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Monday, March 21, 2016

America Cannot Be Great Again

As published at OpEd News, Smirking Chimp, CounterCurrents, Unz Review and Intrepid Report, 3/20/16:






Interviewed by Spiegel in 2005, Lee Kuan Yew observed, “The social contract that led to workers sitting on the boards of companies and everybody being happy rested on this condition: I work hard, I restore Germany's prosperity, and you, the state, you have to look after me. I’m entitled to go to Baden Baden for spa recuperation one month every year. This old system was gone in the blink of an eye when two to three billion people joined the race—one billion in China, one billion in India and over half-a-billion in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union.”

Though American workers never could demand a one-month vacation a year, they enjoyed increasing pays and benefits from the end of WWII to the 80’s. If hard working, even a high school drop out could buy a house, car and send his kids to college. What Yew said applied to all of the West, and its decline can be traced to the entrance of China, in particular, into the commercial fray. Free from the self-imposed shackles of hard-core Communism, China has gutted entire Western industries, since these cannot compete with China’s low waged workforce. Other Asian countries, India, Pakistan and Vietnam, etc, have also forced the shut down of many American factories.

Call it what you will, Globalism, Neo-Liberalism or just plain Capitalism, the open market rewards only those who can offer any product at the lowest price, thus we have this often cited “race to the bottom” in terms of wages. Donald Trump didn’t just outsourced, he in-sourced cheap, immigrant labor. Had he not, his businesses wouldn’t be able to compete.

Having made his billions, Trump is proposing a 45% tariff on Chinese imports, which means a $199 iPod will cost $288.55, and a $90 pair of Nike will be bumped to $130.50. Moving factories back to the US will create jobs yet push prices to the sky. To stay competitive, then, American companies will be forced to pay American workers what their Chinese counterparts make a month, $202.45. That’s the reality of a global market that workers everywhere, from Mexico to Bangladesh, must deal with.

Even with its competitive edge, China is unable to sell as much as before, for its exports have dropped 25.4% year-to-year, as of February. China has announced plans to lay off 1.8 million steel and coal workers, and that’s just the beginning of its own decline.

Our ruling elites know the global economy is keeling, and that’s why they’re preparing for war. When there’s less to go around, only the most vicious will eat. Most Americans don’t realize they’ve been living way beyond their means for decades. With record debts, the US is in fact the poorest country on earth, but this is not evident since we have a global goon squad called the United States military. Keeping nearly the entire world in line, we can demand goods with our fiat money. Even Bernie Sanders knows this, and that’s why he’s basically a support-the-troops and anti-Russia kind of guy.

Sanders’ base are mostly comfortable whites who pretend to be anti-racist while staying as far away from all minorities as possible. They also mock and despise poor whites. While heavily invested in Capitalism, many pretend to be Socialists, while their spoiled children pose as Communists. Sanders' supporters are those who voted for Obama twice without feeling any remorse, for all they care about is appearing to do what’s right.

Though the US can’t win wars, it’s adept at wrecking countries. With unprecedented spying, we also know what’s in every politician’s closet, so any career can be torpedoed at will. This also raises the question of why Trump is still left standing if he’s such a threat to the establishment? The casino business isn’t the cleanest, and just about everyone has his Eliot Spitzer, Bill Clinton or Pee-Wee Herman lapses. If there are no scandals to be dug up, they can be fabricated. Our press is not shy about telling lies.

What we have isn’t democracy but relentless mind control, then phony elections. Just about none of our national “representatives” represent us. With our corporate media, two deeply corrupt parties, “super delegates” and unaccountable voting machines, our elections are basically rigged.

Trump, Sanders and Clinton are simply trotted out to absorb people’s anger and passion. The military banking complex will continue to do what it wants to do. It doesn’t matter if Clinton or Trump is our next President, American living standards will only nosedive further, with only our super corrupt ruling elites thriving. Behind walls monitored by drones and combat vets, they will chuckle as we try to lob Molotov cocktails onto the fringes of their golf courses.

You can’t have a campaign based on measured expectations, so instead of “TOGETHER WE GO DOWN,” “IT WON’T BE SO BAD” and “HOPEFULLY A SOFT LANDING,” we have “MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN,” “A NEW AMERICAN CENTURY,” “REBUILD THE AMERICAN DREAM” and “UNLEASH THE AMERICAN DREAM,” etc.

I’m all for voting if the mechanism isn’t broken. What we have isn’t so much voting as the appearance of voting. As witless citizens cheer, scream and froth at the mouth for or against a clay idol, everything is playing out according to a master script.

As is, our voting is an endorsement of mass murder and financial corruption, which all winning candidates facilitate.

Ironies pile on. A billionaire narcissist infamous for flaunting his wealth, with a fortune made on emptying suckers’ wallets, is posing as a populist. The Donald’s groveling before AIPAC should wake up his witless followers, but it won’t, since they’re so desperate for a messiah. Meanwhile, a “socialist,” i.e. an internationalist, can only win primaries in the whitest states.

Soon, Sanders will drop out and tell his base to support Hillary! People conveniently forget that war mongering Kerry once ran as an anti-war candidate. Obama, too, posed as anti-war and anti-torture. It is beyond sick, this farce.

The election carnival keeps us sniping at each other, instead of seeing who our true enemies are. It also erroneously proves to the world that America is a democracy.

Not long after one idiotic election’s over, it’s time to be mesmerized by another. Though it’s the worst reality TV ever, we keep watching.


Even with competent and honest leadership, our future will be most difficult, but since we’re repeatedly railroaded into “electing” one huckster after another, it sure looks like we’ll be up Hillary Creek without a trump card.




......................................
[I've incorporated my comments to readers into the article. They are the paragraphs in bold. The updated version is at Unz Review.]



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47 comments:

Rudy said...

Well, Linh, that sums up my view in an explicit and detailed way.

Thanks,

Rudy

Linh Dinh said...

Hi Rudy,

The Trump and Sanders freaks will want to tar and feather me, for nothing pisses people off more than we you knock their idols.

The Democratic convention will be in Philly. What a circus that will be. In Cleveland, there will be nightly riots.


Linh

Ian Keenan said...

The price of an iPod or Nikes are based on what consumers will pay, not manufacturing costs. The profit is too high for that. It doesn't cost Nike much more money to make shoes than all the cheapo off-brands, and an iPod costs next to nothing to make. I'm not an opponent of reasonable tariffs that make US manufacturing more viable.

The FBI will probably conclude its investigation of Hillary in May and if the Department of Justice buries it, causing the FBI director to quit, it would let her keep the nomination but hurt her further in the general, where she already has a majority negative approval rating. It's quite likely the DoJ won't bury it and Hillary gets indicted. There's definitely witness immunity, which usually means a grand jury already, 160 FBI investigators on the case, and no shortage of obstruction of justice, misuse of classified information, and inquiry into the Clinton Foundation.

I have addressed your caricature of Sanders supporters. Whatever your intentions, the CIA would appreciate you contributing your skills to their cause.
http://linhdinhphotos.blogspot.com/2016/03/two-homeless-men-on-broad-street-on-3.html

Included among those who aren't the spoiled sort you hold contempt for (many of which are Hillary voters, which you find inconvenient to address) are people in foreign countries who are wondering how futile it is to organize against their US-backed war lords. They tested Obama, many after his Arab World speech, and Obama stabbed them in the back in many ways more effectively than Bush. Despite Sanders' expedient and apparently unwitting foreign policy positions, it's unlikely he would go about this in the same way. This has impact on millions of people's lives and should not be dismissed as caprice of the privileged, as much as I appreciate your holding politicians and their often apathetic and hypocritical supporters accountable.

Ian Keenan said...

What drove the normalization of trade with China was partially the sense of the inevitability of China getting more to US consumers (as you suggest), but I thnk more that US corporations saw a way to bury unions and maximize profits - both manufacturers of products like Nike and retailers like WalMart, which was close to the Clintons. I remember Bill saying 'this is all going to happen anyway,' which relates to your position. On the surface, what prevented 'Permanent Normal' trade relations then was human rights violations. Now the US still propagandizes against the Chinese government, citing legitimate human rights violations, but won't offer any trade restrictions to go with it.

Linh Dinh said...

Sanders is not "unwitting," Ian. I'm surprised at your naivete here. And to say that I'd be a useful tool for the CIA is downright preposterous. I've never seen you lose your cool like this.

Sanders is obviously your idol. Keep worshipping him.

Ian Keenan said...

Linh I'm neither losing my cool nor suggesting you're not stating your own honest opinion. I have read everything Oockburn has written about Sanders over the years, him outsourcing pollution to poor neighborhoods, fighting for Vermont military bases, and didn't come into this election cycle idolizing the guy. Reading up about him makes me respect him more as an activist and an effective across the aisle legislator, and there is much more to recommend his past statements on foreign policy than anyone in the Senate. He was the first to break with the tradition of attending every Netanyahu speech.

The CIA doesn't want Sanders and is wary of Trump, the latter of whom they can say shares their general interests of corporate control. Sanders has faced the lowest media coverage of any candidate with his level of success, and the GOP backlash against Trump, which they can say he earned by inciting white supremacism, is also unprecedented.

Ian Keenan said...

Peter Dale Scott thought Watergate was pinned on Nixon because Nixon was getting too big for his britches and concocting his secret plan to get out of Vietnam. That's the way to look at the CIA and Trump. Trump doesn't owe any political favors and Joe Six Pack can see that. Even many Hispanics vote for him which seems odd. They agencies will do everything they can to stop Sanders.

Linh Dinh said...

Yo Ian,

At this point, it looks like Clinton vs. Trump. I cannot imagine a scenario in which Clinton's legal troubles will prevent her from winning the nomination, but should that happens, it can only mean they want Trump to win. Sanders has no chance.

Linh

Linh Dinh said...

and Trump has the Joe Six Pack crowd...

Ian Keenan said...

"..it can only mean they want Trump to win.."

Just thinking about this and 'they' want Biden, Kasich or, in a fantasy world, Jeb to swoop in and clean this 2016 mess up. They think Hillary doesn't take them seriously enough, plays by her own rules, and is too intent on cash and hubris to reliably front for them. Trump is like them but too independent. Even Cruz doesn't play ball with them on foreign policy enough to their tastes. 'They' alienated the public of all stripes.

Linh Dinh said...

So who do you think will be our next front man in chief?

Ian Keenan said...

If Hillary gets indicted before California, Oregon, Kentucky and New Jersey than Bernie gets delegates out of that, as he needs to improve his numbers with registered Democrats otherwise. It remains to be seen whether the party can be aligned behind a Biden or Warren quickly enough to keep Bernie from picking off Hillary delegates and superdelegates.

The right loves to talk about how straight arrow FBI Director Comey is and the immunity deal previously turned down by the witness suggests there's no circumstantial evidence that they're dragging their feet, unless the convening of the grand jury was delayed. Comey has, however, by my estimate, thirty million dollars or more of stock options in the US' largest defense contractor (Lockheed) and millions more in the largest hedge fund, which may serve to explain unforeseen delays before California votes June 7.

Hillary is the only possible Dem nominee I could see losing to a Republican this year. Kasich is a potentially strong candidate against any Dem tho. if he somehow got nominated. Trump could easily beat Hillary.

Ian Keenan said...

I guess there's also the scenario where DoJ 'reviews' the FBI's indictment case until after June 7 and then Obama tells Hillary's delegates to go for Biden.

LJansen said...

Bernie is in Seattle today. 17,000+ at Key Arena.

But then there is this, from the SEATTLE TIMES: "Like many Sanders supporters, Zukor said the Vermont senator had uniquely energized her about politics. But if it comes down to it, she said she’d have no problem voting for Clinton — especially with the prospect of Donald Trump as the Republican nominee.

“I don’t understand the ‘Bernie or bust’ movement,” she said.

Waiting in line for the rally with his 3-year-old daughter, Zoe, Alex Darrow agreed.

“I will probably end up voting for Hillary, but I like that he’s speaking the truth,” Darrow said. “I appreciate that in a politician.”

http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/bernie-sanders-rallies-thousands-at-seattles-keyarena/

Basically, sounds like they had nothing better to do on a rainy Seattle Sunday than go feel the Bern for an hour. Linda

Mark and Jolee said...

Linh, I think that U.S. and European workers owe much of their high standard of living to the existence of the Soviet Union. The U.S. ruling class worked very hard, especially after WWII, to convince workers that capitalism would take good care of them, that workers didn't need to fight for their fair share of their labor value, in fact, union leaders could consider themselves as the boss's counterparts, 'labor statesmen' they called themselves, thus softening up our unions for the final blow in the 1980s when their paper tiger facade was finally blown away. You provide a good explanation of our electoral system - we get to go to the ballot box every so often to choose between two lousy options, either way, we're screwed.

Unknown said...

Ian: regarding your comment, "They alienated the public of all stripes. In late-1990s, I enjoyed email exchanges with the late-Joseph Sobran, former editor of The National Review. He started as a pupil of the late-William F. Buckley.

As editor, Mr Sobran criticized Israel for hypocritical and inhumane policies toward Palestinians. He was forced off The National Review staff.

Joe Sobran sent me an email which gave an excellent cynical definition of democracy. He said, "it's two wolves and a lamb deciding what's next for dinner." (Note: Sobran could not identify the quote author)

Today, with great wolfish ambition, Hillary and The Donald will address & try to accommodate wolfpack, AIPAC. Wish you well and thank you!

Linh Dinh said...

Hi Linda,

So there you have it. People whose plan B is to vote for Hillary are criminally irresponsible, but of course they also voted for Obama a second time.

Tacoma was where I spent my first year in the US, by the way, and to this day, I'm very fond of Washington state. When I was in Pasco two years ago and saw Seahawks posters in a bar, I felt very at home.


Linh

LJansen said...

Hi, Linh. Ahhhhhhh, that explains why Seattle isn't on your Postcard list. You went to Tacoma. ;)

Come on back up here, sometime. You know, we may be one of the climate refuges, since we have water and all. Ha!

Ian Keenan said...

Chuck you know my 'they' wasn't referring to the Israel lobby but as Sanders was the first to blow off the Netanyahu speech he's the first major candidate in this era to blow off speaking at AIPAC, another issue where he's tapping in to a generational divide.

Unknown said...

Ian:

Slightly confused with your use of "they," I do however understand how Bernie Sanders is reasonably tapping into a "generational divide." That's smart strategy, however, it's a laugher at Goldman Sachs.

With the Vermont Senator having passed over tonight's AIPAC address, I am curious to know what reason(s) he gave to the AIPAC Kings, and how much homage he paid in writing.

The 6-decade long pro-Israel US foreign policy will not be altered by mere statistics on the voters' "generational divide."

As Donald Trump told AIPAC this evening in D.C., the education of wily Palestinian youth must be (!) altered to conform with US-Zionist history and geopolitical goals. O yea, Ian -- like all American crock politicians say, "a good education is key to American prosperity, greatness!" Such bull shit will never end.

So let's try Tel Aviv Head Start programs in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, eh? Come the birth of daughter Ivanka's child, let's celebrate on the (4-Star) Trump Temple Mount, and consequently, sometime during The Donald's two terms, the US could militarily "pivot" to Asia by Caesarean. !

The act of American presidential campaigns & voting is a good way for the dismayed masses & electoral "wannabes" to work off frustration, ambitions, and anger. Then comes the Sunday slate of NFL games and the Thursday "pay per view" for those who could afford such joys. Thanksgiving 2016, "Uh, Bernie Sanders, who is he?"

We are getting fucked by a thoroughbred class elephants and mules, I wish you well, Ian, & good night!

Rudy said...

Hi Chuck,

Although I don’t entirely understand all the details of what you said (e.g. “sometime during The Donald's two terms, the US could militarily "pivot" to Asia by Caesarean.” ), your general tone certainly resonates with me.

With regard to this …

“The 6-decade long pro-Israel US foreign policy will not be altered by mere statistics on the voters' "generational divide."”

… I’d hazard the opinion that the phrase ‘pro-Israel US foreign policy’ could be replaced by ‘US enforced Israeli foreign policy”.

Your paragraph ending with “Thanksgiving 2016, "Uh, Bernie Sanders, who is he?"” is spot on.

My impression is that recently AIPAC has become much more visibly represented in the MSM. Perhaps I’m wrong about that. I haven’t actually (snark) benefited (\snark) from exposure to the MSM for more than 2 decades. But if I’m not wrong, I think our colonial masters have now decided to clarify the fact that they are in charge.

Linh Dinh said...

Hi Rudy,

The Donald's groveling before AIPAC last night should wake up his witless followers, but it won't, since they're so desperate for a messiah.

Linh

Unknown said...

Rudy:

One (with awareness) can intellectually benefit from following the Mainstream Media's (MSM) raw propaganda. It is a solid reverse learning experience!

Also, I believe "our colonial masters" first served notice as to who's really in-charge when the Israelis blasted the U.S.S. Liberty, committed murder of sacred "troops," and emerged unaccountably.

In my small hometown of Taylor, I see several Trump signs appear in the front yards of working (white) middle class people. Knowing two of the families personally, I do not consider such neighbors "witless," but they indeed look for Donald Trump as a messiah. Trusting natures, they're daily tuned in (almost exclusively) to CNN Trump rallies and Rush Limbaugh. Therefore, such citizens have the whole book of New World Order prophecies in their hand!

You'll find the sophisticated MSM propaganda spin-machine is too gross for even Messiah Trump to ignore sometimes, Rudy! Thanks for talking and wish you a good day.

Unknown said...

Also, the best and most appealing MSM propagandists who daily carry deception to their audience probably get paid (annual) salaries < $250,000. So 'ya better listen, Rudy! Citizens & advertisers must cover such salaries.

Given need to do my P.M. school bus run,I had no time to Google search what Wolf Blitzer and Chris Matthews get paid to report bull shit. Above, I likely made gross underestimate. Thank you!

Linh Dinh said...

Yo Chuck,

People who think the Pope or Donald Trump can solve anything are not just witless, they've lost their minds.

Linh

Linh Dinh said...

P.S. In this article, I didn't just explain why Trump cannot cure what's hurting the USA, he's benefitted from the very factor--CHEAP LARBOR--that has brought this country down, so his followers are truly witless. Are you also taken in by this billionaire huckster who's pretenting to be a populist? There is no business more deceiful than the casino business, eh...

Unknown said...

Linh:

Yes, you nailed it again! How do you do it?

O fuck..., looks like I'm taken in by the same people who brought us Vietnam, Nicaragua, Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya! Bless & thank you for conveying all the shady insider information on Trump's background!

A trinity of cheers from the Cuckoo Nest -- you had The Donald Trump pegged from the get go!

As you can tell, (sigh) this is a very unsettling moment in my life as a witless American voter. Uh, do you think Pope Francis knows Donald Trump hired cheap labor, and runs casinos? (Note: He knew about plans for the border wall, and intent to send Mexico the bill!)

Bottoms up, sincerely

Chuck Orloski
Taylor, PA



Linh Dinh said...

Keep the sarcasm coming, Chuck, then go back to watching your Trump rally.

Linh Dinh said...

Hi everybody else,

This is why this country is fucked. We have the witless worshiping clay idols, and it's an endless cycle, because not long after one idiotic election's over, it's time to be mesmerized by another one.


Linh

Unknown said...

Linh: In Moby Dick, Melville named the whale ship's # 1 harpooner, "Queequeg."

Queequeg was a cannibal, and the story's initial narrator, Ishmael, noted how the latter worships clay idols and other mysterious things. As the Moby Dick chase unfolds, readers are mesmerized to learn how ship mates depended upon "witless" Queequeg's skill, character, and friendship when the "chips were down."

My sarcasm failed, Linh, but to start, maybe the harpoon (launched above) can also constructively strike the "All Knowing" & didactic sea monster inside (at least) me?

To "everybody else": Don't smile until you see the whites of the whale eyes!



Linh Dinh said...

Melville never used the word "witless" in Moby Dick, and I wouldn't call Queequeg witless.

Unknown said...

Yes, Linh! Agreed, a deep, long & spiritual work, I don't think Herman Melville ever once (1) used the word "witless" in Moby Dick..., let alone with reference to Queequeg the cannibal harpooner.

For the record, anyone who called Queequeg "witless," I'd call them a stinky Amalekite!

Guten nachten.

Ian Keenan said...

Writers and activists that have opposed voting (like Linh) make for an impressive roster - Destroy the Universe* invoked Rosa Luxemburg in a context that didn't irritate Linh here.

A primary reason why I am for voting: South America has changed its society from an era of military governments and imperialist puppets to autonomous, representative governments that have often performed well in difficult circumstances. Voting rates:
Uruguay 96%, Ecuador 91%, Peru 86%, Bolivia 86%, Venezuela 79%, Argentina 77%, Brazil 77%, USA 58%.

http://qz.com/24186/58-countries-with-better-voter-turnout-than-the-united-states/

There's that documentary Our Brand is Crisis, which after the War Room was made when James Carvell and other US operatives were trying to prop up a 'center-left' corrupt puppet in Bolivia, told from the perspective of Carvell and co (thus it is mediocre). It chronicled the first election of Evo Morales and they act as if the public is crazy to elect him even though it was a landslide. Evo didn't get his term limits extended but the consensus of international businessmen is that he's been a shrewd executive, often criticized by the vital left of Bolivia. Bolivia is the same country that Che Guevara thought he could liberate through armed struggle and that didn't work out, stabbed in the back by Stalinists and in the front by the CIA. These countries have remade their societies by getting poor people with limited reading skills out to vote. Joseph Stiglitz was recently a best seller in Uruguay.

* Anyone who wants to destroy the universe can't lose in a Hillary- Donald matchup.

Linh Dinh said...

Yo Ian,

I'm all for voting if the voting mechanism isn't broken. What we have isn't so much voting as the appearance of voting.

As the witless cheer, scream and froth at the mouth, everything is playing out according to a master script.

Linh

Ian Keenan said...

Yeah we're in a Catch 22 in the US where we have to elect people who will give us paper ballots, revoke Citizens United, get donations out of elections (it would cost the tax payers peanuts to do so), promote better media coverage, and then we get real elections, but the people who do get elected prevent that.

Ian Keenan said...

+ restore the Voting Rights Act

Linh Dinh said...

As is, our voting is an endorsement of mass murder and financial corruption, which all winning candidates facilitate.

The theatrics also erroneously prove to the world that America is a democracy.

Rudy said...

Catch 22...

I think none of that can happen until israel's talons can be removed from the corpse of america.

Linh Dinh said...

The election carnival also serves to keep us sniping at each other, instead of seeing who our true enemies are.

Rudy said...

Precisely.

Linh Dinh said...

Hi Rudy,

Soon, Sanders will drop out and tell his base to support Hillary!

People conveniently forget that war mongering Kerry once ran as an anti-war candidate. Obama, too, posed as anti-war and anti-torture.

It is beyond sick, this farce.

Linh

Rudy said...

"It is beyond sick, this farce."

Well, it was choreographed and is directed by masters of deceit; stage managing and performance participation are left to self-serving sycophants.

Until the cancer is exposed, it will continue to destroy.

Ian Keenan said...

Those who have criticized Bernie for saying he would support the Democratic nominee are right, and his criticisms of Hillary were slow to come then focused in general on her ties to brokerages and then her invoking Kissinger's approval. On foreign policy, I remember hearing Obama in 2008 criticizing the US killing labor leaders in Colombia and thinking 'haven't heard tha in a presidential debate before,' and now Obama is expanding US military bases in Colombia and killing more labor leaders and teachers than before. Kerry tried to be the hero of the antiwar movement coming out of Vietnam, then was criticized for voting against the Persian Gulf War, then voted for the Iraq War, and has fronted for Obama's wars while negotiating the Iran deal and rebutting conservative criticism of it, which recently has come from Hillary. I read that he and Biden were chatting with Ariel Sharon when the PM dropped that the Holy War would go on for another 100 years or so, and supposedly Kerry's jaw dropped like a fry chef being told he had to work a double shift. Biden is a beltway lifer elected to the Senate at 29 that pimped the prison and bankruptcy bills but seems to have mellowed on the efficacy of war enough to oppose the Libyan adventure.

Sanders could turn around and say that because the debates were rigged for Hillary than all bets are off about endorsing her. If he does endorse her, at least one third of his voters won't vote for her, even if Donald is held up as the bogeyman.

Linh has called my positions in this discussion naive and this is where the naivete of the young will be helpful to some degree. The youth vote for Sanders will be coopted, infiltrated, hijacked, and undermined in the coming years by billions of dollars and the people who take them. But every fixer and pol in the Democratic party has to look at where the party appears to be going now when they look at the exit polls. Full disclosure, I went to one Kucinich campaign meeting (worked much more for Nader and the Greens) and realized that that campaign was going nowhere, that it was a way to get gullible people to think they have a voice in the party. But as the cycle of birth and death goes on Bernie has demonstrated that the antiwar vote has a majority in the party under 50 now, and the warmongers don't like that. As I said, the Greens don't have primaries, and their leaders can be corrupted if there's a perceived need to do so.

But yeah, as the German cabaret song Alles Schwindel says "The left betrays, the right dismays".

https://www.facinghistory.org/resource-library/audio/its-all-swindle-alles-schwindel

I remember waiting all those hours in Philly in 2008 to hear Obama speak, just wanting to witness that and not having anything better to do that day. I said then that in the history of Chicago, seeing all those people in the park getting behind this half-black candidate against McCain was notable, even if they were about to be betrayed. I saw high schoolers in Philly standing there for hours with copies of Obama's book in their hands, not knowing what to say to them. As I said I never voted for the guy, but look at all the people he beat that year. Those people are back or variations thereof.

Ian Keenan said...

btw my speculation on why Bernie said he's support Hillary if she's nominated is that he's a lifelong Independent/ Socialist suddenly running as a Democrat, and he wanted to improve his poll numbers among registered Democrats which has continued to be his main problem. He wins the primaries when independent voters can vote, since most independents tell pollsters they think Hillary is a greedy crook who doesn't tell the truth.

As for whether Hillary gets nominated if registered Dems keep voting the same way, whatever chance Obama's Justice department wanted to be remembered for burying the FBI's indictment got smaller when Bill had to say that Obama's administration was an 'awful legacy.' Seriously, if DoJ doesn't indict Hillary before the convention that would be an awful legacy, just ask Jerry Ford who's known for losing to Rockefeller's peanut farmer after he did the partisan thing pardoning Tricky Dick.

Ian Keenan said...

Just went over the AIPAC transcripts: Sanders videotaped a speech and Biden did the 'show up and speak truth' act, blasting settlements. Kasich graciously offered no policy details whatsoever.

Cruz' speech was the most chillingly fascistic. Between Trump and Hillary, which you like better depends on how you score it. They disagree on the Iran deal but Hillary wants to ramp up intelligence sharing and crack down on US peace movements, which Trump didn't mention. At least with Trump, the implementation would be sloppy and universally opposed in the US and abroad.

http://www.policyconference.org/article/Transcripts.asp

Sanders, videotaped but apparently not presented at conference: Freeze settlements, end Gaza blockade, provide water and human rights guarantees for Palestinians, diplomacy with Iran with Obama's 'all options on the table.'

Biden: Defended Iran deal quoting IDF on its behalf, criticized settlement construction and unwillingness to negotiate on both sides.

Kasich: No policy specifics.

Paul Ryan: Opposes Iran deal, welcomes disagreement on the issue.

Hillary: Defended Iran deal. Provide secret "defense" technology to Israel, "Vigorously oppose" UN. "There is much Americans can learn from Israel from cybersecurity to energy security to water security" Would that entail taking water from Canada? "..we have to be united in fighting back against BDS" smearing US campus peace movements. Glenn Greenwald on Twitter: "Can't say it enough: the ability/willingness of progressives to simply ignore all this is breathtaking.. Has even one single Clinton supporter denounced the disgusting speech she gave today?"

Trump: Rip up Iran deal, 'dismantle' Iran, ignore UN. Made up stuff about Iran and Palestine.

Cruz: Rip up Iran deal, lots of Obama administration criticism, no aid to Palestine. "And as president, I will do everything in my power to ensure that anyone who provides financial support to the BDS movement, including schools and universities will lose any access to federal funding. And to the extent that they have engaged in illegal behavior, they will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."

destroytheuniverse said...

greetings from destroytheuniverse, the phrase refers to the moment in the war between the gods and the demons when Kali's rage and bloodlust threatened to destroy reality itself and Shiva threw himself under her feet and died to save it
funny how that Rosa Luxembourg quote 'don't vote it only encourages them' really riles people the writer Starhawk saw me wearing a t-shirt with the phrase last Obama election which inspired her to write a lengthy angry diatribe on her blog now she won't look me in the eyes when our paths cross
"how's that hopey-changey working for you?" Sarah Palin

Ian Keenan said...

D the U, don't know if you've read the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna: "To the ignorant (Kali) is, to be sure, the image of destruction; but he found in Her the benign, all-loving Mother. Her neck is encircled with a garland of heads, and Her waist with a girdle of human arms, and two of Her hands hold weapons of death, and Her eyes dart a glance of fire; but, strangely enough, Ramakrishna felt in Her breath the soothing touch of tender love and saw in Her the Seed of Immortality. She stands on the bosom of Her Consort, Siva; it is because She is the Sakti, the Power, inseparable from the Absolute. She is surrounded by jackals and other unholy creatures, the denizens of the cremation ground. But is not the Ultimate Reality above holiness and unholiness? She appears to be reeling under the spell of wine. But who would create this mad world unless under the influence of a divine drunkenness? She is the highest symbol of all the forces of nature, the synthesis of their antinomies, the Ultimate Divine in the form of woman. She now became to Sri Ramakrishna the only Reality, and the world became an unsubstantial shadow. Into Her worship he poured his soul. Before him She stood as the transparent portal to the shrine of Ineffable Reality."