. It's only a matter of, according to Mattias Desmet, 15%. Where are we now? What percentage abhor this genocide? The election won't tell us as a lot of people who oppose Israel's genocide are holding their noses and voting for Dumber and Dumbest. Change is inevitable. We don't have a democracy and never did. Yanis Varofakis has it right. We can choose democracy or revolution. (Or was it technofeudalism or revolution?) And there is no such thing as democracy in the west--our governments have always been oligarchies and possibly plutocracies dressed up as democracies. Right now the Demos is rising up. And stop glorifying the military. They cannot have a military if no one participates. And stop privileging American Jews who are moneyed. They are the richest religious group in the US. Where does that money come from? YOU. They are only 2.4% of the American population. WTF? I'm not saying do this to all American Jews. Read Varoufakis' book on technofeudalism. We are participating in it right here and right now which is why I stopped commenting so much here. Because Caitlin takes my ideas, presents them a few days later as her own, and some of you pay her for them. How much has she given me? Nada. This is a tiny version of the much bigger form of technofeudalism which enriches all these people. STOP buying from Amazon. Find who is making what you want and buy from the actual producers--not Amazon's knock-offs. Bezos skims 40-50% from what you pay him for items. If nothing else, go to Ebay. Or, radical thought, STOP CONSUMING. Do you REALLY need that junk??? This is a great time for a real cultural revolution, one which eschews consumption. Stop enabling the billionaires. Sorry, Caitlin, and I'm glad you have an income stream from this, but it does rankle and I'm not stupid.
"this is what happens when the far left or far right are allowed free rein. moderation in all things." the center have always been the extremists with the far right as their attack dogs. the far left have never been allowed free rein.
"because caitlin takes my ideas, presents them a few days later as her own, and some of you pay her for them. how much has she given me? nada." this is delusional. the idea that you can commodify ideas is one of the pillars of technofeudalism. all the content and ideas caitlin produces are free to use and reproduce, afaik. i'd be ok with content creators picking up a personal take that serves the collective cause. the voluntary contributions serve as paid labor for aggregating different and related ideas in a readable blog imo.
I've been far ahead of the crowd because I grew up in the Middle East but am an American (of color, also relevant). This is the dynamic I have seen most particularly with Caitlin who is not a journalist--she writes her opinion. I'm glad she's out there but I'm not blind to how substack owners use their followers to increase their income. It is very noticeable here. We've not had a left wing in the US since the 1930's when they were effectively taken out by both the middle of the road liberals and the right. You're right that the middle of the road liberals are more effective. Who was the last truly left presidential candidate? Eugene Debs?
Caitlin has no personal experience of the Middle East that I know of. She repeats what professional journalists write. That's fine. Opinion has its place. She's also married to an American vet which is pretty odd, given her political values, frankly.
Whatever. I've been miles ahead of her because I've been dealing with these issues for a good 60 years and witnessing the history you all are talking about. As most Western stubstackers are new to the subject. Glad they are focusing their energies where they are now. Of course, the Internet is what allows the cross-pollination of ideas and opinions. Not for long. Most of the people on substack on whom I rely for information have been disturbingly silent the last 48 hours. For reasons I can well imagine.
I'm not commodifying anything. Middle Easterners know exactly what I'm talking about because they and I have shared experiences, though my perspective is slightly different from theirs because of where we eacj land in both the colonial and post-colonial world.
There is no left here, martin. It was killed off years ago. Before I was born and it sounds like I'm a good deal older than you.
No. I did not say that. However, that's always a possibility. I'm not important in the least. But I do know people whose family members were disappeared. Some of my dad's friends were assassinated, as well. One of the best-loved, moderate ayatollahs who would have been a serious competitor to Khomeini "died of a heart attack" under suspicious circumstances. Actually, I was protected by my citizenship. Censorship is tightening all over but especially in the West. The weaponry and surveillance systems Israel has used on Gaza and Lebanon are migrating here. If you think you are immune, you are not paying attention. My "evidence" is not superior. It's informed by personal experience. That's all. There's plenty I do not know (and would rather not know, frankly). Do you really believe Middle Easterners know less about the Middle East than you? Give me a break.
This is interesting as after the exchange of missile fire, Iran seems to have better missiles and anti-missile defense, by far. They also have some sort of nuclear device, which Israel has had for years. As one Muslim commentator opined, "They may have bought it, it might have been given to them, or they may have developed it internally." And their supreme leader retracted the fatwa against nuclear weapons. And then both Israel and Iran are backed up by nuclear powers, hypersonic missiles, and suitcase bombs - if we get involved it means world war three. This would be a great time to quit, and have a diplomatic solution where Netanyahu and his cabinet go away. Compared to the alternative, it's win win for everybody to stop the killing.
According to Alexander and Leslie Cockburn ("Dangerous Liaison") Israel had roughly 400 nuclear bombs back in 1991. They got them from the US who let them know when the storage sites would be unlocked and unguarded and the sayanim moved them to Israel. Recent reports indicate Netanyahu was one of the people involved in this. Did you read how he was rushed to the hospital last night? Supposedly "dehydration". Hezbollah managed to hit his bedroom. He probably pissed himself.
However it happens, Palestine will belong to Palestinians from the river to the sea. It's going to happen in our lifetimes.
Just be aware that there is a lot of Israeli-generated propaganda out there right now. I watched Al Jazeera last night and someone was interrupting the broadcast, inserting the weirdest, least likely stories in between the real broadcast repeatedly. One of them stated that Israel had bombed Iranian nuclear sites. Putin already told them what would happen if they did that. I don't think they have the bomb yet. But they will. Israel has been thoroughly check-mated. I am so impressed how closely Hamas, Hezbollah, the Syrians and Iran follow Islamic law. The (Western) Christians and Jews are disgraceful, targeting civilians and stealing resources and millions of dollars in cash. I am very impressed by the Muslim military and policy leaders. The banks Israel bombed in Lebanon were used to give small business loans to civilians so they could become self-sufficient. Those loans were interest-free, per the Qoran. Very cool.
If you don't charge any interest on loans, then the size of the loan vs the amount the loanee actually receives need to diverge, if you don't want the bank to go bankrupt. The 'arrangement fee', if you call it that, must cover the costs of the Islamic bank.
How do Islamic banks handle the effects of inflation? They have to have a way of hedging themselves otherwise they will disappear over time as an ineffective place for depositers to lodge their money.
I'm no defender of the more pirate-like Western banks, but there really is no panacea of how to lend money interest-free. Interest-free loans only exist in inflation-free worlds or as charity. There have to be costs incorporated to cover the % of loans that go bad and to cover the costs of administration.
Good points. I don't know. I'm not into banking, Islamic or otherwise. I just know that usury, i.e. interest, is haram/forbidden and I admire Islam for this basic human decency. Islam does require tithing which is usually between 8-10%. Since religions in the Middle East are still living, breathing entities--faith isn't something you put on for the sabbath as it is i the West--people happily tithe as well as help out the less fortunate as a matter of worship of God. Not saying many Western Christians and Jews don't do this as well, but most Westerners don't and religion in the West is nothing like religion in the M.E. is. It's not a living, breathing part of being alive, in all things. It's separate. Perhaps that's how they are compensated. This is an interesting line of inquiry, however. It would be good to find out from an Islamic bank or Islamic economist how this works and incorporate it into our system in community-owned banks, don't you think? The level of personal debt in this country is outrageous. And the details behind our NATIONAL debt are outrageously immoral and unethical. Plenty of people have been following this more closely than me. I've never bought into "The American Dream". The Federal Reserve is actually a consortium of private bankers--not all American--and they don't actually "lend" money to the government. They just add the figures on a computer database and immediately charge us, the taxpayers, interest. In the process, our dollars lose value. That is what inflation is: The devaluation of the dollar. Our GDP is largely comprised of debt. Our actual productivity is quite low.
What has caused inflation in Middle Eastern countries, and I know this for a fact, is US sanctions on their economies. Sanctions might work in the short-term but they fail in the long-term because the sanctioned countries become more creative, more efficient, and more self-sufficient. The US is sanctioning 60% of the world's economies. That's mafia-type behavior. And I don't think the Dems or the Republicans control this country: The hidden mafia behind the scenes does.
This just in from Ryan Grim. Throw out your cellphones. Israel's surveillance state is coming to a cell tower near you. Highly recommend you read this story.
Well...don't speak too soon. You know most commercial pork is genetically modified... I can't remember what they've done to it, how it can hurt consumers who eat it. You know about the chimera of goat and spider? The goat's milk comes out as some kind of super-strong thread. Don't give them ideas, please!
Empathy. Key word. Key concept that distinguishes human being from vampire. be it the elite capitalist vampire who'll suck evey last milliliter of your blood, the political vampire who'll lie you into a rhetorical prison with no thought of the consequences, the warmonger vampire who'll bomb civilians trapped in a cage or blow out a child's brains. Thoughtlessness, zero empathy, zero bridge to the other being characterizes all vampires regardless of specific methodology for destroying lives. Hence we must all seek each day to deepen our pools of that essential tie to genuine humanity. I certainly know it to be difficult essential work for myself. Thanks to gypsy33 for inspiration.
Yes, I believe that the zombie vampire apocalypse is upon us. Corporations resemble zombies because of their mindless unrelenting need to extract wealth, which is their food. Corporations are vampires because they are parasites preying on the population, and the planet, to drain us, and it, as you say, to the last milliliter.
I think no one can be rich enough when wealth is represented by pixels on a screen. Can you ever have enough pixels on a screen to be sure it would just all disappear tomorrow?
You make good points. Someone wrote a book proposing a change in corporate law across the board, that not only are they required to maximize shareholder profit (by law), they are also required to be good neighbors, responsible environmentalists, and fair employers. Embed that in the law, and change will result. Let's all hold our breaths, shall we?
We could go back to taxing corporations at 94% the way we did in the '60s, so they plowed their earnings into R&D instead of stock buy-backs, to shield them from taxation.
Yes, gypsy, you inspired my comment, thank you very large. I just edited it to reference that inspiration. I know they're out there somewhere as the old Moody Blues song tells us.
I wouldn't disagree, except to adjust your simile to "like feces after a high-fat meal". Nonetheless, the only way for us to remain sane as individuals is to recognize their shit and flush it from our lives. Empathy need not be wasted by misdirecting it toward blood-sucking parasites.
I don't agree that greed and power seeking are human nature. I think people are taught that what is important in life is money and power. Those people are the ones who don't see the importance of the natural world and they don't see or care that their greed and powermongering are destroying the entire planet and everything on it, including themselves. They have learned this from the greedy powermongers who came before them. They were not born with it. Look at the babies around you. Are they greedy and seeking power over anyone else?
Ah yes, we can excavate deeply into nature/nurture arguments. I would just offer that no one really has figured out just how disposed the primate neocortex is toward power hierarchies and their scaling by any means necessary. As a biologist, I reserve judgment. As I human, myself, if I'm naturally anything, it's skeptical of the various powder kegs that my species seems to want to play with in full recognition of potential disastrous consequences.
I have noticed that people most often say that it is "just human nature" when someone is aggressive or power seeking. I do not remember hearing the term used when people do acts of kindness.
Susan - acts of kindness become natural to you/me/others when someone has first visited acts of kindness upon us. It's not a genetically inherited trait, in my observation, it's the effect of particular environmental conditions.
For the more fortunate, this occurs young in a family, so they think it is 'natural', 'human nature', because it was their parents doing it to them.
That doesn't happen for every infant, though. There's plenty of studies showing what happens e.g. in orphanages.
You will also find that the propensity of men to hit women is increased amongst those who were physically abused as children. Just as children abused sexually tend to seek out abusers as partners when adults, for some reason that most people wish could be easily reversed.
Human nature in general is learned, although there are genetic predispositions involved too.
Some of us learned far more human kindness than we learned dominant power games. Others learned to manipulate, to coerce.
Our human nature usually results from what we happened to experience in the first 35 years of our lives.
I don't think people are either kind or cruel as part of "human nature". I think most of us underestimate our ability to learn. If anything is part of human nature, it is that ability to learn how to behave. The behaviour itself, whether positive or negative, is an aspect of our ability to learn. Who knows what is actually in our "nature"?
Susan - ultimately there is no right answer to 'how much is enough'? I know that I felt a great visceral sense of achievement when I earned enough as a sole trader to upgrade my ICT suite, to pay for a nice 2 week holiday. I felt similar when I won a £50k contract working for an SME.
At some point most people say: 'OK, this much is enough'. The fact remains, however, that those left in the game are still saying 'More, more, more'.
Who decides where the ceiling is to be set?
It's a question with huge ramifications for society, you know.
humans start learning early. Still, 2 year olds are surviving, not seeking to have power over others. Adults who think 2 year olds are power tripping need some help themselves.
Two year olds are learning how far the word 'NO!' goes. They test the limits of what they can do to get their way. Throwing tantrums in the supermarket, refusing to eat the food at table, refusing to go to bed on time etc etc.
Empathy isn't a good survival strategy in business, you know. Not unless you have a huge power advantage, where you can fire the many but almost no-one can fire you.
When the 27 year olds 'want to make a big move' you are entirely acceptable collateral damage, even if your empathy gave them a chance to improve themselves in the first place.
When things get super hard for me, I rely on some of my more deeper beliefs about reality, which I know don't align with probably a good number of people. But it helps me get through the darkness I am forced to witness. I imagine for those who really believe in, say reductive materialism, may find themselves struggling in an even deeper morass of meaninglessness, but somehow, still are able to find a way to make sense of it all with some kind of rationalization. And kudos to these folks. Anyway, at least most of us here have held on to our humanity and our souls by understanding and judging what we're witnessing is indeed a morally unacceptable horror.
Some of the Glitch in the matrix stories one hears are truly trippy. I'm convinced myself that what we currently know is probably far from what is actually true about reality and consciousness. Where that leads to - I am unsure. But for me that sliver of hope, that as you say, "I have no idea what is true, but I know it's not this" - keeps me going when things get incredibly dark. Cheers.
Thank you for many important points and a wholesome - in support of the whole - orientation🙏
But we can try to disrupt the horror. It’s coming down to the question of saving Gaza. Ten thousand Jews, American, British, French German - those nations sending military aid to Israel - could mobilize for an unarmed humanitarian mission. I’m one who would go. I’ve suggested this to Ralph Nader after he talked about putting American flags on aid trucks waiting outside Gaza, and a prominent Jewish (background at least) journalist.
Rabbis for Ceasefire, Jewish Voices for Peace, Jews for Racial and Economic Justice could help with outreach. I believe there are 10,000 who would step up, *given a mobilization of that size* There is safety as well as power in numbers🙏
The Empire needs us to feel powerless. It is easier to manipulate people who feel powerless. They lie about so much that nobody knows what is true and what is not any more. So we are not only powerless, we are often unsure about what is really going on. Cheaper groceries and access to abortion will not stop a genocide, which is what we all really need right now, especially the people in Gaza and Lebanon. They want us to be afraid. It gives them more control.
I am 100% convinced there will be an uprising after Nov. 5, no matter who “wins”, which will morph into Revolution. Then will be the time to put aside some of our political differences and run every single standing politician out of our government. (We can start with Lady G.)
Caitlin, This is not the first time you have moved me to tears. The sheer hopelessness of it all. We are wringing our hands and looking on while a whole nation is destroyed. Mothers weary, with no respite from the Israeli/US bombs, forced from one rubble strewn landscape, to another rubble heap to save their starved and sick children; orphaned children grown old before their time, the men taken away tied and naked. Israel with the backing of empire, making war and spreading it onto neighbouring countries.
The world has seen it all. Yet you go on writing, doing a great job than most, for us not to ever forget. Hope too in urging us that there is hope.
Maybe there is hope - in BRICS. A whole new concept to rid the world of a monstrous world (dis)order.
It may help to rid the world of a construct whose time is past. But I would be extremely surprised if imperfections did not emerge in BRICS structures, intentionally or unintentionally. But it may take a few lifetimes for them to become sufficiently apparent that the next organisational revolution starts to take shape.
I think about how a large factor in our powerlessness is how intentionally polluted and fragmented our information system is in order to prevent change and disempower people. We could do almost anything if we were all on the same page, which is why propaganda abounds and information structures are siloed and unreliable.
This situation is a big threat to us as a species because we kind of need to understand the world in order to address problems. What the psycopath oligarchs have done is like how HIV infects and suppresses the immune system for its own benefit, leaving the host vulnerable to other diseases. To protect their power they damage the species ability to understand the world and know what's real, and as things like genocides, climate change, nuclear proliferation, and exploitation become critical, we seem unable to muster the collective clarity to do anything about them.
That is a very percipient comment - I remember well the naive innocent days of search engines around 2005 - they truly did return listings that were most relevant, not things that the engine owner got paid most for listing.
If we could return the world of internet searching to 2005, using communally owned engines, things would improve. The real question is how you can do that without a communally owned global internet infrastructure too. Because search engines need access to everything out there to be effective....
Bob Peterson you have this weird notion that Israel should be a white supremacist state!! So see yourself as what you are: a white settler colonizer! Re-educate yourself about the history of Israel and since its inception it has been depraved!! Don’t tell me you’re for Israel; you are for white settlers— you are a racist— shame on you!
Obviously you are a brain damaged moron. Iran is getting what it deserves for financial aid th the enemies of Israel. Call me a racist but it doesn’t change the facts.
Looking at your posts confirms my thoughts that you are mentally unstable. Please seek therapy. I’d hate to see your name associated with violence but believe it possible.
So I presume you agree that Israel can get what it deserves for genocidal treatment of the friends of Iran? I presume you aren't sufficiently racist to claim that Israel hasn't murdered multiples more Palestinians than Palestinians have murdered Israelis, since 1948?
The Israelis started the occupation and the Nakba in 1948 and these are well documented facts. History did not begin on October 7th 2023 and to pretend “Israel did not start this war” is disingenuous at best. No need to rehash the entire history of land theft, false imprisonment of Palestinians by the thousands, and now, the ethnic cleansing and war crimes of the past year. I want a complete ceasefire that will save the lives not just of the Palestinian and Lebanese children but also the Israeli. Because if this destruction continues that’s where it’s headed - it’s unavoidable.
I was expecting an enlightening explanation of how the formation of Israel in 1948 wasn't an assault on all the Arabs inhabating the land on which that nation was formed, and you give this? Can you try again?
How can you use an old book like that to justify what is supposed to be done today? Did they have robots? Algorithms? Instant information exchange? Planes? Television? It's preposterous to use an antiquated book, a 2-dimensional thing, to explain human complexity.
Israel is nothing more than a criminal and terrorist enterprise led by sick minds and sociopaths. Your false colony is crumbling and collapsing under the weight of our collective solidarity with Palestine.
"Thus saith the Lord God; This is Jerusalem: I have set it in the midst of the nations and countries that are round about her.
And she hath changed my judgments into wickedness more than the nations, and my statutes more than the countries that are round about her: for they have refused my judgments and my statutes, they have not walked in them.
Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Because ye multiplied more than the nations that are round about you, and have not walked in my statutes, neither have kept my judgments, neither have done according to the judgments of the nations that are round about you;
Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I, even I, am against thee, and will execute judgments in the midst of thee in the sight of the nations.
And I will do in thee that which I have not done, and whereunto I will not do any more the like, because of all thine abominations.
Therefore the fathers shall eat the sons in the midst of thee, and the sons shall eat their fathers; and I will execute judgments in thee, and the whole remnant of thee will I scatter into all the winds.
Wherefore, as I live, saith the Lord God; Surely, because thou hast defiled my sanctuary with all thy detestable things, and with all thine abominations, therefore will I also diminish thee; neither shall mine eye spare, neither will I have any pity."
Okay. So, any property owned by zionists in the U.S., the local Native American tribes can go knocking on their doors and they will politely hand it back? Because it is stolen land?
"The Israelis did not start this war."... You're right... wars started from the moment we walked out of the jungles .... but the jungle mentality we acquired in our evolution just followed us to our new digs...
Actually, it's more likely our cerebral cortex that is in charge of these twisted, fictions, we lived our lives in accordance with. A major characteristic of which is narcissism and hubris. We need to find a way to get that under control.
Of course he would. He is a cheer leader on the sidelines. He's a racist with a false sense of entitlement who would happily actively participate in the genocide.
"Nothing changes until the US dollar is no longer the world’s reserve currency." Killing is killing. whether it's in pesos or Euros... Changing the mask won't help....
What he means is that the unseating of US dollar hegemony would be a sign of the impending demise of the US Empire, which means "no more ability to fund the 800+ military bases around the world" and maintain a grip on the world - which means... (you get the idea).
I don't see any end to this madness until the United States stops funding this genocide. Without money and arms, Israel will have to stop. The only way the U.S. will stop funding the war is for enough people to demand the government to stop. As mentioned here, labor strikes that shut down a major portion of the country. Protests in the streets reminiscent of the protests to stop the Vietnam War. Only a lack of money will stop the madness. Shut off the money and you stop the war. It's that simple.
Is there enough political will in the U.S. to do that? Not any more. As Ms. Johnstone also mentions, Americans have lost the will to buck their government in the 21st century. Maybe because all of those protestors from the late 1960's and early 1970's are all senior citizens now and the younger generations are too busy trying to survive another week without losing everything to manage any protesting or strikes. It's better to just ignore the moral issues of the world because fighting everyday to keep from going hungry and homeless takes precedence these days. Very few of those who may be outraged about the genocide in the U.S. can afford to do anything about it. This may be by design after all of the troubles the protestors from the Vietnam War days caused. The older politicians who remember those days do not want a repeat. Think of people like Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer, Mitch McConnell, Joe Biden and other career politicians old enough to remember those days. They would remember the bad old days and do everything they can to stop that from happening again. Take a hard look around in the U.S lately. What has been happening across college campuses across the country? Money to live on or lack thereof, and militarized police forces are what is stopping any major protests large enough to hurt the economy.
Meanwhile, the U.S. is driving its own economy over a cliff funding all of these proxy wars so in the end, they will run out of money anyway, with or without strikes and protests. It will just take a bit longer. Unfortunately, the Palestinians and Ukrainians don't have that much time left. There is no good answer. The American people are damned if they do and damned if the don't right now. Such is the moral dilemma their elected officials have put them in. We see that happening with their election campaigns right now out in plain sight. The GOP aren't even trying to hide it. The democrats are using glitz, glitter and glamour to make the voters look in one direction while they fund genocides in the other direction. Either way, the result is the same. History will judge the United States one day, like it has Nazi Germany and the old Japanese empire, and the citizens will have to live with the knowledge of what they allowed their elected leaders to do in their name. May the Gods forgive them when they finally, collectively, realize what they have wrought and the wailing begins.
Much truth in what you say Terrance Ó Domhnaill - especially this "Very few of those who may be outraged about the genocide in the U.S. can afford to do anything about it."
>>"funding all of these proxy wars so in the end, they will run out of money anyway"
Slight correction: The US cannot run out of money because of the way the US Financial system works and the principles of 'Modern Monetary Theory' (MMT). The US can theoretically print an unlimited amount of money (as long as they can find ways to simultaneously keep inflation in check - and there are multiple methods to do that without resorting to raising interest rates - but then again, this leads into a tangent towards a different discussion).
But they can vote third party. And if everyone against this genocide did that I think Dr Stein would really have a chance. Sadly I don’t even think enough people know there is this choice- or they are so afraid trump would win, that they are just ‘ following the crowd’. That’s the worst thing you can do!
The first thing that has to be realized, is that the Jews control our finances, our media, and our political system. What do you think Epstein was about? Almost all of our politicians are owned by them.
So how would you be surprised, that Israel gets to do whatever they please?
I really think it’s ridiculous when European Jews call themselves Semitic people. You are not! Arabs and Jews from the Levantine area are Semitic. There is a lot of antisemitism- it is all directed at Palestinians and Arabic speaking people. This cry of antisemitism has to stop. And this genocide is not about religion, or hostages, it’s power, money, land grab, thievery, racism, Aparthied, entitlement and hate. It’s a genocide for a group of European and American and British - white, non Semitic, Zionists - that think they can have whatever they want because German Nazis were/are horrific! So they decided to make Palestinians their sacrificial lamb, designed a narrative and became far worse, far more brutal and inhumane than the Nazis were. It’s terrifying that humanity has lost its beating heart. It’s horrific that masses are being spoon fed Israeli propaganda and swallow it whole, while blindly following American lies- like they only have 2 choices for president. If the people who cared all believed they could do something and did vote together, I really believe a third party, Jill stein, could we . Sadly, it seems everyone has other priorities, instead of the children of Gaza. My heart is crying and broken.
" If enough people can awaken to the urgent need for change, collective measures like national strikes and mass-scale civil disobedience could bring the capitalist empire to its knees without firing a shot."
There's our power... It's in taking action to bring down the empire through civil disobedience and general strikes. It's the (BDS) boycott movement taking down the genocidal Israeli regime by robbing it of income and markets. What's the quote Jill Stein says frequently? "The only way we give up our power is by not realizing we have it in the first place." Start realizing you have the power--and help others to realize they have it too. Then fight back with all you got. The empire and the war machine won't last forever if we organize and take them out.
“You can’t even engage in direct action like blocking the weapons shipments and sabotaging the arms manufacturers unless you’re prepared to do some serious prison time.”
Precisely what we have been and are doing. Look up Palestine Action (in the U.K.). The state is having us arrested and charged, only for our Jury system - made up of our peers - to keep acquitting us at trial. We’ve “encouraged” u.k. companies to cut ties with Israeli companies, with some success. We’ve also repeatedly closed down Elbit - the main Israeli weapons manufacturer - along with causing damage to their factories and offices costing them millions of pounds. It may seem hopeless at times, but doing nothing really does give no hope.
Thank you for your service.
Salute to those who put themselves out to show rejection of Israeli genocide. What is needed is to get men to stop going into the military. To make it a shameful thing to do. Which it is. Killing people for the state.
Start helping people become conscientious objectors. Info at quakerhouse.org
I think a strong, radical Black movement like in the 60s against the Zionists calling out their racism, colonialism, and the apartheid nature of their state. But most black candidates in the Dem party have to rely on Party Money. Stop giving to the Dems, at least those funded by AIPAC. Demand action.
Uhuru
And any truthful journalism is called terrorism and people are getting arrested for telling the truth too.
Just ask Julian Assange about the price of truthful journalism.
'it's
GOOD
to control
the Narrative.'
Also the shutdown of the port of Eilat must hinder the genocide somewhat and the growing refusal of Israelis to continue the slaughter as it tired them out and begins to nauseate them! Only a matter of time and consciousness.
Nauseate? Do you know who Israelis are?!?
And you are doing a great job.
Thanks
Dock workers in Spain and Greece have refused to serve ships carrying weapons and fuel to Israel.
If port workers and ship crews around the world did that, it would go a long way.
Also if managers in banks etc did their jobs and stopped transactions with Israel based on the ICJ judgement, that would be that be that. Banks do have war and human rights clauses that they are not activating here, that they did activate for Myanmar, for example.
I totally agree, but I recall a dockworkers strike a few weeks back where the union said, they would, of course, allow military weapon shipment to go forward, while blocking all else. The indoctrination is near absolute, but cracks are appearing. Time to pry away.
The penalties are far harsher and far more certain in Israel and the USA, alas
Hallelujah!!!!
Caitlin, THe sense of powerlessness is a correct and useful feeling. The sense of being powerful by means of ones vote and access to world information via the media is to have one's senses having been caught by persuasive illusion . To shake that off and find oneself is captive in a world of evil is totally disturbing and engenders that feeing of helplessness. But as bad as it is it is also step one on the way to freedom. Now begin to act with others in nonviolent direct opposition to the persuasive evil and open other eyes on that painful and even maybe dangerous journey through life.
You have my deep respect
Thanks.
Yes. Here in Aotearoa New Zealand our frontline thug police fired pepper spray directly into our eyes. In my case they were trying to prevent me filming as they pushed a protester to the pavement and pressed on his chest. Several of our Palestine Soldiarity Network Members were arrested. But in better news our Christchurch City Council has voted to stop trading with the illegal Israeli occupier. No business for genocide.
I faced some flak by a couple of people on George Saunders' substack recently when I criticised Harris for her genocide-as-usual approach to this issue. It is a shame I feel the need to call on my Jewish ancestry to stand with Jews for peace and show I am not anti semitic, so much false flag waving. I keep pointing out that this is humanitarianism. That it is wrong for any one group to take power over another, to view itself as superior to another. It is not only wrong, it is a crime.
The expansionism and extermination and all the many cruel weapoons of colonisation and financial capitalism that fuel inequity must cease. We must decide whether we want a fair world for all our children and all of theirs and to stand alongside mother nature. It is time to unite together for a very just cause.
We need to boycott heavily. That may mean going without or paying a bit more to go to businesses that are ethical.
For Palestine and for the youth. Kia kaha.
Good for you! I have brought up this issue as well. In the discussion on the De Maupassant, Saunders asked "Is it really the case that not a single one of these people would be capable of seeing what he or she has done," I replied, "Such a good question. We could ask that question of today's mainstream media, and politicians who, it would seem are incapable of calling out genocide."
Why is the media calling out the genocide more important than the politicians breaking off all diplomatic relations with Israel and expelling every single Israeli citizen from the country, eh?
Focus on the people who matter and demand that Israel become a pariah nation in diplomatic terms and promote UN resolutions to throw Israel out of the UN. Oh, it will be veteod by the USA, but a vote of 150+ in favour would tell Israel in no uncertain terms that they are no longer a nation people want to interact with.
Exactly! Thank you. It is staring us in the face, this parallel, the point of De Maupassant's piece, surely is that people let terrible things happen. Someone accused me of disrupting their safe space when I pointed out that we can crush time between then and now. It seems to me, sadly, the call to vote for Harris is a call to keep the status quo, business-as-usual for the exterminators. Hideous! We should all have the capacity of imagination which is the vehicle for empathy and put ourselves in the skin of those in Gaza. Thanks again. It is good to find like minds on here.
All that is true, but the Israelis vs non-combatants is rather like First Peoples vs murderous Europeans during history.
Who won?
Sooner or later, someone will have to ask what military casualties Israel will have to suffer to surrender without 'the final solution' being enacted upon them?
They won't come to the table to negotiate, not unless they get all the land in Palestine. That's their minimum acceptable war outcome. What they actually want is Eretz Yisrael, achieved through mass genocide.
It's not acceptable to hear people saying 'the Israeli people brought their government down' if the Israeli people don't have to pay to reconstruct Gaza, don't have to serve the Palestinian survivors for the rest of their days. There cannot be an outcome which involves expansion of Israeli territory through war crimes and genocide.
Thank you.
I understand in the city, Madison WI, there are protests daily. The media doesn't cover them. You think Bill and Melinda Gate's ever popular in Madison NPR would cover the Gaza genocide fairly??? The Post and LA Times are run by oligarchs, and they have people wound around their fingers, entertaining them into fear and anger. But then I understand that really TEN PERCENT OF THE POPULATION, THE INDEPENDENT, DETERMINE ELECTIONS. I guess if Cheney and Bush support Karmala, and she will continue the wars and genocides, I better vote for change. That's big as I also dislike Trump enormously.
So vote for Jill Stein, the only conscious vote you can make in this election.
Agree.
I wouldn't vote for a man who boasted that he could molest any woman he wanted, who doesn't represent the poor and who is a megaolamaniac akin to his cousins Netanyahu and Putin. Were I in the US I would throw my vote to the alternative that represents neither of them, someone who stands for real change, and a change of system.
So boycott the Post and the LA Times. Don't give them a dime of your money. Let their advertising revenues dry up as their circulation plummets. Just let them go belly up.
I’m hearing that Iran has made a demand that the Zionists genocidal government stop the slaughter. They are trying to put a stop to the killing and have the might of missiles to threaten the occupiers sufficiently enough that they will have to listen and stop. We will see, but it seems this is possible or we might see the end of this genocidal regime through force. Iran has the backing of the BRICS nations and they all agree the genocide has to stop. Isn’t it ironic that the so called enemies of the Western nations will be the ones who finally put an end to the atrocities. Who is showing the world a greater concern for humanity now? It has been revealed to the world who the real terrorist are and have been for a long time. We are seeing a shift that is beginning to change the way nations think.
Except that the US will fight for Israhell.
The US has no more capability than Israel to fight Iran. Plus we have multiple military bases in the region that are easily hit. And if Iran really wants to hurt us, they can take out all the oil fields in the region in one blow, which would completely cripple the US economically (which is all we really care about) and deal a final blow to US dollar hegemony. The US will never risk that for Israel. In the meantime, Israel is failing. I'm sure more Israelis will leave permanently after they realized they cannot hurt Iran. Therefore, unless they can put their leadership all in jail or a terminal mental hospital, they have to stop pretending they have a viable state that can protect them. And they will leave. Israel is destroying itself. This is what happens when the far left or far right are allowed free rein. Moderation in all things. Only for Israel, if they had followed the moderate course, eventually Palestinians would have outnumbered them 2 and 3 to 1. That is why the complete eradication of Palestinians is the logical thing for them to do. But in doing so, they destroy themselves. They are in a catch-22. They actually had only one choice which their ethnosupremacy does not allow them to consider. They should have just given the land back to the Palestinians and left quietly, gradually, and with honor and generosity. We have plenty of power. And we're exercising it right here in substack comments. You have no idea how bad Western attitudes towards Palestinians USED to be in the West 50, 100, 150 years ago. It's only a matter of, according to Mattias Desmet, 15%. Where are we now? What percentage abhor this genocide? The election won't tell us as a lot of people who oppose Israel's genocide are holding their noses and voting for Dumber and Dumbest. Change is inevitable. We don't have a democracy and never did. Yanis Varofakis has it right. We can choose democracy or revolution. (Or was it technofeudalism or revolution?) And there is no such thing as democracy in the west--our governments have always been oligarchies and possibly plutocracies dressed up as democracies. Right now the Demos is rising up. And stop glorifying the military. They cannot have a military if no one participates. And stop privileging American Jews who are moneyed. They are the richest religious group in the US. Where does that money come from? YOU. They are only 2.4% of the American population. WTF? I'm not saying do this to all American Jews. Read Varoufakis' book on technofeudalism. We are participating in it right here and right now which is why I stopped commenting so much here. Because Caitlin takes my ideas, presents them a few days later as her own, and some of you pay her for them. How much has she given me? Nada. This is a tiny version of the much bigger form of technofeudalism which enriches all these people. STOP buying from Amazon. Find who is making what you want and buy from the actual producers--not Amazon's knock-offs. Bezos skims 40-50% from what you pay him for items. If nothing else, go to Ebay. Or, radical thought, STOP CONSUMING. Do you REALLY need that junk??? This is a great time for a real cultural revolution, one which eschews consumption. Stop enabling the billionaires. Sorry, Caitlin, and I'm glad you have an income stream from this, but it does rankle and I'm not stupid.
these things are not correct imo:
"this is what happens when the far left or far right are allowed free rein. moderation in all things." the center have always been the extremists with the far right as their attack dogs. the far left have never been allowed free rein.
"because caitlin takes my ideas, presents them a few days later as her own, and some of you pay her for them. how much has she given me? nada." this is delusional. the idea that you can commodify ideas is one of the pillars of technofeudalism. all the content and ideas caitlin produces are free to use and reproduce, afaik. i'd be ok with content creators picking up a personal take that serves the collective cause. the voluntary contributions serve as paid labor for aggregating different and related ideas in a readable blog imo.
I've been far ahead of the crowd because I grew up in the Middle East but am an American (of color, also relevant). This is the dynamic I have seen most particularly with Caitlin who is not a journalist--she writes her opinion. I'm glad she's out there but I'm not blind to how substack owners use their followers to increase their income. It is very noticeable here. We've not had a left wing in the US since the 1930's when they were effectively taken out by both the middle of the road liberals and the right. You're right that the middle of the road liberals are more effective. Who was the last truly left presidential candidate? Eugene Debs?
Caitlin has no personal experience of the Middle East that I know of. She repeats what professional journalists write. That's fine. Opinion has its place. She's also married to an American vet which is pretty odd, given her political values, frankly.
Whatever. I've been miles ahead of her because I've been dealing with these issues for a good 60 years and witnessing the history you all are talking about. As most Western stubstackers are new to the subject. Glad they are focusing their energies where they are now. Of course, the Internet is what allows the cross-pollination of ideas and opinions. Not for long. Most of the people on substack on whom I rely for information have been disturbingly silent the last 48 hours. For reasons I can well imagine.
I'm not commodifying anything. Middle Easterners know exactly what I'm talking about because they and I have shared experiences, though my perspective is slightly different from theirs because of where we eacj land in both the colonial and post-colonial world.
There is no left here, martin. It was killed off years ago. Before I was born and it sounds like I'm a good deal older than you.
i'm glad we generally agree.
Are you saying that if you expressed your superior fact-based evidence for public consumption that you might meet a fairly rapid and grisly end?
No. I did not say that. However, that's always a possibility. I'm not important in the least. But I do know people whose family members were disappeared. Some of my dad's friends were assassinated, as well. One of the best-loved, moderate ayatollahs who would have been a serious competitor to Khomeini "died of a heart attack" under suspicious circumstances. Actually, I was protected by my citizenship. Censorship is tightening all over but especially in the West. The weaponry and surveillance systems Israel has used on Gaza and Lebanon are migrating here. If you think you are immune, you are not paying attention. My "evidence" is not superior. It's informed by personal experience. That's all. There's plenty I do not know (and would rather not know, frankly). Do you really believe Middle Easterners know less about the Middle East than you? Give me a break.
This is interesting as after the exchange of missile fire, Iran seems to have better missiles and anti-missile defense, by far. They also have some sort of nuclear device, which Israel has had for years. As one Muslim commentator opined, "They may have bought it, it might have been given to them, or they may have developed it internally." And their supreme leader retracted the fatwa against nuclear weapons. And then both Israel and Iran are backed up by nuclear powers, hypersonic missiles, and suitcase bombs - if we get involved it means world war three. This would be a great time to quit, and have a diplomatic solution where Netanyahu and his cabinet go away. Compared to the alternative, it's win win for everybody to stop the killing.
According to Alexander and Leslie Cockburn ("Dangerous Liaison") Israel had roughly 400 nuclear bombs back in 1991. They got them from the US who let them know when the storage sites would be unlocked and unguarded and the sayanim moved them to Israel. Recent reports indicate Netanyahu was one of the people involved in this. Did you read how he was rushed to the hospital last night? Supposedly "dehydration". Hezbollah managed to hit his bedroom. He probably pissed himself.
However it happens, Palestine will belong to Palestinians from the river to the sea. It's going to happen in our lifetimes.
Just be aware that there is a lot of Israeli-generated propaganda out there right now. I watched Al Jazeera last night and someone was interrupting the broadcast, inserting the weirdest, least likely stories in between the real broadcast repeatedly. One of them stated that Israel had bombed Iranian nuclear sites. Putin already told them what would happen if they did that. I don't think they have the bomb yet. But they will. Israel has been thoroughly check-mated. I am so impressed how closely Hamas, Hezbollah, the Syrians and Iran follow Islamic law. The (Western) Christians and Jews are disgraceful, targeting civilians and stealing resources and millions of dollars in cash. I am very impressed by the Muslim military and policy leaders. The banks Israel bombed in Lebanon were used to give small business loans to civilians so they could become self-sufficient. Those loans were interest-free, per the Qoran. Very cool.
If you don't charge any interest on loans, then the size of the loan vs the amount the loanee actually receives need to diverge, if you don't want the bank to go bankrupt. The 'arrangement fee', if you call it that, must cover the costs of the Islamic bank.
How do Islamic banks handle the effects of inflation? They have to have a way of hedging themselves otherwise they will disappear over time as an ineffective place for depositers to lodge their money.
I'm no defender of the more pirate-like Western banks, but there really is no panacea of how to lend money interest-free. Interest-free loans only exist in inflation-free worlds or as charity. There have to be costs incorporated to cover the % of loans that go bad and to cover the costs of administration.
Good points. I don't know. I'm not into banking, Islamic or otherwise. I just know that usury, i.e. interest, is haram/forbidden and I admire Islam for this basic human decency. Islam does require tithing which is usually between 8-10%. Since religions in the Middle East are still living, breathing entities--faith isn't something you put on for the sabbath as it is i the West--people happily tithe as well as help out the less fortunate as a matter of worship of God. Not saying many Western Christians and Jews don't do this as well, but most Westerners don't and religion in the West is nothing like religion in the M.E. is. It's not a living, breathing part of being alive, in all things. It's separate. Perhaps that's how they are compensated. This is an interesting line of inquiry, however. It would be good to find out from an Islamic bank or Islamic economist how this works and incorporate it into our system in community-owned banks, don't you think? The level of personal debt in this country is outrageous. And the details behind our NATIONAL debt are outrageously immoral and unethical. Plenty of people have been following this more closely than me. I've never bought into "The American Dream". The Federal Reserve is actually a consortium of private bankers--not all American--and they don't actually "lend" money to the government. They just add the figures on a computer database and immediately charge us, the taxpayers, interest. In the process, our dollars lose value. That is what inflation is: The devaluation of the dollar. Our GDP is largely comprised of debt. Our actual productivity is quite low.
What has caused inflation in Middle Eastern countries, and I know this for a fact, is US sanctions on their economies. Sanctions might work in the short-term but they fail in the long-term because the sanctioned countries become more creative, more efficient, and more self-sufficient. The US is sanctioning 60% of the world's economies. That's mafia-type behavior. And I don't think the Dems or the Republicans control this country: The hidden mafia behind the scenes does.
This just in from Ryan Grim. Throw out your cellphones. Israel's surveillance state is coming to a cell tower near you. Highly recommend you read this story.
https://www.dropsitenews.com/p/israel-digital-intelligence-cellebrite-gaza
" They should have just given the land back to the Palestinians and left quietly, gradually, and with honor and generosity. "
When pigs fly....
Well...don't speak too soon. You know most commercial pork is genetically modified... I can't remember what they've done to it, how it can hurt consumers who eat it. You know about the chimera of goat and spider? The goat's milk comes out as some kind of super-strong thread. Don't give them ideas, please!
Empathy. Key word. Key concept that distinguishes human being from vampire. be it the elite capitalist vampire who'll suck evey last milliliter of your blood, the political vampire who'll lie you into a rhetorical prison with no thought of the consequences, the warmonger vampire who'll bomb civilians trapped in a cage or blow out a child's brains. Thoughtlessness, zero empathy, zero bridge to the other being characterizes all vampires regardless of specific methodology for destroying lives. Hence we must all seek each day to deepen our pools of that essential tie to genuine humanity. I certainly know it to be difficult essential work for myself. Thanks to gypsy33 for inspiration.
Yes, I believe that the zombie vampire apocalypse is upon us. Corporations resemble zombies because of their mindless unrelenting need to extract wealth, which is their food. Corporations are vampires because they are parasites preying on the population, and the planet, to drain us, and it, as you say, to the last milliliter.
Isn't it amazing that no-one is actively revisiting the premise that profit maximisation should be the sole goal of large transnational organisations?
When you're a tiny little company, which has a 70% chance of being wound up within 12 months, profit maximisation is a matter of survival.
When you turn over $1bn+ at 10%+ net margin, you really are in a position to be slightly more humane.
But no politicians discuss it and no billionaire ever thinks they're rich enough, do they?
I think no one can be rich enough when wealth is represented by pixels on a screen. Can you ever have enough pixels on a screen to be sure it would just all disappear tomorrow?
You make good points. Someone wrote a book proposing a change in corporate law across the board, that not only are they required to maximize shareholder profit (by law), they are also required to be good neighbors, responsible environmentalists, and fair employers. Embed that in the law, and change will result. Let's all hold our breaths, shall we?
We could go back to taxing corporations at 94% the way we did in the '60s, so they plowed their earnings into R&D instead of stock buy-backs, to shield them from taxation.
Vin!!!
Did I really convince you concerning the existence of vampires? 😁
Yes, gypsy, you inspired my comment, thank you very large. I just edited it to reference that inspiration. I know they're out there somewhere as the old Moody Blues song tells us.
❤️
Back at you
Unfortunately greed and power trump empathy when it comes to human nature. They rise to the top like cream. History proves this true.
I wouldn't disagree, except to adjust your simile to "like feces after a high-fat meal". Nonetheless, the only way for us to remain sane as individuals is to recognize their shit and flush it from our lives. Empathy need not be wasted by misdirecting it toward blood-sucking parasites.
I don't agree that greed and power seeking are human nature. I think people are taught that what is important in life is money and power. Those people are the ones who don't see the importance of the natural world and they don't see or care that their greed and powermongering are destroying the entire planet and everything on it, including themselves. They have learned this from the greedy powermongers who came before them. They were not born with it. Look at the babies around you. Are they greedy and seeking power over anyone else?
Ah yes, we can excavate deeply into nature/nurture arguments. I would just offer that no one really has figured out just how disposed the primate neocortex is toward power hierarchies and their scaling by any means necessary. As a biologist, I reserve judgment. As I human, myself, if I'm naturally anything, it's skeptical of the various powder kegs that my species seems to want to play with in full recognition of potential disastrous consequences.
I have noticed that people most often say that it is "just human nature" when someone is aggressive or power seeking. I do not remember hearing the term used when people do acts of kindness.
Susan - acts of kindness become natural to you/me/others when someone has first visited acts of kindness upon us. It's not a genetically inherited trait, in my observation, it's the effect of particular environmental conditions.
For the more fortunate, this occurs young in a family, so they think it is 'natural', 'human nature', because it was their parents doing it to them.
That doesn't happen for every infant, though. There's plenty of studies showing what happens e.g. in orphanages.
You will also find that the propensity of men to hit women is increased amongst those who were physically abused as children. Just as children abused sexually tend to seek out abusers as partners when adults, for some reason that most people wish could be easily reversed.
Human nature in general is learned, although there are genetic predispositions involved too.
Some of us learned far more human kindness than we learned dominant power games. Others learned to manipulate, to coerce.
Our human nature usually results from what we happened to experience in the first 35 years of our lives.
The dark side of human nature is a fact, not an excuse.
Marci: It seems to me you are talking about human behaviour. Human nature is a kind of unknown entity, really.
Because it's assumed that people are by nature kind, caring etc. So it feels redundant to say that.
Cruelty etc are assumed not to be part of a human nature when viewed idealistically. The expression is used as a reminder therefore.
I don't think people are either kind or cruel as part of "human nature". I think most of us underestimate our ability to learn. If anything is part of human nature, it is that ability to learn how to behave. The behaviour itself, whether positive or negative, is an aspect of our ability to learn. Who knows what is actually in our "nature"?
Susan - ultimately there is no right answer to 'how much is enough'? I know that I felt a great visceral sense of achievement when I earned enough as a sole trader to upgrade my ICT suite, to pay for a nice 2 week holiday. I felt similar when I won a £50k contract working for an SME.
At some point most people say: 'OK, this much is enough'. The fact remains, however, that those left in the game are still saying 'More, more, more'.
Who decides where the ceiling is to be set?
It's a question with huge ramifications for society, you know.
Skip the babies; look at a room full of 2-year olds. Then, yes.
humans start learning early. Still, 2 year olds are surviving, not seeking to have power over others. Adults who think 2 year olds are power tripping need some help themselves.
Two year olds are learning how far the word 'NO!' goes. They test the limits of what they can do to get their way. Throwing tantrums in the supermarket, refusing to eat the food at table, refusing to go to bed on time etc etc.
Empathy isn't a good survival strategy in business, you know. Not unless you have a huge power advantage, where you can fire the many but almost no-one can fire you.
When the 27 year olds 'want to make a big move' you are entirely acceptable collateral damage, even if your empathy gave them a chance to improve themselves in the first place.
History proves that many people try to excuse their disgusting behaviour by claiming "human nature".
What a shitty reality. It's true. We're powerless, and so many among us are propagandized. We probably all are in some ways.
You're right. We have to feel the feelings, take care of ourselves and get back at doing whatever we can.
When things get super hard for me, I rely on some of my more deeper beliefs about reality, which I know don't align with probably a good number of people. But it helps me get through the darkness I am forced to witness. I imagine for those who really believe in, say reductive materialism, may find themselves struggling in an even deeper morass of meaninglessness, but somehow, still are able to find a way to make sense of it all with some kind of rationalization. And kudos to these folks. Anyway, at least most of us here have held on to our humanity and our souls by understanding and judging what we're witnessing is indeed a morally unacceptable horror.
Some of the Glitch in the matrix stories one hears are truly trippy. I'm convinced myself that what we currently know is probably far from what is actually true about reality and consciousness. Where that leads to - I am unsure. But for me that sliver of hope, that as you say, "I have no idea what is true, but I know it's not this" - keeps me going when things get incredibly dark. Cheers.
Thank you for many important points and a wholesome - in support of the whole - orientation🙏
But we can try to disrupt the horror. It’s coming down to the question of saving Gaza. Ten thousand Jews, American, British, French German - those nations sending military aid to Israel - could mobilize for an unarmed humanitarian mission. I’m one who would go. I’ve suggested this to Ralph Nader after he talked about putting American flags on aid trucks waiting outside Gaza, and a prominent Jewish (background at least) journalist.
Rabbis for Ceasefire, Jewish Voices for Peace, Jews for Racial and Economic Justice could help with outreach. I believe there are 10,000 who would step up, *given a mobilization of that size* There is safety as well as power in numbers🙏
I’d go as well Sarah.
Me too. Definitely.
We’re a ZOG so this would never be allowed to happen unfortunately.
Well said Caitlyn. You have clearly identified the root cause - power structures to serve capitalists and the machinery of war and exploitation.
The Empire needs us to feel powerless. It is easier to manipulate people who feel powerless. They lie about so much that nobody knows what is true and what is not any more. So we are not only powerless, we are often unsure about what is really going on. Cheaper groceries and access to abortion will not stop a genocide, which is what we all really need right now, especially the people in Gaza and Lebanon. They want us to be afraid. It gives them more control.
Well said. To be afraid is to let your tormentors exert control over you. Be brave. Take control. You got the power.
Hi TRC
I am 100% convinced there will be an uprising after Nov. 5, no matter who “wins”, which will morph into Revolution. Then will be the time to put aside some of our political differences and run every single standing politician out of our government. (We can start with Lady G.)
I am ARMED AND READY.
Caitlin, This is not the first time you have moved me to tears. The sheer hopelessness of it all. We are wringing our hands and looking on while a whole nation is destroyed. Mothers weary, with no respite from the Israeli/US bombs, forced from one rubble strewn landscape, to another rubble heap to save their starved and sick children; orphaned children grown old before their time, the men taken away tied and naked. Israel with the backing of empire, making war and spreading it onto neighbouring countries.
The world has seen it all. Yet you go on writing, doing a great job than most, for us not to ever forget. Hope too in urging us that there is hope.
Maybe there is hope - in BRICS. A whole new concept to rid the world of a monstrous world (dis)order.
It may help to rid the world of a construct whose time is past. But I would be extremely surprised if imperfections did not emerge in BRICS structures, intentionally or unintentionally. But it may take a few lifetimes for them to become sufficiently apparent that the next organisational revolution starts to take shape.
I think about how a large factor in our powerlessness is how intentionally polluted and fragmented our information system is in order to prevent change and disempower people. We could do almost anything if we were all on the same page, which is why propaganda abounds and information structures are siloed and unreliable.
This situation is a big threat to us as a species because we kind of need to understand the world in order to address problems. What the psycopath oligarchs have done is like how HIV infects and suppresses the immune system for its own benefit, leaving the host vulnerable to other diseases. To protect their power they damage the species ability to understand the world and know what's real, and as things like genocides, climate change, nuclear proliferation, and exploitation become critical, we seem unable to muster the collective clarity to do anything about them.
Very true. People think you're insane if you try to talk about power structures, propaganda, fake democracy, etc
So very well explained, thank you!
That is a very percipient comment - I remember well the naive innocent days of search engines around 2005 - they truly did return listings that were most relevant, not things that the engine owner got paid most for listing.
If we could return the world of internet searching to 2005, using communally owned engines, things would improve. The real question is how you can do that without a communally owned global internet infrastructure too. Because search engines need access to everything out there to be effective....
Bob Peterson you have this weird notion that Israel should be a white supremacist state!! So see yourself as what you are: a white settler colonizer! Re-educate yourself about the history of Israel and since its inception it has been depraved!! Don’t tell me you’re for Israel; you are for white settlers— you are a racist— shame on you!
You are an idiot and racist!
Obviously you are a brain damaged moron. Iran is getting what it deserves for financial aid th the enemies of Israel. Call me a racist but it doesn’t change the facts.
I hereby politely advise you to fuck the fuck off.
Looking at your posts confirms my thoughts that you are mentally unstable. Please seek therapy. I’d hate to see your name associated with violence but believe it possible.
Au contraire.
Any fucking moron who supports a maniacal genocidal quasi-nation needs to put their crack pipe down and get into rehab as quickly as possible.
You hate to see her name associated with violence - but you in turn, are supporting some of the worst violence imaginable. Go figure.
Israel has the US behind it. Oh cry poor me some more so we can see how twisted your sense of humanness is.
So I presume you agree that Israel can get what it deserves for genocidal treatment of the friends of Iran? I presume you aren't sufficiently racist to claim that Israel hasn't murdered multiples more Palestinians than Palestinians have murdered Israelis, since 1948?
This ignorant statement does not change the fact that the Israelis did not start this war.
This war did not start on October 7. It started in 1948.
Even earlier with European Ashkenazi Jews and German Nazi war criminals entering to hide.
The Israelis started the occupation and the Nakba in 1948 and these are well documented facts. History did not begin on October 7th 2023 and to pretend “Israel did not start this war” is disingenuous at best. No need to rehash the entire history of land theft, false imprisonment of Palestinians by the thousands, and now, the ethnic cleansing and war crimes of the past year. I want a complete ceasefire that will save the lives not just of the Palestinian and Lebanese children but also the Israeli. Because if this destruction continues that’s where it’s headed - it’s unavoidable.
The Israelis reclaimed their stolen land. I support Israel 100%.
What do Israelis HAVE but stolen land?
I guess you aren’t familiar with he Bible.
The Bible is fiction. There is no such thing as a god. Fuck all religion.
Do you really believe that god is a real estate agent?
A side gig from being all powerful, omniscient master of the universe.
I was expecting an enlightening explanation of how the formation of Israel in 1948 wasn't an assault on all the Arabs inhabating the land on which that nation was formed, and you give this? Can you try again?
How can you use an old book like that to justify what is supposed to be done today? Did they have robots? Algorithms? Instant information exchange? Planes? Television? It's preposterous to use an antiquated book, a 2-dimensional thing, to explain human complexity.
Well if the Bible is true then that means Jews are the bad guys right? Wasn’t there a reason they were persecuted so much through early history?
By that logic, the Hebrews stole Palestine from the Philistines.
Take yer fucking Bible and thump yerself upside the head with it; it might knock some sense into ya.
Your “Bible” ain’t nuthin but a big book of horror stories. The Brothers Grimm did it better.
Oh, and your “Jesus” is gonna arrive atop a big mushroom cloud 😁
You should be ashamed of yourself then. You support racism, apartheid and murder. You are evil.
Israel is nothing more than a criminal and terrorist enterprise led by sick minds and sociopaths. Your false colony is crumbling and collapsing under the weight of our collective solidarity with Palestine.
It is well known that the zionazis project their crimes onto the Palestinians. Israel has a very long history of deceit.
So that logic must apply to other countries too right? Therefore if you live in America your home can be confiscated.
Oh, very well, then, if you insist...
"Thus saith the Lord God; This is Jerusalem: I have set it in the midst of the nations and countries that are round about her.
And she hath changed my judgments into wickedness more than the nations, and my statutes more than the countries that are round about her: for they have refused my judgments and my statutes, they have not walked in them.
Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Because ye multiplied more than the nations that are round about you, and have not walked in my statutes, neither have kept my judgments, neither have done according to the judgments of the nations that are round about you;
Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I, even I, am against thee, and will execute judgments in the midst of thee in the sight of the nations.
And I will do in thee that which I have not done, and whereunto I will not do any more the like, because of all thine abominations.
Therefore the fathers shall eat the sons in the midst of thee, and the sons shall eat their fathers; and I will execute judgments in thee, and the whole remnant of thee will I scatter into all the winds.
Wherefore, as I live, saith the Lord God; Surely, because thou hast defiled my sanctuary with all thy detestable things, and with all thine abominations, therefore will I also diminish thee; neither shall mine eye spare, neither will I have any pity."
Okay. So, any property owned by zionists in the U.S., the local Native American tribes can go knocking on their doors and they will politely hand it back? Because it is stolen land?
To the victor belong the spoils.
Oh yes they did. It was called the Nakba and it occurred in 1948, the year of my birth.
It’s amazing that when people have access to the internet and they can search for the truth they stay willfully ignorant.
Bob, what was Israel doing to Palestinians on October 6 and since 1948? Maybe you can look up the answer.
Any person who says from the river to the sea should die a painful death.
Great. That means Netanyahu should because he says that all the time.
But I notice that you didn’t answer my question. Tells me that you are just a troll or an Israeli bot that’s getting paid to look this stupid.
I hope that I get the opportunity to take YOU with me.
Can you answer the above question without some stupid remark.
Oh Bob. I wonder what you would do if your land was stolen?
Bob,
"The Israelis did not start this war."... You're right... wars started from the moment we walked out of the jungles .... but the jungle mentality we acquired in our evolution just followed us to our new digs...
bingo
our reptilican
brainstem'll likely
doom Humanity to
a One and fucking Done
Actually, it's more likely our cerebral cortex that is in charge of these twisted, fictions, we lived our lives in accordance with. A major characteristic of which is narcissism and hubris. We need to find a way to get that under control.
... and greed
and fear & loathing
not to Mention tribalism
.
who tf Invented
'human' beings?
.
are we merely a gene-
snip or two away
from Perfection?
.
the Power
Exists or soon
Will ~ will some
mad Genius reprogram
Humanity into a Super-Race?
Perhaps; but they left the door open for it to occur by standing down on 10/07/23.
Bob Peterson.
For 100's of years the Palestinians have been subjected to genocide/ tell me? Would you sit there and not try to stop it?
Of course he would. He is a cheer leader on the sidelines. He's a racist with a false sense of entitlement who would happily actively participate in the genocide.
Ooooh, looks like someone fell off the turnip truck on Oct 7!
😂😂😂
Nothing changes until the US dollar is no longer the world’s reserve currency.
J Stone
"Nothing changes until the US dollar is no longer the world’s reserve currency." Killing is killing. whether it's in pesos or Euros... Changing the mask won't help....
What he means is that the unseating of US dollar hegemony would be a sign of the impending demise of the US Empire, which means "no more ability to fund the 800+ military bases around the world" and maintain a grip on the world - which means... (you get the idea).
Good on you Chang!
When people can peacefully own their countries without being subject to bullying and sanctions.
That's a start for sure.
Drops of water make up the ocean.
Reminds me of a favorite quote by Rumi: “You are not a drop in the ocean, you are the entire ocean in a drop.”
I don't see any end to this madness until the United States stops funding this genocide. Without money and arms, Israel will have to stop. The only way the U.S. will stop funding the war is for enough people to demand the government to stop. As mentioned here, labor strikes that shut down a major portion of the country. Protests in the streets reminiscent of the protests to stop the Vietnam War. Only a lack of money will stop the madness. Shut off the money and you stop the war. It's that simple.
Is there enough political will in the U.S. to do that? Not any more. As Ms. Johnstone also mentions, Americans have lost the will to buck their government in the 21st century. Maybe because all of those protestors from the late 1960's and early 1970's are all senior citizens now and the younger generations are too busy trying to survive another week without losing everything to manage any protesting or strikes. It's better to just ignore the moral issues of the world because fighting everyday to keep from going hungry and homeless takes precedence these days. Very few of those who may be outraged about the genocide in the U.S. can afford to do anything about it. This may be by design after all of the troubles the protestors from the Vietnam War days caused. The older politicians who remember those days do not want a repeat. Think of people like Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer, Mitch McConnell, Joe Biden and other career politicians old enough to remember those days. They would remember the bad old days and do everything they can to stop that from happening again. Take a hard look around in the U.S lately. What has been happening across college campuses across the country? Money to live on or lack thereof, and militarized police forces are what is stopping any major protests large enough to hurt the economy.
Meanwhile, the U.S. is driving its own economy over a cliff funding all of these proxy wars so in the end, they will run out of money anyway, with or without strikes and protests. It will just take a bit longer. Unfortunately, the Palestinians and Ukrainians don't have that much time left. There is no good answer. The American people are damned if they do and damned if the don't right now. Such is the moral dilemma their elected officials have put them in. We see that happening with their election campaigns right now out in plain sight. The GOP aren't even trying to hide it. The democrats are using glitz, glitter and glamour to make the voters look in one direction while they fund genocides in the other direction. Either way, the result is the same. History will judge the United States one day, like it has Nazi Germany and the old Japanese empire, and the citizens will have to live with the knowledge of what they allowed their elected leaders to do in their name. May the Gods forgive them when they finally, collectively, realize what they have wrought and the wailing begins.
Much truth in what you say Terrance Ó Domhnaill - especially this "Very few of those who may be outraged about the genocide in the U.S. can afford to do anything about it."
>>"funding all of these proxy wars so in the end, they will run out of money anyway"
Slight correction: The US cannot run out of money because of the way the US Financial system works and the principles of 'Modern Monetary Theory' (MMT). The US can theoretically print an unlimited amount of money (as long as they can find ways to simultaneously keep inflation in check - and there are multiple methods to do that without resorting to raising interest rates - but then again, this leads into a tangent towards a different discussion).
And doesn’t the US make a Lot of money by selling bombs and guns and drones? Someone is taking in blood money.
But they can vote third party. And if everyone against this genocide did that I think Dr Stein would really have a chance. Sadly I don’t even think enough people know there is this choice- or they are so afraid trump would win, that they are just ‘ following the crowd’. That’s the worst thing you can do!
The first thing that has to be realized, is that the Jews control our finances, our media, and our political system. What do you think Epstein was about? Almost all of our politicians are owned by them.
So how would you be surprised, that Israel gets to do whatever they please?
Wrong. Zionism is not Judaism. Your comment is nothing but old-fashioned antisemitism.
I really think it’s ridiculous when European Jews call themselves Semitic people. You are not! Arabs and Jews from the Levantine area are Semitic. There is a lot of antisemitism- it is all directed at Palestinians and Arabic speaking people. This cry of antisemitism has to stop. And this genocide is not about religion, or hostages, it’s power, money, land grab, thievery, racism, Aparthied, entitlement and hate. It’s a genocide for a group of European and American and British - white, non Semitic, Zionists - that think they can have whatever they want because German Nazis were/are horrific! So they decided to make Palestinians their sacrificial lamb, designed a narrative and became far worse, far more brutal and inhumane than the Nazis were. It’s terrifying that humanity has lost its beating heart. It’s horrific that masses are being spoon fed Israeli propaganda and swallow it whole, while blindly following American lies- like they only have 2 choices for president. If the people who cared all believed they could do something and did vote together, I really believe a third party, Jill stein, could we . Sadly, it seems everyone has other priorities, instead of the children of Gaza. My heart is crying and broken.
Poor Shlomo hates it when someone points that out.
So I guess you wear a tinfoil hat.
Not all Jews are Zionists. In fact, the majority of Jews in the world don't even live in Israel.
" If enough people can awaken to the urgent need for change, collective measures like national strikes and mass-scale civil disobedience could bring the capitalist empire to its knees without firing a shot."
There's our power... It's in taking action to bring down the empire through civil disobedience and general strikes. It's the (BDS) boycott movement taking down the genocidal Israeli regime by robbing it of income and markets. What's the quote Jill Stein says frequently? "The only way we give up our power is by not realizing we have it in the first place." Start realizing you have the power--and help others to realize they have it too. Then fight back with all you got. The empire and the war machine won't last forever if we organize and take them out.
Agreed! Vote Jill Stein and let your voice be heard! Do not bow down to what they tell you you have to do! Screw them!