Do We Really Want Peace?

by C. A. Matthews

The anniversaries of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki (August 6 and August 9, 1945) pass by most Westerners’ consciousness without notice. The dates aren’t printed on any calendars I have like “Memorial Day” or “Presidents’ Day” are, labeled in big, bright capital letters. The week the first atom bombs were dropped on civilians is not a bank holiday anywhere as far as I know.

The anniversary is mostly remembered by the children of the survivors and a handful of international peace organizations. The one event that should have motivated humankind to turn around and go in a better direction is the one event we seem to care the least about. We neither care to remember it and learn from it nor honor it and promise ourselves we’ll never do it again.

I have to admit that if GPAX, the Green Party Peace Action Committee, hadn’t presented “Never Again!” a very informative webinar on August 6, I’d probably would have forgotten about humanity’s fall from innocence, too. Yes, humankind is guilty of the sin of unleashing the power of the atom, the genie that cannot be put back inside the bottle once it has escaped. All life on Earth will never be the same again.

No one born since those early August days in 1945 has ever lived in a world without manmade nuclear radiation effecting them, either directly through an nuclear warhead detonation, or from being shot with depleted uranium coated bullets, or from the fallout leaking from a nuclear power plant that has suffered a “mishap” like Fukushima, or even from a simple rain shower. Manmade radiation has become a permanent part of our ecosystem for the worse, not better.

No one born since then has ever known a world where life as we know it could be wiped out in a matter of minutes if one or more nuclear powers decide to launch their nuclear weapons. This knowledge should keep us awake nights, but the majority of us seem okay living day-to-day in such a terrifying world.

Could it be we really don’t want peace? Could it be that we’d rather live with the threat of imminent Mutually Assured Destruction than to give up our creature comforts and affordable lifestyles in the West? Could it be Americans enjoy the hegemony we’ve gained through the threat of dropping H-bombs on your country if it doesn’t “cooperate” and give us what we want? (This means you, Venezuela and Iran. Hand over your oil or else!)

Or could it be I’m over-exaggerating the threat of our potential demise? Could I be minimizing the numbers of activists who are actively fighting to shut the war machine down? I don’t think so...

 

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Weather As A Weapon

words and original photos by C.A. Matthews

By the fourth day of record high temperatures and tropical humidity, I was convinced that this unusual Midwestern heatwave was more than it appeared. I haven’t seen such record high temperatures linger for more than a day or two since I lived in the Southwest. I can’t recall anything like this amount of heat and humidity for days on end growing up in this part of the world. The weather suddenly seems very unnatural and deadly. Deliberately so.

I’m not a conspiracy theorist—the name the CIA devised to smear the reputations of those who early on thought the details surrounding JFK’s assassination seemed highly suspicious. I don’t believe in UFOs or flying saucers because, let’s face it, what intelligent alien species would want to land on this hellhole of a rock? No self-respecting alien would come to a planet where babies and children are forfeit if they come from the wrong indigenous ethnic group or are seen as “playthings” for the pedophile perverts in power.

Sorry to disappoint, but I’m not talking conspiracy theories here. I have some evidence to back up my opinion that global warming/climate change is happening because the perverse people in power find it’s a useful tool to keep us poor folks in our place. The weather works well as a weapon in their arsenal to fight foreign enemies, too...

During this heatwave, I wondered how much longer can I carry on like this. I’m not getting any younger. I’m not sure I’ll be able to take care of my garden in the future during a similar extreme heatwave, especially if they become regular events. Maybe it’s time to call it quits, sell my house and garden, and move on? Who really cares about the native plants I’ve encouraged to grow so they and their pollinators don’t become extinct? Who else but me and my spouse cares about the trees we’ve planted as a small attempt to restore some of the vast forests that used to cover this part of the world?

Now, take my experience and observations in my garden recently and multiply them times a thousand or even a million. What if every small land holder or backyard gardener in the US decided within the next few years that it’s impossible to keep growing their own fruit and vegetables in this extreme weather? What if they decided it’s not worth planting trees if they’re going to dry up due to not receiving our “typical” rainfall amounts?

Expand these ideas to include farmers on the few small family farms still remaining in the US. Do they continue to struggle to make a living in this hostile climate? Why not sell off their cows, pigs, goats, and chickens? Why not sell off their old tractor and move into the city and work at a Walmart? Suddenly there’s a lot of “unused land” on the market for Tech Bros to buy cheap so they can build more heat-producing, water-hogging AI data centers, isn’t there?

Without gardeners and small farmers “hogging” water for their crops and livestock, there’s much more water to be had for cooling AI data centers. I can hear the gears clicking in the greedy idiots’ heads in the Trump administration even now...

 

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The Costs Of War

by C. A. Matthews

Notice the plural—it’s the costs of war. How much money is available to spend plays a large part in how any war is conducted and concluded, but there are so many other costs that are seldom considered by those who start a war rather than take the diplomatic route to settle their dispute with others.

The costs in human lives is perhaps the most tragic of the costs of war. It’s difficult to say how many soldiers have been killed in the two-week-old war with Iran since the United States and Israel (USrael) have been keeping very quiet on the numbers. Experts estimate that there have been far more American deaths than the thirteen or so admitted to the mainstream media. Some believe there to be at least 1,000+ American troops, CIA agents, and civilian contractors to the military killed so far in the bombings of the US military bases in the Gulf region alone. A US military hospital in Landstuhl has been inundated with the injured coming from the war arena according to X posts from Germany.

On the civilian side, there have been on estimated 1,500 deaths and more than 3 million displaced in Iran. This includes the 175 school girls and their teachers bombed in their school by a US Tomahawk missile during the war’s opening hours. Israel’s attacks on Beirut and Lebanon have added at least 800 civilian deaths to the totals and hundreds of thousands of Lebanese displaced. At least 15 Lebanese paramedics were targeted by IDF bombing. An entire village in southern Lebanon along with its church and Catholic priest were also targeted for destruction this week by Israeli forces.

War knows no boundaries. Children, medics, and priests are all fair targets, all a part of the costs of war...

 

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Performative Politics

Performative Politics

by C. A. Matthews

I’ve heard the term performative politics quite often in recent times. It makes me wonder why this kind of politics has come into vogue.

 

Let’s take a look at the words and define them separately. According to Wikipedia:

Politics...activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status.

Merriam-Webster Online defines performative this way:

1. Relating to or marked by public, often artistic performance

2. Made or done for show (as to bolster one's own image or make a positive impression on others)

Both definitions describe more than a few actions taken recently by neoliberal politicians. Before I describe these incidents, perhaps it’s wise to define what exactly is meant by neoliberal or neoliberalism.

From Britannica.com:

Neoliberalism: an ideology and policy model that emphasizes the value of free market competition. ...It is most commonly associated with laissez-faire economics... Its confidence in free markets as the most-efficient allocation of resources, its emphasis on minimal state intervention in economic and social affairs, and its commitment to the freedom of trade and capital.

Now that we’re on the same page with what is meant by these terms, politics, performative, and neoliberalism, here are three examples of recent performative politics and what I think each of the actors (that is, politicians) is communicating to their obvious and not-so-obvious audiences and why they choose to perform in such as way at this time.

First off, we have the extremely photogenic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, or “AOC” as she is known. AOC gave a fiery speech at the recent March to End Fossil Fuels in New York City. Her obvious audience was, of course, the crowd that gathered there or watched her performance online. This crowd included environmental activists and protesters of all the destructive things “Big Oil” has done to our planet with their constant drilling, mining, and burning of fossil fuels. But who was the not-so-obvious audience AOC was reaching out to with her speech? And why did she choose to perform this particular speech at this particular place and time?

To understand, AOC’s motivations we have to do a little research and look back at her history in politics. AOC ran as a “Bernie Sanders Democrat” and was photographed interacting with the youth-led Sunrise Movement environmental organization. She led a very loud protest with these young environmental activists inside Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi’s offices early on in her career, so it makes sense that she would show up at the march where many of them were protesting that day.

But many things have happened since AOC’s time hanging out with the Sunrise Movement in 2018. AOC has been re-elected to Congress a couple times, and she’s made quite a name for herself, not so much as an environmentalist but as a very good Democrat who does as she’s told. She has voted several times for massive Pentagon/Defense Department budgets in spite of the fact the US military is one of the most polluting organizations in the world.

AOC declared earlier this year that she supports President Biden running for office again, although he has done the complete opposite of what an environmentalist would support. Biden has opened up more federal land to oil drilling than any other president, particularly with the Willow Project:

The Biden Administration released its final decision approving three drilling sites for the Willow Master Development Plan, otherwise known as the Willow Project that threatens local communities, wildlife, and the global climate. This is a massive oil drilling development on Alaska’s North Slope, which is a stretch of public land known as the National Petroleum Reserve that borders the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).

This project developed by ConocoPhillips would be the single largest oil extraction point on US public lands, emitting 278 million metric tons of climate pollution over the next 30 years. That’s equivalent to the annual emissions from 74 coal plants — one-third of all remaining U.S. plants. Willow will disproportionately impact the community of Nuiqsut, a predominantly Iñupiaq village of about 500 people already suffering extreme pollution from existing oil projects.--from Biden Administration Breaks Climate Promise and Approves Willow Project

By supporting Biden's actions, it seems AOC doesn't care much about the environment at all.

AOC has never protested the billion of dollars Biden has sent to Ukraine to continue NATO’s proxy war there. She hasn’t really come out against the sale of cluster munitions (cluster bombs) and depleted uranium to Ukraine, either. Cluster bombs maim primarily civilians—children for the most part—and depleted uranium radiation can lead to generations of genetically malformed babies and horrible rates of cancers in persons of all ages.

By supporting these astronomical Defense budgets and the US sale of cluster bombs (munitions that have been outlawed in almost every country in the world) as well as Biden’s Willow Oil Project, AOC's actions tell us that she isn’t particularly concerned with the health and well-being of her fellow human beings or the planet. Her actions in Congress just don’t support her image or “performance” as an environmental activist, now does it?

Who is Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez’s not-so-obvious audience she was trying to reach with her fiery environmental tirade at the march? I think she was telling the major donors of the Democratic Party—the military-industrial complex, corporations like Raytheon, Lockheed-Martin, Boeing and the rest—that she is more than willing to act as a front to keep the public from looking too closely at what’s really going on behind the scenes in Washington DC. AOC is good at getting positive press by looking pretty on camera and saying what the public expects at the right time and place. What she says has no real depth or substance, since none of her actions back her words up. 

AOC’s example of performative politics shows that she is willing to act as the perfect front in order to take interest away from the true polluters and causers of death and destruction on our planet. She’ll make all those young environmental activists in NYC forget that nothing has really changed since she first marched with them. Magicians would say she’s the “smoke and mirrors” of the establishment, a perfect distraction. And by the size of her growing bank account since joining Congress, she has been well rewarded for her work.

This next example of performative politics is very easy to spot, and it’s easy to figure out who the obvious and not-so-obvious audiences are. The United Auto Workers are on strike. President Joe Biden—who didn’t permit the railroad workers to go on strike for safer working conditions in 2022—said he wanted to be the first sitting president to visit a picket line. So Biden spent about 12 minutes for a photo op at one of the picket lines in Detroit. Looking at the photos of some of the strikers, you can tell what the obvious audience thinks about Biden’s performance. Just look at the expression on the guy’s face standing to the far left in this picture!

Tim Black tells us exactly what Biden’s motivations were for making that oh-so-brief visit in this video clip on Twitter:

Does Joe Biden Really Care About Union Workers? #JoeBiden #CornelWest2024 #UAW pic.twitter.com/4s55qW127k

— RealTimBlack (@RealTimBlack) September 29, 2023

The not-so-obvious audience of the CEOs of the Big Three Automakers know that Joe Biden’s many years of not supporting the workers and always being there to help bail out the corporations at the expense of the public purse isn’t going away anytime soon. They understand Biden's trip to a UAW picket line was just the photo op that it so obviously was. The billionaires hope that it will trick enough workers into thinking they're being heard by Washington to stave off the revolution for a while. But does Biden and his campaign staff realize just how shallow this attempt came across? That remains to be seen.

Our last example of performative politics took place recently north of the border. Compared to the first two examples, it was a complete and unmitigated disaster. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government invited a Ukrainian-Canadian veteran to be honored with a standing ovation in the House of Commons… A man who turned out to be a veteran of the 14th division of Hitler’s Waffen-SS (1st Galician) in World War II, a group that was known for its genocide of Poles, Jews, and other ethnic minorities in what eventually became Ukraine after the break up of the Soviet Union. The soldiers of the 1st Galician were responsible for burning 1,000 Polish people alive.  Horrific!

Oops! 

After Canadian Jewish groups demanded an explanation, the prime minster tried to rationalize why his government acted so callously:

Trudeau, meanwhile, pointed to the “deeply embarrassing” event as a reason to “push back against Russian propaganda,” as though the Kremlin somehow smuggled an nonagenarian Nazi collaborator into parliament, then hypnotized the Prime Minister and his colleagues, Manchurian Candidate-style, into celebrating him as a hero. --from Canada's Honoring of Nazi Vet Exposes Ottawa's Longstanding Ukraine Policy

Using your critical thinking skills you’ve sharpened with the first two examples, who are in the obvious audience and the not-so-obvious audience Trudeau hoped to reach with this performance? We can assume that the public wasn't suppose to discover the genocidal history of this particular Ukrainian-Canadian veteran and that this “honor” given by Parliament would promote more Canadian corporations arms sales to Ukraine. Obviously, independent thinkers weren’t fooled and shared the information of the man's identity widely. Whether or not this negative publicity will affect Canadian arms sales to Ukraine remains to be seen.

Trudeau's not-so-obvious audience were the arms manufacturers who want the bloodshed to continue in Ukraine. The CEOS of the Canadian military-industrial complex were probably salivating at the thought of more arms sales. Endless proxy war is great for the NATO war machine, even if it’s not so great for the health and safety of human beings on the whole.

Hopefully you’re getting a handle on what is meant by “performative politics” by studying these recent examples. If you’re still confused why I labeled these three politicians “neoliberals” then go back to the definition for neoliberalism above and re-read the last line: [neoliberalism's]“commitment to the freedom of trade and capital.”

Think about that sentence. There’s a lot of capital to be made in the trading of armaments and munitions. All three of these politicians—AOC, Biden, and Trudeau—are on good terms with the military-industrial complex and are eager to see the trade in arms grow. They may say they support the striking workers, the environment, and veterans, but at the end of the day their actions make more money for the CEOs of the Big Three automakers, Big Oil, and the military-industrial complex.

And remember: actions always speak louder than words. Just ask this guy:

Keep sharpening your critical thinking skills and doing your research into the backgrounds and motivations of everyone who is involved in politics or the “activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status.” 

Why? Because it seems politicians enjoy distributing the world's resources into their own pockets and keeping the status quo exactly the way it is while the world burns. Their fat personal bank accounts apparently help them sleep well at night, too. Stop believing the "performances" of politicians and hold them accountable before it's too late.

 

Related Articles and Interesting Links:

The Climate March, Joe Biden, and AOC's Dubious Endorsement https://scheerpost.com/2023/09/19/the-climate-march-joe-biden-and-aocs-dubious-endorsement

Biden Administration Breaks Climate Promise and Approves Willow Project https://www.commondreams.org/newswire/biden-administration-breaks-climate-promise-and-approves-willow-project 

Clusterf*cked: The Cruelty is the Point https://continuousrev.blogspot.com/2023/07/clusterfcked-cruelty-is-point.html

Nazi SS Veteran Receives Standing Ovation in Canadian Parliament https://peoplesdispatch.org/2023/09/26/nazi-ss-veteran-receives-standing-ovation-in-canadian-parliament/

Canada's Honoring of Nazi Vet Exposes Ottawas Longstanding Ukraine Policy https://scheerpost.com/2023/10/01/canadas-honoring-of-nazi-vet-exposes-ottawas-longstanding-ukraine-policy/

How Joe Biden and The Democratic Party’s Climate Agenda Increases Environmental Racism More Than It Reduces Emissions https://blackagendareport.com/how-joe-biden-and-democratic-partys-climate-agenda-increases-environmental-racism-more-it-reduces

GOOD NEWS: Climate Lawsuits Against Fossil Fuel Industry Starting to Build Major Momentum https://stevendonziger.substack.com/p/good-news-climate-lawsuits-against

Biden’s Picket Line Visit Doesn’t Mean He Is On Our Side
https://www.leftvoice.org/bidens-picket-line-visit-doesnt-mean-he-is-on-our-side/

Canadian parliament’s applause for Nazi war criminal exposes NATO war against Russia  https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2023/09/28/xalg-s28.html

In Canada, Denialism Grows Over Residential Schools Ahead of Orange Shirt Day  https://truthout.org/articles/in-canada-denialism-grows-over-residential-schools-ahead-of-orange-shirt-day/

Senator Menendez and co-defendants plead not guilty as Democrats seek to contain fallout from bribery scandal
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2023/09/28/lwpt-s28.html

William Astore: What Would Real ‘National Defense’ Look Like?
https://scheerpost.com/2023/09/27/william-astore-what-would-real-national-defense-look-like/

People Are Dying For Inches In Ukraine, The "World's Largest Arms Fair"  https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/people-are-dying-for-inches-in-ukraine

Caitlin Johnstone: Neocons Love the Ukraine War
https://scheerpost.com/2023/09/28/caitlin-johnstone-neocons-love-the-ukraine-war/

US House Rejects Cluster-Bomb Ban https://consortiumnews.com/2023/09/28/us-lawmakers-reject-cluster-bomb-ban/

Fog Over Nord Stream https://scheerpost.com/2023/09/28/fog-over-nord-stream/

Files Expose Syrian ‘Revolution’ As Western Regime Change Operation https://popularresistance.org/files-expose-syrian-revolution-as-western-regime-change-operation/

Patrick Lawrence: The Undiscovered Country https://scheerpost.com/2023/09/28/patrick-lawrence-the-undiscovered-country/

Suing For a Livable Planet https://scheerpost.com/2023/09/28/suing-for-a-livable-planet/

A Major Win Against Factory Farming In Oregon https://popularresistance.org/a-major-win-against-factory-farming-in-oregon/

Uninvited and Unaccountable: How CBP Policed George Floyd Protests https://theintercept.com/2023/09/21/cbp-george-floyd-protests/

UN Report Urges End to Forced US Prison Labor—a 'Contemporary Form of Slavery' https://www.commondreams.org/news/racism-in-the-criminal-justice-system

Philadelphia Youth React When Charges Are Dropped Against Killer Cop https://popularresistance.org/philadelphia-youth-react-when-charges-are-dropped-against-killer-cop/

Why Our Popular Mass Movements Fail https://chrishedges.substack.com/p/why-our-popular-mass-movements-fail

 

Interview with a Non-Scientist

 

Interview with a Non-Scientist

by C. A. Matthews

With the recent March to End Fossil Fuels in New York and the deadly floods in Libya and elsewhere, environmental crises and activism have been talked about in the both mainstream media and podcast outlets alike. Climate scientists like Peter Kalmus have preached the warning far and wide that burning fossil fuels has heated our atmosphere causing detrimental climate change and, more than likely, irreparable damage to our planet. Green Party presidential candidate Dr. Cornel West has elevated the climate emergency by actually speaking about it on the campaign trail, unlike others running for the same office who somehow think expanding oil drilling on federal lands is a good idea.

Sane persons ask, “What will it take for Big Oil to shut down forever and allow green energy to take over? Why won’t our elected officials listen to the concerned climate scientists instead of their obscenely wealthy corporate donors? Why does the mainstream media tolerate #ClimateHoax people at the expense of #ClimateEmergency people?”

Why indeed.

I decided to track down a climate crisis denier and ask them for their perspective on recent happenings in the weather. Perhaps their insights can answer these questions and clear up some of the confusion. To that end, I put out a call and received a response from one Freddie Flattearther. Here is the transcript of that interview:

 

The Revolution Continues: Welcome to the The Revolution Continues blog, Freddie. Thanks for taking some of your valuable time to talk with us.

Freddie Flattearther: Thanks for this opportunity. It isn’t usual that a communist organization is interested in hearing anything from the sane side of this climate change argument, so I must admit I was quite happy to oblige.

TRC: You’re welcome. We’re not exactly a “communist organization,” but we do pride ourselves on keeping an open mind and being one with the workers. So, let’s start by you telling us a little about yourself and why you feel you’re qualified to speak about the so-called “Climate Hoax” you claim is currently happening.

FF: You could say that I’m a proud non-scientist who knows tons more about the climate changing than any of these so called “climate scientists” out there. You wonder what they’re teaching in those colleges nowadays, but, whatever it is, it’s not commonsense.

TRC: It’s not commonsense? Please elaborate on why being a “non-scientist” makes you an expert in an area that others study for many years at a high level of academia?

FF: I call it the “They-can’t-see-the-forest-for-the-trees Syndrome.” Those eggheads can’t even look at their calendars and see the main reason why the climate is changing. You need an ordinary person like me whose mind hasn’t been contaminated with too much knowledge to explain it.

TRC: Please do.

FF: (Lowering his voice.) It’s so simple that even a child can understand it. The climate changes all the time. It’s called "the four seasons"—and I don’t mean the pop group with Frankie Valli from the 1960s or the big, fancy hotel chain, either.

TRC: So the massive floods, the unprecedented number of strong hurricanes so far this year, the unusual heat waves and droughts worldwide are all due to a simple change of the seasons? Is that correct?

FF: Well, not exactly. The seasons are changing, but they’re also getting both longer and shorter. Summer is about a month longer than normal I’ve observed over the last couple of years. Hence, we had a very intense hot spell in what used to be a month normally associated with spring. There’s also a big chance they’ll be a larger than average number of hurricanes occurring because summer is longer, so there’s more room on the calendar to squish them in. I call this the “Rubber Band Effect.” Eventually we’ll snap out of it.

TRC: How will we “snap out of it”?

FF: The giant rubber band wound around the core of the planet will eventually break, bringing things back to normal.

TRC: There’s a giant rubber band wrapped around the core of the planet? I wasn’t sure you believed in a round Earth with a core, what with your last name and all, Mr. Flattearther.

FF: My family used to believe in a flat Earth, but I’ve grown a little in my outlook over the decades. A flat Earth makes it hard to explain a lot of planetary events. However, the rubber band core explains earthquakes and the climate changing dramatically quite well.

TRC: This rubber band core explains the devastating earthquake in Morocco recently?

FF: Yes, that was the rubber band core being bounced hard by the giant who lives on the dark side of the moon.

TRC: (Clearing throat.) There’s a giant on the moon who bounces the earth’s core now and then?

FF: Yes, and he bounces it mostly when he’s bored. He’s grown very bored these past fifty years because we haven’t sent up any more spaceships to the moon for him to slingshot them around. It’s one of the biggest reasons why it’s been growing hotter lately.

TRC: (Nodding slowly.) Uh-huh. Explain how that works. And does this giant have a name?

FF: Those intense heat blasts come out of the giant’s mouth. He’s full of hot air, so I’ve given him the name of “Mr. Gassy.” And he is a stinker! His burping and farting explains why our air smells rather rank like rotten eggs sometimes, especially when the wind is blowing from the side of town where the oil refinery is located.

TRC: You don’t believe the obnoxious smells are coming from local manufacturing and/or the oil refinery itself?

FF: Nah, they couldn’t be. I know for a fact that our factories and our oil refinery only emit the purest of air.

TRC: (Raising an eyebrow.) Really? How do you know this to be true? Most people would say that the bad smells are indicative of the pollutants being spewed out of the smoke stacks.

FF: Of course it’s true! Why would Exxon or Chevron lie to us? They take care of little ducklings and goslings whenever they’re in need of a bath. There’s a TV commercial that shows this to be true.

TRC: You mean the dish soap commercial showing people washing oil off of wild birds’ feathers after they were got caught in an oil slick? Okay, I see where now you’re possibly getting your ideas. Do you always believe whatever you see or hear on television?

FF: For the most part, yes. There’s no reason for the big corporations to lie to us. They live on the same planet with us. Why would they pollute their own air and water, for instance? (Laughing.) I bet you don’t have a good answer to that!

TRC: No, I don’t. There is no good reason why anyone or any corporation would pollute their own air and water, but they do. As they say, “It's an ill bird that fouls its own nest.”

FF: See? I told you there’s no real reason to worry about a “climate emergency.” (Miming quote marks.) The corporations are looking after us like they look after those sick birds. We can trust them because they’re smart, unlike our politicians. They’re all a bunch of morons.

TRC: On that point, we’re agreed. Politicians are, for the most part, unethical morons, but how can we be so sure we’re not being duped by Big Oil, for instance?

FF: I’m sure they’re not lying to us, because if I ever found out they had lied about the quality of their product, gasoline, I’d stop buying so much of it for my Cadillac Escalade and buy one of those plug-in electric cars instead. I’d be downright angry if I ever found out how their products caused the earth to become hotter or dryer in the summer months or caused deadly flooding and storms where normally there aren’t any. Lots of people like me would stop buying gasoline, and that would put the oil companies out of business. They’re not stupid. They rely on people like me to stay in business.

TRC: They certainly do. So, you’re not angry about Mr. Gassy the giant bouncing the earth or batting it about?

FF: No, not really. It’s just the way he is. I just hope the US can nuke China soon so we can prevent the Chinese from sending any more space probes to the dark side of the moon. It annoys him.

TRC: Uh, yeah. Do you feel that nuclear war is winnable?

FF: All wars are winnable—if you have Mr. Gassy on your side.

TRC: Yeah, I thought you might say that. It’s been quite an experience chatting with you, Freddie Flattearther. Everyone, be careful out there and try not to get on the giant’s bad side. It seems the future of everyone on Earth is counting on it.

Related Articles and Other Interesting Links: 

 

Peter Kalmus speaking at the End Fossil Fuels march in NYC

https://youtu.be/1rJHlFME480?si=H4t1ymTZIsP3zyUx

Civil Society Reactions To United Nations Climate Ambition Summit https://popularresistance.org/civil-society-reactions-to-united-nations-climate-ambition-summit/

Climate Defenders Arrested While Blocking Entry To NY Federal Reserve  https://popularresistance.org/climate-defenders-arrested-while-blocking-entry-to-ny-federal-reserve/

The Climate March, Joe Biden, and AOC’s Dubious Endorsement
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A Guide To Six Greenwashing Terms Big Ag Is Bringing To COP28https://popularresistance.org/a-guide-to-six-greenwashing-terms-big-ag-is-bringing-to-cop28/

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This War Wasn't Just Provoked — It Was Provoked Deliberately
https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/this-war-wasnt-just-provoked-it-was

War Profiteers Are A Sign Of A Profoundly Sick Society
https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/war-profiteers-are-a-sign-of-a-profoundly

We're Being Prepared For The Ukraine War To Last Into The 2030s
https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/were-being-prepared-for-the-ukraine

 

Ukraine Follows Imperial Japan's Example in the Attrition of its Military https://ohiobarbarian.substack.com/p/ukraine-follows-imperial-japans-example

Australian Politicians Coming To US To Free Julian Assange
https://popularresistance.org/australian-politicians-coming-to-us-to-free-julian-assange/

US Sees Highest Ever Increase in Poverty https://consortiumnews.com/2023/09/22/us-sees-highest-ever-increase-in-poverty/

If The Facts Come Out, It Could Spell The End For Joe Biden
https://popularresistance.org/if-the-facts-come-out-it-could-spell-the-end-for-joe-biden/

'Silent Coup'—How corporations rule the world w/Matt Kennard | The Chris Hedges Report https://youtu.be/1xRrk-cYU-E?si=0o252v-vU6MR3E_D

Biden orders deployment of 800 soldiers to US-Mexico border https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2023/09/23/xsta-s23.html

Beyond the Border: U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Presence at Racial Justice Protests in Summer of 2020
https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/FOIA/cbp-presence-racial-justice-protests-summer-2020

Citizen Groups Sue EPA for Using Black Neighborhoods as “Sacrifice Zones” https://truthout.org/articles/citizen-groups-sue-epa-for-using-black-neighborhoods-as-sacrifice-zones/

Striking Autoworkers at Stellantis Are Up Against a Yacht-Sailing Billionaire  https://truthout.org/articles/striking-autoworkers-at-stellantis-are-up-against-a-yacht-sailing-billionaire/

Boston March October 7 To Demand: Indigenous Peoples Day Now! https://popularresistance.org/boston-march-october-7-to-demand-indigenous-peoples-day-now/ 

 

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