Wednesday, January 31: How Do We Stop This?
Time flies when you're witnessing genocide from thousands of miles away
115 days into the genocide in Gaza, and the casual inhumanity on constant display still never fails to surprise me. This video gives us a small taste of the daily humiliation that apartheid Israeli soldiers force on the Palestinian people. The invading military set up a checkpoint with a camera and facial recognition technology along with a loudspeaker for the sole purpose of tormenting Palestinian refugees. These cowardly Israeli soldiers taunt and insult women and children as they evacuate their homes and become refugees in the south of Gaza.
Take a look at this article from The Guardian documenting the extent of the damage in Gaza. Using satellite imagery and open-source evidence, the article features footage that makes clear the intentional destruction of civilian infrastructure by the apartheid state in its campaign against Palestine. The investigation found extensive damage to more than 250 residential buildings, 17 schools and universities, 16 mosques, three hospitals, three cemeteries and 150 agricultural greenhouses. All this destruction funded by American taxpayers under the guise of “exterminating Hamas” and “freeing the hostages”.
This article from The New Yorker features an interview with Seema Jilani, a pediatrician who spent two weeks working at a hospital in Gaza in December after the Israeli bombs started dropping. She provides haunting testimony about her experiences and what the apartheid state’s continued refusal to allow sufficient humanitarian aid into Gaza has meant, specifically for Palestinian children. Fair warning, it is NOT an enjoyable read. I include these articles not to upset you or to force anyone to read about horrific tales of genocide, but to remind us all that we need to remain focused and steadfast with our support for Palestinians.
Yesterday, hundreds of Chicago high schoolers staged a walkout from schools across the city, calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. These brave young humans occupied City Hall for hours calling on the bozos that make up the Chicago City Council to pass a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. The city council will in fact be voting on such a measure later today, but I’m not getting my hopes up. I wonder what the 50 alderpersons of the city will do about this resolution calling for peace?
Side Items
Jackie Got Burned: Remember that stolen statue of Jackie Robinson we reported on last week? Well, fire crews in Kansas found the burned remains of the bronze statue in a nearby garbage can. When the statue was stolen we briefly speculated about what one might do with such a prize, but in my ignorance I failed to consider that this is Kansas we’re talking about. The Wichita fire department got a call yesterday about a trash can on fire in the southern part of the city and found what appeared to be pieces of the statue torched
Who Asked For This: Formula One, the famous racing franchise, has apparently filed for trademarks that indicate they may be planning a grand prix in Chicago in the near future. This comes less than a year after NASCAR held its first street race in the city’s downtown, an event that was equal parts disastrous and unattended. Only time will tell how many times Chicago will make the same mistake
Abusing Oklahoma’s Teachers: Oklahoma’s department of education has created a nightmare for some of the state’s teachers after accidentally awarding them life-changing bonuses and now demanding repayment. At least nine teachers were asked to return bonuses ranging from $15,000 to $50,000. A total of $185,000 went to teachers who didn’t qualify for the program at all, and $105,000 was overpaid to teachers who qualified for a lesser amount. I’m of the opinion that if you ‘accidentally’ receive a bonus for work you’ve done, that money is rightfully yours and you’re under no obligation to pay it back