2020: The Year That Wasn't

 

2020: The Year That Wasn't

Most news programs/podcasts/web sites do a "news roundup" at this point in the year, and this year seems to really lend itself to this tried and true format. We started the year thinking 2020 would be one of "Perfect Vision" (https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2019/12/perfect-vision-2020.html ) and perhaps even the beginnings of a people's revolution, but within three months we found ourselves entangled in the beginnings of a worldwide pandemic instead.

Disease and certain death certainly wasn't on the menu originally for 2020. In spite of the challenges of mask wearing and social distancing, progressives soldiered on and accomplished more than one might think in a year that kept families and lovers apart and shut down whole economies. They even managed to demonstrate how racism still exists in the US, why Black Lives Matter (https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2020/06/the-long-flight-of-jim-crow.html ) and why we must #DefundThePolice (https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2020/09/why-cities-burn.html ) .

So, without any further ado, welcome to the year that wasn't as observed and documented by the writers of The Revolution Continues. (Click on the links to read the articles mentioned.)

January 2020: This will be the year we finally acknowledge and do something constructive about the climate crisis to prevent major wildfires and other ecological disasters worldwide. https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2020/01/the-whole-world-is-burning.html

February 2020: This will be the year the Democratic Party is completely reformed and recognizes the progressive wisdom and brave leadership of Senator Bernie Sanders, allowing him to win the presidential nomination and lead America into a golden age of Medicare For All and no more student loan debt. https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2020/02/2020-year-that-will-shape-future-of.html

March 2020: This will be the year we get our act together as a people and our elected leaders will respect medical experts and pass generous legislation to help every American suffering without access to health care or a job because of the Covid-19 pandemic. https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2020/03/life-down-rabbit-hole.html

April 2020: This will be the year we will free non-violent prisoners suffering under unhealthy conditions in for-profit prisons and overcrowded public ones, as well as openly acknowledge the multitude of sins of the "chosen" DNC nominee. https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2020/04/why-i-adore-joe-biden.html

May 2020: This will be the year we will acknowledge at last that capitalism kills and that those who have billions of dollars in the bank couldn't care less about those whose work they obtain obscene profits from.  https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2020/05/cannon-fodder-for-capitalism.html

This will also be the year we sit down and seriously contemplate why the rich are so afraid of the word "socialism."  https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2020/01/why-are-rich-so-scared-of-socialism.html

June 2020: This will be the year that Americans of all social classes will learn to live together in peace and racial harmony--and our policing agencies will demonstrate fair and restorative justice techniques. https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2020/06/this-is-revolution.html

July 2020: This will be the year that a person in uniform will earn the respect of the public by his/her actions. "Protect and serve" won't just always apply to the rich or the oligarchs and their sycophants: https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2020/07/the-only-difference-is-uniform.html

August 2020: This will be the year that "lesser evil" voting becomes a thing of the past, allowing for a more diverse and responsive political system. Also, Americans will come to see who their true adversaries are (and how they make more money in less than one second than the average worker makes in one year). https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2020/08/winners-and-losers.html

September 2020: This is the year that Americans recognize the signs of fascism in time so we won't be doomed to repeat history endlessly--especially the scary bits modeled by Hitler's Germany. https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2020/09/a-history-of-fascism-in-america.html

October 2020: This will be the year that true democracy will be supported and a diversity of opinion and approaches (vocalized primarily by smaller political parties) will be praised and respected by the American electorate. Everyone will be able to vote and feel proud of their vote--not pressured! https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2020/10/the-only-wasted-vote.html

November 2020: This will be the year Americans realize that we must fundamentally change of systems of governance and economics in order to provide a safe and healthy life for all people--and this will be reflected in our voting preferences, not our base fears. https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2020/11/we-have-to-fundamentally-change.html

December 2020: This will be the year that the destructive path of neoliberalism will at last be outed and shunned for the horror that it is, allowing Medicare For All to finally pass among other programs so desperately needed. The "brunch crowd" will be no more in this new America free from classism, racism, sexism and "bubble bias." https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2020/12/brunch-has-been-suspended-indefinitely.html

There you go--here's the "2020 perfect vision" we all hoped for a bare twelve months ago. At least we know for certain now what we all need to be working toward building in 2021, right?

Until we meet again, we wish a healthy and happy New Year to you and yours from all of us here at The Revolution Continues. Keep your masks on and keep fighting!

***

From Friends of the Earth:

The Southern Beaufort Sea polar bear population is dwindling. Less than 900 bears remain. Now, their habitat is at risk from the oil and gas industries. Take action to protect polar bears from Big Oil.

The Arctic Refuge is one of the most important onshore denning habitats for polar bears in the United States. Mother polar bears with their cubs have become increasingly reliant on denning in this area as sea ice melts due to climate change.

Now, oil and gas seismic testing in the coast plan could irreversibly damage this essential habitat. But the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has downplayed the impacts of seismic exploration and is moving forward with the permitting process. We need your help to stop it.

Take action to protect polar bears from the fossil fuel industry.

Sign Now

Polar bears are listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. The Arctic Refuge is vital to their survival.

Seismic exploration in their habitat could crush bears in their dens or force mother bears to abandon their cubs, leaving the little ones to perish.

Oil drilling in the last remnants of undeveloped coastal habitats in an increasingly warming Arctic could eradicate polar bears from the United States. We need your help to demand the BLM puts the lives of polar bears ahead of Big Oil profits.

Demand the Bureau of Land Management stop seismic testing in the Arctic.

Sign Now

Seismic testing utilizes acoustic waves that search for formations of oil deposits below the surface.

The delicate Arctic ecosystem still carries scars from testing conducted in the area thirty years ago. Modern seismic testing will only be worse. The testing will fill a space the size of South Carolina with a dense grid of crisscrossing tracks -- the equivalent of almost a full trip around the Earth. Thumper trucks, convoys, bulldozers, and tractors will roll over this fragile ecosystem 24 hours a day, 7 days a week -- for months on end!

The only reason for the BLM to go forward with this plan is to benefit the fossil fuel industry. It would harm polar bears, disrupt sensitive ecosystems, and impact local communities. We need your help to stop this plan before the December 30th deadline to comment.

Use your voice. Demand the BLM protect the Arctic’s vulnerable ecosystem.

Sign Now

Standing with you,

Nicole Ghio,
Senior fossil fuels program manager,
Friends of the Earth

  ***

This coming year will be a big one and you can help The Revolution Continues.

Five and a half years on, and we're still fighting, but it's tough. You as a fellow revolutionary can make it easier for the faithful editors/writers to stay on the job by simply sharing some of your pocket change now and then. Use the Paypal link below to donate.

 http://paypal.me/camatthews

Thanks for all you do in making the world a better place. Power to the people!

 

We Have To Fundamentally Change

 We Have To Fundamentally Change 

(What Are You Celebrating?)

Why should any American "celebrate" the results of this presidential election?

Many Americans are facing looming evictions and downsizing due to the pandemic, while the number of Covid cases increases daily, the death toll mounts, and many more are without affordable health care than ever before. And our president-elect has openly said he will veto any Medicare For All bill that crosses his desk--if one even gets that far.

If "nothing would fundamentally change," according to Mr. Biden, then it will be up to us--we have to fundamentally change. We have to become braver and more willing to take on the fixed, corrupt system and break it wide open. We can't let things remain static, unchanged, when our very lives and the fate of our planet stand in the balance.

Some have already started planning how they will bring about fundamental, progressive change and ask you to join them in their efforts: https://howiehawkins.us/keepfighting/

The general mood in the "Twitterverse" among true progressives about the results of this election cycle has been somber. The following examples illustrate their concerns and frustrations:

Ryan Knight (@ProudSocialist) tweets: Joe Biden is a neoliberal corporatist who has spent 47 years propping up our corrupt system. He is not a savior.

Dr. Jill Stein (@DrJillStein) tweets: Nice to hear speeches without the racist abuse of the past 4 years. But not a word of commitment to real solutions for the crises killing us - like M4A, Covid relief, a long-term eviction moratorium at the least. Platitudes don't make me want to celebrate.

A paraphrase of several good tweets: 

Sorry if I'm not quite as enthusiastic as you are that the proud author of the 1994 Crime Bill that has incarcerated thousands of Americans (especially those of color) and the backer of the US Iraq War that has caused huge loss of life in that country, as well as PTSD in American service personnel, is now in charge. Those sorts of things, and the people who are proud of their involvement in them, just don't appeal to me very much.

Jimmy Dore says, "Trump loses! Now what?"  It's a serious question. And he stresses, "We need an independent media that pushes politicians, not protects them." Listen to his valid complaints in the following video.

 https://youtu.be/gSYQYGAhcEQ

 Pulitzer Prize-Winner Chris Hedges puts it eloquently in his essay, American Requiem:

Well, it’s over. Not the election. The capitalist democracy. However biased it was towards the interests of the rich and however hostile it was to the poor and minorities, the capitalist democracy at least offered the possibility of incremental and piecemeal reform. Now it is a corpse. The iconography and rhetoric remain the same. But it is an elaborate and empty reality show funded by the ruling oligarchs — $1.51 billion for the Biden campaign and $1.57 billion for the Trump campaign — to make us think there are choices. There are not. The empty jousting between a bloviating Trump and a verbally impaired Joe Biden is designed to mask the truth. The oligarchs always win. The people always lose. It does not matter who sits in the White House. America is a failed state.

https://scheerpost.com/2020/11/05/chris-hedges-american-requiem/

On Facebook, a local activist voiced well what many are feeling this week:

Why I Will Not Be Celebrating the Election Results

by Sean Nestor

I will celebrate when single payer healthcare is enacted and people can receive medical treatment without it ruining their lives. I will celebrate when qualified immunity is ended, the police are demilitarized, and law enforcement offices aren't let off the hook for executing black people in the streets. I will celebrate when the concentration camps at our borders are closed down and migrant families are no long split apart and children no longer disappear into human trafficking rings. I will celebrate when we see a full troop withdrawal from the Middle East and we start using our tax dollars to fund much-needed domestic programs  instead of killing innocent people abroad.

If you think the Biden/Harris administration is going to do any of that, you're either uninformed or dishonest. Nothing in their campaign rhetoric nor their time in public office suggests that those will happen without borderline revolutionary activity from the public. And in the spirit of honesty, the vast majority of Democrats, in spite of the memes they share, are ready to go to brunch for the next four or eight years because Trump is gone.

I know this because I remember 2008 very clearly. At the time, we had two terms of a monster President who drug us into two costly and unnecessary wars, grew the police state in the name of counter-terrorism, and bailed out Wall Street on the back of working people everywhere. People bragged about voting for inanimate objects over Bush, as though lowering the bar like that was something to be proud of.

What we got starting in 2008 was eight years of "At least he's not Bush!" and a climate of shushing anyone who dared criticize the Democrat for not doing enough to address the real problems that were growing around him. Everything that was an outrage when Bush did it became defensible or just swept under the rug when Obama did it. I was practically spit on when I criticized Obama's continuation and expansion of military action in the Middle East, or his ramping up of deportations, or his refusal to promote single payer while supposedly tackling healthcare reform.

Well, that climate brought us Trump. In another four or eight years, mark my words, it will bring us someone even worse.

Cue the hand-wringing and frustrated pleas about the powerlessness of Democrats under a Republican Senate. Look--if Democrats can raise billions of dollars and organize tens of millions of people all over the country to vote someone into office, they can do the same to enact single payer healthcare or eliminate the electoral college or a major nationwide gerrymandering reform or something meaningful to change this country, regardless of the Senate's disposition. That's what politics are for.

Politics are all about figuring out how to enact policy in spite of obstacles, not pointing out obstacles and adjusting your standards accordingly. There is an extremely disgusting culture in the Democratic Party of competing over whose standards are lowest, giving up on ideals immediately and invoking some trite rhetoric about the importance of compromise in politics. But their compromise is always with Karl Rove or Steve Bannon and never Michelle Alexander or Aviva Chomsky. It's a lie comfortable people tell themselves to justify their own laziness and lack of compassion.

My standards are human rights standards, and I'm not lowering them come hell or high water. Call me privileged or elitist, but I'm not celebrating until I know for sure that we've genuinely protected the vulnerable minorities that are constantly preyed upon by this nation's governments.

I know victories are few and far between, and the temptation is high to celebrate them even when they are hollow, so I don't judge or begrudge anyone who wants to express their pleasure at the end of the Trump nightmare. I sincerely hope it provides you with relief and healing. But please don't repeat history and pretend like any of this marks a sea change in our country's politics. We seriously cannot afford a repeat of the smugness and complacency that brought us Trump, because at this trajectory, we're going to get a Trump again before we know it.

"The struggle of people against power is the struggle of memory against forgetting." --Milan Kundera

"Let them call me rebel and welcome, I feel no concern from it; but I should suffer the misery of devils, were I to make a whore of my soul." --Thomas Paine

 ***

 From Friends of the Earth:

Joe Biden will be our next President -- and he’s starting to fill powerful positions within our government. Take action to reject corporate lobbyists for key nominations.

Every President in recent memory has filled their government with appointees with close ties to large corporations. When corporate cronies are in government agencies and in the Cabinet, it provides them with the means to undermine protections Americans count on. Instead of considerations for the people, they favor rollbacks and giveaways for big business.

Pressure from people like you can stop the Senate from confirming corporate cronies for these positions. That’s why we’re asking you to demand our elected officials oppose the confirmation of any more corporate lobbyists.

Take Action: Demand the Senate reject corporate lobbyist appointees.

Sign Now

Biden will need to fill thousands of government positions -- from the head of the EPA to deputy secretaries at over a dozen agencies. These appointees have power to implement our environmental protections.

Look at what happened under Trump -- he appointed, and the Senate confirmed, fossil fuel lobbyist David Bernhardt to the Department of the Interior. Bernhardt has overseen huge giveaways of our public lands to benefit the fossil fuel industry.

The vast majority of Americans agree that large corporations have too much power. We need your help to change that!

Sign the Petition: No more conflicts of interest that benefit big business. No more corporate appointees.

Sign Now

Our elected officials must reject appointees with direct ties to big business. But without hearing from concerned American’s like you, C.A., they might not act.

Don’t let nominees with ties to mega-corporations make key decisions for the people. Demand corporate executives and lobbyists not be confirmed to any appointee positions.

25,000 Signatures still needed: Fight to reduce corporate power. 

Sign Now

Standing with you,
Ariel Moger,
Legislative & political coordinator,
Friends of the Earth Action

 ***

Stand For Something!

If you agree that we can't just sit back, fall asleep, and let the neolibs/neocons destroy our country, our lives, and the planet, then please consider making a donation to keep The Revolution Continues going.  Donate at the Paypal.me link below.

Thank you and Power to the People!

http://paypal.me/camatthews

The Revolution Will Continue

 

The Revolution Will Continue

by C.A. Matthews

Since many of you are busy voting, we thought we'd keep this week's blog post short and sweet--or at least as sweet as possible during  a contentious election year. 

Four years ago, this blog underwent  a major transition from being The Bernie Blog to Our Revolution Continues (briefly) to The Revolution Continues. And here we are today, still trying our best to promote and share a progressive agenda to an audience that apparently has dwindled, due in large part from deliberate blocking by search engines such as Google and censoring on social platforms such as Facebook. 

But we know you all are still out there because we can hear you breathing. We can hear you calling and crying out, "We're mad as hell, and we're not going to take it anymore!" So, we continue to publish and pray that our message hasn't been totally lost in the background noise and confusion of the mainstream media circus.

Many Americans are still looking for a progressive "messiah" to come and save them from the "bad orange man" and institute pretty much more of the same except perhaps add a few perks like Medicare For All and student loan forgiveness. But there are a few of you who are older and wiser and learned your lesson in 2016 (or maybe earlier this year) that the status quo doesn't like to be messed with.  You've learned that in an age of the Citizens United ruling that only money talks to our so-called "elected representatives."

You've learned that there's no sense in placing all your faith in one charismatic figure such as Bernie Sanders to lead us into a democratic socialist utopia. The corrupt system is rigged only to support those candidates who are willing to do its bidding and support its true masters--the oligarchy, the one-percenters, the billionaires. And so you've broadened your horizons and supported other progressive candidates, parties and movements. 

You've been transformed (like this blog) into something greater and more inclusive.  You're not afraid to take on the giants with a slingshot full of reality bombs, to speak truth to power.

Those of you who have peered behind the curtain of our faux democracy and seen who's really in charge are the reason the Revolution will continue no matter who or what the corporate media puppet-pundits declare to be the "winner" of Election 2020. You're the real Revolutionaries, the true progressives. You don't fall for the tasty sound bites of neoliberal talking points. You don't cave into vote shaming and blaming. You stick with your morals in an amoral and shallow society, one which sees only temporary "winners" and "losers" but never a scenario where all people are winners, forever.

You, in fact, are our nation's only hope that someday all will live in peace without fear of death at the hands of militarized police who have a thing for shooting people for being of color or the mentally ill.  You will continue to lobby for universal health care and dignity for all through a universal basic income. You will fight for peace and for freeing immigrants from cages and for returning these immigrants' children to their parents and for an end to all wars.

You are your own true heroes.

So, get out and vote (if you haven't done so already) and then put your feet up and give yourself a pat on the back. You deserve a big round of thanks for being a clear-eyed and clear-thinking human being in this era of over-the-top neolib/neocon theatrics. Because after a very brief rest, it's back to the streets, the courtrooms, the state houses and the social media for you--

Because the Revolution will only continue as long as you don't give up and you keep on fighting for it.

The following videos may help you make sense of what's going on in the good ol' USA.

https://youtu.be/o_Vgnw21uqc

 https://youtu.be/robuYNB6Hp4

For coverage of Election 2020 from a progressive point of view:

https://www.facebook.com/GreenPartyUS/live_videos

***

Know Justice! Know Peace!

The Revolution must continue until everyone in this world lives in peace and receives  justice from their fellow human beings.

If you're financially able, please consider making a donation to keep The Revolution Continues going. Any amount helps. You can do so via the editor's Paypal address. Thank you, fellow revolutionaries, and keep fighting! http://paypal.me/camatthews

 ***

Don't let bats become ghosts. Save them by signing the petition now.

Sign Now

It's spooky season now, but one of the scariest things happening is actually the possible extinction of certain kinds of bats! Even though we think of these furry winged creatures as harbingers of fright, in truth, they're some of our dearest friends. Because of their nutritious fertilizer-poop and excellent work spreading seeds and pollinating flowers, we're able to grow coffee, chocolate, and pumpkins. On top of that, they also eat mosquitos, meaning they're like natural — and way more effective — citronella! But right now, the noctural echolocators are in danger. A strange and mysterious disease called white-nose syndrome is murdering our flying friends. This gray-white fungus starts growing on the tips of bats' noses and grows over the rest of their faces, slowing dooming them forever. In addition, human construction is tearing up natural bat habitats, destroying their homes and communities. The impending downfall of affected bats is so concerning that certain species are even being protected by the U.S. government under the Endangered Species Act. But as we all know, Trump and his animal-hating cronies are hell-bent on destroying this act. We can't let them win! Demand that the U.S. federal government do more to save our precious bat friends. Tell the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to double-down on protecting bats under the Endangered Species Act. Thank you for all that you do,   Miranda B. The Care2 Petitions Team P.S. Without bats, we might not have chocolate candies or coffee. That would be a horrible world indeed. Sign the petition to save our glorious friend the bat!

 ***

Since the moment Donald Trump was elected, Public Citizen has been fighting back against the corporate takeover of our government.

We were right to worry.

Trump has appointed an astonishing 281 corporate lobbyists, along with scores of corporate executives.

All too often, these people don’t believe in the mission of the department they’re working for or running. They view the government as a competitor that they want to weaken from the inside, to benefit themselves and their former colleagues.

That’s why we demand Congress oppose the confirmation of any nominee to an executive branch position who is currently, or has been, a lobbyist for any corporate client or officer for a private corporation.

Sign the petition now.

Corporate appointments give Big Business outsized power within our government—power seized from our communities and public servants.

Installing corporate hacks in the cabinet and in government agencies provides an easy way to undermine protections for everyday Americans in favor of giveaways and rollbacks for Big Business.

This is an urgent issue, no matter what happens in this week’s election.

Add your name now.

We must fight to reduce the power of corporations in our government—it starts with rejecting appointees with direct ties to Big Business.

Keep up the fight,

Bret Thompson
Public Citizen's Online Team