Interview with a Non-Scientist

 

Interview with a Non-Scientist

by C. A. Matthews

With the recent March to End Fossil Fuels in New York and the deadly floods in Libya and elsewhere, environmental crises and activism have been talked about in the both mainstream media and podcast outlets alike. Climate scientists like Peter Kalmus have preached the warning far and wide that burning fossil fuels has heated our atmosphere causing detrimental climate change and, more than likely, irreparable damage to our planet. Green Party presidential candidate Dr. Cornel West has elevated the climate emergency by actually speaking about it on the campaign trail, unlike others running for the same office who somehow think expanding oil drilling on federal lands is a good idea.

Sane persons ask, “What will it take for Big Oil to shut down forever and allow green energy to take over? Why won’t our elected officials listen to the concerned climate scientists instead of their obscenely wealthy corporate donors? Why does the mainstream media tolerate #ClimateHoax people at the expense of #ClimateEmergency people?”

Why indeed.

I decided to track down a climate crisis denier and ask them for their perspective on recent happenings in the weather. Perhaps their insights can answer these questions and clear up some of the confusion. To that end, I put out a call and received a response from one Freddie Flattearther. Here is the transcript of that interview:

 

The Revolution Continues: Welcome to the The Revolution Continues blog, Freddie. Thanks for taking some of your valuable time to talk with us.

Freddie Flattearther: Thanks for this opportunity. It isn’t usual that a communist organization is interested in hearing anything from the sane side of this climate change argument, so I must admit I was quite happy to oblige.

TRC: You’re welcome. We’re not exactly a “communist organization,” but we do pride ourselves on keeping an open mind and being one with the workers. So, let’s start by you telling us a little about yourself and why you feel you’re qualified to speak about the so-called “Climate Hoax” you claim is currently happening.

FF: You could say that I’m a proud non-scientist who knows tons more about the climate changing than any of these so called “climate scientists” out there. You wonder what they’re teaching in those colleges nowadays, but, whatever it is, it’s not commonsense.

TRC: It’s not commonsense? Please elaborate on why being a “non-scientist” makes you an expert in an area that others study for many years at a high level of academia?

FF: I call it the “They-can’t-see-the-forest-for-the-trees Syndrome.” Those eggheads can’t even look at their calendars and see the main reason why the climate is changing. You need an ordinary person like me whose mind hasn’t been contaminated with too much knowledge to explain it.

TRC: Please do.

FF: (Lowering his voice.) It’s so simple that even a child can understand it. The climate changes all the time. It’s called "the four seasons"—and I don’t mean the pop group with Frankie Valli from the 1960s or the big, fancy hotel chain, either.

TRC: So the massive floods, the unprecedented number of strong hurricanes so far this year, the unusual heat waves and droughts worldwide are all due to a simple change of the seasons? Is that correct?

FF: Well, not exactly. The seasons are changing, but they’re also getting both longer and shorter. Summer is about a month longer than normal I’ve observed over the last couple of years. Hence, we had a very intense hot spell in what used to be a month normally associated with spring. There’s also a big chance they’ll be a larger than average number of hurricanes occurring because summer is longer, so there’s more room on the calendar to squish them in. I call this the “Rubber Band Effect.” Eventually we’ll snap out of it.

TRC: How will we “snap out of it”?

FF: The giant rubber band wound around the core of the planet will eventually break, bringing things back to normal.

TRC: There’s a giant rubber band wrapped around the core of the planet? I wasn’t sure you believed in a round Earth with a core, what with your last name and all, Mr. Flattearther.

FF: My family used to believe in a flat Earth, but I’ve grown a little in my outlook over the decades. A flat Earth makes it hard to explain a lot of planetary events. However, the rubber band core explains earthquakes and the climate changing dramatically quite well.

TRC: This rubber band core explains the devastating earthquake in Morocco recently?

FF: Yes, that was the rubber band core being bounced hard by the giant who lives on the dark side of the moon.

TRC: (Clearing throat.) There’s a giant on the moon who bounces the earth’s core now and then?

FF: Yes, and he bounces it mostly when he’s bored. He’s grown very bored these past fifty years because we haven’t sent up any more spaceships to the moon for him to slingshot them around. It’s one of the biggest reasons why it’s been growing hotter lately.

TRC: (Nodding slowly.) Uh-huh. Explain how that works. And does this giant have a name?

FF: Those intense heat blasts come out of the giant’s mouth. He’s full of hot air, so I’ve given him the name of “Mr. Gassy.” And he is a stinker! His burping and farting explains why our air smells rather rank like rotten eggs sometimes, especially when the wind is blowing from the side of town where the oil refinery is located.

TRC: You don’t believe the obnoxious smells are coming from local manufacturing and/or the oil refinery itself?

FF: Nah, they couldn’t be. I know for a fact that our factories and our oil refinery only emit the purest of air.

TRC: (Raising an eyebrow.) Really? How do you know this to be true? Most people would say that the bad smells are indicative of the pollutants being spewed out of the smoke stacks.

FF: Of course it’s true! Why would Exxon or Chevron lie to us? They take care of little ducklings and goslings whenever they’re in need of a bath. There’s a TV commercial that shows this to be true.

TRC: You mean the dish soap commercial showing people washing oil off of wild birds’ feathers after they were got caught in an oil slick? Okay, I see where now you’re possibly getting your ideas. Do you always believe whatever you see or hear on television?

FF: For the most part, yes. There’s no reason for the big corporations to lie to us. They live on the same planet with us. Why would they pollute their own air and water, for instance? (Laughing.) I bet you don’t have a good answer to that!

TRC: No, I don’t. There is no good reason why anyone or any corporation would pollute their own air and water, but they do. As they say, “It's an ill bird that fouls its own nest.”

FF: See? I told you there’s no real reason to worry about a “climate emergency.” (Miming quote marks.) The corporations are looking after us like they look after those sick birds. We can trust them because they’re smart, unlike our politicians. They’re all a bunch of morons.

TRC: On that point, we’re agreed. Politicians are, for the most part, unethical morons, but how can we be so sure we’re not being duped by Big Oil, for instance?

FF: I’m sure they’re not lying to us, because if I ever found out they had lied about the quality of their product, gasoline, I’d stop buying so much of it for my Cadillac Escalade and buy one of those plug-in electric cars instead. I’d be downright angry if I ever found out how their products caused the earth to become hotter or dryer in the summer months or caused deadly flooding and storms where normally there aren’t any. Lots of people like me would stop buying gasoline, and that would put the oil companies out of business. They’re not stupid. They rely on people like me to stay in business.

TRC: They certainly do. So, you’re not angry about Mr. Gassy the giant bouncing the earth or batting it about?

FF: No, not really. It’s just the way he is. I just hope the US can nuke China soon so we can prevent the Chinese from sending any more space probes to the dark side of the moon. It annoys him.

TRC: Uh, yeah. Do you feel that nuclear war is winnable?

FF: All wars are winnable—if you have Mr. Gassy on your side.

TRC: Yeah, I thought you might say that. It’s been quite an experience chatting with you, Freddie Flattearther. Everyone, be careful out there and try not to get on the giant’s bad side. It seems the future of everyone on Earth is counting on it.

Related Articles and Other Interesting Links: 

 

Peter Kalmus speaking at the End Fossil Fuels march in NYC

https://youtu.be/1rJHlFME480?si=H4t1ymTZIsP3zyUx

Civil Society Reactions To United Nations Climate Ambition Summit https://popularresistance.org/civil-society-reactions-to-united-nations-climate-ambition-summit/

Climate Defenders Arrested While Blocking Entry To NY Federal Reserve  https://popularresistance.org/climate-defenders-arrested-while-blocking-entry-to-ny-federal-reserve/

The Climate March, Joe Biden, and AOC’s Dubious Endorsement
https://scheerpost.com/2023/09/19/the-climate-march-joe-biden-and-aocs-dubious-endorsement/

Mining the Sacred: Indigenous nations fight lithium gold rush at Thacker Pass https://youtu.be/uLO7ClVtlBA?si=UoZtSbEN-vY8Vs-I

A Guide To Six Greenwashing Terms Big Ag Is Bringing To COP28https://popularresistance.org/a-guide-to-six-greenwashing-terms-big-ag-is-bringing-to-cop28/

Chinese balloon was not spying, US gov't admits months after manufactured crisis  https://geopoliticaleconomy.substack.com/p/chinese-balloon-not-spying-us-media

This War Wasn't Just Provoked — It Was Provoked Deliberately
https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/this-war-wasnt-just-provoked-it-was

War Profiteers Are A Sign Of A Profoundly Sick Society
https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/war-profiteers-are-a-sign-of-a-profoundly

We're Being Prepared For The Ukraine War To Last Into The 2030s
https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/were-being-prepared-for-the-ukraine

 

Ukraine Follows Imperial Japan's Example in the Attrition of its Military https://ohiobarbarian.substack.com/p/ukraine-follows-imperial-japans-example

Australian Politicians Coming To US To Free Julian Assange
https://popularresistance.org/australian-politicians-coming-to-us-to-free-julian-assange/

US Sees Highest Ever Increase in Poverty https://consortiumnews.com/2023/09/22/us-sees-highest-ever-increase-in-poverty/

If The Facts Come Out, It Could Spell The End For Joe Biden
https://popularresistance.org/if-the-facts-come-out-it-could-spell-the-end-for-joe-biden/

'Silent Coup'—How corporations rule the world w/Matt Kennard | The Chris Hedges Report https://youtu.be/1xRrk-cYU-E?si=0o252v-vU6MR3E_D

Biden orders deployment of 800 soldiers to US-Mexico border https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2023/09/23/xsta-s23.html

Beyond the Border: U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Presence at Racial Justice Protests in Summer of 2020
https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/FOIA/cbp-presence-racial-justice-protests-summer-2020

Citizen Groups Sue EPA for Using Black Neighborhoods as “Sacrifice Zones” https://truthout.org/articles/citizen-groups-sue-epa-for-using-black-neighborhoods-as-sacrifice-zones/

Striking Autoworkers at Stellantis Are Up Against a Yacht-Sailing Billionaire  https://truthout.org/articles/striking-autoworkers-at-stellantis-are-up-against-a-yacht-sailing-billionaire/

Boston March October 7 To Demand: Indigenous Peoples Day Now! https://popularresistance.org/boston-march-october-7-to-demand-indigenous-peoples-day-now/

Coming soon, the first book from The Revolution Continues blog:  The Little Red Book of Revolution

How can you get your e-copy? The easiest way is to subscribe to The Revolution Continues on Substack as a paying subscriber. Choose what level you'd like to subscribe online at: https://therevolutioncontinues.substack.com

If you'd like to help out in the meantime, buy me a coffee!  https://ko-fi.com/therevolutioncontinues

More details to come. Power to the people!

 

Why The Revolution Hasn't Started Yet

Why The Revolution Hasn't Started Yet

by C.A. Matthews 

That’s what authentic living is, in my view: meeting life just as it is, without egocentric filters, distortions or manipulations, come what may. This is the only way to really live our time on this earth, to really experience each moment instead of missing it. It’s also the only way for ordinary people to respond to tyranny and abuse with the emotional energy it requires. —Caitlin Johnstone, We Must Never Let Ourselves Become Desensitized To This

I spy this question almost weekly—if not daily—on the social media platforms I frequent. I ask it to myself almost every night before I go to bed… Why hasn’t the Revolution started yet?

Many pundits and experts cite current statistics about the reality of Bidenomics. All I know is that I pay $3.69 for a block of cream cheese that I paid about 99 cents only three years ago. The facts don’t lie: Capitalism kills, particularly those of the working class.

Why hasn’t the Revolution started yet? The question is pertinent. Its answer is desperately needed.

Why hasn’t the Revolution started yet? What’s holding it up? What is holding us back from taking decisive action? Why hasn’t the magical Revolution Fairy descended from on high and seized the means of production away from the capitalists and given it to the workers yet?

That last question reveals the answer to the first question. The workers don’t really want to work hard to bring about a socialist utopia. They want someone or something else to do the heavy lifting, sort of like their capitalist bosses want the workers to do all the heavy lifting for the bosses. And so the Revolution is going nowhere fast, and “Nowhere” is not a destination to head toward if one is serious about changing the world for the better.

While we travel slowly to Nowhere, the members of the working class aren’t exactly idle. They’re spewing out their hate and frustrations on each other more often than not. The workers might say they believe in socialism, equality, and sharing the benefits of an egalitarian society with their fellow human beings, but the evidence isn’t quite there. If those who long for Revolution truly longed to bring about the beautiful socialist transformation of our economies and governmental systems for all humankind, they would demonstrate their altruism and goodwill in their everyday actions and manners, right?

But the workers, those supposed lovers of Revolution, don’t demonstrate brotherly love (sisterly love or neighborly love) for their fellow workers. Often they show outright contempt. It’s ugly and unseemly.

Case in point, the chat room of a popular socialist podcaster on YouTube recently. The podcaster is interviewing a new worker in the campaign for high office of a revolutionary dreamer. Questions are asked of the new worker. He doesn’t hesitate to answer and elaborate on his new position and his personal history and experience. The discussion on camera is fine and illuminates aspects of the new worker’s position in the campaign. 

But this is not the chat room occupants’ focus. Many are ignoring the conversation on screen and are repeatedly calling the new worker a “psychopath” and a “liar.” They don’t show any altruism or goodwill in their actions. Their rhetoric becomes even more spiteful and hate-filled as the interview continues, particularly so when the new worker expresses a mutual longing for socialist Revolution as well.

By the end of the interview, anyone reading the chat room dialogue would think it wasn’t a socialist podcast but a capitalist brow-beaters’ convention. The chatters claim to be leftists or socialists who want Revolution, but their actions say otherwise. They revel in cruelty. They verbally attack those in the chat room who won’t join in the snarkfest against the new worker alongside them.

If you claim you want to bring about a better world for the entirety of humanity based upon a socialist society, then you must demonstrate that you want this better world to be for all human beings. You must forgive your enemies and give your fellow workers the same chance. You must treat everyone as equals, not treat some better and some worse. Otherwise, you’re not a true revolutionary. You are still a capitalist, and you belong in one of the duopolist parties.

Why keep asking, “Why hasn’t the Revolution started yet?” when you know it’s not going to start while they’re still more capitalists than socialists in the world.

The Revolution can’t start while there are some who continue to think themselves better than their fellow workers, that they merit better treatment because they are somehow more moral and more deserving of forgiveness. The brutal chat commentators calling the new worker a “liar” over and over again are saying that they are superior to him because only they as his superiors can know the truth. The new worker is painted as “less than” because the chatters see him as less worthy of their trust and respect. 

So it follows that the cruel chatters can label the new worker a “psychopath” without any self-awareness that their own behavior is psychopathic in its need to inflict pain upon another human as much as possible through degrading comments. Name-calling is a puerile way to assert dominance in a conversation. The so-called “socialists” in the chat room (and elsewhere on the internet) who resort to name-calling, cursing, and using vulgarities to describe others aren’t ready for the Revolution. They simply don’t see other human beings as equals—or perhaps even as human beings at all. 

Even worse, these name-callers’ actions mirror those of their capitalist bosses. They keep ordering others around and insisting upon their own superiority. How can a socialist Revolution start when it’s supposed supporters’ actions mimic those of the capitalists’ selfish ways?

There you have it—the real reason behind why the Revolution hasn’t started yet. We the workers are not ready for change. We don’t want the world to become a more just and caring place for everyone. We want some to suffer horribly for their past mistakes, over and over again. We withhold forgiveness from other workers for making mistakes even though we ourselves make mistakes daily.

We the workers don’t want equality. We want to act just as bad as our capitalist bosses who berate us and lord over us. With such horrible examples like this coming from so-called socialists, how will we ever convince others to learn the benefits of socialism and join in the cause?

The Golden Rule is a good place to start if you truly want to create a socialist Revolution. Treat others as you would like to be treated. Love your neighbor as you love yourself. Walk a mile in another person’s moccasins. 

Stop kidding yourself into thinking that acting superior and snarky and showing zero empathy for others is somehow an expression of “socialism.” It isn’t. Capitalists act superior and snarky and show zero empathy for the workers all the time. This is why the world is as screwed up as it is today.

If you want our society to change for the better so you don’t have to keep asking, “Why hasn’t the Revolution started yet?” then you need to grow up emotionally and treat your fellow workers as equals, worthy of your trust, respect, and forgiveness. Anything less won’t cut it.

Why hasn’t the Revolution started yet? The simple answer could be YOU.

Related Articles and Interesting Links:

We Must Never Let Ourselves Become Desensitized To This https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/we-must-never-let-ourselves-becomeon the planet

Cornel West 2024 https://www.cornelwest24.org   or https://www.cornelwest2024.com/

The working class is not going to win the class war https://councilestatemedia.substack.com/p/the-working-class-is-not-going-to

 

Bidenomics: Millions to Rebuild Maui, Billions for Ukraine

https://scheerpost.com/2023/09/18/bidenomics-millions-to-rebuild-maui-billions-for-ukraine/

‘War Is Good for Business,’ Declares Executive at London’s Global Arms Fair  https://scheerpost.com/2023/09/16/war-is-good-for-business-declares-executive-at-londons-global-arms-fair/

Hundreds Of Scientists Endorse Demands Of March To End Fossil Fuels  https://popularresistance.org/hundreds-of-scientists-endorse-demands-of-march-to-end-fossil-fuels/

“A Watershed Moment”: CA Sues Oil Giants Over Decades of Climate Destruction https://truthout.org/articles/a-watershed-moment-ca-sues-oil-giants-over-decades-of-climate-destruction

Child Poverty More Than Doubled in 2022 After Congress Let Tax Credit Expire https://truthout.org/articles/child-poverty-more-than-doubled-in-2022-after-congress-let-tax-credit-expire

According to the Census Bureau’s latest report on poverty in the U.S., the supplemental poverty rate among children more than doubled between 2021 and 2022, jumping from 5.2 percent to 12.4 percent in just one year. This represents an increase of over 5 million children experiencing poverty in 2022, for a total of about 9 million children.

Poverty also increased for all ages by 4.6 percentage points to 12.4 percent in 2022. This marks the first increase in the supplemental poverty rate since 2010, and marks the largest one-year rise in poverty rates on record, according to the Census Bureau.

NATO imperialism and the Libya flood catastrophe
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2023/09/14/zlnn-s14.html

Earthquake in Morocco: Government and European Imperialism to Blame for Rising Death Toll  https://scheerpost.com/2023/09/14/earthquake-in-morocco-government-and-european-imperialism-to-blame-for-rising-death-toll/

Humanitarian Imperialism Created the Libyan Nightmare https://chrishedges.substack.com/p/humanitarian-imperialism-created/comments

Arkansas Lawmakers Could Wreck A 50-Year-Old FOIA Law This Week https://scheerpost.com/2023/09/14/arkansas-lawmakers-could-wreck-a-50-year-old-foia-law-this-week/

End Wealth Supremacy https://scheerpost.com/2023/09/15/end-wealth-supremacy/

Despite 116,000 Signatures, Atlanta Won’t Validate Stop Cop City Petition https://truthout.org/articles/despite-116000-signatures-atlanta-wont-validate-stop-cop-city-petition

 Join The ‘Reparations Contingent’ At The Black People’s March On The White House https://popularresistance.org/a-call-to-white-people-join-the-reparations-contingent-at-the-black-peoples-march/

NATO is a Farce, Part 2: The Puppet Parade https://joebrunoli.substack.com/p/nato-is-a-farce-part-2-the-puppet/comments

Coming soon, the first book from The Revolution Continues blog:  The Little Red Book of Revolution

How can you get your e-copy? The easiest way is to subscribe to The Revolution Continues on Substack as a paying subscriber. Choose what level you'd like to subscribe online at: https://therevolutioncontinues.substack.com

If you'd like to help out in the meantime, buy me a coffee!  https://ko-fi.com/therevolutioncontinues

More details to come. Power to the people!

 

The Cure For TDS

The Cure For TDS

by C.A. Matthews

January 6, January 6, January 6, January 6, January 6, January 6, January 6, January 6, Orange man bad, Orange man bad, Orange man bad, Orange man bad, Putin, Putin, Putin, Putin, Putin, Putin...

This is the extent of Dem/liberal political analysis.

— Peter Daou (@peterdaou)

https://twitter.com/peterdaou/status/1699443420249411676

After I read the above Tweet*, I'm convinced that former Dem campaign manager Peter Daou has completely snapped out of his Trump Derangement Syndrome (TDS) and returned to the land of rational human beings. Some Dems’ obsession with Donald Trump became so intense and illogical at times over these past seven years that I often worried they had lost their minds.

It was as if TDS sufferers had fallen into a deep, dark abyss and could no longer see the light at the top to climb toward and free themselves. To this day, some add to their Trump obsession by listening to mainstream media pundits such as Rachel Maddow repeatedly making baseless accusations against the former president. 

According to Maddow, Trump was somehow in league with Russian President Vladimir Putin to win the election, in spite of the lack of any credible evidence to back this assertion up. The entirety of the “Russiagate” fiasco has once and for all been disproved. That revelation should have put this unusual phobia of Trump to bed for good, but the mainstream media pundits continue to feed its sufferers by amplifying Trump’s current legal woes and his strident supporters.

Obsession is defined by Psych Central as “a recurring thought of something or someone, where it always seems to be in a person’s mind.” According the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.): “You may be dealing with an obsession if you experience stressful thoughts or urges that cause you to try to make these thoughts go away or calm related stress.”

Peter has broken free of his obsession concerning the former US president. His Tweet parodying the repetitiveness of thoughts of TDS demonstrate how he has gotten to the point where he is able to observe others' fixation on Trump, and he no longer is drawn into their obsessing over the “Orange man bad” any more.

This is good because Peter is now free to concentrate his abilities on important matters, such as working as Cornel West's campaign manager for the 2024 presidential election. Peter is free to help Dr. West in his advocating for universal health care, forgiving outrageous student loan debts, and providing homes for the homeless.

I bet Peter even has more time to enjoy his music. To be free of an obsession that clouds your thought processes is a liberating experience. It can bring about inner peace and hope for the future, instead of a life full of negativity and pessimism.

Peter has rightfully concluded that he has no control over Donald Trump’s actions or the consequences of Trump’s actions. That responsibility lies solely in Trump’s hands. 

Other recent Tweets indicate that Peter has concluded that the corrupt justice system in the US will probably keep Trump and his high level compatriots from suffering the indignity of prison, because wealthy white persons in the US don’t generally ever see jail time for crimes they’ve committed. 

Caitlin Johnstone says it well:

None of the world’s worst people are in prison. Most of them are quite wealthy and respected, because they benefit from the abusive status quo that laws are set up to protect." --Laws Don't Exist to Prevent Wrongdoing

To obsess over the lack of fairness in the corrupt US justice system, while doing little or nothing to expose and end it except to snivel, whine, cry, or obsess over its unfairness, is a waste of time and energy better used elsewhere.

So, how did Peter break himself of his TDS? Is there a vaccine or cure for it? How I wish there were!

I believe Peter cured himself by finally facing himself in the mirror one day and saying, “Is this all there is in life? To complain about an ex-president who has terrible taste in hairstyles and spray-on tans? Couldn’t I be doing something better with my time? And who is continually telling me that I should obsess over Donald Trump? I need to ignore that person or persons for my own good and warn others to do the same.”

This is how the cure works—in the self-acknowledgment that you as a TDS sufferer have been led to believe (by not entirely honest people) that Trump is an existential threat to you life and that constantly worrying about him is the proper response to this perceived threat. By rationalizing that you have better things to do, and that obsessing over Trump doesn’t solve anyone’s problems, you are able to see where you first contracted TDS and how to avoid contact with the “carriers” of TDS from now on.

Who transmits TDS? Rachel Maddow and her fellow neoliberals are quite good at it. However, the original transmitters of TDS were those who came up with using Trump as their excuse for their problems in the first place—the Democratic Party, particularly the Hillary Clinton faction.

The Dems don’t do political analysis Peter has concluded because it’s so much simpler to repeat the mantras “Orange Man bad!” or “Putin puppet!” over and over again. It's just easier to scream epithets at others who disagree with your position rather than to actually reply with a rational statement like, “We didn’t advise Hillary to campaign in the Midwest, so she lost the election to Trump in the Electoral College. That’s about the extent of it.”

Admitting their responsibility for Hillary's big loss in 2016 was just too much for the DNC bigwigs obviously. They simply went off the deep end. Or did they actually sit down and carefully plot this “Let's blame everything on Trump” game step-by-step? Either way, it became an convenient excuse and has worked to keep their followers united in a bizarre, cult-like way.

Nothing could be more cultish than coming up with a common enemy to focus all the group members’ hate and fear on rather than taking a calm and logical look at what actions could have been taken to avoid Clinton’s election loss.

Cults are often led by a charismatic leader or leaders who are thought to be are all-powerful and can do no wrong. These leaders are usually charged with fighting an “evil” against all odds for the protection of the cult members. Picture Hillary Clinton as the “guru” of this DNC cult and Trump as their “devil”. You can see how rank-and-file Dems were easily manipulated into putting their stamina into crying for Trump’s head and blaming him for every little thing the DNC ever did wrong.

Flip this scenario on its head and put Trump in the guru position and name Hillary as the devil, and you’ll readily see how the Republican faithful have stayed in Trump’s corner to this day. Why would they think their beloved leader Trump is guilty of any of the crimes he is charged with? Isn’t that how the devil operates—falsely accusing the innocent and blaming them for the devil’s own nefarious activities?

If there ever were a better reason to ditch the duopoly and become a proud independent or alternative party voter, avoiding the obsession-cult of TDS is it. Americans have much more significant matters to tackle. Our planet is literally boiling/burning up. Rich ex-presidents can take care of themselves.

Peter has freed himself from an awful burden of believing there are any significant differences between the two biggest political cults—I mean factions—in the United States. Once you have divested yourself from the belief that we have a democracy in this country (see the definition of democracy in last week’s blog), and you’ve decided that becoming embroiled in a cult-like organization that spouts off nonsense Tweets like, “If you’re for peace in Ukraine, you’re a Putin lover!” is wrong, then you’re essentially vaccinated against TDS for good.

I won’t claim you won’t ever need a “booster shot” from all this neoliberal nonsense from time to time. We’re all human, and humans do tend to slip now and then. But at least once you’ve cured yourself of TDS, you’ll rest in the knowledge that it is possible to walk away from a cult—I mean a political faction, red or blue—without any dire consequences. Peter has.

As a free and independent voter, your self-confidence will grow. You’ll trust your own observations and will be able to think things through for yourself without the extraneous commentary from the propagandists. You’ll feel stronger—strong enough to reach out to others who are doing positive things to bring about a better country and a safer and healthier world.

The cure for Trump Derangement Syndrome ultimately is to become your own person and to act—not react—when challenging times come your way.

 

*Who calls the formerly known as Tweets “X posts”? Nobody really.

 

Breaking News: 

https://twitter.com/CornelWest/status/1701045524713840690

Just announced, running on the Party for Socialism and Liberation ticket:  Claudia De La Cruz & Karina Garcia
@votesocialist24
https://votesocialist2024.com/volunteer

 

Related Articles and Interesting Links

(How Not To Say) I Told You So https://continuousrev.blogspot.com/2023/05/how-not-to-say-told-you-so.html 

Psychology of Obsessions https://psychcentral.com/ocd/psychology-of-obsessions#definition

Fighting Words https://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2023/09/fighting-words.html

Honest Government Ad--Visit Canada https://youtu.be/u7s-BgfcFXw?si=TqOW-zXFh2ia8Tc9

‘A Reckoning’: 500 Groups Endorse March To End Fossil Fuels
https://popularresistance.org/a-reckoning-500-groups-endorse-march-to-end-fossil-fuels/

As student loan payments resume, millions face a lifetime of debt while Wall Street profits https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2023/09/08/bxjl-s08.html

US Intelligence Official: Media Misleading Americans About Ukraine’s Battlefield Success https://scheerpost.com/2023/09/08/us-intelligence-official-media-misleading-americans-about-ukraines-battlefield-success/

USA & NATO responsible for Ukraine war, German & French public say in poll https://geopoliticaleconomy.substack.com/p/us-nato-responsible-ukraine-war-poll

Waves of Strikes Rippling Across the US Seem Big, but the Total Number of Americans Walking Off the Job Remains Historically Low https://scheerpost.com/2023/09/05/waves-of-strikes-rippling-cross-the-us-seem-big-but-the-total-number-of-americans-walking-off-the-job-remains-historically-low/

Ukraine’s ‘Biggest Arms Supplier’ Orchestrated 2014 Maidan Massacre, Witnesses Say https://scheerpost.com/2023/09/07/ukraines-biggest-arms-supplier-orchestrated-2014-maidan-massacre-witnesses-say/

US Open tennis players “fall by the wayside” as COVID-19 surges
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2023/09/05/gsjw-s05.html

Belgian Minister Says What Biden Won’t: Israel Is Wiping Entire Palestinian Villages Off the Map https://scheerpost.com/2023/09/05/belgian-minister-says-what-biden-wont-israel-is-wiping-entire-palestinian-villages-off-the-map/

From the formerly known as Twitter:

I was a lifelong Dem

I now vote 3rd Party

I had Trump Derangement Syndrome

I believed Russiagate

While exploring, I discovered I was being lied to and played for a fool by Dems

If you care about saving our make believe democracy and stopping fascism don't vote Dem

— Black in the Empire (@blackintheempir) September 7, 2023

https://twitter.com/blackintheempir/status/1699575590632804461

Jim Walton Wealth
2012: $23.9 billion
2023: $73.1 billion

Rob Walton Wealth
2012: $23.5 billion
2023: $71.1 billion

Alice Walton Wealth
2012: $23 billion
2023: $70.1 billion

Minimum Wage
2009: $7.25
2023: $7.25

The Walton family inherited half of Walmart's stock. #TaxTheRich pic.twitter.com/WGPBcCmOzF

— Warren Gunnels (@GunnelsWarren) September 7, 2023

This Is What Empire Looks Like

 

This Is What Empire Looks Like

by C.A. Matthews

...Mark Twain, William Jennings Bryan, and all those early anti-imperialists understood America had a choice: It would be empire abroad or democracy at home, but it could not be both. The choice is now bitterly obvious.

This leaves Americans with nothing left to believe in, nothing worth lifting a finger or even raising a voice to defend. As our militarists mull whether to reinstitute the draft to fill the ranks of the reluctant, we should consider: This is what empire looks like. --Patrick Lawrence: The Dialectic of the Draft

What does “empire” look like to you?

When you spot a homeless person wandering the streets of an urban setting, bags in hands and perhaps pushing an old shopping cart full of their earthly possessions, does the word “empire” and all that it implies spring to mind?

Whenever you encounter a crumbling bridge or a pot hole the size of the Grand Canyon as you commute to work, do you think: Wow. Isn’t it great that the US has invaded so many other countries and forced them to give up their resources so we can enjoy the best of everything here?

After you’ve gifted your last twenty bucks to a friend’s GoFundMe to help him pay for an operation he desperately needs, but he can’t afford since he has no health insurance, do you jump for joy upon reading a headline stating that Biden has given another $24 billion dollars to an endless proxy war?

Are you anxiously awaiting your turn to join or be drafted into the army so you can experience “survivable nuclear warfare” up close and personal in Ukraine, Iran, China or...?

Do you still call Juan Guaido “el presidente” of Venezuela? Did you support the blowing up of the Nordstream 2 pipeline, because you believe the US should keep it’s European allies dependent on us for the fuel to heat their homes and run their factories?

Whenever you read how Israel just blew up a home in Gaza full of little children does it bring tears of joy to your eyes because you figure all Palestinian nine-month olds are terrorists?

Are you ecstatic whenever you see the price of gasoline has jumped by another fifty cents? Are you happy to pay significantly more for the same bag of groceries that you purchased last month? Is paying your landlord yet another rental increase the most beautiful thing in the world to you?

Do you think the “Climate Emergency” is completely made up? “Global Boiling” or warming isn’t even a real thing? That there’s never going to be a day of reckoning for what we’ve done to our planet?

Can’t wait to lock up all the “homos, drag queens, and rapist migrants”? Can’t wait to put women back in their rightful place—in the kitchen, barefoot and pregnant, with no access to abortion care or birth control? The world would be a happier place with everyone in their proper place, wouldn’t it?

Are you gathering up books right now for a good ol’ fashioned book burning? Are you keeping your kids out of the socialist public school systems that teach how all people are equal (CRT) when it’s more than obvious some just aren’t?

Do you believe in active censorship of social platforms, broadcast media outlets and the press? Can’t wait to shut down all opposition groups that defy those in power? Do you get a thrill out of kicking alternative party candidates off the ballot?

Voting? Really? It’s for the birds! Let the billionaires run the show outright from now on. It would save a lot of trouble holding pretend elections every so often, right?

Did you learn that freedom and capitalism go hand in hand? Do you still believe it even after you’ve been laid off from your job and thrown into debtors’ prison through no fault of your own?

Deep down, do you feel it’s gotta be your fault if you can’t make it in an economic system that favors those who are born in the “right” zip code with the “right” last name and the “right” network of friends and family members? Anyone can “get ahead” if they do capitalism right, right?

What’s your excuse? Oh, yeah, it’s those migrants who keep “stealing” our jobs by working for pennies on the dollar and the union members who keep insisting on a living wage. They’re making the bosses hire the “wrong” type of workers, right?

Have you figured out yet that agreeing to any or all of the above demonstrates you have no problems living in an empire?

This is what empire looks like. If you were born in the US, you’ve been living in one your entire life. You’re used to the harsh treatment of both yourself and your neighbors. That’s because an empire will try to pass itself off as a “representative democracy” or some related thing and tell you that you’re stupid if you think it’s otherwise. You’ll take the denials of your human rights and be satisfied.

It’s the ultimate Stockholm Syndrome. A co-dependent relationship where you feel you’re deserving of abuse. Bend over and take it and be happy that you don’t live in… wherever it is the propagandists are telling you where you don’t want to live in this moment in time because they don’t have “freedom and democracy” like Americans all think we do.

It’s easy letting your betters in the empire do all the thinking for you, isn’t it? Just nod and do as you’re told and you’ll be all right—that is, until they figure out you’re not worth keeping around anymore.

That’s the true beauty of running an empire. An empire can just ignore the poor, the hungry, the homeless, the unemployed, and the sick without the means to get well. Eventually they just die off from neglect by the state. By the hundreds of thousands, even millions. They call it, “Survival of the fittest.”

Are you “fit”? Are you sure? Do you really want to find out when the US military drafts you and ships you out to another war for oil or uranium or lithium or whatever it is the Empire is interested in this time around? When they neglect you in your time of greatest need?

This is what empire looks like.

The alternative to empire is practicing true democracy and equality for all. Folks caring for one another. Putting social programs and the needs of the people before the greed of the military-industrial complex. Putting the health of our planet and the well-being of our children above killing and stealing from fellow human beings in order to make a quick profit.

Dr. Cornel West promotes this better way of living. If you’re interested in leaving the US empire behind and building a democracy instead, check out his platform. But don’t wait. We don’t have long. The wildfires caused by our empire’s neglect of the planet and its people are burning everywhere. It’s time to help put them out by squashing the oxygen to the empire builders once and for all.

 

One huge obstacle to revolutionary change is that people can’t really see the depravity of the empire, because they’ve been conditioned not to look at it too closely, and because they’ve been habituated to it their entire lives. It’s possible to help them see it with fresh eyes. --Caitlin Johnstone, The Most Important Election Of All Time

 

Related Articles and Interesting Links:

It's Never About The US President, It's About The US Empire
https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/its-never-about-the-us-president

Patrick Lawrence: The Dialectic of the Draft  https://scheerpost.com/2023/08/10/patrick-lawrence-the-dialectic-of-the-draft/

Biden Asks Congress for Additional $24 Billion to Spend on Ukraine War https://news.antiwar.com/2023/08/10/biden-asks-congress-for-additional-24-billion-to-spend-on-ukraine-war/ 

 

Capitalist Greed And Imperialist Policies Fuel Migrant Housing Crisis https://popularresistance.org/capitalist-greed-and-imperialist-policies-fuel-migrant-housing-crisis/

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. - The Israel Lobby’s Useful Idiot

https://chrishedges.substack.com/p/robert-f-kennedy-jr-the-israel-lobbys

Ohio voters reject referendum measure backed by anti-abortion forces https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2023/08/10/lxej-a10.html

The Illusory Truth Effect And The "Unprovoked" Invasion Of Ukraine https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/the-illusory-truth-effect-and-the

Defense Contractor Funded Think Tanks Dominate Ukraine Debate https://quincyinst.org/report/defense-contractor-funded-think-tanks-dominate-ukraine-debate/

How Swedish Love for the US Turned Deadly https://scheerpost.com/2023/08/10/how-swedish-love-for-the-us-turned-deadly/

New York Times Helps Marco Rubio Push Persecution Of Antiwar Leftists https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/new-york-times-helps-marco-rubio

More People Die Young in US Due to Health Care and Welfare Cuts, Study Findshttps://truthout.org/articles/more-people-die-young-in- us-due-to-health-care-and-welfare-cuts-study-finds/

Building Grassroots Power For National Universal Health Care
https://popularresistance.org/building-grassroots-power-for-national-universal-health-care/

The UN’s Vague ‘New Agenda for Peace’ https://consortiumnews.com/2023/08/08/the-uns-vague-new-agenda-for-peace/

Survivors Of Oppenheimer’s Trinity Test Are Still Fighting For Justice https://popularresistance.org/survivors-of-oppenheimers-trinity-test-still-fighting-for-justice/

109-year-old Tulsa Massacre Survivor Becomes Oldest Woman in the World to Release a Memoir https://scheerpost.com/2023/08/08/109-year-old-tulsa-massacre-survivor-becomes-oldest-woman-in-the-world-to-release-a-memoir/

In A Summer Of Record Heat, Striking Workers Are Making Climate Demands https://popularresistance.org/in-a-summer-of-record-heat-striking-workers-are-making-climate-demands/

Maui’s deadly wildfires burn through Lahaina – it’s a reminder of the growing risk to communities that once seemed safe https://theconversation.com/mauis-deadly-wildfires-burn-through-lahaina-its-a-reminder-of-the-growing-risk-to-communities-that-once-seemed-safe-211317

Congress ADMITS U.S. Has Invaded Hundreds of Other Countries!
https://youtu.be/AEiSiozBHmM

New Study Finds Fracking Is Linked To Seismic Tremors https://popularresistance.org/new-study-finds-fracking-is-linked-to-seismic-tremors/

3-Year-Old Dies En Route to Chicago Under Abbott’s Anti-Migrant Bussing Program https://truthout.org/articles/3-year-old-dies-en-route-to-chicago-under-abbotts-anti-migrant-bussing-program/

Seen on (formerly known as) Twitter:

Joe Biden just announced another $13B to Ukraine. The total is now ~$130B. For that price Americans could have:

Ended Homelessness permanently ($20B)
Universal Pre-K ($35B)
Free Community College ($30B)
Fix all 45k structurally insufficient bridges ($42B)
= $127B

Priorities

— Robert (Durden) (@realrobdurden) August 10, 2023

https://twitter.com/realrobdurden/status/1689693557869674497 

Coming soon, the first book from The Revolution Continues blog:  The Little Red Book of Revolution

How can you get your e-copy? The easiest way is to subscribe to The Revolution Continues on Substack as a paying subscriber. Choose what level you'd like to subscribe at: https://therevolutioncontinues.substack.com

If you'd like to help out in the meantime, buy me a coffee!  https://ko-fi.com/therevolutioncontinues

More details to come. Power to the people!