On Orwell

On Orwell

The only people who misunderstand George Orwell’s 1984 are those that go around trying to imagine it has a “leftist” message. It is mistaken to imagine that children in the English-speaking world get his work drilled into them like a mantra because, somehow, genuine socialists managed to sneak his work past a censor that banishes the likes of Karl Marx and Malcolm X.

Austrian crackdown on Palestinian NGOs signals slide into tyranny

Austrian crackdown on Palestinian NGOs signals slide into tyranny

A third explanation seems to relate to the Austrian government’s commitment to US President Donald Trump’s forceful push for the “deal of the century“, which requires the rapid removal of all impediments, including the numerous pro-Palestinian NGOs that operate throughout Europe and the West.

A favoured turn of phrase is that anyone who expresses support for the rights of Palestinians or works to alleviate the suffering of Palestinian refugees, or provides clothing for Palestinian orphans, must be pro-Hamas and subsequently seen as suspect. Besides violating the basic rights and freedoms of citizens, it is also highly dangerous, as it could potentially be exploited by extremists on all sides.

For true stability, the scourge of extremism, all forms of extremism, must be overcome. To misdirect the struggle against the likes of Islamic State and far-right neo-Nazis, which all of society is united behind, to another struggle targeting peaceful elements that hold certain political views or carry out humanitarian and charitable work, is to divide society, and to hand an easy victory to extremists and terrorists.

20 YEARS OF TALKING WITH US PRESIDENTS HAVE BEEN A WASTE OF RUSSIAN BREATH

“HELLO BILL, THANK YOU BILL, GOODBYE BILL” – 20 YEARS OF TALKING WITH US PRESIDENTS HAVE BEEN A WASTE OF RUSSIAN BREATH

The release of the White House records of telephone and face-to-face conversations with Putin from 1999 to 2001 ought to have begun a decade ago, according to the archive notes at the Clinton presidential library. But declassification was delayed until 2019; public release was postponed until last month.

Clinton’s conversations with Yeltsin, and the opinion of Yeltsin which Clinton shared in secret with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, were revealed at the start of 2016. They told each other Yeltsin was an ingratiating fool whom they could rely on to do what they wanted so long as his health held. When it didn’t, they were happy to see him out of the way by staging, as they planned, his succession by Victor Chernomyrdin. That regime-changing scheme failed; read the story in the Clinton-Blair papers here.

Trump legal team shuns Sidney Powell as insiders and national security officials see no evidence supporting her voting machine claims

Trump legal team shuns Sidney Powell as insiders and national security officials see no evidence supporting her voting machine claims

Sources close to the president told the Washington Examiner neither the White House nor the Trump campaign have seen any of the evidence she claims to have related to assertions about voting machines switching millions of votes from President Trump to President-elect Joe Biden. They argued that her claims overshadowed what they see as legitimate concerns about the mail-in ballot process.

Dominion spokesman Michael Steel, who worked for Republicans in the past, rebutted claims on Sunday from Powell that Dominion voting machines were used to flip votes from Trump to Biden. According to Steel, Trump won the counties where their machines were used in Pennsylvania.

“They keep bringing in jurisdictions where we don’t even work. They keep talking about — they’re asking for recounts in Milwaukee, in Dane County, Wisconsin, or in Pennsylvania,” Steel said on Fox News. “In fact, in 14 counties where Dominion machines were used, the president won 52% of the vote.”

German police arrests lockdown critic Dr. Andreas Noack in a shocking video

German police arrests lockdown critic Dr. Andreas Noack in a shocking video

It is pertinent to note here that Dr. Andreas Noack also happened to be violating guidelines imposed by the government regarding coronavirus. What people do not understand here is that he may not be getting arrested just for his opinions regarding the pandemic, but his prior actions that were violative of government policies. It would be better if the police clarify the matter soon.

The danger of a Trump coup is rapidly escalating

The danger of a Trump coup is rapidly escalating

It’s becoming increasingly apparent though, that very serious people are directing the strategy off-screen. Steve Bannon, the confirmed white supremacist and architect of Trump’s nationalistic and xenophobic “America First” policies, appears to be the one laying out the president’s battle plan. And behind Bannon has long stood the big money of those capitalist interests who’ve never had much concern for democracy, especially if it gets in the way of profits.

Within hours of the election ending, on Nov. 5 Bannon declared the outlines of the approach we now see coming to fruition: “Fortune favors boldness… Kick it to the state legislatures, kick it to the House of Representatives…. We win there.”

Related:

ORGANIZING TO PROTECT THE RESULTS OF THE 2020 ELECTION

Neoconservativism In A Nutshell

Neoconservativism In A Nutshell

If I were asked to boil down neoconservatism to its essential elements—that is, those that have remained consistent over the past nearly 50 years—I would cite the following:

* a Manichean view of a world in which good and evil are constantly at war and the United States has an obligation to lead forces for good around the globe.

* a belief in the moral exceptionalism of both the United States and Israel and the absolute moral necessity for the U.S. to defend Israel’s security.

* a conviction that, in order to keep evil at bay, the United States must have—and be willing to exercise—the military power necessary to defeat any and all challengers. There’s a corollary: force is the only language that evil understands.

* the 1930s—with Munich, appeasement, Chamberlain, Churchill—taught us everything we need to know about evil and how to fight it.

* democracy is generally desirable, but it always depends on who wins.