We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore LappĂ©, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Friday, December 18, 2009

Naomi Klein Weighs In on Hillary Clinton's COP15 Address (3:13m video)

Adib S. Kawar – Democratizing Colonialism!!! (part of the First Word War)

Good analysis of colonial propaganda versus historical facts re Palestine.  (I usually use the original website for any article, but in this case I found the article on this website to be much easier to read.)

A surge at $57,077.60 a minute

Oh, for god’s sake quit whining about how all this money could be going to infrastructure, education, health, and welfare!  Just think about how good this surge will be for the economy of those who invest in Northrop Grumman, General Atomics (Predator and Reaper drones), Raytheon, Halliburton, General Dynamics, Lockheed Martin (Hellfire missiles), Blackwater (mercenary army), etc.  Just put your money in these fine companies and you will be fine.  If everyone did that, there wouldn’t be any problems.  ;-)   

Chavez Slams Rich Nations at Copenhagen, Calls for Systemic Change to Save Planet

“History requires all people to struggle against capitalism, and if we don’t, life on the planet ‘will disappear,’"….  Better yet, watch this 25:28m video: http://fora.tv/2009/12/16/President_Hugo_Chavez_Lambasts_Capitalism_at_COP15

Corporate Profits and the Real Dangers behind the H1N1 Virus

Chilcot Inquiry – The establishment goes to work (Introduction)

This is about the Iraq Inquiry in Britain headed by Sir John Chilcot to examine the facts of Britain’s collusion with the US in promoting the war.  This insightful critique is presented by a British website dedicated to countering the propaganda of corporate media.  Their current articles (they call them “alerts”) do not carry permalinks, so if you access this link at a later date, you may need to find it in the archives by the date of the article.  This one is 12-16 & 17, 2009.   I recommend reading this rather lengthy report down to at least John Pilger’s comment.

Copenhagen: The Price of the Atmosphere

Making Afghanistan Safe for Heroin

By Sibel Edmonds, a former FBI translator who was fired because she blew the whistle on government cover-ups and criminal activity.  The article details US collusion in the drug trade over many years.

Acid oceans: the 'evil twin' of climate change

Poor Children Likelier to Get Antipsychotics

‘Generation Limits’: An Open Letter to Teenagers

"As a peak-oil/climate-aware high school Chemistry teacher, every day is a balance between (1) imparting the daily Chemistry lesson in an effective and entertaining manner, (2) telling the kids the hard, scary truth about our civilization’s predicament without crushing their hopes and dreams for a livable future, and (3) offering some ideas about what we could do to help the situation."

Officials and Experts Warn of Crash-Induced Unrest

the NWO (New World Order) is preparing the military to be used against upset citizens

US silent on Taliban's al-Qaeda offer

This incident—the offer by the Taliban and US’ rejection—puts the lie to the public reasons for US’ invasion and occupation of Afghanistan.  It’s all about domination of Eurasia and control of oil/gas pipelines.  That is obviously why the US has remained silent since the rejection. 

Poll Reveals Trauma of Joblessness in U.S.

While banksters receive their huge bonuses, read about how the unemployed are doing.

How Banks Fleece the Unemployed

“Just when you thought the big banks had maxed out their chutzpah account, think again.”

Wealthy Nations To Poor Ones: There Will Be No Reparations For Killing the Planet

by Bruce Dixon – Can listen to recording or read transcript, better to listen.

Building on extremism

Egyptian view offers insights re Israel’s shift to the right.

Universal Health Care? We Keep the Candy, But You Can Have the Wrapper. No. Wait. Give Us the Wrapper Too.

By Bruce Dixon – Meanwhile the $636 billion “defense” [war] spending bill sales through Congress.

Thursday, December 17, 2009

A heavy price for pushing troops too far by a retired Lt. Colonel

Soldiers Forced to Go AWOL for PTSD Care by Dahr Jamail

Copenhagen climate change protests live blog

Excellent on-site reports of protests happening on 12-16-09.

Leaders of the rich world are enacting a giant fraud

Excellent exposition of the games that capitalist representatives are playing in Copenhagen

Protesters in Seattle warned us what was coming, but we didn't listen

Did Nafta Actually Help Mexico?

Poll Reveals Trauma of Joblessness in U.S.

Russia, NATO and Afghanistan: High stakes Great Game by Eric Walberg

This is for those of you who like to follow the games the governing classes like to play that often result in the horrors of war and sacrifice for the rest of us.

En Banc 9th Circuit Grapples With State Secrets Privilege in CIA Rendition Case

The State Secrets Privilege covering up more human rights violations by US

Supreme Court Refuses to Hear Suit Seeking Accountability for Guantanamo Torture

“It is an awful day for the rule of law and common decency when the Supreme Court lets stand such an inhuman decision. The final word on whether these men had a right not to be tortured or a right to practice their religion free from abuse is that they did not.  Future prospective torturers can now draw comfort from this decision.”

“Bankers Support Regulation? Au Contraire”

Corporate media distracting North Americans from more serious problems


Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Under Murdoch, Tilting Rightward at The Journal

In the political context, “right” and “left” are very relative concepts.  The US political spectrum has been shifting to the right since end of the Vietnam War.  That is no coincidence because the ruling class saw the worldwide opposition to their little adventure in Vietnam as a threat to their rule.  Thus they set about organizing an empire based on military and police power to meet this threat.  Rupert Murdoch is a part of that effort.  His role is to accelerate the indoctrination of our minds with appropriate thoughts so that we can fit into this New World Order, AKA the Empire, so that we, the dispossessed of the fruits of our labor will submit gracefully to the dictates of the “owners”—the ruling classes.

Will Government Repay Its Debt to Social Security?

2000–2009, The Warmest Decade

WMO is the United Nations System’s authoritative voice on weather, climate and water.  This very comprehensive study will not be reported in your 6 o’clock evening news broadcast.  But some scientist somewhere in the world, probably funded directly or indirectly by major corporations, will report that this decade was cooler, and this will be reported everywhere.

Protest? What Protest? American Media Don't See What They Don't Want to See

Veterans Group Calls on Soldiers to Refuse Orders to Deploy to Afghanistan and Iraq – by Dahr Jamail

Obama Out-triangulates Clinton and Channels Reagan

Or the platitudes that people use while posing as a progressive President.
A poem by Gary Corseri

Corporate American Media and Israel’s 2008-09 Gaza Invasion

Wall Street Journal Outlines Goldman Sachs Glorified Ponzi Scheme with AIG

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

The Supply-side Tax Con by Henry CK Liu

“The counter-intuitive historical truth is that a progressive income tax regime with over 90% for top-bracket incomes actually encourages management and employers to raise wages.”

Hospital Cleaners Are Worth More Than Bankers (and Quelle Surprise, Bankers Destroy Value!)

'Just War' Is Just Words by Ralph Nader

Obama and Rubin at the Bada Bing!

Yes, Obama is Getting Serious about Banks. He is now Calling Them Bad Names!

Political theater is about all we can expect from people allowed to represent us in this “democracy”.

Would the West actually be happier with less? The world downscaled

by Serge Latouche whom the above writer quoted.  I looked him up and found this excellent article from 2003. His thesis apparently influenced Valencia’s thinking: “Maybe we need to aim to create a society that is based on quality not quantity, on cooperation and not competition.”

Degrowth Seminar, Copenhagen Klimaforum09

Speech by Miguel Valencia. Klimaforum09 is an alternative global forum being held in Copenhagen.  The writer often uses euphemisms such as “modernization”, “globalization”, and writes that our social disasters have been caused by “techno-scientists” and “economists”.  You see, you must be able to decode messages written by both pro and anti-capitalists.  Although he uses euphemisms and talks around the core problem because it can often be hazardous to one’s health or career if you don’t, he definitely understands what the core problem is.  I found his descriptions to be accurate and his insights profound.    

Lessons from Venezuela

Venezuela offers its solution to neo-colonialism to Nigeria that is being plundered by Western oil companies.

Monday, December 14, 2009

'Copenhagen Is About Doing As Little As Possible'

Click here to access post by Christian Schwägerl from Salon.

"With his 1972 book The Limits to Growth, Dennis Meadows was one of the first to warn about the looming environmental crisis” Regarding his current position on climate destabilization, he is more optimistic than I am.

Spot the difference: Israel’s Prussian heritage – and destiny?

Copenhagen and capitalism (14:49m video)

 Click here to access the interview with Minqi Li from The Real News.

Excellent interview with Minqi Li who is an Assistant Professor at the University of Utah specializing in Political Economy, World Systems and the Chinese Economy. He was a political prisoner in China from 1990 to 1992. He is the author of "After Neoliberalism: Empire, Social Democracy, or Socialism?

War of words ends in author's arrest at border

There seems to be an increasing number of border guard incidents like this (recall Amy Goodman’s interrogation by Canadian border guards over the content of her planned talk in Vancouver a few weeks ago) which, IMO, are designed to intimate people into total compliance to authority regardless of the latter’s conduct.  This is how police states begin.

The strange consensus on Obama's Nobel address

Greenwald naively asks “Still, the question remains:  why did so many Bush-loving neocons and progressives [liberals] alike react the same way to Obama's comprehensive foreign policy speech yesterday?  What could explain that?”  Do I really need to explain these apparent contradictions to people who read my articles and comments?

A Chilean Chiller

Conspiracies, like shit, DO happen…and the US and Canada are no exceptions.

WHO ‘Swine Flu Pope’ under investigation for gross conflict of interest by F. William Engdahl

Venezuela Seizes Assets of Bankers Charged with Fraud

This is the way they deal with banksters in Venezuela

Trail of Afghanistan's drug money exposed

Drug money saved banks in global crisis, claims UN advisor

Organized crime and bankers have long had a symbiotic relationship.  This is another very well kept secret.  The ruling classes whose power and wealth is based on the capitalist system have collaborated with organized crime whenever it was to their advantage, i.e. to make more money—and it often has been to their advantage.  IMO, because capitalism is itself a form of organized crime, the people who run this system have no problem doing business with the less “legitimate” organized criminals.

Workers’ control and the climate emergency

An Australian labor union plans to build solar powered hot water heater factories and manage them.  

Sunday, December 13, 2009

Naomi Klein on the 'new climate ball-game' (3:02 video)

Click here to access the interview with Klein from The Real News.

Small Farmers Can Cool the World

A Wish for Santa







Cop-enhagen: Preemptive Mass Arrests in Context of History of Danes' Movement

Click here to access article by David Rovics from Culture Change.

When the interests of the ruling classes require police state tactics, they change the laws, suspend the laws, or ignore them.

A Copenhagen activist speaks: 'I was afraid I would go back to the cages'

Click here to access article by Tomas Lundström from The Guardian.

In the “New World Order” you become an enemy if you protest and will be treated accordingly.  In other words, we who oppose the New World Order are all becoming Iraqis, Taliban, evil doers, etc.

Hundreds Detained at Mass Climate Rally (2:24m video)


Thousands Rally to Reclaim Power in Copenhagen

Police Attack Sound Truck and Press [and peaceful protesters] (2:30m video)

See video and read explanatory script below it.

Saturday, December 12, 2009














The paid guardians of the ruling classes seem awkward while receiving hugs from the people.
 

But what is not often understood is that the paid guardians of the ruling classes guard the ruling classes, not the people.

Thelma, Louise and Six Degrees

This article is not for the faint of heart.

Reform Passes, Is the Party Over?

“House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced: ‘The legislation says very clearly to Wall Street: the party is over.’”

Copenhagen and capitalism (14:49m video)

Excellent interview with Minqi Li who is an Assistant Professor at the University of Utah specializing in Political Economy, World Systems and the Chinese Economy. He was a political prisoner in China from 1990 to 1992. He is the author of "After Neoliberalism: Empire, Social Democracy, or Socialism?

Unemployment Insurance Bill in a War

Or, a spoon full of sugar makes the medicine go down.

Don’t let capitalism cost the earth

Danish police arrest nearly 1,000 protesters at climate conference