Tuesday, May 17, 2022

Your Obedience Is Prolonging This Nightmare

"I don't think that a woman has the sole right to say what should happen to her body." --Joe Biden, 1974

Your Obedience Is Prolonging This Nightmare

by C. A. Matthews

I participated in one of the thousands of Protect Roe v. Wade/Pro-Choice protest rallies held across the US this past Saturday. Our local outing was well-attended. Both the signage and the chanting protesters were creative and colorful. Passers-by honked their car horns and gave everyone a smile and a thumbs up. It's good to know that many Americans won't take this possible abridgement of their rights to privacy and bodily autonomy lying down. 

The saddest part for me was that some in this loud and boisterous crowd seemed oblivious to how and why the Roe v. Wade decision will be overturned. They seem content with supporting the corrupt status quo that created this dilemma in the first place. Whether this is intentional or unintentional makes little difference. The oligarchy that actually runs this country relies on the ignorance of the masses to promote their own purposes. 

For every witty "Think Outside My Box" protest sign I spotted there was at least one sign proclaiming "Vote Blue in 2022 to Save Roe v. Wade." For every "My Body, My Choice" button there was a person carrying a clipboard, trying to sign folks up to become registered Democratic Party voters. 

Excuse me? The Democrats have been in power with a majority in both legislative houses of government during the Clinton, Obama, and now Biden administrations. They have done nothing to codify the Roe v. Wade ruling into federal law at any time in almost fifty years. What makes you think they're going to change their stripes now? 

Well, I guess Biden can point to the ill-timed attempt to codify Roe in the Senate this past week, but wouldn't you know it--it failed. That mean ol' senator from West Virginia, Joe Manchin, voted against it. What party does Manchin belong to? Why, he's a Democrat. He's also the head of many important Senate committees. 

And House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was out campaigning this past week for a vocal anti-abortion member, a Representative Henry Cuellar, a Democrat from Texas. With these high level party examples of Sen. Manchin and Speaker Pelosi, why of course you would expect the Democrats to be the savior of Roe v. Wade. It makes perfect sense!

I got this bridge in Brooklyn I want to sell you if you believe that line of bull hockey. No kidding. You can trust me. You trust the DNC, right? 

So, you can understand why I'm very worried that we are going to return to the good ol' days of back alley abortions and women bleeding to death trying to induce one at home. If seemingly intelligent women at the rally actually believe the lie that either faction of the establishment (or either one of the "wings of the same bird") is going to protect a woman's right to choose, then we're destined to live in the world of The Handmaid's Tale. 

I covered the whys of the duopoly's love affair with keeping Roe v. Wade only a ruling and never a law in last week's blog, so I won't repeat myself here. But I will repeat that this "magical thinking" that either the Democrats or Republicans give a hoot about you or your rights above their bottom lines is just that--foolish and nonsensical. You have become a part of the problem by not questioning their misinformation campaigns (also mentioned in last week's blog). You have become blindly obedient to following their directives. And, in doing so, you have become a part of this nightmare. 

Please stop. 

You're prolonging the misery of millions of Americans by mindlessly giving your time, money, or vote to either faction of the duopoly. Nothing will change if they remain in power. Nothing. You will never sleep well at night knowing a woman's right to choose is safe unless you elect and appoint persons to government who have nothing to do with the current system that produces "lesser evil" candidates. You just won't. 

All the magical thinking in the world can't make politicians (who make a good deal of money on the side doing what they're doing) change. You have to "think outside the box" of voting either Democrat or Republican if you want them to stay out of "your box" and not take away your right to abortion care if and when you need it. 

Luckily, there is one American political party that fields candidates that don't accept corporate bribes--uh, lobbyists' money--and also have it written into their platform that abortion care is health care and that all Americans have the human right to health care. It's the Green Party US. Here is it in black and white: https://www.gp.org/the_real_difference 

Attend all the Protect Roe v. Wade rallies you like, but never forget that voting "blue no matter who" just keeps this nightmare going and going and going…

 P.S. Same goes for endless wars for oil/natural gas. Voting "blue no matter who" got us into the current proxy war. (Update: The US has just invaded Somalia as well.) You have to admit that the "Orange Man" isn't in charge anymore, so we can't put this war on his tally, long as it is.  The Democratic Party (including the supposedly progressive "Squad") are pro-military-industrial complex and pro-war, as every single one of them voted for the $40 billion package to Ukraine. Biden is admittedly anti-abortion as the earlier quote attests. 

By listening to the propaganda from the "Ministry of Truth" (Disinformation Governance Board) that told you to "vote for the lesser evil" Biden, you installed Evil 2.0.  And nothing has fundamentally changed, has it? We're still living in a nightmare. Until you decide to step out of line, that is.

Related articles:

Thousands in US March Under "Ban Off Our Bodies" Banner for Abortion Rights https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-abortion-rights-activists-start-summer-rage-with-saturday-protests-2022-05-14/

The Ministry of Truth v. Roe v. Wade  https://continuousrev.blogspot.com/2022/05/the-ministry-of-truth-v-roe-v-wade.html

How the Democrats Are Culpable in the Erosion of Abortion Rights
https://www.gp.org/democrats_are_culpable

Mass Protest Is Rising. Can It Confront Global Capitalism? https://truthout.org/articles/mass-protest-is-rising-can-it-confront-global-capitalism/

Obama and Liberals Killed Abortion Rights https://www.blackagendareport.com/obama-and-liberals-killed-abortion-rights

Nancy Pelosi is Still Supporting Henry Cuellar, the Only Anti-Abortion House Democrat  https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/nancy-pelosi-is-still-supporting-henry-cuellar-the-only-anti-abortion-house-democrat/ar-AAXeoRX

The Bizarre, Unanimous Democratic Support for the $40 Billion War Package https://popularresistance.org/the-bizarre-unanimous-dem-support-for-the-40b-war-package-to-raytheon-and-cia-for-ukraine/



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Tuesday, May 10, 2022

The Ministry of Truth v. Roe v. Wade

 

The Ministry of Truth v. Roe v. Wade

by C.A. Matthews

Two shocking revelations were made public this past week that, at first glance, may not seem to have anything in common. Yet at second glance, any intelligent person can see they have everything in common.

The first revelation: The US Department of Homeland Security announced that they have been lying to us. (A big surprise to everyone, I'm sure!) Their "Disinformation Governance Board" is essentially what George Orwell described as "The Ministry of Truth" in his novel, Nineteen Eighty-Four. Government propagandists work to "spin" what's happening in the world in order to cover over a multitude of faux pas made by our officials and other embarrassing truths about the United States. The theory of propaganda is that if you, the public, don't know what's actually happening, you'll never become angry at the right villains and hold them accountable. You'll be easily manipulated into hating people, places, and things that possibly could be of benefit to you.

Remember: Private health care works! You've never once donated to a GoFundMe to help out a friend or stranger who is struggling with medical bills. Those homeless people on city street corners deserve to be homeless. It's not like we have a surplus of 17 million+ empty homes in the US currently. (Like what the "Disinformation Governance Board" (DGB) is doing thus far?)

These propagandists feed their concocted fairy tales to the mainstream media where good-looking, well-paid, big name newsreaders obediently pass them onto the public with little fact-checking of the facts. (Okay, I exaggerate here. There's no fact-checking done, whatsoever, especially if it comes from the mouths of "anonymous officials" who are probably with the CIA. These "anonymous tips" are just accepted as gospel truth. The DGB appreciates your cooperation in this matter.)

We're seeing the outcome of these propaganda tales currently in a number of "fake news" stories on broadcast outlets about events going on in Ukraine, some of which there is no proof of having ever occurred.

Remember: You've never heard of the Azov Battalion. Those funny tattoos on their bodies are not swastikas. There is no Nazi symbology on either their flags or helmets. You've never heard them once bragging about killing LGBTQ folks or other minorities. The DGB crosses its fingers and sings, "This is true! We hope to die, stick a needle in our eyes." Yes, you really are back in third grade. 

The second revelation: A leaked draft opinion (featuring references to a discredited misogynistic 17th century judge) reveals that the US Supreme Court will repeal the Roe v. Wade pro-abortion ruling. It was verified by the Chief Justice as a genuine document. Pro-choice activists immediately took to the streets to express their anger at the infringement of their rights to privacy and to exercise bodily autonomy.

Remember: Women enjoy equal rights in the United States. Look at how we passed that Equal Rights Amendment so many years ago…  See how a woman of color makes the same amount of money in the same job with the same training and experience as a white male does... You can trust us at the Disnformation Governance Board to steer you in the right direction, just like neoliberals can "push Joe Biden left."

So, how do these two revelations intertwine? Let's take a look at the mainstream media's promotion of this statement: "The Democrats are the party that supports abortion rights." If this story is true, then why is reality so different? Crystal, an abortion care worker in Pennsylvania, attests:

The Democratic Party has not had any substantial response to the recent attacks on Roe. Their statements and brief denouncements of these egregious abortion bans and restrictions have been toothless and weak, hardly even mentioning abortion services the majority of the time.
Why did President Obama promise on the campaign trail in 2008 that on his first day in office he'd sign Roe v. Wade into law if he never was planning to do so? If you realize that abortion rights have yet to be codified in the year 2022 and that Obama ran as a Democrat in 2008, then Crystal's statement that Obama's party has not made any substantial moves to protect Roe v. Wade contradicts the propaganda put out by the party currently in power.

I hope you now can see the "spin" of propagandists at work. The workers at our Ministry of Truth work hard at trying to convince you of falsehoods that serve the status quo's best interests. But why would they lie about Democrats being the champions of abortion access? What purpose do these lies serve? My exploding email box gives us the answer:

From Sen. Chuck Schumer: 
The instant Roe is overturned, abortion could be illegal in 26 states. And Republicans are already plotting to pass a nationwide ban on abortion if they take back control of Congress and the White House.
This is what's at stake in this year's election. So I need you to donate anything you can right now to some of the most vulnerable Democratic Senators up for reelection this year in Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Nevada, New Hampshire, and Washington and Democrats running to flip critical Senate seats in Ohio, Florida, and North Carolina. We need every single one of them to win if we're going to stop the Republicans from taking over Congress again and add to our majority to protect abortion rights.
From Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi: 
The only -- ONLY -- way to get justice is to win this election, protect the Democratic House and Senate, and replace every last anti-choice Republican who made this happen. I need a historic response to meet this earth-shattering moment -- 25,000 Democratic gifts in the next 24 hours -- to send a message so powerful, so resounding, there can be no question of our opposition. Will you rush $15 to stand with me on the right side of history? 
These and many other emails I--and millions of others--have received in the past week reveal the real truth: The Democrats have never really cared about putting Roe v. Wade into law because it scares neoliberal people into writing checks to support their campaigns. Simply put, never codifying this decision is a great way to raise money.

"Oh, but they have to deal with the ugly Republicans and those mean ol' Supreme Court justices!" you cry. "They keep the Democrats from making Roe into law." If these assertions are true, then why couldn't Clinton, Obama, or Biden with Democrat majorities in both the House and Senate even attempt to pass legislation to protect a woman's right to choose? Why did they let their majorities in Congress evaporate without putting up much of a fight to protect abortion access? Why did they pick justices to the high court who ultimately wouldn't stand up for abortion rights?

Two words: Ka-ching! Ka-ching! Keeping voters upset about access to legal abortion services is all about fundraising. It's just another way to control the public--especially women. (Read my take on how abortion rights are used against women in A Matter of Control.)

Now that your eyes are open to how the DGB/Ministry of Truth along with their well-paid allies in the mainstream media operate to spin facts in order to cover up the hidden agenda of their corporate-owned masters, you can't deny it. Roe v. Wade is an excellent fundraising tactic for both Democrats and Republicans. 

One group raises money by promising to defend Roe against the "evil conservative" people on the other side of the aisle. The other raises money by promising to "save the babies" or at least those babies who aren't born yet, since starving children without health care or a roof over their heads doesn't seem to bother them all too much.

So long as the establishment duopoly remains in power, a woman's right to abortion care will never be safe. 

Scarier still, other recently won rights such as same-sex marriage could be threatened as well. Check your email for the fundraising pitches to see which story the Ministry of Truth will spin next, and keep your money in your wallet. There's no use being robbed blind by these corporate-owned political machines as well as lied to by your government, is there?

Remember: Voting Democrat or Republican makes America great. We're not involved in a proxy war or selling bombs to drop on innocent civilians anywhere on the planet--and especially not on Palestinians or Yemenis! Women and minorities have always been treated equally in the USA. Americans are never arrested and incarcerated simply for "driving while Black" or living rough on the streets because they lost their homes due to unpaid medical bills or overwhelming student debt or high unemployment during a pandemic or...


Seen online:


I'm not pro-murdering babies.  

I'm pro-Becky who found out at her 20 week anatomy scan that the infant she had been so excited to bring into this world had developed without life sustaining organs.

 I'm pro-Susan who was sexually assaulted on her way home from work, only to come to the horrific realization that her assailant planted his seed in her when she got a positive pregnancy test result a month later.

 I'm pro-Theresa who hemorrhaged due to a placental abruption, causing her parents, spouse, and children to have to make the impossible decision on whether to save her or her unborn child.

I'm pro-little Kathy who had her innocence ripped away from her by someone she should have been able to trust and her 11 year old body isn't mature enough to bear the consequence of that betrayal. 

I'm pro-Melissa who's working two jobs just to make ends meet and has to choose between bringing another child into poverty or feeding the children she already has because her spouse walked out on her. 

I'm pro-Brittany who realizes that she is in no way financially, emotionally, or physically able to raise a child. 

I'm pro-Emily who went through IVF, ending up with SIX viable implanted eggs requiring selective reduction in order to ensure the safety of her and a SAFE amount of fetuses.

I'm pro-Christina who doesn't want to be a mother, but birth control methods sometimes fail.

I'm pro-Jessica who is FINALLY getting the strength to get away from her physically abusive spouse only to find out that she is carrying the monster's child.

I'm pro-Vanessa who went into her confirmation appointment after YEARS of trying to conceive only to hear silence where there should be a heartbeat.   

I'm pro-Lindsay who lost her virginity in her sophomore year with a broken condom and now has to choose whether to be a teenage mom or just a teenager.

I'm pro-Courtney who just found out she's already 13 weeks along, but the egg never made it out of her fallopian tube so either she terminates the pregnancy or risks dying from internal bleeding.

You can argue and say that I'm pro-choice all you want, but the truth is: I'm pro-life. Their lives. Women's lives. You don't get to pick and choose which scenarios should be accepted. Women's rights are meant to protect ALL women, regardless of their situation!

Related articles:

Obama and Liberals Killed Abortion Rights  https://popularresistance.org/obama-and-liberals-killed-abortion-rights/

Democrats Have No Plan To Stop the Overturning of Roe v. Wade https://therealnews.com/democrats-have-no-plan-to-stop-the-overturning-of-roe-v-wade

Republicans Kill Roe v. Wade, Democrats Vow to Tweet Harder https://www.directleft.com/p/republicans-kill-roe-v-wade-democrats?s=r

Democrats Had 50 Years To Save And Protect Roe. They Failed. https://truthout.org/articles/democrats-had-50-years-to-save-and-protect-roe-they-failed/

Leaked Draft Opinion Shows Supreme Court Set to Strike Down Roe v. Wade https://www.commondreams.org/news/2022/05/02/leaked-draft-opinion-shows-supreme-court-set-strike-down-roe-v-wade 

https://www.propublica.org/article/abortion-roe-wade-alito-scotus-hale

The Roe Disaster--And What To Do About It  https://www.levernews.com/the-roe-disaster-and-what-to-do-about-it-2/ 

What Does Roe V. Wade Really Say?  https://www.abajournal.com/web/article/what-is-roe-v-wade 

Legal Experts Fear Loss of Abortion Rights Could Usher in End of Same-Sex Marriage and Other Rights  https://www.abajournal.com/web/article/legal-experts-fear-loss-of-abortion-right-could-usher-in-end-of-same-sex-marriage-other-rights

Homeland Security's "Disinformation Board" Is Even More Pernicious Than It Seems  https://greenwald.substack.com/p/homeland-securitys-disinformation

Western Claims of Russian Mass Graves Near Mariupol Another Fake News Hoax  https://scheerpost.com/2022/05/05/western-claims-of-russian-mass-graves-near-mariupol-another-fake-news-hoax/

There Are Many American Soldiers Already in Ukraine https://popularresistance.org/former-cia-contract-pilot-tosh-plumlee-there-are-many-more-american-soldiers-like-willy-joseph-cancel-already-in-ukraine/ 

Manufactured Truth (video) https://youtu.be/WG2q811Rmb0

CNN Helps US Government Lie About Spying on Americans https://www.rokfin.com/post/84932  ( very short video) 

Ukraine Alone Makes Biden the Worst US President In a Long Time https://caitlinjohnstone.substack.com/p/ukraine-alone-makes-biden-the-worst

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Tuesday, May 3, 2022

Brother, Can You Spare $7 Billion?


Brother, Can You Spare $7 Billion?

by Coast Watcher

Once they sent some missiles to Ukraine
Thanks to the folks on the Hill
Once they sent some missiles, now we're done
Brother, can you spare seven bill'?

Joe Biden’s continuing in office as POTUS is verging on elder abuse.

His performances during press conferences lack coherence. How can anyone not see his advancing senility? Neoliberal attempts to explain away his decrepit behavior as a "speech impediment" are failing in credence.

Knowing this man has control over nuclear weapons makes thinking people uncomfortable, especially since NATO seems determined to provoke Vladimir Putin by expanding up to Russia’s border. Putin has warned what will happen if NATO does so, yet we see Sweden and Finland proposing to join the outdated Cold War organization. Putin has also warned that shipments of military gear to Ukraine by Western powers will be considered legitimate targets of war, yet those shipments continue at an incredible rate.

This US proxy war in Ukraine is merely the latest example of how this senile president is still useful to the oligarchy. The US government is funneling literally billions of dollars into Ukraine—one of the most corrupt countries on Earth according to the Panama Papers—to prop up its failing war effort against Russia. Most of those billions pass through the coffers of the military-industrial complex to the complete satisfaction of their boards of directors and shareholders. 

And why? Supposedly so the West can utterly destroy the Russian economy and grab their resources and then move on to conquer the King of Global Capitalism, a.k.a. China. Nothing new there.

It’s not only Biden’s decline in cognitive function that’s concerning people. He's sending $33 billion to Ukraine so the folks there can “have something in their pockets.” Fortunately for the Ukrainians, they already enjoy universal healthcare while many US citizens have to make do with GoFundMe.  

You have to give it to the Democrat Party--there’s no pretense made that Biden is working for the good of ordinary Americans. $33 billion could end many injustices that Americans suffer with a stroke of the president's pen. He could easily end student loan debt, institute Medicare For All, send out stimulus checks or start UBI. It's estimated that it would take a mere $20 billion to end homelessness, for instance. Yet Biden gladly sends all that money into a proxy war. Ukraine gets plenty of money for weaponry while American infrastructure disintegrates all around us. 

It makes one wonder who really is at war and with whom. Could it be that struggling Americans are being bombarded by the mindless, selfish destructiveness of capitalism? Is our tax money simply disappearing into a war zone in the form of weapon drops so these arms can be bought and sold later at a discount by other interested parties?

Just think of all the profits to be made from selling drones and missiles after "cleaning up" all that money... Can't you just picture all those Congress members buying new mansions and yachts with those ill-gotten gains? Hey, they worked hard for it!

Meanwhile across the globe, there is no unity of sanctions against Russia. Hungary is refusing to enact any sanctions, partly because Hungarian President Orbán is getting payback against the EU for penalizing his country over its anti-LGBTQIA laws, and partly because Orbán isn’t stupid enough to deprive his people of cheap Russian fuel. India also refuses to go along with the drive to sanction Russia, its leadership resisting blandishments and threats from Western powers to do so.

Pakistan wasn’t so fortunate. A US-instigated coup against Imran Khan ousted that pro-neutral leader in favor of one more pliable to Western interests. The message is clear: Nothing personal, but if you're a leader of a country who doesn't go along with NATO's sanctions against Russia, you're going to be out of a job soon.

I can only conclude that Biden is still a useful fool for the one-percent. Any comprehension he might still possess on the nature of politics and capitalism as a whole are more the product of ingrained habit than specific thought. But as long as the American oligarchy thinks he can talk the talk—after a drooling fashion—the more likely he'll keep cutting those big checks for that plucky Ukrainian comedian/puppet-president.


BIO: Coast Watcher is tired of watching the working classes get shafted by the greed and evil manipulations of the billionaires invested heavily in the military industrial complex. Isn't it about time we kick all their politician-puppets to the curb and see how they like begging for small change?


More great insight into the why of spending so much on warfare:

The masters of war require an enemy. When an enemy cannot be found, as George Orwell understood in Nineteen Eighty-Four, an enemy is manufactured. That enemy can become an ally overnight – we allied ourselves with Iran in the Middle East to fight the Taliban and later the Caliphate – before instantly reinstated Iran as the incarnation of evil. The enemy is not about logic or geopolitical necessity. It is about stoking the fear and hatred that fuels perpetual war. 

In 1989, I covered the revolutions that toppled the communist dictatorships in Central and Eastern Europe.  President Mikhail Gorbachev, like his successor Boris Yeltsin and Vladimir Putin in the early stages of his rule, hoped to integrate Russia into the western alliance. But the war industry places profits before national defense. It needed an antagonistic Russia to push the expansion of NATO beyond the borders of a unified Germany in violation of a promise made to Moscow. There were billions of dollars to be made from a Russian enemy, as there are billions more to be made from the proxy war in Ukraine. There would be no “peace dividend” at the end of the Cold War. The war industry was determined to continue to bleed the US dry and amass its obscene profits. They provoked and antagonized Russia until Russia filled its preordained role. --Chris Hedges, The Age of Self-Delusion

Related article links:

The Age of Self-Delusion  https://chrishedges.substack.com/p/the-age-of-self-delusion?s=r

An Intellectual No-Fly Zone  https://popularresistance.org/an-intellectual-no-fly-zone-online-censorship-of-ukraine-dissent-is-becoming-the-new-norm/

Ex-General Pushing for NATO Troops in Ukraine Has Weapons Industry Ties https://popularresistance.org/surprise-ex-general-pushing-for-nato-troops-in-ukraine-has-weapons-industry-ties/ 

UN Chief Slams Fossil Fuel Industry for Using Ukraine War to Boost Profits https://truthout.org/articles/un-chief-slams-fossil-fuel-industry-for-using-ukraine-war-to-boost-profits/

On Ukraine, the World Majority Sides with Russia Over US https://popularresistance.org/on-ukraine-the-world-majority-sides-with-russia-over-us/

US/NATO Wants War With Russia  https://popularresistance.org/us-nato-wants-war-with-russia/

Ukraine: How the US Empire Uses Propaganda To Turn People Into Monsters https://rainershea.substack.com/p/ukraine-how-the-us-empire-uses-propaganda

PayPal Blocks Multiple Alternative  Media Figures Critical of US Empire Narratives  https://caitlinjohnstone.substack.com/p/paypal-blocks-multiple-alternative?s=r 

Americans Believe Nothing Is Getting Better. Biden Feeds That Disillusionment https://www.rsn.org/001/americans-believe-nothing-is-getting-better-biden-feeds-that-disillusionment.html

"Disinformation Governance Board" Chief is Huge Spreader of Disinformation https://youtu.be/0ac_q8Z9SQk  (video)

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Tuesday, April 26, 2022

Everybody Loves Raytheon

 

"Everybody Loves Raytheon!" 

An Interview with A. Riche-Persson

Editor's note: We last heard from A. Riche-Persson in 2020 when she told us her perspective on the upcoming elections in Why I Adore Joe Biden.  We thought it would be good to make a Zoom call and check in with her to find out how she's been doing during the pandemic and after Joe's first year in office. The transcript of the call follows.

The Revolution Continues:  It's good to hear from you, Ms. Riche-Persson. May we call you by your first name Ayn?

A. Riche-Persson: If you're a member of my private club, maybe. Otherwise, I always insist on the press addressing me properly.

TRC: Okay... So, Ms. Riche-Persson, how was your pandemic experience? I notice you're not wearing a mask.

ARP: President Biden said it's over now, and I believe him. I'm not a science denier, truth be told. I simply did my best to stay away from places where lots of poor people were breathing in and out, and I always use hand sanitizer. Other than one really bad bout of pneumonia, I've been perfectly fine these past two years. The whole thing has been one big joke, but I've had the last laugh. 

TRC: Oh? How so? 

ARP: My friend Nancy told me which pharmaceutical companies to buy stocks in right before they started boo-hooing over this overblown common cold pandemic business. And she was right. It's been very lucrative. 

TRC: Would that be Nancy Pelosi, the Speaker of the House? 

ARP: One and the same. She's very helpful to her friends with her insider tips. I just tell my stockbroker what she says and he lines it up for me. Ka-ching! Ka-ching! Money in the bank. 

TRC: I bet. What other insider tips has Ms. Pelosi given you? 

ARP: Lately she's been gushing all about military manufacturers to invest in. Since February those stock prices have soared higher and higher. It's so exciting! Everybody loves Raytheon! I adore Lockheed Martin and General Dynamics, too. America is just getting richer and richer by the day. 

TRC: Everyone in the US is getting richer, or is it just you and Ms. Pelosi and her friends? 

ARP:  (Chuckling) What difference does it make? As long as I'm doing okay that's all that matters.

TRC: We don't have time to delve into what the difference is right now, but you're honestly happy with the way things are going? 

ARP: Of course I am. When the stock market is on a roll, everyone is on a roll. I think President Biden said we've got something like zero percent unemployment, so that's gotta be good, right? 

TRC: Do the closed signs on small businesses' front windows ever catch your eye?

ARP: I'm driven around in a limo with dark-tinted windows. Never seen them.

TRC: Okay, so you're saying you're not worried about a resurgence in the omicron variant of COVID-19 or upset about the conflict going on in Ukraine or that millions of Americans won't be able to pay their rent and risk eviction this year? 

ARP: Well, of course I'm upset about all those poor people living on the streets. They bring our property values down. They're so messy with all their possessions in bags littering the place. But the mayor of New York City is doing a great job of rounding them up and putting them elsewhere, so I sleep well at night. 

TRC: And the chance of COVID taking off again and killing another million Americans? 

ARP: Meh. It's not really a thing thing, you know? At least not among my circle of friends. If others get sick from it or have to bury a family member, I feel sorry for them, but I don't know them, so what?  Nothing to lose sleep over. I'm just glad I don't have to smudge my lipstick wearing a mask in public. Masks really killed my sense of style. They never matched my designer outfits.

TRC: (Sighing) The idea that you're making money off of selling armaments to fuel a proxy war that has caused many to flee their homes doesn't cause you any bad dreams, either, right? 

ARP: You said it, not me. It's a proxy war. That means American soldiers won't get hurt--just those people who are stupid enough to live there. And fossil fuels aren't making that good a return on investment right now, so why not expand my stock portfolio to include weapons manufacturers?  It seems that cute little comedian president can't get enough of them. 

TRC: Zelensky? 

ARP: Gesundheit. I hope you wear a mask in public so others don't catch your germs. 

TRC: Uh, yeah. On a related topic, I've recently learned that your family originally came from Germany and arrived in the US right at the end of World War II. Is that right?

ARP: (Quietly) That's right... Granddad got a job with the government. 

TRC: Your grandfather was known to have a very important job within the Nazi government before he immigrated to the US is what I've read.

ARP: Yeah, but he was a good Nazi. Like the Nazis in Ukraine are. America likes the good Nazis.

TRC: It appears we do. The Azov Battalion and other Nazi units in the Ukrainian military are accepting billion of dollars of armaments from the US. Biden gave Ukraine $800 million worth of arms just this last week. Some of those guns in the future may be used to terrorize or kill people that Nazis don't like such as LGBTQIA persons, the Roma, and ethnic Russians. You're okay with that? 

ARP: (Sighing) Well, what can I say? People get hurt in wars, but wars are good for business. 

TRC: They are. And all is fair in love and business, right? 

ARP: Hey, like I said everybody loves Raytheon--my stockbroker, Ukrainian Nazis, the US Defense Department… You know, important people.

TRC: Uh-huh. You certainly have an interesting perspective on things, Ms. Riche-Persson. 

ARP: I do. And I have one other thing you and your friends don't have.

TRC: What's that?

ARP: Money, so people in power have to listen to me. Even Nazis in power.

TRC: Sad to say but true. Thanks for talking with us today, Ayn Rand--uh, Ms. Riche-Persson. I'm sure you'll sleep well tonight. I know I won't.

BIO: "A. Riche-Persson" (or Ayn to her friends) is a member of the country club down the road and thinks she knows what's best for those who haven't been blessed with her good looks (and face lifts) and brains (she attended Yale, but married a millionaire and forgot to finish her degree). Heed her advice and you, too, can become well-connected in the corporate-owned-and-operated establishment duopoly. Just leave your conscience at the door with the coat check girl.

Related Articles:

Updated: A short video you must see to really understand the power of the weapons lobby in DC:  https://youtu.be/N3pnFR7DeZA

More Military Spending Won't End Atrocities, We Must Focus on Preventing Them https://truthout.org/articles/more-military-spending-wont-end-atrocities-we-must-focus-on-preventing-them/

Some of the Weapons Delivered to Ukraine Will Be Used Against Us https://popularresistance.org/some-of-the-weapons-delivered-to-ukraine-will-be-used-against-us/

Lockheed Martin and Friends Don't Want You To Know What They're Up To https://jacobinmag.com/2022/04/defense-contractors-human-rights-transparency-lockheed-raytheon 

US Spent 7.5 Times More On Nuclear Weapons Than Vaccine Donations https://popularresistance.org/the-u-s-spent-7-5-times-more-on-nuclear-weapons-than-global-vaccine-donations/ 

Global Capitalism Has Become Dependent on War-Making to Sustain Itself  https://truthout.org/articles/global-capitalism-has-become-dependent-on-war-making-to-sustain-itself/

How the War in Ukraine Is Being Fought in the Media (video) https://youtu.be/j9YewFqws2M 

Gonzalo Lira Speaks Out (video)  (There's lots of good information in this video from an investigative reporter in Ukraine.)   https://youtu.be/AhjcVTCDLLI

Why I Adore Joe Biden by A. Riche-Persson  https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2020/04/why-i-adore-joe-biden.html 

The Rich Haven't Just Gotten Richer--They've Also Gotten A Lot More Selfish https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/apr/23/us-billionaires-taxes-elon-musk-week-in-patriarchy

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