Great article from back then Bill, and things have only gotten worse since. I don't think any of your suggestions could ever be implemented without wholesale decimation of the ranks of the intelligence agencies and a massive defunding of the donor class (a 90% wealth tax at minimum). These things aren't going to happen, but I contend that they are prerequisites for any major shakeup of our current corrupt capitalist system. One thing I would add to your list is that news organizations can't be privately owned by individuals like Jeff Bezos. Let him put out an Amazon newsletter that nobody reads.
Don' just pick on Bezos. All the MSM are owned by corporations that try to manufacture the consent they need to prosper. They all should be forced to stick to truth in reporting and advertising, but then politics and marketing would grind to a shuddering halt.
Obviously Jeff, corporations have no impetus to tell the truth to the public, just the opposite. The current government also has too much to hide to offer honest news, but that is because they have been captured by corporations. I would have the government set up a large trust fund for journalism that can't be touched by anyone. Proceeds from the trust fund would be used to hire reporters who's only mandate was to honestly report the news. You could still have the lying corporate news, but they would have competition, you know, like you supposedly have to keep capitalism honest (yeah, right). And yes, I would have a very massive tax on wealth like during the Eisenhower administration where the top rate was 91%. Rich people were much poorer in comparison back then, and there was at least somewhat less corruption in the government.
What impetus does the American Government have to tell the truth to the public about anything, John? Any?
When's the last War this nation has been involved in when the "truth" about it was told to that public? Back in 1964 regarding an incident in the Tonkin Gulf? Saddam's liberation of Kuwait in 1991? 9/11 in 2001? Saddam's WMDs in 2003? Russia's SMO in Ukraine in 2022? Israel's proxy War with Iran in 2023? Then there was The COVID Event in 2020.
And who is going to be checking Your Government Journalism Trust Fund to ensure that it is "honestly reporting the news"? Another Government agency?
And again: Why stop at a mere 91% tax rate on "the wealthy"? Why not 96% or even 100%? After all, the Government would surely make better use of that money than all those rich bastards, eh?
Apparently, i’m not the only one who sees a Dictatorship in America’s near future. Ralph Nader had this to say yesterday about Trump’s address to Congress on Amy Goodman’s DEMOCRACY NOW! :
GOODMAN: Ralph Nader, respond overall to President Trump’s, well, longest congressional address in modern history.
NADER: Well, it was also a declaration of war against the American people, including Trump voters, in favor of the super-rich and the giant corporations. What Trump did last night was set a record for lies, delusionary fantasies, predictions of future broken promises — a rerun of his first term — boasts about progress that don’t exist. In practice, he has launched a trade war. He has launched an arms race with China and Russia. He has perpetuated and even worsened the genocidal support against the Palestinians. He never mentioned the Palestinians once. And he’s taken Biden’s genocidal policies one step further by demanding the evacuation of Palestinians from Gaza.
But taking it as a whole, Amy, what we’re seeing here defies most of dictionary adjectives. WHAT TRUMP AND MUSK AND VANCE AND THE SUPINE REPUBLICANS ARE DOING ARE INSTALLING AN IMPERIAL, MILITARISTIC DOMESTIC DICTATORSHIP THAT IS GOING TO END UP IN A POLICE STATE.
You can see his appointments are yes people bent on suppression of civil liberties, civil rights. You can see his breakthrough, after over 120 years, of announcing conquest of Panama Canal. He’s basically said, one way or another, he’s going to take Greenland. These are not just imperial controls of countries overseas or overthrowing them; it’s actually seizing land. Now, on the Greenland thing, Greenland is a province of Denmark, which is a member of NATO. He is ready to basically conquer a part of Denmark in violation of Section 5 of NATO, at the same time that he has displayed full-throated support for a hardcore communist dictator, Vladimir Putin, who started out with the Russian version of the CIA under the Soviet Union and now has over 20 years of communist dictatorship, allied, of course, with a number of oligarchs, a kind of kleptocracy. And the Republicans are buying all this in Congress. This is complete reversal of everything that the Republicans stood for against communist dictators.
Ha! Putin is a communist dictator, you are so funny Jeff. Did Putin get elected by a majority of the Russian voters? Does Putin do regime change operations in Canada and Russia like the US did in Ukraine? What is your definition of a dictator Jeff? Would Joe Biden pardoning his son fall in that category? Would Joe Biden blowing up the Nordstream pipeline look like something a dictator might order? Did Joe Biden win the election fair and square, or did the donor class have anything to do with his victory? Does the US have honest elections Jeff? And while you are thinking about it, are corporations dictatorships, or democratic institutions?
Re-read my post, John. i didn't call Putin "a communist dictator"; Ralph Nader did.
So why don't You ask him all Your questions about what and who is a dictator? His website is nader.org .
And given that every War the US has been involved in since the end of World War II was and is Undeclared, does that make Truman, Eisenhower, Johnson, Nixon, Carter, Bush I/Reagan, Clinton, Cheney/Bush II, Obama, Trump I, Biden, and Trump II dictators? If so, what kind: Corporatist/Fascist or something else?
As far as I am aware, with the crucially important exception of the energy sector, modern Russia's economy is a pipsqueak on the global capitalist stage. When's the last time anyone bought something at retail labeled "Made in the Russian Federation" with possible exception of caviar?!? (Iran's caviar happens to also be highly regarded.) By marked contrast, try to find consumer electronics NOT made in China!! But the US Military Beast demands designated THREATS to "justify" spending a trillion dollars a year, and Russia and China continue to have the dubious honor of being in that category. If Trump brings about a thaw in US-Russian relations, I will be forced to applaud that. I believe in giving credit where due, though most of the time events compel me to give "discredit"!!
I don't have any data on my cell phone, only unlimited talk and text within CanaDa.
Last week I called Telus my service provider, to get an estimate how much it would cost to call the US Senate Chaplain to get an email address to add to the email list of the 17 US Senators I contact as the Spirit of my Faith moves me to do from Time to Time, just in case they have questions on the Biblical scriptures in my Messages?
To my surprise, because I have been a loyal customer since the 90s, my provider gave me 120 free minutes a month to call anywhere in the US. I thanked Telus and the God of My Faith.
The problem is, no calls get through to the US Congress. After 13 seconds of silent ringing, every number to the US Capital is disconnected and I tried at least a dozen numbers. Has anyone else frequenting BV, tried calling your Congressional Representative?
Subject: A Call for Truth and Accountability: Stop the Lies, Stop the Genocide:
For Senators having a vestige of Honour remaining,
I write to you not as a politician or a partisan, but as an 81-year-old Canadian who has witnessed decades of global history unfold. The decisions YOU make today will shape the future for generations to come, and the world is watching. You will not have to give accountability of yourself to me, Trump, or your constituents, but to Almighty God.
The message below, which I have shared with influential voices in the media, applies equally to you. As leaders entrusted with the power to shape policy and hold others accountable, you have a moral obligation to confront the glaring contradictions and injustices that are tearing our world apart.
"All of YOU, with your positions of influence and responsibility, must confront a glaring contradiction the U.S. mainstream media has yet to address: While Trump claims his motivation for seeking peace in the U.S.-Ukraine war with Russia is rooted in humanitarian concerns—the horrors of war, the death and destruction in Ukraine, a white European nation—he simultaneously gives Israel the weapons and the green light to unleash Hell on the innocent women and children of Gaza.
This double standard is not just hypocritical; it is morally indefensible.
The U.S. mainstream media has failed to report what Israeli media has already revealed: On October 7, Israel authorized the immoral use of the Hannibal Doctrine, which led to the killing of Israelis by the IDF. This doctrine, once declared by a field officer, required Israeli forces to open fire on enemy forces carrying away any Israeli—even if it meant harming or killing the abductees themselves.
You published the dozens of completely burned cars returning to Gaza with Israeli hostages.
Hamas did not have the capability to cause such destruction. Only U.S.-supplied Apache attack helicopters could have done that. Stop the lies! Stop the Israeli genocide in Gaza—a genocide that could not happen without U.S. complicity and facilitation.
The world is watching, and history will judge not only those who commit these atrocities but also those of you who enable them through silence, misinformation, or outright complicity. As journalists and influencers, you have the power—and the responsibility—to expose the truth, hold power to account, and demand an end to this violence.
Great article from back then Bill, and things have only gotten worse since. I don't think any of your suggestions could ever be implemented without wholesale decimation of the ranks of the intelligence agencies and a massive defunding of the donor class (a 90% wealth tax at minimum). These things aren't going to happen, but I contend that they are prerequisites for any major shakeup of our current corrupt capitalist system. One thing I would add to your list is that news organizations can't be privately owned by individuals like Jeff Bezos. Let him put out an Amazon newsletter that nobody reads.
Don' just pick on Bezos. All the MSM are owned by corporations that try to manufacture the consent they need to prosper. They all should be forced to stick to truth in reporting and advertising, but then politics and marketing would grind to a shuddering halt.
And so who would You have owning news and media organizations. John: the Government?
And why stop at a 90% "wealth tax"? Why not set a maximum amount of income individuals can make in a year, and tax everything above that at 100%?
Obviously Jeff, corporations have no impetus to tell the truth to the public, just the opposite. The current government also has too much to hide to offer honest news, but that is because they have been captured by corporations. I would have the government set up a large trust fund for journalism that can't be touched by anyone. Proceeds from the trust fund would be used to hire reporters who's only mandate was to honestly report the news. You could still have the lying corporate news, but they would have competition, you know, like you supposedly have to keep capitalism honest (yeah, right). And yes, I would have a very massive tax on wealth like during the Eisenhower administration where the top rate was 91%. Rich people were much poorer in comparison back then, and there was at least somewhat less corruption in the government.
What impetus does the American Government have to tell the truth to the public about anything, John? Any?
When's the last War this nation has been involved in when the "truth" about it was told to that public? Back in 1964 regarding an incident in the Tonkin Gulf? Saddam's liberation of Kuwait in 1991? 9/11 in 2001? Saddam's WMDs in 2003? Russia's SMO in Ukraine in 2022? Israel's proxy War with Iran in 2023? Then there was The COVID Event in 2020.
And who is going to be checking Your Government Journalism Trust Fund to ensure that it is "honestly reporting the news"? Another Government agency?
And again: Why stop at a mere 91% tax rate on "the wealthy"? Why not 96% or even 100%? After all, the Government would surely make better use of that money than all those rich bastards, eh?
Apparently, i’m not the only one who sees a Dictatorship in America’s near future. Ralph Nader had this to say yesterday about Trump’s address to Congress on Amy Goodman’s DEMOCRACY NOW! :
GOODMAN: Ralph Nader, respond overall to President Trump’s, well, longest congressional address in modern history.
NADER: Well, it was also a declaration of war against the American people, including Trump voters, in favor of the super-rich and the giant corporations. What Trump did last night was set a record for lies, delusionary fantasies, predictions of future broken promises — a rerun of his first term — boasts about progress that don’t exist. In practice, he has launched a trade war. He has launched an arms race with China and Russia. He has perpetuated and even worsened the genocidal support against the Palestinians. He never mentioned the Palestinians once. And he’s taken Biden’s genocidal policies one step further by demanding the evacuation of Palestinians from Gaza.
But taking it as a whole, Amy, what we’re seeing here defies most of dictionary adjectives. WHAT TRUMP AND MUSK AND VANCE AND THE SUPINE REPUBLICANS ARE DOING ARE INSTALLING AN IMPERIAL, MILITARISTIC DOMESTIC DICTATORSHIP THAT IS GOING TO END UP IN A POLICE STATE.
You can see his appointments are yes people bent on suppression of civil liberties, civil rights. You can see his breakthrough, after over 120 years, of announcing conquest of Panama Canal. He’s basically said, one way or another, he’s going to take Greenland. These are not just imperial controls of countries overseas or overthrowing them; it’s actually seizing land. Now, on the Greenland thing, Greenland is a province of Denmark, which is a member of NATO. He is ready to basically conquer a part of Denmark in violation of Section 5 of NATO, at the same time that he has displayed full-throated support for a hardcore communist dictator, Vladimir Putin, who started out with the Russian version of the CIA under the Soviet Union and now has over 20 years of communist dictatorship, allied, of course, with a number of oligarchs, a kind of kleptocracy. And the Republicans are buying all this in Congress. This is complete reversal of everything that the Republicans stood for against communist dictators.
Continued at https://www.democracynow.org/2025/3/5/ralph_nader_trump_speech_joint_congress ; EMPHASIS added.
Ha! Putin is a communist dictator, you are so funny Jeff. Did Putin get elected by a majority of the Russian voters? Does Putin do regime change operations in Canada and Russia like the US did in Ukraine? What is your definition of a dictator Jeff? Would Joe Biden pardoning his son fall in that category? Would Joe Biden blowing up the Nordstream pipeline look like something a dictator might order? Did Joe Biden win the election fair and square, or did the donor class have anything to do with his victory? Does the US have honest elections Jeff? And while you are thinking about it, are corporations dictatorships, or democratic institutions?
Re-read my post, John. i didn't call Putin "a communist dictator"; Ralph Nader did.
So why don't You ask him all Your questions about what and who is a dictator? His website is nader.org .
And given that every War the US has been involved in since the end of World War II was and is Undeclared, does that make Truman, Eisenhower, Johnson, Nixon, Carter, Bush I/Reagan, Clinton, Cheney/Bush II, Obama, Trump I, Biden, and Trump II dictators? If so, what kind: Corporatist/Fascist or something else?
As far as I am aware, with the crucially important exception of the energy sector, modern Russia's economy is a pipsqueak on the global capitalist stage. When's the last time anyone bought something at retail labeled "Made in the Russian Federation" with possible exception of caviar?!? (Iran's caviar happens to also be highly regarded.) By marked contrast, try to find consumer electronics NOT made in China!! But the US Military Beast demands designated THREATS to "justify" spending a trillion dollars a year, and Russia and China continue to have the dubious honor of being in that category. If Trump brings about a thaw in US-Russian relations, I will be forced to applaud that. I believe in giving credit where due, though most of the time events compel me to give "discredit"!!
I don't have any data on my cell phone, only unlimited talk and text within CanaDa.
Last week I called Telus my service provider, to get an estimate how much it would cost to call the US Senate Chaplain to get an email address to add to the email list of the 17 US Senators I contact as the Spirit of my Faith moves me to do from Time to Time, just in case they have questions on the Biblical scriptures in my Messages?
To my surprise, because I have been a loyal customer since the 90s, my provider gave me 120 free minutes a month to call anywhere in the US. I thanked Telus and the God of My Faith.
The problem is, no calls get through to the US Congress. After 13 seconds of silent ringing, every number to the US Capital is disconnected and I tried at least a dozen numbers. Has anyone else frequenting BV, tried calling your Congressional Representative?
This is the latest email sent this morning;
From: ray032@sympatico.ca
To: Senator_Kennedy@Kennedy.senate.gov; Senator_Merkley@Merkley.senate.gov; senator_ossoff@ossoff.senate.gov; mike@rounds.senate.gov; elizabeth_warren@warren.senate.gov; senator@cotton.senate.gov; correspondence_reply@durbin.senate.gov; info_sanders@sanders.senate.gov; SenatorHawley@hawley.senate.gov; Hirono.outgoing.mail@hirono.senate.gov; Senator@cortezmasto.senate.gov; senator@klobuchar.senate.gov; senator@Gillibrand.senate.gov; Senator@Thune.senate.gov; Senator@Schumer.senate.gov; senator_warner@warner.senate.gov; ChaplainOffice@mail.house.gov
Sent: Thursday, March 6th 2025, 12:31
Subject: A Call for Truth and Accountability: Stop the Lies, Stop the Genocide:
For Senators having a vestige of Honour remaining,
I write to you not as a politician or a partisan, but as an 81-year-old Canadian who has witnessed decades of global history unfold. The decisions YOU make today will shape the future for generations to come, and the world is watching. You will not have to give accountability of yourself to me, Trump, or your constituents, but to Almighty God.
The message below, which I have shared with influential voices in the media, applies equally to you. As leaders entrusted with the power to shape policy and hold others accountable, you have a moral obligation to confront the glaring contradictions and injustices that are tearing our world apart.
@amanpour @FareedZakaria @AriMelber @allinwithchris @AliVelshi @AymanMSNBC @jaketapper
@wolfblitzer @andersoncooper @kaitlincollins @smerconish @AlexandraSSharp @PnPCBC
@davidfrum @aaronjmate @mehdirhasan @richardhaass @tondamacc @BrianJBerletic
"All of YOU, with your positions of influence and responsibility, must confront a glaring contradiction the U.S. mainstream media has yet to address: While Trump claims his motivation for seeking peace in the U.S.-Ukraine war with Russia is rooted in humanitarian concerns—the horrors of war, the death and destruction in Ukraine, a white European nation—he simultaneously gives Israel the weapons and the green light to unleash Hell on the innocent women and children of Gaza.
This double standard is not just hypocritical; it is morally indefensible.
The U.S. mainstream media has failed to report what Israeli media has already revealed: On October 7, Israel authorized the immoral use of the Hannibal Doctrine, which led to the killing of Israelis by the IDF. This doctrine, once declared by a field officer, required Israeli forces to open fire on enemy forces carrying away any Israeli—even if it meant harming or killing the abductees themselves.
You published the dozens of completely burned cars returning to Gaza with Israeli hostages.
(This image is embedded in the email: https://www.jonathan-cook.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/GI5kEHZXAAA4m_v-copy.jpg)
Hamas did not have the capability to cause such destruction. Only U.S.-supplied Apache attack helicopters could have done that. Stop the lies! Stop the Israeli genocide in Gaza—a genocide that could not happen without U.S. complicity and facilitation.
The world is watching, and history will judge not only those who commit these atrocities but also those of you who enable them through silence, misinformation, or outright complicity. As journalists and influencers, you have the power—and the responsibility—to expose the truth, hold power to account, and demand an end to this violence.
The time to act is now."
Ray Joseph Cormier
www.rayjc.com
2001 was the early month of WBush terms. He took over from Clinton who had ju st completed turning Yugoslavia/Serbia into a cluster of small states.
The plan then as now was to do likewise to Russian Federation. W was malleable.
Putin bad because he reversed Yeltsin’s mistakes, and is wildly capable compared to the crop in the U.S. sphere.
The Trump Russia blither is 8 plus years of calumny, to make it treason to question the empire.
Great post! Well said, Colonel.
I don’t think the Kremlin is dictating policy only on Ukraine....
Good luckski.