Saturday, December 2: After the "Ceasefire"
I'll never grow accustomed to the carnage, I hope you won't either
The day after the brief “ceasefire” ended marked a new phase in the genocidal plans of the apartheid state against Gaza. It’s now a more calculated and routinized phase in which, unlike the first iteration, airstrikes are deployed methodically to efficiently exterminate Gaza's population and “achieve victory”. And all the US can think to do is provide endless financial and military support and encouragement.
Just look at these images side by side, showing the recent congressional vigil held for Israeli lives lost and the vigil for both Israeli and Palestinian lives lost. Look at the difference between the two photos. Don’t lie to yourself for a second and pretend this is an evenly-balanced and overly complex conflict. What we’re witnessing is a massacre of innocent human life, day after day, week after week, and now month after month.
Laborers in this country and around the world are doing what elected officials are refusing to do. The UAW (United Auto Workers), one of the US’s largest labor unions, came out this week in support of a ceasefire in Gaza. The UAW is now the largest union to have called for a ceasefire, representing 400,000 workers in the US and more than 580,000 retired workers. The union has taken similar stances in the past, mobilizing its resources against apartheid in South Africa and standing against the US-backed Contras war in Central America in the 80’s.
A protester in Atlanta is in critical condition after attempting to self-immolate yesterday outside the Israeli consulate. The protester was allegedly draped in a Palestinian flag, so it stands to reason they weren’t setting themself on fire out of an impassioned defense of the apartheid state. The various forms of protest have come and gone without any lasting change. If there’s an example of a struggle for liberation where pretty much every conceivable avenue other than armed struggle has been exhausted it’s the Palestinian cause. I wish this wasn’t the case, but I also really wish Palestine wasn’t being actively genocided with the backing and funding of the most powerful nation on the planet.
I really don’t think we can just keep consuming and working endlessly through a climate collapse and through a pandemic and now through a genocide. At some point it probably makes sense to stop and look around and maybe recognize that things are headed in a bad direction. This is what imperial decline looks like. The question is, what will replace it?
Side Items
Scamtos Begone! I guess now we know what a homosexual Batman villain would look like in Congress. The house of representatives voted yesterday to expel everyone’s favorite scam artist, New York representative George Santos, making him just the sixth lawmaker – and first republican – to be booted from the house in US history. It was only a matter of time before the lies started unraveling, but I must say I enjoyed watching the tragic downfall. Now it’s a countdown to Santos either dropping his tell-all book or pivoting to something like competitive dog-breeding full time
Brutal Justice: Former pig Derek Chauvin was shanked 22 times in prison last month by a former gang leader. John Turscak was charged with attempted murder after his Nov. 24 attack on Chauvin at the federal correctional institution in Tucson, AZ. Turscak told officers that he would’ve killed Chauvin if they hadn’t responded so quickly. I can appreciate the man’s honesty if not his aim and commitment to getting the job done
Trump on Trial: Turns out the former president and enthusiast of ketchup-drizzled steak isn’t immune from prosecution in his ongoing election interference case in our nation’s capital. The decision by a federal judge derails efforts by Trump and his team to dismiss the case charging him with plotting to overturn the 2020 presidential election. He may stand trial, but I’m still doubtful that these cases result in any meaningful consequences for Teflon Don