Daily News Digest October 12, 2023
Images of the Day:
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”, is Still True for Today’s World!
Capitalism as a Failed System: World Capitalism Has Been Aware of the Comming Catastrophe of Global Warming Over 5 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 Four Horsemen of the The Apocalypse, Spreading Racism, War, Famine, Pestilence, and Death. The very future of Humanity Is Now At stake!
During This Economic Crisis, Capitalism’s Three-Point Political Program: 1. Austerity,2. Scapegoat Blacks, Minorities, and ‘Illegal’ Immigrants for Unemployment, and 3. 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!
Due to Years of Austerity, Cuts to Public Health Care, And An Anti-Science and Profiteering President, The United States Now Leads the World In Coronavirus Cases and Deaths in the World!
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!
Qu0te of te Day:
In Israel, no less than in South Africa, minimum justice requires dismantling the apartheid state and replacing it with a democratic secular Palestine, where citizenship and rights are not determined by ethnic criteria. In reality, the supposed supporters of Palestinian human rights who urge acceptance and recognition of the Israeli state are, however disguised, acting as lawyers for the colonial state in Palestine. Their advocacy carries the pseudo-left cover of self-determination for “both” peoples, but this specious employment of the principle of self-determination translates into a covert call for amnesty for Israel. Many so-called realists argue that Palestinian acknowledgment of the “right” of apartheid Israel to exist will hasten the day when a Palestinian state would be permitted by the Zionists to come into being. But this rationalization does not carry much conviction. The Zionists do not depend upon verbal acceptance for their state, but upon armed force. For Palestinians to accept, recognize and thereby legitimize the murderous conquest of their land would merely permit the Zionists to contend that forty years of intransigence on the part of the oppressed are responsible for their suffering. It would sanction the claim that Israel was a legitimate construct from the start. Rather than acting as a bridge toward the establishment of a unitary Palestine, as some in the PLO leadership contend today, the establishment of a “mini-state” on the West Bank – and the recognition of the Zionist state, which is a pre-condition for its creation – would represent a giant obstacle in its path. Recognition of the Israeli state would invalidate retroactively the right of resistance of the oppressed and would provide cover for the Zionist demand that only Palestinians who had capitulated and sanctioned Israel in the past, accepting its legitimacy, have the right to negotiate with Israel. When you dance with the Devil, your speech reveals his breath. What of the Palestinians who live inside the 1967 borders, and what of the Jews themselves? Would apartheid end in South Africa, or the state be transformed by recognizing its right to exist? Would we serve the interests of the people of Paraguay or Chile by accepting the claims to legitimacy of Stroessner or Pinochet, or by providing sanction for the states they have constructed? — The Hidden History of Zionism Chapter 13
Videos of the Day:
Black Agenda Radio September 29, 2023
International Month of Action Against AFRICOM
Canada, Ukraine, and Nazi Connections
Abortion Services Under Attack After 47 Years of the Hyde Amendment
Environment:
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’!
After World War II Rosa Luxenburg Coined the Slogan: ‘S0cialism or Barbaism’! Now the Slogan is Ecoscialism or Ecocide!
Despite the fact that the United Nation’s Tribunal Recommends Worldwide Ban on Hydraulic Fracturing. (2019), the United, United States, ‘Green’ President Biden is Increasing Fracking!:
U.S. Energy Information Administration
Washington Dc 20585
For Immediate Release
August 8, 2023
EIA expects new milestones for U.S. crude oil production amid sustained global petroleum demand and rising prices
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) expects U.S. crude oil production to surpass 12.9 million barrels per day for the first time in late 2023 and to exceed 13 million barrels per day in early 2024. In its August Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO), EIA forecasts U.S. crude oil production to average 12.8 million barrels per day in 2023, which is 200,000 barrels per day more than in its July forecast. EIA expects sustained global demand for petroleum products and Saudi Arabia’s extended voluntary production cuts will contribute to oil prices rising through the year. The Brent crude oil price was near $75 per barrel at the beginning of July and increased throughout the month to surpass $86 per barrel on August 4. EIA forecasts the Brent crude oil price to increase the rest of 2023 and to approach $90 per barrel in late 2023.
Exxon Purchase of Fracking Giant Shows It Is ‘Hellbent on Driving the Thermostat Even Higher’ “This deal shows that Exxon is doubling down on fossil fuels and has no intention of moving towards clean energy,” argued one climate campaigner.
Nearly Half of Flowering Plant Species Face Threat of Extinction “Effectively managing the plants and fungi that form the building blocks of our habitable planet is key to halting wider biodiversity loss and restoring Earth’s ecosystems to full function,” says a scientific report. Global scientists warned Tuesday that 45% of known flowering plant species could be at risk of disappearing, underscoring the need for urgent international action to tackle the planet’s sixth mass extinction—the first driven by human activity. That figure is among the key findings from State of the World’s Plants and Fungi, the fifth annual report from the U.K.’s Royal Botanic Gardens (RBG), Kew about such species amid the intertwined biodiversity crisis and climate emergency. 
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 To Pay! Both Parties Support U.S. Capitalism’s Wars! (The Only War the Democrats Opposed was the Civil War!)
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 today — my own government. MLK, Beyond Vietnam
The Common Thread is US Imperialism There are obviously many differences, political and otherwise between the war in Ukraine and the conflict in Palestine. One thing that is quite similar however, is that both were provoked by ultra-right nationalists in each nation. These elements currently control the government both numerically and politically in Israel, while Ukraine’s right wing nationalists exercise a power seemingly well beyond their acknowledged numbers. It is also this same sector in Israel and Ukraine which benefits the most from the conflicts, at least in the short term. The right’s ongoing provocations—whether one is talking about the violence instigated against the elected government and the left in Kyiv during what’s known in the West as the Maidan uprising or the settler attacks on Palestinians and their homes plus many other instances—created military responses from Moscow and Gaza, respectively. Those responses have not only caused alarm and anger in the West, they have also widened the acceptance of overtly fascist politics and those that champion them among Western populations. Another similarity between Tel Aviv’s war with the Palestinians (currently led by Hamas) and Ukraine’s war with Russia is Washington. To begin with, both Tel Aviv and Kyiv receive billions of dollars in military aid from the United States. The primary reason for this aid is to fortify both regimes against nations and non-state actors Washington considers enemies: the Palestinians and the Russians. Of course, the actual differences between the Palestinian resistance and the Russian military are so great as to make discussion of them almost unnecessary. Russia has a large and well-armed standing army while the Palestinian resistance is at best a highly sophisticated guerrilla army made up of different factions with different politics but devoted to their people’s liberation. The similarities between the two military formations lies in the fact that Washington considers both of them enemies and is willing to support its clients in Kyiv and Tel Aviv in whatever they do to keep them at bay.
Biden Gives Netanyahu the Green Light To Lay Siege With the climate in Israel-Palestine reviving the fears of May 2021, the U.S. should be preventing further massacres, not allowing Israel to take revenge. Dark days are ahead. The unprecedented events of October 7 have forever changed all of our lives — Palestinians and Israelis alike. It is very hard, as I write these lines, to describe the full scope of emotions we’ve been trying to grapple with here. We still don’t fully understand the magnitude of this new war and its future repercussions. One thing is clear though: this is going to be a long and painful one, for both sides. And it is therefore the world’s responsibility to intervene and stop the madness from escalating. NOW. That is precisely why Joe Biden’s predictable comments following the Hamas assault — promising “all appropriate means of support” to Israel and standing by its “right to defend itself and its people, full stop” — are especially alarming, terrifying, and reckless. The President of the United States — an active participant in the oppression of the Palestinian people in Gaza — essentially gave Israel a carte blanche by saying Washington will back Benjamin Netanyahu’s government in every action it decides to take. Surely enough, the United States then announced that it would be sending even more military machinery and artillery for Israel, including more jet fighters. This is a highly irresponsible position for Biden to take in this moment, and one that amounts to his own complicity in further war crimes against Palestinians.
Arongance of the Super Wealthy Flaunting Their wealth! Private Yachts as Long as Football Fields The world’s super rich and their assorted gofers have been checking out of Monte Carlo this past week. The Monaco Yacht Show has just ended. Thinking about sometimes taking in this annual four-day extravaganza, maybe catching sight of a billionaire or two? You’ll have to pay plenty for that privilege. The daily entry fee: $635. But pay that fee and you’ll get to see lots of big boats. Back in the late 20th century, notes yacht broker Henry Smith, any yacht a mere 40 meters long would have been considered “gigantic.” A 40-meter yacht today rates as “midsize.” About two dozen of the “superyachts” currently on shipyard order run over 100 meters, about the full length of a U.S. football field.
Black Liberation/Civile Rights:
The FBI’s Long History of Criminalizing Dissent In their 1999 song “Police State,” the rap duo Dead Prez took a disturbing look at the prison system, poverty, economic exploitation, and domestic surveillance of the Black community. In keeping with Dead Prez’s revolutionary Black socialism, the song opens with a spirited speech describing the state as “a repressive organization” and observing the connection between one’s economic class and his subjection to America’s abusive criminal justice system. The voice delivering the speech belongs to Omali Yeshitela, who helped found the African People’s Socialist Party in 1972, and who remains its Chairman today.
Labor:
Abandoning the Poor Amid So Much Abundance In addition to the 38 million Americans now living in official poverty, there are at least 95 million to 105 million living in a state of chronic economic precariousness, just one pay cut, health crisis, or eviction from economic ruin.
Monthly Number of Part-Time Employees in The United States From September 2021 to September 2023 In September 2023, around 27.11 million people were employed on a part-time basis in the United States. This value is not seasonally adjusted. In line with the definition of the BLS, part-time workers are persons who usually work less than 35 hours per week.
What are the Average Hours Worked Per Week? According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average number of hours worked per week is around 34.6. This estimate is consistent with the national standard for 40 hours per week for full-time employees. The average isn’t exactly 40 hours because the calculation divides the total number of hours employees work by the total number of employees. As a result, the 34.6 hours estimate accounts for people who not only work part time or full time but also those who log overtime. So even though most full-time employees work 40 hours per week, some employers expect higher or lower average hours.
Economy:
World:
‘Hands Off Arundhati Roy!’: Progressive Voices Decry Possible Prosecution of Indian Author “You have no idea what you will unleash is you pursue this political prosecution aimed at silencing your most eloquent critic,” Canadian author Naomi Klein warned Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Progressive writers and advocates around the world on Tuesday rallied behind acclaimed Indian author and activist Arundhati Roy after a top New Delhi official reportedly approved her prosecution for allegedly advocating for the secession of the disputed and brutally occupied Kashmir region during a “provocative” 2010 speech. Indian media reported that Delhi Lt. Gov. V.K. Saxena breathed new life into a 2010 criminal complaint accusing Roy—winner of the 1997 Booker Prize for her debut novel The God of Small Things—of sedition for asserting that Kashmir “has never been an integral part of India.”
When has Isreal not Violated International Law?: Top EU Diplomat Says Israel’s Siege of Gaza Violates International Law E.U. High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell added that collectively punishing Palestinians was “unfair and unproductive” and “against the interest of the peace.”
What Preceded the Killings in Israel and Gaza Was Not “Peace” — It Was Apartheid Israel’s plan to treat Palestinians in Gaza as “human animals” and starve them reflects the conditions of apartheid On Saturday, Hamas launched a surprise attack against Israel, by land, air and sea. While the full death toll is not yet known, it appears at least 900 Israelis have been killed. Israel has since retaliated with relentless bombings, a ground invasion and a full-scale siege of Gaza aimed at preventing all the Palestinians living there from meeting their basic needs for food, water and electricity.
Palestinian Journalists Targeted, Killed Amid Israel’s Onslaught on Gaza Free press advocates have called for the perpetrators of crimes against Palestinian journalists to be held accountable. Israel’s ongoing shelling of the Gaza strip has killed at least six Palestinian journalists over the past few days, press freedom watchdogs say. Israel’s ongoing shelling of the Gaza strip has killed at least six Palestinian journalists over the past few days, press freedom watchdogs say.
Health. Welfare, and Education:
The government of the United States can pass laws in a few days to spend tens of trillions of dollars for war and the bailout of Wall Street and the bankers. Yet, those who, pass universal healthcare for themselves, but cannot spend even one trillion dollars for universal health for those who are ‘governed’! This is what is considered, by the powers to be, a democracy and part of the democratic way. — Roland Sheppard, Let the People Vote on Healthcare
Executive Charity: Major Non-Profit Hospitals Take Advantage of Tax Breaks and Prioritize CEO Pay Over Helping Patients Afford Medical Care Conclusion Non-profit hospitals are given tax-exempt status so they can serve the public good—not price gouge patients in dire need of health care. These hospitals cannot be permitted to continue to hide the availability of financial assistance programs or ignore patients’ eligibility for fundamental care while ruthlessly pursuing collections in favor of their bottom line. The disparities between the paltry amounts these hospitals are spending on charity care and their massive revenues and excessive executive compensation demonstrates that they are failing to live up to their end of the non-profit bargain.