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 Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Wednesday, May 19, 2021

Posts that I especially recommend for Wednesday, May 19, 2021 (very abbreviated post)

I was totally "blown away" by the headline of this article. Although I consider myself as excelling at detecting propaganda, I was so influenced by major and other more independent media to believe their reports about what was purportedly Biden's statements against Putin in his recent meeting (March 10) with Putin. I even had sufficient doubts about Greenwald's article (he didn't provide confirming links). 
 
After two hours of research on the internet, I found some information about the actual meeting between Putin and Biden on March 10 as is stated in Greenwald's article (caption under the lead photo of their meeting), and I did find reports that partially confirmed his main allegation that Biden agreed to withdraw sanctions. Biden withdrew sanctions against some firms, mostly German firms, as reported in these articles: this, this, this, and this
 
Other than that I was only able to find future prospective meetings and current propaganda related to Biden's reference in 2014 that he told Putin to his face that he was a "killer" and that he didn't have a "soul". This was recently dredged up by ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos, the source of which was an interview by The New Yorker’s Evan Osnos in 2014 when Biden was Vice-President, in which he claims to have said these dramatic statements to Putin in the interview with Osnos. Was he telling the truth? There is no corroborating evidence. All the mainstream media played up this 2014 incident following the March 2021 meeting and many independent sources didn't question it.

After my research I again examined Greenwald's article. Too much of his article, in my opinion, makes Obama look like a good-guy. Wasn't the Ukraine coup engineered by the State Department not on his watch? Wasn't the Syrian project to overthrow the Assad government not on his watch?
 
I think I have learned my lesson to not trust any mainstream source for important news. And I think you can only trust thoroughly independent journalists like Glenn Greenwald, even though at times I disagree with him. I urge all of you to subscribe to his newsletter. 
  • Gaza Is Better Than Auschwitz by Israel Shamir from The Unz Review. (Note: Yes, I know this article with an ironic title is published by an old-fashioned conservative website representing an old capitalist ruling class that has been replaced by Zionist-conservatives, popularly known as "Neo-cons". The latter have taken direct control of the US and they have been since WWII stealthily building an empire. But, I don't care whose website speaks the truth! That said, I don't necessarily agree with all of his arguments.) 
Only a rabid antisemite would say Gaza is worse than Auschwitz. No, it is better, but only just. And it has gone on longer, year upon year, with no end in sight. 
  • The Suffering of the Palestinians Continues and the World Simply Watches by James O'Neil from New Eastern Outlook. My reaction: The suffering will continue because the new imperialist Empire is replacing the Third Reich which had produced so many "good Germans" with the "good Germans" of the 21st century. They are obediently following their new fuehrers in the same ruling class as the Third Reich in the same expansive adventures to rule the world. But this time the fascist-capitalists have a different brand: Made in America!