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.

How Much Is A Child’s Life Worth?

How Much Is A Child’s Life Worth?

by C.A. Matthews

 

Editor’s Note: On January 17, 2024, the Toledo (Ohio) City Council once again tabled voting on a Ceasefire in Gaza Resolution. More than one hundred days into the incessant bombing and bulldozing of Gaza, and the Toledo City Council (TCC) can’t make up its mind whether it wants to denounce the genocide of the Palestinians or not.

What’s the deal? After an intense email campaign flooded all twelve of the TCC members’ inboxes, the vote on the ceasefire resolution has been put off for a later time. We’ve been told this tabling of the motion (by its original proposer) has been done “in hope of persuading the hold-outs” to vote in favor of it. With many cities in the US, including an inconsequential metropolis located 40 miles north of Toledo called “Detroit”, passing resolutions condemning the genocide and calling for solidarity with the Palestinian people, what (or rather who) on earth could be causing a half-dozen plus Toledo City Council Members to lean toward the side of backing the genocidal Israeli government?

Our organizers for this email campaign have told us to continue politely emailing and calling these TCC members for the next two weeks until the tabled resolution comes up again for a vote, but I’ve had it. My patience is gone with those who think a genocide is “no big deal” or that “there’s two sides to every issue.” Sorry, but no. When it comes to genocide, there isn’t a “pro” side unless you’re an outright sociopath. I wrote a polite and fact-filled email earlier in the week, but apparently it didn’t touch the naysayers’ hearts, or whatever they have instead of an organ of empathy.

I can’t trust myself to write another “polite email” (or ten) again, so I’ve decided to write my email into a blog post instead. This letter would be what I would send to the Toledo City Council Members if I could, but I won’t send it and jeopardize this resolution’s chance of passing just to vent my frustration. At least I’ll have a few things off my chest, which might help me refrain from spitting in their faces the next time I see any of them in person. Here goes...

Dear Council Member:

You may not remember my email from this past week among the many hundreds of emails on this topic that flooded your inbox, so allow me to jog your memory.

I’m an immigration advocate, writer/editor, and mother. In my line of work, I’ve seen up close how devastating ethnic cleansing can be for an individual, the same kind that is happening currently to the Palestinians in Gaza. I can empathize with just how terrifying it is not to be able to help your friends and family who are stuck in the middle of the IDF carpet bombing. One small demonstration of support by the Toledo City Council by passing this ceasefire resolution could go a long way in showing the local Palestinian/Arab American community that the city truly cares about them and their families.

 All you as a Council Member have to do is vote yes on the Ceasefire in Gaza Resolution that was proposed. Why is this simple, yet compassionate, act so difficult for you to understand? Your silence speaks volumes. 

It was brought to my attention that a former Council Member has been causing you some confusion. I must say that I am confused by his actions, too, as he no longer lives in the city, but rather he lives in a small, mostly white, affluent suburb located to the northwest of Toledo. Why Toledo City Council allows persons who live outside the city limits to tell them what to do and how to vote on a resolution was a mystery to me until I learned more about this individual.

Mr. Smith* apparently has a lot of rich, powerful friends in the county. I see now how he controls your votes. Although he currently lives in another city, he still thinks he and his gang can tell the Toledo City Council what to do. As we all know, Toledo is no longer as affluent as it once was and is no longer mostly white, either. Mr. Smith in his earlier remarks espoused a Zionist political philosophy, one that is known for its racism against all people of color, Palestinians in particular. It seems probable Mr. Smith doesn’t support a ceasefire because he wants the genocide to continue until all Gazans are dead and the next phase of driving out any remaining Palestinians in the West Bank can begin. Perhaps he is hoping that a similar ethnic cleansing operation could make Toledo “mostly white” again one day? Who knows what lurks in Zionists' hearts?

I’m certain Mr. Smith couches his approval of the Israeli genocide in flowery terms, but the fancy verbiage doesn’t hide the cold hard facts: There are an estimated 100,000 human beings missing, maimed, or dead in Gaza, 12,000+ of them children. Over 700,000 are without food or drinkable water as of today. I’m assuming that you don’t personally feel that toddlers and newborns are “hardened terrorists” like most Zionists do. In that case, you’d agree with me that Palestinian children aren’t guilty of any “crimes” whatsoever. So, if Palestinian children are innocent of any crimes, why should they be punished—or in this case murdered by carpet bombing and the withholding of food and potable water—for actions in which they cannot be held responsible for in the first place?

Wouldn’t calling for a ceasefire to end the hostilities so both sides can sit around the negotiation table and work things out be a good thing to do for the sake of the children? Wouldn’t Toledo City Council backing a Ceasefire in Gaza Resolution help encourage public opinion to demand these negotiations begin and the killing stop? Wouldn’t it show how much Toledo stands in solidarity with innocent Palestinian children and civilians in general? Aren’t children’s health and safety worthy of your time and consideration, so much so that you’d vote yes on the ceasefire resolution today if you could?

To put it another way: How much is a child’s life worth to you, Council Member?

If you’re still siding with a wealthy, white suburbanite who wants the massacres to continue in Gaza, then you’re telling me and the world that you don’t really place much worth on the life of any child—a child of color in particular. A child of color who resides in either in Gaza or Toledo. Brown or Black lives aren’t worth a whole lot to you is what refusing to vote yes on the ceasefire resolution says to me. 

Essentially, you’ve placed a price tag of $0 on these children’s heads. Whether they live or die is of no importance to you. I personally find your callous disregard for the lives of children disgusting.

I’m sure Mr. Smith and his friends (who after all live in a very well-to-do suburb in the same county as the city of Toledo) can write some pretty big checks come election campaign time. I’m also certain that your county political party machine relishes those big fat checks. I'm sure your party leaders have warned you to never do anything that could drive away those big campaign donations on pain of political death, no doubt. So, even if you won’t answer the question, “How much is a child’s life worth?” you've given us all the answer.

 A child’s life isn’t worth your political career, obviously.

This can mean only one thing—your political career must be terminated so that children may live.

I know you’ll take exception to my reasoning, but what else have you given us to go on? A reasonable request to pass a resolution calling for a ceasefire of the bombing of innocent civilians in Gaza is being ignored. There has to be something causing you as Council Member to not enthusiastically support saving children’s lives—any child’s life, no matter what color he/she is or where the child lives. And that something must have something to do with what Mr. Smith and his rich suburbanite friends have that you so desperately want—money. 

Rich people use money as a threat or an incentive to get what they want frequently. I’ll have to assume they’ve threatened that the big checks will stop dropping into your party's campaign war chests if you don’t do as you’re told and vote down the ceasefire resolution. To quote a few outspoken audience members at the last council meeting: “Spineless.” “Cowards.”

A child’s life (whatever his/her color) is of infinite worth in case you didn’t know. I don’t know if you’re a parent or grandparent or have never even held a baby in your arms in your life before, but know this: A child’s life is worth far more than any damn campaign contribution. Spineless cowards like you have put a price tag of $0 on their heads in order to stay in office. Proud of yourself? Putting your political career above the chance of standing in solidarity with others who wish to save innocents’ lives in Gaza. 

What a “neighborly” thing to do, Toledo! And we belong to the so-called “Welcoming City” organization, too. Ha ha ha!

You seem to forget, Council Member, that Palestinian Americans can and do vote and that Arab Americans/Muslim Americans make up a good percentage of voters in Lucas County. They're well paid professionals just like your friend Mr. Smith and his group, too. They will be writing big checks to your political opponents from now on. Your refusal to vote yes on the Ceasefire in Gaza Resolution will mean the end of your political career after all.  

Ironic, isn’t it? I can’t wait for the day when your cowardice catches up with you.

Sincerely yours,

A Fed-Up Voter For Peace & Justice

*Not his real name, but you probably know someone just like him.

Related Articles and Interesting Links: 

Thousands of Babies Being Born Into 'Hell' in Gaza, Says UNICEF https://www.commondreams.org/news/women-babies-gaza

On Parenthood and Genocide https://inthesetimes.com/article/gaza-genocide-children-israel-palestine-mother 

Israel Forcing Palestinians to Starve “Just Miles From Trucks Filled With Food”   https://truthout.org/articles/israel-forcing-palestinians-to-starve-just-miles-from-trucks-filled-with-food/

Palestinian Women and Children Don’t Deserve to Die in Gaza. Neither Do Men. https://truthout.org/articles/palestinian-women-and-children-dont-deserve-to-die-in-gaza-neither-do-men/  

St. Louis’s Ceasefire Resolution Is a Testament to Black-Palestinian Solidarity  https://truthout.org/articles/st-louiss-ceasefire-resolution-is-a-testament-to-black-palestinian-solidarity/

‘Operation Al-Aqsa Flood’ Day 105: Israel destroys Gaza’s last university as Netanyahu doubles down on rejection of a Palestinian state https://mondoweiss.net/2024/01/operation-al-aqsa-flood-day-105-israel-destroys-gazas-last-university-as-netanyahu-doubles-down-on-rejection-of-a-palestinian-state/

Israel’s war on Gaza live: No ‘deliberate’ war crimes by Israel, says US  https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2024/1/19/israels-war-on-gaza-live-us-support-for-israel-ironclad-despite-rebuff

Palestinians welcome Chile and Mexico’s call for ICC probe into Gaza war https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/1/19/palestinians-welcome-chile-and-mexico-call-for-icc-probe-into-gaza-war

Israeli Military Chief Says Lebanon War Likely in Coming Months
https://news.antiwar.com/2024/01/18/israeli-military-chief-says-lebanon-war-likely-in-coming-months/

5 Radical Martin Luther King Quotes Fox News Would Hate
https://www.patheos.com/blogs/notthatkindofchristian/2024/01/5-radical-martin-luther-king-quotes-fox-news-would-hate

Senate Kills Sanders Resolution Requiring Biden to Report on Israeli Human Rights Conduct in Gaza https://www.commondreams.org/news/sanders-resolution-gaza

Western racism laid the foundations for Israel's genocide in Gaza https://jonathancook.substack.com/p/western-racism-laid-the-foundations

Has Israel Lost its Right to Exist? https://joebrunoli.substack.com/p/has-israel-lost-its-right-to-exist

Patrick Lawrence: This Is Not Another ‘Phoney War’ https://scheerpost.com/2024/01/19/patrick-lawrence-this-is-not-another-phoney-war/

Biden, Israel’s accomplice in Gaza, pretends to be a bystander https://www.aaronmate.net/p/biden-israels-accomplice-in-gaza

How Israeli forces trapped and killed ravers at the Nova Festival
https://new.thecradle.co/articles/how-israeli-forces-trapped-and-killed-ravers-at-the-nova-festival

Switzerland says Israel President subject of criminal complaints at Davos  https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20240119-switzerland-says-israel-president-subject-of-criminal-complaints-at-davos/amp/

Technicality Could Sink Genocide Case v Israel https://consortiumnews.com/2024/01/17/technicality-could-sink-genocide-case-v-israel

Indonesia Files Lawsuit Against Israel At World Court https://popularresistance.org/indonesia-files-lawsuit-against-israel-at-world-court/

Cuba Proposes Non-Aligned Movement Support Urgent Dispatch Of Protection Mission To The Gaza Strip https://popularresistance.org/cuba-proposes-non-aligned-movement-support-urgent-dispatch-of-international-protection-mission-to-the-gaza-strip/

Can the US Please Stop Supporting Genocidal Nazis? https://joebrunoli.substack.com/p/can-the-us-please-stop-supporting

The Biden Administration's Absurd Justification For Its Yemen War https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/the-biden-administrations-absurd 

Ohio Pastor Charged for Opening Church to Homeless People in Freezing Weather https://www.commondreams.org/news/ohio-pastor

One year after the toxic train derailment, is East Palestine (Ohio) safe? Depends on whom you ask. https://grist.org/accountability/is-east-palestine-safe-depends-who-you-ask/

COVID-19 has killed more than 7 million people since 2020 https://peoplesdispatch.org/2024/01/13/covid-19-has-killed-more-than-7-million-people-since-2020/

Global 1% own 43% of financial assets, 5 richest billionaires doubled wealth while 5 billion workers got poorer https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2024/01/18/billionaires-richest-doubled-wealth-poorer-oxfam/
 

Some videos well worth watching:

Palestine in 1920 https://youtu.be/QUCeQt8zg5o?si=juKUncu86IoJLr2-

Are We The Baddies? (A History of US Empire)
https://youtu.be/ooMCvGlbbc4?si=wdFvdUxzzsM7i0Bu

South Park's take on Israeli propaganda: https://twitter.com/AdameMedia/status/1747953750403084674

Miko Peled interviews Dr. Jill Stein, Green Party candidate
https://youtu.be/rgIMHAJlPVM?si=x_hFcYMQjscVA0H8

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. Many thanks for your consideration.

Marching Toward Justice

https://www.commondreams.org/news/biden-complicity-gaza

Marching Toward Justice

by C.A. Matthews

No justice. No peace!
Know justice. Know peace!

I wore an orange jumpsuit and a black hood over my head this past Thursday (January 11) for two hours. I, along with a couple dozen activists, marched around our county courthouse chanting the above chant as well as many others concerning justice, freedom, and for the end of unjust detention and torture. Ours and many other protests worldwide this week marked the twenty-second anniversary of the opening of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp, an extrajudicial prison operated by the US military that has held hundreds of men, many without charge, for the past 22 years.

(I’m carrying the “Close Guantanamo” sign in this video https://www.facebook.com/reel/1434577297270587)

There are currently thirty souls still detained at Guantanamo, sixteen of whom were supposed to have been released many years ago, but they haven’t been because the US simply doesn’t release these individuals to go back to their homes and families. They are only released to other countries that are willing to lock them up again behind bars or keep a close eye on them. You’re not really being “freed” if you’re simply placed into another prison or detention set-up without a trial and without a chance to see your family again, are you?

There are many parallels between the detainees of Guantanamo and the detainees of the open-air concentration camp known as Gaza. You can learn a lot (I sure did) from the following webinars. I recommend you watch them and share the links with others. Together, we can pull down the walls of unjust detention and tear down the torture chambers that have been built with US taxpayer dollars and used to destroy others in our names.

From Guantánamo to Gaza: Resisting State Violence and Occupation https://www.youtube.com/live/X9A9xUKXUpY?si=OapW7b5gqocTxLib

From Guantánamo to Gaza: Where Do We Go From Here?
https://youtube.com/live/aPxHKEjmCuw

If you feel so moved, please donate to the Guantanamo Survivors’ Fund. If and when a detainee is finally released, he receives no help in making the transition from imprisonment to life outside. He's given no money, no housing, no clothing, and no medical help to deal with his trauma of both mind and body. Please give generously if you’re able and share the link with others.

No justice. No peace.

And since I’m sharing video links, here are some well worth a look. These are the testimonies given at the International Court of Justice at The Hague by legal representatives from the Republic of South Africa and from the state of Israel this past week. The case presented by South Africa is well argued and, without a doubt, revealing of the true natures of Israel's leaders. The South Africans very wisely didn’t state that “Israel is calling for a genocide”—they simply quoted Israeli officials who openly called for the “elimination” or “complete annihilation” of the Palestinian people or the “human animals” of Gaza as the Israeli Defense minister named them. Their own hideously racist words will damn them. 

Day 1 of SA v Israel on Genocide at World Court
https://consortiumnews.com/2024/01/10/watch-day-1-of-sa-v-israel-on-genocide-at-world-court/

22-Minute Speech Details Israeli Officials' Genocidal Statements at ICJ https://www.commondreams.org/news/israel-genocidal-statements-2666930604

It doesn’t take much to convince the public that Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people when Israeli leaders are openly declaring that it’s what they’re in fact doing. But will the judges rule that a “potential for genocide” is indeed happening in Gaza?

In a perfect world, a ruling would be announced right away, but it will probably be two or three weeks (or more) until the world hears back from the ICJ justices. It is a very biased and political court  from what I’ve learned. Judges from countries that have had similar charges made against them in the past might not want to judge Israel guilty of the same crime in fear it could come back and bite their country at some point. The ICJ in reality, however, has little to no "bite" and no way to hold countries accountable for their war crimes, alas. Politics trumps justice in this imperfect world.

No justice. No peace. 

And now for our third story concerning the march toward justice this past week, The National March on Washington for Gaza (livestreamed in its entirety via BreakThrough News.)

 
“No country that supports genocide will ever flourish! ...Take a look at our irrational relationship with Israel!”-- Sh. Yasir Qadhi, a speaker at the March

“I don’t feel safe as a Palestinian.” – Anees, a Palestinian-American artist reading his poem in front of 400,000 people at the March

Biden, Biden you can’t hide! You’re supporting genocide!
Your silence is a license for Israeli violence!
We will free Palestine...within our lifetime!
From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free!

I wish I could have attended the massive National March on Washington for Gaza this past weekend, but the march around the courthouse in the cold and damp earlier in the week was about all my old body could take for a while. The buses from our city heading toward DC were full, so I knew we would be well represented there.

Independent journalists broadcast live coverage on You Tube of all the rally speakers and the march to the White House to let “Genocide Joe” know that the majority of Americans want an end to the bombing of Gaza and a permanent ceasefire. BreakThrough News was the only media group that I could find online that followed all the events of the day. Once again, the American mainstream media purposefully ignored an anti-genocide/pro-Palestinian event in the nation’s capital in order to suppress its message and public knowledge of its large turn out.

Ceasefire now! Ceasefire now!

 

Speakers expressed their disgust and sheer horror at how the Biden’s administration continues to ignore the plight of the Palestinians and send even more weapons to Israel. How anyone could ignore the mass murders of so many civilians (now estimated at 30,000+ lives lost with 12,000 of those deaths being children’s) brought forth stern commentary using straightforward terminology. Biden and Secretary of State Blinken were painted as despicable, morally bankrupt, and explicitly complicit in the genocide against the Palestinian people.

That the Democratic Party even entertains the notion that Biden is a viable candidate after this and similar American rallies over the past three months demonstrates that they’re not really serious about keeping the White House. Perhaps that’s the plan of the oligarchy after all—to pass off control of the Executive Branch to the Republicans as a distraction from what’s really happening in the world at the expense of the struggling classes. 

 

The oligarchs probably believe that most Americans can't tell there are no actual differences between the two establishment factions. We are easily fooled. But on-the-street interviews during the march to the White House give evidence to the fact that the protesters know they have a choice in the voting booth. Some expressed their support for the Green Party’s Jill Stein, one of the speakers at the pre-march rally.

Dr. Stein was in good form. Wearing shades of blue, the wind blowing through her silver-white hair, she boldly proclaimed to the crowd as she took the stage, “I see power! I see justice! I see democracy as far as the eye can see!” She ended with, “You have the power! Remember, we have the power to change history. Together we are unstoppable!” Jill is collecting names for a pledge demanding an end to the genocide at her campaign web site now: https://www.jillstein2024.com/pledgetostopgenocide

You can watch Jill Stein's speech here: https://youtu.be/ooUatY8IATc?si=UFqvmOq6kQEgh6gu

The solidarity of the different groups of marchers was lovely to see. A young activist said of Joe Biden when asked why the president continued to send money and arms to Israel: “It’s not the eyes that are blind; it’s the heart that is blind.” “(Biden is) an excuse of a president,” another marcher told a reporter with BreakThrough News. “We are tired of being second class citizens in our own country.”

Very telling comments on this, the weekend of American civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday. If Dr. King were alive today, no doubt he would have gone to DC and marched, proudly carrying a Palestinian flag.

“There’s no turning back,” said Liane, an activist with the Shut It Down For Palestine Coalition as she stood outside of the White House’s double-fence in the bitter cold after sunset. “Biden has lost legitimacy. No one running in either of the two parties has any legitimacy. Consciousness has been raised.”

Well said. It’s impressive how well-informed activists are and how they aren’t swallowing the pro-Zionist propaganda put out by the government. They're fighting back, speaking out, and naming names. They understand they have options, choices in the polling booth. Jill Stein, a strong pro-Palestine/anti-genocide candidate for the presidency, is one of them.

There is no justice and no peace yet for the beleaguered people of Palestine, but at least there is some hope on the horizon. And so we will continue marching on toward justice.

Related Articles and Interesting Links

The National March on Washington for Gaza, January 13, 2024 https://www.youtube.com/live/MCNrimImrH0?si=MAWHW7ZQfOj8XM4X

Chris Hedges: The Case for Genocide https://scheerpost.com/2024/01/12/chris-hedges-the-case-for-genocide/

Genocide is not a political problem. It is a moral one. We cannot, no matter what the cost, support those who commit or are accomplices to genocide. Genocide is the crime of all crimes. It is the purest expression of evil. We must stand unequivocally with Palestinians and the jurists from South Africa. We must demand justice. We must hold Biden accountable for the genocide in Gaza.

‘The Evidence of Genocide Is Not Only Chilling, It Is Also Overwhelming and Incontrovertible’
https://scheerpost.com/2024/01/12/the-evidence-of-genocide-is-not-only-chilling-it-is-also-overwhelming-and-incontrovertible/

What Israel Faces at The Hague
https://consortiumnews.com/2024/01/10/what-israel-faces-at-the-hague/

South Africa’s Impassioned Plea to Stop Israel’s Genocide https://scheerpost.com/2024/01/12/south-africas-impassioned-plea-to-stop-israels-genocide/

Your Man in the Hague (in a Good Way).
https://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2024/01/your-man-in-the-hague-in-a-good-way/

US and UK Bomb Yemen, Israel's Pathetic Defense at the International Court of Justice, and More
rumble.com/v46nujl-us-and-uk-bomb-yemen-israels-pathetic-defense-at-the-international-court-of.htm

Give to the Guantanamo Survivors Fund https://www.nogitmos.org/guantanamo-survivors-fund

An Ex-CIA Agent Looks Back at 22 Years of Torture at Guantánamo Bay https://scheerpost.com/2024/01/10/john-kiriakou-22-years-of-terror-at-guantanamo-bay/

Accountability and Legacy at Guantanamo: Some Progress, Still A Long Way to Go https://www.justsecurity.org/91156/accountability-and-legacy-at-guantanamo-some-progress-still-a-long-way-to-go/

Gaza crisis: another hospital facing dire shortages, warns WHO
https://news.un.org/en/story/2024/01/1145332

 

Screams without proof: questions for NYT about shoddy ‘Hamas mass rape’ report https://thegrayzone.com/2024/01/10/questions-nyt-hamas-rape-report/

Pro-Palestinian household targeted with bomb in Sydney, Australia
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2024/01/10/sohf-j10.html

Westerners Have An Absolutely Psychotic View Of Airstrikes https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/westerners-have-an-absolutely-psychotic

Western Empire Bombs Yemen To Protect Israel's Genocide Operations In Gaza https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/western-empire-bombs-yemen-to-protect

US and UK launch war against Yemen https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2024/01/12/vgxz-j12.html

US and UK Bomb Dozens of Sites in Yemen https://news.antiwar.com/2024/01/11/us-and-uk-bomb-dozens-of-sites-in-yemen/

We Could Try Simply NOT Provoking A Wider War Via The Continued Destruction Of Gaza https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/we-could-try-simply-not-provoking

Biden Is Everything People Feared Trump Would Be
https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/biden-is-everything-people-feared

If You've Just Started Paying Attention To US Foreign Policy
https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/if-youve-just-started-paying-attention

We badly need the kind of critical reporting that WikiLeaks supplied on the crimes of the “war on terror”
https://www.stopwar.org.uk/article/why-gaza-reporting-shows-that-julian-assange-should-be-free/

Abby Martin Explains Why Israel Will Never Be The Same
https://rumble.com/v46mcbr-abby-martin-explains-why-israel-will-never-be-the-same.html

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. Many thanks for your consideration.