#Global Economic Action Institute
Explore tagged Tumblr posts
whatisonthemoon · 2 years ago
Text
Howard Wiarda on the Moonie-Organized “Global Economic Action Institute” (GEAI)
Howard J. Wiarda was an academic, associated with both Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)
Tumblr media
In the mid-1980s, I contracted with the Global Economic Action Institute (GEAI) to edit a book on development successes and democracy in the Third World. The main case studies were Costa Rica, Hungary, Ivory Coast, and Malaysia, so the project required me to acquire expertise on three countries that I didn't know well (Hungary, Ivory Coast, and Malaysia; Costa Rica I already knew well) — countries whose development I have followed closely over the years. I was not a completely independent actor in doing this small book: GEAI had given me a partially completed manuscript drafted by some of its own personnel and advisers that had a strongly pro-democracy, pro-free market slant. The draft was way too strident and conservative for me, but I could certainly support a moderate democracy/free market position. My assignment from GEAI was to take this draft, rewrite it, and convert it into prose that academics, think tankers, and policy experts could support. A handsome honorarium was involved.
So, I took the draft, started from word one to rewrite, toned down the more ideological language of the original manuscript, and introduced a tone into the report that was social-scientific and academic. The report forced me to do considerable new research; it also got me thinking seriously not just about analyzing development in the Third World but, for the first time in a policy sense, how to achieve development. Some twenty years later, I would return to these themes in my own, single-authored book on the developing nations where the main subject was what works in development and what doesn't.
Tumblr media
I was about halfway through the project before I came to realize that GEAI was a front for the Rev. Sun Myung Moon's Unification Church. This was a "Moonie" project, and I was working for the "Moonie Church." I hadn't realized this before since all the officials I'd dealt with at GEAI, as well as the individuals who'd done the first draft, were all Americans. What to do? Rev. Moon, he of the karate chop delivery, the mass marriages (in the thousands in a football stadium) of his followers, and some truly bizarre religious and political beliefs, was not my favorite fellow. I didn't want to sell out my academic reputation; on the other hand, the money was good, and I had been assured of complete academic freedom. So, I finished the project. It turned out to be a respectable monograph and was published by GEAI, even though, fearing for my reputation from being associated with the Moonies, I asked that my name not be listed as the author on the front cover.
In the course of doing this project, I got invited to several Moonie events in the Washington area. One was a large, annual Moonie reception for all its friends and hangers-on at the luxurious Marriott Hotel in downtown Washington. Iêda and I were amazed to find over 2,000 people present, the cream of Washington society and politics. We were also invited to other Washington Institute (another front for the Unification Church) sponsored seminars and policy forums; there I was surprised to find such luminaries as intellectual Richard Rubenstein, former Kissinger aide Hal Sonnenfeldt, philosopher and editor Morton Kaplan, and political boy wonder, then head of the Republican Young Americans for Freedom, Ralph Reed. All of these were friends or acquaintances of mine from Washington policy circles; I was as surprised to find them at a Moonie event as they were to find me. Rev. Moon had certainly bought himself access and influence in Washington; I assumed that, like me, they were all on the Unification Church payroll.
Related
Fishing for Respectability - on the Unification Church’s “Global Economic Action Institute”
C-Span videos of Global Economic Action Institute conferences and panels - one of these videos ("Foreign Trade and Domestic Subsidy Policy") features Most Durst
Moon on why he founded the Global Economic Action Institute:
I founded the Global Economic Action Institute to help distribute and re-invest inactive, or "sleeping" money to make it work for the world. A world-level bank is necessary to go beyond the boundaries of any one nation. This bank will not lend to individuals, but only to nations. The world is coming into unity, which means that independent governments will merge into one to be more operable on a global scale. Only global thinking and institutions can solve the world's economic problems.
The Imperial Ghost in the Neoliberal Machine (Figuring the CIA)
Emperor of the Universe video.                                       
1 note · View note
serious2020 · 3 months ago
Text
Open Letter to the United States Embassy on U.S. Involvement in Haiti
To the Honorable Representatives of the United States Embassies in the Caribbean: November 18, 2024 Open Letter to the United States Embassy The core principle of the 1951 Convention on Refugees is non-refoulement, which asserts that a refugee should not be returned to a country where they face serious threats to their life orfreedom. This principle was expanded by the 1967 Protocol Relating…
1 note · View note
blackstarlineage · 2 months ago
Text
Tumblr media
Why Black People Aren't Taken Seriously Globally: A Garveyite Perspective
Marcus Garvey’s teachings offer a powerful lens for understanding why Black people globally face challenges in being taken seriously or respected. His philosophy of Black nationalism and Pan-Africanism highlights systemic, cultural, and internal factors that have contributed to this struggle. Let’s break it down:
1. Lack of Unity: Garvey said it best: "A divided people are easily dominated." Without unity—whether due to tribalism, classism, or national divisions—the global Black community struggles to assert collective power.
2. Economic Dependency: Garvey emphasized that respect comes with economic independence. Black communities’ reliance on foreign systems and industries perpetuates cycles of exploitation and disrespect.
3. Colonial and Mental Enslavement: Centuries of slavery and colonialism didn’t just take land—they took minds. Many Black people still internalize inferiority, adopting Western standards over their own heritage.
4. Political Powerlessness: Without strong political sovereignty, Black nations and communities often end up subject to the whims of external powers. Garvey’s solution? "Africa for the Africans!"
5. Cultural Alienation: The erasure of African traditions through colonization leaves many disconnected from their roots. Reclaiming cultural pride is essential to earning global respect.
6. Scattered Identity: Black people globally lack a unified identity or voice. Garvey’s dream of Pan-Africanism sought to unite Africans and the diaspora under one banner.
7. Over-Reliance on Non-Black Leadership: Garvey criticized dependence on external leaders, emphasizing the need for Black-led solutions.
8. Propaganda and Negative Perceptions: Global media often perpetuates harmful stereotypes about Black people. Controlling our own narratives is key to countering this.
9. Weak Institutions: Without Black-owned banks, schools, or hospitals, dependence on external systems undermines the community’s autonomy.
10. Internal Resistance to Progress: Garvey noted that some resist self-improvement due to fear, ignorance, or complacency. This, he believed, holds the community back.
11. Western Cultural Dominance: The dominance of Western values marginalizes African contributions. Assimilating into these systems often comes at the expense of Black identity.
12. Educational Shortcomings: Garvey championed education in African history and achievements. A lack of this fosters ignorance and self-doubt.
13. Reparations Neglect: Failing to demand reparations for slavery and colonialism signals a lack of seriousness in addressing historical grievances.
14. Charity Over Infrastructure: Many African nations rely on foreign aid instead of building infrastructure, creating a cycle of dependency.
15. Exploitation by Foreign Powers: Africa’s wealth is drained by foreign exploitation. Regaining control of resources would shift global power dynamics.
16. Assimilation into Eurocentric Ideologies: Rejecting African traditions in favour of Eurocentric systems weakens collective pride and fosters division.
17. Poor Leadership: Garvey stressed the need for visionary leaders who prioritize collective progress over personal gain.
18. Passivity in Oppression: Accepting injustice without resistance only reinforces oppression. Bold, decisive action is required.
19. Loss of Spiritual and Moral Foundation: Materialism and individualism have replaced communal values. Garvey believed spirituality was central to empowerment.
20. Fragmented Diaspora: A weak connection between Africa and its diaspora prevents global solidarity and shared progress.
21. Neocolonial Borders: Artificial colonial borders foster division and conflict, undermining unity and progress.
22. Lack of Strategic Alliances: Garvey urged the Black community to form alliances with other oppressed groups to amplify their influence.
23. Complacency and Fear: Fear of change and comfort with familiar oppression prevent the risks necessary for progress.
24. Neglect of Garvey’s Vision: Without institutionalizing Garvey’s principles, the movement for unity, self-reliance, and African pride remains fragmented.
So What’s the solution?
The Honourable Marcus Garvey’s answer was clear: Unity, Economic independence, Reclaiming African identity and Building global solidarity.
The road to respect lies in pride, self-reliance, and unwavering determination. His vision remains a blueprint for global Black empowerment.
“If you have no confidence in self, you are twice defeated in the race of life.” – The Honourable Marcus Garvey
122 notes · View notes
reality-detective · 1 year ago
Text
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Patriots in the Netherlands are walking the streets dropping flyers at the homes of citizens in hopes of awakening the people. According to Rem64 it is having great success. He sent me the flyer and I translated it to English so everyone can read it. 👇
Message to the population The information below is distributed worldwide by hundreds of scientific, legal and political organizations to inform humanity. Evidence for the stated facts can be found in the detailed evidence reports on StopWorldControl.com
The World Economic Forum wants to shape your life The world's richest come together at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. The founder of the WEF, Klaus Schwab, is known for statements such as: We determine the future and We infiltrate governments. The WEF trains Young Global Leaders who are positioned in governments around the world. French President Macron, Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau and German Chancellor Merkel are Young Global Leaders of the WEF. The Netherlands and Belgium also work closely with the WEF and serve their agenda. Part of this agenda is to replace privacy with transparency. They want every detail of your life to be known soon: what you do, who you meet with, what you eat, what you buy... The WEF announces that new technologies will record everyone's thoughts, feelings and dreams in the cloud , where governments have access to this intimate data. To combat climate change, the WEF wants to abolish all private property. You will have to rent everything: houses, cars, work tools, etc. The WEF calls for blocking sunlight by massively releasing chemicals into the air. The WEF encourages the normalization of pedophilia, while the UN and WHO instruct all schools to teach sexual techniques to small children in kindergarten, so that they start having sex as young as possible, with people of any age or gender. As absurd as these plans sound, they are promoted by the WEF, the UN, the EU, the WHO and companies such as. Google and Facebook. They are part of the sustainability goals of Agenda 2030, which are supported by governments worldwide. All evidence of this can be found on StopWorldControl.com
The World Health Organization wants to rule the world The World Health Organization is being legally restructured as an effective global dictatorship, able to impose binding mandates on all countries whenever they declare a pandemic. However, the WHO is a private organization that operates outside any democratic process. One of the WHO's main backers is Bill Gates, who has no medical training whatsoever, yet is promoted as the medical authority around the world. As the world's largest vaccine dealer, his health advice is to inject everyone all the time, making him billions of dollars. WHO Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus also has no medical training. Yet Gates and Tedros dictate to all the millions of medical experts worldwide what they can and cannot do. Article 18 of the proposed Pandemic Treaty allows the WHO to shut down any source of information that does not align with what they want all of humanity to believe. This means censoring millions of experts in every field. Only what the WHO and Bill Gates say should be heard. Do you want undemocratic organizations to become dictators over your life and over all humanity? Do you want all objective scientific and medical information to be hidden so that you only hear what a single private institution wants you to believe? Do you want to be forced to receive dangerous injections for the rest of your life, without being informed about the risks? If you do not agree with this course of action, we invite you to inform yourself carefully at StopWorldControl.com
The news is determined by investors Many people do not know that all major news agencies are owned by a small group of investors, who determine what can be said in the news. In addition, billionaires such as Bill Gates and George Soros donate hundreds of millions of euros to news organizations around the world, to determine what they broadcast Udo Ulfkotte, an editor at one of the largest newspapers in the world, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung which is published in 148 countries well-known I have been a journalist for 25 years and I have been trained to lie, betray and never tell the public the truth, journalists) are being bribed worldwide by the CIA, billionaires and governments to manipulate the public The world's best-known political commentator, Tucker Carlson, she The news you consume is a lie of the most insidious kind CNN technical director Charlie Chester said: There is no such thing as objective news. All newsreaders are told what to say. He admitted that CNN deliberately creates fear to manipulate their viewers, whether it is about a pandemic or climate change. Texts from Matt Hancock, British Health Secretary, read: We are making everyone scared? The World Economic Forum, the World Health Organization, the United Nations and the European Union, which are owned by the same financial entities that control the news, are calling on governments worldwide to censor any information that does not follow their narrative. Any investigation that exposes their criminal operations should be labeled conspiracy theory or disinformation.
Vital information is hidden Thousands of scientists, doctors and medical organizations are sounding the alarm as millions of people have died and hundreds of millions of people have been disabled after being injected with the experimental vaccines for COVID-19. Data from the US CDC shows that in the US alone, one and a half million people suffered from side effects including death, stroke, heart failure, brain disorders, convulsions, life-threatening allergic reactions, autoimmune diseases, arthritis, miscarriage, infertility, rapid onset muscle weakness, deafness, blindness, etc. Worldwide there is an explosion of turbo cancer and sudden death. Harvard Pilgrim Health Care's famous Lazarus report revealed that overall, only 19% of vaccine side effects are reported. According to this study, the number of adverse events and deaths must be multiplied by a factor of 100 to understand the true prevalence of serious vaccine injuries. COVID-19 has a 99.7% survival rate, comparable to the seasonal flu, and there are many effective medications, such as hydroxychloroquine, ivermectin, budesonide, chlorine dioxide and many more. These have hardly any side effects, are completely safe and available everywhere in the world. This means that no vaccine is needed. However, the WHO instructed governments worldwide to ban these drugs for the treatment of corona and to censor any doctor who spoke about it, that vaccines are the only answer.
What's going on in the world? Why are governments controlled by private institutions like the WEF and WHO? Why is vital information hidden? These are not conspiracy theories as claimed, but facts that can be verified on the international website StopWorldControl.com. We work with world leaders in the fields of law, science, medical care, journalism and politics. Our network consists of more than 100 organizations that jointly inform humanity. They include Nobel laureates, presidents and presidential candidates, former generals of the US army, organizations of police officers and investigators, as well as top officials of the United Nations, the World Health Organization and the European Union. We encourage every right-thinking person to inform themselves carefully Visit the website StopWorldControl.com Pass this flyer on to others.
Stand Strong! Stand United! Be Prepared!
✨ 🛡️ 🇳🇱 WWG1WGA 🇺🇸 ⚔️ ✨
252 notes · View notes
kattvez · 4 months ago
Text
Heil Trump! 100 years on repeat.
This might make you pause and think, "No way—that could NEVER happen again!" But let’s look more closely, because the similarities are alarmingly real. Germany didn’t turn into Nazi Germany overnight; it was a slow descent, almost imperceptible at first. You may have heard the analogy of a frog in a pot of water, where the temperature rises so gradually that the frog doesn’t realize it’s being boiled alive until it’s too late. That’s what happened in Nazi Germany—and it’s what we risk today in the United States if we don’t pay attention to the warning signs.
In the early 1930s, many Germans, including Jewish citizens, dismissed Hitler as a passing phenomenon. They thought he was just a fringe figure—a "spook" who would fade away. They believed his extremist views wouldn’t gain traction. But Hitler’s appeal grew as he presented himself as a charismatic leader promising to restore Germany’s glory. His message was simple: make Germany great again. Sound familiar?
With the world reeling from the Great Depression, Hitler gained widespread support through his protectionist economic policies, offering a vision of economic relief and national revival. Many Germans, desperate for stability, ignored the darker, insidious rhetoric that came with his promises. Today, millions of Americans, feeling left behind by globalization and the rise of the tech economy, similarly turn to promises of economic revival and national pride. Like in 1930s Germany, the allure of quick fixes to complex problems can make people overlook the dangerous ideologies lurking beneath the surface.
One of Hitler’s key strategies was to undermine core democratic institutions, eroding public trust in Germany’s legal and political framework. We’re seeing echoes of this in Donald Trump’s actions. As both a candidate and a former president, Trump has repeatedly undermined the credibility of institutions when they don’t align with his interests—the courts, the electoral process, even the certification of an election. His rhetoric suggests that any institution not serving his goals is suspect, creating a divide in the public’s trust in these democratic systems.
A hallmark of Trump’s approach has been his relentless attack on the media, branding it as “fake news” whenever it criticizes him or his policies. The Nazis used a similar tactic, calling independent journalists the “Lügenpresse,” or "lying press." In both cases, this tactic seeks to sow doubt about any information that challenges the leader’s narrative. By discrediting the media, both Hitler and Trump attempt to shape reality to fit their own agendas, isolating their followers from independent sources of truth.
Scapegoating minorities has also been a disturbing common thread. Hitler blamed Jewish people for Germany's economic problems, stirring up public resentment against them as the "internal enemies" of the nation. Trump has similarly focused on specific groups, notably undocumented immigrants, portraying them as the root of America's economic and social issues. He has created a crisis around illegal immigration, expanding the role of ICE to target this group, often painting them as threats to safety, jobs, and stability. Today, similar tactics are being used against transgender individuals, who represent a tiny fraction of the population but have become a focal point of political and social resentment. Trump's rhetoric fuels these hostilities, using marginalized communities as scapegoats to rally support and divert attention from more complex issues.
Furthermore, Hitler relied on affiliated militias like the SA and SS to intimidate opponents and enforce Nazi ideology. Trump, while not formally organizing militias, has encouraged self-recruiting groups and militias, famously asking them to “stand by” during moments of tension, as seen during the January 6th Capitol riot. His cozy relationships with authoritarian leaders, like Putin, echo the alliances between Hitler and Mussolini, reinforcing the dangerous allure of authoritarianism.
The situation today may even be more dangerous because of technology. In the past, hateful rhetoric and propaganda required physical presence at rallies or the reading of pamphlets. Now, hateful content—whether anti-Semitic, anti-trans, or racist—finds its way to people’s screens, reaching millions in an instant. Algorithms amplify divisive content, pushing more extreme narratives into the mainstream, often without individuals even seeking it out.
It’s easy to believe that “it could never happen here,” but history shows that democracy is fragile, and small shifts in public sentiment, unchecked power, and targeted scapegoating can lead to devastating consequences. The parallels between Germany’s descent into Nazism and aspects of today’s political culture are a reminder of the importance of vigilance, empathy, and a commitment to protecting democratic values before it’s too late.
34 notes · View notes
urialnathanonwright · 27 days ago
Text
The Nationalist Grievance Machine: Trump's Dangerous Playbook for Division and Dysfunction
Let’s talk about the latest installment of the Trump circus—a mix of revisionist history, authoritarian flexes, and the kind of shameless self-aggrandizement that only he can pull off. Whether it’s pardoning domestic terrorists, undermining international cooperation, or declaring the Gulf of Mexico as his personal property, Trump’s vision for America is nothing more than a dystopian fever dream masquerading as leadership.
First up we've got Davos. Trump’s appearance at the World Economic Forum—virtually, of course, because nothing screams "global leadership" like dialing it in—comes with all the subtlety of a bull in a china shop. Will he talk about unity? Innovation? Climate action? Don’t bet on it. This is the guy who pulled the U.S. out of the Paris Climate Agreement and the World Health Organization, all while doubling down on nationalism. Instead of addressing global challenges, Trump’s use his speech to settle personal scores and push his isolationist agenda. The only “unity” he seems interested in is the unified chant of his die-hard base.
And those pardons—1,600 people, including leaders of extremist groups like the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, who orchestrated one of the darkest days in modern American history. These weren’t peaceful protestors, as Trump likes to claim. These were violent insurrectionists who beat law enforcement officers and sought to overturn a democratic election. Yet Trump portrays them as patriots - they are not. The hypocrisy is staggering for a man - oppps that should be the convicted felon and rapist, in case you forgot - who claims to support “law and order” while undermining the very institutions that uphold it.
Then the nationalistic chest-thumping. Renaming the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America”? Come on. The audacity to claim a body of water shared with multiple nations is peak Trump—a man who confuses petty rebranding with actual policy. And threatening to take back the Panama Canal? It’s as if he’s binge-watched old imperialist propaganda and thought, “Yeah, let’s bring that back.”
Oh, and his TikTok comments? Defending a platform with clear ties to foreign surveillance while shrugging off concerns about Chinese espionage is a masterclass in contradiction. He’s like a used car salesman trying to sell you a lemon while telling you it’s a luxury sedan.
And finally, his supposed political “comeback.” Trump wants us to believe he’s a phoenix rising from the ashes, a savior returning to restore glory to America. But in reality, his presidency is the same as it ever was a self-serving, grievance-filled spectacle. His survival of an assassination attempt may have deepened his faith, but it hasn’t deepened his character.
At the end of the day, Trump’s agenda is clear: dismantle democracy, divide the nation, and consolidate power under the guise of “fixing” the very problems he’s exacerbated. He’s not the solution; he’s the problem on steroids. And the rest of us—whether we’re Democrats, independents, or Republicans who still believe in decency—have to call this what it is: a dangerous farce that threatens the very fabric of our country.
It’s time to stop treating Trump like a political anomaly or a bad reality TV show and start holding him accountable. America deserves better than this. And the world deserves better than an American president who thinks leadership is just another episode of “The Apprentice.”
21 notes · View notes
theanalyzerguy · 11 months ago
Text
Project 2025 is a plan to, in the words of project Director Paul Dans, "...march into office and bring a new army of aligned, trained, and essentially weaponized conservatives ready to do battle against the Deep State".It is organized by the Heritage Foundation, to "muzzle woke propaganda at every level of government", "gut the administrative state" (HUD, FEMA, DOJ, DHS, the Federal Reserve, CDC, FDA, EPA, etc.) and concentrate power into the hands of the President (Leeja Miller, in a video that is linked below, goes into detail on how this would work).Their claim is that "Only through the implementation of specific action plans at each agency will the next conservative presidential Administration be successful".The plan includes a [180 Day Playbook](https://www.project2025.org/playbook/), described as "...a comprehensive, concrete transition plan for each federal agency."
The plan is "the conservative movement's unified effort to be ready for the next conservative administration to govern at 12:00 noon, January 20, 2025".Project 2025 promises to "rescue the country from the grip of the radical Left" and to "unite the conservative movement and the American people against elite rule and woke culture warriors".Project 2025 lists problems with America such as:* The breakdown of the family* Immigration* The "totalitarian cult known today as The Great Awokening"* The erosion of constitutional accountability in Washington* Children suffering the "toxic normalization of transgenderism with drag queens and pornography invading their school libraries"* An "overseas, totalitarian Communist dictatorship" that is "not a strategic partner or fair competitor" and is "engaged in a strategic, cultural and economic Cold War against America's interests, values and people"* "Low-income communities" that are "drowning in addiction and government dependence"* "America's elites have betrayed the American People"* The left using climate change "to scare the American public into accepting their ineffective, liberty crushing regulations"They believe that "These are problems not of technocratic efficiency, but of national sovereignty and constitutional governance. We solve them not by trimming and reshaping the leaves, but by ripping out the trees -- root and branch."
Their broad goals are to:1. Restore the family as the centerpiece of American life, and protect our children2. Dismantle the administrative state and return self-governance to the American people3. Defend our nation's sovereignty, borders and bounty against global threats4. Secure our God-given individual rights to live freely - what our constitution calls "the Blessings of Liberty"Dans states that "The long march of Cultural Marxism through our institutions has come to pass. The federal government is a behemoth, weaponized against American citizens and conservative values, with freedom and liberty under siege as never before".Project 2025 is, in my words, a distinctly terrifying and highly detailed roadmap for:* Installing a Chriso-fascist oligarchy* Rolling back civil and human rights* Removing bodily autonomy from women and transgender individuals* The systematic eradication of minorities and other vulnerable groupsI don't use the words "systematic eradication" lightly or with hyperbole.
They obviously don't come right out and say it, but they state that:* Pornography should be outlawed* The people who produce and distribute it should be imprisoned* Educators and public librarians who purvey it should be classed as registered sex offenders* Telecommunications and technology firms that facilitate its spread should be shutteredThe real problem with the above, apart from the obvious, is that they label the existence of LGBTQIA+ people as "inherently pornographic". They say that pornography is “manifested today through the omnipresent propagation of transgender ideology".They say that the fix "starts with deleting the terms sexual orientation and gender identity ('SOGI'), diversity, equity and inclusion ('DEI'), gender, gender equality, gender awareness, gender sensitive, abortion, reproductive health, reproductive rights, and any other term to deprive Americans of their First Amendment rights out of every federal rule, agency regulation, contract, grant, regulation, and piece of legislation that exists".They also state that "The president should direct agencies to rescind regulations interpreting sex discrimination provisions as prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, transgender status, sex characteristics, etc."
They want to "maintain a biblically based, social science-reinforced definition of marriage and family" which would remove protections for same-sex marriage.Leeja Miller helpfully points out that the above language does not simply include transgender individuals, it includes cis women as well. I'd argue that removing the DEI language also allows them to target anyone that isn't a white, cis, heterosexual, evangelical (or other approved flavor of Christianity) male.Some other points of note:* They want to eliminate the Department of Education* They want to ban the teaching of Critical Race Theory* They want to bring back the practice of impounding funds
**References*** A direct link to a PDF copy of the project's Policy Agenda, aka their "Mandate for Leadership": [https://thf\_media.s3.amazonaws.com/project2025/2025\_MandateForLeadership\_FULL.pdf](https://thf_media.s3.amazonaws.com/project2025/2025_MandateForLeadership_FULL.pdf), this can be found on the Policy page of the Project 2025 website.* A video from Leeja Miller: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9k3UvaC5m7o](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9k3UvaC5m7o)* An NPR article focusing on the climate policy aspect: [https://www.npr.org/2023/08/08/1192634090/if-republicans-win-the-white-house-in-2024-climate-policy-will-likely-change](https://www.npr.org/2023/08/08/1192634090/if-republicans-win-the-white-house-in-2024-climate-policy-will-likely-change)* A UC Berkeley write up: [https://bpr.berkeley.edu/2023/11/17/project-2025-democratic-doomsday/](https://bpr.berkeley.edu/2023/11/17/project-2025-democratic-doomsday/)* An article from the NECC Observer: [http://observer.necc.mass.edu/blog/2023/11/20/the-danger-of-project-2025/](http://observer.necc.mass.edu/blog/2023/11/20/the-danger-of-project-2025/)* An article from PBS: [https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/conservatives-aim-to-restructure-u-s-government-and-replace-it-with-trumps-vision](https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/conservatives-aim-to-restructure-u-s-government-and-replace-it-with-trumps-vision)
82 notes · View notes
athena5898 · 2 months ago
Text
(Al-Akhbar English) Red Scare Reborn: US Anti-Communist Push and Global Consequences
Ali Awwad
Between 1917 and 1920, the United States grappled with intense fear stemming from the Russian Revolution, which ignited anxieties about the spread of communism and anarchism. This fear led to widespread repression against leftists, unionists, and immigrants, culminating in arrests, investigations, and a climate of suspicion. A similar wave of paranoia resurfaced in the 1950s during the Cold War, known as the “Second Red Scare.” Senator Joseph McCarthy spearheaded this period with his aggressive campaign against alleged communists, expanding the witch hunt beyond politicians to include intellectuals, artists, and civil rights leaders. These events were justified under the guise of national security but were ultimately aimed at enforcing ideological conformity and silencing progressive voices.
Now, with the election of Donald Trump as the 47th US President, echoes of this Cold War legacy resurface. Trump’s administration is pushing the “Decisive Education on Communism” bill (H.R. 5349), designed to implement an anti-communist curriculum in schools. While ostensibly focused on educating students about communism’s “crimes,” this bill mirrors past repressive efforts, using education as a tool for cultural censorship and ideological control. The bill, spearheaded by Representative Maria Salazar, has faced opposition to amendments that would include education on fascism and other oppressive ideologies, highlighting its partisan agenda.
This bill comes amid growing support for leftist movements among young Americans, particularly in solidarity with Palestinians. The rise of these movements has sparked anger from the American right, which is increasingly challenged by shifting public opinions on US foreign policy. Opinion polls reveal that younger generations are more critical of authority and increasingly open to socialist principles. This shift in political consciousness is seen as a direct threat to established power structures, prompting fears of a new “Red Scare” targeting left-wing movements.
Parallel to these developments, conservative think tanks like the Heritage Institute have launched initiatives such as the Esther Project, which seeks to criminalize political activism against Israel and label Palestinian solidarity as part of a broader anti-capitalist agenda. These efforts aim to dismantle these movements through legal and political means, employing tactics reminiscent of McCarthyism. Trump's supporters plan to expand this repression to education and media, purging institutions that oppose right-wing ideology, and even considering military intervention against protesters, as seen in the 2020 George Floyd protests.
While the bill's focus remains on combating communism, its broader aim is to prevent China from challenging US global hegemony. The "communist threat" narrative is being used to justify escalating tensions with China, through economic sanctions and military alliances in the Indo-Pacific. This strategy not only aims to curb China’s rise but also seeks to compel other nations to align politically with the US These actions could lead to a new global conflict, marked by competition for influence, resources, and technology. As tensions rise, nations will be pressured to take sides, increasing international polarization. However, in the midst of this global upheaval, there may also be opportunities for change, as history has often shown.
Full article in Arabic: https://al-akhbar.com/culture/816676
14 notes · View notes
rjzimmerman · 8 months ago
Text
Excerpt from this story from EcoWatch:
A new report has found that climate lawsuits being filed against companies are on the rise all over the world, and most of them have been successful.
The report by the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) — Global trends in climate change litigation: 2024 snapshot — said that roughly 230 climate cases have been brought against trade associations and corporations since 2015, more than two-thirds of which have been filed since 2020.
“Climate litigation… has become an undeniably significant trend in how stakeholders are seeking to advance climate action and accountability,” said Andy Raine, the United Nations Environment Programme’s deputy director of law division, as The Guardian reported.
One of the fastest growing types of litigation concerns “climate washing.” According to the report, 47 of these lawsuits were filed against governments and companies last year.
The report stated that there had been “more than 140 such cases filed to date on climate washing, making this one of the most rapidly expanding areas of litigation,” a press release from LSE said.
Of the almost 140 climate-washing cases between 2016 and 2023, 77 had reached official decisions, with 54 being found in favor of the claimant.
Most climate cases that have been filed in the past have been against governments. In the United States, 15 percent of climate cases filed in 2023 were against companies, while 40 percent of cases in the rest of the world involved companies.
In 2023, more than 30 “polluter pays” lawsuits filed worldwide sought to hold corporations accountable for climate harms allegedly stemming from their production of greenhouse gas emissions.
Six “turning off the taps” lawsuits challenging the funding of activities and projects not in line with climate action were identified in the report.
The report’s analysis was based on more than 2,600 climate cases compiled by Columbia Law School’s Sabin Center for Climate Change. Approximately 70 percent of these lawsuits have been filed since the adoption of the Paris Agreement in 2015, with 233 having been filed in 2023.
Climate lawsuits have been brought in 55 total countries, with cases having been filed in Portugal and Panama for the first time.
The authors of the study confirmed that climate litigation has been increasing in the Global South, noting that “over 200 climate cases from these countries are recorded in the Global database, comprising around 8% of all cases.”
The U.S. had the most climate litigation cases filed last year with 129. The United Kingdom had the second highest number with 24, followed by Brazil with 10, Germany with seven and Australia with six.
The U.S. also had the most documented climate cases with a total of 1,745. Australia has had 132 overall, with just six filed in 2023.
21 notes · View notes
darkmaga-returns · 8 days ago
Text
USAID awarded $260 million in grants to various organizations linked to George Soros who openly uses his organizations to alter global democracies. It has already been revealed that the alleged nonpartisan agency gave the Democrats 97% of political funding during the last election. It appears that USAID has deeper political influence as it granted millions over the years to non-governmental organizations (NGOs) directly affiliated with Soros and the Open Foundations Societies (OFS).
Our foreign aid has been used to dismantle traditional Western values across the world. USAID provided $90 million to OFS partner East-West Management Institute. “Strengthening democratic societies by fostering collaboration between governments, civil society, and the private sect or to build transparent and accountable institutions,” is its mission statement as the organization is clear on its objectives. The Anti-Corruption Action Centre (ACAC), another OFS partner, has 20.7% of total funding paid for by USAID. Alliance for Open Society International (AOSI) was on the payroll too, and actually sued USAID for demanding that grant recipients adopt an anti-prostitution stance.
8 notes · View notes
justinspoliticalcorner · 2 months ago
Text
Trump Misadministration set to appease Israel Apartheid interests by planning to introduce crippling sanctions on ICC over the organization's issuance of arrest warrants to Netanyahu and Gallant for their roles in instigating war crimes
Ariel Kahana at Israel Hayom:
President-elect Donald Trump plans to implement devastating sanctions against the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague immediately after taking office, sources close to the matter disclosed to Israel Hayom. These executive orders could be unveiled as soon as January 21, just one day after his inauguration. The sanctions package will target both individual ICC personnel, including judges and prosecutors, and the institution as a whole. The administration intends to classify the ICC as an organization threatening US interests, employing designation procedures similar to those used by the US State Department for terrorist organizations globally. This designation will trigger severe restrictions on anyone involved with the court's operations.
Financial institutions worldwide will be required to terminate relationships with ICC personnel or face US sanctions themselves. Mirroring actions taken against sanctioned Israeli citizens by the outgoing administration, ICC staff will find themselves unable to perform routine banking operations or use credit cards. Their economic activities will be effectively frozen, with exceptions only for essential needs such as food purchases. Furthermore, all US-based assets belonging to ICC employees and the institution will be frozen. The incoming administration's strategy extends beyond unilateral actions, as it plans to secure commitments from US allies to reject cooperation with arrest warrants targeting Israeli officials.
The Trump Misadministration is set to appease Israel Apartheid interests by planning to introduce crippling sanctions on the ICC over the organization's issuance of arrest warrants to Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant for their roles in instigating war crimes.
See Also:
The National News: Republicans move to include ICC sanctions in procedural vote as they prepare to take control of Congress
10 notes · View notes
whatisonthemoon · 2 years ago
Text
Fishing for Respectability - on the Unification Church’s “Global Economic Action Institute”
Washington City Paper Vol. 13 No. 22 | June 11-17, 1993 Fishing for Respectability by Alan Green and Larry Zilliox Jr.
The Rev. Sun Myung Moon has dominion over three separate worlds - the religious, the nonprofit, and the entrepreneurial. But in the Unification Church, worlds collide.
Tumblr media
▲Sun Myung Moon and Rev. Yang Hur
Yamano Hana APPEARS to be no different than any other Japanese restaurant in Northern Virginia. It's in a nondescript strip mall on Leesburg Pike, halfway between Seven Corners and Baileys Crossroads. It has a sushi bar, a cocktail lounge, and a favorable mention from Washingtonian displayed out front. You can get salmon teriyaki there for $7.20, and among the chef-created specials is a crab stick and fried flower dish called the Full Moon. Lunch is served beginning at 11:30 a.m. Reservations are not required.
But if Yamano Hana is indistinguishable from other area Japanese eateries, one thing sets it apart: This restaurant is at the tail end of a vast, vertically integrated fishing operation whose components are all tied to the Rev. Sun Myung Moon's Unification Church. Identifying the players in this network is like trying to navigate without a compass - and that's obviously the way Moon's followers want it because they've taken great pains to obfuscate their ties to one another and, most important, to the church itself.
Dig deep enough, however, and this elaborate connect-the-dot game yields a picture with at least a few clear edges.
Annual reports and other corporate records show, for example, that Yamano Hana is owned by Hana Enterprises, a Maryland company whose officers and directors have all been affiliated with other commercial enterprises run by Unification Church members. As recently as 1990, Hana Enterprises' corporate secretary was a director of New Wave Seafood, a Beltsville wholesaler that supplies Yamano Hana with its fish. New Wave's treasurer was at one time an officer of U.S. Marine Corp., a commercial fishing company whose catch ends up at church-affiliated wholesalers. Among U.S. Marine's wholly owned subsidiaries is Master Marine, which builds the boats used by the church-aligned fishing fleets. U.S. Marine is, in turn, under the corporate auspices of One Up Enterprises, a Virginia-based holding company whose president, R. Michael Runyon, is a longtime Moon confidant and an officer of other businesses controlled by Moon's followers. Virginia state corporate records also show that Runyon's wife, another Unification Church member, is a director of Hana Enterprises.
Keep following the serpentine paper trail, and you learn that the Washington-area seafood operations are just one part of an umbrella organization that includes some 65 Japanese restaurants across the nation - including Niwano Hana, on Rockville Pike - and at least a dozen seafood wholesalers in such cities as Philadelphia, Seattle, Los Angeles, and Bayou LaBatre, Ala.
There's even the tax-exempt Ocean Church, supposedly created to give young Unification Church members the experience of spending time at sea. Not surprisingly, Ocean Church branches are based at commercial fishing businesses run by Unification Church members. One Ocean Church branch even lists its address as a Gloucester, Mass., restaurant whose owners are part of Moon's octopan fishing enterprise.
These operations - and other marine-related ventures - are collectively referred to within the Unification Church movement as the "Happy Group," which derives its name from Moon's large Japanese trading company, Happy World Inc. Not officially part of this conglomerate - but nonetheless part of Moon's business network - is the Happy Mind Shop at Home Service, a catalog company in the 3500 block of V Street NE that sells everything from hardware and over-the-counter drugs to produce and, not surprisingly, fresh seafood.
This agglomeration of interlocking enterprises is just one component of a gargantuan corporate empire that includes hundreds of businesses and organizations around the globe. Moon may be well known for having founded the Washington Times and Insight magazine, which have bled his bank accounts of perhaps a billion dollars over the last decade, but these publications are just two pieces of an expanding international media conglomerate that includes foreign and domestic newspapers and newsletters, book publishers, video production companies, and a major interest in an American cable network.
Moon and his associates own travel agencies and health food stores, real estate agencies and office cleaning services, an equestrian center, and a company that bottles ginseng soda. In addition, Moon has financed the creation of dozens of religious and political organizations, including two benign-sounding groups headquartered here: the American Conference on Religious Movements and the American Freedom Coalition.
In Moon's world, however, nothing is benign, nothing is as it appears. Privacy may be universally valued, but Moon and his followers are so intent on keeping their affairs shrouded that even something as commonplace as selling fish becomes mired in a clandestine web.
Trying to trace this corporate lineage is an extraordinary challenge. Interlocking structures make ownership and control of businesses run by church members nearly impossible to figure out. Those who work for these operations will say little, if anything, about them. And the landscape is further blurred by an entanglement of nonprofit organizations, whose finances are subject to less governmental scrutiny than their for-profit counterparts, and whose affairs are therefore even harder to decipher.
The affairs of the Global Economic Action Institute (GEAI) provide a telling illustration of this.
GEAI is a 10-year-old nonprofit organization whose creation was inspired by Moon, supposedly to foster cooperation among nations in their efforts to achieve a stable international economic order. Over the years, GEAI has attracted an impressive collection of politicians, economists, and business leaders. It has published position papers and hosted international conferences, with support from the likes of the United States Information Agency and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. It has received virtually no media recognition - and in fact has never sought any - but from all appearances, it has helped promote the sort of dialogue that might ease the world's economic problems. Finally, GEAI has received financial support from a wide array of corporations, foundations, and other institutions - the Unification Church among them. But it has always been widely believed that the church's contributions were not particularly significant, its influence on the organization tenuous, at best.
In truth, documents obtained by Washington City Paper show that GEAI has been used by Moon and his associates to facilitate contact with high-level executives around the world and advance the church's political and business agendas. GEAI's key staffers - all Unification Church members - have used the organization's resources to run their own for-profit corporations. Documents also reveal how GEAI's employees tried to recruit more than 100 of the nation's wealthiest individuals - including some well-known Washingtonians - into supporting an operation that appears to exist primarily to further Moon's goals, rather than the noble policy objectives outlined in the organization's charter.
But GEAI and the guileful manner in which the fishing operation is managed are not aberrations within the Unification movement. Relationships seem to be purposefully obscured.
The convoluted ownership of U.S. Marine Corp. is typical. According to a Dun & Bradstreet commercial credit report, 83 percent of the fishing operation's voting stock is controlled by the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity (HSA) - the nonprofit, religious component of Moon's empire usually referred to as the Unification Church. That part of the ownership picture is simple and straightforward.
But the remainder of U.S. Marine's stock is controlled by One Up Enterprises, the Virginia-based corporation that controls Moon's fishing businesses. One Up is in turn a subsidiary of a for-profit, Virginia-based holding company called Unification Church International (UCI), which operates a slew of firms whose owners are also followers of Moon.
UCI is so closely affiliated with Moon that the organization's amended articles of incorporation list as its operational purpose "To serve as an international organization assisting, advising, coordinating and guiding the activities of Unification Churches organized and operated throughout the world." What's more, UCI shares corporate offices with News World Communications Inc., the Moon-controlled company that owns both the Washington Times and the McLean home that Moon occupies when in Washington.
Despite this, HSA spokesman Peter Ross insists that the church is entirely separate from UCI, GEAI, and other ventures Moon has inspired or helped fund. "Rev. Moon is the leader of a religious movement," says Ross. "But he's free to engage in all sorts of activities. He's a patron of the media. He's an industrialist. That's all true, but that shouldn't mean the Unification Church is involved."
Ross' statements notwithstanding, additional documents obtained by City Paper tell an entirely different story. These documents, which chronicle GEAI's activities for 1990 and part of 1991, show that church money was sometimes keeping GEAI afloat. They show that GEAI's staff members sought to control the organization. They show that these same staff members aimed to convince GEAI's leadership to accept Moon's vision for the organization. Finally, the documents reveal that the church was so concerned about GEAI, members were actually instructed to pray for its success.
Since his release from prison eight years ago, Moon has been a shadow of his previously public self. But if he's kept a low profile, the founder of the Unification Church has only stepped up his campaign to expand his worldwide influence.
From all indications, his efforts have been successful, although the self-proclaimed messiah is now facing trouble anew.
On June 1, 1976, the Unification Church took over Yankee Stadium for its so-called Bicentennial God Bless America Festival, the highlight of which was supposed to be an address by the Rev. Moon. At the time, Moon was endlessly portrayed in the media as a cultist who enslaved young people and used their free labor as a means to amass a fortune for his church.
The Yankee Stadium speech, delivered in Korean and translated by longtime Moon confidant.
The Yankee Stadium speech, delivered in Korean and translated by longtime Moon confidant Bo Hi Pak, did little to quell the anxieties of nonbelievers. A wildly gesticulating Moon laid down his own version of divine law: America had been invaded by Satan, and God had dispatched Moon here to set things right. Moon's disciples were clearly enraptured by this homily, but spectators by the thousands stampeded for the exits. There was pandemonium, as the inclined rampways behind the stands swelled with a descending tide. Halfway through the speech, the stadium had the look of a visiting-team blowout in the bottom of the ninth: Down the lines and in the upper decks, only the die-hards and dreamers remained in their seats.
It would be another 17 years before Moon would venture on another national speaking tour, his 12-city roadshow having rolled through Washington on May 15. In the interim, he increasingly de-emphasized his religious pursuits, instead focusing his attention on politics and profit-making ventures. During this time, church real estate holdings increased. Moon's tangled web of businesses, once located primarily in Korea, Japan, and the United States, took root throughout Europe and eventually began creeping into Africa, South America, and even the Cayman Islands.
For his troubles, in '78 Moon faced a civil lawsuit brought by the U.S. government, but he escaped unscathed. His luck ran out in May 1982 when a New York jury found him guilty of four counts of conspiracy, including conspiracy to obstruct justice and conspiracy to file false income tax returns. The felony offenses brought a sentence of 18 months in federal prison, and on July 20, 1984, Moon began serving what would ultimately be a 13-month term.
Since his release, Moon has rarely been seen in public. But behind the scenes, he's been all business. In fact, the aging industrialist has not only increased the pace of acquisitions by his front organizations, but he's tried to establish a business/religious/political foothold in Russia and China. He's even negotiated deals with the governments of Vietnam and North Korea.
These days, the 73-year-old Moon has lost any charisma he may once have had. His recent Washington speech, at the Omni Shoreham Hotel, was a rambling, 75-minute patois that lacked the histrionics of years past. Moon delivered the address in halting, at times incomprehensible, English, repeatedly stumbling over words and stopping in mid-phrase, as if he were reading a phoneticized version of a text whose meaning he couldn't fathom. Occasionally, Moon almost seemed unaware that he was addressing an overflow crowd of nearly 3,000: Early in the speech, for example, he paused a full 10 seconds, and when he resumed, a mint in his mouth clacked against his teeth. The sound reverberated over the room's speakers, but Moon seemed either unaware or unconcerned. Instead, he just kept reading, poking at his eyeglasses every so often.
The speech itself, called "True Parents and the Completed Testament Age," amplified some of the same peculiar themes introduced in Moon's Yankee Stadium address - in particular, that America's role as a world leader hinges on its spiritual well-being, and God has dispatched Moon here to ensure that the country does not go off course.
"In these chaotic times," he told a rapt audience, which interrupted him with applause 25 times, "humankind is longing for a true direction and purpose, yet America and the churches have no confident answer. God has granted me an understanding of the forces involved in his providential history. Thus, I know the direction that humankind must go, and I, with the help of God, will lead the world there."
This time around, no one was fleeing for the auditorium doors. The room had been filled with invited guests instructed to RSVP. Business attire was required for admission. The audience was read letters of welcome from Mayor Sharon Pratt Kelly and Sen. John Warner (R-Va.); a proclamation from Maryland Gov. William Donald Schaefer declaring May 15 "Family Day" in honor of the event was also broadcast to the crowd.
Moon slowly made his way through the lecture, as onlookers unable to comprehend his broken English followed along with a printed text. As the speech progressed, it became more muddled and self-aggrandizing. Moon chastised Korean religious leaders for failing to believe that he was the Second Coming of Christ. He blamed the Cold War on the failure of the United States and worldwide Christianity to unite with him after World War II. And the self-proclaimed messiah railed against the media and other detractors.
"Can anyone disagree when I say that Reverend Moon is among the most persecuted religious leaders in the world?" he asked.
Not far away, a process server lay in wait, hoping to heap yet more bedevilment on Moon. A day earlier, a suit had been filed in a California federal court alleging that Moon and his associates had concocted an unlawful scheme to gain control of cable television's Nostalgia Network. In essence, the suit alleges that Unification Church International, One Up Enterprises, and other related businesses are all secretly structured to achieve Moon's objectives.
These charges are similar to others that have been leveled against Moon, and in each instance, the church has dismissed them as further examples of the religious persecution that Moon must endure. But the affairs of the Global Economic Action Institute may suggest otherwise.
The Global Economic Action Institute was founded in the summer of 1983, ostensibly to help promote policies that would foster world economic stability. The organization was incorporated in Washington on Dec. 1 of that year, with former U.S. Treasury Secretary Robert Anderson among its board members. A few months later, the IRS granted GEAI nonprofit status—important for the organization because would-be contributors could be promised that their gifts would be tax-deductible.
Much of GEAI's initial funding came from HSA, the religious component of Moon's operation, although in recent years dozens of foundations and corporations have signed on as benefactors. GEAI's membership roster includes individuals in some 75 countries, among them former heads of state, members of national cabinets, academics, and business leaders. Only one person on GEAI's original board of directors—Mose Durst—was affiliated with the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity, thereby creating the appearance of autonomy from Moon. Former Sen. Eugene McCarthy was even enlisted as GEAI's chairman emeritus.
GEAI's headquarters are in New York, and until last year, the group maintained a Washington office. Copies of tax returns provided by the IRS show that GEAI's 1990 budget was nearly $1 million, about 59 percent of which was spent on producing a series of national and international conferences.
These same 1990 tax returns show that GEAI's three highest-paid employees - all Unification Church members - were Garry Barker, Jeremiah Schnee, and Laurence Baer. Together, this trio ran GEAI's affairs.
But that's not all they ran.
The Unification movement typically portrays its involvement with nonprofit organizations under its control as that of a beneficent donor supporting worthy causes. Unification movement members insist that the church exerts no influence over groups such as GEAI - that Moon has no personal involvement in the direction of their operations, for example.
But documents reveal that the Unification Church was attempting to use GEAI to advance Moon's vast business empire. Other documents show that Barker, Schnee, and Baer conducted for-profit consulting work out of GEAI's Washington offices; in effect, the three men attempted to create business partnerships among GEAI contributors, for which they would receive finder's fees or commissions. The evidence also suggested that GEAI was not reimbursed by these for-profit companies for the use of its resources, as IRS regulations require.
Answers about GEAI's affairs were not forthcoming. Schnee, who apparently now runs the organization with one assistant, did not return phone calls. Durst, former president of the nonprofit Unification Church of America, who two years ago severed his affiliation with GEAI, willingly volunteered information about Moon's original vision for the organization but would say little else. Durst did insist that Barker, Schnee, and Baer never ran businesses out of GEAI's offices. He also maintained that he didn't own the building from which GEAI conducted its activities, then admitted that he "might have."
In fact, District of Columbia property records show that Durst was a longtime owner of the townhouse at 821 Massachusetts Ave NE that once served as GEAI's Washington address. Records from D.C.'s Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs and elsewhere also show that at least three for-profit corporations were conducting business from the Massachusetts Avenue address: RFR International, whose president was Jeremiah Schnee; Barker International Associates, headed by Garry Barker; and L.H. Baer International, run by Laurence Baer.
Although Barker, Schnee, and Baer were listed on GEAI's tax returns as full-time employees of the nonprofit organization - their annual salaries ranging from $36,049 for Baer to $57,251 for Barker - they were simultaneously conducting the business of their own companies. Internal memoranda obtained by City Paper show that the three men were trying to consummate more than 30 high-stakes business deals around the globe - from the sale of rare paintings to funding a Broadway musical to the sale of Nigerian light crude oil. In a number of instances, their would-be partners in these deals were the same people they had recruited - or were trying to recruit - for GEAI membership.
On Feb. 1, 1991, for example, Barker's daily agenda lists both GEAI activities and various for-profit undertakings, including a local real estate development project called Stafford Place that the GEAI staff had been trying to fund for at least eight months. The previous July, an internal memo describing the trio's ongoing business opportunities included an entry about Stafford Place and referred to a New York meeting with officials of some of Japan's leading banks. Among the banks represented that day was Fuji Bank and Trust, one of GEAI's corporate contributors.
A GEAI document detailing possible meetings in Washington on Aug. 1, 1990, once again lists both nonprofit and for-profit activities on the day's agenda. Among those whom GEAI staff members hoped to meet with that day was Richard Allen, national security adviser in the Reagan White House and now chairman of Federal Capital Bank, formerly Credit International Bank.
Allen was being actively targeted for a leadership role with GEAI, and the memorandum outlining the Aug. 1 meeting makes reference to discussing such a position with him. In addition, the memo says: "Explore likelihood of possible business ventures with Credit Int'l Bank customers."
The July '90 internal memorandum listing current business opportunities reveals that Barker, Schnee, and Baer hoped to include Allen in at least seven of their projects around the world. These included an overseas office/hotel complex, a European golf course, and a state-of-the-art jet-maintenance facility - a multimillion-dollar project that promised a 100 percent return on investment.
Other business projects that RFR, Barker International, and L.H. Baer were trying to develop from the GEAI offices included a Caribbean resort development, and the business opportunities memo notes that Abe Hoppenstein, a member of GEAI's international steering committee who worked for a New York investment banking firm, might be of help. Still, another project that GEAI's triumvirate hoped to involve Hoppenstein with was a Northeastern gold and ski resort. According to the memo, the investment banking firm was willing to give RFR a one percent commission. "Daiwabo director is interested and might want to visit," the memo added.
Sure enough, the Japanese textile firm Daiwabo was also a corporate contributor to the nonprofit organization, and GEAI's staff intended to take full advantage of their contacts. According to the July 18 summary of potential business opportunities, the Daiwabo connection was particularly promising: "Chairman Satoru Arinobe visited the U.S. in April. Likes [Jeremiah Schnee]. We get a 3% commission on the monthly volume of sales of the company's textiles. Possible Central American/Caribbean contacts. Possible buyers are Danskin, Fortunoff, Members Only, J.C. Penney, Phillips-Van Heusen, John Weitz Co., Donna Carron [sic]. Private arrangement where he helps us with Japanese companies and split commission 80/20 between RFR and Daiwabo."
Fortunoff's inclusion on the list of potential buyers was not just happenstance. Documents show that Elliot Mayrock, a principal of the Long Island-based M. Fortunoff of Westbury Corp., which manufactures such things as draperies and garden furniture, had pledged money for GEAI's upcoming conference in China.
This is the way Barker, Schnee, and Baer went about their business: Those who pledged money for GEAI programs were then targeted as potential business partners. According to a May 5, 1990, document detailing the fundraising efforts for "Campaign 21" - an effort by the staff to quickly raise $21 million - Mayrock had pledged $80,000 for a conference in China, $30,000 of which had been received. The memo notes that Mayrock had agreed to join GEAI's international advisory council as chairman of Fortunoff, and he referred his cousin, Josh Green, to Schnee.
Schnee was obviously glad to have such a referral. A document created by him and his two cohorts called "Individuals to Include in Various Business Deals" features this entry: "Children's Video/Animation. Josh Green. Connect him to animators in communist countries. RFR gets 50% of the difference in cost between U.S. animation costs and local costs."
John Haley, chairman of the board of Pace University, was another contact who Barker, Schnee, and Baer found valuable. A July 1990 confidential memo from GEAI President Lev Dobriansky to the organization's officers noted, among other things, that Haley had joined GEAI's international steering committee.
Other documents show that by the time Haley had been awarded his place on that committee, GEAI's staff had already tagged him as a possible participant in two business deals, including one involving a Midwestern chemical manufacturer. The chemical company's president was not only working with Schnee, Barker, and Baer on various for-profit schemes, including a Moscow office/hotel complex, but the three had also enlisted this corporate executive's counsel for GEAI's chairman search committee - even though he wasn't even a member of the organization.
There was a good reason why this person's counsel was being sought: Edward Kime, another member of GEAI's international steering committee, confided that the would-be business partner had "definitely decided" to give money for the organization's upcoming conference in Moscow. The May 18 documents detailing GEAI's fundraising efforts notes about this person: "Ed Kime says, 'The more active, the more $$.'"
And was he ever kept active. The July memo from Dobriansky to GEAI's officers reported that a delegation had recently returned from Moscow in preparation for the organization's upcoming conference there. Among the "prominent Americans" joining the GEAI group were this same chemical company president and J.B. Fuqua.
Fuqua is the chairman of the Atlanta-based sporting goods and garden products manufacturer Fuqua Industries. According to the May 18 fundraising memo, Fuqua was "very interested" in the U.S.S.R. and was looking for joint ventures there. The memo also states that the GEAI staff offered Fuqua the opportunity to be the international chairman of the organization's Moscow conference - for the sum of $75,000. According to this same memo, Fuqua's response when presented the deal was: "I'm listening."
And so it went. The men who piloted GEAI activity recruited high-level business leaders from around the world to make tax-deductible contributions to the organization. The next step was to get these donors to participate in GEAI's policy seminars. Finally, Barker, Schnee, and Baer tried to marry these same people in business deals, for which the trio was promised hefty commissions or finders' fees.
Such dealing raises questions about compliance with IRS regulations. IRS spokesman Domenic LaPonzina would not comment specifically on the activities of GEAI or its three employees, but he would say that, in general, the government requires that there be an "arm's length relationship" between nonprofit and for-profit activities and that individuals not receive "personal inurement" from their affiliation with a nonprofit organization. "Generally, if someone is benefiting personally from the equipment, facilities, or resources of a nonprofit, that's prohibited," said LaPonzina.
The law also says that a nonprofit organization may permit its employees to use the group's facilities for personal profit-making activities but only if those employees pay a fair market rental rate. If the organization doesn't comply, it can lose its nonprofit status - meaning, of course, it can kiss those tax-deductible contributions goodbye. In addition, there may be tax consequences for anyone who used those facilities and didn't pay for them.
There's little dispute that Barker, Schnee, and Baer ran their for-profit businesses from GEAI's offices. The address and fax number on both Schnee's RFR business card and Baer International's letterhead matched those on GEAI's stationery. Facsimile transmissions sent by the three are identified on the top as having been sent from GEAI's machine.
But if the three men were using GEAI's facilities to run their own for-profit businesses, there's no evidence to suggest that the organization required them to pay for these services. Neither is there evidence that the men voluntarily reimbursed the organization. Attempts to reach the three men for comment were unsuccessful.
An internal GEAI document detailing the group's finances for '90 and the outlook for '91 lists outside income from various sources, including corporate membership payments and rental income from a company called MVA. Nowhere in these documents are RFR, Barker International Associates, or L.H. Baer International listed as having made any payments to GEAI in '90, nor is there anything to indicate that GEAI anticipated income from the three firms in '91.
Related links and notes below
Chicago Tribune: Unification Church Invests Heavily Uruguay (December 1994)
Emperor of the Universe video ‘Privatizing’ covert action: the case of the UC / FFWPU
The Imperial Ghost in the Neoliberal Machine (Figuring the CIA)
C-Span videos of Global Economic Action Institute conferences and panels - one of these videos ("Foreign Trade and Domestic Subsidy Policy") features Most Durst
Moon on why he founded the Global Economic Action Institute:
I founded the Global Economic Action Institute to help distribute and re-invest inactive, or "sleeping" money to make it work for the world. A world-level bank is necessary to go beyond the boundaries of any one nation. This bank will not lend to individuals, but only to nations. The world is coming into unity, which means that independent governments will merge into one to be more operable on a global scale. Only global thinking and institutions can solve the world's economic problems.
0 notes
mariacallous · 1 month ago
Text
President-elect Trump has suggested that he will impose a wide-range of tariffs when he takes office, including a blanket tariff of 10–20% on all imported goods, an additional tariff between 60 and 100% on Chinese goods, a 100% tariff on countries within the BRICS alliance if they attempt to undermine the U.S. dollar’s status as a global reserve currency, and a 25% tariff on all products imported from Mexico and Canada. Notably, he wants to impose at least some of these tariffs on day one. Can he impose tariffs that quickly? Potentially, yes.
The executive branch has an unusually broad menu of options when it comes to tariffs—the president is able to dictate tariff rates, which countries and goods they apply to, and when and how to impose them without Congressional approval and sometimes without public input or judicial review. We can’t think of another economic policy issue where the executive has so much power and escapes the checks and balances that apply elsewhere to executive branch actions. This is a choice made by the U.S. Congress. 
To be clear, we—like most economists—have a dim view of unilateral tariffs. Tariffs increase the cost of consumption for domestic consumers, and they inefficiently shift economic activity towards sectors where production is more expensive. Moreover, tariffs often provoke retaliation from our trading partners and escalate into trade wars. Putting the economic issues aside, the proposed tariffs by the president-elect raise procedural and institutional questions about whether and how the executive branch should have the authority to unilaterally impose tariffs, and how quickly it can act. 
The power to impose taxes, including tariffs, unequivocally resides with Congress according to the U.S. Constitution. This authority is essential for funding government operations, such as national defense, public services, and infrastructure. The development of tax legislation—jointly managed by the House Ways and Means and Senate Finance Committees—is a process that ideally includes careful study and public debate and can take months or even years. This means that the legislative process cannot realistically impose new taxes on day one of a new administration.
Tariffs are unusual in that they are a tax that is not implemented by congressional legislation, and thus circumvent a potentially lengthy and deliberative journey through the House and Senate. Instead, tariffs are imposed by executive branch regulation—but unlike most federal regulations, tariffs avoid almost all the legislated guardrails, administrative procedures, and judicial reviews that apply to other executive regulations. This means implementing new tariffs can proceed much more quickly than other significant regulatory actions implemented by the executive branch. How fast depends on which authority Trump chooses to invoke. 
The executive branch has the authority to impose tariffs through two different processes. First, a series of Trade Acts—enacted between the 1930s and 1970s—empower the executive branch to proclaim tariff rates to protect American workers and consumers from unfair trade practices. This is the authority that empowered President Trump to impose limited tariffs on products like solar panels and washing machines during his first administration. To invoke this authority, an investigation is initiated by either the Department of Commerce or the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative to determine whether tariffs are necessary to remedy unfair trade practices. These investigations take some minimal time—including a 30-60 day notice-and-comment period that allows the public an opportunity to raise concerns—meaning that these authorities cannot realistically be used to impose new tariffs on trading partners on day one.
Instead, if President Trump wishes to impose tariffs more quickly, he will likely need to invoke the authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) of 1977. Under the IEEA, Congress grants authority to the executive branch to address “unusual and extraordinary” peacetime threats to national security, foreign policy, or the economy. In May, 2019, President Trump threatened to use the IEEPA to implement  escalating tariffs on Mexican imports in May 2019. He withdrew this threat after Mexico committed to specific measures aimed at curbing immigration. 
Unlike tariffs enacted under the various trade acts, those imposed under the IEEPA bypass departmental reports, reviews, and public notice-and-comment periods. This streamlines implementation but bypasses essentially all regulatory checks and balances. The IEEPA’s speed makes it a likely tool for imposing new tariffs on day one. However, this path also raises legal questions, as seen in 2019, when skepticism emerged over its appropriateness for tariffs on Mexican imports. These criticisms are likely to resurface if the IEEPA is again invoked to justify now-broader tariffs on Mexican and Canadian imports. 
To restore the balance of power, Congress could consider reforms to restore oversight and accountability in trade policy. In a new research brief, we trace the evolution of executive authority in determining tariff rates, highlighting how this authority bypasses the rigorous process that is already in place to provide a check on executive authority to impose other regulations, and we outline what options are on the table to restore oversight. While several bipartisan legislative efforts to address this imbalance have surfaced, they have gained little traction. Without meaningful reform, unchecked tariff authority has the potential to destabilize economic and diplomatic relationships. As the threat of sweeping, unilateral tariffs looms, the need for a more balanced and accountable system has never been more urgent.
7 notes · View notes
blackstarlineage · 2 days ago
Text
Tumblr media
25 Essential Principles for Black Conduct and Empowerment: A Garveyite Perspective
From a Garveyite perspective, Black people must uphold a code of conduct rooted in self-determination, unity, discipline, and economic independence to reclaim sovereignty and build a powerful Black world. Marcus Garvey emphasized that the liberation of Black people requires not just awareness but action, structure, and collective responsibility. Without a solid foundation of principles to guide conduct, Black people remain vulnerable to external control, disunity, and stagnation.
This analysis outlines 25 essential principles that Black people must adhere to for collective empowerment, ensuring that every aspect of life—from personal discipline to political strategy—aligns with Black self-reliance and Pan-African unity.
1. Prioritize Black Unity Over Petty Divisions
Black people must reject tribalism, nationality-based elitism, and class divisions that prevent global solidarity. Whether African, African American, Caribbean, or Afro-Latino, all Black people share a common struggle and destiny.
2. Be Loyal to Black Institutions, Not External Systems
Economic, educational, and political systems designed by non-Black entities often do not serve Black interests. Black people must build, support, and defend their own institutions to ensure self-governance.
3. Maintain Economic Discipline and Group Economics
Black people must spend, circulate, and invest money within their own communities rather than enriching non-Black businesses that do not support Black liberation. Wealth must serve the collective, not just the individual.
4. Reject Begging and Dependency
Garveyism teaches that self-reliance is the key to sovereignty. Seeking validation, reparations without self-building, or constant dependency on non-Black systems keeps Black people weak. We must create solutions, not wait for handouts.
5. Strengthen the Black Family Unit
A strong Black nation starts with strong families. Fatherhood, motherhood, and communal responsibility must be honoured. The intentional breakdown of the Black family is a tool of oppression, and reversing it is a revolutionary act.
6. Guard Black Cultural Identity Fiercely
Black culture must be protected from dilution, appropriation, and distortion. The global media industry manipulates Black culture for profit while degrading its revolutionary potential. Black people must reclaim their spiritual, artistic, and historical identities.
7. Reject Hyper-Consumerism and Materialism
Black empowerment is not measured by luxury brands, flashy lifestyles, or European standards of success. True power comes from ownership, land, and industry—not consumer status.
8. Develop Financial Literacy and Generational Wealth
Black people must prioritize financial education, investments, land ownership, and cooperative economics over short-term spending habits. Financial discipline determines power.
9. Master Self-Defense and Security
Black communities must be physically and strategically protected. Knowledge of self-defense, martial arts, and security strategies is essential to prevent exploitation, gentrification, and violence against Black people.
10. Respect and Elevate Black Women
Black women have always been at the forefront of liberation struggles. They must be honoured, protected, and empowered, while rejecting both misogyny and feminism that devalues traditional African family structures.
11. Reject White Validation and Seek Black Excellence
Seeking approval from white institutions, corporations, or governments weakens self-worth. Excellence must be defined on Black terms, not Western standards.
12. Eliminate Self-Hatred and Colourism
Black people must dismantle anti-Black programming, including colourism, texturism, and Eurocentric beauty standards. Loving Blackness is a revolutionary act.
13. Be Politically Aware but Not Emotionally Manipulated
Black people must engage in politics with strategic awareness, rather than blind emotional allegiance to parties that do not serve Black interests. Power is taken, not asked for.
14. Prioritize African Spirituality and Indigenous Practices
African spiritual systems have been demonized and replaced with religious systems that pacify Black resistance. Black people must reclaim ancestral knowledge and reject systems that promote blind obedience over empowerment.
15. Train Black Youth for Leadership and Legacy
Black children must be educated in liberation philosophy, economic empowerment, and self-discipline from an early age. The next generation must be trained, not just inspired.
16. Reject Degenerative Media and Narratives
Music, television, and films that promote self-destruction, hypersexuality, and violence against Black people must be rejected. Media that elevates, educates, and empowers Black minds must be supported.
17. Demand Accountability from Leaders
Black leaders—whether political, religious, or social—must be held to strict ethical and strategic standards. Personality cults and blind allegiance lead to betrayal and stagnation.
18. Build Pan-African Alliances Instead of Isolating Movements
No single Black community or nation can thrive alone. Black people worldwide must work together to secure land, resources, and industries.
19. Promote Self-Discipline and Mental Strength
A weak and undisciplined mind is easily controlled. Black people must master self-discipline in thought, habits, and actions to create a powerful global presence.
20. Reclaim the Warrior Spirit of Our Ancestors
African history is filled with warriors, revolutionaries, and empires that resisted colonization and slavery. Black people must embrace the warrior spirit rather than glorifying passivity.
21. Master Technology and Control the Digital Space
The future is digital, and Black people must own, develop, and master technology rather than being just consumers. Controlling media, cybersecurity, and AI is critical for sovereignty.
22. Protect and Defend Black Land and Resources
Black communities and nations must protect their land, agriculture, water sources, and raw materials from foreign control. Land ownership equals power.
23. Reject Integration as the Ultimate Goal
Integration into white society is not liberation. The goal must be nation-building, sovereignty, and Black self-governance, not assimilation.
24. Reject Criminality and Sabotage from Within
Internal destruction—whether through gang violence, betrayal, or corruption—keeps Black people weak. Code of conduct, integrity, and accountability must be upheld.
25. Make Black Consciousness and Excellence the New Standard
Mediocrity, victimhood, and aimless entertainment must be replaced with a culture of Black excellence, Pan-Africanism, and mastery of knowledge and power.
Conclusion: The Path to Black Sovereignty Is Discipline, Strategy, and Unity
From a Garveyite perspective, the liberation of Black people is not a dream but a responsibility. Without a strict code of conduct, discipline, and self-determination, Black people will remain vulnerable to exploitation, division, and external control.
Marcus Garvey built the largest Black organization in history because he understood that power comes from order, strategy, and a clear set of guiding principles. These 25 rules serve as a modern framework for achieving Black sovereignty, economic independence, and Pan-African unity.
The question is: Will we have the discipline to follow them?
37 notes · View notes
Text
The Truth About Donald Trump’s Return to Power: What It Means for America, Its Systems, and the World
Donald Trump’s return to the U.S. presidency has sent shockwaves through political, social, and economic spheres, both domestically and globally. His recent actions, policies, and rhetoric reflect deep systemic fractures within the United States—fractures that have been long in the making but are now being fully exploited. The truth is stark: Trump’s resurgence is not merely about a political comeback; it is a symptom of deeper systemic issues that threaten democracy, global stability, and the future of governance as we know it.
What’s Happening Right Now: Key Actions and Their Immediate Impact
Since his return to office, Trump has wasted no time in enacting sweeping changes that directly challenge the foundations of U.S. institutions. His administration’s key actions include:
1. Pardoning January 6 Insurrectionists
• Trump’s mass pardon of those convicted for their roles in the Capitol riot signals a normalization of political violence. It undermines the judiciary, emboldens extremist groups, and sets a dangerous precedent where those who act violently in support of a political agenda face no consequences.
• Meaning: This action effectively rewrites history, framing insurrectionists as “patriots,” which legitimizes further extremist actions and weakens faith in the rule of law. It suggests that political loyalty can override justice.
2. Aggressive Nationalist Immigration Policies
• Declaring a “national emergency” at the southern border, deploying military forces, and revoking protections for migrants have created an environment of fear and hostility. The move caters to Trump’s base but also exacerbates human rights concerns and diplomatic tensions with neighboring countries.
• Meaning: This policy reveals systemic failures in immigration reform, highlighting how fear-mongering and xenophobia can be weaponized for political gain while ignoring the root causes of migration.
3. Dismantling Climate Commitments
• Withdrawing from the Paris Climate Agreement and promoting fossil fuel expansion places short-term economic interests over long-term environmental sustainability.
• Meaning: It highlights how corporate influence and short-sighted economic policies take precedence over scientific consensus and global responsibility, reinforcing the failure of capitalism to address existential crises like climate change.
4. Attacking Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Initiatives
• Trump’s executive orders to eliminate DEI programs within federal agencies and universities reflect a cultural backlash against progress in social justice.
• Meaning: The move signals a larger societal shift towards exclusion and inequality, reflecting the systemic resistance to addressing historical injustices and a desire to maintain existing power structures.
5. Media and Information Control
• Trump has intensified his influence over conservative media outlets, while allies such as Elon Musk have reshaped social media platforms to favor right-wing narratives, restricting dissenting voices.
• Meaning: This further erodes public trust in information sources, exacerbating polarization and creating a society vulnerable to propaganda and misinformation.
What It Really Means for America: The Systemic Failures at Play
Trump’s return is not an anomaly—it is a manifestation of several deep-rooted systemic issues that have gone unaddressed for decades. These include:
1. The Collapse of Institutional Trust
• From Congress to the judiciary to the media, Americans have lost faith in the institutions meant to serve them. Trump’s populist rhetoric exploits this distrust, offering simple, authoritarian solutions to complex problems.
• The Reality: Decades of corporate influence, partisan deadlock, and economic inequality have eroded democracy’s credibility, paving the way for authoritarian figures like Trump to flourish.
2. Economic Desperation and Inequality
• Wealth disparity in the U.S. has reached extreme levels, with middle and lower-income Americans feeling left behind. Trump’s policies appeal to those who feel economically marginalized, promising prosperity through nationalism and deregulation.
• The Reality: Neoliberal capitalism has failed to create economic equity, leading many to support leaders who scapegoat minorities and globalization rather than addressing systemic economic reform.
3. The Weaponization of Fear and Identity Politics
• Trump’s strategy hinges on deepening cultural divides, using fear to mobilize support. Immigration, race, and gender issues are framed as existential threats, distracting from more pressing systemic challenges.
• The Reality: America’s unresolved racial and cultural tensions create a fertile ground for authoritarian politics, showing a failure to achieve true social cohesion.
4. Democratic Fragility and Legal Loopholes
• The U.S. Constitution, designed centuries ago, is struggling to contain modern threats like disinformation, corporate influence, and partisan radicalism. Trump’s actions highlight how easily democratic guardrails can be eroded when unchecked.
• The Reality: Without systemic reforms—such as electoral integrity measures and campaign finance regulation—democracy remains vulnerable to demagogues.
What It Means for the Rest of the World
Trump’s policies and actions do not occur in isolation. They have far-reaching global consequences, including:
1. The Erosion of Global Democratic Norms
• As the U.S. retreats from leadership in global democracy, autocratic regimes in countries like Russia, China, and Hungary find justification to further suppress dissent and expand authoritarian control.
• Global Impact: The decline of American democratic leadership emboldens anti-democratic forces worldwide.
2. Geopolitical Instability and Isolationism
• Trump’s withdrawal from international agreements and his aggressive “America First” policies create diplomatic rifts with allies, weakening collective responses to issues such as climate change and global security threats.
• Global Impact: The world becomes more fragmented, with rising nationalism leading to trade wars, resource competition, and diplomatic tensions.
3. The Global Far-Right Resurgence
• Trump’s influence transcends borders, inspiring right-wing movements across Europe and Latin America that adopt similar nationalist, anti-immigrant, and anti-globalization rhetoric.
• Global Impact: A rising tide of authoritarian leaders threatens human rights, media freedom, and multilateral cooperation.
4. Climate Catastrophe Acceleration
• Trump’s reversal of environmental policies impacts the global climate effort, making it more difficult to meet international targets and worsening the already severe climate crisis.
• Global Impact: Developing nations bear the brunt, facing more frequent natural disasters and economic instability.
What Can Be Done: Individual and Collective Action
The situation is dire but not irreversible. Addressing the systemic issues that have enabled Trump’s return requires:
1. Strengthening Grassroots Movements
• Local community organizing can counter top-down authoritarian policies by fostering inclusive, democratic participation.
2. Pushing for Systemic Reforms
• Electoral reforms, economic justice measures, and climate policies must be prioritized to prevent further authoritarian creep.
3. Holding Media Accountable
• Combating misinformation requires strengthening independent media and pushing for responsible regulation of social media platforms.
4. Global Solidarity
• International cooperation and activism can counter nationalist isolationism, promoting collaborative solutions to shared global challenges.
Conclusion: A Defining Moment for America and the World
Trump’s resurgence signals a defining moment, not just for the U.S. but for the global order. It forces us to confront the deep failures of democracy, capitalism, and governance. Recognizing this moment as both a warning and an opportunity is crucial. Society must collectively decide whether to address these systemic failures or allow them to spiral into irreversible authoritarianism.
The fight for democracy is not over—but it requires awareness, action, and an unwavering commitment to systemic transformation.
6 notes · View notes
Text
Reproductive violence targets women's ability to control their own bodies, using cultural, religious, and legal means to restrict access to contraception and abortion. Feminists argue that this form of control is a global issue, with men and institutions seeking to maintain power over women by limiting their reproductive choices. The radical feminist critique of sex work often emphasizes the exploitation of women. Feminists argue that while protecting sex workers is important, there must also be efforts to dismantle the industry that exploits them. The focus is not on criminalizing the workers but on targeting the pimps and johns who profit from women's vulnerability. This critique calls for deeper social and economic support systems that give women the opportunity to choose livelihoods free from exploitation. The idea of radical feminism being labeled as "transphobic" for questioning certain practices around gender underscores the tension between different feminist movements. Issues like women 's sports, lesbian spaces, and child sterilization are contentious within these debates. Often, it is men who enforce these ideologies within liberal feminist spaces, policing women 's thoughts and actions. This dynamic reflects historical patterns of men controlling the discourse around women 's rights and spaces. "Who hurt you?" It s a question designed not to seek understanding but to trivialize. The implication is always that her pain is her problem, a flaw in her, not something to be considered or empathized with. And this isn t an isolated phenomenon—it happens over and over. But what does it say about the culture we live in, that this is such a common reaction? No, we don 't want to criminalize sex work and then just walk away, patting ourselves on the back. Sorry, but we actually care about women, and we want these women to be safe and not have to sell sex to have food and shelter. women…That's it.
Tumblr media
5 notes · View notes