There may be good reason to be suspicious of the present Iranian government and their handling of the recent demonstration, but I’m sensing that what we’re seeing on the nightly TV news and even Twitter, may be somewhat less than relaible reports. The drum beat against the present government appears eerily reminiscent of what we heard prior to the Iraq invasion and other attempts by the Western Powers for “regime change” in diverse countries over the years. The other day I was watching CNN at the health club and they went on and on with images and allegations but little in the way of factual reporting. The showed on Iranian woman who actually referred to president Ahmadinejad as a “dictator,” which is an obvious absurdity. The U.S. has demonstrated over and over again that it is willing to tolerate dictators, and even install them, if they will play along with the agenda.
This article by Eric Margolis provides some relevant facts that are useful to anyone willing to consider the bigger picture of geo-politics. — t.h.g.
In her presentation to members of the New Voice of Business, Hunter Lovins lays out the big picture about the global mega-crisis, making the case for “moving aggressively to solve such challenges as global warming, peak oil, the vulnerability of our energy infrastructure and others. She discussed how climate protection, energy efficiency, renewable energy and other sustainable approaches will give us a stronger economy, and a higher quality of life. Hunter also highlighted how communities and companies are implementing these and many other strategies to cut their costs and drive their innovation.”
While her arguments are largely chosen to appeal to conventional business objectives, she posits the reality of a “sustainability imperative,” and makes a good start in showing how narrow company interests can be, and are being served by moves toward greater resource efficiency and environmental improvement. Highly recommend. View it here.
U.S. Marine Corps Major General Smedley Butler was a true patriot. According to, Wikipedia, he was at the time of his death (1940), the most decorated Marine in U.S. history.
He refused to be corrupted by money and power, or to use his position to overthrow elected government, and he was courageous in waging the battle to expose the true reasons for war. This dramatization of one of his speeches brought me to tears. I urge everyone, especially people in military service, to watch this video.
Here is the introduction to it:
The real speech re-created by an actor
If you know your history, you know that in 1934 there was an attempted coup in the United States that was thwarted largely due to the efforts of U.S. Marine Corps Major General Smedley Butler (ret.) Look it up.
Among other things, Butler was only one of 19 people ever awarded the Medal of Honor twice and the only person to be awarded a Marine Corps Brevet Medal and a Medal of Honor for two different actions.
After it dawned on him how his heroism and the heroism of the troops under his command had been misused, he wrote a book called “War is a Racket” which I can virtually guarantee you never heard about in school.
Butler concluded there are only two reasons to ever take up arms:
1. To defend the country against real – not manufactured – attacks
Paul Craig Roberts served as an Assistant Secretary of the Treasury in the Reagan Administration earning fame as the “Father of Reaganomics,” but don’t hold that against him. I have great respect for his insights and utterings on the present state of democracy in America and in the world. This article from Countercurrents.org is a “must read.”
Here’s Roberts’ bottom line:
“Why is the US making itself impotent fighting wars that have nothing whatsoever to do with its security, wars that are, in fact, threatening its security?
The answer is that the military/security lobby, the financial gangsters, and AIPAC rule. The American people be damned.”
The swine flu was first announced less than a week ago, yet people around the world are in a panic. People with a simple cough or cold are now wondering if they might die. Indonesia just banned all imports of pork, when there is zero evidence that the flu comes from pigs. There are many important facts not being adequately reported in the media.
Thanks to the extensive network of careful researchers of which I’m a part (including most of you), I can recommend two summaries that are very powerful for understanding the deeper aspects of what’s going on. The first is an article I composed, putting together the best, most reliable information on the subject. Check it out at:
As a teaser, the CDC recommends Tamiflu for prevention and treatment of swine flu, as they did with the avian flu several years ago. Yet did you know that at the height of the avian flu scare, researchers reviewed 51 randomized controlled trials of the drug? Tamiflu was found to be useless against the avian flu and many other flus. And did you know that Donald Rumsfeld made $5 million on sales of the drug at the time? And what about Japan’s ban on Tamiflu for teenagers as a result of the 17 teenagers who died as a result of side effects? You can verify all of this at the links to major media sources provided.
Here is an article said to be from the St. Petersburg Times Newspaper on Sunday (I presume March 29). The Business Section asked readers for ideas on “How Would You Fix the Economy?” This response seems to hit the bull’s eye.
Dear Mr. President,
Patriotic retirement: There’s about 40 million people over 50 in the work force; pay them $1 million apiece severance with stipulations:
1) They leave their jobs. Forty million job openings – Unemployment fixed.
2) They buy NEW American cars. Forty million cars ordered – Auto Industry fixed.
3) They either buy a house or pay off their mortgage – Housing Crisis fixed.
what a great idea and I would add to this…..if you do this you can have my social security back -another problem solved. [Item from the Rumor Mill News]
Of course, from the standpoint of the oligarchs, that plan benefits the “wrong” people and solves the “wrong” problems. – t.h.g.
In October 2008 Sergio Lub visited Mondragon, Spain as part of a group organized by Georgia Kelly of Praxis Peace Institute. Sergio’s report and comment posted on the Webofdebt Wiki is well worth reading. – t.h.g.
Scary as things may be with the economy and global politics, it is essential that we not loose our sense of humor. Here is Robin Williams at his funniest and most irreverent. Click below to see the video clip, Robin Williams on Obama’s Election,and a whole lot more here.
This comes to me by way of Steve Moyer. Some excellent suggestions for reducing our dependence on conventional money while at the same time making friends and building community. I might add that there are some very good social networks that enable hospitality and accommodations for travelers. I have positive personal experience with couchsurfing.com. I’ve also joined Hospitality Club, but have not made use of it yet. – t.h.g.
You don’t have to participate in a local currency or service exchange to be part of the cooperative gift economy. Any time you do a favor for a family member, neighbor, colleague, or stranger you’re part of it. Here are some ways you can spend time in the gift economy, where you’ll find fun, freedom, and connection.
1. Start a dinner co-op. Rotate among the homes of friends and neighbors for weekly or monthly potlucks.
2. Help a local farmer with the harvest in exchange for some of the crop.
3. Put up a traveler.
4. Hold twice-yearly sport supply exchanges so kids can acquire new skis and baseball mitts and everyone can try out a new sport.
5. Harvest wild or unwanted fruits and vegetables.
6. Grow your own, and give some of it away.
7. Share seeds and clippings from your garden – especially native and “heritage” species. Hold an annual plant exchange.
8. Organize a “non-consumption booth” at a farmers’ market or street fair. At the Charlottetown Farmers’ Market, the Environmental Chat Corner hosts discussions of environmental issues, sustainable building and landscaping, ecotourism, and community development.
9. Buy food or supplies in bulk and share with friends.
10. Form a home-repair team to fix your own place and others’.
11. Request help of someone usually regarded as needy.
12. Create your own rainy-day fund with your friends. One group pooled $1,000 each, which they lent to any in the group who needed it. The fund helped members survive a lost job, a stolen bicycle, and a broken arm.
13. Make space available to other people to grow food on your land.
14. Borrow garden space from someone who has extra land; give them, or a food bank, some of the produce.
15. Give co-workers neck and shoulder massages.
16. Offer to mentor a young person.
17. Ask a 12-year-old to show you how to get onto the Worldwide Web.
18. Throw a block party.
19. Show up at a soup kitchen and ask for volunteer help.
20. Rent out extra space to people needing a place to sleep, work, or just to get away, or exchange the space for yard work or baby-sitting.
21. Convert a duplex, apartment building, old nursing home, or seminary into a co-housing community.
22. Convert a barn or warehouse into a space for artists and start-up businesses.
23. Create a space for neighbors to keep and share infrequently used tools and extra garden supplies.
24. Start a baby-sitting or child care co-op.
25. Hold a monthly clean-up of a beach, park, roadway, river bank; get coffee houses to donate goodies.
26. Plant trees. Get the city to select and donate them.
27. Find a person on each block who will help neighbors get assistance when needed – from other neighbors when possible.
28. Share a car.
29. Or start a car co-op with various vehicles for different uses. Share expenses based on mileage.
30. Paint donated bicycles and place them in downtown areas with signs indicating they’re for anyone to use.
31. Become a foster parent, a ‘big brother’ or ‘big sister.’ Notice the ways everyone benefits!
32. Exchange lessons, for example, cooking for carpentry.
33. Teach a skill, like carpentry, and ask your students to donate time to others.
34. Adopt a stream or a highway to restore, maintain, and beautify.
35. Work with your neighbors to develop a vision for your neighborhood’s future.
36. Hold talent shows. Give kids lots of recognition, and everyone opportunity to discover their hidden talents.
37. Create your own money. Use ideas from YES! to start a community currency or skills exchange.
Special thanks to Beverly Feldman, Charles Gray, Sandra L. Kettle, Linda Pierce, and Steven Rauchman, for contributions to this section.
