Weaponizing Free Speech

 

This is the dystopia you were warned about. A mind-controlled populace thinking, speaking, shopping, moving and voting in accordance with the will of the powerful. All that's left now is to secure the few dissidents on the fringes and keep bolstering the mind control matrix.

This doesn't mean it's hopeless, it just means we've got to acknowledge reality and start working from where we're at. The biggest obstacle to real freedom is the belief that we already have it. --Caitlin Johnstone, The Empire of Hypocrisy

 

Weaponizing Free Speech

by C. A. Matthews

Most Americans believe that no one has ever gotten into trouble simply for speaking their mind. No matter how much you might disagree with a fellow American, you probably agree that they have the right to free speech. You believe that freedom of speech is a basic right protected by our Constitution. You feel confident that all Americans have the right to believe and express themselves as they deem fit. 

Sorry to break it to y’all, but you really don’t.  

Free speech is not guaranteed, as demonstrated by the latest US government shenanigans. The feds have charged four African Americans simply because they are members of the African People’s Socialist Party and expressed opinions that don’t align with the current administration’s viewpoint. 

According to the Black Alliance for Peace: 

The unsealed indictment states that on Tuesday, April 18, 2023, a federal grand jury in Tampa, Florida, levied charges of “conspiring to covertly sow discord in U.S. society, spread Russian propaganda and interfere illegally in U.S. elections.” While no evidence of conspiracy, propagandizing, or interference has been presented, the APSP and its members have the right, as all US citizens do, to freely criticize U.S. domestic and foreign policy.

Not since the Palmer Raids of the early 20th century, nor since the indictment of W.E.B DuBois in 1951, or the confiscation of Paul Robeson’s U.S. passport during the anti-communist “McCarthyist” era, has there been such a hysterical response to African people asserting their rights and freedom of speech in the United States.

The Department of Justice claims APSP members had “weaponized” free speech by expressing solidarity with the Russian people and “conspiring to interfere” with US elections. Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen in the DOJ's press release regarding the indictments stated, “The department will not hesitate to expose and prosecute those who sow discord and corrupt US elections in service of hostile foreign interests, regardless of whether the culprits are US citizens or foreign individuals abroad.”

Quick translation: The DOJ is prosecuting US citizens for political speech and related activities because they’re worried that more and more Americans don’t agree with the status quo of the uniparty and might not support the incumbent in the upcoming presidential election. The grand jury alleges that a Russian national "directed" these Americans to "publish pro-Russian propaganda" and "information designed to cause dissension in the United States." 

HandsOffUhuru.org

(Watch this excellent short video to learn more about the case: https://youtu.be/fvwhHouTZh0. Omali Yeshitela, APSP co-founder, voices how the US government apparently doesn't believe that African Americans are intelligent enough to come up with a socialist philosophy all on their own or know if they're being used by a foreign power. Obviously the FBI feels scared enough of an 82 year old African American man that they had to use violent tactics to break into his home to handcuff him and arrest him.)

I take all the Biden administration's legal mumbo-jumbo to mean that the Dems can’t afford to have any real competition running against the corpse of Joe Biden for a second term because he and his war in Ukraine are that unpopular. They must shut all dissenting voices down no matter how fascistic it makes them look. I suppose the white supremacists at the FBI couldn't wait to do something this evil, too.

(Did I just say that part out loud about Biden being a corpse and the FBI being Klansmen? Should I be watching out the window for the feds to arrive any minute on my doorstep carrying flash bang grenades?)

I do believe in “The pen is mightier than the sword,” and “The truth shall set you free.” But when an army’s worth of federal agents can show up at your front door and take you away simply because you’re an 82 year old African People’s Socialist Party member who doesn’t agree with the US government's racist and warmongering actions, can anyone ever too be careful speaking their mind? Will believing in the truth and the power of free speech save us from government abuse?

It's not reasonable for the government to just dismiss the First Amendment on the grounds that it is being "weaponized". You can't have your government dictating what speech is valid and what counts as "agitprop" and "disinformation", because they'll always define those terms in ways which benefit the government, thus giving more power to the powerful and taking power away from the people. -- Caitlin Johnstone

Speaking of abuse, although this is nothing quite as horrific as what’s happening to the APSP members, I was accused of using “weaponized” free speech this past week as well. I found myself a victim of corporate censorship. For the first time in eight years of writing and editing this weekly blog, a warning appeared at the top of the Blogger posting page. It read:

Your post titled "Who Is Stealing Our Election? " was flagged to us for review. We have determined that it violates our guidelines and have unpublished the URL http://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2016/05/who-is-stealing-our-elections
making it unavailable to blog readers.

Say what? What could we have published that was so heinous that it had to be hidden from public view now? Why was Google (who owns Blogger) all of a sudden so upset that it had to censor the post, “Who Is Stealing Our Election?” after seven years? The post was published in early May 2016, long before Trump and his followers’ denials of the 2020 election results began. The date of the post should have been a dead giveaway about whose election was being “stolen” and by whom.

Flashback: Bernie Sanders was being royally screwed over by the Hillary Clinton campaign in early 2016. The trolling of “Berners” online was dreadful. As editor of what was then known as The Bernie Blog, I gladly published almost every decently written submission sent in by Bernie supporters. A short piece called, “Who Is Stealing Our Election?” was the first of two short pieces that I edited and published that week, so I titled the entire posting with that catchy question.

Who would have thought that seven years later a bunch of neoliberals would get their knickers in a twist (or panties in a bunch) so much that anything that sounds remotely like something a Trump supporter might say about the 2020 election must be completely blocked from public view, censored forever?

After a quick edit or “self-censoring” of the title, Blogger allowed the post to go live again. I didn’t change a word of the posting, just its title. Somehow that change made it acceptable to Google for public consumption. The English-speaking public once again has been saved by the brave censorship of private agents working behind the scenes for the US government, or, in this case, the Joe Biden re-election campaign.

And what exactly are we being saved from by corporate censorship? What didn’t you have the right to read because the powers-that-be wanted to protect your delicate sensibilities? From what I can gather from the Blogger policy page, it’s most likely this:

Misleading Content

Do not distribute content that deceives, misleads, or confuses users. This includes:

Misleading content related to civic and democratic processes: content that is demonstrably false and could significantly undermine participation or trust in civic or democratic processes. This includes information about public voting procedures, political candidate eligibility based on age / birthplace, election results, or census participation that contradicts official government records. It also includes incorrect claims that a political figure or government official has died, been involved in an accident, or is suffering from a sudden serious illness.

Now, why would anyone have any doubts about Joe Biden based on his “age” or from“suffering from a sudden serious illness,” such as having a stroke or dementia or that he hasn't "died" already and is simply a walking zombie? It's not like he's ever been seen babbling like an idiot on camera or wandering off a stage or looking to shake an invisible hand, is it?

I apologize if we’ve ever mislead you with the content here at The Revolution Continues or made you not trust in “civic or democratic processes,” but that was never our intent. The post from seven years ago was simply a Berner’s lament over how the Clinton campaign had “stolen” Bernie’s primary wins. Well, we live and learn and move on, don’t we? The Dems haven’t “stolen” any primaries from their rightful winners since 2016, right? And it's not like they're cancelling the Democratic Party primaries and debates in 2024, either!

(If you believe those last two statements, I have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you, or its equivalent in the Midwest. Your choice!)

Free speech is a right no American should ever take lightly. People have fought and died for your right to express yourself freely. People have been imprisoned around the world for expressing themselves and sharing important—and sometimes embarrassing and incriminating—information about governments.

One such journalist springs to mind: Julian Assange. This week marks the fourth anniversary of Assange becoming the guest of His Majesty King Charles in England's Belmarsh Prison. In other words, an Australian journalist has been imprisoned in the UK because of his “crime” of journalism that has made the US government very angry. Assange dared to publish on his online platform, Wikileaks, the infamous “Collateral Murder” video. He exposed the lies of many governments, but he was particularly prolific in sharing information about the US involvement in the bloody war in Iraq and the tortures of detainees at our super-secret base at Guantanamo Bay. And, so far, nothing Wikileaks has ever published has been proven false.

Assange is being charged under the 1917 Espionage Act. His case raises troubling questions about whether it breaches both the First and Fifth Amendments of the Constitution. The Espionage Act criminalizes journalism by ignoring the fact that the First Amendment makes an exception for a journalist possessing and informing the public about state secrets that reveal government crimes and corruption. 

 

Assange’s indictment should be dismissed on the ground that the Espionage Act’s overreach is an existential threat to First Amendment freedoms. For a US court to do otherwise is to undermine due process and threaten the First Amendment’s guarantee of a free press. But we will see. This administration's paranoid take on free speech being used as a "weapon" seems to be the driving force in his continued imprisonment.

Just like the APSP members speaking their minds, and our blog posting a short piece with an incendiary title implying that elections can actually be stolen in the US, Julian Assange is being actively censored. He is by being blotted out of human memory, locked up to wither away behind bars without trial, his reputation smeared by Western governments because they didn’t like what he had to say, and they don’t want the rest of the world to know what he has yet to say. 

Other independent journalists have been censored, mocked, and threatened recently. Remember Matt Taibbi and Seymour Hersh? We featured both on them on the blog not too long ago. They're also being harassed by the US government and their corporate media partners.  

Matt Taibbi is even being threatened with criminal charges of lying to a Congressional committee for a mistake made by a network propagandist who interviewed him on MSNBC. Seymour Hersh has been ridiculed and his Substack posts about the Nord Stream 2 pipeline bombing have been blocked on Facebook and labeled as "disinformation." If you ever needed more proof that the US government doesn't believe in the public's right to know and practice free speech, the demeaning treatment of these two maligned journalists prove it.

To all of you who are still reading at this point, I have just one word of advice to you in case you ever feel compelled to censor yourself and not use your right of free speech as a “weapon” for good in the world.

Don’t.

No matter what the corrupt government threatens, no matter what the corrupt corporations that do their bidding threaten, nothing—absolutely nothing—is as important as free speech and your right to express yourself fully. It is your inborn right, and it is your duty to continue to speak and write freely. It is your inborn right and your duty not to believe, agree with, or even acknowledge the lies and propaganda put out by untrustworthy powers-that-be.

Because if you don’t believe in and practice free speech in spite of the risks, then who else will?

 

Related Links:

Why Is The Government Targeting Black Socialists? (video) https://youtu.be/fvwhHouTZh0

Indictment Of African People’s Socialist Party Is A Racist Assault On The Black Liberation Movement https://popularresistance.org/indictment-of-african-peoples-socialist-party-is-a-racist-assault-on-the-black-liberation-movement/

Biden DOJ Just Indicted 4 Americans For Free Speech! Who's Next? (video)  https://www.youtube.com/live/EzvJIBfIYu4

War on Dissidents: New DOJ Indictments Criminalize Dissent—Weaponizing the Russian Censorship Tactics They Condemned (video) https://youtu.be/uxa_BSMPf1Q

Biden DOJ Indicts Four Americans For "Weaponized" Free Speech
https://caitlinjohnstone.substack.com/p/biden-doj-indicts-four-americans

Biden DOJ Charges Black Activists For Supporting Russia (video)
https://www.youtube.com/live/sbKT-MeY7kU

You're Not Immune To Propaganda (video) https://youtu.be/dl2fnWIlDZg

The Empire of Hypocrisy https://caitlinjohnstone.substack.com/p/the-empire-of-hypocrisy-notes-from 

The American Empire and its Media
https://swprs.org/the-american-empire-and-its-media/

1st Amendment Authorized Assange’s Possession of Classified Data
https://scheerpost.com/2023/04/21/1st-amendment-authorized-assanges-possession-of-classified-data/

WikiLeaks: Collateral Murder (Iraq, 2007) https://youtu.be/HfvFpT-iypw (video)

Corporate Media Are The Anti-Wikileaks https://popularresistance.org/corporate-media-are-the-anti-wikileaks/

Facebook Brands Seymour Hersh Reporting As ‘False’ & What Does This Mean For A Free Press (video) https://odysee.com/@HardLensMedia:9/facebook-brands-seymour-hersh-reporting:2

Matt Taibbi: House Democrats Have Lost Their Minds
https://scheerpost.com/2023/04/19/house-democrats-have-lost-their-minds/

MSNBC Host’s Lie Could Send Journalist to Prison! w/ Matt Taibbi (video) https://youtu.be/tWNh03Ma1SA

Digital McCarthyism  https://continuousrev.blogspot.com/2023/03/digital-mccarthyism.html

Pay For Your Own Wars, Big Oil! https://continuousrev.blogspot.com/2023/02/pay-for-your-own-wars-big-oil.html

Here Come the Militarized Robots (But There Go Our Civil Liberties) https://scheerpost.com/2023/04/18/here-come-the-militarized-robots-but-there-go-our-civil-liberties/

House Democrat Threatens Twitter Files Journalist with Prosecution and Imprisonment  https://leefang.substack.com/p/house-democrat-threatens-twitter

Today In Empire: War Machine-Funded War Games, Facebook Censors Hersh, And More  https://caitlinjohnstone.substack.com/p/today-in-empire-war-machine-funded

Universal Public Services: The Power of Decommodifying Survival
https://popularresistance.org/universal-public-services-the-power-of-decommodifying-survival/

Fossil Fuel Giants with Most Emissions Paid $118 Billion to CEOs in the Last Decade https://truthout.org/articles/fossil-fuel-giants-with-most-emissions-paid-1-18-billion-to-ceos-in-last-decade/

You Won't Believe Who Got The Richest From The Afghanistan War
https://youtu.be/wEFTLIzGZ6M

 

Accountable to the Citizens (Democracy Day 2023)

 

If you're lucky, one day you might receive an opportunity to speak your mind to your local elected officials in city hall. I've been fortunate enough to have been asked to address our local city council on Democracy Day. 

Democracy Day is an event celebrated by several cities, and it's sponsored here in Toledo by Move to Amend and Ohio Single-Payer Action Network. This year, unfortunately, I came down with COVID at the last minute and was unable to attend in person, but my testimony was added to the record. Here's what I have to say about how corporations aren't people, people have human rights, and our government has the power to protect our health and safety from the abuses of corporations such as Norfolk Southern.

Accountable to the Citizens 

(Democracy Day 2023)

by C. A. Matthews

“Accountable to the citizens, not Wall Street.”
 
This is a bullet point I read on an Ohio Single-Payer Action Network (SPAN) leaflet. It begins by stating “Realizing the right to health care,” and follows with the idea that health care should be, “Universal,” and “Have high quality standards of care for all.” Health care should also be “Publicly financed” and emphasizes that it “Is not tied to employment.” All of these are excellent points to make, but the one I want to focus on today, Democracy Day 2023, is this: “Accountable to the citizens, not Wall Street.”

To put it bluntly, our health, our safety, and our lives should never be made subservient to the whims and the profits of corporations. Even simpler yet—no one should be making money off of anyone’s illness or need for medical treatment. But time and time again we read headlines such as: “Big Pharmaceutical makes billions off of new vaccine whose research was publicly funded.” We read headlines about how the US is the only so-called developed nation where families go bankrupt trying to pay for their health care—health care that is provided freely, as a public service, in most other developed countries.

“Accountable to the citizens, not Wall Street.” So, why aren’t we holding Wall Street accountable for the thousands of preventable deaths each year in the US, deaths caused by the lack of access to health care? What are we afraid of really by not holding Wall Street accountable? Not being bullied to death by billionaires?

Wall Street not only rules our access to health care, it also rules our ability to remain safe in our homes and communities. One recent example drives this point home more than ever: The toxic chemical burn instigated after the Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. This prescribed burn of derailed tanker cars full of vinyl chloride released phosgene gas into the air and extremely poisonous dioxins into the environment.

If you’re old enough to remember the EPA Super Fund site of the village of Times Beach, Missouri, you’ll remember just how teratogenic and carcinogenic dioxins are to human life. If you’re old enough to remember learning about the First World War, you’ll recall that phosgene gas was a colorless gas that killed thousands of soldiers in the trenches.

Scarier still, this type of event probably won’t be the last time a train-full of toxic chemicals derails in the Buckeye State. That same Norfolk Southern train that derailed in East Palestine passed through Toledo earlier. What if that train had derailed in Toledo? Would we be standing here sharing our thoughts today at Democracy Day, or would we have been evacuated to a safer locale instead? Would we be discussing the rights of corporations to have the same rights as persons or the fact that we all had just been poisoned by a for-profit venture that couldn’t care less about our health and safety?

Our state attorney general has recently started a lawsuit against Norfolk Southern, to sue for damages from the derailment, but can money alone repay the harm caused to our neighbors in East Palestine? Can money alone bring the thousands of heads of livestock, fish, birds, deer, and other wildlife back from the dead? Can money alone relieve fears, rejuvenate the town’s ruined reputation, or realize a perfectly reborn environment in Eastern Ohio and Western Pennsylvania?

Money can’t buy love, and it certainly can’t bring back the dead. Not even corporate persons with deep pockets like Norfolk Southern have that kind of godlike power. The best option in this case is to never let something like the derailment and toxin burn that happened in East Palestine ever happen again.

Money can’t buy everything. We the People shouldn’t accept it alone as redress for these incalculable losses. I think we as citizens of Toledo, subject to three days without drinkable water in 2014, can empathize with the plight of the people of East Palestine, as we also suffered—and still suffer—from corporations’ rights taking precedence over human beings’ rights when it comes to our water.

The Lake Erie Billof Rights, better known as LEBOR, is the first "Rights of Nature" law that citizens passed by a definite majority in the US. It demonstrates that concerned citizens have caught on to the specious argument that “corporations are people.” Our rights to clean water were abridged by factory farm corporations that continually dump untreated animal wastes into our drinking water supply. A factory farm, Drewes Farms, claimed in their lawsuit against LEBOR that they had the right of “free speech,” and that their “rights” would be abridged if they had to clean up their animals’ effluence before it entered into the Maumee River watershed. If I hadn’t been sitting in the courtroom that day the verdict was read, I would have never believed such a specious argument could have convinced a federal district judge, but heck—they won, didn’t they?

I suppose Norfolk Southern will argue their rights to “free speech” could be abridged, just like Drewes Farms, if they were forbidden to burn toxic chemicals from their derailed train cars in East Palestine and elsewhere. I’m not that optimistic the state of Ohio will ever see any meaningful recompense for the victims of the burn from the dream team of lawyers that Norfolk Southern is lining up even as I speak. As I sat in that courtroom as the fate of LEBOR hung in the balance, I experienced up close what corporate money and lobbying does in the state of Ohio and in this country. It doesn’t protect the right of the people, that’s for sure.

Without possessing massive amounts of money like corporations, we mere human beings are defenseless. This means that We the People must take direct action to protect ourselves from these corporate-caused harms to our health, safety and environment.

On this Democracy Day, I propose that the city of Toledo resurrect its bravery that it displayed defending LEBOR and pass resolutions to protect its citizens from potential harms caused by toxic chemicals transported through our city. Trains, trucks, barges, boats, and planes can all carry toxic substances that, if leaked into our environment, can kill, injure, and maim our people, pets, livestock and wildlife. We can’t afford to let that happen. If what happened in East Palestine happened here in Toledo, a city with at least 60 times the population, it would have made the national news in less than three days and possibly even enticed Mayor Pete or President Biden to visit us in less then a week rather than a month later (or not at all).

Toledoans must put human rights above corporate profits and institute rules, regulations and safety procedures to prevent derailments or spills of toxins into our city’s environment. To ignore this potential threat or to think that only higher levels of government can or will handle this kind of emergency is to ignore the reality of the corporate owned and operated political system Americans are currently trapped in. Our neighbors in East Palestine discovered that ordinary Americans can’t depend on the federal or the state EPA to test for toxins or even to give us the truth about our health and safety in a timely manner. We the People must fend for ourselves as a community. We can do it.

Last year, Toledo instituted a program to pay off the outstanding medical debts of its citizens. This compassionate act has been duplicated in numerous cities across the US since then. Clearly, we have the smarts and the empathy to take care of our own. Toledo doesn’t have to bow down and kiss corporations’ backsides and put up with so-called “corporate persons” polluting our water, land, and air. We can fight back, and we should fight back.

It’s time for Toledo to become known as a city where human rights reign supreme and corporate profits take a back seat to our community’s health and safety. Toledo can make a difference and should make a difference in the world—a positive, human-centric difference. Our children and grandchildren will thank us for our insight and bravery.

Related Resources:

The State of East Palestine Ohio From the Eyes of a Local https://popularresistance.org/the-state-of-east-palestine-ohio-from-the-eyes-of-a-local/

How Corporate Greed Destroyed East Palestine (Documentary film by Second Thought) https://youtu.be/TcSLlveDu6k

Rail Workers Demand Immediate Action from Lawmakers to Rein in Rail Industry https://truthout.org/articles/rail-workers-demand-immediate-action-from-lawmakers-to-rein-in-rail-industry/

Exposure to Chevron's Climate Friendly Fuel May Pose Severe Risk of Cancer https://truthout.org/articles/exposure-to-chevrons-climate-friendly-fuel-may-pose-severe-risk-of-cancer/

Poison and Private Police: Norfolk Southern Destroys East Palestine https://odysee.com/@TheGrayzone:c/poison-and-private-police-norfolk:a

The Toxic Rail Disaster in Ohio: The Homicidal Indifference of the Ruling Class Laid Bare https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2023/02/15/zbrv-f15.html

Biden DOJ Backing Norfolk Southern’s Bid To Block Lawsuits https://www.levernews.com/bidens-doj-backing-norfolk-southern-case-to-block-lawsuits/

Rail Company Claims East Palestine Water Is Safe After Funding Sloppy Testing https://truthout.org/articles/rail-company-claims-east-palestine-water-is-safe-after-funding-sloppy-testing

A Norfolk Southern Policy Lets Officials Order Crews To Ignore Safety Alerts https://scheerpost.com/2023/02/23/a-norfolk-southern-policy-lets-officials-order-crews-to-ignore-safety-alerts/ 

The Value American Capitalism Places on Workers’ Lives: BP fined $156,250 for the deaths of two refinery operators in Ohio explosion https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2023/03/24/pers-m24.html

White House to Shut Down COVID Response Task Force https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2023/03/24/pned-m24.html

From Move to Amend:

The Norfolk Southern Corporation train derailment and subsequent hazardous chemical release in and beyond East Palestine, Ohio are the inevitable result of multiple anti-democratic realities. 

Many are interconnected and are the same for the roughly 1000 train derailments per year.

Private ownership of railroads

Norfolk Southern Corporation’s record earnings in 2022 benefited its top managers, speculators and investors. Maximizing profits have been prioritized over necessary investments in technology upgrades and worker safety. The Railroad Workers United in response is calling for public ownership of railroads, as they once were in WWI.

Lack of worker power

Strikes are powerful tactics of workers to exert leverage against management on safety issues and fair treatment. Unions representing rail workers have been virtually unable to strike since passage of the Railway Labor Act in 1926, which gives the government, specifically the President and Congress, vast powers to force workers to accept alternative means of resolving disputes.

No community rights

Communities have little authority to control material coming into or even passing through their jurisdictions by trains or trucks if that material can be defined as “commerce,” based on the Constitution’s Commerce Clause. Ohio state and E. Palestine officials weren’t even notified the Norfolk Southern train that derailed was carrying vinyl chloride, ethylhexyl acrylate and other highly toxic chemicals.

Corporate campaign contributions

The Railroad industry has poured $85 million into federal candidate campaigns, political parties and outside spending groups since 2002. Norfolk Southern’s political investments have been $17 million since 1990. At the state level, the corporation invested $98,000 into Ohio political races since 2018, with Gov. Mike DeWine (who at first didn’t call for federal assistance following the E. Palestine disaster since he didn’t see a problem) being the largest recipient. At the very least, political campaign contributions buy access to public officials; at worst, buys favors. 

Corporate lobbying

The railroad industry invested $24.6 million to employ 265 reported lobbyists to influence the federal government in 2022 – Norfolk Southern’s portion was $1.8 million.  Rail lobbyists and $6 million from the rail industry to GOP campaigns in 2017 effectively reversed requirements that rail cars carrying hazardous flammable materials have modern electronic braking systems. Lobbyists have sought for fewer workers on trains, trains to be longer and heavier, and reduced fines for penalties – as well as against installing modern electronic braking systems, paid sick leave for workers and having to define trains carrying hazardous chemicals like the Norfolk Southern that derailed in E. Palestine as “high hazard,” which would increase additional safety requirements, costs and public notification. 

Supreme Court decisions

The High Court decided that corporate entities have the constitutional right to contribute to political campaigns. This has permitted corporations like Norfolk Southern to corrupt the political process favorable to their interests, such as the previously mentioned laws and regulations profitable to railroads, Supreme Court-granted corporate Fourth Amendment search and seizure rights prevent surprise inspections of corporate property like trains meant to protect workers and communities.

Ineffective and/or captured regulatory agencies

Public safety inspections are not only limited by constitutional rights, but by regulatory agency funding. The Federal Railroad Administration, the major railroad regulatory agency, has only 400 inspectors. This has forced the FHA to increasingly allow railroad corporations to inspect their own trains, tracks and signals. The EPA recently announced that its requiring Norfolk Southern to directly test for dioxins in East Palestine. Where’s the public accountability when, in effect, an entity guilty of crime gets to be the prosecutor, judge and jury? 

Criminalization of protest 

Forty-five states have considered 265 “anti-protest” bills, 39 of which have already passed in 20 states since 2017. Penalties of felonies serve as a deterrent to individuals to attend public events and send the message that those who protest must be extremists. This mindset is reflected in the reaction by federal and Ohio “law enforcement” agencies to the recent visit of whistleblower Erin Brockovich to E. Palestine. A report by the agencies "assesses that special interest extremist groups will continue to call for changes in governmental policy, which may lead to protests in/around East Palestine and/or at the Statehouse in Columbus.”

The East Palestine tragedy is sadly just a symptom of current political realities and calls for fundamental systemic change.

Enacting the We the People Amendment, HJR48 that would abolish all corporate constitutional rights and political money defined as free speech, is urgent. But fundamental self-governance goes beyond the amendment. 

Independent people's movements led by individuals who’ve been historically treated unjustly is a prerequisite for how to get real democracy on track – for the very first time.

* * *

More on Democracy Day from Move to Amend:

Citizens Testify at Local Public Hearings in Ohio to End Corrupt Elections and Corporate Rule

Twelve public hearings are taking place in Ohio this year on the corruption resulting from the explosion of money spent in political elections and multiple harms due to increasing corporate power to influence elections and public policies.

The hearings are a result of citizen-driven ballot initiatives organized by supporters of the national Move to Amend Coalition working to pass the We the People Amendment (HJR48), introduced again this year in the U.S. House of Representatives by Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D, WA).

The ballot initiatives called for municipalities to inform federal and state officials representing their municipalities that citizens support an Amendment to the U.S. Constitution establishing that a corporation is not a person and political money spent in elections is not equivalent to First Amendment-protected free speech. The ballot initiatives also mandated municipalities to send to those same representatives a summary of testimony presented at an annual or biennial municipal-sponsored “Democracy Day” public hearings. All 12 communities that organized successful ballot initiatives have hearings this year, 11 sponsored by municipalities. 

The 12 communities with public hearings from February to September are Defiance, Mentor, Chagrin Falls, Painesville, Toledo, Brecksville, South Euclid, Cleveland, Cleveland Heights, Shaker Heights, Newburgh Heights and Kent. 

Seven hundred communities and eight states across the country have passed municipal resolutions and ballot initiatives since the 2010 Supreme Court Citizens United decision calling on Congress to pass a Constitutional Amendment to abolish corporate constitutional rights and money defined as free speech. In addition to the 12 Ohio communities that organized ballot initiatives beginning in 2012, 14 Ohio localities have passed municipal resolutions. These include Athens, Oberlin, Barberton, Fremont, Lakewood, South Euclid, Dayton, Canton, Oxford, Lorain, Bedford Heights, Oakwood Village, Tallmadge, University Heights.

“People across our state and nation are increasingly aware of and working to resist the corruption of big money in politics and unaccountable power of corporations over literally every aspect of our lives,” said Greg Coleridge, Move to Amend National Co-Director and Cleveland Heights resident. “These public hearings are opportunities to not only oppose these developments, but to advocate for a fundamental solution to increase people power: enactment of the We the People Amendment that affirms the rights protected by the Constitution are rights intended only for human persons, not corporations, and that money spent in elections is not free speech and can be publicly regulated.” 

"In Ohio we are directly witnessing catastrophic malfeasance by corporate profit interests:  animal factory farm waste into lake Erie, toxic train wreck in East Palestine, massive corrupted buyout of Ohio elected officials in Energy policy with HR 6 and First Energy corrupting the Ohio House leadership. It’s time to end this with one single constitutional amendment,” stated Dennis Slotnick, coordinator of the Toledo Democracy Day hearing. "This year, presentations will include, but are not limited to: The climate crisis, healthcare as a human right, voter suppression, a clean and healthy Lake Erie, statewide energy policy, CAFOs & watershed management, jobs with Justice and labor interests as each relates to  a corporation is not a person and money is not the same as free speech."

“We urgently need the We the People amendment to take back the power and ‘rights’ our government have bestowed on corporations. Most Americans simply don't realize the power corporations now wield over our health, safety, and public welfare. Nor do we understand the severe consequences of corporations having the Constitutional rights of citizens. The We the People amendment will return Constitutional power and ‘rights’ to the American people not just to the moneyed interests,” stated South Euclid Democracy Day public hearing organizer Madelon Watts. 

"Democracy Day is important as we need to call attention to the solution to the problem of powerful unaccountable for profit interests, dominating our public discourse by polluting our politics and airwaves with destructive disinformation designed to divide and confuse our citizens,” said Painesville Democracy Day co-coordinator Brad Deane. “Their power is fueled by unchecked, unlimited, and unknown donations to an increasingly disconnected political class. We will only overcome this oppressive  power by declaring corporations are not people and money is not speech. Thus, removing the shield and fuel from those who seek to unjustly dominate our democracy.”

"Brecksville voters enacted an ordinance to create a Democracy day in 2012.  The ordinance provides for public hearings for citizens to express their thoughts on the influence of money in politics," stated Brecksville Democracy Day coordinator Robert S. Belovich. "This year the City administration refused to  sponsor Democracy Day. Nevertheless  Brecksville Citizens for Transparent Politics have picked up the ball and are providing a public hearing. All are welcome."

Ohio Move to Amend State Network
http://www.movetoamend.org/

RIP Freedom of the Press

RIP Freedom of the Press

by C.A. Matthews

Is this the final nail in the coffin? Or does it just feel like it?

Either way, the freedom of the press was dealt a severe blow at the reading of the verdict at the Julian Assange extradition hearing in London. Most trial watchers were not shocked that the UK government would give in and hand the Wikileaks publisher over to US government, even after a plot to kill Assange by the Central Intelligence Agency was revealed. I mean, why would the British ever dare cross a fellow nuclear power?

On this day, 15 years ago, the Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet died in exile in the UK, protected from extradition by the authorities.
Today these authorities approved the extradition of Julian Assange to the US.
Let no one speak of “fairness” of the UK justice system again! pic.twitter.com/9Xz42yO80a

— Denis Rogatyuk (@DenisRogatyuk) December 10, 2021

Or is that fascist-loving power?

It's been a "you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours" type of arrangement from the start. That the US government's "witness" against Assange turned out to be a convicted pedophile perjurer from Iceland was immaterial. Assange as a publisher enabled whistleblowers like Chelsea Manning to share embarrassing stories about the US, the UK, and dozens of other corrupt governments. He has to be locked away forever as a lesson to others so they don't get the same idea and publish even more embarrassing stories about corrupt governments in the future. He has to be silenced--by death, if necessary, as his recent stroke proves the physical and psychological torture he has been put through since entering Belmarsh prison.

If he is indeed extradited and punished here for the acts of journalism, we all lose. He is not an American citizen and committed no crimes in this country, or any other country. pic.twitter.com/yevyf2br6x

— Lauren Wilson #DropTheCharges (@LaurenW3421) December 13, 2021

So, rest in peace freedom of the press. You've led a somewhat checkered life. You've been painted as both savior and Satan. You revealed horrible things that tyrants wanted to keep hidden. You seemed to be forever fighting off fascists who would shut you down and publish their own propaganda, labeling it as "Fair and balanced," or "All the news that's fit to print."  

To your credit, you seldom backed down. You stood your ground. And many like Julian Assange have paid a horrible price for your tenacity. Telling the public the truth shouldn't be dangerous, but it is. What goes on behind closed doors at the highest levels--especially their damning emails during a contested presidential primary--is for the powerbrokers' eyes and ears alone. The elites will lie, cheat and steal to maintain their air of superiority. They will kill you when you reveal their murders of innocents in drone bombings.

Whoever thought journalism would become riskier than climbing a  greased rock peak without a tether during a massive thunderstorm?

To all those who wish to keep the spirit of a free press alive for another century or two, I offer this advice: Don't ever take it for granted. Journalists who sacrifice their time, health, and their very lives to tell us what's really happening (not what the establishment wants you to think is happening) are rare and precious. The fascists can and will wipe them out without a second thought. We saw that this past week.

Free Assange! Keep our press free!

Related Articles:

As Fascism Casts Off Its Disguises (Caitlin Johnstone) https://caitlinjohnstone.substack.com/p/as-fascism-casts-off-its-disguises/comments 

The Execution of Julian Assange (Chris Hedges) https://scheerpost.com/2021/12/13/hedges-the-execution-of-julian-assange/

They're Killing Him: Assange's Stroke Reveals the Western Version of the Bone Saw https://caitlinjohnstone.substack.com/p/theyre-killing-him-assanges-stroke

Press Freedoms Threatened as British Court Rules Assange Can Be Extradited to US  https://truthout.org/articles/press-freedoms-threatened-as-british-court-rules-assange-can-be-extradited-to-us/

Julian Assange Loses Appeal https://greenwald.substack.com/p/julian-assange-loses-appeal-british 

Julian Assange Can Be Extradited to US to Face Espionage Charges https://www.rsn.org/001/julian-assange-can-be-extradited-to-us-to-face-espionage-charges-court-rules.html 

Press Freedoms Under 'Grave Threat'  https://scheerpost.com/2021/12/10/press-freedoms-under-grave-threat-as-british-court-rules-assange-can-be-extradited-to-u-s-%ef%bf%bc/

Seen on Twitter:

2013: It's "National Whistleblower Day" in the United States. US military judge finds US Army whistleblower Chelsea Manning guilty of charges.

2021: It's UN Human Rights Day. UK High Court overturns decision that blocked US govt from extraditing Julian Assange (a publisher).

— Kevin Gosztola (@kgosztola) December 10, 2021

A UK judge just ruled in favor of the Biden administration’s continued persecution and extradition of Assange.

I don’t ever want to hear again that @TheDemocrats believe in a free press.

They are targeting and going after a journalist for exposing U.S. war crimes.#FreeAssange

— Ryan Knight ☭ (@ProudSocialist) December 10, 2021

Julian Assange remains the world’s foremost political prisoner.

— Is Julian Assange free yet? (@AssangeFreeYet) December 13, 2021

***

How shameful is it that, on Human Rights Day of all days, we find out the UK courts have moved one step closer to handing over Julian Assange to the United States — a country whose leaders have expressed a desire to assassinate him?

The years long-persecution of Assange, led by White House administrations from both corporate parties, has not only caused Assange immense suffering for his innovative journalism — it endangers press freedom and democracy in three grave ways.

1. The war on Assange is fueled, at least in part, by Assange exposing the Democratic Party's corrupt handling of their 2016 primary. The parties of War and Wall Street shamelessly retaliate against challengers to their cartel.

2. Assange and Wikileaks are attacked for exposing the shameful realities of U.S. empire. Along with troves of documents, they published front line footage of bodies casually being obliterated by machines of war. The threat to Assange is a threat to all who expose the horrors of war in the name of peace.

3. To persecute Assange and Wikileaks for basic journalism is to endanger every working journalist and publisher in this country: from stalwart, independent, anti-corporate reporters to the advertising-dollar-addicted opinion writers and media empires cheering on Assange's prosecution. They are digging their own graves.

Free speech and a free press are the first defenses of the rest of our human rights. Give to the Green Party today so we can end the war on whistleblowers, together. Reality Winner, Edward Snowden, Chelsea Manning and so many more have sacrificed so much for our democracy.

As a Green, I'm proud that I can invite you to watch this video of Julian Assange addressing our 2016 Presidential Nominating Convention. It's a testament to our commitment to Grassroots Democracy. Please give today so we can make Grassroots Democracy a reality.

Peace,
Michael O'Neil
Communications Manager
Green Party of the United States

 ***

In a near-future dystopian world, hope blossoms where mutual aid and democracy begins...

Zonta’s world is turned upside down when Jake arrives at the commune to investigate the disappearance of agents of the Authority. Can she persuade him to switch sides before the Protectors (antifascist fighters) take action?

Available now from Extasy Books: https://www.extasybooks.com/Where-the-Bodies-Lie

***

From the Center for Biological Diversity:

Did you know that there’s an important global treaty to conserve biological diversity, and the United States is the only major country that’s not a member? 

In the midst of the extinction crisis, that’s unacceptable.

It’s high time for the United States to join the Convention on Biological Diversity.

Created at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992, the convention’s mission is to protect the planet’s rich array of life and ensure sustainable, equitable use. The United States helped develop the treaty, but the Senate never ratified it. 

Next year the convention meets to set the global conservation agenda for the coming decade. With more than a million species on track to go extinct, this meeting is critical to saving life on Earth. The United States must participate in the meeting to call for an end to human-induced extinction — but if the Senate doesn’t take action, we’ll be on the outside looking in.

Tell President Biden and your senators to ratify the Convention on Biological Diversity and commit to ending extinction now.

Take Action