Showing posts with label England. Show all posts
Showing posts with label England. Show all posts

Tuesday, September 20, 2022

God Save The King?

God Save the King? It's More Like God Help the British People!
by Coast Watcher

Tradition is a strong force in Britain. The "British way of doing things"is often at odds with the rest of the world and is probably the major factor in the Brexit vote that saw the UK leave the European Union.

The death of HM Queen Elizabeth II saw a surge in royalist sentiment, and a matching anti-monarchist/republican feeling that has led to protests and demonstrations across the country. King Charles and his wife Camilla were booed on their arrival in Cardiff, Wales. One man in the crowd demanded to know why the taxpayers had to fork out much needed cash to pay for Charles' parade. Protesters have been arrested for holding signs reading "Not MY King" and even for holding up a blank placard as a royal motorcade passed. Given that the Conservative government recently passed a law banning protests "if they cause annoyance" with a penalty of up to eleven years in jail, this is no light matter.

Reaction across the whole country has been mixed. At some soccer matches the crowd lustily sang the national anthem. At other venues the mere mention of royalty drew equally lusty booing. Sentiment abroad has also varied. Last year Barbados got rid of the monarchy as the island’s official head of state. Now fourteen other nations including Jamaica, Barbuda, and Grenada are also talking of following suit. Chief among the reasons given is that the British royal family has not taken the commitment to formally own up to and acknowledge their family’s history of slavery.

Recent inept handling of the economy by the Tory government has even led to renewed calls for Scotland to leave the United Kingdom. The passing of the Queen has only added fuel to this fire.

Prince Andrew, brother of Charles, is now Counsellor of State. He is in effect the monarch’s deputy whenever he/she is out of the country. Everyone knows how Andrew bought off the woman who accused him of raping her as a young teen—a woman he claims he never met—for £12 million. The fact that his mother the queen and his older brother bailed him out to the tune of several million pounds more is also well known. Had Andrew been anyone else, the UK would’ve deported him to the US to stand trial for statutory rape.

As of September 18, a five miles plus long queue has formed to see the queen’s lying in state. People are camping out overnight to retain their places. It's said to be the longest queue in British history, eclipsing even those that formed for Princess Diana, but this claim isn’t true. The longest queue is, in fact, composed of 6.8 million people waiting for NHS treatment following the Tory government’s determined efforts to privatize Britain’s cherished healthcare service.
 

Speaking of the National Health Service, hospitals throughout the UK will suspend cancer treatments for patients on Monday, September 19, the day of the funeral. All burials will also be suspended, which will come as a blow to people of the Jewish and Muslim religions whose faiths decree burials must take place within 24 hours of death.
 
What’s not so well known is that homeless people—who have to spend every night on the streets—are being moved by police so they won’t interfere with the optics of this outpouring of national grief.

Prince Harry and his wife Meghan walked in the funeral procession. For some reason, elements of the British media are virulently against Meghan. She and Harry were roundly criticized for holding hands as they walked. Snobbish critics say it "isn’t protocol." Seriously? The man lost his grandmother. Why should he not hold hands with the woman he loves both to give and take comfort? Add to that the establishment at first denied Harry, a man who served two tours in Afghanistan, the right to wear military uniform during the funeral and commemorative events. 

You can see how rotten the protocol system surrounding the British monarchy is. The ban was subsequently lifted following public protest. Yes, protest does work.

British law requires members of the public pay 40% tax on any property inherited over the value of £340,000 under the 1993 memorandum of understanding. However, King Charles III is exempt from inheritance taxes. The British monarchy's total wealth is estimated at around $34 billion in assets, but Charles won't have to pay the UK's 40% inheritance tax-or indeed any tax unless he volunteers to do so. He inherits his mother’s personal £641 million estate without having to pay the government a single penny. Charles was also gifted the Duchy of Lancaster, a royal prerogative worth over £750 million. 

See where this is going?

When Charles became King of England, he no longer needed the staff who served him during his tenure as Prince of Wales. They were all given redundancy notices while a service of commemoration was being held for his mother.
[Editor's note and American translation: Charles' personal staff members, who had been with him for decades, were all fired while he was at a his mother's memorial service. This wasn't just a handful of people losing their jobs through no fault of their own, either. He employed a lot of full-time staff.] 

Those with long enough memories will recall how unpopular Charles became with the public because of his negative treatment of Princess Diana, both during and after their marriage. One Ipsos poll taken in April 2022 showed that nearly half of Britons thought Charles should step aside and cede the throne to his oldest son, Prince William. Among millennial-age Britons, Charles ranks twelfth in popularity.

Couple all of the above with a Conservative government that is deeply unpopular over the Brexit disaster and its gross mishandling of the economy in general, and you have an explosive mix. Add to that a Parliamentary Labour Party that is nothing more than "Tory Lite" in its policies, and there really isn’t any prospect of change any time soon without a radical uprising.

The royal family may be at the center of all the ceremony and tradition, but they’re not the only ones, or even the driving force behind the throne. That honorific goes to the people behind the scenes—the chamberlains, equerries, private secretaries, general hangers-on, and those who aspire to gain from being in the royal presence. I can speak from personal experience as to what it’s like to be on the receiving end of a royal visit.

In 1976, then Prince Charles established a charitable foundation called The Prince’s Trust. Aimed at helping disadvantaged young people aged 11-30 all across Britain, it does a lot of good. The trouble is, it provides a nice venue for all those wannabes who crave the glamor of the royal presence.

In the 1980s, I worked in the tourism/hospitality industry. One of the places where I worked hosted the Prince’s Trust for several years. One year Prince Charles came to visit. The site owners had accommodation set aside for his use, which included a brand new toilet installed expressly for him. (The Royal Wee? Quite.)

We working peons were ordered back and forth between venues on the site until finally we were told by functionaries to wait up on a mezzanine level of the first building we’d come from and to stay out of sight while the High and Mighty formed a reception line about fifty feet away. Charles came in, walked along the line shaking hands then departed without even so much as a nod at us workers who had done the brunt of the work to make the venue shine. We were then told to remain on the site until he left. I and several others voted with our feet and walked out. We gave up an afternoon’s pay, but we had better things to do with our time.

Oh, and the toilet accommodation set aside for Charles’ use? He never used it, and it was ripped out completely the next day!

The overall impression I got was of a crowd of teenagers vying to catch the eye of the cool kid, and they were not afraid to shove and push away anyone who might have stolen a bit of the reflected glory. It was all rather sickening.

Will Britain become a republic? I doubt it. As a Briton who grew up with the whole tradition of monarchy and the "British way of doing things" I know my people. We’ll keep buggering on even as the world burns. An admirable trait in many ways, yes, but I feel we can change and modernize for the better without throwing away everything in our culture that’s of value. 

And the one thing that’s in dire need of an overhaul? The monarchy. We’ll see what happens in the meantime to help relieve the British people of these injustices, shall we?

Learn more at:
https://www.princes-trust.org.uk/

https://time.com/6212008/king-charles-iii-controversy-past/

https://moneywise.com/taxes/king-charles-to-dodge-estate-taxes

https://www.hellomagazine.com/royalty/20220915151185/prince-andrew-prince-charles-counsellor-of-state-reason/

BIO: Coast Watcher is our resident British commentator and world historian at TRC. As a survivor of a royal visit, he seemed the best to give his opinion of what life is like living in a country where you have a hereditary monarch as your head of state. As you can tell, it's complicated. But does it have to be? The future will tell.

 

Related Articles:

Not Everyone Mourns the Queen. For Many She Can't Be Separated From Colonial Rule https://www.rsn.org/001/not-everyone-mourns-the-queen-for-many-she-cant-be-separated-from-colonial-rule.html

Former British Colonies In Caribbean Consider Cutting Ties to the Monarchy https://truthout.org/video/former-british-colonies-in-caribbean-consider-cutting-ties-to-the-monarchy/

Antigua and Barbuda Announces Referendum to Become a Republic
https://popularresistance.org/antigua-and-barbuda-announces-referendum-to-become-a-republic/

Chris Hedges: Monarchs Belong in the Dustbin of History
https://popularresistance.org/monarchs-belong-in-the-dustbin-of-history/

Lizzy's Face https://caitlinjohnstone.substack.com/p/lizzys-face 

It's a Big Club and You Ain't In It https://caitlinjohnstone.substack.com/p/its-a-big-club-and-you-aint-in-it/comments

The Queen's Death Brings Growing Hope for Irish Unification https://truthout.org/video/the-queens-death-brings-growing-hope-for-irish-unification/

Steven Donziger: How the Royal Family Helps Normalize Oligarchy
https://stevendonziger.substack.com/p/how-the-royal-family-helps-normalize

How Rich Is King Charles? He Built His Own Property Empire Long Before He Inherited His Mother's https://www.irishtimes.com/life-style/people/2022/09/13/how-rich-is-king-charles-he-built-his-own-property-empire-long-before-he-inherited-his-mothers/

Queen's Death: Colonial Legacy and Media Hysteria
https://youtu.be/mcotClf4omY (video)

Queen's Funeral Shuts Food Banks Amid Cost-of-Living Crisis
https://scheerpost.com/2022/09/16/queens-funeral-shuts-food-banks-amid-cost-of-living-crisis/

Luring Doctors from Poorer Countries Is the UK's Quiet Scandal
https://scheerpost.com/2022/09/17/luring-doctors-from-poorer-countries-is-the-uks-quiet-scandal/ 

Decolonizing the Mind https://popularresistance.org/decolonizing-the-mind/

Seen on Twitter:

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Tuesday, November 27, 2018

Blackest Friday



The Progressive American Abroad heads home this week, but not before discovering how the disease of late-stage capitalism has infected the entire world.
Blackest Friday
by C.A. Matthews 

Votes for Women!
There are several explanations about how the term "Black Friday" came about. One story tells us it was coined during the Suffragette era. On November 18, 1910, 300 women in London marched on parliament in support of women’s voting rights. The day became known as Black Friday due to the extreme violence of the police response.

But the most common reason given is the  Friday after Thanksgiving was the first day most retailers fell into the "black" on their ledgers and made a profit because Christmas shoppers began shopping in earnest. Hence, the name "Black Friday."

Black Friday has now become such an integral part of most American autumnal celebrations that it inspired new terms such as "Small Business Saturday" and "Cyber Monday" and "Giving Tuesday." One might assume all these new holidays were only present in North America because it's primarily Americans and Canadians who celebrate Thanksgiving. Nothing can be further from the truth as the sign above posted in the window of a British toy and model shop called Langley's attests.

The British have decided to adopt an American custom, but not the one centered around friends and family and giving thanks. Instead, they have taken a fancy to a manufactured holiday centered around consumerism and forcing workers to work long hours away from their families. Somehow it seems more than appropriate that this American tradition has to do with exploiting the masses in order to make the filthy rich even richer while simultaneously not helping the poor, downtrodden wage slaves. It is nothing if not downright sociopathic and sinister, the American virtues of the twenty-first century.

That's not to say that Americans have a monopoly on exploitation and conspicuous consumption. Living in an English city this past month hasn't made me blind to what's going on in these parts. The British are every bit as materialistic as your next Westerner. There are designer duds and high-end fashion shops everywhere. Pricey cars clog the thoroughfares just as badly, if not worse, than most American cities. They have just as many chain box stores, upscale eateries and fast food joints as any urban area in the US, and they are hungry for more. 
The British variety of banksters extend credit and create seductive commercials on the telly to entice people into crippling debt. Sorry to say, but Black Friday would exist in the UK with or without the title. The one-percent never met a working class anywhere that it didn't want to take advantage of, and the British public are ripe for the picking.

I find it a little sad to think how universal the philosophy of materialism has become during the Christmas season. We have taken a holiday (a "holy day") about God's gift of a savior to the world and flipped it on its head. We have made it all about us, the needy consumers and greedy capitalists who try to outdo each other in purchasing gifts that are often not wanted or even needed and will more than likely wind up in a landfill within a month or two. 

When and where did this orgy of avarice and waste begin?

Many historians credit Queen Victoria and her husband Albert with the popularization of Christmas trees, holiday decorations and gift-giving on a big scale. Victorian-era toy makers and card publishers made the most of the royal family's celebrations and encouraged others to do the same. British and Americans alike took to the new fad with great enthusiasm, never once looking back to remember the deeper meaning behind the holiday.

Perhaps it's fitting that the culture that made gift-giving the thing to do every December 25th has at last absorbed the ultimate consumer fest.

Happy Black Friday, Great Britain! May you (in time) grow weary of the endless cycle of buy, buy, buy! And remember: not everything that comes out of America is worth copying. Look at what's sitting in the Oval Office currently... Yeah, you really don't want to go there.


BREAKING NEWS from Good Jobs Nation: General Motors just announced that it will be laying-off thousands of American workers and closing down many plants all together.

Here’s the bottom line: Trump gave GM over $700 million in federal contracts — on top of massive tax breaks — without doing anything to prevent top executives from pocketing the money and betraying American workers.

With the stroke of a pen, Trump could act to save thousands of families from economic terror. Add your name here to demand that he take immediate action with an Executive Order!
Worth reading:
Pathological Consumption Has Become So Normalised That We Scarcely Notice It--
https://www.filmsforaction.org/articles/pathological-consumption-has-become-so-normalised-that-we-scarcely-notice-it/

Worth watching:
 Amazon workers strike in Italy, Spain, Germany, and the UK! https://youtu.be/KQCk0Ek7cRY
 
Reports say Amazon ask police to stop massive workers strike on Black Friday in Spain.  https://youtu.be/k6sTHIEXtu4

***


The epidemic of late stage capitalism needs to be wiped out once and for all--but we can't do it if we're not allowed to speak freely!

 The Revolution Continues has set up an easy way to donate to the cause of ending the scourge of the oligarchy and keeping it ad-free. Three years plus without obnoxious ads (that many news sites have to cover costs) has been great, but the editor does have to pay for internet, electricity, etc., out of her own pocket, and she would like to be able to pay her contributors in the future.

Please consider donating a buck, $5, $10 or $20--any amount you can share with us to keep this progressive site going without those awful ads is appreciated. Help us become a strong alternative voice protesting against the corrupt establishment and its paid-off corporate mouthpieces. Give to TRC today. Thank you.

You can donate via Paypal at http://paypal.me/camatthews 

And thanks to a generous reader, we have a  domain name. Please share the link: http://therevolutioncontinues.com

Power to the people and not the corporations!

 ***
From Credo:

Disgraceful: The U.S. border patrol just tear gassed mothers with children and toddlers in diapers seeking asylum on our southern border.1


Every day, Donald Trump's white supremacist war on immigrants grows worse. Just last week, the White House issued a memo authorizing the troops at the border to use lethal force against asylum seekers.2 The tear-gassing of families shows that Trump's plan to have the military treat immigrants like enemy combatants in a war zone is no idle threat.


This is America under Trump, and it is shameful. Though Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis has the authority to order troops to use lethal force, he has not yet done so. In fact, Trump's order for lethal force may be unconstitutional.3 It is the responsibility of people of conscience to speak out and demand that Mattis put a check on Trump before the situation gets even worse.




The reports of Customs & Border Patrol's actions are truly shocking:4

Children screamed and coughed amid the gas, The Associated Press reported. The wind carried the aerosol chemicals toward people hundreds of feet away who were not attempting to enter the U.S., the wire service noted. One woman collapsed unconscious amid the chaos, and two babies sobbed with tears running down their faces from the gas, Reuters reported.

CREDO members will continue to press to end the racist, anti-immigrant culture that gives birth to such horrors. That includes cracking down on ICE and the the Customs & Border Patrol's complicity in terror. The heads of the ICE and CBP unions were in the room with Trump last week when he gave the order for lethal force.5


Right now, we need an urgent call to stand down before tear gas turns into live bullets.




Let’s be clear: The United States is not under attack. The families walking from Central America are survivors of deadly state and domestic violence, climate devastation and poverty.6 They are coming to exercise their right under U.S. law to petition for asylum.


But instead of fulfilling his legal obligation to evaluate their asylum claims,7 Trump plans to terrorize migrants with military force. His dangerous ploy is part of a white supremacist agenda that includes banning Muslims, restricting legal immigration, separating children from their families and denying citizenship to children of immigrants born in the United States.8


Further militarizing the border will do nothing to keep our country safe. But it will terrorize and harm vulnerable migrant families and add fuel to the fires of racism and xenophobia.


Tell Secretary of Defense James Mattis: No lethal force at the border. Click below to sign the petition:




Thank you for speaking out,

Nicole Regalado, Campaign Manager CREDO Action from Working Assets

Add your name:

Sign the petition ►

References:

  1. Mary Papenfuss, "Activists, Politicians React With Horror At Border Scenes Of Tear-Gassed Children," HuffPost, Nov. 25, 2018.
  2. Eliana Johnson, "Fiery West Wing meeting led to more power for military at U.S.-Mexico border," POLITICO, Nov. 22, 2018.
  3. Ibid.
  4. Papenfuss, "Activists, Politicians React With Horror At Border Scenes Of Tear-Gassed Children."
  5. Johnson, "Fiery West Wing meeting led to more power for military at U.S.-Mexico border."
  6. Washington Office on Latin America, "9 Questions (and Answers) About the Central American Migrant Caravan," Oct. 22, 2018.
  7. Maya Rhodan, "President Trump Threatened to Turn Back Caravan Migrants If They Don't Claim Asylum in Mexico. That's Not Legal," TIME, Oct. 23, 2018.
  8. William Cummings and David Jackson, "President Trump says he plans to end birthright citizenship with an executive order," USA Today, Oct. 30, 2018.





From Just Foreign Policy:



“I believe that we will win!”

Share: Bernie Sanders interview

Share: Mike Lee interview

Share: Pelosi & Schiff
co-sponsoring Yemen War Powers Resolution

Share: National Day of Action Monday

Call the Senate:

1-833-STOP-WAR
(1-833-786-7927)
This week, we have a world-historical opportunity to end the monstrous, deliberate-famine-causing, unconstitutional U.S.-Saudi war in Yemen. The Senate will vote. We will win the Senate vote. Then the House will vote. We will win the House vote. When we win the Senate vote and the House vote, Trump and Mattis will end unconstitutional U.S. participation in the Saudi regime’s deliberate-famine-causing war in Yemen. When Trump and Mattis end U.S. participation in the Saudi regime’s war, the Saudi regime will agree to a ceasefire. When the Saudi regime agrees to a ceasefire, the United Nations and aid agencies will be able to get the resources and people in to Yemen to stop the famine. When the UN and aid agencies stop the famine, we can turn our attention to trying to achieve some measure of accountability for the bipartisan participation of the United States government in this world-historical atrocity.

Our Senate champions Bernie Sanders and Mike Lee were on the Sunday talk shows, which Washington journalists watch to find out what’s going to happen in Washington in the next week. Today, Bernie Sanders and Mike Lee used their platforms in the national media to tell the American people about the coming Senate vote to end the war. 


Here’s the first thing you can do: help us spread the Good News about the coming Senate vote, however you spread Good News, to whomever you spread Good News: 

Bernie Sanders confident bill stopping U.S. support of Saudi Arabia in Yemen can pass

Full Lee Interview: 'Congress has to take some ownership in U.S. foreign policy'

Here’s a second thing you can do: help us spread the Good News about the coming House vote: 
Leader Pelosi, top Intel Dem Schiff Back Yemen War Powers Resolution Ahead of House Vote

Here’s a third thing you can do: help us spread the word about the National Day of Action to End the War in Yemen on Monday:
- including actions in Rhode Island, Nevada, New York, New Jersey, Illinois, DC



Here’s a fourth thing you can do: mark your calendar to call your U.S. Senators Monday morning using the toll-free number provided by the Friends Committee on National Legislation: 1-833-STOP-WAR (1-833-786-7927). Using FCNL’s number adds pressure on your Senators to do the right thing, because it allows FCNL to tell your Senators how many calls they received, so your Senators can’t pretend they’re not hearing from constituents.

Thanks for all you’re doing and will do to help end this monstrous war and famine, 

Sarah Burns, Hassan El-Tayyab, and Robert Reuel Naiman
Just Foreign Policy
  
***
From Four Directions:

 We hope you enjoyed the weekend with family and friends and realize it has been a few days since you've heard from us. We cannot thank you enough for your interest and support for our cause to bring equal voting rights to our brothers and sisters in Indian Country.

Navajo votes made the difference in Arizona this year, but suppression continues and Four Directions has been busy fighting to ensure that Native ballots count this year, 2020, and beyond.

Late last week we announced a joint effort with the Navajo Nation Department of Justice Attorney General, Ethel Branch, suing the state of Arizona to protect Navajo Nation members right to vote and have their vote count in the 2018 election.

The lawsuit demands that Arizona provide equal access to the ballot box for all future elections – in a state with eleven electoral votes and a 2020 Senate race already being targeted by political leaders – with the equal access of 70,000 voting age Navajo Tribal members at risk.
 
Navajo Nation Attorney General Branch issued a news release last week regarding this lawsuit. We have included the background of Federal District Court Judge Lanza and Judge Lanza’s order setting a hearing in the case for tomorrow morning in Phoenix (scroll to bottom of this email for documents) Judge Lanza was nominated by President Trump in January, 2018 and was confirmed by the United States Senate in September, 2018.

We will have more details on the lawsuit and the impact Native votes made in 2018 shortly so stay tuned.


Warmly,
OJ Semans (Executive Director, Four Directions)

Navajo Nation Office of the Attorney General Press Release
Navajo Nation v. Michelle Reagan Pleadings Document
Judge Lanza Confirmation
Politico: Arizona key battleground in 2020
www.fourdirectionsvote.com
 
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Tuesday, November 13, 2018

Remembrance Day 2018

The Revolution Continues blog editor has left Trumpland temporarily to visit friends and family in England. For the next couple of weeks, enjoy insights from an American Progressive Abroad.

Armistice Day has become Veterans’ Day. Armistice Day was sacred. Veterans’ Day is not. So I will throw Veterans’ Day over my shoulder. Armistice Day I will keep. I don’t want to throw away any sacred things.
--Kurt Vonnegut, WWII veteran

Remembrance Day 2018
by C.A. Matthews
photos by Adrian Matthews

At the eleventh hour on the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 1918 the "war to end all wars" came to an end. Sadly, the killing continued. Over 800 British and Commonwealth service members and 1000 US Marines were killed before the ending of the official last day of World War I. The long road toward creating a lasting peace is paved with good intentions, or so it seems.

 Celebrating the centenary of the First World War this year in a different country demonstrates to me how much the holiday has changed over the years. It first began as Armistice Day and was a celebration of peace and the ending of war--all wars--worldwide. But in 1954 at the height of the Cold War, Americans converted the celebration of ending all wars into one of honoring warriors instead. The eleventh of November was renamed Veterans' Day and emphasized the thanking of soldiers, marines, airmen and sailors for their sacrifice and service to the imperialist state in ridding the world of the Soviet Union and its allies.

 In the UK, the eleventh of November is an altogether more meaningful experience. Yes, you are physically closer to where most of the fighting took place than in the US, but perhaps it is the intensity of emotion within the walls of Norwich Cathedral that made me realize viscerally how it wasn't all that long ago that an entire generation of young men marched off to their deaths--gruesome, gasping, bloody deaths in the trenches. Somehow the scars of that conflict still feel fresh nearer to the actual battlefields.

 In the US, we've created two  holidays to commemorate those who have served in the armed forces: Memorial Day and Veterans' Day. They are better known as being excuses for the big box stores to have sales and for government workers to enjoy three day weekends, rather than for the veneration of soldiers and warfare. In the UK, they've renamed Armistice Day to Remembrance Day and combined elements from both American celebrations. The dead and the living are both honored--and their sacrifice lauded--but the wish for a world at peace is also remembered.

 In Remembrance Day the true essence of Memorial Day, Veterans Day and Armistice Day come together. Could this be the reason why the UK isn't bucking to start a war with Iran, Russia, China, or Fill-in-the-Blank-Land as much as the current American administration is? How are the dead honored by killing more in their names? How are the survivors of warfare honored by killing more human beings in their names? How is peace served by endless bloodshed?

One hundred years after the "war to end all wars" and the US is helping to bomb school buses of children in Yemen. American drones regularly take out the innocent along with the "terrorists." Little children are stolen from their families as they cross the border into the US because of the "crime" of their skin color or country of origin. This is not peace. This is not honor. This is not worth remembering.

Americans must start remembering what Armistice Day originally was all about and pledge to work hard toward building a lasting peace in the world. Remembrance Day should be for remembering that peace is the objective--not the generation of endless profits for the military industrial complex. We should remember the lives lost in the pursuit of greed and vow to end the vicious cycle once and for all. Only then will we experience true peace both within ourselves and between our communities.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them. -- Laurence Binyan
Perhaps the best ending to a television series ever is the poignant ending of Blackadder Goes Forth. It sums up well the horror, utter insanity and uselessness of war (done in a World War I setting).  https://youtu.be/vH3-Gt7mgyM

 
Related articles:

US is more comfortable with war than peace
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/nov/11/us-observe-armistice-day-more-comfortable-war-than-peace

US calls for ceasfire--keeps attacking Yemen
https://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/277-75/53299-rsn-us-calls-for-ceasefire-keeps-attacking-yemen 

Map shows were Obama dropped his 20,000 bombs
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-president-barack-obama-bomb-map-drone-wars-strikes-20000-pakistan-middle-east-afghanistan-a7534851.html

***
From Coalition to Protect America's Healthcare:

 A soldier who lost his legs below the knees in Afghanistan — and enrolled in Harvard Medical School a few years later.

A doctor (and a veteran) who ran the Marine Corps Marathon in honor of his father, who fought at Iwo Jima.

A World War II physiotherapist who invented a device that helped veterans with disabilities feed themselves — and then gave it away, absolutely free.
 
These are just a handful of the medical professionals who are proud to serve the men and women of our armed forces. Their stories are incredible — read them today >>

And if you've served, or if you know someone who has, please accept our gratitude.

Thanks,

Coalition to Protect America's Health Care 
***

No to NATO — Yes to Peace

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) plans a summit, or at least a “celebration” in Washington, D.C., April 4, 2019, to mark 70 years since its creation on April 4, 1949.

We plan a peace festival to advocate the abolition of NATO, the promotion of peace, the redirection of resources to human and environmental needs, the demilitarization of our cultures, and the commemoration of Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech against war on April 4, 1967, as well as his assassination on April 4, 1968.

Plans are subject to change based on input from allies and updated information on what NATO plans to do. Tentatively, World BEYOND War plans to work with a coalition of other groups to organize events in downtown Washington, D.C., on April 3 to include nonviolence training, big art creation, a conference of speakers, and possibly a big demonstration; and on April 4 to be part of a major demonstration. One idea being considered is to form a procession to the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial and from there to where NATO is meeting and/or to a rally in Freedom Plaza.

The important thing now is to put this on your calendar. NATO was heartily unwelcomed by big crowds in Chicago in 2012, and we should be even bigger and more effective this time, with nonviolent actions and media outreach that communicate our opposition to militarism and our support for peace.

In 2012 in Chicago, Amnesty International put up big ads thanking NATO for its warmaking. This time we should put up big ads calling for an end to NATO and to war. Fund pro-peace billboards and other big ads here.

World BEYOND War has also endorsed a rally at 1 p.m. on March 30 at the White House with UNAC, and an event planned by Black Alliance for Peace on the evening of April 4. We will be strongest with all groups, across divergent ideologies and issue areas, working together.

How You and Your Organization Can Be Part of Saying No to NATO, Yes to Peace:
We’re lining up venues, which may include a venue where we can hold events and where people can choose to spend the night on April 3rd. We’ll have those details and further information on rides and lodging. If you’d like to offer or request lodging or rides, please do that here.

Endorsing Organizations:
World BEYOND War, Popular Resistance, CODE PINK, UFPJ, DSA Metro DC, A-APRP (GC), No to War No to NATO, International Peace Bureau, National Campaign for Nonviolent Resistance, Nuke Watch, Alliance for Global Justice, Coalition Against U.S. Foreign Military Bases, U.S. Peace Council, Backbone Campaign,

Sponsoring Organizations and Individuals:
World BEYOND War,

Volunteering to Help:

Outreach that Individuals and Organizations Can Help With
We want to reach out to organizations and individuals in and around Washington, D.C., and any willing to come to Washington, D.C. These events are an opportunity to build the coalition we need. War and militarism kill, teach violence, drive racism, create refugees, destroy the natural environment, erode civil liberties, and drain budgets. There are no groups working for good causes that shouldn’t have an interest in opposing NATO and advocating for peace. All are welcome. Here’s a sample message you can modify and use.
Spread the word on social media:
   
The Case Against NATO:
While Donald Trump once blurted out the obvious: that NATO is obsolete, he subsequently professed his commitment to NATO and began pressuring NATO members to buy more weapons. So, the notion that somehow NATO is anti-Trump and therefore good would not only be silly and practically amoral on its own terms, it is also at odds with the facts of Trump’s behavior. We are planning an anti-NATO / pro-peace action at which opposition to the militarism of NATO’s dominant member is welcome and necessary.

NATO has pushed the weaponry and the hostility and the massive so-called war games right up to the border of Russia. NATO has waged aggressive wars far from the North Atlantic. NATO has added Colombia, abandoning all pretense of its purpose being in the North Atlantic. NATO is used to free the U.S. Congress from the responsibility and the right to oversee the atrocities of U.S. wars. NATO is used as cover by NATO member governments to join U.S. wars under the pretense that they are somehow more legal or acceptable. NATO is used as cover to illegally and recklessly share nuclear weapons with supposedly non-nuclear nations. NATO is used to assign nations the responsibility to go to war if other nations go to war, and therefore to be prepared for war. NATO’s militarism threatens the earth’s environment. NATO’s wars fuel racism and bigotry and erode our civil liberties while draining our wealth.

We must say: No to NATO, Yes to peace, Yes to prosperity, Yes to a sustainable environment, Yes to civil liberties, Yes to education, Yes to a culture of nonviolence and kindness and decency, Yes to remembering April 4th as a day associated with the work for peace of Martin Luther King Jr.

“As I have walked among the desperate, rejected, and angry young men, I have told them that Molotov cocktails and rifles would not solve their problems. I have tried to offer them my deepest compassion while maintaining my conviction that social change comes most meaningfully through nonviolent action. But they asked, and rightly so, ‘What about Vietnam?’ They asked if our own nation wasn’t using massive doses of violence to solve its problems, to bring about the changes it wanted. Their questions hit home, and I knew that I could never again raise my voice against the violence of the oppressed in the ghettos without having first spoken clearly to the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today: my own government. For the sake of those boys, for the sake of this government, for the sake of the hundreds of thousands trembling under our violence, I cannot be silent.” —MLK Jr.

Send us your ideas, questions, proposals!
***
In these dark times, you know what gives me hope? Next week, hundreds of students from across the country are attending the National Students for Justice in Palestine Conference at UCLA to learn from each other, celebrate their wins, and strategize on how to fight white supremacy and work for Palestinian rights. 

I’ve had the pleasure of working with the students in SJP - they are thoughtful, ethical and smart. And they do their work despite an incredible amount of backlash. Canary Mission, the shadowy McCarthyite website, trolls them continually, and has already added SJP conference organizers to their blacklist. Now these students face threats that Canary Mission's lies will be shared with future employers, or the FBI, or that Israeli border guards will prevent Palestinian members from seeing their families. 

SJPs have been subject to a pattern of repression across the country. 
And now, a horrific smear campaign has been launched against their national conference. The campaigners are exploiting the tragedy in Pittsburgh by equating the white supremacist attack on a synagoge with SJP’s educational conference. 

This latest attack on SJP aims to get the conference canceled altogether. 
  Can you take a minute and send an email to UCLA Chancellor to support NSJP?

The smear campaign is getting picked up by media and even the LA City Council is getting swayed by these allegations. In fact they just passed a resolution urging UCLA to cancel the conference. 
This is a fundamental violation of free speech rights, and what’s worse is that they’re exploiting the devastating tragedy of the Pittsburgh shootings to get attention.

These brave students urgently need your help. 

Send an email to the UCLA administration now. Tell them to protect their students from harassment, smear attacks and assaults. Protect their rights to freedom of speech - and make sure the National Students for Justice in Palestine Conference is held as planned.

It’s sad and shameful to witness such a twisted response to our shared suffering around Pittsburgh. I hope you’ll join me in calling out this destructive campaign and supporting students who are actually doing incredible, inspiring work.
 
Thank you.

Tallie Ben-Daniel
Research and Education Manager, JVP
***

Let there be peace on Earth-- and help us to support the peacemakers by giving them a voice!

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