Thursday, February 1: Symbolic Victories
How do we measure progress in a country insistent on funding genocide?
Yesterday Chicago became the largest city in the US to pass a ceasefire resolution, and all it took was four months of inaction on their part, watching the endless indiscriminate bombardment by an apartheid state on the besieged people of Gaza. It turns out the death of more than 26,000 people and the displacement of almost 2 million people was the limit for Chicago’s brave and moral political leaders.
It took weeks of protests, numerous City Hall sit-ins, and hours of debating, only for the final vote to be split 23-23 and STILL require a tie-breaking vote from Mayor Brandon Johnson. Think about that for a moment: the fact that there was a tied vote on this matter is a perfect illustration of how far this city and so many others have to go for even the most basic sense of decency. Half of the city’s representatives happily voted to overlook a genocide, and it was only through the fortunate vote of the mayor that the city of Chicago supported the resolution calling for an end to violence, the release of hostages, and supplying of humanitarian aid.
There are people out there who will celebrate such achievements as a sign of ‘progress’. If it wasn’t abundantly clear, I am decidedly not one of those people. You’ll never get a trophy from me for finally getting around to recognizing what so many people have been shouting about for months. This “non-binding resolution” does absolutely nothing materially to end the killing of innocent Palestinians. It’s the definition of a symbolic victory, and the only joy it brings me is that it clearly upsets the local zionists.
While the alderfolk of Chicago were hemming and hawing about whether or not they support the killing of thousands of innocent Palestinians, the barbarism of the apartheid regime marched on. This video shows mothers of Israeli soldiers begging president Joey Biden to continue supporting their apartheid state and to stop any humanitarian aid from enteringGaza. These women gathered outside the US embassy in Jerusalem to specifically urge the senile old bastard to keep collectively punishing 2 million+ people for the crime of being Palestinian.
Rumor has it that Biden is expected to announce a new executive order later today targeting Israeli settlers in the West Bank who have been attacking Palestinians in the occupied territory. Biden has spoken out in the past against retaliatory attacks by Israeli settlers and claimed that those responsible for the violence will be held accountable (they will not). Biden also said in late October that the violence by these “extremist settlers” was equal to “pouring gasoline” on the already flaming tensions in the Middle East. This executive order, if it ever actually materializes, would be yet another symbolic victory.
Setting aside my overwhelming cynicism for a brief moment, major shout out to everyone who organized for this vote to even take place; everyone from the high school students who walked out of school and sat-in at City Hall yesterday to the organizers that have showed up to city hall for weeks trying desperately to convince the idiots in power to pretend to care about protecting Palestinian lives.
Side Items
Casual MAGA Beheading: A guy in suburban Philadelphia apparently beheaded his own father and posted a gruesome video on social media showing him holding up the severed head and ranting against the government and big bad immigrants. Michael Mohn was just an average employee of the federal government, an engineer with the US Army Corps of Engineers in their Philadelphia office. His murderous 32 year old son Justin Mohn has a history of erratic behavior and thinks there are too many immigrants in the country. I wonder where he got an idea like that
Ferrari’s New Man: In a move that’s sure to shock the racing world, 7-time Formula One champ Lewis Hamilton has been linked with a surprising move from Mercedes to Ferrari next year. Hamilton is without a doubt the coolest man in the racing world, with a record 103 F1 wins, but he’s been overtaken in recent years by Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. As a self-identified casual F1 enjoyer, I can’t help but wonder how the racists in Italy will handle a Black man driving for Ferrari. Happy Black History Month indeed