What Radicalized You?

words and original photos by C. A. Matthews

What radicalized you? Nothing. Not wanting people to starve and suffer is not radical, it’s normal. Stop saying it’s radical to be base level empathetic, and start asking what made people into sadists. Call out sick behavior, because kindness should be the default.

This pretty much sums up my take on life. I haven’t been “radicalized” by past or current events. I’m just a normal person, reacting in normal ways to abnormal circumstances engineered by sadists. Not wanting people to starve and suffer is not radical in both my opinion and in the opinion of the person who created the meme above.

Are we “special” for wanting good things for others? Or are we just demonstrating the default setting for humanity?

What sort of person would you rather live beside on planet Earth—those persons who are not shocked and horrified by the cruel stances of the Israeli and US regimes that allow mass starvation and suffering to happen in Gaza and elsewhere, or those who are out protesting in the streets because they are shocked and horrified by this kind of sick behavior? 

I know my answer, but do you know yours?

 

To find out what may have radicalized you (as well as read a great poem) continue reading the rest of this article on Substack. Copy or click on this link: 

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Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day. (Happy Black History Month, too.)

It does seem funny wishing a good day in honor of a late great American (assassinated by our own security state), but what else can I say?

I suppose I could say “Happy Inauguration Day!” but some folks would have a complete and utter meltdown if I dare mention Donald Trump being sworn in as president for a second time. So, I won’t say that, but what could I say instead? Maybe: “Trump is living in the White House again. Get use to it”?

I find it interesting how most of the individuals I know who have constantly worried and fretted over or made fun of the “Orange Man” won’t live any differently whether Trump is president or not. They still have their white privilege. They still live solidly middle- to upper-class lives. They will keep their jobs or be able to retire as planned. This is in complete contrast to the poor people that Dr. King spoke about frequently who struggled to pay their bills and never once considered retirement to be possible...

 

And now a short excerpt from our guest blogger's piece: 

Swords Into Plowshares 

by Coast Watcher

...Instead of scrapping one or both of the huge and expensive super-carriers Britain could instead donate them to the United Nations for use as disaster relief ships. Able to travel quickly to wherever they’re needed, each carrier could house dozens of search-and-rescue helicopters and other aircraft. Current hangar space below decks can be repurposed as hospitals equipped for emergency surgery, storage space for medical supplies, food, water, disaster relief equipment, tents and anything else required in a disaster relief operation. The ship’s nuclear power plant can be hooked up to shoreside facilities to provide electricity wherever local power generation has been damaged or destroyed...

 

Please continue reading the remainder of these two essays by copying or clicking on this Substack link: https://therevolutioncontinues.substack.com. There you'll see related article and video links, all the graphics, and be able to leave comments. You can become a free or paid subscriber and receive weekly posts in your email box, along with occasional special articles just for paid subscribers, too.

Subscribe to The Revolution Continues on Substack today. Power to the people!

This article is the 503rd blog posting of The Revolution Continues. We began in June 2015, and we're still going strong. Please keep reading, sharing, and subscribing to help TRC continue for another ten years.

Feel free to make a donation to us at https://paypal.me/camatthews or at Buy Me a Coffee or at Ko-fi. Every little bit helps. Thank you.

The Peace Tree

words and photos by C.A. Matthews

I have a thing for Christmas trees. I love to decorate them and collect ornaments from all over the world. Come the twelfth day of Christmas (Epiphany) on January 6, I’m compelled by the “social norm” to take down my tree* and store it and the decorations away until next December. (Who is this “Norm” and why is he always raining on my parade? Not very “sociable” of him.) The empty space in my living room where the Christmas tree once stood makes me sad, so I began a new tradition.

I put away the tall tree and put up a shorter, table-top sized tree* in its place. I decorate it with ornaments symbolizing love (after all, Valentine’s Day is in February) and peace. The past couple of years the little tree has become not a mere Christmas tree substitute but a “Peace Tree” dedicated to world peace.

I leave the Peace Tree standing as long as there is conflict anywhere on the planet. You guessed it—the Peace Tree hasn’t been put away for quite some time now. In the summer, I move it upstairs where I stand it on top a short bookcase in our bedroom. We put a window a/c unit in the downstairs window, and the little tree could get blown over if it stayed put, but it isn’t taken down. I see it every day, a reminder that humans are still warring with each other somewhere on the planet. We need world peace, and we needed it yesterday.

This holiday season I decided to give the Peace Tree a makeover...

 

To see more photos of the Peace Tree--and to read a poem excerpt by Maya Angelou and the rest of this article--please click on this Substack link: https://therevolutioncontinues.substack.com. There you'll see related article and video links, all the graphics, and be able to leave comments. You can also subscribe and receive the weekly blog post in your email box. 

Subscribe to The Revolution Continues on Substack today! Power to the people!

 

Happy Holidays—Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Solstice and a good Kwanzaa and peace to you and yours. May we all plant “Peace Trees” and together reap a harvest of goodness some day soon.

 

There’s Always Money For Bombs

“The sinews of war are infinite money.” --Marcus Tullius Cicero

"How many free school lunches could have been bought with the money we used to send bombs to Israel so they could bury children under rubble?" --Professor Anthony Zenkus on X https://twitter.com/anthonyzenkus/status/1797464596552585340

There’s Always Money For Bombs

by C.A. Matthews

The images out of Gaza have been unrelentingly traumatic, but the slaughter in Rafah was just unbearably upsetting. Reports of decapitated babies. Charred children. People burned alive. All just days after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered Israel to halt its military offensive in Rafah. All while the US government makes excuse after excuse for Israel’s flagrant breaches of international law, which Israel said was just a “tragic mistake”.

After those images, I couldn’t function anymore. I certainly couldn’t sit down and try and write. The hopelessness and the horror and my rage felt too overwhelming. My complicity felt too overwhelming – the knowledge that this mass slaughter is being facilitated and funded by the US taxpayer, the knowledge that a little portion of my writing income goes towards this suffering. All while the public school around the corner from me in Philadelphia is failing because there’s never enough money for education and the library near me shuts on Sundays because there’s never enough money for public services and there are people going bankrupt in the US from medical bills because there’s never enough money to invest in public health. But there’s always money for bombs. --from Where is Joe Biden’s fury about decapitated Palestinian babies? by Arwa Mahdawi

When I read Arwa’s impassioned plea for sanity, I identified with it completely. I knew I had to write about it.

There is always—and I mean always—enough money for bombs in the annual budget that the US Congress passes. Sure, some of the money goes for tanks, nuclear subs, the dockyard queen known as the “Littoral Combat Ship,” and for the crash-worthy F-35, too, but that’s the gist of where the majority of our tax dollars go toward. Armaments. War. Death. Destruction.

Genocide.

Why is that? Arwa makes some pertinent points here. There’s never any money for universal health care or to help struggling public schools in America, but there’s plenty of money to give to genocidal maniacs like Israel, always billions of dollars worth of bombs to hand over to these ethnic cleansing mass murderers. Bombs that have killed and maimed over 100,000 human beings in Gaza alone. Bombs that don’t create goodwill among the nations. Bombs that only create more animosity and fear.

Bombs that are bringing us each and every day closer to a nuclear war and the end of the world as we know it.

I’m sure there are plenty who feel that I’m exaggerating the point and that poor Arwa needs to take a chill pill and lie down until her brain fog clears. I call those types of people “idiots.” Okay, perhaps “morons” might be the better term in an intellectual sense, but either term works for me. Nowadays we can’t afford to keep listening to morons and idiots because these moron and idiots are trying to start World War III.

Don’t believe me? Believe another intelligent person who has looked into this issue:

The Biden administration has given Ukraine permission to use US-provided weapons to hit targets inside Russian territory (...) a step that marks a significant escalation of the proxy war.

“Ukraine needs support from the US for targeting when it fires US-provided missiles, which means the US will now be directly supporting strikes inside Russia. The escalation risks provoking a major response from Russia, as Moscow recently warned the UK that it would target British military sites in Ukraine and “beyond” if British missiles were used in strikes on Russian territory. (…)

Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that any NATO countries that let Ukraine strike Russia with their weapons would face “major consequences.”  From Biden Gives Ukraine Permission To Strike Inside Russia With US Weapons by Dave DeCamp

There it is in black and white. The US is threatening Russia. One nuclear power is threatening another by giving bombs to another country, Ukraine, even after what President Putin said about the first country will be held accountable for whatever damage their bombs do. And the idiots and morons in the US allow Ukraine to shoot American bombs/missiles into Russia, targeting nuclear radar sites, knowing full well that these actions could escalate the current conventional bloodbath into full-fledged nuclear warfare. For added fun, US NATO ally France is sending some of its troops into Ukraine to get slaughtered as quickly as Ukrainian troops have. There can never be enough cannon fodder—I mean “soldiers”.

I know it’s difficult to get your head around this horrific state of affairs, but allow me to help. I believe the word you’re looking for to describe this situation is “suicide.”

To reiterate: There’s always money for bombs. AND the US will always make certain there are bombs enough worldwide to commit a nuclear genocide against every last living thing on earth. Why? Because the US is hell-bent to get its way and remain the top dog economically and militarily while standing on the apex of a pile of smoldering rubble called the Late Great Planet Earth.

See, that’s not too difficult to understand, is it? It isn’t a good thing. In fact, it’s something that the rest of the people of the planet desperately want to stop. It’s what keeping both Arwa and me awake at nights.

If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you’ll know what I mean by the terms “zio-bully” and “zionarcissism”  and how to apply them to the behaviors of the United States of Israel. The US suffers greatly from the mental illness of zionarcissism. It believes the best thing in the world is to zio-bully everyone into doing what they say by threatening them with bombs raining down on them from the sky, along with the parts from more than a few Boeing jets for good measure. [Editor’s note: The US bombs that were rained down upon the sleeping refugee camp in Rafah were actually made by Boeing, the Boeing GBU-39. (Cost reports range from $30,000-$40,000 per bomb.)Yes, Boeing can make something that actually works as intended. Too bad this something was intended to maim and kill.]

by Mark Taylor www.DeMOCKracy.Ink

I know what you’re thinking, if you’re a sane and moral person, that is. You’re thinking: “It doesn’t make any sense for the US, or anyone for that matter, to provoke a nuclear confrontation. Nobody wins in a nuclear war.” You’re absolutely right. But if you’ve been following recent events, you’ll have come to the conclusion that the US is not run by anyone the least sane and/or moral.

For crying out loud, Butcher Biden has been giving away billions of dollars worth of bombs and armaments to Israel who is clearly committing war crimes against an indigenous civilian population! Children are being burnt alive and suffering amputations without the benefit of anesthetic because Biden allows the Israelis to block food and medicines from coming into Gaza. I ask you how is Biden’s behavior either “sane” or “moral”?

“But what do we Americans get out of all this death and destruction?” you wonder. “Surely we must get something out of it, or why else do it and ruin our reputation on the world stage?”

Good questions. Perhaps there are no satisfactory answers. One thing the NATO countries are getting from watching the Israeli Occupation Forces bomb and sniper-shoot their way across Gaza is lots of great data on how well their instruments of death work in the field. Military scientists now know exactly how many bombs it takes to turn a city the size of Gaza City into rubble. This could make fighting conventional wars in the future (if there is a future) much more organized and cost effective.  If you know you’ll only need like 25,000 bunker buster bombs for your first month’s barrage, then you won’t need to buy or stock any more bombs than that. See how that could save a few trillion bucks in the Pentagon’s budget? (More money for those legendary golden toilet seats for F-35s!)

Even more sinister than that is now all these wonderful military-industrial complex corporations have great feedback on just how deadly their weapons of war really are. I mean, it’s difficult to know just how many children can be burned alive in a refugee tent camp without actually testing out your bombs by dropping them on some human guinea pigs. Isn’t it nice how the people of Gaza have volunteered their services essentially to serve as “crash test dummies” for the past eight months?

You don’t believe me that scientists actually collect this sort of data from the deaths of civilians and use it to make more lethal weapons? Well, if I told you that Nazi scientists tested weapons on the bodies of living (soon dead) concentration camp prisoners during World War II, and that information was snatched up by the US and others at the end of the war and studied closely, would you still not believe me? It’s okay if you don’t. But watch out that you and yours don’t become the next guinea pig they decide to test out their instruments of death on.

In the end, that’s all the military-industrial complex CEOs want—lots of profits (which the US government is providing) and lots of success with their “products” so they get repeat business. And these products won’t necessarily be sold to be used abroad in a distant land against a distant people you don’t like next time. Americans could be the next guinea pigs. Take a look at our militarized policing systems in American cities.

Why the hell does a small town with less than 25,000 people in the heartland of America need a dozen Humvee armored cars, courtesy of a Pentagon rummage sale? Answer: It doesn’t. But I used to drive past the police depot that contained these weapons of war when I lived in that little town, and I wondered if the cops bought them just in case they ever needed to mow down a few protesters who started acting out of line and demanding an end to the genocides, an end to the endless wars.

Small town cops can’t ever be too careful come a full fledged “riot” of five grandmothers and two dogs standing on the corner of Main Street carrying “Free Palestine” banners. Those armored cars will come in handy in running those “killer grannies” down, won’t they? Who’s to say our militarized police won’t use these military-grade weapons against us for other things like being the wrong color, wrong religion, wrong politics, wrong gender identity, wrong… You get the picture.

So remember: There’s always money for bombs. That is, until We the People decide that there isn’t, and we do something to stop these insane genocidal-suicidal morons.

photos by Stefan Fane

One big thing we can do is show solidarity with oppressed people both at home and around the world. We can broadcast their cause to a wider audience, since broadcast mainstream media stations won’t bother to. We can stand together and not let the morons-in-charge divide us and conquer our power.

I did just that this past weekend. I marched in solidarity for Palestine with an interesting mix of people—peace activists, queer activists, LGBTQIA supporters, American Muslim activists and their supporters. I know, these don’t sound like groups that normally would march together in a summer festival parade under the banner of Palestine liberation, but they did. We had a great time and received over all good responses from the community.

Marching with Stefan

We can’t allow the morons to break our spirits. We can’t allow them to divide and conquer us as we fight for our case. We can’t quit protesting until we see our objectives met.

One day soon, we will make it so there is never any money for bombs as long as there are oppressed human beings in need of our help anywhere on the planet. I can’t wait to walk beside you then.

Related Articles and Other Interesting Links

Israel’s Tents Massacre in Rafah Is a Heinous War Crime https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/tents-massacre-rafah-war-crime

Rafah Invasion Was Once Biden’s “Red Line” — But Israel Continues to Cross It https://truthout.org/articles/rafah-invasion-was-once-bidens-red-line-but-israel-continues-to-cross-it/

Where is Joe Biden’s fury about decapitated Palestinian babies? https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/article/2024/may/30/biden-palestinian-beheaded-israeli-babies

Biden Lets Ukraine Strike Russia With US Weapons While Ukraine Attacks Russian Nuclear Defenses  https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/biden-lets-ukraine-strike-russia

Biden Gives Ukraine Permission To Strike Inside Russia With US Weapons https://news.antiwar.com/2024/05/30/biden-gives-ukraine-permission-to-strike-inside-russia-with-us-weapons/

US Presidents Who Gamble With Nuclear Armageddon https://consortiumnews.com/2024/05/30/us-presidents-who-gamble-with-nuclear-armageddon/

The Military-Industrial Complex Is Killing Us All https://scheerpost.com/2024/06/03/the-military-industrial-complex-is-killing-us-all/

Surveillance and interference: Israel’s covert war on the ICC exposed https://www.972mag.com/icc-israel-surveillance-investigation/

The ICC Takes on Israel and the US Congressional Mafia https://medeabenjamin.substack.com/p/the-icc-takes-on-israel-and-the-us

Top EU official accused at ICC of ‘complicity’ in Gaza genocide https://thecradle.co/articles/top-eu-official-accused-at-icc-of-complicity-in-gaza-genocide

Israel Seizes Entire Gaza Border! https://rumble.com/v4ygyze-live-israel-seizes-entire-gaza-border-and-much-more.html

Biden pressures Netanyahu to accept peace deal that could have been agreed 40,000 bodies ago https://www.councilestatemedia.uk/p/biden-pressures-netanyahu-to-accept

Falsified US State Department Report Inspires Yet Another Resignation https://popularresistance.org/falsified-us-state-department-report-inspires-yet-another-resignation/

This Texas Company Is Providing the Jet Fuel for Israel’s Assault on Gaza https://truthout.org/articles/this-texas-company-is-providing-the-jet-fuel-for-israels-assault-on-gaza/

UN Calls for International Aid as Sudan Faces Imminent Famine Amid Civil War https://truthout.org/articles/un-calls-for-international-aid-as-sudan-faces-imminent-famine-amid-civil-war/

UCLA's Disturbing Crackdown on Peaceful Protesters: An Injustice Unfolds https://www.citizenschronicle.org/p/uclas-disturbing-crackdown-on-peaceful

Gaza-on-the-Rhine, a history lesson https://autonomies.org/2024/03/yazan-alloujami-gaza-on-the-rhine-a-history-lesson/

From Massachusetts, Some Tax-the-Rich Inspiration https://scheerpost.com/2024/05/28/from-massachusetts-some-tax-the-rich-inspiration/

In a Victory for Assange and First Amendment, UK Court Grants Right to Appeal  https://truthout.org/articles/in-a-victory-for-assange-and-first-amendment-uk-court-grants-right-to-appeal/

Why Celebrities Aren't Speaking Up About Gaza https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/why-celebrities-arent-speaking-up

Educators Celebrate as Judge Strikes Down New Hampshire ‘Banned Concepts’ Law https://scheerpost.com/2024/05/30/educators-celebrate-as-judge-strikes-down-new-hampshire-banned-concepts-law/

Delhi Heat Wave Suggests Underestimated Speed and Intensity of Global Warming https://truthout.org/articles/delhi-heat-wave-suggests-underestimated-speed-and-intensity-of-global-warming/ 

Murray & Galloway on Ending Israel's Genocide in Gaza https://youtu.be/mW5KF-Z08ug

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Read The Room

 

Read The Room

 by C. A. Matthews

"Political language... is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind." ~George Orwell

Example 1:

"Wherever violence, fear and hatred thrive, working people cannot,” reads a statement by Mary Kay Henry, the president of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). SEIU, which boasts two million members, just joined a growing section of the US labor movement in calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. SEIU is now the largest union in the country to issue such a statement. —One Of The Largest Unions In The US Called For A Ceasefire In Gaza

On December 14, the leadership of the United Auto Workers, the Postal Workers Union, and the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE), held a press conference in Washington, DC with several members of Congress to call upon the labor movement to take action for a ceasefire in Gaza.

“I thank our UAW members for speaking out and pushing us to come out in support of a ceasefire,” said UAW President Shawn Fain, whose union joined the movement for a ceasefire earlier in December. “It was the right thing to do. Now it’s time for the rest of our elected officials to step up and do what it takes to end the violence. And I call on the rest of the labor movement to join us in this mission for peace and social justice for all of humanity.” —US union leaders call on labor to join movement for a ceasefire

470+ UAW members have signed a new petition calling for the union leadership to only endorse candidates who publicly call for ceasefire in Gaza, and specifically criticizing Biden's support of Israel. Many expecting a Biden endorsement from UAW today (January 24). —Lauren Kaori Gurley, labor reporter for the Washington Post on X

UAW Endorses Joe Biden for President of the United States https://uaw.org/uaw-endorses-joe-biden-for-president-of-the-united-states/

UAW members protest for a ceasefire, as this is their union’s official position: https://twitter.com/codepink/status/1750636511530189015


Read the room, UAW President Shawn Fain. Your rank-and-file union members want a ceasefire in Gaza. They're even loudly protesting for a ceasefire at a big union shindig! Genocide Joe Biden wants to keep furnishing arms to Israel so the IDF can continue murdering Palestinians in Gaza--especially babies and children. He's also turned a blind eye to the Israeli settlers' terrorist activity in the West Bank. Biden is good with the settlers moving in and stealing the natural gas and oil reserves that rightfully belong to the Palestinians. 

One day you say you're with your union members supporting a ceasefire in Gaza, and the next you're endorsing the largest supporter of genocide in the world for president. What is your word worth when it comes to representing the wishes of your rank-and-file union members, Shawn? Nothing.

Read the room.

Example 2:

Half of Biden voters say Israel committing genocide in Gaza: Poll
https://thehill.com/policy/defense/4429906-half-biden-voters-israel-committing-genocide-in-gaza-poll/

Biden Thinks It’s Just a Matter of Time Before US Troops Are Killed in Iraq or Syria https://news.antiwar.com/2024/01/22/biden-thinks-its-just-a-matter-of-time-before-us-troops-are-killed-in-iraq-or-syria/

The brutal war that Israel is waging on Gaza is increasingly becoming a regional conflict. Since October, the United States and Israel have bombed not only Gaza, but also Lebanon, Iraq, Syria, and Yemen.

Now, the U.S. government is even threatening Iran with war. President Joe Biden sent the Iranian government a private message while the U.S. military was bombing Yemen on January 13. He said threateningly, “We’re confident, we’re well prepared”.  —Is a huge war coming? US bombs Yemen, Iraq & Syria. Israel bombs Gaza & Lebanon. Both threaten Iran. 

2024 is an election year, and Biden, who is running for reelection, has been hounded by Pro-Palestine demonstrators at several campaign events already. Mainstream media outlets openly worry about Biden’s chances in 2024, with the aging President losing key demographics of Democratic Party support such as young people and Arab-Americans.

“Instead of focusing on the American people, our tax money is being used to spread hatred, to spread warfare, to support criminal activity, frankly speaking, to support a genocide,” Mohamed Sabri, who traveled from Chicago to attend the march in DC, told Peoples Dispatch about why he will not be voting for Biden. —400,000 marched in Washington DC against Biden’s complicity in Israel’s genocide

 “Based on unproven allegations alone, the U.S. has cut off funding to UNRWA, one of few groups which provides crucial on the ground aid to Palestinians,” said the antiwar group CODEPINK. “Yet, as Israel commits war crime after war crime, the U.S. continues sending weapons.”

“The US is collectively punishing Palestinians, who rely on UNRWA to survive, based on Israeli allegations against 0.0004% of UNRWA’s staff. Outrageous,” said the Institute for Middle East Understanding (IMEU)…

“So, the US State Dept drops a rather significant statement on (unsubstantiated) allegations against UNRWA workers and pulling funding on the day of the ICJ ruling which finds sufficient evidence for plausible genocidal acts—- and decides there’s no need for a press briefing,” wrote AJ+’s Sana Saeed. “Honestly, this would be masterful manufacturing of the news if it wasn’t so transparent.” —Biden cuts off life-saving aid to Palestinians based on Israeli allegations against UNRWA

'The most difficult case': US judge deliberates suit accusing Biden of failing to stop genocide https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/most-difficult-case-us-judge-deliberates-after-testimony-accuses-biden-failing-stop-genocide

Arab and Muslim Leaders in Michigan Refuse to Meet With Biden Campaign https://truthout.org/articles/arab-and-muslim-leaders-in-michigan-refuse-to-meet-with-biden-campaign/

Read the room, President Biden. The vast majority of voters have stated that they want a ceasefire in Gaza, and most have wanted it from day one of Israel's assault on the Occupied Territory. Americans have repeatedly said that they don’t want the genocide of Palestinians to continue, and they don't want you to keep sending arms to Israel. Some have even taken you to federal court to stop the ethnic cleansing in order to save their loved ones in Gaza.

Poll after poll have shown Americans don’t want to widen the field of conflicts instigated by the US in its quest for world hegemony and to steal natural resources. Bombing more countries to steal their oil only ups everybody’s risk for nuclear war. Burning fossil fuels is causing catastrophic climate change to speed up. The US military is the number one polluter in the world.

In case you haven’t heard, most young Americans won’t cooperate with a military draft if and when you do decide to start war on multiple fronts. Nobody desires to die in a war with China, Russia and Iran simultaneously. There's no way so many conflicts at once could be sustained with our meager numbers of volunteer troops. People will resist conscription. You're going to get us all killed.

Growing numbers of Americans of color don’t care much for perpetuating white settler colonialism. They see what is happening to other POCs throughout the world, and they see themselves in the Palestinians, a people who are simply trying to stay in their homes on their native land. What makes you think that sane and caring Americans wish to inflict more injustices upon others who have already suffered so much? 

What makes you think most Americans are lacking compassion and empathy just because you do? The large Arab and Muslim communities in SE Michigan are openly stating they will not vote for you in November. Why would you throw away all those votes when you could keep them by simply stopping the sale of arms to Israel and shutting down the genocide in Gaza once and for all? All it would take is a phone call to your counterpart in Israel.

Your administration even stopped providing funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, UNRWA, on the same day Israel lost its genocide case before the International Court of Justice. How petty can you get!  UNRWA provides food and medical aid to refugees around the world, not only to Gazans. You’ve unilaterally decided that, because the Israelis don’t want life-saving aid to reach wounded and starving Palestinians in Gaza, UNRWA must be unfunded immediately. Are you mad or just plain cruel? 

You've committed such an inhumane act of denying humanitarian aid to reach people in Gaza because of unsubstantiated allegations made by a country that's been accused of genocide at the ICJ. You're doing so based on the flimsiest of stories, that 12 persons out of 13,000 United Nations workers might have worked for Hamas at one time. And you know that Israeli hasbara propagandists are known for telling whoppers—huge, fat lies like beheaded babies baked in ovens that were easily debunked by independent journalists.
 
You've already garnered the nicknames of “Genocide Joe” and “Butcher Biden," both of which are currently trending on social media. Do you really want this heartless bloodthirstiness to become your legacy? Do you even know what's going on in the world, or is Antony Blinken really calling all the shots?

Read the room.

Example 3:

January 26: The ruling issued by the ICJ [International Court of Justice] ordered six provisional measures including for Israel to refrain from acts under the Genocide convention, prevent and punish the direct and public incitement to genocide, and take immediate and effective measures to ensure the provision of humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza. Crucially, the Court also ordered Israel to preserve evidence of genocide and to submit a report to the Court, within one month, of all measures taken in line with its order.

“Today’s decision is an authoritative reminder of the crucial role of international law in preventing genocide and protecting all victims of atrocity crimes. It sends a clear message that the world will not stand by in silence as Israel pursues a ruthless military campaign to decimate the population of the Gaza Strip and unleash death, horror and suffering against Palestinians on an unprecedented scale,” said Agnès Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International.

“However, the ICJ decision alone cannot put an end to the atrocities and devastation Gazans are witnessing. Alarming signs of genocide in Gaza, and Israel’s flagrant disregard for international law highlight the urgent need for effective, unified pressure on Israel to stop its onslaught against Palestinians. An immediate ceasefire by all parties remains essential and – although not ordered by the Court – is the most effective condition to implement the provisional measures and end unprecedented civilian suffering. —Israel must comply with key ICJ ruling ordering it do all in its power to prevent genocide against Palestinians in Gaza

It’s really up to the international system as we know it to make sure that genocide is not carried out. And so it’s imperative that this be followed up by countries around the world making sure that Israel doesn’t get to do whatever it wants to do with Palestinians in Gaza and continue this genocide. —Genocide Scholar: ICJ Ruling Is “Beginning of a Process of Isolating Israel”

Gaza was pounded with bombs, missiles and artillery shells as the ruling was read in The Hague — at least 183 Palestinians have been killed in the last 24 hours. Since Oct. 7, more than 26,000 Palestinians have been killed. Almost 65,000 have been wounded, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. Thousands more are missing. The carnage continues. This is the cold reality.
Translated into the vernacular, the court is saying Israel must feed and provide medical care for the victims, cease public statements advocating genocide, preserve evidence of genocide and stop killing Palestinian civilians. Come back and report in a month.

It is hard to see how these provisional measures can be achieved if the carnage in Gaza continues.

“Without a ceasefire, the order doesn’t actually work,” Naledi Pandor, South Africa’s minister of international relations, stated bluntly after the ruling. —It May be Genocide, But it Won’t Be Stopped   

The U.N. General Assembly now can suspend Israel from participation in its activities as it did for South Africa and Yugoslavia. It can admit Palestine as a full member. And — especially since the International Criminal Court has been a farce — it can establish a tribunal to prosecute the highest level officials of the Israeli government, both civilian and military.” —Israel Accuses The ICJ Of (You Guessed It) Antisemitism

Read the room, Benjamin Netanyahu. Israel’s “dream team” of lawyers didn’t exactly wow the ICJ judges. The South African lawyers just had to read out your government's officials' actual words—and your own indicting words—spoken at various press conferences and in media interviews to demonstrate to the court that the total annihilation of the Palestinian people is what you’ve been aiming for all along. You know full well that public opinion both within your borders and from without is against this ethnic cleansing operation of Palestinians, the indigenous people of the land.

And stop with the weak arguments that somehow Palestinians aren’t indigenous—just take a look at a map from 1947 or earlier. As a secular Ashkenazi Jew, you’re about as indigenous as your buddy Joe “Butcher” Biden is. You even lived in the US as a child and attended M.I.T. as an adult. I guess that's where where you learned how to be such a great racist/Zionist, right?

The ICJ is giving you an honorable way to stop the mass killing of civilians and slink back into your hole with your tail between your legs. If you don’t call for a permanent ceasefire and cooperate with getting humanitarian aid to the Gazans, the United Nations could excommunicate Israel from the family of nations like they did to apartheid South Africa a few decades ago. 

You know, South Africa the country that built such a solid case against your government in front of the sixteen justices at the International Court of Justice? Do you want more of your country’s dirty laundry to be aired in public when the UN sets up military tribunals to air the grievances of those you’ve persecuted? Do you want the thousands of human beings you've maimed and crippled for life to give their testimony in public as to what your soldiers got up to in Gaza?

Do as the ICJ says, Bibi, and you might even survive an assassination attempt, unlike Prime Minister Rabin, the man it is said you helped “retire permanently” because you disagreed with him. Take the ICJ up on their offer and call for a ceasefire in Gaza now and let the humanitarian aid flow into the beleaguered area ASAP.

Read the room. Read the goddamn room the lot of you. Or we will read you the riot act.

Related Articles and Interesting Links

US Union Leaders Call On Labor To Join Movement for a Ceasefire https://peoplesdispatch.org/2023/12/14/us-union-leaders-call-on-labor-to-join-movement-for-a-ceasefire/

United Auto Workers (UAW) becomes largest union in US to call for a lasting ceasefire in Gaza https://youtu.be/XUNZ3RTpw2E?si=0hv6OChbGgXxuROo

US union leaders call on labor to join movement for a ceasefire https://peoplesdispatch.org/2023/12/14/us-union-leaders-call-on-labor-to-join-movement-for-a-ceasefire/

UAW members protest for a ceasefire, as this is their union’s official position: https://twitter.com/codepink/status/1750636511530189015

More than one-third of Americans believe Israel is committing genocide, poll shows https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/jan/24/americans-believe-israel-committing-genocide-poll

Three American Troops Killed in Drone Attack in Jordan

https://news.antiwar.com/2024/01/28/three-american-troops-killed-in-drone-attack-in-jordan/ 

 

Israel Has Written Its Own Death Warrant in the Blood of Children

https://ohiobarbarian.substack.com/p/israel-has-written-its-own-death 

 

As Civilians Starve in Gaza, Israelis Block Humanitarian Aid Convoy for Third Day https://scheerpost.com/2024/01/28/as-civilians-starve-in-gaza-israelis-block-humanitarian-aid-convoy-for-third-day/ 

 

ICJ Rules in Favour of South Africa and Against Israel
https://joebrunoli.substack.com/p/icj-rules-in-favour-of-south-africa

International Court of Justice Rules That Israel Must Stop Killing Palestinians https://scheerpost.com/2024/01/24/international-court-of-justice-rules-that-israel-must-stop-killing-palestinians/

Governments that have made statement in support of the case against genocide include Malaysia, Turkey, Jordan, Bolivia, the 57 nations of the Organization of Islamic Countries, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Maldives, Namibia, and Pakistan, Colombia, Brazil, and Cuba.

International Coalition To Stop Genocide In Palestine Welcomes World Court’s Order https://popularresistance.org/international-coalition-to-stop-genocide-in-palestine-welcomes-todays-icj-order/

Genocide Scholar: ICJ Ruling Is “Beginning of a Process of Isolating Israel” https://truthout.org/video/genocide-scholar-icj-ruling-is-beginning-of-a-process-of-isolating-israel/

The War On Journalism In Belmarsh, The War On Journalism In Gaza https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/the-war-on-journalism-in-belmarsh

Palestinian Paints Murals on Rubble Amid War on Gaza
https://unicornriot.ninja/2024/palestinian-paints-murals-on-rubble-amid-war-on-gaza/

Stripped, Beaten or Vanished: Israel’s Treatment of Gaza Detainees Raises Alarm https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/23/world/middleeast/israel-gaza-palestinian-detainees.html

Many Say They Want Peace When What They Really Want Is Obedience https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/many-say-they-want-peace-when-what

Biden Thinks It’s Just a Matter of Time Before US Troops Are Killed in Iraq or Syria https://news.antiwar.com/2024/01/22/biden-thinks-its-just-a-matter-of-time-before-us-troops-are-killed-in-iraq-or-syria/

Chris Hedges: The Four Horsemen of Gaza’s Apocalypse
https://scheerpost.com/2024/01/21/chris-hedges-the-four-horsemen-of-gazas-apocalypse/

Palestinian-Led Initiative Warns European Officials Of Intention To Prosecute Over Complicity With Israel https://popularresistance.org/ palestinian-led-initiative-warns-european-officials-of-intention-to-prosecute-over-complicity-in-israels-crimes/

US Supreme Court Rejects Bid to Silence Palestinian Rights Advocacy https://www.commondreams.org/news/u-s-campaign-for-palestinian-rights

Gaza Is Exposing Western Liberals For The Frauds They Are
https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/gaza-is-exposing-western-liberals

Undercounted: These Hard-To-See Pieces Of Plastic Are Probably Harming Us.  https://www.thebrockovichreport.com/p/undercounted-these-hard-to-see-pieces

One Of The Largest Unions In The US Called For A Ceasefire In Gaza https://popularresistance.org/one-of-the-largest-unions-in-the-us-called-for-a-ceasefire-in-gaza/

Pro-Palestine Protesters Block Israeli Ship From Port Of Melbourne https://popularresistance.org/pro-palestine-protesters-block-israeli-ship-from-port-of-melbourne/

How Britain invented modern torture https://english.almayadeen.net/articles/analysis/how-britain-invented-modern-torture

Campaign to Demonize Palestinian Advocacy Shows Cracks at Columbia and in Courts https://truthout.org/articles/campaign-to-demonize-palestinian-advocacy-shows-cracks-at-columbia-and-in-courts/

NYPD investigating alleged chemical attack on pro-Palestine Columbia University students https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/jan/23/alleged-chemical-attack-columbia-students-pro-palestine-new-york 

 

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

New Year's Revolutions

New Year’s Revolutions

 

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

–-from the song Of This World 

resolution /rĕz″ə-loo͞′shən/

noun

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

   "faced the situation with resolution."

2. A firm decision to do something.

   "made a resolution to get more exercise."

3. A course of action determined or decided on.

   "His resolution is to get up early."

 

revolution /rĕv″ə-loo͞′shən/

noun

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

   "the planetary revolution about the sun."

2. A turning or rotational motion about an axis.

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

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

5. A sudden or momentous change in a situation.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

As Peter, Paul, and Mary sings:

I can ease the suffering of this world 

I can ease the suffering of this world

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

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

Articles and Other Interesting Links

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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