Selective Memories

Note:  This is not necessarily about the current mash-up in Gaza just a few observations that I have made in my many years.

I would like to reiterate that I am NOT anti-Jew, personally I do not give a shit about their religious beliefs.

This post is more about the selective memories of the American people than it is about the current situation.

WARNING:  This post may include some offensive language that may offend the sensibilities of some readers….so if you are easily offended then maybe this post is not for you.

The date is 04 November 1979….US ally Iran has had months of protests against the policies and tactics of the Shah and on this date Iranian students stormed the walls of the US embassy in Tehran breaching them and taking 52 Americans hostage which were held for 444 days until their release on 20 January 1981…..no causalities just hostages.

Since that fateful day Americans have despised anything remotely Iranian.  (There so much more to that action than just a bunch of pissed off students)

To this day they, Iran, can do nothing right in the eyes of most Americans….for they are evil.

The date is 08 June 1967….during the 6 Day war when Israel was fighting against the combined forces of the Arab nations.

The US signit ship, USS Liberty, was patrolling in the Eastern Mediterranean….when suddenly the ship was attacked by Israeli jets and gunboats….the attack left 34 American sailors dead and 174 wounded.

Yet Americans ignore this murderous attack and support Israel in everything they do….why?

If you are interested, which you are not, I have a post the has articles about this attack….fucking read them and see what our good ally is capable of doing.

https://lobotero.com/2019/06/08/remember-the-uss-liberty/

I to this day do not understand why Americans would rather ignore a barbaric murderous attack like the one Israel pulled on an American flagged unarmed ship.

A case of friendly fire?  NO!  This was no accident the cowards knew what they were attacking.  There is NO excuse for this action or the cover-up to protect an ally….NO excuse!

We recently celebrated Veterans Day with the usual fanfare…all the thanks for your service and all….to me it is all just hollow gestures….for the ignoring the veterans of the USS Liberty diminishes all our vets and the American people are doing just that.

Of course the public can make excuses like ‘we did not know’ but that is a cop-out….they do not want to know….it is important to show support for Israel than to honor fallen veterans who were doing their duty and serving their country in a time of need.

What is it that drives so many Americans to blindly, yes I said blindly, support Israel in all they do?

I know the answer….do you?

Please do not try to excuse this away for there is NO excuse for the men they killed and injured…..none whatsoever.

Again I apologize for the vulgarity of my tone….but this is something I feel strongly about….which if you read any of the reference material can understand my tone.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Crap On So Many Levels

As the ‘war’ rages on in Gaza and the death toll just keeps rising….an Israeli lawmaker has a brilliant idea….Palestinian resettlement…..

Israeli Intelligence Minister Gila Gamliel proposed the “voluntary resettlement” of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip to other countries around the world in an op-ed for The Jerusalem Post published Sunday.

Gamliel said one option for Gaza’s future is to “promote the voluntary resettlement of Palestinians in Gaza, for humanitarian reasons, outside of the Strip.” She called for the “international community” to foot the bill for relocating Palestinians instead of funding the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA).

“Instead of funneling money to rebuild Gaza or to the failed UNRWA, the international community can assist in the costs of resettlement, helping the people of Gaza build new lives in their new host countries,” wrote Gamliel, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud Party.

Gamliel said she proposed a similar solution earlier in the war and noted it was gaining popularity among Israeli lawmakers. “I am gratified to hear that Members of Knesset from across the political spectrum, including both the coalition and opposition, have joined my Ministry’s initiative and declared their support for it,” she said.

a leaked document drafted by Gamliel’s Intelligence Ministry proposed pushing all 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza into Egypt, making clear the Netanyahu government is considering the complete ethnic cleansing of the Strip. But Egypt has refused to take in any Palestinian refugees, making Israeli officials seek other alternatives, such as Gazans being absorbed by the West.

(antiwar.com)

“Voluntary’?  Yep by the barrel of a gun.

International community foot the bill?  Typical of all these slugs they want us to pay for their crimes.

Finally, we see how well this sort of thing works….just look at the Japanese in WW2 and let’s not forget the American Native Americans….that was a success in well being for the NDN population.

Besides is that what they have done to the Palestinians already?  I mean what would you call Gaza and the West Bank….reservations.

Then VP Harris weighed on the possibility or resettlement…..

Vice President Kamala Harris assured Egypt’s president on Saturday that the US won’t permit the redrawing of the Gaza Strip’s borders or the forced relocation of Palestinians. While reiterating US support for Israel’s “legitimate military objectives” in its attack on Gaza, Harris decried the toll there, CNN reports. “Too many innocent Palestinians have been killed,” Harris said at a press conference in Dubai. “Frankly, the scale of civilian suffering, and the images and videos coming from Gaza are devastating. It is truly heartbreaking.”

Harris met with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and other leaders of Arab nations while in the United Arab Emirates for the UN climate conference. She originally wasn’t scheduled to attend the event, and a chance to hold talks about the Israel-Hamas war was a main reason for the trip, per the AP. Harris took advantage of the gathering to also meet with leaders of the United Arab Emirates and Jordan in a speed round of diplomacy. She spoke by phone with the emir of Qatar. The emphasis in her discussions was on Gaza’s future.

In her press conference, Harris referred to the need to plan for what happens when the fighting stops. “There is a mutual desire to figure out how we are going to figure out and approach ‘the day after’ in ways that bring stability and peace to this region,” Harris said. Palestinian Authority security forces “must be strengthened to eventually assume security responsibilities in Gaza,” she said, adding that terrorists cannot be allowed to continue to threaten Israel, per the AP.

Seriously?  You want me to believe that the US would do anything to stop such an action other than talk?

What will we do to stop it?  Maybe refuse to have a bowl of matzo ball soup with the Israeli ambassador.

That would be all we could muster for we are pretty much a limp dick when it comes to Israel.

ROFLMAO!

You want me to believe the our lay-about Congress and executive branch will challenge Israel when hundreds of millions are spent on buying Congress’ loyalty?

Yes you read that right–I wrote hundreds of millions…..let’s look at the next election….

The powerful lobby group American Israel Public Affairs Committee is expected to spend nine figures in a bid to unseat over half a dozen progressive U.S. lawmakers who have been critical of Israeli human rights crimes in Palestine, Slate reported Wednesday.

Slate politics writer Alex Sammon wrote that “close watchers now expect AIPAC to spend at least $100 million in 2024 Democratic primaries, largely trained on eliminating incumbent Squad members from their seats.”

AIPAC Set to Spend $100 Million to Unseat Lawmakers Critical of Israeli Crimes

That is just one election and Israel has been buying loyalty for many decades.

But somewhere I thought there was a law against foreign governments from interfering in our elections…..oh my bad….it is Israel and they always get a free ride.

As always when Israel is involved there is crap on so many levels.

So I have thought, so I have written.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

War Tourism?

Note: I apologize for not posting here but situations and all just kept me focused on my primary blog, IST…..I shall try to do better here from now on.

I recently got an email from a person that served in the 9th Infantry Division, the unit I served with in Vietnam, saying that he and others were putting together a trip to Vietnam and would like it if I would accompany them as well.

My reply was short and sweet….NO!  I visited that country twice ….do not want to do it a third time.

The email got me to thinking about war tourism.

I know many people like to re-enact and visit famous battlefields and such….but why?  Most do not care one whit for history so what makes the ugliness of war so attractive?

I can understand to a point if you are a student in the field of Conflict Management or Political History….but to vacation with war is just stupid at least to me.

Any way there is a big industry in war tourism…Gettysburg, the Alamo, Battle of New Orleans, Normandy, Pearl Harbor, etc. etc., etc…..again….why?

War tourism, despite the contradiction in its name, refers to recreational travel to areas associated with past or current war zones. These destinations encompass active conflict zones, famous battlefields, war memorials, cemeteries, and museums. Sites of darker historical significance, such as prison camps, mass graves, and execution sites, even fall into this category. The motivations behind such travel are multifaceted, with educational and memorial purposes at the forefront.

While it may be challenging to comprehend the appeal of traveling to regions marked by devastation and conflict, war tourism is not new. It can be traced back to the 19th century, during wars like the Napoleonic, American Civil, and Crimean Wars. Early war tourists were observed visiting war-ravaged cities’ battlefields after the fighting had ceased. Onlookers would picnic at a safe distance from skirmishes and take home macabre souvenirs. Their motivations, it seems, ranged from morbid curiosity to a desensitization to death and suffering.

Another common motivation for war tourism is education and preserving collective memory. Students, scholars, and history enthusiasts often embark on tours of former battlefields, museums, and prison camps. Their primary goal is often to gain a deeper understanding of how wars have shaped a region’s history.

https://travelnoire.com/what-is-war-tourism

I do not agree that it is to educate and impart some sort of understanding among participants….like I stated earlier in this post….most could care less about the history behind the battle but rather some perverse sense of awe at the concept of death and destruction.

I visited many war sites but not out of fascination but rather to further my knowledge because in those days I was a grad student in Conflict and political history….did it help my understanding?

Not so much but it did throw some light on the myths that pop up around war.

So no I will not be going back to Vietnam for a ‘visit’…..I do not need healing, I do not want to heal, the war helped make me who I am and I will forever be grateful for that.

Any thoughts on war tourism?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

 

I Am A Peacenik!

Warning:  I will use some colorful and possibly some harsh language in this post….so if you are offended by such then I suggest that you by pass this post and go back to whatever mind numbing pursuit you prefer.

Anyone who thinks that the pursuit of peace is a noble endeavor has been labelled a ‘peacenik’….most times it is used in a derogatory way, as some veiled insult, and most times is equated with being some how unAmerican.

All that is pure crap!

I am a ‘peacenik’…I served my country in war time and after I left the service of my country I decided that I would work, as only I could, for the understanding of war and the pursuit of peace.

Let me reiterate….I AM A PEACENIK goddammit!

That brings me to the semi-intelligent voices that equate a peacenik with the love of Putin over this Ukraine thing….another fallacy and out right fucking lie.

Even the mainstream media is dead set against any talk of peace…..think about that for a moment and try to keep up…these ‘organizations’ are mostly owned by big defense contract holders

I can hate the waste of American taxpayer money and still think that Putin is an arrogant, barbaric toadstool.

Now that I cleared that up (only if the post is actually read) I would like to talk about the media’s propensity to crap on any antiwar sentiment or news.

Below is an article written by William Astore which explains how the media silences any voice that does not conform to the popular line of reasoning.

In the “liberal” New York Times today, I saw an article on “Putin’s forever war” that has the following short synopsis: “Vladimir Putin wants to lead Russians into a civilizational conflict with the West far larger than Ukraine. Will they follow him?”

Is this true?  Does Putin truly seek a “civilizational conflict” with the West?  One that’s “far larger” than the Ukraine war?  It doesn’t seem likely.  Russian forces have struggled in Ukraine.  Already embroiled in a destructive regional war that’s become somewhat of a quagmire, why would Putin seek to widen it?  Is Putin always the aggressor, the bad guy, and the West always the aggrieved party, the good guys, holding back a “red storm rising”?  I thought the West won the Cold War more than 30 years ago.

It’s remarkable how easy it is to get alarmist articles about Russia or China published in the U.S. mainstream media (MSM).  Wars and rumors of war dominate.  The West is always portrayed as the defender of democracy; other countries such as China and Russia are portrayed as threats to civilization and its “rules-based order.”  Strictly speaking, this is simplistic, one-sided, propaganda.

Back in 2017, I wrote about how difficult it is in the MSM to read honest accounts of war.  In the runup to the Iraq War in 2003, critical voices were actively suppressed and punished.  Back then, I focused my article on MSNBC, which like the New York Times is allegedly “liberal.”  At “liberal” newspapers and networks, shouldn’t America expect at least a few critical critiques of war narratives?  The answer here is “no,” as I wrote here:

Jesse Ventura, former governor of Minnesota (1999-2003), was a hot media commodity as the Bush/Cheney administration was preparing for its invasion of Iraq in 2003. Ventura, a U.S. Navy veteran who gained notoriety as a professional wrestler before he entered politics, was both popular and outspoken. MSNBC won the bidding war for his services in 2003, signing him to a lucrative three-year contract to create his own show – until, that is, the network learned he was against the Iraq war. Ventura’s show quickly went away, even as the network paid him for three years to do nothing.

Silencing Voices for Peace

Read the goddamn article….especially if you hate Putin and love what is being done in Ukraine……you are not getting the whole story….just what they want you to kn0ow so you will blindly support the waste of human life and taxpayer money.

But sadly most will have blinders on and will continue to utter hatred and platitudes most mean nothing and illustrate just how fucking stupid people can be.

So yes….I am a goddamn peacenik and fucking proud of it!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

The Constitution And Originalism

College of Political Knowledge

Subject:  US Constitution

There are those that feel the US Constitution should be interpreted as it is written….these people are called “Originalists”…..

But what does that really mean?

Originalism is a theory of the interpretation of legal texts, including the text of the Constitution. Originalists believe that the constitutional text ought to be given the original public meaning that it would have had at the time that it became law. The original meaning of constitutional texts can be discerned from dictionaries, grammar books, and from other legal documents from which the text might be borrowed. It can also be inferred from the background legal events and public debate that gave rise to a constitutional provision. The original meaning of a constitutional text is an objective legal construct like the reasonable man standard in tort law, which judges a person’s actions based on whether an ordinary person would consider them reasonable, given the situation. It exists independently of the subjective “intentions” of those who wrote the text or of the “original expected applications” that the Framers of a constitutional text thought that it would have.

Originalism is the idea that we should interpret the Constitution with its original meaning. But what, exactly, is the Constitution’s “original meaning”?

Some originalists argue it’s the meaning as understood by those who ratified the Constitution in the various state conventions, or the public that elected those ratifiers. Others say it’s the understanding of a reasonable, well-educated reader. Still other scholars claim the Constitution is written in legal language and should be interpreted with its original “legal” meaning. With this approach, for example, the term “ex post facto laws” likely refers only to retroactive criminal laws, and not to all retroactive laws.

I bring all this up because the SCOTUS of today is loaded with so-called ‘originalists’ and that could have a lasting influence over American society for decades.

Does ‘originalism’ have a place in our history?

I think not because the Founders were smarter than to believe that the ideas they put forward would last an eternity…..

But I am not alone…..

Columbia Law Review published one of the most important and topical scholarly articles in recent memory, “Delegation at the Founding.” Its authors, Julian Davis Mortenson and Nicholas Bagley, put forth a sweeping argument: They assert that an ascendant legal theory championed by conservative originalists has no actual basis in history. That theory, called the nondelegation doctrine, holds that the Constitution puts strict limits on Congress’ ability to let the executive branch set rules and regulations. Congress, for instance, could not direct the Environmental Protection Agency to set air quality standards that “protect public health,” and let the agency decide what limits on pollution are necessary to meet that goal. Nondelegation doctrine has enormous consequences for the federal government’s ability to function, since Congress typically sets broad goals and directs agencies to figure out how to achieve them. The theory is supported by a majority of the current Supreme Court; in 2019, Justice Neil Gorsuch signaled his eagerness to apply the doctrine, and at least four other conservative justices have joined his crusade.

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/03/neil-gorsuch-nondelegation-bagley-mortenson.html

What do you think?

Was the Constitution meant to last an eternity or were the Founders just giving us a guideline to follow and never meant to be eternal?

For instance the 2nd amendment…..when written we were using muskets for protection and providing meat for the table…..did the Founders foresee the advancements is firearms or is it up to changes as the weapons change?

Thoughts?

Be Smart!

Learn Stuff!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Tyranny Of The Minority

Or as I like to think…the Fear of the People.

I read a good book….too much info to digest…..about the formation of our government from 1776 to 1780…and after I finished I decided that it could be summed up in a very simple synopsis…..the Founders were scared to death of the people.

The dangerous Tyranny of the Minority…..

Jeffrey Rosen, the CEO of the National Constitution Center and a former legal columnist at the New Republic, thinks America has given in to mob rule. We’ve betrayed the legacy of James Madison, Rosen writes, who “built into the Constitution a series of cooling mechanisms intended to inhibit the formulation of passionate factions, to ensure that reasonable majorities would prevail.”

Rosen’s essay, in the new issue of the Atlantic on the theme of American democracy in crisis, warns that those cooling mechanisms have broken down and Madison’s worst fears are now being realized. Presidents now “communicate directly with voters, and pander to the mob,” while Congress and public debate is inflammatory and polarized. The internet has made Madison’s observation that “the ease of communication in small republics [like ancient Athens and Rome] was precisely what had allowed hastily formed majorities to oppress minorities,” newly, terrifyingly relevant, Rosen laments.

https://www.vox.com/2018/9/12/17850980/democracy-tyranny-minority-mob-rule-james-madison

Our Congress demonstrates how the minority has taken over….

“Right now, the Senate is split evenly in half, but the 50 Democratic senators represent 41.5 million more people than the 50 Republican senators,” reported Mara Liasson. “By 2040, if population trends continue, 70% of Americans will be represented by just 30 senators, and 30% of Americans by 70 senators. That has lots of implications, like for the Senate filibuster, where a party that represents a shrinking minority of voters can block almost all major legislation.”

“But it also has implications for the Supreme Court, says Jesse Wegman, author of Let the People Pick the President,” continued the report. Wegman said: “You have this sort of turbocharged minority rule. You have a counter-majoritarian institution chosen by people who picked by a minority of the citizens. That’s not a sustainable model for a representative democracy.” The upshot is that serious progress on issues that Republicans don’t want serious progress on, like gun violence, is impossible.

Meanwhile, much of the House and state legislatures are still rigged by gerrymandering, said the report.

https://www.rawstory.com/experts-sound-alarm-that-minority-rule-is-throwing-democracy-out-of-whack-something-has-to-give/

The GOP has successfully used the minority status to new levels of depravity…..they now control the Congress and the workings of said body.

The working of this government is a far cry from what was envisioned (or is it?)……

Majority rule, the notion that a constituency with more than half the popular support should be able to decide policy—and should not be dominated by a group that has less than half support—is one of the bedrock principles of representative government. Alexander Hamilton in Federalist 22 said a fundamental maxim of democratic government required “that the sense of the majority should prevail.” Yet the US violates this sacred imperative on a regular basis. The US political system has evolved over the last several decades so that it’s flawed and antiquated institutions continually frustrate that Hamiltonian standard, fostering a dangerous experiment with “minoritarianism.”

https://www.commondreams.org/views/2021/07/16/perils-minority-rule

Sadly I do not see any solution to this growing problem…..short of banning political parties….and we know with all the cash invested in these by corporation and them wealthy donors this will NEVER happen.

Political parties are killing this republic…..and few seem to care……until it is gone and then start questioning what happened…

To that I say looking in the mirror…that is the problem.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Open Letter To The Voters Of Mississippi

What are you thinking?

For decades you have voted for Republican candidates and what has that giving the state after all those years in power?

Let’s look at where the state of Mississippi stands in relation to the country.

Total living standards Mississippi ranks 48th

Health care–ranks 48th

Obesity–1st

Teen Pregnancies–#1

Education–#45

Children living in poverty–20%

Children’s poverty—-28.7%

People living with hunger–15%

Disposable income–$37,834 ranks 50th

Minimum wage at $7.25 per hour which is the lowest possible wage.

Per capita disposable income, also known as disposable personal income (DPI), is the amount of money that a person has available for spending and saving after accounting for income taxes. Disposable income is regarded as a key economic indicator used to gauge the overall state of an economy. Mississippi’s DPI in 2018 was $37,834 which places it 50 out of all 50 US states.

State budget depends on Federal funds for 34.8% of the total which ranks 3rd

Our economic outlook we rank 49th

Our Fiscal stability we are not that good……Mississippi ranks 41 out of 50

The Gross State Product (GSP) does not look promising and has not for the last 5 years…growth rate during that time was 0.8%…..that is less than 1% growth.

Mississippi’s GSP in 2019 reached $104.2bn, with growth of 0.8% over the five years to 2019. Mississippi’s GSP growth ranks 44 out of all 50 US states. GSP is a measurement of a state’s output, or the sum of value added from all industries in the state. It is a common indicator used to track the health of an economy.

Where is that lie of ‘economic development’ we are promised with every election?

So far the only true economic development has been for land speculators, real estate agents and contractors.

Whatever gains anticipated for the year are expected to even out by the start of the new year. The forecast report shows that the number of Mississippi workers on payroll jobs is expected to remain stagnant for the next four years.

(mississippitoday.org)

Sorry for the length but this illustrates what you have got for your vote….very little.

Mississippi to rank at the bottom or near to the bottom of almost every economic sector….and yet the voter continues to believe the lies and vote the purveyors of the lies into office.

Why?

Easy answer…..wedge issues.

The voter is duped by issues like bathrooms and education and other such silliness….none of these moves the people of this state forward.

Please before you vote look around at your neighbors has all the economics of the past actually done anything to make their lives better?

Your vote is sacred….please use if wisely.

Our future does not look bright for the near future…..but you can change all that….your wisely placed vote can make all the difference for your and your family.

Be Smart!

Learn Stuff!

Chuq  (Gulfport)

An Apology

I am truly sorry for my absence but my partner has been battling an aggressive cancer and we have been dealing with the medical stuff from doctors to surgery to recovery…..things are going good and I hope to get back to posting regularly as soon as possible.

Please bear with me and I promise to return soon.

Thanx for your time and your understanding.

Be well

I Apologize

I have been dealing with family health issues and have not much time so I spent it on my primary blog, In Saner Thought, so unfortunately I have been neglecting this blog….for that I apologize.

Things are getting better on the home front and I hopefully will be able to returning to writing op-eds for GSFP…

Please bear with me and I shall return as soon as possible.

Thank you for your time and patience.

Be Well….Be Safe….

“…Equality For All…”

College Of Political Knowledge

Really?

Equality?

Take a good look around you….does anything look like equality to you?

Just what the Hell is meant by the term?

Equality means “the state of being equal.” It’s one of the ideals a democratic society, and so the fight to attain different kinds of equality, like racial equality, gender equality, or equality of opportunity between rich and poor, is often associated with progress toward that ideal of everyone being truly equal.

Now did our wise and noble Founders mean any of this when they used the term ‘equality’?

But what did the Founders mean by ‘equality’?

What the Founding Fathers meant by equality is this: All men share a common human nature. The assertion that all men are created equal means that all persons are the same in some respect; it does not mean that all men are identical, or equally talented, wise, prudent, intelligent, or virtuous; rather, it means that all persons possess the inherent capacity to reason.

https://fee.org/articles/the-founding-fathers-and-equality/

In the early decades of the Republic, equality meant equality before God; liberty meant the liberty to shape one’s own life. The obvious conflict between the Declaration of Independence and the institution of slavery occupied the center of the stage. That conflict was finally resolved by the Civil War. The debate then moved to a different level. Equality came more and more to be interpreted as “equality of opportunity” in the sense that no one should be prevented by arbitrary obstacles from using his capacities to pursue his own objectives. That is still its dominant meaning to most citizens of the United States.

Neither equality before God nor equality of opportunity presented any conflict with liberty to shape one’s own life. Quite the opposite. Equality and liberty were two faces of the same basic value—that every individual should be regarded as an end in himself.

Apparently the word ‘equality’ does not meaning today what it was intended in the 18th century…..

Maybe a better term would be ‘fairness’.

Simply put fairness means equal treatment…..the quality of treating people equally or in a way that is right or reasonable

Fairness is concerned with actions, processes, and consequences, that are morally right honorable, and equitable. In essence, the virtue of fairness establishes moral standards for decisions that affect others.

Look at that definition……

Fairness is sadly absent in the American society……

Return a  moment to our Founders and their understanding of the term they pinned…..

What the Founding Fathers meant by equality is this: All men share a common human nature. The assertion that all men are created equal means that all persons are the same in some respect; it does not mean that all men are identical, or equally talented, wise, prudent, intelligent, or virtuous; rather, it means that all persons possess the inherent capacity to reason.

Reason?

The capacity for reason has left the room….and each passing year it gets further from returning to our political discourse.

What about logic?

That left the room in 1980 when Reagan was elected president.

And as you have seen it has pretty much never returned and probably will not as long as social media drives the debate.

It is a sad state for this country…..and the withering away6 of the republic will and is being televised.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”