Daily News Digest February 1, 2024
Images of the Day:
Bendib: World’s Most Moral Army
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”
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: Austerity, Scapegoat Blacks, Minorities, and ‘Illegal’ Immigrants for Unemployment, andThe 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!
Quotes of the Day:
As the agreement (Haavara agreement) demanded a minimum payment of a thousand pounds from the emigrant, only members of the Jewish bourgeoisie were able to avail themselves of its advantages, while workers of Jewish origin were left to their fate. 40 Thus in a recent examination of fascist racial policy, the following evaluation of the Haavara agreement can be considered perfectly just: “The solidarity principle that required the Jews in Germany to stand against their persecutors was torn asunder by capitalist interests. Peeunia nanolet. Meanwhile, the measures undertaken by Jewish contractors with the sole aim of bringing capital out of fascist Germany to Palestine were receiving a high degree of consecration. It was claimed that the capital brought over to the Near East was placed at the service of the Jews. In reality however, in Palestine it served the same purpose as it did before in Germany: the profit interests of its owners.* 541 The same book affirms that “the Zionist International wanted the Jewish emigrants from Germany to arrive on Palestinian soil not as have-nots, but as owners of capital that would help in the building of a capitalist state. Out of this desire, grew the Zionist interest to unite themselves with the anti-Semites. ” 4a Indeed, prior to the founding of Israel, the Haavara transfer was a huge booster for the Zionist economy in Palestine. Zionist sources speak of a sum of 139.6 million Reich marks — an enormous sum for that time-being transferred from Germany to Palestine. — Klaus Polkehn, The Secret Contacts – Zionism and Nazi Germany, 1933 – 1941
The Nazis had decided on a general policy of favouring Zionists over non-Zionist Jews, and within that line they decided that open encouragement of the State Zionists rather than suppression of the “Marxists” of the ZVfD would have to be their strategy. On 13 April 1935, the Gestapo notified the regular police that, henceforward, the State Zionists would receive:exceptionally and always revocably, permission to let its members belonging to the “National Youth Herzlia” and “Brith Hashomrim” wear uniforms indoors … because the State Zionists have proven to be the organisation which had tried in any way, even illegally, to bring its members to Palestine, and which, by its sincere activity directed towards emigration, meets half-way the intention of the Reich Government to remove the Jews from Germany. The permission to wear a uniform should spur members of the German-Jewish organisations to join the State Zionist youth groups where they will be more effectively urged to emigrate to Palestine. [4] — Zionism in the Age of the Dictators (Chapter 12)
Adolf Eichmann’s Dealings With the ZionistsBy the end of the 1930s, official circles within the Third Reich were actively supporting Aliyah Bet (Hebrew for Jewish individual immigration), and one of the instigators of this undertaking was Adolf Eichmann, the famous Nazi officer responsible for “mass deportation of Jews to concentration camps during World War II,” who created the Zentralstelle für jüdische Auswanderung (Central Office for Jewish Emigration) in August 1938 with its headquarters in Vienna. The Zentralstelle was the contact point for all Jews who were ready to immigrate and was in fact in charge of all practical and logistical matters including coordination with Mossad emissaries from the Zionist side. The transports on route to Palestine were to travel through the territory of Slovakia, a client state of the Third Reich, and from there onwards along the Danube to the Black Sea, usually on hired barges and vessels of the (German Association of Danube Navigation). The German side helped in obtaining transit visas and travel documents. By February 1939, through the intermediacy of Eichmann and his office, around 100,000 Austrian Jews had emigrated. In early 1939, Eichmann appointed Berthold Storfer, a banker and merchant from a Jewish family of Romanian/Ukrainian origins, and entrusted him to coordinate all matters related to Aliyah Bet in his name. He granted Storfer the power of attorney to cover all matters of Jewish emigration on behalf of the Reich. From then on, Mossad agents and the Zionists had to contact Storfer. On Eichmann’s recommendation, Strofer could reject or change the plans proposed by the organizers of Ha’apala (another Hebrew term for Jewish immigration). The Zionists in Palestine were pleased with the results of their work with the Germans and how it progressed. In a meeting of the Jewish Agency at the end of 1938, David Ben-Gurion said “Without mass Aliyah (yet another Hebrew term for Jewish immigration) Zionism is condemned to failure and we to the loss of this country”. — One of History’s Ugly Pages: Nazi-Zionist Cooperation
Podcast Videos of the Day:
Podcast: Is Communism Against Human Nature? A textbook argument against communism is that, although it may sound nice, it is fundamentally “against human nature”. Many communists will be sick and tired of hearing this accusation, but what actually is ‘human nature’? How should communists respond to this claim?
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!)
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
Far Right Forces Are Attempting to Generate a National Emergency at the Border A crisis is taking shape on the US-Mexico border, but it is not the result of an “invasion” of those seeking asylum.
The Real Border Crisis: Texas vs. the Constitution The United States is on the verge of a constitutional crisis, one that enlivens the nationalist fervor of Trump America and that centers on a violent, racist closed-border policy. In January, the Supreme Court, with a five-vote majority that included both Republican and Democratic appointees, ruled that federal agents can “remove the razor wire that Texas state officials have set up along some sections of the US/Mexico border” to make immigration more dangerous (CBS, 1/23/24). The state’s extreme border policy is not merely immoral as an idea, but has proven to be deadly and torturous in practice (USA Today, 8/3/23; NBC, 1/14/24; Texas Observer, 1/17/24).
U.S. Funded Palestinian Genocide:
Isreal’s Slaughter House 5 —Palestine: Israel’s International War Against the UN Relief and Works Agency Imperilled, tormented Palestinians in Gaza had little time to celebrate the January 26 order of the International Court of Justice. In a case brought by South Africa intended to facilitate a ceasefire and ease the suffering of the Gaza populace, Israel received the unwanted news that it had to, among other obligations, ensure compliance with the UN Genocide Convention, including by its military; prevent and punish “the direct and public incitement to genocide” against the Palestinian populace in Gaza and permit basic services and humanitarian assistance to the Gaza Strip.
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’!
Weekly Average CO2 at Mauna Loa
- Week beginning on January 21, 2024: 422.86 ppm
- Weekly value from 1 year ago: 419.64 ppm
- Weekly value from 10 years ago: 398.05 ppm
- Last updated: January 30, 2024
The Brockovich Report: Undercounted: These Hard-To-See Pieces Of Plastic Are Probably Harming Us. A New Study Finds Hundreds of Thousands of Tiny Plastics In Water Bottles. Plus, The Secrets of Satellite Beach Is A New Docu Coming Soon. Let me preface this story by saying that the choices we make about our drinking water are increasingly complicated. I still believe that if your water is poisoned, finding a new source of drinking water either by leaving the area or drinking bottled water will always be the better option. But plastic water bottles are not without concern. A new study published this month in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reveals that on average a liter-sized plastic water bottle (about 33 ounces) contains about 240,000 detectable plastic fragments. That’s about 10 to 100 times more than previous estimates.And no this research is not sponsored by Stanley, despite the recent craze for these colorful reusable water bottles.
Environmental Racism:
Headline: Study: Black People Are 75 Percent More Likely to Live Near Toxic Oil and Gas Facilities Blue-collar workers and agricultural workers all have higher rates of cancer and other diseases because they receive higher doses of the toxic chemicals at the workplace than the rest of the population. Eventually, these toxins spread to the entire working class as they become part of the environment. An example of this fact is the population living “downwind” from the many oil refineries in Contra Costa County in the San Francisco Bay Area. People living near these refineries have very high rates of cancer. In EPA terms, this is called a “cancer cluster.” The EPA, in its corporate manner, determined that the high rates of cancer was caused by high rates of smoking in the area and not from the refineries’ carcinogenic pollutions! However, under the rules of Proposition 65 in California and after several years of litigation, the Gasoline Refining Industry had to post this warning in the February 24, 1999, issue of the San Francisco Chronicle: Text of Actual WARNING: Chemicals known to the State to cause cancer, birth defects, or other reproductive harm are found in gasoline, crude oil, and many other petroleum products and their vapors, or result from their use. Read and follow label directions and use care when handling or using all petroleum products. Chemicals known to the State to cause cancer, birth defects, or other reproductive harm are found in and around gasoline stations, refineries, chemical plants, and other facilities that produce, handle, transport, store, or sell crude oil and petroleum and chemical products. Other facilities covered by this warning include, for example, oil and gas wells, oil and gas treating plants, petroleum and chemical storage tanks, pipeline systems, marine vessels and barges, tank trucks and tank cars loading and unloading facilities, and refueling facilities. —“Trade Secrets” Cancer and the Environment (What the Bill Moyers Program “Trade Secrets” Revealed)
Report Details “Devastating Harms” to TX Communities From Petrochemical Industry The report also noted the lack of adequate enforcement and oversight from local and state regulators Toxic pollution from the petrochemical industry along the Houston Ship Channel in Texas is causing “devastating harms” to local communities, according to a new report by international human rights advocacy group Amnesty International. The report underscores the climate, environmental, and human rights tolls linked to petrochemical production, adding to the ongoing controversy surrounding the practices of the U.S. fossil fuel industry. Home to the largest petrochemical industrial complex in the U.S., the Houston Ship Channel — a 52-mile waterway that stretches from the Gulf of Mexico to Houston — is encompassed by hundreds of industrial plants that convert oil and gas into chemical building blocks that can be further processed into products such as plastics, fertilizer and pesticides.
Black Liberation/Civil Rights:
Supreme Court Sets March Date for Arguments on Abortion Drug Mifepristone “Restricting access to mifepristone impedes patient autonomy,” a physicians’ group said in defending current standards. The U.S. Supreme Court announced on Monday that it will hear oral arguments about the legality of the approval process for abortion medication this spring. The medication mifepristone was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2000. In April 2023, a conservative federal judge in Texas sided with plaintiffs who said the drug was improperly approved, even though it took several years of scrutiny before it was made available. Those same plaintiffs, citing dubious studies and flawed statistics, then questioned the safety of the drug, despite evidence and several years of prescribing mifepristone demonstrating that it is safe.
The New Jim Crow: Major Brands Like McDonald’s, Kroger and Coca-Cola Linked to Forced Prison Labor “Slavery has not been abolished,” said one formerly imprisoned person who now advocates against forced prison labor. Asprawling new investigation has found that forced prison labor feeds into the supply chains of a wide and dizzying range of food and grocery companies, ranging from small local brands and restaurants to major conglomerates like Tyson, Coca-Cola and Kroger. The two-year Associated Press investigation, published Monday, found that widespread abuse of prison workers has become a multibillion dollar industry due to partnerships between prisons, corporations and lawmakers. While prisoners, often forced to work, make pennies on the dollar or sometimes no money at all while facing physical and mental abuse on the job, states, prisons and companies make tens of millions of dollars of profits.
American Federation of Teachers Joins Call for Gaza Cease-Fire The union’s executive council called for a cease-fire after months of pressure from educators across the United States. The result of “significant” input from rank-and-file members of the American Federation of Teachers from across the United States, the 1.72 million-strong union’s executive council on Tuesday unanimously adopted a resolution calling for a cease-fire in Gaza. The resolution calls for a “negotiated bilateral cease-fire” that would be guaranteed by the international community, including the U.S. and other countries that are supporting Israel’s bombardment of Gaza.
Labor:
Economy:
JPMorgan Chase Has Used the Same Auditor for 58 Years, Despite Giant Frauds at the Bank in the Last Nine Years While many other countries mandate that publicly-traded companies rotate their audit firms after a maximum number of years, there is no such requirement in the United States at the present time. The 10-K (annual report) that JPMorgan Chase filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 21, 2023 carried this statement under the auditor’s name of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC): “We have served as the Firm’s auditor since 1965.”
World:
China and Its Role in the World What is the role of China today? While some on the left have celebrated China’s ambitions as a counterweight to the United States, Jorge Martín explains that capitalism has long been restored in China, and today it has all the features of a rising imperialist power. ‘Multipolarity’ will not benefit the workers of the world, who must trust solely in their own strength to throw off the chains of imperialism.
Education, and Welfare:
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