I was 8 when Allen Dulles arranged the assassination of JFK, and I am still waiting for justice (if there is any such thing in America) to be served. Even Jeffrey Sachs and Ray McGovern are now openly noting this ultimate infamy in American history, and I am hoping that more people who were on the inside during or just after the coup will start to speak up. America is never going to be a functioning democracy as long as the deep state coup regime remains in power and continues the forever wars that they sustain their power through. I just hope that more open discussions of America's true history start to percolate through the country.
'Like Israel, Hamas Isn’t Offering Palestinians a ‘Day After’ – Just More War and Suffering'
Armed struggle has failed to stop the ongoing theft of Palestinian land. The destruction and death wrought by Israel in the Gaza Strip calls for a different kind of struggle – one that takes into account its people's right to live
In Israel, the slogan "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free" is perceived as a call for the eradication of the Jewish state. As is the way of slogans, it doesn't specify what will happen to Jews in the newly freed Palestine.
If we asked every protester in the United States and Europe what they mean when they shout these words, we'd probably get a variety of answers, ranging from "the Jews should return to their countries of origin" to "a secular and democratic Palestinian state will be established (under the leadership of the Islamic Movement?), where people of all three faiths live in equality."
One thing that is certain is that the shock from seeing the carnage and destruction wreaked by Israel in Gaza has led many young people around the world to view Israel as a settler-colonial entity, and thus an illegitimate one. They see Hamas' attacks on October 7 – its targeting of the military, for sure, but also the massacre of civilians – as part of any people's legitimate struggle against a colonialist entity.
A vast chasm lies between those who see October 7 as the starting point or as evidence of Palestinians' innate murderous tendencies and those who are aware and understand that the main explanation for what happened lies in Israel's occupation and oppression.................................................................
Long before Hamas came into being, Netanyahu's Likud Party Platform in 1977 was, “between the Sea and the Jordan there will only be Israeli sovereignty.”
It's evident Netanyahu's Old Testament Jewish Religious Establishment government since January 2023 is implementing that 1977 Platform in Gaza and the Illegally OCCUPIED West Bank TODAY.
I rejoice in the rarity of rich political criminals getting punished, whilst acknowledging that fairness is directly the result of unfair selection. It would be nice if Biden and a bunch of MIC CEO's shared a cell with him, but I have to take what I can get. And I say that hoping Trump will win the election, because it is only through chaos (and not us good substackers) that America may receive a wake-up call that could benefit us who live elsewhere in the world.
“WELP, 250 YEARS WASN'T A BAD RUN,” SAYS GEORGE WASHINGTON LOOKING ON FROM HEAVEN
HEAVEN, June 3,2024 Watching as the last vestige of the nation he helped found crumbled, George Washington sighed and remarked that America still had gone on a pretty solid two-hundred-fifty year run.
"Not bad, gentlemen," said Washington to a few other Founding Fathers. "It's sad to see it end, but we had a pretty epic couple of centuries there."
As the United States breathed its last, Washington opined on what he and the other Fathers could have done differently.
"Maybe we should have added a few more instructions, like, ‘No, seriously, you can't infringe on the Bill of Rights, you jackwagons," said Washington. "Perhaps a few notes on the absolute need to teach Judeo-Christian morality, not allowing anti-Christian cultists to have power, or the President needing a few functioning neurons. Oh, well. Hindsight and all that."
At publishing time, Washington had reportedly consoled himself by remembering that he wouldn't have to spend eternity with the people who'd destroyed his nation.
“Trump’s Army” has been called back to duty and is re-activating to help “Make America Great Again AGAIN” [like it was when Trump was POTUS Maxximmuss XLV]... :
THE PROUD BOYS ARE BACK: HOW THE FAR-RIGHT GROUP IS REBUILDING TO RALLY BEHIND TRUMP by Aram Roston / Reuters 3 Jun 24
*** The Proud Boys say recruitment is growing and they’re ready to serve again as Donald Trump's unofficial protection force. ***
Note: This story contains offensive language
A dark SUV cruised past former President Donald Trump’s supporters near his Bedminster golf club in New Jersey on a windy April afternoon. Billowing from the vehicle were three flags: one for the Trump campaign, two others with the initials “PB” – the insignia of the far-right Proud Boys movement.
Through the open windows, three Proud Boys flashed the “OK” sign with their hands, a gesture often associated with white supremacy and the far right. Trump’s fans cheered. Four men dressed in the signature black-and-yellow shirts of the Proud Boys spilled out of the SUV and began glad-handing the crowd like homecoming heroes.
The Proud Boys are back. Four years after the failed effort to overturn Trump’s 2020 electoral defeat, the violent all-male extremist group that led the storming of Congress on Jan. 6, 2021, is rebuilding and regaining strength as Trump campaigns to return to the White House, according to interviews with eight Proud Boys, two U.S. law enforcement officials and four experts who track the group’s online activity.
Since the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, four former Proud Boys leaders have been convicted in federal court of seditious conspiracy, each sentenced to 15 or more years in prison. At least another 70 members were charged with participating in the violence. But that crackdown hasn’t stopped the Proud Boys.
Some Proud Boys say they are preparing to emerge once again as a physical force for Trump, drawn to his hardline nationalism and convinced their leaders will be pardoned if he wins. Trump himself promises to pardon convicted Jan. 6 rioters if he’s elected.
AFTER LAST THURSDAY’S HISTORIC GUILTY VERDICT AGAINST TRUMP, AN OHIO PROUD BOYS CHAPTER VOWED “WAR” AND POSTED A VIDEO OF PROUD BOY STREET BRAWLS THAT ENDED WITH THE MESSAGE, “FIGHTING SOLVES EVERYTHING.” A MIAMI CHAPTER SAID, “NOW, MORE THAN EVER, WE ARE RECRUITING!” SOME POSTED IMAGES OF THE UPSIDE-DOWN AMERICAN FLAG SYMBOLIZING THE “STOP THE STEAL” MOVEMENT THAT FALSELY CLAIMS TRUMP WON THE 2020 ELECTION. ONE PROUD BOY TOLD REUTERS THAT AMERICA IS IN A PERIOD OF “CALM BEFORE THE STORM.”
Praise whoever that I can’t vote as a resident alien. So, I can observe from the sidelines and toss my political coin in the air. I will smile and say to myself what I said so many times before: two sides of the same coin. I thought (hoped) in 1972 that my assessment of US presidential elections might be wrong. George McGovern’s election defeat and all elections since then confirmed my initial opinion of U.S. democracy. This is the country that for ages argued for an implementation of a kind of American democracy in other countries. Quite ironic.
There's really nothing "ironic" at all about the kind of "American democracy" the US has inflicted on much of the rest of the Planet since the end of World War II, Karl.
That so-called "democracy" was, is, and ever will be ~ in stark brutal Fact ~ client dictatorships that the US installed in Asia, Central and South America, Africa, and the Middle East.
"Democracies" that did ~ and do ~ nothing but the bidding of American national and global goals, aspirations, interests, and intentions in the name of, first, "victory" in Cold War I, and then second, the facilitation and preservation of America's global, unipolar hegemony after CW I ended with the disintegration of the USSR, the Warsaw Pact, and European Communism.
Well, a sense of ironic satire keeps me balanced. Several decades ago I bought a book by FDR’s assistant undersecretary of state Sumner Wells from 1944. In it he laid down the guidelines of how the U.S. government would teach the Germans democracy. I found it quite “ironic” since he claimed the Germans had no understanding of the meaning of democracy although the late imperial German constitution was far more democratic than that of Britain or the U.S. He furthermore showed his ignorance when he wrote that Germany had not made any worthwhile contribution to the world in about two hundred years. So, I like to use the mild word ironic in the context of discussing U.S. politics.
Ahhh. Got it on and appreciate how You are using "ironic." Altho i still find the term "criminal" more appropriate when it comes to describing American foreign policy for quite some time now [like since the end of World war II].
In any event and if i may: Let me ask a question i've been meaning to relative to the current teaching of German history, but had been put on the backburner:
How does Germany explain to itself and its Citizens ~ particularly its Students and ultimately, Teachers of History at all levels How and Why Hitler and National Socialism was able to happen in Germany?
My first guess is that a major force was the Reparations inflicted by the Treaty of Versailles and the Hyperinflation it spawned.
And my second guess is that there was money coming into Germany from those in other Nation-States and existing Empires who needed a good reason to have another War like the recent one, and thus another "Enemy."
i guess my question is: How could a Nation, Civil Society, and Culture that gave the World [just for starters] the likes of Einstein, Beethoven, Luther, Bach, Goethe, Kant, Schopenhauer, Gutenberg, Mozart, and Nietzsche, have also given it a Hitler and his Gang?
The current German establishment which means those who know next to nothing - those born in the fifties and after. - have been brainwashed by western elites. There is no balanced history being taught. The victories have been writing the history and the “professionals” teach it to protect their careers. I believe, if my information is correct, that the entire political class has been indoctrinated by US think tanks or by special programs at various US universities. Hitler happened because the Anglo-American financial and political elite supported the NAZIS since the 1920s. Senator Truman stated in June of 1942 “if the Germans win, we will support the Russians. Should the Russians win, we will support the Germans. Let them destroy each other.” The quote is actually in the NYT of June 1941. I am currently reading a German extensive publication that is extremely well documented that details how the Nazi catastrophe was choreographed in Washington and London. The last free and democratic election in late 1932 resulted in Hitler getting about 36% of the vote and yet became chancellor late January 1933! That was during the height of the depression. The people that gave the world those geniuses you referenced did NOT elect Hitler. Unfortunately, the younger German generation is completely ignorant. Not surprising when the economics minister of Germany doesn’t know what bankruptcy means and the foreign minister makes a public statement saying “if Putin would turn around 360 degrees he would look in the opposite direction.” The book I referred to I couldn’t order to my American address!!! I had a German friend buy it and send it to me. Evidently, it is censored for American audiences. An excellent alternative is THE DEATH OF DEMOCRACY - Hitler’s Rise too Power and the Downfall of the Weimar Republic by Benjamin Carter Hett, 2018. I hope this will clear up some of the issues you raised.
Hi Karl: Thank You for recommending Benjamin Hett's THE DEATH OF DEMOCRACY. i just Kindled it and, after a quick pre-read/scan, regard is as an excellent follow-up to the book i had mentioned on the same subject: Antony Sutton's WALL STREET AND THE RISE OF HITLER: The Astonishing True Story of the American Financiers Who Bankrolled the Nazis, published in 1976.
Another very challenging, thought-provoking, and disturbing treatment of the same phenomenon beyond just Hitler, the Nazis, and Wall Street is to be found in Murry Rothbard's WALL STREET, BANKS, AND AMERICAN FOREIGN POLICY, originally published in 1984.
And Thank You for sharing that comment by Germany's Foreign Minister about Putin changing his perspective by 360 degrees. That sounds almost like something an American President ~ current or most recent ~ would say.
All this assumes, of course, that there will actually BE an election in November, 2024; let alone the inauguration of a new President and seating of a new Congress in January, 2025.
So have You considered what would it take to cancel Election2024?
* Another 9/11?
* Another Pandemic? Especially one that kills young and healthy people like the last one killed old and sick people?
* Direct, open War with China [or a real and not Proxy War with Russia where Americans and not just Ukrainians are being killed and maimed]?
* A record-busting Atlantic Hurricane Season that wipes out major swaths Florida, the Gulf Coast, and/or the New York City to Washington, DC corridor?
* Something else?
In the 155 days from today to Election Day 2024, LOTS can happen. Especially if it benefits America's Ruling Political Class.
All certainly possible - and some of those events frighteningly so.
Another possibility...to maintain the legitimacy of the owners, the hold the election, but do everything to keep Trump out of the White House. From sentencing him to jail next month, to the election games, to use of the 14th amendment, and then there are the darker possibilities.
A nuclear war might stop it, Jeff, but I suppose such a war would stop nearly everything.
I think the election goes; whether it will be "free and fair" remains to be seen. If Biden loses, it'll be blamed on Putin, Jill Stein, Susan Sarandon, spoiled progressives, and Bracing Views. If Trump loses, all bets are off as Trump will claim yet another "stolen" election.
So maybe the big surprise will come after the election not before it. Then again, perhaps they'll be an "October surprise." Melania divorces Trump? Biden falls and he can't get up, leading to Kamala serving as regent? :-)
i'm curious, Bill: When would You say that America last had a national election that was "free and fair"?
Whether it turns out that Biden "loses" and Trump "wins," or that Trump "loses" and Biden "wins," in either case, America and the entire Planet will LOSE.
And the likelihood that America will survive to celebrate its 250th birthday on July 4, 2026 ~ 761 days from today ~ will have diminished considerately from what they already are today.
And no doubt about some "October Surprise." Which will probably come on the heels of some "September Surprise," preceded by "August and July Surprises."
Who knows? Actually. 2016, the surprise Trump win, was fair. Hillary ran a stupid campaign, even for her.
2020, though perhaps not "stolen" from Trump, featured the infamous suppression of the Hunter Biden laptop story that probably tipped the election to Joe.
No election in the U.S. is truly "free" in the sense of widespread influence-peddling, money raising, dealmaking, all the usual sordid acts of "democracy." And it's only gotten worse with dark money, Super PACs, etc.
MSG, who said life was free or fair? You learned better than that in the Army!
re Election2016: As i have noted before, one got the distinct impression during that whole deal that The Hillary was a patsy to ensure that The Donald got elected.
And as regards what tipped Election2020 to Biden, remember and never, ever forget Papa Joe Stalin's timeless truth and admonition that "It's not who votes that counts, but who counts the votes. And who determines who gets to do that counting."
And i didn't say that "life was free and fair," Colonel. And i have never said that since i indeed learned it first hand in the Army; especially during those two years in Vietnam.
Is that certain Poster one who reminds me of a Tough Sergeant Sgt. Barnes in a great Vietnam movie, and a even greater Actor Tom Berenger in his best Role "I am reality " Take the pain, take the pain"
Interesting sounds more akin to "Cavitation" than implosions like what can happen to our Centrifugal Pumps in the fire service from trying to change the Laws of Physics-- can't be done! w/o disintegration of the Impellers on the pump. Wish I knew what Century this will happen in if not the 21st. I need to get my daughter's Tarot Cards, or read my Tea Leaves, maybe look into my broken mirror image for clues. Do Crystal Balls work? On the lighter side here only. Taking the Summer off. Although Carl would not be happy if I started consulting the Oracle. Carls one of his 20 Books concerns debunking pseudosciences!
Did the Spanish, Portuguese, French, British, Belgian, Dutch, Ottoman, Austro-Hungarian, Nazi Germany, Czarist and then Communist Russian EMPIRES "survive to see another day"?
That being the case: What makes You think that this Empire will survive any better than any of its predecessors?
Well, Jeff, empires rise and fall, but people remain. The Roman Empire is gone, but Italy remains. The Spanish Empire is gone, but Spain remains. And so on.
The U.S. imperial project is in need of serious retrenchment. Barring that, I think we'll see a hollowing out of the U.S. over the next few decades, accompanied possibly by fragmentation. But the people will abide ...
You may find yourself living in the People's Republic of Alaska. Fueled by oil drilling profits, perhaps?
There is a fine ~ often indistinguishable ~ line between Pessimism and Realism, Bill.
My guess is that You dealt with that at various times during Your career in the Air Force. Particularly when You were not serving as an Educator, but were involved in Operations and Planning.
Et "le Réaliste," c'est moi. [Pour ce que ça vaut... .]
Please don't attempt to assert that all this Bullshit is the work of just the Democrats.
They have had a LOT of help from the Republicans; starting with when Trump occupied The Offal Office and ever since.
And given the fact that all of this ultimately goes back to 9/11, Republican involvement in all of it has been perpetual; even and especially when Obama sat on the throne.
Neither individual is desirable as President: one is a senile fading political hack; the other is a boorish mercurial narcissist.
Both are equally loathsome in their support of Israel. Neither will improve the economic fortunes for the citizenry. Both appear to have the same views on China and Taiwan. But perhaps, and only based on his first term, Trump might be better on Ukraine and war with Russia.
Given their ages, neither might survive a second term. That means Kamala Harris or (a player to be named later for the Republicans).
Kamala Harris as President is frightening, but she would be controlled by the same forces actually in charge now (meaning Obama and his minions). It's the Republican VP pick that may be a bigger threat given the chaos and conflicts within the Republican Party. Of the names mentioned so far, the most terrifying is Nikki Haley - who autographs bombs used to kill children.
Five months is an eternity in politics before the election, but I think the DNC will prop up their staggering incumbent boy so he'll make another term for better or worse as we'll all lose I'm afraid. I could be wrong, but I doubt it... Bread & Circuses be damned. History is such a matter of causes and motivations so I think it will happen in a close race. Biden will be a "Figurehead" leader in his second term not unlike Reagan was in his due to his incipient Alzheimers diagnosis...
Petty compared to the genocide in both Gaza and Kiev. Both wars provoked and funded by the empire. Both avoidable. Biden is reckless Trump fascist as##ole.
i've already told You, Bill, that if You were running for POTUS-XLVII, that You would get my vote. But also that i don't think Your Wife would even consider letting You throw Your hat into the ring.
I was 8 when Allen Dulles arranged the assassination of JFK, and I am still waiting for justice (if there is any such thing in America) to be served. Even Jeffrey Sachs and Ray McGovern are now openly noting this ultimate infamy in American history, and I am hoping that more people who were on the inside during or just after the coup will start to speak up. America is never going to be a functioning democracy as long as the deep state coup regime remains in power and continues the forever wars that they sustain their power through. I just hope that more open discussions of America's true history start to percolate through the country.
'Like Israel, Hamas Isn’t Offering Palestinians a ‘Day After’ – Just More War and Suffering'
Armed struggle has failed to stop the ongoing theft of Palestinian land. The destruction and death wrought by Israel in the Gaza Strip calls for a different kind of struggle – one that takes into account its people's right to live
In Israel, the slogan "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free" is perceived as a call for the eradication of the Jewish state. As is the way of slogans, it doesn't specify what will happen to Jews in the newly freed Palestine.
If we asked every protester in the United States and Europe what they mean when they shout these words, we'd probably get a variety of answers, ranging from "the Jews should return to their countries of origin" to "a secular and democratic Palestinian state will be established (under the leadership of the Islamic Movement?), where people of all three faiths live in equality."
One thing that is certain is that the shock from seeing the carnage and destruction wreaked by Israel in Gaza has led many young people around the world to view Israel as a settler-colonial entity, and thus an illegitimate one. They see Hamas' attacks on October 7 – its targeting of the military, for sure, but also the massacre of civilians – as part of any people's legitimate struggle against a colonialist entity.
A vast chasm lies between those who see October 7 as the starting point or as evidence of Palestinians' innate murderous tendencies and those who are aware and understand that the main explanation for what happened lies in Israel's occupation and oppression.................................................................
https://portside.org/2024-06-03/israel-hamas-isnt-offering-palestinians-day-after-just-more-war-and-suffering
Long before Hamas came into being, Netanyahu's Likud Party Platform in 1977 was, “between the Sea and the Jordan there will only be Israeli sovereignty.”
It's evident Netanyahu's Old Testament Jewish Religious Establishment government since January 2023 is implementing that 1977 Platform in Gaza and the Illegally OCCUPIED West Bank TODAY.
I rejoice in the rarity of rich political criminals getting punished, whilst acknowledging that fairness is directly the result of unfair selection. It would be nice if Biden and a bunch of MIC CEO's shared a cell with him, but I have to take what I can get. And I say that hoping Trump will win the election, because it is only through chaos (and not us good substackers) that America may receive a wake-up call that could benefit us who live elsewhere in the world.
“WELP, 250 YEARS WASN'T A BAD RUN,” SAYS GEORGE WASHINGTON LOOKING ON FROM HEAVEN
HEAVEN, June 3,2024 Watching as the last vestige of the nation he helped found crumbled, George Washington sighed and remarked that America still had gone on a pretty solid two-hundred-fifty year run.
"Not bad, gentlemen," said Washington to a few other Founding Fathers. "It's sad to see it end, but we had a pretty epic couple of centuries there."
As the United States breathed its last, Washington opined on what he and the other Fathers could have done differently.
"Maybe we should have added a few more instructions, like, ‘No, seriously, you can't infringe on the Bill of Rights, you jackwagons," said Washington. "Perhaps a few notes on the absolute need to teach Judeo-Christian morality, not allowing anti-Christian cultists to have power, or the President needing a few functioning neurons. Oh, well. Hindsight and all that."
At publishing time, Washington had reportedly consoled himself by remembering that he wouldn't have to spend eternity with the people who'd destroyed his nation.
Source: https://babylonbee.com/news/welp-250-years-wasnt-a-bad-run-says-george-washington-looking-on-from-heaven .
“Trump’s Army” has been called back to duty and is re-activating to help “Make America Great Again AGAIN” [like it was when Trump was POTUS Maxximmuss XLV]... :
THE PROUD BOYS ARE BACK: HOW THE FAR-RIGHT GROUP IS REBUILDING TO RALLY BEHIND TRUMP by Aram Roston / Reuters 3 Jun 24
*** The Proud Boys say recruitment is growing and they’re ready to serve again as Donald Trump's unofficial protection force. ***
Note: This story contains offensive language
A dark SUV cruised past former President Donald Trump’s supporters near his Bedminster golf club in New Jersey on a windy April afternoon. Billowing from the vehicle were three flags: one for the Trump campaign, two others with the initials “PB” – the insignia of the far-right Proud Boys movement.
Through the open windows, three Proud Boys flashed the “OK” sign with their hands, a gesture often associated with white supremacy and the far right. Trump’s fans cheered. Four men dressed in the signature black-and-yellow shirts of the Proud Boys spilled out of the SUV and began glad-handing the crowd like homecoming heroes.
The Proud Boys are back. Four years after the failed effort to overturn Trump’s 2020 electoral defeat, the violent all-male extremist group that led the storming of Congress on Jan. 6, 2021, is rebuilding and regaining strength as Trump campaigns to return to the White House, according to interviews with eight Proud Boys, two U.S. law enforcement officials and four experts who track the group’s online activity.
Since the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, four former Proud Boys leaders have been convicted in federal court of seditious conspiracy, each sentenced to 15 or more years in prison. At least another 70 members were charged with participating in the violence. But that crackdown hasn’t stopped the Proud Boys.
Some Proud Boys say they are preparing to emerge once again as a physical force for Trump, drawn to his hardline nationalism and convinced their leaders will be pardoned if he wins. Trump himself promises to pardon convicted Jan. 6 rioters if he’s elected.
AFTER LAST THURSDAY’S HISTORIC GUILTY VERDICT AGAINST TRUMP, AN OHIO PROUD BOYS CHAPTER VOWED “WAR” AND POSTED A VIDEO OF PROUD BOY STREET BRAWLS THAT ENDED WITH THE MESSAGE, “FIGHTING SOLVES EVERYTHING.” A MIAMI CHAPTER SAID, “NOW, MORE THAN EVER, WE ARE RECRUITING!” SOME POSTED IMAGES OF THE UPSIDE-DOWN AMERICAN FLAG SYMBOLIZING THE “STOP THE STEAL” MOVEMENT THAT FALSELY CLAIMS TRUMP WON THE 2020 ELECTION. ONE PROUD BOY TOLD REUTERS THAT AMERICA IS IN A PERIOD OF “CALM BEFORE THE STORM.”
Continued at https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-election-proudboys/ ; EMPHASIS added.
Exactly how was the crime Clinton convicted of the same as the crime Trump was convicted of?
Your great Mr Nixon is a little vague on that. Even after reading the transcript.
Jeff, your subsequent comment was a cheap shot so I removed it.
Roger. Thank You for the private email explanation, Bill.
Praise whoever that I can’t vote as a resident alien. So, I can observe from the sidelines and toss my political coin in the air. I will smile and say to myself what I said so many times before: two sides of the same coin. I thought (hoped) in 1972 that my assessment of US presidential elections might be wrong. George McGovern’s election defeat and all elections since then confirmed my initial opinion of U.S. democracy. This is the country that for ages argued for an implementation of a kind of American democracy in other countries. Quite ironic.
There's really nothing "ironic" at all about the kind of "American democracy" the US has inflicted on much of the rest of the Planet since the end of World War II, Karl.
That so-called "democracy" was, is, and ever will be ~ in stark brutal Fact ~ client dictatorships that the US installed in Asia, Central and South America, Africa, and the Middle East.
"Democracies" that did ~ and do ~ nothing but the bidding of American national and global goals, aspirations, interests, and intentions in the name of, first, "victory" in Cold War I, and then second, the facilitation and preservation of America's global, unipolar hegemony after CW I ended with the disintegration of the USSR, the Warsaw Pact, and European Communism.
Well, a sense of ironic satire keeps me balanced. Several decades ago I bought a book by FDR’s assistant undersecretary of state Sumner Wells from 1944. In it he laid down the guidelines of how the U.S. government would teach the Germans democracy. I found it quite “ironic” since he claimed the Germans had no understanding of the meaning of democracy although the late imperial German constitution was far more democratic than that of Britain or the U.S. He furthermore showed his ignorance when he wrote that Germany had not made any worthwhile contribution to the world in about two hundred years. So, I like to use the mild word ironic in the context of discussing U.S. politics.
Ahhh. Got it on and appreciate how You are using "ironic." Altho i still find the term "criminal" more appropriate when it comes to describing American foreign policy for quite some time now [like since the end of World war II].
In any event and if i may: Let me ask a question i've been meaning to relative to the current teaching of German history, but had been put on the backburner:
How does Germany explain to itself and its Citizens ~ particularly its Students and ultimately, Teachers of History at all levels How and Why Hitler and National Socialism was able to happen in Germany?
My first guess is that a major force was the Reparations inflicted by the Treaty of Versailles and the Hyperinflation it spawned.
And my second guess is that there was money coming into Germany from those in other Nation-States and existing Empires who needed a good reason to have another War like the recent one, and thus another "Enemy."
i guess my question is: How could a Nation, Civil Society, and Culture that gave the World [just for starters] the likes of Einstein, Beethoven, Luther, Bach, Goethe, Kant, Schopenhauer, Gutenberg, Mozart, and Nietzsche, have also given it a Hitler and his Gang?
The current German establishment which means those who know next to nothing - those born in the fifties and after. - have been brainwashed by western elites. There is no balanced history being taught. The victories have been writing the history and the “professionals” teach it to protect their careers. I believe, if my information is correct, that the entire political class has been indoctrinated by US think tanks or by special programs at various US universities. Hitler happened because the Anglo-American financial and political elite supported the NAZIS since the 1920s. Senator Truman stated in June of 1942 “if the Germans win, we will support the Russians. Should the Russians win, we will support the Germans. Let them destroy each other.” The quote is actually in the NYT of June 1941. I am currently reading a German extensive publication that is extremely well documented that details how the Nazi catastrophe was choreographed in Washington and London. The last free and democratic election in late 1932 resulted in Hitler getting about 36% of the vote and yet became chancellor late January 1933! That was during the height of the depression. The people that gave the world those geniuses you referenced did NOT elect Hitler. Unfortunately, the younger German generation is completely ignorant. Not surprising when the economics minister of Germany doesn’t know what bankruptcy means and the foreign minister makes a public statement saying “if Putin would turn around 360 degrees he would look in the opposite direction.” The book I referred to I couldn’t order to my American address!!! I had a German friend buy it and send it to me. Evidently, it is censored for American audiences. An excellent alternative is THE DEATH OF DEMOCRACY - Hitler’s Rise too Power and the Downfall of the Weimar Republic by Benjamin Carter Hett, 2018. I hope this will clear up some of the issues you raised.
Hi Karl: Thank You for recommending Benjamin Hett's THE DEATH OF DEMOCRACY. i just Kindled it and, after a quick pre-read/scan, regard is as an excellent follow-up to the book i had mentioned on the same subject: Antony Sutton's WALL STREET AND THE RISE OF HITLER: The Astonishing True Story of the American Financiers Who Bankrolled the Nazis, published in 1976.
Another very challenging, thought-provoking, and disturbing treatment of the same phenomenon beyond just Hitler, the Nazis, and Wall Street is to be found in Murry Rothbard's WALL STREET, BANKS, AND AMERICAN FOREIGN POLICY, originally published in 1984.
And Thank You for sharing that comment by Germany's Foreign Minister about Putin changing his perspective by 360 degrees. That sounds almost like something an American President ~ current or most recent ~ would say.
ADVOCATES FOR SELF-GOVERNMENT offers what it calls “The World’s Smallest Political Quiz” at https://www.theadvocates.org/quiz/ .
It asks whether You agree or disagree with the following statements:
1. Personal Issues:
Government should not censor speech, press, media or internet.
Military service should be voluntary. There should be no draft.
There should be no laws regarding sex between consenting adults.
Repeal laws prohibiting adult possession and use of drugs.
Government should not target, detain, and deport undocumented workers.
2. Economic Issues:
Taxpayers should not be responsible for student loan debt.
Government should not be responsible for providing healthcare.
Let people control their own retirement; privatize Social Security.
Replace government welfare with private charity.
Cut taxes and government spending by 50% or more.
3. Political Issues:
Government should not regulate misinformation and hate speech.
Government should not compel people to get vaccines.
Government should not spy on American citizens without a warrant.
Loosen restrictions on immigration.
Reduce barriers to international free trade.
Restore the free market to healthcare.
Let parents control where and how their children are educated.
A balanced budget is more important than borrowing for social programs.
4. Which statement most closely aligns with your view on Government?
We need to drastically reduce the government, because it does more harm than good.
We need the government to level the playing field to lift up the marginalized.
We need a pragmatic, compromising, and balanced government that benefits the most people.
We need the government to provide law and order to protect and benefit citizens.
A strong government is necessary to protect people, promote unity, and prevent chaos.
Government should not regulate misinformation and hate speech.
All this assumes, of course, that there will actually BE an election in November, 2024; let alone the inauguration of a new President and seating of a new Congress in January, 2025.
So have You considered what would it take to cancel Election2024?
* Another 9/11?
* Another Pandemic? Especially one that kills young and healthy people like the last one killed old and sick people?
* Direct, open War with China [or a real and not Proxy War with Russia where Americans and not just Ukrainians are being killed and maimed]?
* A record-busting Atlantic Hurricane Season that wipes out major swaths Florida, the Gulf Coast, and/or the New York City to Washington, DC corridor?
* Something else?
In the 155 days from today to Election Day 2024, LOTS can happen. Especially if it benefits America's Ruling Political Class.
All certainly possible - and some of those events frighteningly so.
Another possibility...to maintain the legitimacy of the owners, the hold the election, but do everything to keep Trump out of the White House. From sentencing him to jail next month, to the election games, to use of the 14th amendment, and then there are the darker possibilities.
A nuclear war might stop it, Jeff, but I suppose such a war would stop nearly everything.
I think the election goes; whether it will be "free and fair" remains to be seen. If Biden loses, it'll be blamed on Putin, Jill Stein, Susan Sarandon, spoiled progressives, and Bracing Views. If Trump loses, all bets are off as Trump will claim yet another "stolen" election.
So maybe the big surprise will come after the election not before it. Then again, perhaps they'll be an "October surprise." Melania divorces Trump? Biden falls and he can't get up, leading to Kamala serving as regent? :-)
But they'll hold back news of the fall so that Kamala has time to save Ukraine in Switzerland.
i'm curious, Bill: When would You say that America last had a national election that was "free and fair"?
Whether it turns out that Biden "loses" and Trump "wins," or that Trump "loses" and Biden "wins," in either case, America and the entire Planet will LOSE.
And the likelihood that America will survive to celebrate its 250th birthday on July 4, 2026 ~ 761 days from today ~ will have diminished considerately from what they already are today.
And no doubt about some "October Surprise." Which will probably come on the heels of some "September Surprise," preceded by "August and July Surprises."
And here we are in June.
As Cypher informed Nero: "Buckle your seatbelt, Dorothy... ." [ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZvuPeVmuxbU ]
Who knows? Actually. 2016, the surprise Trump win, was fair. Hillary ran a stupid campaign, even for her.
2020, though perhaps not "stolen" from Trump, featured the infamous suppression of the Hunter Biden laptop story that probably tipped the election to Joe.
No election in the U.S. is truly "free" in the sense of widespread influence-peddling, money raising, dealmaking, all the usual sordid acts of "democracy." And it's only gotten worse with dark money, Super PACs, etc.
MSG, who said life was free or fair? You learned better than that in the Army!
re Election2016: As i have noted before, one got the distinct impression during that whole deal that The Hillary was a patsy to ensure that The Donald got elected.
And as regards what tipped Election2020 to Biden, remember and never, ever forget Papa Joe Stalin's timeless truth and admonition that "It's not who votes that counts, but who counts the votes. And who determines who gets to do that counting."
And i didn't say that "life was free and fair," Colonel. And i have never said that since i indeed learned it first hand in the Army; especially during those two years in Vietnam.
Is that certain Poster one who reminds me of a Tough Sergeant Sgt. Barnes in a great Vietnam movie, and a even greater Actor Tom Berenger in his best Role "I am reality " Take the pain, take the pain"
And my expectation is that the US will not "implode," whatever that actually means.
My expectation is that the US with continue its fragmentation up to the point of and then beyond disintegration.
Interesting sounds more akin to "Cavitation" than implosions like what can happen to our Centrifugal Pumps in the fire service from trying to change the Laws of Physics-- can't be done! w/o disintegration of the Impellers on the pump. Wish I knew what Century this will happen in if not the 21st. I need to get my daughter's Tarot Cards, or read my Tea Leaves, maybe look into my broken mirror image for clues. Do Crystal Balls work? On the lighter side here only. Taking the Summer off. Although Carl would not be happy if I started consulting the Oracle. Carls one of his 20 Books concerns debunking pseudosciences!
Did Rome survive to see another day?
Did the Spanish, Portuguese, French, British, Belgian, Dutch, Ottoman, Austro-Hungarian, Nazi Germany, Czarist and then Communist Russian EMPIRES "survive to see another day"?
That being the case: What makes You think that this Empire will survive any better than any of its predecessors?
Well, Jeff, empires rise and fall, but people remain. The Roman Empire is gone, but Italy remains. The Spanish Empire is gone, but Spain remains. And so on.
The U.S. imperial project is in need of serious retrenchment. Barring that, I think we'll see a hollowing out of the U.S. over the next few decades, accompanied possibly by fragmentation. But the people will abide ...
You may find yourself living in the People's Republic of Alaska. Fueled by oil drilling profits, perhaps?
Doomsday, c'est Jeff.
Sorry, for some reason I'm in a French mood.
There is a fine ~ often indistinguishable ~ line between Pessimism and Realism, Bill.
My guess is that You dealt with that at various times during Your career in the Air Force. Particularly when You were not serving as an Educator, but were involved in Operations and Planning.
Et "le Réaliste," c'est moi. [Pour ce que ça vaut... .]
Lie, cheat, and steal. Banana Republic USA, courtesy of the "Democratic" party. Oh, and endless war, too. What's not to like? (sarc)
Please don't attempt to assert that all this Bullshit is the work of just the Democrats.
They have had a LOT of help from the Republicans; starting with when Trump occupied The Offal Office and ever since.
And given the fact that all of this ultimately goes back to 9/11, Republican involvement in all of it has been perpetual; even and especially when Obama sat on the throne.
Neither individual is desirable as President: one is a senile fading political hack; the other is a boorish mercurial narcissist.
Both are equally loathsome in their support of Israel. Neither will improve the economic fortunes for the citizenry. Both appear to have the same views on China and Taiwan. But perhaps, and only based on his first term, Trump might be better on Ukraine and war with Russia.
Given their ages, neither might survive a second term. That means Kamala Harris or (a player to be named later for the Republicans).
Kamala Harris as President is frightening, but she would be controlled by the same forces actually in charge now (meaning Obama and his minions). It's the Republican VP pick that may be a bigger threat given the chaos and conflicts within the Republican Party. Of the names mentioned so far, the most terrifying is Nikki Haley - who autographs bombs used to kill children.
Imagine being so desperate to court Trump and MAGA that you write "Finish them!" on bombs used to kill women and children ... what a monster.
The term that came to my mind was "Whore."
She gives whores a bad name.
Heh. Roger That.
Five more months? Biden's escalation ladder in Ukraine makes me wonder if anyone is going to be around next week! Seriously.
And don't forget the planned, programmed, and in-process/progress War with China.
Five months is an eternity in politics before the election, but I think the DNC will prop up their staggering incumbent boy so he'll make another term for better or worse as we'll all lose I'm afraid. I could be wrong, but I doubt it... Bread & Circuses be damned. History is such a matter of causes and motivations so I think it will happen in a close race. Biden will be a "Figurehead" leader in his second term not unlike Reagan was in his due to his incipient Alzheimers diagnosis...
And an eternity for us, the long-suffering voters!
Think of it as a Journey and you're a Long Distance Voyager, or V'ger! And you are looking for your creator...lol Fellow Trekker! :/ :o)
Desolation!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHfIftAK5Hs
Petty compared to the genocide in both Gaza and Kiev. Both wars provoked and funded by the empire. Both avoidable. Biden is reckless Trump fascist as##ole.
Fascism
"an authoritarian and nationalistic right-wing system of government and social organization."
Imho trump fits into this suit like a glove on OJ Simpson.
Also during his administration he proved a serial killer like all past presidents. Seems you emphasized that in your diffenition.
I am voting against genocide and Biden’ s scams
So does that mean You're going to vote for Trump?
As if he'd end the Genocide, and won't have his own set of scams to jam down America's and the World's throats?
If You have been paying attention, Dennis, You would know exactly Who i am going to vote for.
And tell me: What sort of "scams" could NONE OF THESE CANDIDATES jam down anybody's throats? Got any ideas on that?
C'est moi.
i've already told You, Bill, that if You were running for POTUS-XLVII, that You would get my vote. But also that i don't think Your Wife would even consider letting You throw Your hat into the ring.