The United States of Hypocrisy

by C. A. Matthews

I went through the same indoctrination program most American children are put through. We heard the same narrative over and over again in school and in the Boy and Girl Scouts, 4-H, Junior Achievement, church and civics organizations... I learned more or less what other people in my age group did.

I know the Pledge of Allegiance and at least the first verse of the Star-Spangled Banner. I learned what the Latin phrase e pluribus unum means on our coins. Ask me how many members are in the House of Representatives (435) and how many senators there are (100). I can even recite the Preamble to the Constitution fairly well.

I know the correct way to fold a flag when you take it down from a flag pole. I can name you all fifty states’ capitals (at least I used to be able to). But none of this nonsense means a damn thing in the year 2025, and I’m sorry I wasted so much time learning it.

Why? Because the United States of America is dead.

Maybe it was never alive, but it most definitely is dead and gone today—or at least the picture I had of it in my mind growing up and even into a good portion of my adulthood. What’s left of it is the true image of the current monster that masquerades as a “beacon of democracy.” With “liberty and justice for all” it prances about like a flashy red-white-and-blue Captain America action figure as it doles out bunker busting bombs to genocidal maniacs. 

I call what remains of my birth country “The United States of Hypocrisy.”

Feel free to call it the United States of Hypocrisy (USH) if you feel the same way I do. Tell your friends and family members they can do so as well, unless that gets you into a world of hurt...

 

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We Deserve Better Psyops

Or "Do Western Governments Really Care About 14,000 Babies Dying Within 48 Hours"

by C.A. Matthews

Have you ever known a person whose word you couldn’t take seriously? They’ll say they’ll mow your lawn, but they never seem to get around to it. They say they care about you, but they never return your calls. They promise to pay you back when you loan them money, but do they ever? You can’t trust a single word this person says because of what they do—or don’t do, more than likely.

That’s how I feel today about Western governments’ politicians and diplomats. They’re always trying to cover their asses when the shit hits the fan as a result of their actions. They’ll fake tears of concern, saying that they truly care about starving Palestinian babies, although hundreds of thousands of innocents in Gaza have been dying over the past 19+ months due to their direct material, financial, and “moral” support of the genocidal Israeli regime.

We can’t trust sociopathic politicos of the West to show empathy. All along they’ve been a proud part of this genocide of the Palestinian people. Whether they do what they do for money or for the power they seek in West Asia and/or the petroleum resources they’ve been promised makes no difference. They’re okay with 14,000 babies starving within 48 hours. Selfish, heartless bastards the lot of them.

I particularly distrust the genocidal state of Israel, even more than I distrust Western politicians. They’ve claimed all along that they want their hostages back, but their implementation of their Hannibal Directive on October 7, 2023, demonstrates that they’ve never really cared about their own people’s safety. Photographic evidence revealed how they shot from helicopters at their own soldiers and citizens in escaping cars in order to make it seem like a much larger incident than it was by a small, ragtag group of oppressed Palestinians.

Israelis simply want to steal the entirety of the Gaza Strip and keep it for themselves. They want the oil and natural gas reserves located just off shore. So, why would any thinking person believe the Israelis actually care about any of their victims, let alone the young and innocent...

 

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Nothing To Say

by C. A. Matthews

This post will go live on November 5. I wrote it a couple of days earlier, so I have no clue about what the outcome of the US elections are, nor do I really care. I’m just glad it’s finally over so we can return to concentrating on more important tasks—such as saving our fellow humans from being butchered by the American imperialist military-industrial complex in order to steal their land and natural resources, and hastening the death of capitalism.

Having said that, I will now explain the sign on the left in my yard:

I got the “heart [love] your neighbor” sign a few months ago from a local group, Neighbor-to-Neighbor. I thought it was a nice idea to promote neighborly love, and so I said I would put one up in my front yard during the months leading up to the election. The idea behind the sign is to help smooth over the “divide” many people are feeling during this particular presidential election season. Several community events were planned, and we were given a list of things to do order to let our neighbors know that there are “no hard feelings” after the winner of the presidential election is announced. Here are some of the tips:

Intentional Acts of Kindness

Let someone go ahead of you in the checkout line

Take trash bins in for a neighbor

Pick up litter on a bike/walking path

Call an elderly neighbor

Offer someone a ride to the store

Recognize one good thing about every person you meet

Not bad ideas on the whole. I’ve done most of these things before, so they aren’t much of a stretch to continue doing , but I find that last tip a real doozy: Recognize one good thing about every person you meet. This suggestion has become particularly challenging to me after these signs popped up in our neighborhood about a half-month before the election:

Yeah… What good thing can I find to recognize in a person or family who displays a sign supporting a blatant genocide enabler such as “Holocaust Harris”? Do I recognize that they haven’t attempted to kill me (yet)? 

To find out more about my dilemma...

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How To Spot A Sell-Out

 

How To Spot A Sell-Out

by C.A. Matthews

I have never trusted AOC. I never once thought she was a “progressive” or even “honest” in a Demon-erratic Party sort of way. So, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez actively promoting a pro-genocide/pro-war/anti-worker candidate and smearing a decent anti-genocide/anti-war/pro-worker candidate in a recent video doesn’t surprised me one bit.

I can spot a sell-out from a mile away. What do I mean by a “sell-out”? I’ll post some photos to help explain what I mean.

Above is a photo of AOC promoting a Green Party candidate in 2017. Yes, AOC actually helped the Greens, although in her recent tirade smearing Dr. Jill Stein she doesn’t seem to acknowledge how much she truly owes the Green Party for her political success. AOC and the Dems stole the “Green New Deal” from former Green presidential candidate Howie Hawkins who first verbalized it when he ran for governor of New York back in 2010. There’s even a video from C-Span from back in the day that proves the Green Party US created the Green New Deal that Dems later stole and watered down (and then totally forgot about).

With voters growing evermore dissatisfied with Harris and her ardent support for Israel’s genocide of Palestinians, we are witnessing an increasing number of smears of anti-genocide candidates. Recently AOC was caught outright lying in a ratioed video about “how the Greens do nothing.” Really? This is what I have to say to her...

 

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I Want To Remember You As A Nice Person

I Want To Remember You As A Nice Person (but you’re making it very hard because of your support for genocide)

by C.A. Matthews

Dear “Friend”:

I honestly don’t know how to address you. I apologize if you no longer consider me your friend or if you don’t want me to call you a friend, but I still care about you. I’m very concerned about you because of recent comments you made. This is why I’m writing you this letter.

I’m going to come out and admit what's really bothering me here. No beating about the bush. No subtle hints or subtext. Just plain ol’ English. Okay, here goes… Aagh! This is going to be much harder than I thought it would be.

There should be some polite way of saying what’s driving us apart, but I can’t think of any way to put it other than the brutal truth: I don’t trust you anymore. There. I’ve said it. I can’t trust anyone who thinks that the genocide of 200,000+ human beings in Gaza is “joyful” or “not important in this election”.

You’ve used those terms about what’s happening in Gaza and the West Bank on social media platforms. You’ve taunted me and others like me there and ignored me whenever I wanted to discuss the subject further in person. You’ve even insulted my intelligence when I told you who I supported for president... 

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Truth Is Never Out of Style

by C.A. Matthews

I enjoy listening to my friend DJ Amjad’s Deep Mix Music and More radio program while I’m writing. The other day I found myself singing along with a catchy chorus from a 1990’s rap song:

Now I know you're sayin'
Well why don't he stop beating around the bush
Well I'll get there when i get there
So there ain't no need to push!
Because the point I'm trying to make contains my whole philosophy
So listen to what I tell you and repeat it after me

Truth is out of style (out of style)
Truth is out of style (out of style) (say what?)
Truth is out of style (say what?)
Truth (say what?) (is out of style)
Truth (is out of style)
--from Truth Is Out of Style by DJ Zero & MC 900 ft. Jesus

Thirty-four years later, and the words still ring true. The “philosophy” that MC 900 sung in his rap has become the motto of many Western governments: Truth is out of style.

If you don’t believe me, how do you explain the following?

Richard Medhurst, an independent British journalist was arrested at Heathrow airport and held for nearly 24 hours under the UK Terrorism Act because of stories he featured on his podcast.

Mary Kostakidis, known as “the face of television news in Australia,” has been accused of supporting ethnic cleansing of Jews because of two retweets about Israel’s genocide in Gaza.

Sarah Wilkinson, UK activist/journalist and supporter of Palestinians, has been banned from using her phone or her laptop because of her tweets. (Yes, just for posting on the X platform!) She is effectively under house arrest.

Sharmine Narwani, who founded The Cradle, an online journal of news and comment, was permanently banned from Facebook and Instagram. Narwani now stands accused of “praising terrorist organizations” and engaging in “incitement to violence.”

Professor Danny Shaw was detained by the FBI for three hours in Chicago’s O’Hare Airport after returning from a Free Palestine film festival in London. His computing devices were seized. He had been fired from his job back in April when he was falsely called “antisemitic” for his pro-Palestine comments.

and, of course, Julian Assange of Wikileaks fame...

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Baby-Killers Make Lousy Leaders

Baby-Killers Make Lousy Leaders

by C.A. Matthews

I can’t take it anymore. I can’t keep silent and act politely while there are sadistic madmen and inconceivably evil women roaming the face of the planet. I don’t care who I offend with my next statement, so here goes:

Baby-killers should never be allowed to become popes, priests, presidents, or prime ministers.

There. I said it. I’m glad to get that off my chest.

Many studies have shown that a particular type of personality disordered individual seems to rise to the top in business, politics, organized religion, and life in general in this sick capitalist society. This individual’s mental illness allows them to out-compete, out-manipulate, and out-evil (I made that word up for lack of finding an adjective that works in this sentence) all others in order to get ahead. This type of individual doesn’t lose sleep over screwing over others. Heck, if they have to steal, beg, borrow, prostitute themselves and/or kill to achieve power that’s exactly what they’ll do.

No pity. No remorse.

No kidding.

Most would label these merciless creatures “sociopaths,” which means a person who displays anti-social personality traits. I’m growing tired of that word myself. It doesn’t go far enough, so I’ve come up with a synonym that’s more descriptive and easier to understand: I call these creatures simply “baby-killers.”

For those who can’t quite make the connection, here is why I’ve chosen to label these creatures baby-killers…

 

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Scratch The Surface

 

Scratch The Surface

by C.A. Matthews

We watched a mystery program recently where the antique dealer sleuth was asked to solve the puzzle of what happened to an older woman’s inheritance that supposedly was “right in front of her.” As the old woman sat leaning on her cane, the sleuth asked if she could see the cane. The sleuth took a nail file and scratched the head of the cane, flaking off some of the paint covering it. Hidden under several layers of paint was a solid gold ornament—the woman’s inheritance. The sleuth had cracked the puzzle. Scratching the surface revealed a treasure.

If only everything was as golden underneath its surface!

If you scratch the surface of the current crop of duopoly candidates for the White House, you probably won’t like what you find underneath. It’s about as far from gold as you can get!

There’s no secret to the shallowness of Donald Trump. The whole world experienced his narcissism in his first time in office, so is there any need to rehash it? After his recent experiences in court, nobody—and I mean nobody—really wants to see what’s underneath the Trumpster Fire’s surface. We’re all agreed: It ain’t pretty.

The same could be said of Kamala “The Cackler” Harris. Harris has been compared to former president Barack Obama who in a recent biography was described as being “hollow at its core” or an empty vessel. That means there’s essentially nothing underneath those insane giggles and grins of Harris. There’s no guiding principles or firmly held beliefs. She’s held together by a willingness to do whatever the oligarchs want her to do. Mark my words, what billionaires want Harris to do for them isn’t going to be of help to any of us ordinary folks...

 

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The Quiet Part

 “...We will continue to actively engage in the hard work of direct diplomacy on the ground until we reach a final solution.” --Remarks by Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield at the UN Security Council Stakeout Following a Vote on the Situation in the Middle East  

“I am happy to be a fascist!”--Israeli Minister of Culture Miri Regev  

“[Palestinians] are beasts, they are not human.” --Israeli Deputy Defense Prime Minister Rabbi Eli Ben Dahan (2013)

"There will be no electricity, no food, no fuel. Everything is closed. We are fighting human animals and we act accordingly.” — Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant

Biden Repeatedly Confuses Ukraine & Russia & Iraq https://rumble.com/v4f44no-biden-repeatedly-confuses-ukraine-and-russia-and-iraq.html

The Quiet Part

by C.A. Matthews

Some days you have to pinch yourself. Did she really say that? (Yes, she did.) Did he really say those dehumanizing and racist things? (Yes, he did.) Did our president confuse Ukraine and Russia and Iraq? (Yes, he has mixed up these sorts of things on several occasions, but it has nothing to do with his cognitive decline issues we're told.)

Why are they saying  (or acting) the “quiet part” out loud?

It hit me about eight years ago that the corrupt American status quo doesn’t waste time on niceties anymore. They don’t try to hide the fact that they couldn’t care less about the working classes. They don’t care if their mindless “puppet-president” is just that obvious nowadays. Our electeds don’t even pretend to be on our side as they take yet another wad of cash from AIPAC and send billions of dollars in bombs to Israel to assist with a genocide of the Palestinian people.

The smug establishment is saying the “quiet part” out loud. For this reason alone we should take them at their word. Push all those doubts out of your mind. The US is gladly helping Israel with their “Final Solution to the Palestinian Question.” Our UN ambassador just said it out loud, didn’t she?

No doubts about it at all—the US government doesn’t care if the Israelis wipe out the entirety of the Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank to take their land, natural gas and oil resources. And why should it? We’ve done it ourselves before, haven’t we?

Whose land do you live on, “American”? The original inhabitants’ land—not the white settlers’ stolen parcel. Don’t give me that, “I paid for it—it’s my property!” nonsense. All property is theft. You did not create the land out of thin air, did you? It belonged to someone else before you. And probably before them as well if they were of European heritage. Wiping out entire indigenous peoples and language groups and replacing them with white Anglo-Saxon culture is as American as Dutch apple pie and German frankfurters, a.k.a. hot dogs.

Don’t grieve if this makes you look complicit with genocide by association. The quiet part needs to be said out loud from time to time to keep us honest. So kudos goes out to United States Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield for keeping it real. Even if it was a faux pas on her part or a poorly worded statement she read without editing first, she still made it. Now the world knows exactly why the US continues to veto a ceasefire in Gaza in the UN Security Council. We’re helping the Israelis with their “Final Solution” according to a senior US official, so that makes it official.

The term “Final Solution of the Jewish Question” was a euphemism used by Nazi Germany’s leaders  according to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Most of us know enough history to understand what the Nazis were up to at their concentration camps during the 1940s. They weren’t holiday camps. They didn’t expect the people who walked in through their gates to walk out ever again. “Final” meant just that. No more problems can be expected from people who aren’t breathing any longer.

“It’s all so...shocking, isn’t it?” I’ve heard this line many times over the past four months. “The US is openly supporting a genocide in Gaza and turning a blind eye to the war crimes their ally Israel is proudly committing. Who would have thought this was possible in the year 2024? I blame [insert villain of the week the duopolists are shouting about here].”

My response to this line of nonsense is this: “I don’t know where you’ve been most of your life, but what is so shocking about how the US has never learned its lesson and has decided to support white settler-colonialism on their ‘world’s largest aircraft carrier in the Middle East’? How long did legal chattel slavery of Africans exist in the US? We slaughtered Native Americans both before and after our blessed independence from Great Britain in the 18th century, did we not? Please stop trying to blame others for the war crimes Americans have done, continue to do and condone others for doing.”

When the US government spends massive amounts of their tax payer dollars on military budgets, it expects to win after all. You can’t expect the US to “win” if it doesn’t have the best in armaments and locations to launch its military strikes from, can you? Israel has been the site of many American operations in that corner of the world, operations to secure and steal petroleum resources. Iraq, Kuwait,  Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq again… We’re in it together! Why should Americans worry about brown-skinned “human animals” getting wiped out in our journey to gain control over more of the Earth’s black gold? The Israelis certainly don’t act squeamish about it.

Sure, being painted with the same brush as Adolf Hitler and friends makes our consciences (what’s left of them) twinge a bit, but this genocide is all in a good cause. What cause is that? Well, our cause, of course! Saying the quiet part out loud should be of no concern to Westerners who have come to depend upon petroleum-powered vehicles and plastics, plastics, and more plastics to maintain their high standard of living.

The choice is simple: It’s our lavish lifestyles or the lives of strangers dying under tons of rubble in an open air concentration camp called the Occupied Territories. How many Westerners are going to give up their BMWs or Cadillac Escalades for the sake of saving little children from having their bomb-damaged arms and legs amputated without anesthesia? 

Hands up all those willing to give up their lifestyle to save others? Anyone? Hmm, yeah, I thought so.

The quiet part said out loud recently in the West has been known by the vast majority of non-Western humans on this planet for decades now. They are not surprised at all. Ask a Cambodian or a Vietnamese person about how Agent Orange dropped from American aircraft in the 1970s changed their lives and the lives of their loved ones forever with its mutative effects. 

Southeast Asians understand white settler-colonialism even if the whites didn’t come and take their land away from them directly. Destroying their villages and their health with cancer-causing chemicals pretty much made the point clear: Americans didn’t and still don’t give a shit about anyone’s health and safety. It should come as no surprise to you that the Global South sympathizes wholly with the Palestinians and not at all with the Israeli occupiers and their allies.

That’s the funny thing about saying the quiet part out loud. It’s only “shocking” to those who have benefited materially, financially, and socially from not hearing the words said out loud before. To everyone else it’s just, “Oh, yeah, we knew that all along. Why didn’t you know about it?”

So, why didn’t you know? Why have you been keeping the quiet part quiet in your own conscience? What do you have to lose by admitting out loud to others that your country is taking part in a genocide? What do you have to gain by being honest and acknowledging the truth of the matter? Will others expect you to fight back against it if you admit it’s a bona fide genocide? Will they expect you to give up your white settler-colonialist privileges (even if you’re not considered officially white in your Western society) in order to bring about an end to this genocide and the occupation of an indigenous people’s land and resources?

Will you have to *gulp!* actually change the way you think, speak, and act from here on out?

Change can be scary. But so is a genocide for the innocent civilians suffering through it. Why should you be allowed to remain quiet and unchanging, uncaring while others are dying in Gaza, Congo, Sudan...?

Say the quiet part out loud and take action against it. Today.

The biggest insult to the memory of the Holocaust is not denying it but using it to commit genocide against the Palestinian people. --Norman Finkelstein

 

Rest In Power, Aaron Bushnell 

Active duty US airman Aaron Bushnell set himself on fire outside of the Israeli Embassy in Washington DC on February 25 protesting Israel’s genocide of the Palestinian people. He has since died from his injuries. He is the second person to have self-immolated in extreme protest to bring awareness to the genocide in Gaza. A woman on December 2, 2023, self-immolated outside an Israeli consulate in Atlanta. Aaron’s last message on social media explains why he was protesting:

His last words spoken were "Free Palestine!"

Caitlin Johnstone summed up Aaron's protest in this way: "I would never do what Bushnell did, and I would never recommend anyone else does either. That said, I also can’t deny that his action is having its intended effect: drawing attention to the horrors that are happening in Gaza." from Aaron Bushnell Burned Himself Alive To Make You Turn Your Eyes To Gaza

Rest in power, Aaron. May your sacrifice not be in vain. #FreePalestine

Related Articles and Other Interesting Links

Remarks by Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield at the UN Security Council Stakeout Following a Vote on the Situation in the Middle East https://usun.usmission.gov/remarks-by-ambassador-linda-thomas-greenfield-at-the-un-security-council-stakeout-following-a-vote-on-the-situation-in-the-middle-east/

YANIS VAROUFAKIS: Here's What The West Actually Stands For  https://rumble.com/v4focxn-yanis-varoufakis-heres-what-the-west-actually-stands-for.html

 

Aaron Bushnell Burned Himself Alive To Make You Turn Your Eyes To Gaza https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/aaron-bushnell-burned-himself-alive 

 

"Free Palestine!" US Airman Self-Immolates Before Israeli Embassy
https://www.wewillbearwitness.org/p/free-palestine-us-airman-self-immolates 

 

Scott Ritter--A Reflection on Duty and Conscience: Aaron Bushnell

https://youtu.be/bWUjRDEm2bw?si=B6DDfQuPN_I3fR1B

 

The Root of All Evils https://therevolutioncontinues.substack.com/p/the-root-of-all-evils

 

Rafah Attack Escalates “Most Transparent Genocide of All Time,” Scholar Says https://truthout.org/articles/rafah-attack-escalates-most-transparent-genocide-of-all-time-scholar-says/

Israel Supporters Are Some Of The Worst People In The World https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/israel-supporters-are-some-of-the

Hitler Is Giddy About His New Buddies! https://mark192.substack.com/p/cartoon-hitler-is-giddy-about-his

While on trial for occupation, Israel is entrenching its military in Gaza – Day 137 https://israelpalestinenews.org/while-on-trial-for-occupation-israel-is-entrenching-its-military-in-gaza-day-137/

US kills 4th UN call for peace in Gaza, helping Israel violate Hague's genocide ruling https://geopoliticaleconomy.substack.com/p/us-veto-un-resolution-gaza-israel-hague

As Israeli Forces Fire on Starving Palestinians, US Again Vetoes UN Cease-Fire Resolution https://www.commondreams.org/news/us-vetoes-ceasefire

Exclusive: Israeli forces fired on food convoy in Gaza, UN documents and satellite analysis reveals https://edition.cnn.com/2024/02/21/middleeast/un-food-convoy-gaza-israel-strike-cmd-intl/index.html

Israel-Palestine Isn't 'Complicated', You Just Support Killing Palestinians https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/israel-palestine-isnt-complicated

Israel Demolishing Buildings to Construct Road in Gaza to Cut the Strip Into Two  https://news.antiwar.com/2024/02/20/israel-demolishing-buildings-to-construct-road-in-gaza-to-cut-the-strip-into-two/

The Wire: Genocide is a Bad Investment https://www.jewishvoiceforpeace.org/2024/02/22/genocide-is-a-bad-investment/

Netanyahu’s Post-War Plans for Gaza Call for Military Occupation ‘Without Time Limit’  https://news.antiwar.com/2024/02/23/netanyahus-post-war-plans-for-gaza-call-for-military-occupation-without-time-limit/

Why Is the US Producing More Oil and Natural Gas Than Ever Under Biden? https://truthout.org/articles/why-is-the-us-producing-more-oil-and-natural-gas-than-ever-under-biden/

Chris Hedges: Julian Assange’s Day in Court https://scheerpost.com/2024/02/21/chris-hedges-julian-assanges-day-in-court/

Chris Hedges: Julian Assange’s Grand Inquisitor https://scheerpost.com/2024/02/22/chris-hedges-julian-assanges-grand-inquisitor/

Assange Appeal Hearing Plagued By Media Access Issues https://thedissenter.org/assange-appeal-hearing-plagued-by-media-access-issues/

UK High Court Finally Hears Assange's Request For An Appeal
https://thedissenter.org/high-court-hears-assange-request-for-appeal/

Immigrants Are Not Hurting US-Born Workers https://popularresistance.org/immigrants-are-not-hurting-us-born-workers/

Climate Cases Against Big Oil Are Merging Into One Super Suit https://popularresistance.org/climate-cases-against-big-oil-are-merging-into-one-super-suit/

Just Keep Bringing Awareness To The Depravity Of The Empire In As Many Ways As Possible  https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/just-keep-bringing-awareness-to-the

Biden White House prepares Trump-style anti-immigrant executive order barring asylum claims https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2024/02/23/nocq-f23.html

No, Immigrants Aren’t Taking US Jobs https://scheerpost.com/2024/02/25/no-immigrants-arent-taking-us-jobs/

Ukraine’s Maidan Coup: The Evidence, 10 Years Later (w/ Ivan Katchanovski) https://scheerpost.com/2024/02/22/ukraines-maidan-coup-the-evidence-10-years-later-w-ivan-katchanovski/

Twenty-Five US Universities Face Calls To Cancel Starbucks Contracts https://popularresistance.org/twenty-five-us-universities-face-calls-to-cancel-starbucks-contracts/

The Rent Is Still Too High https://otherwords.org/the-rent-is-still-too-high

Jill Stein interview on "Arab Talk": https://youtu.be/VeEjhhEQ2Hg?si=_jgQpViWMQcnpyxY

Subscribe to The Revolution Continues on Substack today! Blogspot/Blogger isn't working as well as it once did (Is it blatant censorship? Who knows?) so it's time to migrate to a better platform. Go to https://therevolutioncontinues.substack.com/ and click on one of the stories and subscribe at the link at the end of the article. You'll enjoy having each week's post automatically sent to your email box or reading it at the Substack site. Many thanks for your consideration.

New Year's Revolutions

New Year’s Revolutions

 

I can ease the suffering of this world
With my head, my heart and my hand

–-from the song Of This World 

resolution /rĕz″ə-loo͞′shən/

noun

1. The state or quality of being resolute; firm determination.

   "faced the situation with resolution."

2. A firm decision to do something.

   "made a resolution to get more exercise."

3. A course of action determined or decided on.

   "His resolution is to get up early."

 

revolution /rĕv″ə-loo͞′shən/

noun

1. Orbital motion about a point, especially as distinguished from axial rotation.

   "the planetary revolution about the sun."

2. A turning or rotational motion about an axis.

3. A single complete cycle of such orbital or axial motion.

4. The overthrow of one government and its replacement with another.

5. A sudden or momentous change in a situation.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

Just in case you thought I made a typo or spelled the last word in the title wrong, I’ve provided the definitions above. While many folks this week are discussing their “New Year’s resolutions” to lose weight or take up exercising, what this world desperately needs are “New Year’s revolutions.” Yes, revolution as it states in the fifth definition: “a sudden or momentous change in a situation.” If we don’t see any revolutions in 2024, we probably shouldn’t expect to be alive and well this same time next year.

I know you thought I was going to say we need a revolution as defined in the fourth line: “the overthrow of one government and its replacement with another.” Well, that kind of revolution may ultimately be necessary to enact a needed sudden or momentous change in our situation. For now, let’s stick with just the simple idea of change and a resoluteness to enact those much needed changes.

See? I didn’t throw out the first word’s definition entirely, but I’ve changed it slightly. Resolution, such as undertaking an activity like jogging, has been changed to resoluteness, a character trait that we all need to have, a spirit of firm determination to tackle the job that needs to be done.

So, what New Year’s revolutions need to be enacted in 2024? In case you’re an alien from outer space who has just landed on Earth, or you’ve been cryogenically frozen for the past year or more, you can catch up with what’s been going on with humankind by reading last week’s (that is, last year’s last post) entitled Silence Equals Death: 2023 In Review. That should help you understand how humanity cannot remain forever locked into the death-giving behavior patterns it finds itself locked into now.

To continue down our current path of death and destruction is to ensure humanity’s final and total annihilation. This is not something rational, sane individuals should wish to do. Nor should rational, sane individuals desire to be led by leaders—elected or appointed—who wish to continue down this pathway of death and destruction. Hence, we are all in need of a “sudden or momentous change” in our situation in order to save us from our demise.

This is where the fourth definition of revolution might become necessary. Even a threat or a hint that the workers have had enough of the bourgeoisie class dictating death-giving terms to them could ignite the momentous change necessary to turn things around (revolve them into something better, you could say) and put our society on the road toward life and creativity, away from death and destruction.

Contrary to popular belief, revolutions don’t have to be bloody to be effective. A revolution of the heart, an awakening of conscience, or the raising of our collective consciousness (as prolific essayist Caitlin Johnstone terms it) could be all it takes to instigate changes for the better. After all, the word “love” can be found in the word “revolution” if you look closely enough.

(R E V O L U T I O N. Do you see it? Try flipping the word around and spelling it out. Sometimes a sudden change of view is all it takes to see the good in everything.)

The question really becomes this: Do we want to look closely enough? Are we resisting a revolution of our hearts because to open our hearts to love others can be… too humbling? With an open heart, would we see others as fellow human beings, equal in the eyes of our God/Higher Power? Would this insight make us uncomfortable because we could no longer dismiss others’ needs and treat them as objects for our own gain?

For instance, do the majority of us want to keep turning a blind eye to the genocide happening in Gaza? (Or the ones occurring in Congo or Sudan, for that matter.) We Westerners seem to be experts at ignoring the pain and suffering of others, particularly people of color whose religion or culture is different than our own. We’ve been indoctrinated to keep our emotions to ourselves, to point out the “flaws” and “weaknesses” of other cultures and not our own, so much so that we don’t even seem to realize how hypocritical we’re acting.

To open our hearts and love is to reveal our true nature—our own flaws and weaknesses—to the other. It means asking for forgiveness for our past sins. It means making reparations to those whose families lost their lives and lands to our capitalistic greed and hunger to exploit natural resources for our own gain. It means sharing with and caring for everyone on the planet, not just the face in the mirror.

Love isn’t for sissies. It’s not for those without a resoluteness of spirit willing to walk the painful pathway toward reconciliation between two or more warring factions, but it can be done. Look at how South Africa dealt with the evils of apartheid with its Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Where there is love, there is hope.

And there are plenty of examples of how a revolution of love could bring about an end to the selfish, warmongering behavior of the US and its allies. Building a world order based on trust and mutual aid rather than the petrodollar and US hegemony would eliminate the competitiveness and spitefulness engendered under Western capitalism

Once a momentous change or revolution of the heart has occurred, similarly changes in the “head” or the human intellect usually follow suit. We can make a revolution from using faulty pretzel logic to rationalize its need for more wars to grab more fossil fuels (which we acknowledge are destroying our climate and our planet) to using our intellect to design cleaner, greener energy sources and technology that could improve the life of everyone on the planet. And I mean there would be life improvements for everyone, not just the rich and those of lofty social status. A revolution of both the heart and head of humanity could lead to many wondrous positive inventions and fascinating explorations of our universe, technology and knowledge shared with everyone, everywhere.

We shouldn’t underestimate just how much good and beauty humankind is actually capable of creating if it is willing to do it together as one body and not as competing cells. The “Lone Wolf Syndrome” (a.k.a. “the oligarchy” or “billionaires”) would be cured once and for all in a world that is unified to protect, nurture, and care for all its members not just a few.

To start the revolution of the heart and the head, we must first be willing to use our “hands” to spread this message of love to all. Hands on the keyboard typing a social media post sharing the news of a group who is supportive of life and creativity, away from the path of death and destruction we’re currently taking. Hands holding a protest sign telling those in authority that we will not accept the slaughter of our brothers and sisters in Gaza and elsewhere. Hands raised in a fist to prove we have the love that it takes to begin the “overthrow of one government and its replacement with another” if that is what would be more conducive to guaranteeing peace and prosperity for all human beings.

As Peter, Paul, and Mary sings:

I can ease the suffering of this world 

I can ease the suffering of this world

I can ease the suffering of this world
With my head, my heart and my hand

In 2024, let us stand resolutely together and shout boldly, “I can ease the suffering of this world.” Let’s get down to work on our New Year’s revolutions, shall we?

 

Articles and Other Interesting Links

INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE: Press Release
29 December 2023
The Republic of South Africa institutes proceedings against the State of Israel and requests the Court to indicate provisional measures https://www.icj-cij.org/sites/default/files/case-related/192/192-20231229-pre-01-00-en.pdf

South Africa Invokes Genocide Convention Against Israel
https://scheerpost.com/2023/12/29/south-africa-invokes-genocide-convention-against-israel/

Israel Says It's Anti-Semitic To Invoke The Genocide Convention Over Gaza https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/israel-says-its-anti-semitic-to-invoke

2023: The Year Humanity Died
https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/2023-humanity-died-gaza

One month into the bloodshed, after Israel had killed 1,000 children, I said that’s it; the world would make its move now, if only to save the children! But the U.S. responded by vetoing a humanitarian cease-fire that could have saved thousands of innocent lives! A month after, when the death toll of children reached 10,000, I said enough is enough; it’s high time the world acted NOW, because humanity itself is at stake! U.N. officials had already sounded the alarm that Gaza was becoming a “graveyard for children,” so no one could pretend they did not know. The time to act was now or never! Yet there was another U.S. veto; another cold hand was raised to issue a new death sentence for Palestinians. Another spit in the face of humanity!

Now I’m lost for words. I have lost faith in humanity. The staggering death toll in Gaza is humanly impossible to fathom or accept without losing our sense of shared humanity. As a Palestinian, as a human being, I feel that part of me has died in this war. I know for certain that I will not emerge from this tragedy the same person I was before. None of us will.

"Christ in the Rubble": Palestinian Pastor Delivers Powerful Christmas Sermon from Bethlehem
https://youtu.be/Md_hw_A-oIs?si=93V1j1hEWw0thgQY

Christmas in Bethlehem 2022 vs. 2023 https://scheerpost.com/2023/12/26/christmas-in-bethlehem-2022-vs-2023/

The lies we believe about Gazan Christians are killing them
https://www.patheos.com/blogs/gracecoloredglasses/2023/12/why-christian-west-cold-hearted-palestinian-christians-enormous-crisis/

Tonight a Palestinian is Born
https://arunnews.substack.com/p/tonight-a-palestinian-is-born

 
‘Are we the baddies?’ Western support for genocide in Gaza means the answer is yes https://jonathancook.substack.com/p/are-we-the-baddies-western-support

Israel’s Genocide Betrays the Holocaust https://chrishedges.substack.com/p/israels-genocide-betrays-the-holocaust

Debunking the world’s largest skin bank: How Israelis harvest organs without consent? https://medium.com/@ASll0_/debunking-the-worlds-largest-skin-bank-how-israelis-harvest-organs-without-consent-d8415b266a55

Overcoming Our Differences Is The Only Way Forward https://roberturbaschek.substack.com/p/overcoming-our-differences

This Can't Be Another Instance Of Genocide — Israel Believes It's Right! https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/this-cant-be-another-instance-of

Voters Want the U.S. to Call for a Permanent Ceasefire in Gaza and to Prioritize Diplomacy https://www.dataforprogress.org/blog/2023/12/5/voters-want-the-us-to-call-for-a-permanent-ceasefire-in-gaza-and-to-prioritize-diplomacy

Patrick Lawrence: To Retrieve History https://scheerpost.com/2023/12/28/patrick-lawrence-to-retrieve-history

Palestinian Journalists Are Exposing How “Objectivity” Is Used to Silence Them https://truthout.org/articles/palestinian-journalists-are-exposing-how-objectivity-is-used-to-silence-them/

Returning to Gaza after kidnapping, torture by Israel
https://youtu.be/svcMuAt3To0?si=8hGrl_uPXyqwJ1cT

The Overlooked Economic Incentives for Israel's War on Gaza
https://youtu.be/vDS5mKiXmgQ?si=CMM5nfE85Gv9P97s

Jill Stein on the Genocide in Gaza https://twitter.com/DrJillStein/status/1740152022144622839

We Should All Take Up the Cry of ‘Not in My Name’
https://wagingnonviolence.org/metta/2023/12/we-should-all-take-up-the-cry-not-in-my-name-anarchic-politics/

I believe, we no longer want to live in a world where the death of children can be legitimated, rationalized and justified. No law can make the killing of children right, if it does, it is not just; no amount of reasons can make the targeting of children right, if it does it is insanity; no justifications can take away the conditions of peace from a child, if they do, it is a clear pointer that it serves tyrants and, therefore, is a perverse mockery of justice. This world must be overthrown, even if we do not know as yet what will take its place — let us be open to, and imagine and construct other possibilities. 

Israel's War Crimes https://peoplesdispatch.org/2023/12/29/israels-war-crimes/

Israel Announces Its Gaza Endgame: Ethnic Cleansing As ‘Humanitarianism’ https://popularresistance.org/israel-announces-its-gaza-endgame-ethnic-cleansing-as-humanitarianism/

The Long History Of Zionist Proposals To Ethnically Cleanse The Gaza Strip https://scheerpost.com/2023/12/29/the-long-history-of-zionist-proposals-to-ethnically-cleanse-the-gaza-strip/

GHOULS: Israel Illegally Stealing Body Parts From Murdered Gazans https://mark192.substack.com/p/ghouls-israel-illegally-stealing

License to kill: US police killed over 1,200 people in 2023
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2023/12/30/asgq-d30.html

Boycott Israel/Support Palestine Tool Kit
https://www.codepink.org/bdstoolkit?

2023: The Year the Bubble of US Leadership Burst
https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/2023-us-leadership-bubble-burst

Why Putin is a Hero to Russians
https://joebrunoli.substack.com/p/why-putin-is-a-hero-to-russians

Silence Equals Death: 2023 In Review
https://therevolutioncontinues.substack.com/p/silence-equals-death-2023-in-review

US Military Sinks Three Houthi Boats in Red Sea Killing 10 https://news.antiwar.com/2023/12/31/us-military-sinks-three-houthi-boats-in-red-sea-killing-10/

RIP John Pilger https://dissidentvoice.org/2023/12/rip-john-pilger/ 

Subscribe to The Revolution Continues on Substack today! Blogspot isn't working as well as it once did (Is it blatant censorship? Who knows?!) so it's time to migrate to a better platform. Go to https://therevolutioncontinues.substack.com/ and click on one of the stories and subscribe at the link at the end of the article. You'll enjoy having each week's post automatically sent to your email box or reading it at the Substack site. Thanks for your consideration.