Daily News Digest December 11, 2024
Images of the Day:
Ted Rall: Taking Stock The murder of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thomas coupled with the overwhelmingly gleeful public reaction thereto has corporate executives at evil companies thinking twice–not about their actions, but upping their personal security.
Shiite Latakia Falls to new Syrian Government, as Sheikhs call for Reconciliation and Recruits are Pardoned On Monday, the Levant Liberation Council (Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham/ HTS) guerrilla forces extended their rule to Latakia, Syria’s major port, in the northwest of the country. One Syrian source maintained that there was an uprising of anti-Assad Alawites in Latakia, and that HTS rebels had not entered the city. Other reports suggested that Alawites who had for years been oppressed and bilked by Alawite Baath officers were staging reprisals on them. Informed Comment cannot independently verify these allegations.
Since World War I, ‘the war to end all wars’, there have been perpetual wars for perpetual peace, this Laura Gray’s cartoon from the front page of The Militant August 18, 1945, Under the Banner Headline: “There Is No Peace”There is No Democracy! When Less Than 1% Control the Wealth, Production, and Price of Everything Produced and Consumed in the World! In the present period of unfettered Capitalism, the pretense of democratic rule does not exist, except in the minds of ‘socialists’ like Bernie Sanders and the Labor Bureaucracy! Capitalists view all struggles as struggles against capitalist rule! Transition demands immediately become revolutionary demands! Therefore, any resistence to the attack of capitalists has to be organized by those that understand this!
Today, the United States Capitalists are Consolidating Themselves as the Supreme Capitalists! Capitalism’s Gluttony is Demonstrated by It’s Quest for More and More Profits at the Expense of Humanity! The Rise of Capitalism was Under the Banner of Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity! Now There is Less Liberty, More Inequality, and Less Fraternity of Humanity! Every Day, From Global Warming to Global War There is a New Example of Capitalism in Imperialist Decay!
Capitalism as a Failed System: World Capitalism Has Been Aware of the Comming Catastrophe of Global Warming Over 6 Decades Ago and Did Nothing!: Under Capitalism — Human Lives Don’t Matter Capitalism Does Not, and Never Has, Worked for the Masses! In Its Death Agony, Capitalism Is Traveling About The World Like The Five Horsemen of the the Apocalypse, Spreading Racism, War, Famine, Pestilence, Death, and Misinformation! The very future of Humanity Is Now At stake!
During This Economic Crisis, Capitalism’s Three-Point Political Program: Austerity, Scapegoat Blacks, Minorities, and ‘Illegal’ Immigrants for Unemployment, and The Iron Heel! For Decades, Blacks Have Been Subjected to The Iron Heel! Currently, the US Capitalist Class is Divided Over When — Not If, to Apply It to Everyone! Globaly, With the Current Gaza War, The Right of Assembly is Under Attack! Due to Years of Austerity, Cuts to Public Health Care, And An Anti-Science and Profiteering President, The United States Still Leads the World In Coronavirus Cases and Deaths in the World!
The Majority of the World, Despite the Media Monopoly’s Lies, are Opposed to the Palestinian Genocide and Global Warming — The 1% Minority Funds Them! At, this Time in History, Capitalism is Exposing the Fact That it is Opposed to Majority Rule/Democracy!
Always Remember: That President Obama, With a Majority Democrat Legislature Supported the Wall Street Bailout and Remember, That he Established, in writing, the United States Capitalist Austerity Program. — The Race to the Bottom/Pauperization of the 99%!
Democracy?: As the Capitalist Robber Barons Steal from the 99%, Only the 1% Voted For Austerity! The 99% Should Decide On Austerity — Not Just The 1%, Who Profit From Austerity!! Under Austerity, All of the World Will Eventually Be Pauperized, Humbled, and Desecrated Like Greece and Puerto Rico.! Socialism Means True Democracy, that the 99% Will Rule, Not the Few!
Quotes of the Day:
Competition is the Beginning of War — Maria Montesorri
Podcasts/Vide0s of the Day:
Taliban In Afghanistan Bad, Al-Qaeda In Syria Good It’s pretty wild how the west went directly from “We need to occupy Afghanistan for two decades to prevent it from being taken over by the Taliban” to “Yay! Syria’s been taken over by al-Qaeda!”
United States:
The United States is not a Democracy (A government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly)! Only the 1%, through their ownership of the Republicrats and who profit from war and the war budget, vote for War and the war budget — A policy, which Gore Vidal called a Perpetual War for Perpetual Peace. — The 99% Should Decide On War — Not Just The 1% Who Profit From War! Under a Democracy, The 99% would have the right to vote on the policy of Perpetual War for Perpetual Peace! The United States takes from the poor and gives to the Rich. Tax the Rich! — They Can Afford ford To Pay! Both Parties Support U.S. Capitalism’s Wars! (The Only War the Democrats Opposed was the Civil War!)
Migration isn’t the Problem! The Migration of Wealth to the 1% is the Problem! The most significant “migration problem” is not the movement of people across borders, but rather the migration of wealth into the hands of a small elite (1%) which ultimately drives people to migrate in search of better economic opportunities! Addressing wealth inequality is key to tackling the root cause of global migration issues! — Roland Sheppard
We can have democracy in this country, or we can have great wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can’t have both. — Louis D. Brandeis Quotes/
The greatest purveyor of violence in the world : My own Government, I cannot be Silent. ― Martin Luther King Jr.
62% of Americans Agree US Government Should Ensure Everyone Has Health Coverage The new poll shows the highest level of support in a decade for the government ensuring all Americans have healthcare. Public sentiment regarding the nation’s for-profit healthcare system—an outlier among wealthy nations—has dominated the national news in recent days following last week’s killing of an insurance executive in New York. On Monday, just hours before a suspect in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was arrested by police, a new Gallup poll found a 62% majority in the U.S. believe the government should ensure all Americans have healthcare coverage—the highest percentage in more than a decade.
Class Hatred and the Assassination of Unitedhealthcare’s CEO Wednesday morning, Americans woke up to the news that UnitedHealthcare’s CEO, Brian Thompson, had been shot to death in a targeted attack outside a Manhattan hotel. The country’s capitalists and their representatives shed collective tears for the death of one of their own. One of the first to react was Governor Tim Walz of Minnesota, Kamala Harris’s running-mate in the last election, who described Thompson’s death as “a terrible loss for the business and health care community.” Millions of workers across the country did not share in that sentiment. Health insurance is one of the most hated industries in the country, having negatively touched the lives of nearly every single worker in the form of increased premiums, denials of coverage, and more. Medical expenses are the leading cause of bankruptcy in the US with 41% of the population in debt over medical bills and three million Americans in debt to the tune of $10,000 or more. This, despite 90% of Americans having insurance coverage.
Ralph Nader: The ‘Silent Violence’ of Corporate Greed and Power “Just under the surface is a seething whirlpool of resentment, anger, frustration, and bitterness about corporate abuses.” Year after year, the deadly toll goes up, not down, and the horrors continue. For decades consumer groups have been sounding clarion calls for action against the “silent violence” causing massive casualties that arise from the unbridled power of corporate greed, criminal negligence, or indifference. They cite statistical and case studies that the media and lawmakers mostly ignored or relegated to low levels of enforcement. Corporate bosses just have their corporate lawyers and public relations hacks brush away such warnings and pleas. One day stories they knew would not have legs if they just kept quiet or mumbled some general words of regret, promising some vague improvements to their products and services. But year after year, the deadly toll goes up, not down, and the horrors continue. For example, at least 5000 people A WEEK die in hospitals in the U.S. due to “preventable problems,” concluded a peer-reviewed study by Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine physicians in 2016. This is just one of numerous such studies of hospital-induced infections, overuse of antibiotics, medical malpractice or what is called “medical error,” prescribing bundles of drugs that backfire, “accidents,” deskilling and understaffing. There has been no mass mobilization by either government officials or industry executives to address this staggering toll of at least 250,000 fatalities a year!
United States Armed and Funded Terrorist Middle East War/Palestinan Genocide: When Biden Says ‘He’s a Zionist’ —Believe Him!
Environment:
Fund Climate! — Not Genocide! One of Many Ways to Begin to End Global Warming: Expose ‘Greenwashing’ — Tax the Polluters 100%! After World War II Rosa Luxenburg Coined the Slogan: ‘S0cialism or Barbaism’! Now the Slogan Should Be: ‘Ecosocialism or Ecocide’!
We Must Hold These Monsters to Account!
Senile Lame Duck Present Biden is Backing the U.S. Into Possible Nuclear War With Russia!: US Bombs Over 75 Targets in Syria After Assad Falls U.S. military forces launched dozens of airstrikes on more than 75 Islamic State targets in Syria on Sunday after the fall of longtime Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and amid ongoing Israeli and Turkish attacks on the war-torn Middle Eastern nation. According to U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), warplanes including B-52 bombers, F-15 fighters, and A-10 ground attack aircraft “conducted dozens of precision airstrikes targeting known ISIS camps and operatives in central Syria.” CENTCOM called the strikes “part of the ongoing mission to disrupt, degrade, and defeat ISIS in order to prevent the terrorist group from conducting external operations and to ensure that ISIS does not seek to take advantage of the current situation to reconstitute in central Syria.” The U.S., “together with allies and partners in the region, will continue to carry out operations to degrade ISIS operational capabilities even during this dynamic period in Syria,” CENTCOM added.
The Fall of Assad & What it Means for The Middle East (w/ Alastair Crooke) | The Chris Hedges Report The fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, ending a 55-year dynasty begun by his father, dramatically shifts the pieces on the chessboard of the Middle East. The rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), led by Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, is armed and backed by Turkey and was once allied with Al Qaeda. It is sanctioned as a terrorist group. Turkey’s primary goal is to prevent an independent Kurdish state in northern Syria where Kurds have formed an autonomous enclave. But it may not only be Turkey that is behind the overthrow of Assad. It may also be Israel. Israel has long sought to topple the Syrian regime which is the transit point for weapons and aid sent from Iran to the Lebanese militia group Hezbollah. The Syrian regime was backed by Russia and Iran, indeed Russian warplanes routinely bombed Syrian rebel targets. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has gloated about the ousting of Assad calling it an “historic day” and said it was a direct result of Israel’s actions against Hezbollah and Iran. But at the same time, Israel will soon have an Islamic state on its border.
US Backs Israel’s Land Grab in Syria On Monday, the US State Department backed Israel’s seizure of territory in Syria that came after the collapse of the government of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, framing it as a defensive action. Israel seized a buffer zone between the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and the rest of Syria’s territory that was established in 1974 and also captured several areas beyond the zone. When asked about the land grab, State Department spokesman Matt Miller said it was important to put the situation in “context.” “First of all, the Syrian army abandoned its positions in the area around the negotiated Israeli-Syrian buffer zone, which potentially creates a vacuum that could have been filled by terrorist organizations that would threaten the state of Israel and would threaten civilians inside Israel. Every country has the right to take action against terrorist organizations,” Miller said.
Lights! Camera! Activism! The Film That’s Rooting for Change in Palestine—Literally If a film like Where Olive Trees Weep can inspire thousands to plant olive trees in a conflict zone, what else might this model achieve when applied to other global challenges? We’ve all seen movies that tug at our heartstrings, maybe even prompt a tear or two. But every so often, a film does more than just make us feel—it makes us act. From saving dolphins to battling climate change, certain films have ignited movements that leap from the screen into the real world. The latest addition to this unexpected genre? Olive trees. Yes, olive trees. In the West Bank, no less. Where Olive Trees Weep is a recent documentary that delves into the hardships and resilience of the Palestinian people. It has captivated viewers around the world—not just emotionally, but in a way that has moved them to action. This isn’t just a story on screen. With the help of everyday people, it has mobilized a movement that’s planting 1,500 olive trees in one of the most contested regions on the planet.
Black Liberation Civil Rights:
Labor:
Economy:
Trump Has a Slush Fund to Prop Up the Dollar – Will He Use It to Prop Up Bitcoin Instead? The dark veil behind which the U.S. political system has operated since the U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision and its progeny turned presidential elections into a subtle form of payoffs and kickbacks has been lifted. Donald Trump is handing out cabinet posts and ambassadorships to his largest donors in the most scandalous manner in U.S. presidential history. Now Trump’s crypto megadonors are demanding their own form of a kickback – a Bitcoin Strategic Reserve, where the U.S. government would, effectively, prop up the price of Bitcoin by buying up large amounts each year and holding it as a Strategic Reserve. (Skeptics might be forgiven for seeing that as a means for Bitcoin billionaires to sell their Bitcoin without driving down the price too much because there is a perpetual buyer on the other side of their trade.)
World:
Health, Education, and Welfare:
Three Principles of Working-Class Liberation Do you dream of a world where everyone has what they need? Where work is creative and meaningful? Where people care for each other? Where we all protect the environment? Are you disgusted by a capitalist system that values only profit? You are not alone. Most of us suffer under capitalism, yet our collective labour keeps it going. If we worked together, we could stop producing for profit and start producing for need. We could free ourselves from capitalism. Three principles essential to working-class liberation are self-emancipation, working-class solidarity, and working-class independence.
- Self-Emancipation is the right of individuals and groups to decide for themselves how they live and relate to each other.
- Working-Class Solidarity is workers of all nations standing up for each other.
- Working-Class Independence protects workers’ demands from being dismissed or compromised by those who refuse to abandon capitalism. Let’s take a closer look.
Self-Emancipation. A people can be held in subjection most effectively not by brute force but by gutting them of the capacity to fight for themselves. – Hal Draper (1971) Capitalism stops us from fighting for ourselves in three ways.
1.Authoritarian rule:
Throughout life, workers are trained to submit to parents, teachers, bosses, bureaucrats, deities, monarchs, and politicians. Every aspect of life is controlled by authorities who dictate what is and is not acceptable to say, do, be, or have. Even protest must be authorized. For example, labour laws limit when and how workers may strike. Social divisions: Most of humanity are workers with similar problems and needs. To prevent us from uniting for mutual benefit, workers are divided into rival nations, ‘races,’ genders, religions, languages, cultures, ages, abilities, unions, etc.
2. Ideology:
The ideas that dominate society are those that serve the ruling class. Every social institution including the mass media deliver the same lies: There’s nothing wrong with society. All problems are caused by bad choices, bad people, or human nature. Change must be delivered from the top of society and not from the base, from the rescuing hero and not from the masses.These social pressures make the ordinary person feel isolated, powerless, and afraid to step out of line. Seeing no way to fight for ourselves, we fall victim to the savior-ruler. Avoid the Savior-Ruler When freeing ourselves seems impossible, we look for a beneficial authority to replace the harmful one, a good guy to dislodge the bad guy. We embrace the liberal fantasy that putting a Good Person in power will save us, sparing us the trouble of having to save ourselves. Wannabe savior-rulers play on the longing for change. Promising a better life for the common person, they mobilize the masses to propel themselves into power. Once in charge, they continue the policies of their predecessors, leaving disillusioned workers to seek another savior-ruler to ease their burden. A variation of the savior-ruler is the inspired individual who, filled with compassion for the suffering masses, offers to lead the flock to a new and better sheepfold. Those who offer freedom can also take it away. The only freedom we can count on is the freedom we secure for ourselves.Self-emancipation rejects all forms of deliverance from above. It invites workers to use their class power to construct the society they want. Class power is based on class solidarity.
3. Class SolidarityWorking-class solidarity is based on the understanding that an injury to one is an injury to all. It means reaching across social divisions to support ALL workers’ struggles because:
- All workers would benefit from ending a social system that profits off our labor.
- No group of workers benefits from the oppression of any other group of workers, regardless of short-term bribery.
- Only by standing together can workers win our liberation from capitalism.
3. Working-Class Independence
Workers cannot count on bosses, managers, or the capitalist state to meet their needs. Bosses profit by exploiting workers’ labor. They reject all reforms that would limit their power to extract those profits. When workers side with their bosses, as many do in war, they remain servants of capital, working every day to build the dehumanizing prison of waged-labor that entraps them. The middle or manager class benefit from a capitalist system that allows them some social power but not enough to deliver meaningful change. As a result, sections of the middle class will join or even lead social movements — to a point. When pressed to choose between bosses’ interests and workers’ interests, they choose compromise. This is not surprising. A manager class that exists to control the working class cannot imagine workers running society without bosses. Only the working class gain no benefit from capitalism. On the contrary, profit is possible only by robbing workers of what they produce and of the life-energy they exhaust to produce it. Consider these eye-popping profits: In 2018, Facebook made $15 billion in profit in Ireland — the equivalent of about $10 million for each of its employees there. That same year, Bristol Myers Squibb recorded close to $5 billion in profit in the Emerald Isle, or roughly $7.5 million per employee. …