Heart-wrenching tale of a boy born to a mother who was chained to a prison bed during childbirth in one of the Shah's prisons. Yet now looking past the horrors and indignities desiring a return of the Pahlavi dynasty, the Iranian cleric regime has to go.
It begged for skepticism. Which I indulged. And learned from his Indiana U faculty bio that he holds two degrees from Sharif University, the MIT of Iran, which only admits students cleared by the cleric's "Gozinesh" for ideological purity. Far from being a persecuted dissident of the Iranian regime he's part of the club:
His story lacks any verifiable facts, family background is a black box, no way to validate any of it. By 1977 Amnesty International was ubiquitous in Iran's prisons, documenting horrors, no records of any childbirths while chained to prison beds, imprisoned as an infant while his mother nursed him, all smacks of atrocity propaganda.
And then in another story in Indiana PBS out of their Regional Journalism Center (wfyi) in 2017 he talks about not being allowed to travel back into the US because of his *retained* Iranian citizenship and passport, he's a dual citizen, not of the US and Iran, rather of Germany and Iran. Story was from January 30, 2017, "University Faculty Staff Reel From Trumps Travel Ban." Complaining the 2017 Trump travel ban was preventing him from joining his colleagues in Israel. Which, under Article 24 of the Iranian Passport Law, is a crime, 2-5 year prison sentences for Iranian citizens who visit Israel. Yet he complained about Trump's travel ban in the US?!?! He'd be arrested in the airport if his travel history includes visits to Israel.
War Propaganda. Even the most evil man in history with the iconic toothbrush moustache (who Trump is often compared to) wrote admiringly of the UK/US's ability to churn out "atrocity propaganda" during WWI. The best at it in the world for over a century now. In Mein Kampf, chapter under "War Propaganda" - available on archive . org website. More of the same out of the War Pigs beating their war drums. And, yes, it is so transparently bad today that it's instantly debunked by anybody taking ten minutes on the internet can discover. Does that matter anymore with 30-second attention spans?
David manipulates my body, mind, and phone, telling me not to think about James, constantly reminding me not to think about him, forcing me to think about him, and then violently questioning why I'm thinking about him. All he needs to do is leave. David also makes me believe him, offering no compensation, no apology, and no stopping his manipulation of my family and our minds, making me believe him. If he wants me to truly believe him, why doesn't he call to apologize, compensate me, or explain things to me? Instead, he deliberately exploits the loopholes of the virtual world to manipulate me, making me intentionally dislike and distrust him. Why resort to such roundabout methods of violence and suppression to make others believe him? This makes it even less reason to believe him. Because someone worthy of trust doesn't need to force others to believe them. In this way he could make my life suffering more by saying cuz my brain does not want to change. Hehe…
Why do not you check his brain to make sure if his brain could be liked box without floating under the huge pressure. by the way if he just leaves us should be so mix ok to let us forget each other or even without watching my brain would be peace and quiet. Why he has to invade my brain to judge me wrong but not himself to use it as excuse to keep whining and making chaos to show his boring and brutal.
"they’re not even pretending to care what the American people want anymore".
Yes. But. They haven't given two farts or giggles about what the American people want for decades or more. Unless we're talking about the most manipulable irrelevancies among us, who will eat whatever rubbish they're fed. Or the elite, whom they have always fed reciprocally.
This will probably sound crazy, but I think the last POTUS who cared what the American people wanted might have been Nixon. For example, he passed a number of environmental things that did not fit with his or other Republicans’ politics, because of massive public pressure. It’s possible that Jimmy Carter might have cared a little bit but just been incompetent. None of them after have cared at all.
Nixon seems like a prince in retrospect of the last 25 years, but he might've been more concerned about his place in history. Tough to really assess motivation from this distance.
I would say President Carter (RIP) seemed to care about what the American people wanted, at least far more than any subsequent president. I would say he was the last president to do so though
Software Upgrade. The new upgrade supersedes human potential although the digital emotions are taking time to control as do humans with their emotions. The chaos is the only way to understand humans : )
exact same situation has applied in the u.k. for decades. totally horrendous governments (including the current one) not giving a flying fuck about the opinions of the people. even throwing peaceful protesters into jail. there has been a recent success for some protesters who had been in jail, on remand, for over a year. when their case was finally brought to court they were deemed innocent by the judge - which, given most judges (and nearly all citizens) believed they would be found guilty, was an amazing and truly welcome result. the government are hoping they'll be able to get someone found guilty and sentenced to 14 years in jail - then they would maybe have a deterrent to protesting.
They were still autocratically deprived of a normal year of their lives, sadly. It's Fascism worldwide. and again I am forced to post a fave tune: The Day the Nazi Died.
They're out there burnin' houses down and peddlin' racist lies
With a thoroughly brainwashed public who believes everything they are fed from the KOOL AID FOUNTAIN regime change is a pipedream. We are good at fomenting regime change overseas while at home the surveillance state has the public firmly in its grip. A fearful and cowed public will never be the agent for change.
Inside the US? Doesn't matter. The best captain in the world is not saving a sinking ship.
Internationally? China. They have thousands of years of civilization while the "American experimen" was just the froth of colonial Europe.
Just remember this simple historical fact. The Chinese invented gunpowder specifically for fireworks and ritual purposes. The second Europeans learned of gunpowder, they turned it into a weapon of war. The Indian and Chinese civilizations are thousands of years ahead of the West.
How about a complete rejection of central government! We will still have Town, city, county and state government to run our lives and empty our pockets. 57 Independent countries. Or they could join with others.
How about a democratic socialist who called out genocide in early 2024: "Recent polling, including a February 2026 University of New Hampshire Survey Center report, identifies Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) as a top contender for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination, alongside figures like Pete Buttigieg and Gavin Newsom. A YouTube video from late 2025 indicated she was leading in a hypothetical 2028 matchup against JD Vance. " You can trash her but that only makes her stronger: she is anti-fragile, like muscles that grow after strain, and so her superpower is like Ali, as a ropa dopa counterpuncher. With each attack, she improves.
AOC is a fake socialist and totally goes along with the demands of the empire. If you believe otherwise, surprise! You are one of the idiots Caitlin is debunking here. The only solution is the complete overthrow of capitalism and its replacement with socialism.
Speak for yourself. I'm sick and tired of people like you who say "we are all to blame". Get real. Corrupt war pigs and greedy corporatists make money off of war. They buy elections to keep their useful idiots in power. Haven't you noticed that the last two presidents of the U.S. are mentally disabled senile lunatics?
If they “buy elections” Carolyn, who are the purchasers? …. Errrr… We are.
If the last two presidents were “disabled senile lunatics” who elected them????? Klingons maybe… or is the answer… We did.
One question … when the homeless are made to cower and be humiliated by the municipal brass, when they are spurned and rendered homeless by the authorities, is Elon Musk sitting at the municipal committee making inhumane rules against them, or are the municipal Authorities one of us?
We are the warmongers, and if you dismiss those of us who try to identify the principal root of our problems, then consider yourself a warmonger.
Additional occupied lands: Europe, Africa, Asia, Oceania, Australia, the Americas, various isolated islands, Iceland, Greenland, Britain and Ireland.
Every place that humans currently occupy was previously inhabited at some time by other humans, who generally displaced some humans who came before them. Although many migrations by humans by have also petered out from external conditions.
Get over it. There is no shame or guilt in it. You are where you are because someone before you was successful. You should be grateful for existence.
If you have a suggestion to make things better, make it.
No reply I see… you ask to give one solution…. Me give one… no reply… I say we are all responsible for the state of the human conditions you say to that “ go back to your basement”
Tell me how does it it feel to be able to live above basements… must be very rarefied air…
On the other hand, I’m open to share the majesty of life without cynicism.. another step of evolution I was not meant to experience..
What say you…? My assumption, there will be none.. nada… zilch….
My point is simply that seeking to place blame for our current situation is not productive. Whether that involves blaming others or blaming ourselves, it binds us to the past and separates us from the present. And it is in the present that our action is required.
Here is where we are and there is no time available for blame or judgement. A judgemental attitude is counter-productive.
So that is my suggestion to myself: to try to live each day with less judgement toward others. Regardless of whether the judgement is approving or disapproving. I'm just trying to let go of it. And the more I let go of judging others, the more I am able to live without judging myself. Observing and making adjustments, but not judging.
If I am judgemental toward others, I cannot escape judging myself. Likewise, if I am judgemental toward myself, I cannot avoid judging others. It's a feedback loop and I'm trying to get out of it.
In no way does this reduce my compassion or care about the welfare of others. In fact, it frees me to be more available.
I'm not there yet, it's a long process. Like most of us, I grew up judging and being judged. Being on this path feels good, feels right.
You write that you are not judging, yet tell me to go back into a basement.. …. That my comments are cheep etc etc…
You are contributing to helping our species out of the jungles, which few people try to do.. so please continue to do so, but any contribution, including mine, should be portrayed with an open mind as it pertains to a future on the planet. in this case, is better than ignoring it.
I am not blaming others, but asking to recognize that we have a problem, and that we are responsible for those problems, mostly anyway..
Few people are even aware that we have an existential problem, so I am thankful that you are not one of those who are ignorant of duch
No problem Duane… it’s not the first time I’ve ruffled some feathers, and probably not the last.,
The status quo of the human condition has led to the possibility of our extinction, therefore a radical shift in perspectives might not be a bad thing, if so , radical shifts ruffle feathers and if that is possible why not give it a shot.
When the first test of an atomic bomb was made, Einstein cautioned that “ the discovery of the power of atoms has changed everything, save our mode of thinking, and we thus drift towards unparalleled catastrophe”..
after doing some thinking about the consequences of a nuclear war, I personally think that the probability of extinction I would be close to 100%…
So why let it happen when we can do better, as you suggest.
I do have a few… let’s try one in order to delay maybe even prevent nuclear war.. I.e., ‘homelessness should not exist’ No homelessness , no nuclear war.
“Cynical self- hatred is cheap and lazy” .. maybe, but I remember religious know-it-alls who told me I was born a sinner. Mmmmm ??? Do you think I should believe them? If I am a sinner, as told by the leaders of churches, should I believe that I am the only sinner on earth, and is it possible that you Duane were also born a sinner… saints notwithstanding of course…so, since you seem to announce that you are ok, then you are closer to a saint than I am.
As far as basements are concerned, being underground is a place everyone goes, so when my time is up, not before, I will rest there for some time.
I think it was Gandhi who suggested to “be the change you want to see in the world” but then that was made for imperfect humans, much like me. Be thankful you were spared that ordeal
For some time I have felt that USA propaganda was written by gum chewing unpaid interns in backwards baseball caps. How could anyone repeat "Russia blew up its own pipeline to demonstrate toughness" with a straight face? Or when they showed us some rusty tubes in Iraq and told us this meant war.
Some believe that the propaganda is purposefully bad as an exercise in power. "You losers must pretend to believe this no matter how absurd or else you'll be in big trouble."
Larry Wilkerson wrote that speech. He said the CIA went to great lengths to convince him with phoney evidence, including a special order from the President. Larry believed them.
Part of the insidious nature of the bold face lies - which is a pattern you can recognize in authoritarian ruled governments - is everyone is in on the lies. The population knows it is being subjected to blatant absurd lies and this is done purposely by their own government. We also now are seeing more of this dissemination of lies on large social media platforms like Youtube and Facebook.
You see videos and ads that are obviously fake made-up stories, or phony vids of history or AI celebrities. It's all done to purposely pollute the information space we exist in, so that nothing can be believed - and therefore anything might be believed as well. The population becomes numb to what is happening, because there is no (immediate) way to determine what is true or not regarding their own government (or culture).
The they were eating people, sorry my friend I now believe seeing the talk of keeping kilos of Jerky in the freezer. Nothing shocks me now in a country run by child rapists for the country of Child Rape. BTW, shouldn't someone create a new flag for the israel state of rape? When I say israel, I mean israel controlled u.s. a two for one.
New York Post is a Zionist Jewish Supremacist Israel First rag who caters to the Zionist Jewish Supremacist Israel First population in their community. That headline is recycled from all the other country's or people they have villainized, with the exception of Israel. I wonder why they don't report on today's revelation by Jeremy Corbyn of the UK. He received a message from a hospital in Gaza saying the IDF delivered 60-70 boxes this morning, along with dead bodies in body bags. Once the IDF left, they opened the boxes and they contained heads of Palestinians. The body bags contained Palestinian women whose organs had been removed. Israel is notorious for selling body parts on the black market. They are also have the largest "SKIN" Bank in the world. You read that right. And guess where the skin came from and whose? Why don't you report about that New York Post?
Thank you Teresa, that is extremely disturbing to hear, but somehow I am not even surprised at this point that the genocidal occupiers would do something so unconscionable. And of course, an utterly contemptible "paper" like the Post will do nothing to report on that important truth.
Unfortunately we can't get any truth about the various conflicts either. Such as how many Palestinians are being held hostage, tortured and raped by Israel, how much profit the war profiteers get with their Ukraine Proxy, Gaza Holocaust, Syrian overthrow and the ramp up to Attack Iran. Wit off is just a mouthpiece with a Zionist supplying all his lies . The Oxymoronic 'Truth Social' which is just a propaganda bully platform for a Zionist traitor to spew lies, and disinformation to fools that follow such an egotistical Zionist puppet.
Yes, I was expecting to hear about barbequed baby parts on hot-dog buns. Or ovaries in sushi rolls. But babies on a pike? That is so WW1, so, "Fear the Huns!" Honestly, ChatGPI could do better at creating phony fright propaganda, but it's temporarily restricted from that (I think). At least, until Thiel, Karp, et al. gain thorough control of the media system.
Ya... The newest balderdash is the Jeffrey Epstein *killing and eating babies* meme. Sort of an advanced Hansel and Gretel theme, only no crumbs... Run away! Run away! Like everything else, it's a fucking emergency... Pfffttt!
As often as I, gadfly of a gadfly, disagree with Caitlin, this article shows her at her best , in her most succinct Orwellian mode, exposing lies and mocking them to the dagger of plain English, presenting the absurdity of the horror porn of war propaganda and skewering it with the obvious.
Caitlin also has the integrity to tolerate me, with my habit of goading her...and so, to celebrate the fact that I also see her as a post modern Orwell, at her best, I offer this poem (in collaboration with our mortal frenemy AI):
The New York Post is like a long burning candle slowly flickering out. It’s been reduced to a supermarket gossip rag producing strange stares from people when picked up.
On the bright side, maybe it'll help people to stop reading msm, and more of these outlets will go bankrupt. And maybe more eyes will open and people will gather together to reclaim a semblance of democracy.
I hope so too Ms. Van Eyk. That would be a small silver lining amidst this slop is if it helps more people stop reading MSM, which for many years has not done its' job of holding truth to power, but in fact has served as a mouthpiece for the interests of the oligarchs and ultra-wealthy
The propaganda doesn't have to be good, since it's nothing more than a pretext for the US regime to do what it already long ago decided to do.
If the masses go along with it, great, if not, the war is going to go ahead, anyway.
We’re in the systemic exhaustion phase. The Animals had it right; we gotta get out of this place.
https://savageminds.substack.com/p/epstein-after-sade?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=65949&post_id=188800910&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=eov1&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email
Easily debunked Wall Street Journal war propaganda piece just a couple weeks ago:
I Was Born in the Shah’s Prison. Now I Support His Son
Reza Pahlavi was 18 when he left Iran and is the only opposition leader with no ties to the Islamic regime.
By Babak Seradjeh
Wall Street Journal, February 8, 2026
https://archive.is/3pc2H#selection-599.0-599.12
Heart-wrenching tale of a boy born to a mother who was chained to a prison bed during childbirth in one of the Shah's prisons. Yet now looking past the horrors and indignities desiring a return of the Pahlavi dynasty, the Iranian cleric regime has to go.
It begged for skepticism. Which I indulged. And learned from his Indiana U faculty bio that he holds two degrees from Sharif University, the MIT of Iran, which only admits students cleared by the cleric's "Gozinesh" for ideological purity. Far from being a persecuted dissident of the Iranian regime he's part of the club:
https://physics.indiana.edu/about/directory/all-faculty-scientists/seradjeh-babak.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharif_University_of_Technology
https://grokipedia.com/page/gozinesh
His story lacks any verifiable facts, family background is a black box, no way to validate any of it. By 1977 Amnesty International was ubiquitous in Iran's prisons, documenting horrors, no records of any childbirths while chained to prison beds, imprisoned as an infant while his mother nursed him, all smacks of atrocity propaganda.
And then in another story in Indiana PBS out of their Regional Journalism Center (wfyi) in 2017 he talks about not being allowed to travel back into the US because of his *retained* Iranian citizenship and passport, he's a dual citizen, not of the US and Iran, rather of Germany and Iran. Story was from January 30, 2017, "University Faculty Staff Reel From Trumps Travel Ban." Complaining the 2017 Trump travel ban was preventing him from joining his colleagues in Israel. Which, under Article 24 of the Iranian Passport Law, is a crime, 2-5 year prison sentences for Iranian citizens who visit Israel. Yet he complained about Trump's travel ban in the US?!?! He'd be arrested in the airport if his travel history includes visits to Israel.
https://www.wfyi.org/news/articles/university-faculty-staff-reel-from-trumps-travel-ban
https://travel.state.gov/en/international-travel/travel-advisories/iran.html
War Propaganda. Even the most evil man in history with the iconic toothbrush moustache (who Trump is often compared to) wrote admiringly of the UK/US's ability to churn out "atrocity propaganda" during WWI. The best at it in the world for over a century now. In Mein Kampf, chapter under "War Propaganda" - available on archive . org website. More of the same out of the War Pigs beating their war drums. And, yes, it is so transparently bad today that it's instantly debunked by anybody taking ten minutes on the internet can discover. Does that matter anymore with 30-second attention spans?
makes one wonder if there's any 'masses'.
David manipulates my body, mind, and phone, telling me not to think about James, constantly reminding me not to think about him, forcing me to think about him, and then violently questioning why I'm thinking about him. All he needs to do is leave. David also makes me believe him, offering no compensation, no apology, and no stopping his manipulation of my family and our minds, making me believe him. If he wants me to truly believe him, why doesn't he call to apologize, compensate me, or explain things to me? Instead, he deliberately exploits the loopholes of the virtual world to manipulate me, making me intentionally dislike and distrust him. Why resort to such roundabout methods of violence and suppression to make others believe him? This makes it even less reason to believe him. Because someone worthy of trust doesn't need to force others to believe them. In this way he could make my life suffering more by saying cuz my brain does not want to change. Hehe…
Why do not you check his brain to make sure if his brain could be liked box without floating under the huge pressure. by the way if he just leaves us should be so mix ok to let us forget each other or even without watching my brain would be peace and quiet. Why he has to invade my brain to judge me wrong but not himself to use it as excuse to keep whining and making chaos to show his boring and brutal.
"they’re not even pretending to care what the American people want anymore".
Yes. But. They haven't given two farts or giggles about what the American people want for decades or more. Unless we're talking about the most manipulable irrelevancies among us, who will eat whatever rubbish they're fed. Or the elite, whom they have always fed reciprocally.
This will probably sound crazy, but I think the last POTUS who cared what the American people wanted might have been Nixon. For example, he passed a number of environmental things that did not fit with his or other Republicans’ politics, because of massive public pressure. It’s possible that Jimmy Carter might have cared a little bit but just been incompetent. None of them after have cared at all.
Nixon seems like a prince in retrospect of the last 25 years, but he might've been more concerned about his place in history. Tough to really assess motivation from this distance.
Why should they?
I think Carter will be viewed more favorably in the future, if there is one.
I would say President Carter (RIP) seemed to care about what the American people wanted, at least far more than any subsequent president. I would say he was the last president to do so though
At times the current pain is so intense, I forget this insanity has begin going on for seven decades or so or is it 250 yrs.?
Seven decades in my (our?) direct memory. Assuredly longer if you read and believe Zinn.
Landru is dead…
Software Upgrade. The new upgrade supersedes human potential although the digital emotions are taking time to control as do humans with their emotions. The chaos is the only way to understand humans : )
exact same situation has applied in the u.k. for decades. totally horrendous governments (including the current one) not giving a flying fuck about the opinions of the people. even throwing peaceful protesters into jail. there has been a recent success for some protesters who had been in jail, on remand, for over a year. when their case was finally brought to court they were deemed innocent by the judge - which, given most judges (and nearly all citizens) believed they would be found guilty, was an amazing and truly welcome result. the government are hoping they'll be able to get someone found guilty and sentenced to 14 years in jail - then they would maybe have a deterrent to protesting.
They were still autocratically deprived of a normal year of their lives, sadly. It's Fascism worldwide. and again I am forced to post a fave tune: The Day the Nazi Died.
They're out there burnin' houses down and peddlin' racist lies
And we'll never rest again until every Nazi dies.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLkPwxcIji0
The Empire is in serious need of regime change. The only problem is, who could step in?
“Who could step in?” Good question… Who could replace the Empire without the risks of creating another Empire? —- is also a valid question?
Thomas Massie?
I think Lassie (the dog) should step in. Lassie always knew what to do...
Or Gomer Pyle
With a thoroughly brainwashed public who believes everything they are fed from the KOOL AID FOUNTAIN regime change is a pipedream. We are good at fomenting regime change overseas while at home the surveillance state has the public firmly in its grip. A fearful and cowed public will never be the agent for change.
Inside the US? Doesn't matter. The best captain in the world is not saving a sinking ship.
Internationally? China. They have thousands of years of civilization while the "American experimen" was just the froth of colonial Europe.
Just remember this simple historical fact. The Chinese invented gunpowder specifically for fireworks and ritual purposes. The second Europeans learned of gunpowder, they turned it into a weapon of war. The Indian and Chinese civilizations are thousands of years ahead of the West.
The Lesser of Two Evils?
Ha, that my friend is expert sarcasm. Maybe all comments should be deleted and just yours appears in Gold : )
obviously, we all can. no one else is going to save us.
How about a complete rejection of central government! We will still have Town, city, county and state government to run our lives and empty our pockets. 57 Independent countries. Or they could join with others.
Who are the 57?
Northern Marianas islands, Puerto Rico, Guam, Virgin islands, American Samoa, Baker Island. the others were Obama's imagination.
Iran, USA and israel - The Good, the bad, and the ugly!
That my friend is the ultimate question.
How about a democratic socialist who called out genocide in early 2024: "Recent polling, including a February 2026 University of New Hampshire Survey Center report, identifies Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) as a top contender for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination, alongside figures like Pete Buttigieg and Gavin Newsom. A YouTube video from late 2025 indicated she was leading in a hypothetical 2028 matchup against JD Vance. " You can trash her but that only makes her stronger: she is anti-fragile, like muscles that grow after strain, and so her superpower is like Ali, as a ropa dopa counterpuncher. With each attack, she improves.
“Antifragile”
They line up at the mic—
Ben Shapiro with graphs and a smirk,
Donald Trump with caps-lock thunder,
J. D. Vance forecasting doom by paperback.
“Finished.”
“Toast.”
“Career over by Tuesday.”
They strike flint—
expecting ash.
Instead: sparks.
Every jab a spotlight,
every rant a retweet engine,
every “gotcha”
a subscriber drive.
She walks out of the noise
taller—
stitched in headlines,
armored in memes.
They swing again.
Poll numbers blink upward.
Antifragile, she feeds—
not on praise,
but on the calories of attack,
growing louder,
sharper,
stranger to gravity—
while her critics, winded,
pause to ask
how their fire
keeps forging the blade.
AOC is a fake socialist and totally goes along with the demands of the empire. If you believe otherwise, surprise! You are one of the idiots Caitlin is debunking here. The only solution is the complete overthrow of capitalism and its replacement with socialism.
well said Ms. Zaremba.
The Uni party pretending to be a democratic republic.. when in fact it is a kleptocratic Oligarchical fascist Empire
Cortez will not get my vote, voting for Genocide funding. Sorry Dale.
https://www.axios.com/2026/02/22/dnc-2024-autopsy-harris-gaza
We need Julius Caesar, or at least Sulla.
Attila the Hun! with a huge machine gun.
You all have Hillary, Biden, and Trump (with nukes). Which is far worse.
Iran is always one week away from nuclear bomb 💣
After all these years, you'd think that we'd be given a better lie.
Darkstar, How about Tony Blair's "Saddam Hussein's WMDs can reach London in a matter of minutes"?
That was a fun time. So many people were fooled by that.
Then, when they found out the truth, nothing happened to Tony Blair !
Didn't you know that garden is exceptional.
The West Bank is now and has been occupied land, so has the Gaza Strip, so has rhe Western parts the Earth, and so have we.
We are occupied by warmongers, and, like the well known dealer ‘Toys Are Us’, the Warmongers AreUs’.. as in You.
Speak for yourself. I'm sick and tired of people like you who say "we are all to blame". Get real. Corrupt war pigs and greedy corporatists make money off of war. They buy elections to keep their useful idiots in power. Haven't you noticed that the last two presidents of the U.S. are mentally disabled senile lunatics?
If they “buy elections” Carolyn, who are the purchasers? …. Errrr… We are.
If the last two presidents were “disabled senile lunatics” who elected them????? Klingons maybe… or is the answer… We did.
One question … when the homeless are made to cower and be humiliated by the municipal brass, when they are spurned and rendered homeless by the authorities, is Elon Musk sitting at the municipal committee making inhumane rules against them, or are the municipal Authorities one of us?
We are the warmongers, and if you dismiss those of us who try to identify the principal root of our problems, then consider yourself a warmonger.
Additional occupied lands: Europe, Africa, Asia, Oceania, Australia, the Americas, various isolated islands, Iceland, Greenland, Britain and Ireland.
Every place that humans currently occupy was previously inhabited at some time by other humans, who generally displaced some humans who came before them. Although many migrations by humans by have also petered out from external conditions.
Get over it. There is no shame or guilt in it. You are where you are because someone before you was successful. You should be grateful for existence.
If you have a suggestion to make things better, make it.
Otherwise, go back to your basement.
Cynical self-hatred is cheap and lazy.
You can do better.
Duane….
No reply I see… you ask to give one solution…. Me give one… no reply… I say we are all responsible for the state of the human conditions you say to that “ go back to your basement”
Tell me how does it it feel to be able to live above basements… must be very rarefied air…
On the other hand, I’m open to share the majesty of life without cynicism.. another step of evolution I was not meant to experience..
What say you…? My assumption, there will be none.. nada… zilch….
My point is simply that seeking to place blame for our current situation is not productive. Whether that involves blaming others or blaming ourselves, it binds us to the past and separates us from the present. And it is in the present that our action is required.
Here is where we are and there is no time available for blame or judgement. A judgemental attitude is counter-productive.
So that is my suggestion to myself: to try to live each day with less judgement toward others. Regardless of whether the judgement is approving or disapproving. I'm just trying to let go of it. And the more I let go of judging others, the more I am able to live without judging myself. Observing and making adjustments, but not judging.
If I am judgemental toward others, I cannot escape judging myself. Likewise, if I am judgemental toward myself, I cannot avoid judging others. It's a feedback loop and I'm trying to get out of it.
In no way does this reduce my compassion or care about the welfare of others. In fact, it frees me to be more available.
I'm not there yet, it's a long process. Like most of us, I grew up judging and being judged. Being on this path feels good, feels right.
You write that you are not judging, yet tell me to go back into a basement.. …. That my comments are cheep etc etc…
You are contributing to helping our species out of the jungles, which few people try to do.. so please continue to do so, but any contribution, including mine, should be portrayed with an open mind as it pertains to a future on the planet. in this case, is better than ignoring it.
I am not blaming others, but asking to recognize that we have a problem, and that we are responsible for those problems, mostly anyway..
Few people are even aware that we have an existential problem, so I am thankful that you are not one of those who are ignorant of duch
I apologize for the judgemental tone of my earlier response. I will try to do better.
No problem Duane… it’s not the first time I’ve ruffled some feathers, and probably not the last.,
The status quo of the human condition has led to the possibility of our extinction, therefore a radical shift in perspectives might not be a bad thing, if so , radical shifts ruffle feathers and if that is possible why not give it a shot.
When the first test of an atomic bomb was made, Einstein cautioned that “ the discovery of the power of atoms has changed everything, save our mode of thinking, and we thus drift towards unparalleled catastrophe”..
after doing some thinking about the consequences of a nuclear war, I personally think that the probability of extinction I would be close to 100%…
So why let it happen when we can do better, as you suggest.
Blocked.
Duane,
“If you have a suggestion, make it”.
I do have a few… let’s try one in order to delay maybe even prevent nuclear war.. I.e., ‘homelessness should not exist’ No homelessness , no nuclear war.
Duane…
“Cynical self- hatred is cheap and lazy” .. maybe, but I remember religious know-it-alls who told me I was born a sinner. Mmmmm ??? Do you think I should believe them? If I am a sinner, as told by the leaders of churches, should I believe that I am the only sinner on earth, and is it possible that you Duane were also born a sinner… saints notwithstanding of course…so, since you seem to announce that you are ok, then you are closer to a saint than I am.
As far as basements are concerned, being underground is a place everyone goes, so when my time is up, not before, I will rest there for some time.
I think it was Gandhi who suggested to “be the change you want to see in the world” but then that was made for imperfect humans, much like me. Be thankful you were spared that ordeal
For some time I have felt that USA propaganda was written by gum chewing unpaid interns in backwards baseball caps. How could anyone repeat "Russia blew up its own pipeline to demonstrate toughness" with a straight face? Or when they showed us some rusty tubes in Iraq and told us this meant war.
Some believe that the propaganda is purposefully bad as an exercise in power. "You losers must pretend to believe this no matter how absurd or else you'll be in big trouble."
Remember they had Colin Powell holding that test tube of yellow cake at the u.n.
Larry Wilkerson wrote that speech. He said the CIA went to great lengths to convince him with phoney evidence, including a special order from the President. Larry believed them.
It works. Nobody calls them on it.
Feral Finster, You are spot on. That "nobody calls them on it" is the problem. The media class won't do it, neither does foreign governments.
Part of the insidious nature of the bold face lies - which is a pattern you can recognize in authoritarian ruled governments - is everyone is in on the lies. The population knows it is being subjected to blatant absurd lies and this is done purposely by their own government. We also now are seeing more of this dissemination of lies on large social media platforms like Youtube and Facebook.
You see videos and ads that are obviously fake made-up stories, or phony vids of history or AI celebrities. It's all done to purposely pollute the information space we exist in, so that nothing can be believed - and therefore anything might be believed as well. The population becomes numb to what is happening, because there is no (immediate) way to determine what is true or not regarding their own government (or culture).
The they were eating people, sorry my friend I now believe seeing the talk of keeping kilos of Jerky in the freezer. Nothing shocks me now in a country run by child rapists for the country of Child Rape. BTW, shouldn't someone create a new flag for the israel state of rape? When I say israel, I mean israel controlled u.s. a two for one.
jamenta, Surely the American people - even with the blatant propaganda - can see and hear what a bunch of idiots are ruling over them?
Not surely.
New York Post is a Zionist Jewish Supremacist Israel First rag who caters to the Zionist Jewish Supremacist Israel First population in their community. That headline is recycled from all the other country's or people they have villainized, with the exception of Israel. I wonder why they don't report on today's revelation by Jeremy Corbyn of the UK. He received a message from a hospital in Gaza saying the IDF delivered 60-70 boxes this morning, along with dead bodies in body bags. Once the IDF left, they opened the boxes and they contained heads of Palestinians. The body bags contained Palestinian women whose organs had been removed. Israel is notorious for selling body parts on the black market. They are also have the largest "SKIN" Bank in the world. You read that right. And guess where the skin came from and whose? Why don't you report about that New York Post?
Everyone who lives in New York knows the Post is a disgusting rag. I lived in New York City for a decade and people laughed at the Post every day.
Thank you Teresa, that is extremely disturbing to hear, but somehow I am not even surprised at this point that the genocidal occupiers would do something so unconscionable. And of course, an utterly contemptible "paper" like the Post will do nothing to report on that important truth.
Organ harvesting is one of the most profitable jewish businesses.
What do you expect? It's New York City.
Unfortunately we can't get any truth about the various conflicts either. Such as how many Palestinians are being held hostage, tortured and raped by Israel, how much profit the war profiteers get with their Ukraine Proxy, Gaza Holocaust, Syrian overthrow and the ramp up to Attack Iran. Wit off is just a mouthpiece with a Zionist supplying all his lies . The Oxymoronic 'Truth Social' which is just a propaganda bully platform for a Zionist traitor to spew lies, and disinformation to fools that follow such an egotistical Zionist puppet.
40 beheaded babies? - We already used that one.
Babies in ovens? - Ditto.
Babies taken out of incubators? - Seriously. Are you even trying?
Wait, wait, wait! How about....
🤨
Yes, I was expecting to hear about barbequed baby parts on hot-dog buns. Or ovaries in sushi rolls. But babies on a pike? That is so WW1, so, "Fear the Huns!" Honestly, ChatGPI could do better at creating phony fright propaganda, but it's temporarily restricted from that (I think). At least, until Thiel, Karp, et al. gain thorough control of the media system.
Ya... The newest balderdash is the Jeffrey Epstein *killing and eating babies* meme. Sort of an advanced Hansel and Gretel theme, only no crumbs... Run away! Run away! Like everything else, it's a fucking emergency... Pfffttt!
You do know the Epstein emails talk about eating flesh, just so you aren't surprised.
As often as I, gadfly of a gadfly, disagree with Caitlin, this article shows her at her best , in her most succinct Orwellian mode, exposing lies and mocking them to the dagger of plain English, presenting the absurdity of the horror porn of war propaganda and skewering it with the obvious.
Caitlin also has the integrity to tolerate me, with my habit of goading her...and so, to celebrate the fact that I also see her as a post modern Orwell, at her best, I offer this poem (in collaboration with our mortal frenemy AI):
Poem — “Gadfly”
I am no hammer.
Hammers end arguments.
I begin them.
I land where the hide is thickest—
on the well-fed flank of certainty,
on the velvet rhetoric of kings,
on the upholstered chairs of experts
who have not stood up in years.
My work is small:
a question placed
like grit in an oyster’s mouth.
I do not roar.
I irritate.
A thin, persistent whine
in the ear of settled things.
They swat—
with titles, with committees,
with the rolled newspaper of public scorn.
Still I return,
to sting the lie that naps in daylight,
to worry the wound of contradiction,
to drink the sugar of official language
and spit back acid.
“Why?” is my lancet.
“How so?” my second blade.
I draw not blood
but clarity.
Empires itch where I walk.
Statues feel the tremor of feathers.
Even marble learns
it was once dust.
I am not loved.
Love is for lullabies.
I am the sleepless insect
circling the chandelier of power—
until the light flickers,
until the room shifts,
until someone, at last,
scratches
and wakes.
You'd think American Veterans would step up with individual Vigilante Justice eh?
Nope, everyones bent over trying to keep things together till theres nothing left to Save.
At what point does one give up ones current life to go after they who Screw everyone?
The New York Post is like a long burning candle slowly flickering out. It’s been reduced to a supermarket gossip rag producing strange stares from people when picked up.
Thank You Caitlin
'Slop' is the word for this garbage, alright.
On the bright side, maybe it'll help people to stop reading msm, and more of these outlets will go bankrupt. And maybe more eyes will open and people will gather together to reclaim a semblance of democracy.
Here's hoping.
I hope so too Ms. Van Eyk. That would be a small silver lining amidst this slop is if it helps more people stop reading MSM, which for many years has not done its' job of holding truth to power, but in fact has served as a mouthpiece for the interests of the oligarchs and ultra-wealthy
I think it is a hazing thing. They just lie blatantly to your face and say "well, whatayahgonnadoaboutit?"