#that's why despite many of us support the right of Israel to fight back we treat Israel with great caution

[unhonestlymirror]

Zelensky: Ukraine recognises both Israel and Palestine. Israel has the right to defend itself but Ukraine is also ready to help Palestinians if they seek help.

Ukrainians:

Ukrainians: Zelensky is truly Jewish.

[mariacallous]

The GOP chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee was bullish Friday on the chamber delivering U.S. military assistance to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, despite the “brainwashing” of some within his caucus who oppose foreign spending because of the crisis at the southern border.

Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) said Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) was committed to eventually moving President Biden’s national security supplemental request, though the pathway remains unclear amid fierce pushback from the far right of the GOP.

Speaking during a discussion hosted by the Christian Science Monitor in Washington, D.C., McCaul said Johnson faces two challenging options: bring the supplemental to the floor and face a potential move to oust him from the far right, or let Ukraine backers in the party force the vote and undermine his power.

“I think that’s going to be a difficult choice for him, because if they’re threatening a motion to vacate, it’s a tough decision,” he said, referring to the rule that allows one member to force a vote on removing the Speaker from his position.

“I don’t see anyway of getting out of Israel, Indo Pacific and eventually Ukraine coming to the floor. He’s either going to have to do it — put it on the floor himself — or it’s going to be by virtue of a discharge petition, which is a complete evisceration of his power, because it basically says we’re going to do this without the Speaker being in charge,” the chairman continued.

Lawmakers could “discharge” legislation if a majority of members signed onto a petition to release it – a difficult path that would require most Democrats teaming up with at least a handful of Republicans. While Republicans hold a slim majority, Democrats could lose members of their own party in a discharge petition vote over progressive opposition to sending U.S. military support for Israel.

McCaul said Democrats would struggle to win over Republicans, even if they are supportive of Ukraine.

“I think Republicans supportive of Ukraine wouldn’t support a discharge, because it’s really going around leadership altogether,” McCaul said.

On the other side of the conference, McCaul said convincing the GOP’s Ukraine skeptics to back the supplemental would also be an uphill fight. 

“There are some [House Republicans] that I don’t think can be persuaded, because the narrative is so strong. I think the sort-of brainwashing, if you will, that we have to choose between our southern border and Ukraine, has been out there. I don’t agree with that,” McCaul said . 

“I think it’s a false dichotomy. We’re a great nation, and we can do both. I live in Texas. But I think we have to explain to the American people why Ukraine is a national security interest; it directly impacts China and has an impact with Iran and our adversaries.” 

House leaders said the Senate-passed $95 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan was “dead on arrival” earlier this month. Johnson has rejected the bill outright because it doesn’t include changes to immigration policy, despite House Republicans also killing a bipartisan Senate deal on the border. 

McCaul said there’s urgency to pass some sort of aid for Ukraine that would impact Ukrainian plans to launch another counteroffensive against Russia by April. He said the House is likely to focus on funding the U.S. government before a March 8 deadline and then focus on passing more aid for Ukraine.

“On the urgency, I think there are many of us who understand that, but there are many who don’t. I know that April’s been the time frame for Ukraine for another potential counteroffensive,” he said.

“They may have to delay it by a month or two, depending on how soon this can all be put in place.”

McCaul described Johnson as “committed” to providing military assistance to allies abroad, saying the Speaker takes his advice, along with that of the chairs of the House Intelligence and House Armed Services committees.

“He does draw on us as his national security resource,” he said. 

But the final form of any package is still up in the air. McCaul was critical of a proposal floated by Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) on Friday laying out changes to immigration policy that could be linked to foreign military assistance, saying it was not “well thought out.” 

But he said there are some changes to the Senate-passed foreign aid package that could make it more “palatable” for critics, including former President Trump. 

Trump effectively killed the bipartisan immigration-Ukraine proposal to prevent President Biden from scoring a political win ahead of the November election.

“[Trump has] a lot of control over my party, no question about it. Whatever he does say, it either would encourage, or motivate, or give them cover,” McCaul said when asked if lawmakers are seeking the former president’s approval before coming out for or against the national security supplemental.

“I do think the House is going to want its own imprimatur on this; we’re not going to just rubber-stamp the Senate supplemental,” McCaul said.

He suggested some changes that could bring more supporters on board, such as adding to any supplemental the “REPO Act,” a bill that would use frozen Russian assets in the U.S. to pay for Ukraine’s reconstruction, and looking into whether economic assistance for Ukraine could be delivered as a loan.

Trump and his supporters have criticized U.S. economic assistance to Ukraine, of which about $18 billion has gone to help pay the salaries of health care and education professionals, and pensions.

While a provision in the Senate-passed national security supplemental blocked economic assistance to pay for pensions, McCaul suggested budgetary support for the Ukrainian government could also be listed as a loan, but he spoke out against conditioning military assistance as a loan.

“I think this loan program could be very helpful. And I know there’s been some progress with the former president to talk about this, that I think can be helpful as well. But at the end of day, I believe there’s a majority in the House that will pass this. It just has to come to the floor.”

[sparklingichigo]

Drama Intensifies

Part 13

Now here we are in the final scene. Reika and the Shadow King finally joined forces turning a big dragon and they flew up, against the Devildom's ground. Sure this is shocking, suddenly they hear a loud thump. A certain angel has been summoned.

Sandalphon : So... what did I miss?

Michael: That- [points into that big dragon]

Sandalphon: Ah, like the old times. It's been a while, shadow king.

Shadow King: ???? What? Who are you?!

Sandalphon: One of the Cherubim angels. So, are we gonna fight or what?

Reika: You're on!

Sandalphon: Before that- [creates a wall between himself and the others]

Michael: Are you sure you don't need help?

Sandalphon: Certainly not, Michael. The other Cherubim angels are on their way as well. So if there's more earthquake don't mind us^^

Michael: Okay! We'll count on you, Sandalphon!!

Sandalphon: I'll do my best!

And so the battle begins. The others have zero idea what's going on because of Sandalphon's wall hindering them from seeing everything despite flying. But one thing, this angel is definitely winning.

Haruka: ...What now?

Simeon: Unsure, let's just let him do his thing.

Solomon: Can I just-

Asmo: No! That's dangerous! Are you crazy?!

Tidus : Let's just...introduce ourselves. I'm Tidus and this is my wife, Yuna.

Yuna: Hello, everyone! It's very nice to meet you^^

Warrior of Light: As you know, my name is warrior of light^^ it's very nice to meet you kids.

Luke: I'm not a kid???

Zidane: Oh, how old are you?

Luke: .... 10? In human age... but 885 in angel age....

Zidane : pfft, you're actually a kid. I'm 16.

Luke: Stop calling me that!

Noctis: Ehem! Everyone, my name is Noctis. Heir to the Lucian Throne.

Diavolo: Oh a royal as well! I'm Diavolo, soon to be king of Devildom!

Solomon: Heh, already a king right here! King of Israel!

Ichigo: Ex. Ex-King of Israel.

Solomon: I'm still a king!

Ichigo: And I don't give a sht!

Tina: Uhm... Hi everyone, I'm Tina^^

Asmo: She's so pretty! Hi, Tina! I'm Asmo! We're gonna be good friends!

Tina: W-we are?

Asmo: If you want to ^^

And so on, basically, they're all bonding on Ichigo's dragon. Luckily Violet is fine with them being on top of her. Of course, the other oldies are with Merlin, on his dragon Kilgharrah. As they were talking, another earthquake happens.

Haruka: I'm gonna see what happened.

Lucifer: Haruka no! That's really dangerous!

Haruka: I'll be fine. Fenrir is with me and he'll protect me!

Lucifer: Fine, Satan, go with her.

Satan and Simeon: What?!

Satan: Why are you shocked as well?!

Simeon: You tell me!

Lucifer: ...Unfortunately, I only trust Satan at this point. Because my other brothers... are reckless.

Beel: I'm not re-

Lucifer: and in this case, a certain someone wouldn't let you-

Ichigo: Me? I'm fine with it. If you want Beel to go with her.

Lucifer: My decision is final.

Haruka: ...Fine.... Guess Satan will get on Fenrir with me.

Haha, of course, Simeon doesn't like any of this. Ichigo and the twins are cracking up because it's too funny. So are Mammon and Levi. So here they are, Haruka and Satan on Fenrir looking at the battle.

Satan: Wow, he did summon another one.

Haruka: Indeed... and it's quite an intense battle.

Fenrir: It is, Princess. I think we should come back soon.

Haruka: Why so?

Fenrir: THAT THING IS ABOUT TO ATTACK US!!

Satan: Sht! Get down, Fenrir! Now!!

Luckily Fenrir flies down all the way back to them. Sandalphon is shocked by the sudden shot. Did someone come there? Perhaps one of their strategies. Oh well. Back at the safe space, Haruka and Satan are both scared shtless. They almost died because of that shot!

Lucifer: What happened?!

Satan: That thing saw us... and shoot us...

Lucifer: I told you going there was a bad idea!

Haruka: I know...I know.... I think she notices my appearance and wants to fight me.

Solomon: Why would she fight you? Isn't her target Ichigo and I?

Haruka: Well....yeah... it's a long story actually. So technically Reika and I are sisters, she's my evil twin considering her acts.

Solomon: So?

Ichigo: Uhm... there are also twins who are getting along just well.

Haruka: Not the point. But I'll just battle this. Since she already hurt you guys and I can't have it!

Ichigo: Then I'll go too! Her target is me, not you! We'll do it!

Solomon: I'm surrounded by crazy chicks!

Ichigo: Yes you are^^ Now our final form?

Haruka: Final form^^

With that Ichigo and Haruka transform into their final form. Ichigo ends up in a pink-black outfit while Haruka turns into a white mage with a crystal wand.

Luke: Whoa! That's so cool!

Lucifer: Are you sure you don't want any help from us?

Ichigo: Certainly not. Sure I might summon you guys for battle but for now, I don't think so. You guys did well.

Beel: Don't die!

Ichigo: I won't or at least I'll try to.

Warrior of Light: For now, we'll give you backup powers. All of us!

With that Haruka's knights connect all their powers and give her more into that crystal wand. Of course, Merlin supports her granddaughter by giving her his powers.

Merlin: Here is mine, Please use them well.

Ichigo: Thanks a lot Grandpa, I won't let you down!

Haruka: Fenrir! Take us there!

Fenrir: Yes, your highness.

Fenrir finally took Ichigo and Haruka to the battle field. Of course Sandalphon and his cherubim angels are still battling the Azazel dragon a.k.a Reika and Shadow King's union. Once they arrive, Reika suddenly comes out with a psycho grin.

Reika: Oh, you're here. Finally, the battle I've been looking for, especially with you.

Ichigo: ...can you like specify....? Because there's like three of us. Are you battling the wolf? Me? Haruka? Who?

Fenrir: I'll go help Sandalphon, I don't think her target is me.

Haruka: Alright^^ Good luck, Fenrir!

As soon as Fenrir runs towards the Sandalphon's area. Reika obviously charges towards Ichigo first considering she's her target. Luckily Ichigo summons her flame sword to parry that sword. Of course, Reika being Reika forces the sword into her further.

Ichigo: Heh, you're so motivated to kill me, are you?

Reika: Yes. Because you deserve death.

Ichigo: Go on then, kill me. [parries the sword and luckily removes that sword]. I'm done. I'm done with all your bullsht, Reika. You go "oh I'm gonna kill Ichigo" but here we are. I'm not dead yet!

Reika: Oh, I will certainly kill you.

Ichigo: Do it. I don't have my sword now. Come on, coward

Reika getting riled up summons her sickle to finally kill her once and for all. She's about to throw it at Ichigo. Ichigo anticipates her death right now until someone blocks the attack.

Merlin: STAY AWAY FROM MY GRANDDAUGHTER!!

Reika: See! This is why I haven't killed you yet! Let go, you old man!

Ichigo: Grandpa... why can't you just let her kill me....?

Merlin: Because you're my granddaughter that's why. Now allow me^^ [throws the sickle far far away]

Ichigo: Grandpa... [sigh]

Meanwhile, in the safe space, everyone hears a loud thump. There are so many explosions they don't even know who's winning!

Beel: Lucifer, you have to let me get in there! Please!!

Lucifer: I can't let you do that! That's really dangerous!

Beel: But-

Satan: Dad, you gotta let me in. She might be dead anytime soon!

Diavolo: ....uhm....have you guys seen Merlin?

Barbatos: pfft-

Diavolo: What?

Barbatos: Rest assure everyone, we have hope^^

Diavolo: You're telling me...Merlin joins them?

Barbatos: He is, as a good grandpa that he is^^

Back at the battlefield, Merlin and Ichigo both joined forces to battle Reika. Haruka luckily has finally defeat Reika's clone. Of course, Reika summons her sickle again to battle them.

Merlin: [sigh] Time to summon my most powerful weapon.

Ichigo: What do you mean?

Merlin: The one and only... [Pulls out his magical sword] This, we'll use this to battle her.

Reika: Ha! Guess she did lose after all. Such a weakling.

Ichigo: Do you like...wanna check your cloning?

Reika: What do you mean?!

Ichigo: That thing is destroyed and so will you! Grandpa, use the sword!

Reika: Not so fast!

Just like that Reika ends up battling Merlin, she did use the illusion magic but Merlin knows well where she was. He's just giving her a chance until Merlin smirks and freezes her in place.

Reika: What?! How?! How is it possible?! How?!

Merlin: Because this sword will kill sinners and sinners only, and you're one of them. [slashes her]

With that Reika has finally disappeared with a scream and a big explosion, unfortunately, Sandalphon is still battling with Shadow King. Hearing the explosion, Shadow King checks what happened and he finds Reika exploding.

Shadow King: No!! Reika! HOW DARE YOU, LOWLY SORCERER!!

Merlin: Low? Really? Me? Low? I literally just killed your partner.

Shadow King: You will pay for this!

Sandalphon: [sigh] Everyone, please take cover. This world is gonna explode.

Ichigo: What?!

Fenrir: Come on, let's go! Both of you!

Ichigo and Merlin get on top of Fenrir but they can't seem to find Haruka.

Ichigo: Fenrir! Where's Haruka?!

Fenrir: Simeon caught her, let's go.

Once they return, Simeon is still healing Haruka with Michael's help. Fenrir also tells them the news that the world is gonna explode.

Lucifer: The world is gonna what?!

Simeon: Come again?!

Fenrir: That thing is so mad, he's gonna blow up the world and that wall is not going to hold it back.

Solomon: Human world! We'll go to the human world!

Lucifer: Hurry! Solomon! Open the portal!

Solomon: Might as- SHT! THAT THING IS SHOOTING AT US!

Lucifer: Hurry up!!

Ichigo: [sigh] Let me!

Both Solomon and Ichigo create a big portal to help them.

Ichigo: EVERYONE GET INTO THE PORTAL NOW!!

Noctis: What about us?!

Ichigo: YOU TOO! COME ON, GO!!

So with that, everyone hurriedly enters the portal, entering the human world. Luckily everyone is saved and none are injured. The angels have returned to heaven. Now this leaves the humans and demons. Unfortunately, Devildom is now gone, leaving it in a pool of lava.

Diavolo: I can't believe we went on battle just because of a petty reason....

Lucifer: Indeed... I'm sorry about Devildom.

Diavolo: It's okay.... at least we're now in the human realm. I'm sure Devildom will renincarnate.

Lucifer: I'm sure of that too.

Ichigo: Now what?

Beel: Human world food!!

Ichigo: Sure, I'm kinda hungry as well.

Belphie: Heh, never thought of the day of seeing Ichigo wearing short shorts.

Ichigo: It's 32 degrees Celcius! It's hot!

Asmo: You know what else is hot?

Ichigo: Hm?

Asmo: THAT MAN! [points at Solomon in his summer outfit]

Ichigo: ....ew

Haruka: ew indeed.

Solomon: What?!

Haruka: I prefer to stare at this anyway-

Simeon: Hm? Me?

Haruka: Yeah...^^

Belphie: Perhaps my twin brother?

Ichigo glances at Beel in his human world outfit. Alright, this is time for Ichigo to die....slowly...

Ichigo: ....uh....

Warrior of Light: Everyone! I'm sorry for interrupting your talk, but we have to return to our home soon^^

Lucifer: Our apologies. We do get distracted a lot.

Luke: So soon???

Noctis: Yeah! This kid is cool!

Luke: I'm not a kid!!

Noctis: can't you just focus on the nice stuff?!

Lightning: Unfortunately, Noctis, we need to go^^

Noctis: But we're in the human world though-

Warrior of light: We're in the wrong universe though. We should come back soon.

Noctis: Psh. You're no fun! Fine!

Warrior of Light: Well, it's good knowing you all^^ Farewell, Michael, Lucifer.

Michael: Farewell^^

Lucifer: Have a safe journey.

At the same time, Diavolo, Ichigo, and Merlin have to part as well. Sure he can stay with them but that'd mean exposing his identity.

Ichigo: Do you really have to go?

Merlin: I mean... I can stay but that'd mean exposing my identity to the whole world. So I have to go on a nomad. I'll visit though.

Ichigo: I see...

Diavolo: Do inform if you're visiting. I'm sure to make the best welcome party for you!

Barbatos: M'lord-

Merlin: I'm sure to inform you guys! But off I go now! See you all soon!

With that Merlin and the knights from Haruka's world left them with their own portal.

Tina: I'm gonna miss you all!! Especially you, bestie!!

Asmo: Samme!! Please visit though!! I'll do your hair! and your nails and-

Solomon: Shut up.

Asmo: and your makeup!!

Tina: Me too!! We can switch outfits too!!

Warrior of Light: Tina!

Tina: Y-Yes sir, my apologies!

Warrior of Light: Come on, we're late.

Once the portal closes, this leaves the devil dom citizen and the angels.

Diavolo: You know...Warrior of light reminds me of both of you.

Lucifer: Both of- nooo! Michael and I are totally different!

Michael: Yep! 100% difference.

Solomon: Are you sure?

Lucifer and Michael: SHUT UP!!

Diavolo: indeed, twins. Right, Rosaria?

Rosaria: Indeed. Twins.

Satan: ....does that mean Michael and Rosaria are my uncle and auntie?

Lucifer: ....

Michael: .....

Rosaria: ....

Solomon: Great, you broke all three of them!

Lucifer: I don't think I can sleep tonight...

Michael: Same...

Rosaria: What?!

Michael: Hahaha, just ignore him. He's probably unfocused today. Wanna go shopping?

Rosaria: Human world shopping?! Yes!

Now back to our couple. Of course, Ichigo is dying inside because Beel is teasing her right now while Simeon and Haruka are relaxing beneath the tree.

Belphie: I'll just go... yeah... [leave the area] wait I can't even sleep. It's too hoooot!!

Haruka: Hey Belphie, you can sleep beside me!

Belphie: Aaa thank you!! It's too hot and here we are! [sleeps beside Haruka]

Simeon: Well.... we need to find a place soon because we can't possibly sleep on this grass.

Ichigo: Well that's true, we need to get a place soon.

Belphie: Yea, sleeping on grass is uncomfortable!

Lucifer: I actually....have a place here^^

Simeon: You do?

Lucifer: I do! A mansion actually to fit all six of my brothers and some guests... sometimes Lord Diavolo.

Satan: I didn't know you were rich...

Lucifer: Why do you think Mammon always tries to get my wallet?

Satan: touche.

Lucifer: Luckily, it's not that far from here so we can get there soon.

Michael: Oh that's good! Because... I got banned from the celestial realm by Father for 3 months... Because of engaging some sins...

Simeon: Same.... unironically it's only the three of us.

Luke: ....That's really biased....

Haruka: ....Lucifer.... can I stay in a hotel instead?

Lucifer: ??? Why?

Haruka: Because I wanna stay with Simeon...?

Lucifer: With Simeon?

Haruka: Yes.

Lucifer: Well you guys are fiance, it's only fair.

Lucifer: Wait- Fiances?! Since when are you guys engaged?!

Simeon: ....months ago....?

Michael: Probably more.

Lucifer: Oh, I didn't no- Satan... are you okay?

Satan: ....y-yeah I'm fine. Haha.....

Ichigo: Here. [gives him tissue]

Satan: no, no, no I'm fine.

Ichigo: Bruh-

Beel: There there [pats Satan's shoulder]

And everyone, that's how Devildom got destroyed.... well reincarnated. So here they are in Lucifer's mansion while the angels and Haruka stay at the hotel.

Ichigo:....why are you staying at the hotel? And with him???

Haruka: Because....

Asmo: oh ho ho ho ho~ What are you gonna do there~

Simeon: Asmodeus!

Asmo: Who knows, perhaps Simeon is more sinful~

Michael: Asmodeus Morningstar!

Asmo: Alright, alright, okay!

Simeon: Get your head out of the gutter, Asmo.

Asmo: I'm the avatar of lust, it's impossible~

Asmo: But certainly someone is free to do sins in the mansion~ I can smell how turned you are because of Beel's outfit.

Beel: Asmo!

Ichigo: What- no!

Belphie: I mean... if you want to-

Ichigo: Belphegor!

Solomon: Watch everyone in the mansion hears screams from their room.

Lucifer: [smacks Solomon] Keep your dirty thoughts to yourself!

Michael: Lucifer, Rosaria and I are going to the hotel, okay?

Lucifer: Sure! See you around, twin brother!

Michael: ...Lucifer acknowledges me!

Lucifer: Shut up!

Rosaria: There there^^ We'll be off now.

Lucifer: Have a safe trip^^ You too, Simeon, Luke.

Simeon: Thank you, Lucifer. I wish the same for you. Come on, Haruka.

Haruka: Bye everyone!!!

Luke: Byeee!! We'll visit!!

Ichigo: :(( I'll miss you, Luke!!

Luke: I'll visit!! It won't be far!

Ichigo: [sighs in relief] Oh that's good. I can visit you!

Luke: You can!

Simeon: Luke... come on^^

Luke: o-o oh no [catches up to them]

Now this leaves Ichigo, Barbatos, Diavolo, and the seven brothers. They're now on their way to the human world mansion. Satan unfortunately is still sad because of what he sees. Belphie and Asmo comfort him of course but Satan prefers to be alone.

Asmo: That poor guy, he seems to be so heartbroken. I feel bad...

Belphie: It's for his own peace too. Despite his change.... Haruka is still with Simeon so he can't.

Solomon: Unless....

Asmo: Don't you dare! [smacks Solomon]

Solomon: I haven't finished!

Asmo: Are you implying her to be like you?! To have multiple lovers?!

Solomon: May- [gets smacked by Ichigo]

Ichigo: She's not like you. Stop trying to make people into a polyamorous person.

Beel: Certainly not. She's pretty much loyal to whoever her lover is. For now, I might do what Asmo said.

Asmo: Hm?

Ichigo: What?! Beel! Wtf?! [got carried away to their room, help]

Asmo: oooh! Oh my Lord! Don't forget the silencing spell!!

Solomon: Holy sht-

Belphie: What-

Lucifer: [facepalms]

Asmo: OML...he locked the door-

Solomon: ..... where are the angels when we need them....

Yeah.... that's pretty much it! We'll see you in our sequel "human world adventures". See you guys soon~^^

[arcticdementor]

Some rambling, poorly-organized thoughts on state structures

On the recent nationalism and nations discussion, I don't want to give the wrong impression of my views, lest I seem like some sort of dedicated supporter of homogenous ethnostates.

After all, I've repeatedly said that it seems like practically nobody actually believes in Westphalian sovereignty anymore.

I get that nationalism creates a lot of problems, particularly in the wake of the breakup — or especially, carving up by outsiders — of a multiethnic, multicultural empire. The nigh-impossibility of fitting political borders to the human geography (thus usually leading the human geography to be forcibly transformed to match the political borders instead).

I mean, just earlier this month, when reading about the "highest" High German dialects, I wiki-walked my way into reading about the mess that was post WWI South Tyrol — a mess created by Woodrow Wilson's hard-on for "national self-determination" (and ignorance of the actual demography) — how one guy (Ettore Tolomei) created Italian place names to replace all the Austrian ones, and how its (Austro-Bavarian) German-speaking majority eventually faced the choice of either forced Italianization under the Fascists or relocation to Nazi Germany.

Or this recent thread at the Motte about the history of the Balkans from a couple of natives thereof, with, again, plenty of blame for Woodrow Wilson's dismantlement of the Habsburg domains.

Plus, I've seen plenty of people, left and right, argue that much of the problems of the Middle East are due to how the Western powers, and particularly Britain, carved up the failing Ottoman Empire (and yes, for many of the left-leaning ones, the creation of the modern state of Israel is at or near the top of that list).

One can also see all the messes in the former Soviet Union — Moldova, Transnistria, Ossetia, Abkhazia, Crimea, the Donets Basin, Nagorno-Karabakh, et cetera — as a similar "breakup of an empire" mess.

On the other hand, though, I also recall people once arguing that one of the major harms European colonialism inflicted upon Africa in "the scramble" was carving out territories and drawing up borders willy-nilly, without concern for the existing ethnic, linguistic, and cultural groupings — causing some groups who identified as one people to be split apart in some cases, and in others causing differing groups with historical animosities to be forced together. And further, that "fixing" this would involve African nations reorganizing themselves along ethno-religio-cultural-linguistic lines. (I have a further aside on this I may write-up later.)

And multi-ethnic empires have their own issues. Sure, some have allowed the constituent ethnic groups a fair amount of autonomy, such as the Ottoman "millet" system. But others, not so much — look at what happened to Gaulish and the other continental Celtic languages under Roman rule; or "Hanification" in China.

In multi-ethnic empires, there's always one central, ruling ethicity — usually the one that founded it. And there's a general extractive flow of wealth from the periphery to the core, and from subject peoples to the ruling people (when this flow reverses, and the ostensible rulers are instead paying the other peoples, is often when the Empire begins failing — note that it was the Turkish national movement that ultimately overthrew the Sultan). Plus, said rulers often play the subject peoples against each other.

In short, nationalist states have some problems, empires have some different problems.

Someone in one of the reply chains also made reference to Medieval kingdoms; particularly, to the idea that a ruler was "King of France" — because that's where the bulk of the territory he held was located — rather than "King of the French" — ruler of a specific people. The kind of thing that led to situations like the Spanish Netherlands, Norman Sicily, the King of England also being the Elector of Hanover, the kings of Sweden and Poland each claiming to be the rightful monarch of both territories, and so on.

Despite that, there's much to favor in such a thing. But, as so many people keep reminding me when I bring up my monarchist views, this was the product of a number of specific preconditions. First, the utter disintegration of the western Roman Empire, leaving mostly just hyper-local identities — particularly once the Germanic migrations stopped, and the Franks and Goths assimilated to their local subjects.

Second, that the kings, particularly at the start of any given dynasty, and even sometimes well into the Early Modern period, were basically warlords — I recall reading one historian refer to Gustavus Adolphus as "the worst kind of sociopath," and another argue that the life story of Henry VII is, in its broad strokes, basically the same as any number of Latin American dictators. Look at Clovis I, Harald Hardrata, or William the Conqueror, or…

Third, this state of affairs was also a product of the comparative weakness of those kings. Because, for quite some time, pretty much any local baron who owned a castle was a power to be reckoned with, and kings were often more "first among equals" with these lords — see King John, the Magna Carta, the Barons' War, and so on. This was a product of the military technologies of the time; effective war-fighting was by highly-trained, heavily-equipped elite cavalry — knights — who were expensive… but not so expensive that local lords couldn't afford to maintain an effective retinue of them. Defensive fortifications like castles were highly effective, and slow and costly to besiege.

Then cannons and early firearms came along, which actually served to centralize power — kings were able to use them to take more power and authority from the aristocracy, leading to the replacement of decentralized feudal structures with royal absolutism (and a growing central bureaucracy to run and manage said centralized government). Then later firearms made the average commoner with little training into an effective war-fighter — thus "the Age of the Gun" and resulting democratization of the centralized state.

I'll admit, it's hard to see a pathway back to that sort of mid-level balance — where neither the numbers of the common masses nor the deep pockets of a centralized state provide much advantage in war over a localized petty elite. The "Age of the Gun" may have ended, but our current military modes (with multi-million-dollar equipment) again favor the centralized state — either a nation-state or an empire — over both local authority and the common citizen. Some argue that 4th-generation warfare might see a return of "people power" (though I have my doubts); and I've seen others debate how expensive effective autonomous weapons of a coming "Age of the Drone" might prove, and thus what scale of political organization it favors.

Then there's the city-state, which has even more local autonomy, and which seems to be in many ways a preferable manner of organization. But the problem there, is that they almost always run afoul of the economies of scale in war-fighting. There's a reason those feudal barons, for all their power, ended up pledging fealty to one king or another, and even in the modern era, unless you either have somehow obtained WMDs with an effective long-distance delivery system, or are under the protective aegis of a larger polity with such, a lone city-state is just too easy to push around militarily, if not de-facto conquer.

Sure, Nick Land argued that while nuclear-tipped ICBMs will remain out of reach for microstates, we can expect city-states to proliferate again once DNA technologies mean they can have a WMD deterrent in the form of "$1000 smallpox" or other bioweapons. I don't suppose I have to tell you, particularly now, why having hundreds of labs around the world manufacturing and storing virulent and deadly man-made plagues does not sound like a good idea to me.

Going all the way back to Westphalia, again, I'd like to note that the key principle there was not anything about nationalism directly, but about religion — ending the generations of bloody post-Reformation wars with the "truce" principle of cuius regio, eius religio. That the religion of each state was the business of its government and its government only, and that it's no longer a ruler's place to intervene in a neighboring ruler's territory to rescue the souls of his subjects from vile heresy with fire and sword.

There's a certain echo of this in the proposals of certain libertarian, ex-libertarian, and libertarian-adjacent left-wing people of a loose confederation of microstates wherein, in an example of exit-over-voice, people are free to relocate so as to sort themselves on ideological (compare to religious) lines. Friedman's seasteads, Yarvin's "patchwork," and Alexander's "archipelago" all come to mind as core examples. But these have a number of issues. First, the ways in which they presuppose a level of mobility, of ability and willingness to relocate, that I find unrealistic to expect from much of the population. I note here that it seems to be a very specific sort of person who recommends this sort of solution.

Second, it very much requires a Westphalian live-and-let-live, what happens in the patch next door is none of my business no matter how wrong I believe it to be, attitude. But replace "one true faith" with "universal human rights" and saving souls from heresy with "humanitarian intervention," and we see that, like I said before, such a spirit is quite dead — "all it takes for evil to triumph…", "an injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere", et cetera. Like we saw with Libya, unless you have the WMD-MAD means to prevent it, expect the superpower to enact "regime change" on you if your way of life somehow offends their particular "universal" orthodoxy.

TL;DR: nation-state, empire, feudal kingdom, city-states, patchwork — it's trade-offs all around.

[hatari-translations]

Dancer interview on A Song Called Hate - translation

This interview in Fréttablaðið, published the day after the premiere of A Song Called Hate (but taken before it), features Andrean, Sólbjört and Ástrós discussing the film, their experiences in Israel and Palestine, the stress of the spotlight, and their passion for human rights.

A difficult reckoning after Eurovision

Andrean Sigurgeirsson, Ástrós Guðjónsdóttir and Sólbjört Sigurðardóttir, the dancers of the band Hatari, say the premiere of the documentary *A Song Called Hate*, which was shown at Reykjavík International Film Festival last night, brings mixed feelings. The film is about Hatari's participation in Eurovision 2019 and the controversial placement of the contest.

As the nation knows, Hatari went to Tel Aviv on Iceland's behalf last year and caused a kerfuffle by holding up banners with the colors of the Palestinian flag on the live broadcast on the night of the finals. "I still avoid thinking about the final night and the feelings I was experiencing," says Sólbjört, who believes she had a nervous breakdown that night.

"It was really hard being out there and I was afraid I'd never see my child again and couldn't get home." The experience of irrational anxious thoughts was synonymous with the stay in Israel. "That's why it's been uncomfortable to think about."

Processing the experience

The dancers are all still processing the experience of the trip. "I realized later that I'd disconnected from my emotions just to get through what we were doing."

Andrean agrees and says he's still taking in this test of endurance. "I think there's a certain group of people that only see the glamour shots and don't know how difficult this has been for us, both emotionally and professionally as artists."

Ástrós is the only one who has seen the documentary from beginning to end, but the others say they haven't been able to bring themselves to watch it yet. "I've only seen a fraction of it and it tore open all these difficult feelings," says Sólbjört, who preferred to be surprised by it in the arms of friends and family.

"It was uncomfortable looking back. There's still so much you're processing and have been avoiding thinking about for some time," Ástrós muses. She says it was strange to experience these things again from the outside. "But it also gives you a good distance from what happened."

All eyes on them

When it was clear that Hatari would go to Israel, the artistic team became the center of the media and public discourse in Iceland in one fell swoop. "It happened so fast, all eyes were on us and you got scared of making some misstep," Andrean admits.

Everyone had an opinion on the act, and friends, acquaintances and strangers were divided, for or against, participation or boycott. Andrean thinks people don't necessarily realize how difficult it is to be the target of so many opinions. "You just get so confused and want to listen to everyone and please everyone, but still trust your own beliefs and sense of justice."

Wanted to fight this battle

Sólbjört and Andrean both went out with the aim of unveiling the whitewashed image that Israel had drawn up of the contest. "You decide to fight this battle, and then you become aware of how your friends and loved ones also have opinions, which don't necessarily rhyme with your own," says Andrean. Even within the group there were arguments about the best way to support Palestine. "We wanted the cause to be in the foreground, and there were endless back-and-forths about what would be the best way to do that," Sólbjört adds.

"Most of us really wanted to see it up on stage, but of course that never would've been seen because of the playback [delay], so we decided to act when we were live for real," says Andrean. They did the best they could in the situation. "We waited and waited for the camera to be on us and then finally we got that chance towards the end of the televote points."

Sólbjört says she was terrified that night, and in fact for the entire trip. Nonetheless, she never doubted fighting for the cause, even if sometimes her emotions took over.

Privilege blindness gone

Ástrós had a somewhat different experience from the other dancers. "I'd been to Israel before, and didn't originally go for the cause, but for the trip and getting to work with them." But once they were out there, her purpose changed, after the team traveled around Palestine.

"When we visited the refugee camp in Bethlehem, there was some transformation within me." People told stories of their lives, and it made Ástrós think. "I couldn't help thinking about the injustice of these women having to give birth in dirty alleys, while we have all this privilege back home."

As the youngest member of the group, Ástrós had never had to face her privilege before. "It really cut me deep how unfair it was that I'd been born into this white privilege and had never even had to think about human rights as a question." When she looks back, the feelings come flooding back. "Number one, two and three, I just re-experience how unjust the situation is out there," she says, visibly emotional.

Forced people to see

But it wasn't only Ástrós who learned from this experience; the whole group experienced the importance of foregrounding the Palestinian struggle in the contest. "That was the reason we participated in Eurovision and the reason we made this movie," says Sólbjört.

Andrean agrees. "I've always been an activist at heart and fight passionately for human rights to be respected and human dignity to be upheld."

Despite a blend of good, bad and horrible days, the three of them don't regret taking part. "It forced people to see what was being hidden, and that's why it was worth it," says Ástrós.

It raised awareness and pushed people to take a stance on an issue that would otherwise have been easy to ignore. "It also got various activist organizations to consider if this is a good way to create a conversation about big issues." Andrean feels art is often underestimated on that stage. "Art gets people to think outside the box, and I think the union of activism and art worked out well in this context."

Sent the singers to their rooms

The dancers also hope it's clear that all of the group's decisions were taken as a group. Even though the band was the face of the team, all voices were heard. "People varied in how radical their ideas were," says Andrean, who fought strongly for the waving of the banners.

"I really remember how I'd stuck the flags under my underwear and in my socks and I thought everyone had." That turned out not to be the case and Andrean had to send the singers back to their rooms to get their banners. "It was kind of a circus at times."

The constant presence of the camera also disrupted things to some extent. "We could never be alone, we were constantly being watched," says Ástrós. As a result, sometimes they had to repress their emotions. "The focus was on supporting the fight for human rights and showing what it was like, more than taking care of our mental health and our soul as a group."

The fight is not over

Personal conflicts within and without the group are not the main subject of the documentary. "I think people will be surprised that it's not just about us and the drama around Eurovision, but a much bigger and wider-scope problem," says Sólbjört. The film is largely about the oppression that comes with daily life in Palestine. "What I learned from this, and hope others see too, is that human rights matter for everyone, always, and it's not justifiable to look the other way," says Ástrós firmly.

The premiere of the film marks a certain reckoning with this time, among the dancers and the others on the team. "We're still in contact with Palestinian artists who plan to come to Iceland when the situation allows, so perhaps this is the end of one chapter and the beginning of another."

Hatari's act didn't stop the bombing of Gaza or the illegal settlements in Palestine, but opened the door for conversations and collaboration. "Even though this act is at an end, human rights are still being trampled in Palestine and we hope people continue to be aware of it and take a stand." The fight isn't over. "We just hope the film continues to draw attention to it."

[newstfionline]

Friday, June 4, 2021

America’s Biggest Companies (Fortune) Fortune magazine released its annual ranking of America’s largest companies, with Walmart topping the list for the ninth straight year. Boosted by the pandemic-driven consumer shift to online and bulk purchasing, the retail behemoth brought in nearly $560B in revenue. The company was followed by Amazon ($386B in revenue), Apple ($275B), CVS Health ($269B), and UnitedHealth Group ($257B). The combined list generated almost $14T in revenue last year—about two-thirds of the US economy.

Drought ravages California’s reservoirs ahead of hot summer (AP) Each year Lake Oroville helps water a quarter of the nation’s crops, sustain endangered salmon beneath its massive earthen dam and anchor the tourism economy of a Northern California county that must rebuild seemingly every year after unrelenting wildfires. But now the mighty lake—a linchpin in a system of aqueducts and reservoirs in the arid U.S. West that makes California possible—is shrinking with surprising speed amid a severe drought, with state officials predicting it will reach a record low later this summer. While droughts are common in California, this year’s is much hotter and drier than others, evaporating water more quickly from the reservoirs and the sparse Sierra Nevada snowpack that feeds them. The state’s more than 1,500 reservoirs are 50% lower than they should be this time of year, according to Jay Lund, co-director of the Center for Watershed Sciences at the University of California-Davis. If Lake Oroville falls below 640 feet (195 meters)—which it could do by late August—state officials would shut down a major power plant for just the second time ever because of low water levels, straining the electrical grid during the peak demand of the hottest part of the summer.

Miami Faces the Hard Choices of Climate Change (NYT) Three years ago, not long after Hurricane Irma left parts of Miami underwater, the federal government embarked on a study to find a way to protect the vulnerable South Florida coast from deadly and destructive storm surge. Already, no one likes the answer. Build a wall, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers proposed in its first draft of the study, now under review. Six miles of it, in fact, mostly inland, running parallel to the coast through neighborhoods—except for a one-mile stretch right on Biscayne Bay, past the gleaming sky-rises of Brickell, the city’s financial district. The dramatic $6 billion proposal remains tentative and at least five years off. But the startling suggestion of a massive sea wall up to 20 feet high cutting across beautiful Biscayne Bay was enough to jolt some Miamians to attention: The hard choices that will be necessary to deal with the city’s many environmental challenges are here, and few people want to face them. The trouble is that the magnitude of the interconnected obstacles the region faces can feel overwhelming, and none of the possible solutions are cheap, easy or pretty.

A deadly vote (Washington Post) TAXCO, Mexico—Mario Figueroa sat in his armored SUV, surrounded by bodyguards clutching semiautomatic rifles. The bulletproof vest was stashed behind the back seat. These days, Figueroa rarely travels without his security team. As a candidate for mayor of this Spanish colonial city—once popular with American tourists, now lashed by drug violence—the 53-year-old businessman has already taken a bullet in the chest. Mexico is in the final days of one of its most violent electoral campaigns in modern times. Eighty-nine politicians have been killed since September, according to the security consulting firm Etellekt. Scores more have been wounded or threatened. The campaign has become a stark illustration of crime organizations’ quest to expand their control of Mexico’s territory. The violence has focused largely on races for mayor and other local government posts. “They want control of the police, control of public works projects, the budget, and illicit activities,” said Marcial Rodríguez Saldaña, the state leader of Morena, the party of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. “We’ve reached an extreme,” Figueroa said.

US troops storm sunflower oil factory in Bulgaria (Foreign Policy) The owner of a sunflower oil factory in Bulgaria has taken legal action after U.S. soldiers accidentally stormed his business during a NATO training exercise. The mix-up occurred while soldiers were simulating the clearing of an airfield in southern Bulgaria, and continued on to Marin Dimitrov’s factory, where workers watched on as gun-wielding soldiers stalked through the premises. The incident has led to a rebuke from the highest levels with Bulgarian President Rumen Radev calling it “absolutely unacceptable.” “We always learn from these exercises and are fully investigating the cause of this mistake,” the U.S. embassy in Sofia said in a statement.

Beijing Introduces Three-Child Policy (Foreign Policy) On Monday, China announced that married couples would be allowed to have up to three children, raising the official two-child limit in a widely anticipated move. Despite government hopes, the introduction of the two-child policy in 2016 failed to produce a baby boom. It’s unlikely the latest policy change will affect China’s fertility rate, either. The public has responded with mocking contempt toward the idea that government restraints have held parents back from having more children, rather than the exorbitant costs of child rearing in China—from migrant families forced to pay fees for local public schools to upper-class parents who fear their children will fall behind without flute or calligraphy lessons. So why keep a limit on the number of children a couple can have at all? One reason is to provide cover for the ongoing forced sterilization of the Uyghur minority in Xinjiang, whose birthrate fell by nearly 50 percent between 2017 and 2020. Another is that China now has an enormous family planning bureaucracy that supports many jobs. Party leaders may also be concerned that the rich flaunting large families—such as late Macao casino tycoon Stanley Ho, known for his four wives and 17 children—would spark resentment.

Lebanese leaders exchange barbs as country sinks into crisis (AP) Lebanon’s president and prime minister-designate traded barbs Wednesday, accusing one another of obstruction, negligence and insolence in a war or words that has for months obstructed the formation of a new government as the country sinks deeper into economic and financial crisis. The power struggle between the premier-designate, Saad Hariri, on one side and President Michel Aoun and his son-in-law Gebran Bassil on the other, has worsened despite warnings from world leaders and economic experts of the dire economic conditions tiny Lebanon is facing. The World Bank on Tuesday said Lebanon’s crisis is one of the worst the world has seen in the past 150 years. In a late night burst of anger, protesters blocked main roads in Beirut and north of the capital. A young activist told a local TV station the protest was against the constant humiliation of Lebanese who line up to fill their cars with fuel, increasing power cuts, search for medicine and deal with confused banking decisions that are robbing thousands of their savings. The Lebanese pound, pegged to the dollar for 30 years at 1,507, has been in a free fall since late 2019. It is now trading at nearly 13,000 to the dollar at the black market.

Netanyahu opponents reach coalition deal to oust Israeli PM (AP) Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s opponents announced Wednesday that they have reached a deal to form a new governing coalition, paving the way for the ouster of the longtime Israeli leader. The dramatic announcement by opposition leader Yair Lapid and his main coalition partner, Naftali Bennett, came shortly before a midnight deadline and prevented what could have been Israel’s fifth consecutive election in just over two years. The agreement still needs to be approved by the Knesset, or parliament, in a vote that is expected to take place early next week. If it goes through, Lapid and a diverse array of partners that span the Israeli political spectrum will end Netanyahu’s record-setting but divisive 12-year rule. Netanyahu, desperate to remain in office while he fights corruption charges, is expected to do everything possible in the coming days to prevent the new coalition from taking power. If he fails, he will be pushed into the opposition. (Foreign Policy) While a new government is not yet set in stone, normal business carries on: Benny Gantz arrives in Washington today to request $1 billion in emergency military aid in order to replenish Israel’s Iron Dome defenses and help restock its bomb supply following the bombardment of Gaza. “I would imagine that the administration would say yes to this request and it will sail through Congress,” Senator Lindsey Graham said on Tuesday.

In Syria camp, forgotten children are molded by IS ideology (AP) At the sprawling al-Hol camp in northeast Syria, children pass their days roaming the dirt roads, playing with mock swords and black banners in imitation of Islamic State group militants. Few can read or write. For some, the only education is from mothers giving them IS propaganda. It has been more than two years since the Islamic State group’s self-declared “caliphate” was brought down. And it has been more than two years that some 27,000 children have been left to languish in al-Hol camp, which houses families of IS members. Most of them not yet teenagers, they are spending their childhood in a limbo of miserable conditions with no schools, no place to play or develop, and seemingly no international interest in resolving their situation. Only one institution is left to mold them: remnants of the Islamic State group. Kurdish authorities and aid groups fear the camp will create a new generation of militants. They are pleading with home countries to take the women and children back. The problem is that home governments often see the children as posing a danger rather than as needing rescue.

‘Come On In, Boys’: A Wave of the Hand Sets Off Spain-Morocco Migrant Fight (NYT) Daouda Faye, a 25-year-old migrant from Senegal, was elated when he heard that Moroccan border guards had suddenly started waving in undocumented migrants across the border to Ceuta, a fenced-off Spanish enclave on the North African coast. “‘Come on in, boys,’” the guards told him and others as they reached the border on May 17, Mr. Faye said. Normally, Morocco tightly controls the fenced borders around Ceuta, a six-mile-long peninsula on Morocco’s northern coast that Spain has governed since the 1600s. But now its military was allowing migrants into this toehold of Europe. Over the next two days, as many as 12,000 people flowed over the border to Ceuta in hopes of reaching mainland Spain, engulfing the city of 80,000. The crisis has laid bare the unique pressure point Morocco has over Spain on migration. Spanish government officials and other experts say Morocco increasingly sees the migrants as a kind of currency and is leveraging its control over them to extract financial and political prizes from Spain. Hours after the migrants began pouring into Ceuta, Spain approved 30 million euros, about $37 million, in aid to Morocco for border policing.

A Military Drone With A Mind Of Its Own Was Used In Combat, U.N. Says (NPR) Military-grade autonomous drones can fly themselves to a specific location, pick their own targets and kill without the assistance of a remote human operator. Such weapons are known to be in development, but until recently there were no reported cases of autonomous drones killing fighters on the battlefield. Now, a United Nations report about a March 2020 skirmish in the military conflict in Libya says such a drone, known as a lethal autonomous weapons system—or LAWS—has made its wartime debut. But the report does not say explicitly that the LAWS killed anyone. The assault came during fighting between the U.N.-recognized Government of National Accord and forces aligned with Gen. Khalifa Haftar, according to the report by the U.N. Panel of Experts on Libya. “Logistics convoys and retreating [Haftar-affiliated forces] were subsequently hunted down and remotely engaged by the unmanned combat aerial vehicles or the lethal autonomous weapons systems such as the STM Kargu-2 ... and other loitering munitions,” the panel wrote. The Kargu-2 is an attack drone made by the Turkish company STM that can be operated both autonomously and manually and that purports to use “machine learning” and “real-time image processing” against its targets.

[skypalacearchitect]

Dozens have already died in the fighting between Israel and Hamas, and more will perish if the fighting continues to escalate.

But there is little chance that the root cause of all this death — the long-running political status quo in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict — will be altered in the slightest. Israeli-Palestinian warfare has become routinized; it follows a familiar script that repeats itself endlessly.

Since Hamas took control of the Gaza Strip in 2007, there have been three full-scale wars and numerous rounds of lower-level fighting. But the basic structure of the conflict — Israel’s blockade of Gaza and occupation of the West Bank, and Palestinian rule divided between Hamas in Gaza and the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank — has remained remarkably durable.

It would seem as if the current round of violence emerged out of a complex series of events in Jerusalem, most notably heavy-handed actions by Israeli police and aggression by far-right Jewish nationalists. But in reality, these events were merely triggers for escalations made almost inevitable by the way the major parties have chosen to approach the conflict.

Both Israeli and Palestinian leadership have basically accepted the painful political status quo in Gaza, seeing the violence and humanitarian suffering it causes as bad but basically tolerable as part of an effort to secure their hold on power. Israel’s leadership bears particular responsibility: As the most powerful actor in the conflict, it has the greatest ability to break the pattern. But the factions in control of Israel’s government have strong ideological and strategic reasons for keeping the Gaza policy in place.

As a result, the underlying status quo will likely outlive this conflict, guaranteeing more violence.

“It’s like the worst version of Groundhog Day,” says Khaled Elgindy, the director of the program on Palestine and Palestinian-Israeli affairs at the Middle East Institute. Leaders “just put a Band-Aid on it and we go back to the pre-crisis normal.”

It’s a horrible equilibrium, one in which “manageable” levels of violence stand in for doing something to actually improve the lives of Israelis or Palestinians. It is also a direct result of the deepest political structure governing the current Israeli-Palestinian conflict: the iron hand of Israeli control over the West Bank and Gaza’s border.

The Israeli-Palestinian doom loop

The current violence began with a series of conflicts in Jerusalem.

Israeli police in the city blocked off the Damascus Gate, a popular gathering place for Arabs during Ramadan, sparking protests. An attempt by Jewish settlers to evict longtime Arab residents of Sheikh Jarrah, an Arab neighborhood of East Jerusalem, inflamed tensions, leading to violent clashes with Israeli police. Arab youth attacked ultra-Orthodox Jews in the city, and Jewish extremists assailed Arab residents. All of this culminated in a violent Israeli police raid on the al-Aqsa Mosque, Jerusalem’s holiest site for Muslims, located on the Temple Mount (the holiest site in the world for Jews).

Then Hamas fired rockets at Jerusalem. Ostensibly, this was a display of solidarity with the protesters on the ground. But it appears to have been a political calculation — Hamas attempting to capitalize on Palestinian anger over the violence in Jerusalem to expand its own influence, especially in the wake of recently canceled Palestinian elections that likely would have strengthened its political position.

“This is much more about internal Palestinian politics than it is about what’s been going on in Jerusalem,” says Michael Koplow, policy director at the Israel Policy Forum.

The attacks on Jerusalem crossed what Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu referred to as a “red line,” breaking the unspoken rules that limited the pace and range of rocket attacks to limited barrages mostly targeting southern Israel. Israel responded with overwhelming force: massive airstrikes targeting Hamas emplacements in densely populated Gaza. This prompted more rocket attacks from Hamas and, in turn, more bombings from Israel. As a result, at least seven people in Israel and around 70 Palestinians are dead — with no end in sight.

But while the events that led to this point are unique, the broader pattern of events is not. This week’s violence is part of a recurring pattern determined by structural factors in the conflict. If the events in Jerusalem hadn’t prompted Hamas rocket fire and Israeli escalation, something else almost certainly would have.

“The most likely scenario is unfortunately the one we’ve been in for the past 15 years,” says Ilan Goldenberg, the director of the Middle East Security Program at the Center for a New American Security.

Goldenberg co-authored a report in 2018 documenting what he terms “the cycle of violence” between Israel and Hamas. It documents the ways in which the political status quo is arranged in a way that makes frequent violent flare-ups all but inevitable.

The stage is set, Goldenberg and his co-authors say, by the policy approaches of both sides. Israel aims to minimize the threat posed by Hamas and other militant factions, imposing a harsh blockade on Gaza that limits the flow of goods and people into the territory. Hamas aims to cement its hold on power and expand its influence relative to its Palestinian rivals, seeing violence against Israel as a key tool in this struggle. This creates an underlying reality in which fighting breaks out again and again.

“Eventually, humanitarian and economic pressure builds inside Gaza, and Hamas escalates its use of violence both to generate domestic political support and to pressure Israel to ease the economic situation,” they write. “Israel responds with its own escalation, including military strikes inside Gaza and punitive economic measures that further choke the Strip.”

Once the fighting starts, it’s not clear how much it’ll escalate. Sometimes it ends swiftly and with minimal loss of life. Other times — as in 2008 to 2009, 2012, and 2014 — it turns into an all-out war, with hundreds of (mostly Palestinian) casualties. The current fighting is rapidly moving in that direction, with Israeli leaders pledging to continue the bombardment of Gaza indefinitely.

“The IDF [Israel Defense Forces] will continue to strike and bring complete silence for the long term,” Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz said on May 12.

Ultimately, the warring parties either unilaterally decide to stop bombing or else agree to an internationally brokered settlement that does little to change the fundamental dynamics. This is the nature of current conflict: Many people die, and many more suffer, without any real prospect for change.

“The question isn’t why this keeps happening,” Elgindy says. “It’s why anyone isn’t doing anything to prevent it from [continuing to] happen.”

The doom loop has deep roots in Israeli politics

It’s clear that that this status quo produces horrors. The problem, though, is that these terrible costs are seen as basically tolerable by the political leadership of all the major parties.

Hamas continues to be able to rule Gaza and reaps the political benefits from being the party of armed resistance to Israeli occupation. Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas appears cowed by Hamas’s power — most analysts believe he canceled the Palestinian election because he thought he would lose — and so is content to let Israel keep his rivals contained in Gaza.

Israel is the most powerful actor of the three: It controls access to the Gaza Strip and operates a military occupation in the West Bank. If the Israeli leadership wanted to take actions to short-circuit the cycle of violence, like easing the blockade of Gaza, it could. But despite the persistent rocket threat, the leadership isn’t willing to try something new.

Why?

The last time I was in Israel, on a reporting trip in November 2019, I spoke with Yehuda Shaul, the founder of Breaking the Silence, a group that helps Israeli soldiers tell their stories about service in the Palestinian territories. He told me that the traditional categories used to describe politics — left, right, and center — are fundamentally inadequate when it comes to explaining what happens in Israel.

These days, he argues, most of Israel’s leadership falls into what he terms the “annexation” camp or the “control” camp.

The annexationists are Jewish extremists, who want to formally seize large chunks of Palestinian land while either expelling its residents or denying them political rights — ethnic cleansing or apartheid. The “control” camp, which includes current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, sees things primarily through the lens of military and physical security: how the Palestinians are ruled is less important than minimizing the threat they pose to Israeli lives.

“The driving principle [of the control camp] is a national security idea,” Shaul explains. “We are in a zero-sum game: Between the river and the sea, there is room for one sovereign power. It’s either us or the Palestinians.”

The status quo in Gaza serves both groups. From the annexationist view, keeping the Palestinians weak and divided allows Israeli settlements to keep expanding and the seizure of both the West Bank and East Jerusalem to continue apace. Lifting the blockade on Gaza, and working to promote some kind of renewed peace process involving both Hamas and the Palestinian Authority, jeopardizes the agenda of “Greater Israel.”

“It is Israeli policy to fragment Palestinians politically and geographically, to isolate them into these different areas. It’s classic colonial strategy of divide and conquer,” Elgindy says.

Meanwhile, the “control” camp sees this as the least bad option. Any easing of the Gaza blockade would risk Hamas breaking containment and expanding its presence in the West Bank, which would be far more dangerous than the rockets — a threat heavily mitigated by Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system. In this analysis, periodic flare-ups are a price that has to be paid to minimize the threat to Israeli lives — with heavy escalations like this one required to restore a basically tolerable status quo.

I witnessed one of these flare-ups on the same trip where I met Shaul, reporting from Israel and the West Bank as Israel and Hamas exchanged fire. After a few days of mayhem and air raid sirens, life just went back to normal in Israel — as if nothing had happened, as if dozens of Palestinian lives had not just been snuffed out (there were no Israeli deaths in that round).  

“A lot of the Israeli security and political establishment has sort of internalized this idea that ... there’s a sort of stable equilibrium,” says Koplow. “You get occasional rockets, and Israel will respond with a few missile strikes on Gaza, but it happens very occasionally and things immediately quiet down.”

For much of Israeli history, a third camp — which Shaul calls the “equality” camp — presented a different vision for achieving Israel’s security needs. Epitomized by Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin’s government formed in 1992, it believed that Palestinians deserved a political voice as a matter of principle — either in a single state or, more typically, through a two-state arrangement. Such an agreement would sap Palestinian support for violent groups like Hamas by taking away the population’s underlying grievance: the lack of a state to call their own.

Yet the equality camp practically collapsed after the failure of the peace process and the second intifada in the early 2000s. Its political vehicles among Israeli Jews, the Labor and Meretz parties, make up a little more than 10 percent of Israel’s current Knesset (parliament). The result is indefinite occupation with no end in sight; no fundamental rethinking of the approach to either Gaza or the West Bank.

“As a society, the view is that the risks necessary to solve [the conflict with the Palestinians] are not worth it and it won’t work,” Goldenberg says. “So all we can deal with is the problem in front of us today, without really thinking long-term. We’ll deal with the other problems tomorrow — that’s basically the Israeli attitude.”

None of this excuses Hamas from its role in escalating the current conflict, or makes the deep divisions between Palestinians themselves less significant. The status quo is not only Israel’s fault.

But the Israeli government sets the terms for how Israelis and Palestinians interact, the underlying policy architecture that shapes the options available to the various sides.

So long as the annexation and control camps are in the driver’s seat in Israel, it will pursue policies that aim to maintain control over Palestinian land while simultaneously minimizing the security threats intrinsic to the enterprise of military rule over a hostile population. The Gaza situation is an outgrowth of this reality, the sort of policy that one pursues in a world where a more fundamental revision is ideologically foreclosed.

Barring some international intervention, it’s hard to see how things get much better — and easy to see how the same terrible things keep happening, over and over again.

[go-redgirl]

President Trump Is the Hero of 2020 Townhall.com ^ | December 27, 2020 | Jeff Croue

President Trump Is the Hero of 2020

Townhall.com ^ | December 27, 2020 | Jeff Crouere

Posted on 12/27/2020, 10:36:43 AM by Kaslin

Last week, we asked the listeners of the Ringside Politics program to nominate their “Heroes” and “Zeroes” of 2020. This is an annual exercise that always elicits excellent nominations. This year was no exception as 2020 has been eventful, disturbing, and extremely challenging. Everyone is eagerly anticipating the arrival of 2021 and the hope of better times ahead.

Over the past year, a multitude of people distinguished themselves as “Zeroes,” but very few took the type of courageous action necessary to be identified as “Heroes.” In this extremely elite group, one person stood alone, President Donald Trump, so it is only right that he received the overwhelming majority of votes from our audience.

While our listeners appreciated his leadership, President Trump was denounced and maligned by powerful forces throughout the year. The mainstream media continued to treat him as an enemy and coverage of the President was almost uniformly harsh and negative.

The president was attacked not only by the media but also by every conceivable element of the Deep State. After facing a three-year, phony, Russian collusion investigation, the president was subjected to an impeachment hoax. This outrage was engineered by a leaker, who was politically motivated to create a firestorm that eventually resulted in the president’s impeachment.

Thankfully, the president was acquitted, but the whole episode was a needless distraction and another way for the Deep State to attack the Trump agenda. It was inflicted on the president despite a “perfect” phone call to the Ukrainian president.

Of course, there should have been an investigation related to Ukraine, but it should have revolved around former Vice President Joe Biden’s threats to withhold U.S. loan guarantees until the prosecutor investigating his son was fired. Fortunately for Biden, powerful Democrats are immune to prosecution from a Department of Justice that has been used to target President Trump and his allies.

Once the president survived impeachment, he was immediately thrust into the Covid-19 pandemic. Displaying extraordinary leadership, he created the Coronavirus Task Force and spearheaded the effort resulting in the manufacturing of tremendous supplies of personal protective equipment for healthcare workers and ventilators for patients in serious condition.

His “Operation Warp Speed” has been universally credited, even by Biden, for the creation of several vaccines that were approved for widespread use in record time. This will possibly save millions of lives; however, the President receives mostly condemnation from the media and his innumerable political enemies for his handling of the pandemic.

Due to Trump’s leadership, our economy came roaring back from the depths of the Covid-19 recession by Election Day and the American people rewarded the president with over 74 million votes. It broke the record for most votes for a sitting president and was 11 million more votes than he received in 2016.

Clearly, he won the election, but it was stolen from him by corrupt Democrats in a variety of swing states. As the president fights this electoral fraud, the base of the Republican Party is solidly behind his efforts. Not surprisingly, the power structure in D.C. is opposing him at every turn. His legal challenges have been dismissed at every level of the judiciary, including the Supreme Court. He is also not receiving much support in Congress and practically none in the U.S. Senate.

Sadly, this is nothing new for the president. He withstood opposition in Congress to support the Keystone pipeline and our oil and gas industry, which resulted in our country becoming energy independent for the first time in decades. With no help from Congress, the president secured funding to build a 450-mile wall on the southern border.

The president also negotiated four peace deals with Israel and former enemies in the Arab world, as well as a historic agreement between Kosovo and Serbia. For his remarkable accomplishments, the president received four Nobel Peace Prize nominations.

While he destroyed the ISIS caliphate and ordered military operations that killed several terrorist leaders, the president wants to bring our troops home and end the endless wars. This “America First” platform fulfills his campaign promise, but it has generated tremendous opposition among the military industrial complex and the political establishment of both parties.

While the powerful insiders in Washington D.C. want war, President Trump wants peace through strength. He has rebuilt our military because he does not want to use it unnecessarily in far-flung places around the globe.

Only President Trump could have accomplished what he did in 2020, the finest year of his remarkable term. No other president has faced as many enemies as Donald Trump, as he received constant attacks from the Democrats, the Deep State, and foreign leaders, even from many that are supposedly U.S. “allies.”

What is truly remarkable is that the president was regularly criticized and opposed by congressional Republicans, even though he is tremendously popular with the rank-and-file membership of the GOP. Too many Republican leaders have lost their connection with their constituents and are beholden to the Washington D.C. bureaucracy and powerful special interest groups. The president is a threat to the D.C. establishment and the tenured class in the Beltway hate Donald Trump for what he has done to challenge their power.

As usual, the president and his 74+ million deplorables are together, while the swamp is firmly against them. If he does not succeed in his electoral challenges and must leave office, he should exit in a blaze of glory.

His veto of the defense bill and his stated opposition to the horrible coronavirus relief package show the American people his commitment to his promises. The president wants the American people to receive relief, but Congress wants to cram the bill with unacceptable pork and give crumbs to the suffering pandemic victims.

No other president would have stood up for the American people and taken on Congress and the Deep State. As usual, President Trump stands alone, which is why he has earned our Ringside Politics Hero of the Year award.

TOPICS: Culture/Society ;Editorial;Politics/Elections

KEYWORDS: 2020-election;opwarpspeed; president trump

____________________________________________

OPINION: President Donald John Trump has done more for America and its citizens than the past twenty Presidents in our life time.👑

[ocasio2018]

why did AOC endorse bernie?

if you don’t get why AOC endorsed bernie, here’s why.

after the last debate, news broke that AOC was going to be bernie’s special guest at his queensbridge rally this saturday, and not only that, she was going to endorse him! i was beyond myself with glee - i was nervous abut which choice she’d make. i had been wondering whether she would continue to be the woman (queen) i knew her to be, or if that dumbass NYT write-up was right; she’s learning to go along to get along in the corrupt House of representatives.

despite the naysayers, within and outside of the party, our girl was still repping US. that meant backing bernie in this fight --  the man who has repped us since before most of us were born. he has vision, integrity, and a bulletproof value system that cannot be swayed by corporate interests and deep-pocketed donors, unlike the majority of the democrats (see: mayor pete’s medicare-for-all stance in april versus now). despite its political inconvenience and a legion of #neverbernie haters, she aligned her values with her actions (that’s integrity, folks).

but then it quickly dawned on me that so many of the folks that i admire on twitter were not going to be happy.

for reasons that are unclear to me, there’s a huge movement to get behind AOC’s message while simultaneously rejecting bernie. a bizarre position, given that she’s been unabashed in her admiration of his message, campaigned for him in 2016, & feeling moved by his movement. he is her ideological forebearer.

still, i knew that the blue dog dems, liberals, and ‘you go girl!’ twitter would be pissed. EW has replaced HRC as the coronated candidate. let me be clear. warren is brilliant, down to earth, and more than fit for this job. she has an authenticity about her and ability to connect that makes you want to root for her. she and bernie are usually aligned on issues and are good friends irl. warren is a progressive. still.

warren has been wishy-washy on medicare for all, is pro-israel-no-matter-what, & unabashedly pro-capitalism. none of that shit is cool, ok? ultimately, it makes me trust my gut that bernie is the candidate who will remain the most dedicated to the world that i envision; an anti-war, progressive society that takes care of its residents despite nationality, race, gender identity, income, and all intersections between. this is a fight for the future of our country and i’m riding with the dude who’s been in the cut for decades.

for those reasons, i’m bernie 2020. given that i’ve seen almost every single AOC interview, i had an inkling that she would be the same. & then she was! but here’s the thing - for some folks, there’s a huge disconnect. they don’t get it. they see bernie and think:

❌ white man (who just had a heart attack)

❌grumpy old man (with a bad attitude)

❌ baggage from 2016 (and a heap of haters)

❌ unrealistic vision that isn’t possible in the confines of the presidency

❌ a missed opportunity to elect the first woman president (of native ancestry lolz).

especially the last one. feminism! girl power! in fact, check out this tweet.

ah yes, “identity politics.” that thing where um, uh...you kind of support the person whose identity is closest to yours..? or like, whoever is more oppressed is who you should align with because they deserve it more?

but here’s the thing. that popular, nebulous, nonsensical definition is wrong. black feminist radicals created that term. identity politics is about organizing around the collective interest of an intersection of identities. black women were politically organizing, animated by specific interests & needs of black women. the combahee river collective who popularized this term knew that sharing an identity does not automate shared interest. all kinfolk ain’t skinfolk. when it comes down to it, your vision matters more than your social identity. in this way, endorsing bernie is aligning with AOC’s identity politics. bernie’s political investments are more concerned with the needs of the most vulnerable. think of it that way.

by comparison...

✅warren consistently centers ‘middle class working families’ in her messaging while bernie focuses on ‘working people’ and the ‘impoverished’.

✅ bernie wants to cancel all student debt, warren only wants to cancel it for some

✅ bernie is anti-war and anti-imperalism, warren wants...a green military?

✅bernie is a committed socialist, warren is a committed capitalist

✅bernie ran against clinton (a hardcore neoliberal), warren endorsed clinton

there’s more, but you get the point. there is one candidate in the 2020 field whose vision is clear, equitable, & staunchly committed to justice for all americans: bernie sanders. asking why AOC would endorse bernie instead of EW fails to recognize that their overall interests are divergent. warren is a woman yes, but bernie would also be the first jewish president. AOC has already acknowledged that she has jewish ancestors in puerto rico - by this logic, should she be as committed to that identity? or should she endorse julian castro, a fellow latinx?

tbqh, some of the blowback smacks of co-opting the intellect & labor of WOC & then discarding them...if you f*cked with AOC last week, today should be no different. she is still fighting for US and even if he isn’t *your* candidate, do not embarrass yourself by dragging her. check the legions of idiots on twitter now, saying she has no clout in the party anyway (HA!) & claiming she would be bad for the warren campaign. nah. you may not agree with this decision but it would behoove you to respect it.

if you still don’t get it, imagine what AOC’s platform will look like when she runs for president-- more like bernie or e. warren?

we can all agree on this, i hope: tr*mp is an abomination and should be impeached. warren or sanders, this country will be much better off.

[melodyalanaroster]

Days: Nathaniel’s Side

Despite Amber’s encouragement, Nathaniel did not want to leave the house. “God damn it Nathaniel! If you think I’m gonna let you fall into the abyss, you’d better think again! Now fucking do something other than sit around this house!” Sam demanded. The days began like that. Amber wanting to explore their new surroundings, Ken trying to do his best, and Sam demanding Nathaniel not mope around the house... But that’s all he wanted to do. “I’m not supposed to do much! I have to rest and let my wound heal!” He tried to argue. Sam looked at him, then took her hand and pressed her thumb along his bandage. Nathaniel yelped in pain as he looked into Sam’s eyes. “You may have to heal, but my commandment stands. You’re not going to spend the entirety of Purification moping around this house. You’re the one who got yourself into this mess, and I REFUSE to put up with your pitiful bullshit while my sister and that wretched organization get you out of it!” She growled.

As Nathaniel held his side, he watched Sam and Ken walk off. “You know Mels is gonna kick your ass if she finds out you did that.” Ken observed. “She can try.” Sam challenged.

★ 

After a couple of days of forced exploration, Nathaniel attempted to take off on his own. As he put the keys into the Roster family’s truck and started it, he noticed someone get into the passenger’s seat. “Kentin! What the hell?!” Nathaniel boomed. “Where do you think you’re going?” Kentin asked. Nathaniel looked down. Kentin raised an eyebrow. “You can’t do that.” He stated. “Why not? If I go alone, you and Sam won’t be breaking protocol.” Nathaniel argued. “It’s not a matter of whether or not Sam and I break protocol... It’s the fact that that if you go back to Amouria right now, it will be a slap in your girlfriend’s face. You said that if you didn’t leave Amouria, they’d kill you and go after Amber and Mels... Well, they didn’t count on Mels being the Grim Reaper, so now, they’re suffering the consequences of crossing her and you’re supposed to be giving them what they want by being out of the city while they suffer. Don’t make her efforts be for nothing by going back there and putting yourself back in the line of fire.” Kentin explained. Nathaniel looked at Kentin. “I still want to go back.” His eyes were pleading. Ken sighed. “Look, I know you do. But, think about it... Mels is posting online, almost religiously for now, even about the mundane. Knowing her, she doesn’t do that unless there’s a form of motivation. That’s told Sam and me that she’s trying to let you know that she’s okay. Sam is getting more and more pissed off at you for moping around... So, you’ve got to do SOMETHING other than barricade yourself in Mels’ room. Wander around the city, play video games, read a book in the living room.... Something! Hell, when you feel like it, I can even train you.” Kentin clarified and suggested. “You can train me?” Nathaniel asked. “Yeah. Mels told Sam and me that you’ve been boxing and fighting... But maybe I can add to your skill.” Kentin replied. 

It was on this day, Nathaniel finally began to stop moping around the house.

★

Several days passed, Nathaniel and Ken had gotten into the habit of going into the back yard to train. “So, you’ve trained against Alana and Sam?” Nathaniel asked as he attempted to lay a hit on Ken. “Yeah. The Military sends soldiers to the R.D.R for special training from time to time and Sam and I have both been sent to the old base.” Ken replied as he blocked Nathaniel and landed a hit on him.

While the boys trained, Sam decided to sit in the living room and play video games. Amber walked into the room. “It looks like the boys are having fun.” Amber commented. “Yeah, maybe Ken can whip Nathaniel into shape.” Sam sighed. “What’s your deal?” Amber asked as she sat down on the opposite end of the couch from Sam. “What do you mean?” Sam asked as she continued to play video games. “Ever since we got here, you’ve been so nice to me, but you’ve treated Nathaniel like he’s more or less an inconvenient soldier. Why?” Amber inquired. “You don’t get it... Do you? Just as you and Nathaniel are protective of each other, Mels and I protect each other. My sister has been through hell the past few years, and I don’t want her to get hurt again. I am VERY disappointed in both you and Nathaniel... However, with him, I need to make sure he’s got enough of a spine to be the type of man that can withstand being at my sister’s side. With the implementation of Protocol 216, your brother is now, basically, royalty. He needs to be strong and formidable, so that he can protect himself, as well as my sister. Especially considering I’m sure there may come a time where my sister won’t be able to protect herself. This weak, pussy ass, bullshit, that he’s been pulling will not do.” Sam explained. A flash of annoyance crossed Amber’s face. “And, as for you? You made it very clear that you wanted to be a model back in high school. It was easy to guess that you would end up like this. Especially considering your mother is an ex model, as well as emotionally abusive. Honestly, I think Nathaniel got off light when it comes to the abuse. His physical wounds healed, and with a good support system, he’s able to try to move forward from it. You, however, have essentially been committing a long form of suicide, with encouragement from your mother and coworkers. It’s no surprise that both Nathaniel and Castiel have been worried sick about you.” Sam sounded very fed up as she spoke. Anger started flashing across Amber’s face. “What do you know about my situation?! You’re a soldier!” Her voice began to raise. Sam sighed. Her temper wanted to flare, but she kept it under wraps. “That’s right, I am a soldier. I have seen and done things in my short life that you would have nightmares about. I am also a sibling to someone who has suffered so greatly that her horrors have nearly killed her on several occasions.” Sam immediately shot Amber down. Amber looked defeated. “Look, Amber, what your industry doesn’t realize just yet is that people don’t want string bean, Barbie dolls anymore... Well, no one with any brains wants that type of woman anymore. I mean, for fuck’s sake, have you not noticed the rise of women who can kick ass and take names in mainstream media? Gal Gadot was a trainer for the Israeli Army before becoming Miss Israel, and that was before she became Wonder Woman. She is revered as one of the most beautiful women on the planet. Other women like, Charlize Theron, Scarlet Johannson, Zoe Zaldana, Margot Robbie, and many, many others, are very beautiful women, who train like fucking crazy to stay thin, but you can tell there’s some muscle to them. These are women people may want to fuck, but you certainly don’t want to fuck with them. You don’t have to kill yourself to be beautiful. The most beautiful person is someone who is comfortable in their own skin, and free to show the world who they really are.” Sam paused her game to take a sip of her drink. Amber looked at Sam, shocked.

The boys continued to kick, punch and dodge each other in the back yard. “Good! But you need to quit going for the kill whenever you attack.” Ken commented. “Why?” Nathaniel asked. “You’ll find that it’s just as effective to disarm and incapacitate people than to end their lives.” Ken replied. “I don’t try to kill people.” Nathaniel remarked as he aimed for a spot on Ken’s back. Ken quickly dodged and aimed for Nathaniel’s legs, getting him on the ground. “I know you don’t try to. But when your instincts take over, you become primal. Primal instinct dictates that when you’re fighting for your life, you aim for the kill. It is a precise science to tame that instinct, make it look like you’re going for the final blow, and only disarm your opponent.” Ken explained. Nathaniel looked up at Ken and got back to his feet. “Is it a science that you’ve become well adept at? The last time I saw you, Sam was still punishing you for being a dick when Evan was here.” He smirked. Ken looked down. “Don’t get me started on him.” He sighed. Nathaniel looked at Kentin, curiously. “What happened?” He asked. “He got kicked out of the military and banned from R.D.R premises for harassing just about every woman he came across... Including Mels.” Ken sighed. “He harassed Alana?!” Nathaniel began to sound mad. Ken put up his hand. “This is where is got interesting. He tried to hit on her, but she shot him down so badly that he still hasn’t lived it down. Back then, you didn’t hit on Mels. Everyone knew that. Hell, the average recruit was lucky to get a pleasant greeting from her. The thing is, he didn’t stop after that... He began to spend less time training, and more time stalking Mels... However, Evan must have been pissing Mels off because the Red Death got wind of it and banned him from R.D.R facilities.” Ken explained. “Are you still friends with that fool?” Nathaniel asked. “Eh. Kinda... I still talk to him and Armin from time to time...” Ken replied. “What about Alexy?” Nathaniel asked. “Not really. After a while, I got tired of him constantly hitting on me... There was one point where Sam told him off... Then Mels told us how he’s been acting lately...” Ken began.

Suddenly, the girls appeared before them. “I thought ya’ll were training.” Sam smirked. “We were. We’re taking a break.” Ken smiled. “Yeah, I could hear ya’ll talking about Alexy.” Sam raised an eyebrow. “I don’t understand... He and Rosalaya are nice to me.” Amber commented. “Alexy wouldn’t quit hitting on my man, they abandoned my sister before she joined the R.D.R, and they’ve become insufferable.” Sam stated. “I know they haven’t given me the time of day in a couple of years...” Nathaniel started. “That’s because you became a damn drug dealer!” Amber blurted out. Nathaniel started to go to respond to Amber, but was stopped by Sam putting her hand up. “We are not doing this. I’ve talked to several people about what’s going on around Amouria and everything I’ve gotten has confirmed my suspicions. Castiel and Nathaniel are on common ground with Mels’ and Amber’s welfare and are fighting a bit less because of that. Priya doesn’t really talk to Nath and is wiling to give him another chance if he turns his shit around. She’s not happy with Mels but recognizes that she’s trying to free herself from the Grim Reaper. Rosa and Alex have allowed their personalities to become very fucking selfish. Leigh and his friend Rayan confirmed what happened when Mels bitch-slapped Rosa at the beach. Priya has confirmed that Mels ignores Rosa and Alexy now. So, as of right now, I don’t necessarily want to see or talk to them, but if they come up to me, I will be pleasant.” Sam explained.

Sam looked at the group and sighed. “Come on. I’m hungry and I wanna go out to eat.”

★

After days of training, Kentin needed a break, so Nathaniel decided to go off on his own wandering adventure. He parked the truck at a park and started walking. He had been walking for nearly an hour before he realized that he had left the park, and found himself surrounded by gravestones. “Why is a park so close to a cemetery?” He pondered as he walked. 

A few minutes later, he came upon a grave with two men sitting in front of it. He instantly recognized the younger man. “Remember! Your introduction to Viktor and Severina will be an event!” Alana’s voice rang through his head. “Alana would kick my ass if I meet Viktor before the Gala...” He thought as he looked around. He noticed a large tree near the grave site. He into listen to what Viktor and the other man were saying.

“Hey, Mom. I actually brought Dad here this time.” “Hello my darling Cosima, it’s been a while.” They began to explain what had happened with Achille Mekina’s downfall, and Alana’s involvement in it. “So, Alana brought down Severina’s corrupt father.” Nathaniel thought. His mind began to wander to what had happened to him. “It’s almost as if she has a talent for bringing corrupt parents to justice.” He thought. As the men described Alana stumbling into Viktor, knocking the poisoned drink from his hand, Nathaniel grinned. “She deceived them to save him.” He thought. Edgard began asking Viktor if Alana will ever forgive him for what he did. “No. She won’t. Mels is not, usually, a forgiving woman. You insulted and attempted to discredit her family. Then, you called her a “little bitch, a fucking little whore” and pulled a gun on her when she denied your offer for an arranged marriage with me. She has made it very clear that she will never forgive you... It doesn’t matter that you were under Achille’s influence at the time. What matters is that you felt it was okay to commit those acts at all.” Viktor explained. Nathaniel clenched his fists when he heard this. “THAT BASTARD!” He thought. “Lynne hasn’t forgiven me either.” Edgard pointed out. Viktor scoffed. “After all this time, you still haven’t realized how headstrong the Roster family is. The women in that family are raised to not let themselves be crushed under the shoes of men. Hell, Verity made it clear that that’s one thing she’s always hoped would rub off on Severina. If Mels hasn’t forgiven you, what makes you think her mother will?” Nathaniel had to hold him back from chuckling at Viktor’s words. Nathaniel knew Viktor was right. The men in the Roster family had to be strong... If not to hold themselves high, then to at least keep up with the women. The most docile of the women had always been the family’s matriarch, Margaret. However, it was known that when Margaret’s husband, Harold, began to act like a sexist prick, his daughters and granddaughters were always sure to shut him up.

A few minutes later, Edgard went back to their car, leaving Viktor alone at the grave. Nathaniel continued to hide behind the tree and listen. “I wish Melody, Sam and Severina could be here with me. I know it’s been a while since we all visited you together... But, Severina is busy helping maintain Melody’s sanity in Amouria, and Samantha is with her boyfriend at the Roster Family Home playing babysitter to Melody’s boyfriend and his sister. Because of Mels’ plans, I’m not permitted to visit the house and see my friend... It could run the risk of me meeting Nathaniel before the point that Mels has decided upon. I don’t wanna disappoint Mels... Mels has told Rini and me so much about Nathaniel, yet, after all this time, we still haven’t met him... We couldn’t be there to meet him before she moved to Toronto... We weren’t available to go to the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Special Red Carpet Premiere in London when Nate took Mels and Nathaniel to it... And now, Mels is taking down a damn drug cartel to save him. I want to believe that he’s a good man... I want to have faith in Melody’s choice in soul mate... But I’m not sure. Part of me wants to say that she’d be better off if she and I were to get back together... But I know that will never happen... Hell, she reminds me of that every time I give her that longing look... Our time ended long ago...” Viktor’s voice had become sad. Nathaniel looked down, his heart becoming heavy. “Viktor is still in love with Alana, after all this time. Maybe she would be happier if she was with him, instead of being with a fuck up like me.” He thought as he sat down. 

His mind began to wander to what Alana’s life could have been if they had never gotten together in the first place... Until he heard Viktor begin to speak up again. “You always reminded me that my loving, childhood, relationship with Melody wasn’t allowed to last. That father was going to rip us apart eventually because she’s not, technically, a blue blood like us. You told me to prepare for the day that she falls for someone else, for someone who can actually go the distance with her. When she first started telling Rini and me of this boy she had met who she thought was brilliant and sweet... Rini instantly knew. “She’s falling for him.”, “Nathaniel is the one.” Rini kept saying. Part of me wanted to deny it completely. But, after a while, she began to tell us more and more about her adventures at Sweet Amoris... About how she kept helping a writer find his notebook... About a gamer she became friends with... About Sam’s boyfriend who she thought was a little annoying... About a rebellious musician with a heart of gold... And of course, she wouldn’t shut up about Nathaniel. I didn’t wanna hear it... But, almost every time she spoke about him, she smiled. She did tell us what his parents were like, and why she hates them... But, that didn’t stop her from loving him... I became jealous. I wanted to distance myself from Melody because of it... But Rini explained that it would hurt her if I did...” Viktor continued to talk to his mother’s grave, explaining his feelings over what had happened whenever he heard that Alana and Nathaniel had broken up, then what took place when Alana saved him from his kidnappers. The truth of Nathaniel’s and Alana’s break up had already been explained to Nathaniel by several people... Hell, the Red Death had even sent him security footage from the day it took place... And the resulting mental snap that Alana suffered... But, it was different hearing it from Viktor. There was more loss, and sorrow to it.

After several more minutes of talking, Viktor’s voice changed in tone. It had become more calm. “I don’t know... Maybe, once I meet him, I’ll get the feeling that he truly is Melody’s soul mate... Maybe... Maybe I’ll get a sign... Maybe Melody will shine brighter than she ever has...” Viktor began to chuckle. “Melody has always loved Stardust... Hell, I remember you once calling her a fallen star... And we all know that stars shine brightest when they’re near their true love...” Viktor sat down and leaned his back against the headstone. “I really miss you Mom.”

After realizing that Viktor would probably be silent for the duration of his time there, Nathaniel got up from the tree and decided to walk back to the truck. Part of him wanted to be mad at Viktor for not seeing what Alana was when she was near him and her other friends. That she was beginning to heal from her traumas, and that he was the one who was there for her the most in Amouria. Sam saw that, Severina apparently got it, but Viktor’s jealousy got in the way. However, Nathaniel saw that because he and Viktor had never met, Viktor couldn’t make a proper decision on him... It was was clear that he couldn’t act on blind faith the way Severina seemed to...

As he got back into the truck, he sighed. “Who knows... Maybe she will shine. As it is, that glimmer of hope has returned to her.”

★

Several more days passed. Nathaniel began to become impatient. He did his best to subside this feeling by trying to distract himself. Training with Ken, playing video games with Sam, playing online games with Armin, reading books, and even wandering around the places in Weathering that he remembered Alana telling him about. But, it wasn’t enough. It had been a couple of weeks since he had arrived in Weathering and he wanted to go home... To get back to her.

“Hey, how much longer is this purification going to last?” He heard Sam ask as he hid from her sight. “She must be on the phone with the organization.” He thought. “Look, Nathaniel is getting restless... And rightfully so. We’re all tired of waiting around... So, give me some information and an estimate.” Sam sounded tired. There was a few minutes of silence before Sam spoke up. “Alright. Just know, I know how restless both Melody and Nathaniel are... So finish this shit soon.”

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This is what Nathaniel does during Purification.

I get that one day is primarily between Amber and Sam while Ken and Nathaniel are training... But I find this part very useful.

Credit goes to:

andanguyen on DeviantArt for the Background.

LicyAD on DeviantArt for the Viktor Sprite.

Special shout out to: @vanillaamoursucrethings

She is the one who encouraged me to send Nathaniel and Amber to Weathering and actually do some world building!

[spoiler2010]

Rebirth Of A Nation?

Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke finds himself in an unusual predicament. Never before have the spheres of his influence been so politicized as we have seen in this new century. He holds jurisdiction over Federal land and resources, Indian affairs, wildlife and territorial issues. As of 2019, Zinke finds himself faced with some unusual problems that may cause him to 'think out of the box' in dealing with what had once been considered routine matters within his Department.

One of the first controversies of the New Year was the Obamites attempting to erect a shrine to their idol on State property. The Obama Presidential Center was to be built in the downtown Chicago vicinity. In all likelihood his henchman, Mayor Rahm Emanuel, had arbitrarily agreed to the project without getting any municipal or State approval. Emanuel, as we recall, was the White House Chief of Staff before resigning under controversy after his first year. Emanuel and his socialist cohorts were taken aback to find that they were being blocked by a lawsuit filed by a parks advocacy group. As of this writing the trial has yet to commence. Chances are that Zinke may be asked to weigh in at a future date should socialists choose to appropriate Federal land to immortalize their heroes.

The biggest controversy surrounded the curious case of Covington Catholic School student Nick Sandmann, who attended a demonstration in Kentucky by race activists. Along with classmates wearing red Make America Great Again caps, he was vilified by protestors who hurled racial profanities at the youths. Nick was one of those who rose to the occasion, exhorting his classmates to stand fast and offer no retaliation against the belligerents. 

What happened next was the worst backfire Fake News experienced since the Trump inauguration. Leftist media outlets edited all video at the event, distributing it across their networks to fit their storyline. Sandmann was shown smiling tautly as an Indian demonstrator was beating a tribal drum with just several inches of space between them. It was not hard for the slanderers to claim that the boy was violating the personal space of the Indian and mocking his ritual display.

Unfortunately for the Fake News conspirators, there were videocameras documenting the incident from different angles. Black Hebrew Israelite militants were seen at a distance though within earshot of the street event, screaming racial epithets at the youths. Ironically, this sect has a nationwide following that adheres to bizarre interpretations of Scripture. They claim that the Twelve Tribes of Israel are comprised of black ethnicities around the world, and that whites are disciples of Satan sent to enslave the black race. Despite their virulence, Sandmann continued to admonish his fellow students not to engage in dialogue with the aggressors.

Next came videos of the Indian in question marching straight at Sandmann and belligerently beating the instrument inches from the boy's face. Here is how we see videos can be manipulated to tell the story as it is framed. With the entire incident filmed at a distance, we see the Indian encroaching upon Sandmann's position. Yet in a closeup, Sandmann's smile remains frozen as if mocking the Indian. With both sides examined, one wonders if Sandmann was trying to fight back tears of humiliation or fear.

Fake News' grievous error was to broadcast the video and report it with the exact prejudice and virulence used against what they call the MAGA Movement. This demonizes any and all Trump supporters as xenophobic, misogynistic and homophobic bigots abiding by fascist philosophy. As Sandmann and his fellow parishioners were wearing the red apparel, they became MAGA fascists by default. The boy and his friends were subjected to the worst possible verbal abuse by leftist media and activists alike. Apparently the boy's parents realized that this would have a horrible impact on his future and decided to seek remedy.

Weeks later it was announced that the Sandmann's attorney Lin Wood had filed a $250 million lawsuit against the Washington Post, who had been the main propagators of the libel. According to the lawsuit, Sandmann had suffered from defamation of character which was a result of the Post's actions in 'leading the charge' of the hordes of slanderers. The 'innocent child was bullied with (an) absolute disregard', causing 'permanent damage'. President Trump immediately applauded the announcement as a retaliatory blow against all who have used 'freedom of the press' as license to destroy the lives of others for commercial and political gain.

 The failed efforts of Fake News to keep the Black Hebrew Israelites out of the spotlight allowed them to easily avoid retribution. In cities such as Kansas City in Missouri, for example, the propagators of this cult stand in public areas such as the downtown Power and Light mall, the Plaza and Westport spewing their venom without consequence. Yet the slightest hint of support for the MAGA slogan sets the leftist media ablaze with fervor as they seek and destroy any public gathering displaying such intent. 

Of greater importance would be for Zinke to initiate a Congressional inquiry as to the reasons behind Indian poverty and lack of development on reservation land. For over a century, Indians have been shown as living in extreme poverty and lacking in all areas of economic opportunity. It seems impossible that this particular demographic has been given no chance to improve their collective lot. When we consider all the equal opportunities given Black, or the open doors available to Yellow, it would be an outrage that Red had no advantage whatsoever. Indeed, the nations of the world rebuked over human rights violations by America would rise in indignation due to lack of it. 

For across the planet since the dawn of man we have seen nomad races roaming the face of the earth. Bedouins in the Middle East, African tribesmen following rain clouds, Mongols seeking suitable hunting and harvest, among dozens of others. Most have been respected for their contributions to the traditions and folklore to their respective nations. Yet we find not one that have been given exclusive rights to significant expanses of their nation's land. Beyond that, the Indian has done nearly nothing to take advantage of that right.

It is well known that, over the last century, oil corporations attempted to make numerous deals to secure drilling rights on Indian land. The incompetence of the bureaucracies have made it impossible for either side to progress. A 2015 report from the Government Accountability Office found that poor management by the Bureau of Indian Affairs hindered energy development and resulted in lost revenue for tribes, according to Reuters. At this juncture, we wonder what can possibly be hindering the Indians from doing what is needed to make their people whole?

One thing is certain: a great Indian leader must rise from the ashes and speak for the people. Our history books speak of Geronimo, Cochise, Sitting Bull, and dozens of others who gave their lives for their people. Why is there no Millenial voice being heard? And of young adults, is there no greater aspiration than to be a casino owner? Or on the other end, the leader of a reservation drug gang? Someone must take a stand and unite the tribes to end Indian poverty and restore the dignity of the people.

According to Forbes, there is an estimated $1.5 trillion of natural resources available on Indian land. There is a discussion of fractionated land ownership, which is a result of inherited land shares being passed down to multiple heirs until becoming relatively worthless. The tribal leaders must bring the people together to sign over their shares until the land is fully accounted for and can be privatized to allow for commercial investment.

President Trump has discussed the options of privatizing Indian land. Here is where his deal-making wizardry and entrepreneurial skills may be of historical importance for the Indian nation. Obviously the Indians will need guidance, and the Trump Administration may hold many keys to helping them secure a trillion-dollar deal. It would be a win-win situation for Indians and oil corporations who would no longer have to invest in foreign lands to earn profits. The elimination of shipping costs alone would save them billions. Some of this could be used in improvements and betterments on reservations as a good-will gesture to help the Indians recover their dignity in a short time.

Once again, the employment of the indigenous population will result in the growth of its community. If young people are able to earn a good salary at the oil wells, they will be able to invest in homes and businesses which would result in the decline of the trailer park syndrome. Many of the elderly would be able to manage the mom-and-pop stores while their children worked. It would put an end to the chronic alcoholism that has ravaged the Indian communities along with hopelessness and despair.

This sounds like a broad and utopian statement, but it is a mirror image of the drug epidemic destroying black communities. If a person has so few options but to go out and work hard for minimum wage, they may well turn to the welfare system and intoxicants to lessen the emotional pain. Yet if there is a possibility of earning $600 a week, this is a game-changer for the person's extended family. He must seize the moment and invest in something for the family to cultivate. Even hauling the trailer to a roadside after a home is purchased can be the start of a lucrative business.

Of paramount importance is interaction between Cabinet leaders, Here is where Ben Carson can step in and implement programs allowing Indians to buy homes and invest in commercial property. The most important factor is the time element. Indians cannot be allowed to think that these advancements are quick fixes to their chronic decline into oblivion. The conservative media must glorify their efforts and use examples of Indian Pride as a guiding light to all ethnicities. When the Indian can seize the moment, he will see substance abuse as a rebuke and disgrace to his people. This is when the ancestral traditions are reborn and the nation rediscovers itself.

Once this happens, will we not see the Indian Territory become a great tourist attraction, a showcase rivaling Las Vegas spanning across the West? Will it no longer remain an endless wilderness interspersed by trailer parks and Indians selling trinkets at rest areas? Will we see theme parks and theaters proclaiming a nation's greatness, from ancient times to the 21st Century?

Our President and the Indian Nation hold the key to the future.

[frenchifries]

inchresting & informative... (copy-pasted under the readmore)

Rosa Lichtenstein’s answer to “Why did socialism fail in Russia?”

[In what follows I am using "socialist" and "communist" (and their cognates) interchangeably and, in most cases, in conformity with Marx's understanding of those terms]

1) As Marx saw things, communism could only be built in countries capable of producing a massive abundance — the result of a very highly developed economy coupled with high levels of productivity, even if they actually failed to do so because of ‘market forces’. That wasn't the case in the fSU — or, indeed, in China, Cuba, much of E Europe, Vietnam, N Korea, Laos, Cambodia, and now in Venezuela. They were all backward economies or were recovering from war. Socialism can’t exist where there is scarcity; it can only be built on abundance.

[Why that is so will be explained on request.]

So Lenin and the Bolsheviks looked to the massive productive capacity of the German economy to come to the aid of their revolution -- on that, see below.

(2) Equally, if not more important: a communist society can only be built by the working class organised by themselves, acting democratically in their own interests, not relying on anyone else to do it for them. The Russian revolution was initially led by the urban working class (in alliance with the peasantry), but that class was cut to ribbons by WW1, and then all but destroyed as an effective social, political and economic force by the Russian Civil War and the famine that followed. Socialism can’t be built if there is no powerful and politically engaged proletariat (i.e., the urban working class under capitalism).

Why that is so has been explained here:

Why-did-Karl-Marx-believe-that-industrial-workers-would-be-the-ones-leading-the-revolution-not-peasants/answer/Rosa-Lichtenstein

So, Lenin and the Bolsheviks argued that their revolution was doomed unless the revolutions spreading across Europe at that time succeeded (in Hungary and Italy -- but more importantly in Germany). Those revolutions failed for various reasons, and with that the prospects for the Bolshevik revolution nose-dived.

The revolutions in China and Cuba many decades later weren't even proletarian revolutions (howsoever popular they might have been at the time), but were made by guerrilla armies comprised largely of peasants, students, and 'intellectuals', etc. Whatever emerged as a result -- and independently of the aims of those taking part, howsoever well-intentioned they might have been -- could in no way be called Marxist. His version of communism can only be created by the proletariat (again, follow the above link for an explanation).

More-or-less the same can be said about Vietnam (which, despite the rhetoric, was a nationalist, not a communist, revolutionary war, first against the French, and then against the USA), as well as Laos and Cambodia. North Korea was set up as a puppet regime which only existed and survived because of the backing of the red army (Russian and Chinese). The 'revolutions' in E Europe in the years following WW2 were the result of invading red army tanks, and so could only be called Marxist by someone with a twisted sense of humour.

Related to the above there are a few additional considerations, which are a little more theoretical, that differentiate Marx and Lenin’s approach to socialism from Stalin’s and Mao’s, the most important of which are the following factors:

(3) There are in fact two forms of socialism:

a) 'Socialism from above',

and

b) 'Socialism from below'.

The first form seeks to bring ‘socialism’ to the mass of the population, whether they want it or not. It is imposed from above (by a centralised, or even a democratically elected, state), as its name suggests.

This approach has been adopted and tried out by various political movements and ideologies, including Stalinism, Maoism, Castroism, Chavezism (as we have seen in Venezuela), Social Democracy [SD]. Democratic Socialism [DS], and conspiratorial Blanquism, which many confuse with Leninism.

Blanquism

Quite often, the population acquiesce to this form of socialism, and they might even welcome it at first — until they discover it doesn't work. That is because it leaves the mass of the population passive and unchanged (except where they are allowed, in some cases, to vote every now and then, or they are required to provide cannon fodder in defence of this new form of the state). Left like that they are always going to be a threat to the new ruling class that has been formed as a result of imposing socialism from above — as we saw in Russia, E Europe, and, indeed, much of the rest of the planet over the last hundred years. On that, follow this link:

Revolution

That is because 'Socialism from above' either:

(i) Leaves the class structure of society unchanged (as is the case with SD and DS), or

(ii) It introduces a new ruling elite (as was the case with all forms of ‘Communism’) -- but, in both cases, the mass of the population remains exploited and/or oppressed for their pains.

[Many confuse the above statist/corporatist forms of socialism with Marxism. They will struggle long and hard and to no avail to find anything in Marx’s writings that supports such a gross distortion of his ideas. It is also worth adding that ‘Communism’ and Marxism parted company in the fSU in the mid-1920s after Lenin died, and the Stalinists seized power.]

Every time this form of socialism has been tried it has failed, or is now failing. That because:

(iii) In the case of SD and DS, the rich and powerful will always fight such lukewarm forms of socialism, try to strangle them to death (as we are now witnessing in relation to Venezuela), or manoeuvre/force them to compromise what few principles they retain so that they are gradually transformed into a pale reflection of those parties that genuinely and openly represent the interests of the ruling elite — that is, so that they begin to resemble to some extent Conservative and other right-wing parties — as we have repeatedly seen in the USA, UK, France, Spain, Germany, Italy, S America, Scandinavia, Australia, Canada, etc., etc. So, SD and DS don’t change society in any fundamental way, and leave class division -- and hence the rich and powerful -- in place at the top.

Whoever is in office under this form of ‘socialism’, the top 1% and their political representatives are always in power (they control the army, the police, the courts, the media, etc.), which means that SD/DS politicians, no matter how well intentioned they might be, will either have to accommodate to the 1% and their ideologues in the media, or they will be out of office in no time.

These 15 Billionaires Own America's News Media Companies

The barrage of abuse and lies that the former leader of the UK Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn, faced from the vast bulk of the UK media is only the most recent example of this:

Anti-Semitism. Orchestrated Offensive against Jeremy Corbyn in the UK

They are now trying to do the same with Bernie Sanders:

Campaign against Sanders on ‘antisemitism’ for his criticism of Israel begins in earnest

The pusillanimous and compromised nature of SD/DS is part of the reason for the rise of ‘populism’ across the globe right now, as the mass of the population reacts to the long-term failure of this form of ‘socialism from above’ coupled with the evident failure of ‘liberal democracy’ world-wide — which political currents have in general looked after the interests of the rich and powerful, not the working majority they claim to represent.

Some have claimed that Scandinavian forms of social democracy have worked, but as with the rest of the capitalist world, it, too, is now beginning to fail -- I have explained more here:

Do-you-hate-capitalism-if-so-then-why-is-that/answer/Rosa-Lichtenstein

(iv) On the other hand, Communist regimes leave the capitalist world largely intact, isolating themselves from the international division of labour, which in the long run renders their economies inefficient and totally incapable of competing with the rest of the world. Hence, they are also doomed to fail; the moment of their birth is the moment they begin to die (to paraphrase Hegel). They either (a) slowly strangle themselves to death (as we saw in E Europe and the fSU), (b) they adopt ‘market reforms’ and emulate ‘free market capitalism’ (as we are now seeing in China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and Cuba), or (c) they are smothered by the imperialist powers (as happened in Nicaragua, and might be about to happen in Venezuela — in relation to which dozens of countries supposedly committed to democracy seem quite happy to recognise an unelected no-mark, Guido, as President).

What-is-happening-in-Venezuela/answer/Rosa-Lichtenstein

As Engels, Lenin and Trotsky argued, islands of socialism can't be created in a sea of capitalism, and any attempt to do so will always fail. Post-1925 ‘communism’ disagreed, but history has shown that Engels, Lenin and Trotsky were right. That form of ‘communism’ has been refuted by history, many times over.

(v) The second form of socialism, 'Socialism from below', represents Marx, Lenin and Trotsky’s view. It involves the great mass of the population, the working class, creating a socialist society for themselves, not waiting for anyone, or any party, to do it for them.

Marx was quite clear about this in the Communist Manifesto:

========================

Political power, properly so called, is merely the organised power of one class for oppressing another. If the proletariat during its contest with the bourgeoisie is compelled, by the force of circumstances, to organise itself as a class, if, by means of a revolution, it makes itself the ruling class, and, as such, sweeps away by force the old conditions of production, then it will, along with these conditions, have swept away the conditions for the existence of class antagonisms and of classes generally, and will thereby have abolished its own supremacy as a class.

========================

Communist Manifesto (Chapter 2)

Indeed, several years later he added:

“The emancipation of the working class will be won by the workers themselves.”

Self-Emancipation of the working class in Marx and Engels

Lenin agreed, insisting “All power to the soviets!” in October 1917 (the soviets were factory and army councils set up by the workers after the popular February 1917 revolution — indeed, Lenin had argued that their insurrection should only take place when the Bolsheviks had won a majority in those soviets, which happened in the autumn of that year):

In Defence of Lenin and the October Revolution

This form of socialism is inherently internationalist (“Workers of the world unite!”) — it has to spread and take over the core economies of capitalism so that it can't be strangled in the above manner, as the proletariat of each country rebel. Follow this link for more details and an explanation of how such a revolution will be international:

Revolution

We aren't talking about invasion here; an invasion by an external or foreign socialist country won't change the working class of the country invaded in the required manner -- they have to change themselves, in their own way, by their own revolution. Each strike, for example, is a mini-rehearsal for this (whether the strikers appreciate this or not), whereby workers have to learn to organise in their own communities, sharing ideas, money, clothing, food, shelter, etc. In effect they have to run a mini-socialist society for a few weeks or months. These are, in effect, mini-dress rehearsals for a working class revolution.

This is a basic fact about Marx’s form of socialism that SD-ers, Stalin, Mao, Castro and all the rest who advocate socialism from above, fail to comprehend, so determined are they to impose ‘socialism’ on other countries, or, indeed, on their own people.

(4) Again, connected with the above, and primarily in the case of the fSU, when Stalin and his henchmen seized power in the mid-1920s, they knew full well that the capitalist states would either strangle them to death or they would invade and destroy them.

This they would do in order to quarantine the Bolshevik revolution, guarantee it failed, or physically crush it in order to prevent the idea spreading that ordinary working people are capable of re-making society for themselves and in their own interests, expropriating the productive capacity of society by taking it out of the hands of the ruling elite.

But, the fSU in the mid-1920s was still economically backward, its industry and working population all but destroyed by WW1 and the Civil War that followed. As Stalin argued, they would have to make up the yawning gap between their economy and the rest of the capitalist world in a generation or they would be crushed.

[That is indeed what was attempted by Nazis in 1941, originally regarded by many in the UK and the USA, for example, as ‘good anti-communists’ — hence, we had appeasement (in the UK) and isolationism (in the US).]

This meant that the Stalinist regime would have to impose an anti-democratic, autocratic and oppressive system on the mass of the working population of the fSU. That is because, in order to catch up, the state would have to subject them to super-exploitation -- whereby, the proportion of wealth going to that section of society would be reduced almost to subsistence levels, and often even below that (hence the massive famines — for example in the Ukraine) -- so that investment in heavy industry could be maximised. This in turn meant that the state had to become totalitarian, executing and terrorising hundreds of thousands, including nearly every one of the leading revolutionaries of 1917, since working people would resist, as they always have done, such extreme economic deprivation and anti-democratic imposition. Only absolute terror would intimidate them enough.

‘Communism’ destroyed itself by such moves — moves forced on it by trying to create ‘socialism in one country’. Attempting to catch up with ‘the west’ forced the Stalinist regime to trample on every socialist principle it had once espoused. In order to compete with capitalism, it had to emulate it. It thus became its own opposite.

Tyrannies ruling in the name of socialism

To a greater or lesser extent, the same considerations applied right across the former ‘Communist Block’.

Who made China’s revolution?

Cuba, Castro and Socialism

Hence, these regimes were never popular; quite the reverse, in fact — and when they fell nearly 30 years ago, as they were always doomed to do, not one single proletarian hand was raised in their defence. Indeed, workers were glad to see the back of them, and many joined in their demolition.

A supporter of the old Stalinist regime in Russia has questioned the above allegation, that the Russian and E European working classes sat on their hands when the system collapsed between 1989 and the end of 1991. I have responded to his criticisms here:

Russian Workers Raised Not One Finger

So, Marxist socialism, socialism from below, hasn't itself failed; it just hasn't been road-tested yet. No one knows if it will work, but there are good reasons to suppose it will.

Can-any-other-economic-system-rival-capitalism/answer/Rosa-Lichtenstein

More details here:

Two souls of socialism - socialism from above vs socialism from below

State Capitalism in Russia

How Marxism Works

Finally, I have responded to several tired old criticisms of Marxism — including the ‘No True Scotsman’ canard, the ‘Socialism has killed 100 million’ slur, and the ‘You can’t change human nature’ ruse — here:

Why-didn’t-Marx-offer-a-better-form-of-government-than-dictatorship-of-the-proletariat-given-the-fallibility-of-human-nature/answer/Rosa-Lichtenstein

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but no but I saying the strategies the company for less than legal means he starts equally sign weapons to a terrorist organization called the 10 rings inand also pays the 10 rings to kill tony when he goes to afghanistan because I know but I can when the company tony free however they only kidnap tony once they realize who he isand manny build them weapons to use in the whole process tony is mortally wounded but his life is saved by fellow captive hellionsand mental health ins inputs electromagnet in his chest which keeps the shrapnel in there from killing in which tony benson turns into his dental pet project the arc reactor 10 rings also demand more my for staying because of who they had to kidnap vocalsand sent by shield to go talk to stijnand lindsay is back to shield offers to god himselfand save stark button cure for whatever reason tells them not to start building the weapons that the terrace demanded over three months stark with the help against them as a weapon I suit of armor that he can use to escape which is powered by that arc reactorand is just over this time start also earns a bit more humanity while this is happening natasha romanoff now a great agent of shield is sent out on a mission to escort a scientist in a run hydra sends out the winter soldier to kill the scientist he does so by shooting through them enough after those few months stark uses the armored suit to bust out of prisonand kill some terrorists escapes but yes it is killed along the way start crashand the desertand picked up by the militaryand taken home tony’s a changed man now so people stuck industries on the weapons business which obadiah is pretty pissed about thatand also you know tony is not dead then he is running the company yet tony also get closer to pepper spray a new art directorand start continue to refine his armor make you much slicker matter more weaponsand doing a little hot rod written there eventually he turns into what becomes known as the iron man suit this does take a few months so while all this is happening a woman called colleen wing who is pretty proficient in martial arts comes to america from japan she needs the crew to one of those ancient hat membersand gets recruited as a member of the hand but she’s under the impression that the hand is a good organizationand doesn’t know about all the mass murder of kellyand now the sweet mullet is putting a takeover of the world the first he’s got to get this extreme misting perfectand he needs firebreathing henchmen so he finds a bunch of army veterans who suffered serious injuries to be his test subjects injects them with extremistsand some are successful they grow back last lensand their super grateful some are not successful thoughand explode in a very painful way also at some point here in asgard double click a guy called in near tries to overthrow dennis king but he stopped by thor just a typical day for those guys now back on earth the 10 rings find stocks first armor suit that he escaped with lying around in the desertand they start piecing it back together stijn shows upand sees itand thinks back use thisand so start building his own giant iron man suit all of this is happening continues to make a suit way better now can flyand she repulsed blasts in STUFF he also gets a fancy ad about the systemand into jarvis after his dental butler theory is still quite intrigued by the sole tony stark character solutions vocalsand into talk to stark about this whole situation but stuck ambos moss tony also finds out that some of his companies weapons are still terrorists in afghanistan certifiesand kills a bunch of them because he can is a little brush up in the militaryand canada has revealed his buddy rhody that yeah he’s ironman pepperand finds out that stijn’s been working with terrorists sustains like well that everyone knows a bag I now let us look at tony myself yells exceeds by tony so live closeand goes with pepper to discover stains own iron man suit turning it back to full strength puts in a suitand instead have a consistency punch up stark winsand stained eyes the next day at a big press conference stuck supposed to tell the world that iron man is some kind of robot bodyguard they built but he goes a little off script I am guessing is more in touch with shield while stark is getting this press conference at the manco that guy how stark screwed over all those years ago who is now out of prison dies while watching it is on I think of us take revenge on the stark familyand in a surprisingly short time uses his dad’s old art director blueprints to make his own arc reactorand uses that to make an even cooler iron man suit just kidding he makes some electric lips after the press conference nick fury approach to stark himself this time about the avengers initiative is a guy with a super high tech suit could be useful the time is like air now thanks as he’s leaving starks house cure and tells them don’t need natasha romanoff or this one goesand also helps train this random guy called hendrix to be an agent of shield unimportant detail but it happened all this time jesse don’t forget bruce banner still running the military ultimately ends up in rioand start working at a soda bottle factory all the while stirring to contact a scientist called samuel stearns was trying to find a cure for this whole whole thing is to keep a low profileand figure out how to return to a normal life so she was getting mighty busy these days not only to have the soul avengers thing planned but they also start a project tahiti shield still has that creek corpse just lying aroundand after testing it they discover some of its bodily fluids have a healing effect they can bring someone back from the dead fury orders this project we started with phil colson in charge to extract some these fluids in the event that an avenger is killed in action needs to be brought back to some of the sun dying shield employees but it doesn’t go super well because they start going insaneand drawing maps about underground cree city cyclesand like well this program sucks let’s shut it downand so they do stark stone during the life of being a billionaireand also superheroand starts helping establish world peace as iron man going aroundand being a terrorists he also tries to have a relationship with a woman called lena as you know playboy however the 10 rings find out about thisand kidnap lena’s son afterwards blackmailing her in his dealings ireland blueprints for them however to find out about this because of the situation thenand saves her sonand then stop seeing each other is like how you come back from that stark is like seeing his assistant pepper potts does well peace mission continues as he stops group of 10 rings dudesand hackers from selling as weapons in italy also recovered some stolen paintings because why not messages continues to fight the 10 rings especially in afghanistan as he doing this serializes the corpus arc reactor is slowly poisoning him so he start searching for a cure over in brazil bruce banner is working at soda bottle factoryand one day he asked because his hand so some of his super blood goes in one of the soda bottlesand kill stanley which gets the governmentand military write on the sent now back over to hydra they’re working on yet another super soldier program because that seems to be all they can do after rascal serumand making roma peopleand after their attention to making a superpowered army by combining the super soldier serum with gamma radiationand some of that sweet extremist tech that they somehow got their hands on basically taking every superpower giving thing the mcu entering it in a big melting pot it’s called the centipede program that’s led by john garrett from before you must use it for his own purposes since even with the parts his health is failing also with the program you can plan your either let’s hide or see everything you doand also can kill you if you start doing something wrong another very kinsman like almonds lena starts running the stark expo 2010 to shove a budget attackand relationsand whatnot shows up in the flash to really be the tony that the world knowsand loves my cousin all great for tonio as he also has to govern the senate some of whom are members of hydra is there like the government you have your suit because it’s really dangerousand tony’s like hello claims that no one is close to kings techand he’s created well peace so the government should shut up testifying against him is the somehow smug or induce your tony stark justin hammer is rival in the tech world get out of thereand make up about the ceo stark industries okay nothing start to get a bit more complicated because the three different plot lines all happening at once so hang on lake erie sends natasha romanoff to go undercoverand keep an eye on tony understand the 10 rings are pretty sick of our menacing at their livesand so they get anton blanco was completed his arc reactor based whips away into the monaco grand prix which tony will be attending back in brazil the army’s tract number spends locationand attacksand where he lives the command of a mobile on ski first comes the hulkand runs away waking up in guatemala the next morningand deciding he should go back to his old university to look for more data on finding a whole cure because he just can’t take this anymore roadie who is now also that she needs a strike in the study to work with the governmentand starting to get mildly heated between them romanoff arrives at tony’s place is of the pill in a woman’s coffee unstuck steam so she starts throwing up so natasha can deliver some files to stark yourself to natureand acts exactly how you inspect them to tell youand goes to the monaco grand prix as promisedand stripper places a guy in the race is a guess you do that when your superhero is having a fun time driving when ivan manco shows upand these car in half luckily tony’s gotten on the go armor with himand he defends himself later tongue the bank on prisonand getting really nothing out of it this public display of other art directors being out there though but the government even moreand tony’s ass justin hammer sees thisand breaks I got of prison when him to make iron man like machines for hammer tech so he can upstage tony stark thank you goes along with this but really dispels bunch drones so he can later on post some sweet sweet revenge tony starting poison buys arc reactor in the publics against in the government on his backand himand his best friend are on great terms tony’s life sucks right now is this it was a big drunken birthday party for himself which ultimately ends with himand roadie getting the students who fight roadie not being told the drunk guys off of the suitand gives it to justin hammer unaware of what hammers actually doing behind the scenes meanwhile agent jasper said well she’ll agentand another undercover hydrogen is ordered to keep track of bruce banner one exterior goes to help start with his are correct poisoning also there are big disturbances in the atmosphere on this time in the southwest us caused by some commotion away in asgard which will get you that this concerns some people including astrophysicist jane foster she get in touch with another astrophysicist called xl bigand go to new mexico to check it out she’ll discovers this is happeningand keeps an eye on them now way back across the universe in asgard authorities finally of the age where he gets to be the new king even though he’s areaand a spoiled bratand locus jealous but hay is getting corrugated it’s his big day but it gets interrupted by the frost giant sneakingand owns vaultand trying to take away that casket of ancient winters point is that was really upset that his days ruinedand also that the frost I spokeand we know so that is bossy consisting of f than the warriors interchangeable coffee oppenheim to fight the frost giants for what they did this is specifically against oden’s instructions but again thor is dumband arrogant a fight starts but only comes aroundand breaks it up is pretty mad at the door so takes away all his godly powersand his powerful hammer mule near creekside note the owner was made from the core of a dying starand helps to control his lighting powersand also only be lifted by whoever’s worthy of it store down to earth new mexico specifically is harold’s land somewhere nearby as well as activity theory since vocalsand down to new mexico to check out all the business on his way their closest oxen armed robbery at a convenience store because he’s just not good back to start tony’s hang on a big doughnutand has a talk with a fury who wants to help them also natasha romanoff reveals himself as black widow to them justin hammer starts upgrading the armor really gave themand changes it from this to this while that’s happening tony discovers a map of the old stark expo at secret formula for making a new element that his dad left him all of those years ago which is also the perfect replacement for his arc reactor somewhat conveniently so yeah that’s fixed tony’s no longer dying now you just worry about the crazy russianand the smarmy businessmen at this point bruce banner is also gone back to the old university hang out with an old friend of his now justin hammer showing off his ivan banker design drones at the stark expo but vanco goes for zone motives of killing starkand hijacks the dronesand sends them after tony also hijacks the war machine armor with roadieand it is chase during which tony says a little kid is a fan of his called peter parker come in to play more later eventually ready to control the soup back in himand tony team up to destroy all the drones while black widowand tony’s bodyguard happy fightsand I got henchmen eventually tonyand 35 vancoand a giant iron man type suitand blowing them upand killing him by combining the repulsive powers hammer gets arrested gets a kissand really gets the armor kind of soup from not okay when the question meanwhile back in new mexico jane foster xl bigand jane’s friend darcy find thor all powerless like in the desert daysand then set into the hospital she also started asking thor’s hammer mule near owner realizes how big business in the situation could be so also sends clint barton to help closeand with it the escape from the hospital using his asgard trainingand meets up with janeand they start having a little bit of a romance back in asgard loki discovers that he is not shielding sonand I frost giant which makes them pretty upsetand falls into a deep sleep that has to take once in a while called oden sleepand locus is playing a treacherous plan to get owns approval back which involves the frost giants to attack inand then saving his dad’s life is adopted that not his real dad back with banner bruce meets up with bettyand they get back together however in the process the military figure out he’s thereand have for the locationand the loss gets injected with a version of the super soldier serum things to ross tobin take on the whole which means he can survive this sort of thing seeing gen. Help ourselves otherwise all the chocolates would just end up sitting in his cupboards for a year and he wasn’t about to get kids year old suites come next Halloween we basically had the jackpot thinking we could just rinse the old fellow of the suites and make up for the paltry amount we collected over what had been an unusually fruitless trick or treating session only he said there was one small problem since he was getting on in years and then get out much his oldest grown up son had come by to drop off all the suites along with his usual weekly shopping then without having thought it through his son and put all the suites in the top cupboard of his back pantry one that was way too high for him to reach without doing is back in if a couple of us were willing to help them reach the cupboards and take a few tens of supreme in the process suites were ours all of them 90 you’re thinking God’s name is daft enough to just wander into a complete stranger’s house in the middle the night apparently we were and See Other related products: I Don't Understand Your Specific Kind Of Stupid But I Do Admire Your Total Commitment To It T-Shirt

[dfroza]

we have this writing to tell us of precious things to come

and of meeting the Lord in the air at some point.

and our Union has been foretold as a heavenly wedding, a marriage of the eternal King & Queen

(A secret elopement away from this world)

of which we await with patient hearts, holding to the sacred hope of the eternal

and when? since it has been nearly 2,000 years and many have died still waiting. but still we hope...

(still we dream)

Today’s reading of the Scriptures is the closing of the Letter of First Thessalonians that begins with these lines:

I don’t think, friends, that I need to deal with the question of when all this is going to happen. You know as well as I that the day of the Master’s coming can’t be posted on our calendars. He won’t call ahead and make an appointment any more than a burglar would.

The Letter of 1st Thessalonians, Chapter 5:1-2 (The Message)

with the whole chapter in The Passion Translation:

[God’s Times and Seasons]

Now, beloved brothers and sisters, concerning the question of God’s precise times and specific seasons, you don’t need me to write anything to you. For you already know quite well that the day of the Lord will come unexpectedly and as a complete surprise. For while some are saying, “Finally we have peace and security,” sudden destruction will arrive at their doorstep, like labor pains seizing a pregnant woman—and with no chance of escape!

But you, beloved brothers and sisters, are not living in the dark, allowing that day to creep up on you like a thief coming to steal. For you are all children of the light and children of the day. We don’t belong to the night nor to darkness. This is why we must not fall asleep, as the rest do, but keep wide awake and clearheaded. For those who are asleep sleep the night away, and drunkards get drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, we must stay alert and clearheaded by placing the breastplate of faith and love over our hearts, and a helmet of the hope of salvation over our thoughts. For God has not destined us to experience wrath but to possess salvation through our Lord Jesus, the Anointed One. He gave his life for us so that we may share in resurrection life in union with him—whether we’re awake or asleep. Because of this, encourage the hearts of your fellow believers and support one another, just as you have already been doing.

Dear brothers and sisters, make sure that you show your deep appreciation for those who cherish you and diligently work as ministers among you. For they are your leaders who care for you, teach you, and stand before the Lord on your behalf. They value you with great love. Because of their service to you, let peace reign among yourselves.

We appeal to you, dear brothers and sisters, to instruct those who are not in their place of battle. Be skilled at gently encouraging those who feel themselves inadequate. Be faithful to stand your ground. Help the weak to stand again. Be quick to demonstrate patience with everyone. Resist revenge, and make sure that no one pays back evil in place of evil but always pursue doing what is beautiful to one another and to all the unbelievers.

Let joy be your continual feast. Make your life a prayer. And in the midst of everything be always giving thanks, for this is God’s perfect plan for you in Christ Jesus.

Never restrain or put out the fire of the Holy Spirit. And don’t be one who scorns prophecies, but be faithful to examine them by putting them to the test, and afterward hold tightly to what has proven to be right. Avoid every appearance of evil.

Now, may the God of peace and harmony set you apart, making you completely holy. And may your entire being—spirit, soul, and body—be kept completely flawless in the appearing of our Lord Jesus, the Anointed One. The one who calls you by name is trustworthy and will thoroughly complete his work in you.

Now, beloved ones, pray for us.

Greet every brother and sister with a sacred kiss.

I solemnly plead with you before the Lord to make sure that every holy believer among you has the opportunity to hear this letter read to them.

Grace from our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen!

The Letter of 1st Thessalonians, Chapter 5 (The Passion Translation)

Today’s paired chapter of the Testaments is the 14th chapter of 2nd Kings that documents the life & times of kings of Israel and Judah, brothers in opposition:

[Amaziah of Judah]

In the second year of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel, Amaziah son of Joash became king of Judah. He was twenty-five years old when he became king and he reigned for twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jehoaddin. She was from Jerusalem.

He lived the way God wanted and did the right thing. But he didn’t come up to the standards of his ancestor David; instead he lived pretty much as his father Joash had; the local sex-and-religion shrines continued to stay in business with people frequenting them.

When he had the affairs of the kingdom well in hand, he executed the palace guard that had assassinated his father the king. But he didn’t kill the sons of the assassins. He was obedient to what God commanded, written in the Word revealed to Moses, that parents shouldn’t be executed for their children’s sins, nor children for those of their parents. We each pay personally for our sins.

Amaziah roundly defeated Edom in the Valley of Salt to the tune of ten thousand dead. In another battle he took The Rock and renamed it Joktheel, the name it still bears.

One day Amaziah sent envoys to Jehoash son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, king of Israel, challenging him to a fight: “Come and meet with me—dare you. Let’s have it out face-to-face!”

Jehoash king of Israel replied to Amaziah king of Judah, “One day a thistle in Lebanon sent word to a cedar in Lebanon, ‘Give your daughter to my son in marriage.’ But then a wild animal of Lebanon passed by and stepped on the thistle, crushing it. Just because you’ve defeated Edom in battle, you now think you’re a big shot. Go ahead and be proud, but stay home. Why press your luck? Why bring defeat on yourself and Judah?”

Amaziah wouldn’t take No for an answer. So Jehoash king of Israel gave in and agreed to a battle between him and Amaziah king of Judah. They met at Beth Shemesh, a town of Judah.

Judah was thoroughly beaten by Israel—all their soldiers ran home in defeat.

Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of Ahaziah, at Beth Shemesh. But Jehoash didn’t stop there; he went on to attack Jerusalem. He demolished the wall of Jerusalem all the way from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate—a stretch of about six hundred feet. He looted the gold, silver, and furnishings—anything he found that was worth taking—from both the palace and The Temple of God. And, for good measure, he took hostages. Then he returned to Samaria.

The rest of the life and times of Jehoash, his significant accomplishments and the fight with Amaziah king of Judah, are all written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. Jehoash died and was buried in Samaria in the cemetery of the kings of Israel. His son Jeroboam became the next king.

Amaziah son of Joash king of Judah continued as king fifteen years after the death of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel. The rest of the life and times of Amaziah is written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Judah.

At the last they cooked up a plot against Amaziah in Jerusalem and he had to flee to Lachish. But they tracked him down in Lachish and killed him there. They brought him back on horseback and buried him in Jerusalem, with his ancestors in the City of David.

Azariah—he was only sixteen years old at the time—was the unanimous choice of the people of Judah to succeed his father Amaziah as king. Following his father’s death, he rebuilt and restored Elath to Judah.

[Jeroboam II of Israel]

In the fifteenth year of Amaziah son of Joash king of Judah, Jeroboam son of Jehoash became king of Israel in Samaria. He ruled for forty-one years. As far as God was concerned he lived an evil life, never deviating an inch from all the sin of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led Israel into a life of sin. But he did restore the borders of Israel to Lebo Hamath in the far north and to the Dead Sea in the south, matching what God, the God of Israel, had pronounced through his servant Jonah son of Amittai, the prophet from Gath Hepher.

God was fully aware of the trouble in Israel, its bitterly hard times. No one was exempt, whether slave or citizen, and no hope of help anywhere was in sight. But God wasn’t yet ready to blot out the name of Israel from history, so he used Jeroboam son of Jehoash to save them.

The rest of the life and times of Jeroboam, his victories in battle and how he recovered for Israel both Damascus and Hamath which had belonged to Judah, these are all written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. Jeroboam died and was buried with his ancestors in the royal cemetery. His son Zechariah became the next king.

The Book of 2nd Kings, Chapter 14 (The Message)

my personal reading of the Scriptures for Saturday, december 19 of 2020 with a paired chapter from each Testament of the Bible, along with Today’s Psalms and Proverbs

A set of posts by John Parsons:

Though the whole earth is filled with the miracles and glory of the LORD, we must choose to see, to open our hearts, and to become God's partners in calling forth goodness and truth. God is the Source of all Light and truth, and therefore we first turn to receive his radiance within our heart. As Yeshua said, "Let your light so shine before others, that they may see your good works and glorify your heavenly Father" (Matt. 5:16).

It's no small thing to affirm that "the LORD is good," since that affirmation implies our trust that that Reality is ultimately friendly, welcoming, and loving, despite the present hour of darkness... As Albert Einstein once said, "I think the most important question facing humanity is, ‘Is the universe a friendly place?’ This is the first and most basic question all people must answer for themselves." Indeed. Is there hope for a sense of home in the midst of our long exile? Do we affirm that we are accepted by God, despite our present unacceptability? The skeptic enjoys savoring the theological "problem of evil," though to be fair, he also ought reckon with the "problem of the good," since it is a mystery why the universe should produce beauty, love, and hearts that seek timeless universals... The truth that the LORD is good is radical in its implications... Our faith expresses the victory that all things work together for good!

It's been said that God sends each soul into the world with a special message to deliver, a revelation that only he or she can disclose... No one else can deliver your message of praise to this world - only you can do this, though ultimately your message is always done for the glory of God and the benefit of others. “For you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession (וְעַם סְגוּלָּה), that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light” (1 Pet. 2:9). [Hebrew for Christians]

12.18.20 • Facebook

The Chanukah holiday is now over, chaverim, though may its message pervade our souls every day, as we dedicate our lives to serving the Lord and choose to walk in His light... Amen. - [Hebrew for Christians]

https://hebrew4christians.com/

12.18.20 • Facebook

Today’s message from the Institute for Creation Research

December 19, 2020

Science—True and False

“And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.” (Genesis 2:9)

It is significant that the first reference to “science” in the Bible is in connection with the tree of the “science” of good and evil. The English word “science” comes from the Latin scientia, meaning “knowledge.” In both Old and New Testaments, “science” and “knowledge” translate the same Greek and Hebrew words respectively. Science—properly speaking—is what we know, not naturalistic speculation (as in evolutionary “science”). Adam and Eve knew a great deal about God and His creation, and all of it was “very good” (Genesis 1:31); they did not need to have a knowledge of evil, and God warned them against it (2:17).

But they partook of the evil tree anyway, and therewith evil knowledge entered the hearts and minds of mankind. Throughout the long ages since, true science has been of great good in the world and false science has wrought great harm. The apostle Paul has warned us against it: “Keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called” (1 Timothy 6:20). In the context of the times, Paul was specifically warning against the evolutionary pantheism of the gnostic philosophers.

In contrast, the final climactic reference in the Bible to knowledge is Peter’s exhortation to “grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18). “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7), and in Jesus Christ “are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2:3). Therefore, let us resolve to eschew the knowledge of evil and grow in the knowledge of Christ! HMM

[fuzzycolorinfluencer]

Even Trump's fiercest critics say he may have gotten some world affairs right

On the world stage, many foreign policy experts say President Donald Trump has slashed and burned his way through international agreements and commitments on climate change, trade, troop deployments, public health, nuclear weapons and more.

But for the mother of an American hostage held overseas, the outgoing U.S. president has been exactly the global "advocate and ally" she's needed.

"Obviously there's only one measure of success in this situation, and we haven't had it yet because Austin is not home," said Debra Tice, speaking about her son, a 39-year-old former U.S. Marine who was kidnapped in Syria in 2012 while working as a journalist. He has not been heard from since.

GSA:Trump admin clears way for President-elect Biden's transition to officially begin

However, U.S. officials believe the Texan is alive and likely in the custody of either the Syrian government or a government-aligned militia. Trump has taken an active interest in the case and sent presidential envoys to Damascus to engage directly with President Bashar Assad's regime, most recently in August, when Trump's representatives discussed Tice's disappearance with the head of Syria’s intelligence agency.

Tice said her family's contact with U.S. officials during the Obama administration was dominated by "a constant shuffling of the cards" – being passed from official to official without clear purpose, and with little apparent strategy to secure her son's release. By contrast, she said, Trump has made "Austin's release a very high priority. He really has in his heart an intolerance for Americans being held against their will."

An American is detained or goes missing abroad:What happens next? Call Trump?

A complicated record

Trump got a "hell of a lot more" wrong than he got right, said Martin Indyk, a former U.S. diplomat and now a fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations think tank.

He threatened war with North Korea and Iran, and picked trade fights with Canada. He publicly attacked American allies and praised ruthless dictators. And as he leaves office, many fear he is ordering a precipitous withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq and Afghanistan that will come back to haunt the next administration.

The U.S. on Sunday formally withdrew from the Treaty on Open Skies, an agreement that allowed Russia and 34 participating nations to carry out reconnaissance flights over each other's territories. It was intended to reduce the risk of an accidental war.

In Trump's waning days:Pentagon to withdraw troops from Afghanistan, Iraq

But some foreign policy experts, ex-diplomats and even Trump's harshest opponents concede that for all of his "America First" nationalism and unorthodox style, Trump's various overseas initiatives have produced limited, qualified successes.

Streamlining the way American hostage cases are handled and improving communications with families is one such example, according to Bill Richardson, former New Mexico governor and U.S. ambassador to the United Nations who has spent decades trying to bring home Americans wrongfully held overseas.

Regarding NATO, Trump undermined the military alliance viewed for decades as integral for U.S. and European security. He made a point of truculently calling out rich allies who for years have failed to meet their share of NATO spending. Many, in fact, had been increasing their contributions before Trump's presidency.

But NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has credited Trump's relentless complaints about the issue with having an impact.

Trump's Israel policy has been criticized for measures that deeply favored Israelis over Palestinians, such as moving the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which Palestinians also claim as part of their future capital.

But Trump also presided over historic "normalization" agreements signed between some Arab states and Israel.

"We have to give credit where credit is due," said Shira Efron, a Tel Aviv-based policy advisor for the Israel Policy Forum, an American Jewish organization that works for a negotiated two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

"We can fault Trump for mismanaging the public relations around it. We can question his motivations," Efron added, mentioning that the deals are linked to arms sales. "But it is possible these agreements could be the start of something positive for the Middle East."

Reports:Israeli PM traveled to Saudi Arabia for clandestine meeting with crown prince

'Getting tougher on China'

While Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic, including his continuing alienation of China, has been criticized, other moves were necessary and there are areas where Trump is deserving of more credit, some analysts and experts say.

"In certain areas I think his instincts were right," said Lewis Lukens, who spent three decades in the U.S. foreign service, including stints as the U.S. ambassador to Senegal and Guinea-Bissau and as the acting ambassador to the United Kingdom. Lukens was abruptly fired in 2018 by Trump's U.S. ambassador to the U.K. after speaking positively about former President Barack Obama during a speech to English college students.

"Getting tougher on China and trying to really address some of Beijing's trade practices and military expansion in the South China Sea. That needed to be done," he said, referring to complaints that China makes it extremely difficult for American companies to compete on a level playing field. China is controversially building military bases on artificial islands in disputed sea territory as part of its pursuit of offshore resources.

There is now bipartisan consensus in the U.S. that China is a growing economic and national security threat to the U.S. And president-elect Joe Biden may keep some of Trump's hardline China policies in place even if he adopts a less controversial tone.

'His first love': Why Biden may be a foreign policy president despite domestic crises

Nuclear threats: No new wars

Lukens, now a senior partner in London for Signum Global Advisors, a public policy consultancy, said Trump was also correct to point out that the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers, including the U.S., did not nearly go far enough in addressing Tehran's ballistic missile program or support for regional militias.

'Treating us like garbage':Many Iranian Americans feel fed up with Trump

"What I have an issue with is the execution," he said, noting that there's been no indication whatsoever that Trump's unilateral decision to pull the U.S. out of the Iran nuclear agreement has accomplished what was intended: reigning in Iran.

On the contrary, a report issued by the International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations' nuclear watchdog, concluded this month that Iran’s uranium stockpile is now 12 times larger than permitted under the nuclear accord that Trump abandoned. It's a dramatic increase that may partly account for why, according to a report in The New York Times, Trump recently asked his senior advisers whether he had options to take action – military strikes – against Iran’s main nuclear site in the coming weeks.

Reports:Trump explored military strike on Iran

On perhaps the most dangerous threat he faced – North Korea's nuclear arsenal –Trump veered from bellicose threats to fuzzy diplomacy. He held three high-profile summits with North Korea's dictator-leader Kim Jong Un aimed at denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula, which Tufts University's Fletcher School Korean studies professor Sung-Yoon Lee characterized as yielding "less than nothing" and ultimately "dangerous" because it has bought Pyongyang time to develop its nuclear weapons program while "being nice and saying: 'Let's meet.'"

The summits produced little beyond photo-ops.

'Faded away into a dark nightmare': North Korea says Trump's diplomacy has failed

Max Abrahms, a professor of political science and public policy at Northeastern University, said that for all Trump's tough and sometimes non-sensical talk on China, Iran and North Korea, he has not started anynew wars.

Afghanistan: Closer to ending 'endless war'

In Afghanistan, Trump has actually moved closer to ending America's longest military conflict by reaching a conditional peace deal with the Taliban and supporting separate peace talks between Afghanistan's government and the militant Islamic group.

Few impartial observers believe Trump's drawdown of U.S. troops in Afghanistan from 4,500 to 2,500 by January will benefit Afghanistan itself. In fact, it's likely to boost the Taliban's bloody insurgency and further destabilize the region. But it's in keeping with Trump's pledge to end "endless wars." It's also consistent with polls that show most Americans want a leader who focuses on needs at home, not overseas projects.

"Leaving Afghanistan is the most important foreign policy objective of the remaining days of the Trump administration, and it should be the Biden administration’s first priority if Trump fails to remove all U.S. forces," said Benjamin H. Friedman, policy director at Defense Priorities, a Washington, D.C.-based security think tank.

But more, not less, foreign intervention may be in the cards if the records of Biden's advisers is anything to go on.

Anthony Blinken, Biden's nomination for Secretary of State, was a key national security adviser to Biden when the then-Senator voted to give President George W. Bush's administration authority to launch a military attack against Iraq. He advocated for U.S. involvement in Libya's now chaotic civil war. Blinken previously argued the U.S. should be open to a "broader and riskier" military intervention in Syria to oust Assad.

Biden's pick as National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan, is regarded as an exceptionally smart, dedicated and experienced multilateralist who shares the hawkish foreign policy instincts of his former boss at the State Department, Hillary Clinton.

Secretary of State:Biden to name Antony Blinken as America's top diplomat

Countering ISIS

Abrahms believes that Trump's contribution to destroying the five-year grip that ISIS had on large swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria is also under-recognized.

Brian Glyn Williams, a professor of Islamic history at the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth, and author of "Counter Jihad: America's Military Experience in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria," has calculated that the Obama administration had liberated about 50% of ISIS territory in Iraq and Syria "before handing off the war effort to Trump."

Abrahms said that Trump did not, as has been repeatedly claimed by the Washington foreign policy establishment, "essentially just maintain the Obama administration's counter-terrorism strategy" in Syria and sit back and watch as ISIS "imploded."

He said Trump's withdrawal of support for Syrian rebel groups battling Assad's regime, and a separate but related action to remove some U.S. troops fighting alongside Kurdish anti-ISIS fighters in Syria, hastened the terrorist organization's demise. He said Trump's move effectively enabled Assad to refocus his armies on thwarting ISIS militants.

Hostages: 'He wants them home'

At least 40 Americans are currently being held in 11 countries, according to data released this month by the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation, an organization that advocates for Americans held hostage abroad and is named after a journalist who was murdered by the Islamic State group (ISIS) in Syria during the Obama administration.

The White House claims it's secured the release of 56 American "hostages" in 24 countries over the last four years. However, some of these "hostages" were imprisoned by governments (albeit wrongly, or on thinly-disguised political charges) and counting overseas imprisoned, missing or kidnapped Americans is not an exact science.

For a mixture of privacy, logistical and definitional reasons it's also not easy to make direct comparisons between the number of overseas captives freed under the Obama administration versus those released while the Trump administration has been in power.

Robert O'Brien, Trump's national security adviser, said during a Nov. 16 forum on global security that reuniting families with Americans wrongfully held overseas is a "pure distillation" of the Trump administration's "America First" foreign policy.

"I think that he is personally offended that either a government or a terrorist organization would take an American hostage and so he's made it literally one of the top priorities," O’Brien said in comments streamed online. "He doesn't care why they were there, what they were doing when they were taken hostage. He doesn't care about their background, he doesn't care about their political affiliation, their religion. If there's an American that's taken overseas, he wants them home," he said.

Trump's critics claim he is drawn to the issue because it makes for good politics, reinforces his image of himself as a deal-maker, and affords him opportunities to claim tangible victories in the international realm when they have been few and far between.

'I have been living a nightmare':Iran releases American Navy veteran Michael White

"Here’s the problem," said Richardson, the ex-U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.

"The president turned hostage release into political grandstanding and personalized it to the point where his photos-ops, I believe, caused many countries to say 'Oh, this is how we get their attention," Richardson said. "I think that’s harmful," he said.

Trump has used the Oval Office and political rallies as a backdrop to photo-ops with Americans he's helped to free from Turkey, North Korea, Iran and elsewhere.

Some families coping with the detention of their relatives overseas say the Trump administration has not been tirelessly working on their behalf or all that engaged.

David Whelan is still desperate for answers about why Trump has not raised his brother Paul's imprisonment in Russia with President Vladimir Putin. Paul Whelan has been jailed for nearly two years on what his family says are bogus espionage charges.

"They go after the windfalls. I shouldn't say easy wins, but it can feel like that," he said.

Paul Whelan:Ex-U.S. Marine convicted on spying charges gets 16-year jail sentence

Tice may be delighted by Trump's attentiveness to her son's case but she released a scathing statement last month about Secretary of State Mike Pompeo after he said he tried to "compartmentalize" hostage issues from foreign policy. "Unfortunately for Austin," she said, "Mike Pompeo is undermining the president's crucial outreach, refusing any form of direct diplomatic engagement with the Syrian government."

Diane Foley, whose son James was murdered by ISIS in 2014 and who runs the foundation that bears his name – said that "as you might expect, people who have had their loved ones come home in general are very supportive of the Trump administration. Those who have not are hopeful because he tends to emphasize it."

However, Foley said overall Trump's prioritization of American detainee issues represents, for the majority of families, an improvement – even if it was the Obama administration, not Trump's, that established a coordinated hostage response unit and a special presidential envoy for hostage affairs position that's improved family outreach.

"All I'm saying is Trump has helped," she said.

[trailsandturbulations]

Why I voted for Trump again

A few months ago I received an email from Ola, a friend in Poland whom I have known for over 40 years, informing me that she is officially breaking up with me forever because she had found out that I support Trump. “I don’t understand how you can!” she wrote. Had she asked, “I can’t understand why,” she would have left a gate for dialogue and potential understanding at least slightly open. But “how can you!” disqualified my morality and thus my right to defend my political stance. There was no point in replying, so I removed Ola from my list of friends, as was her wish, forever.

Ola was not the only one among my friends and acquaintances who have kicked me out of polite society. After all, declaring myself openly as a Trump supporter revealed my racism, xenophobia, transphobia, white supremacy, parochialism, ignorance, lack of understanding of my own best interests, my utmost stupidity. Perhaps also my religious fundamentalism, bigotry, over-attachment to firearms, as well as hostility towards political correctness, globalism, science, and alternative sources of energy. If I knew myself as well as some of those friends of mine appear to know me, I, too, would sever all social contacts with myself.

Fortunately, I know myself from a different perspective. I also know Trump and his followers from the angles that the media such as CNN or the Polish Gazeta Wyborcza prefer not to explore.

My demographic profile, my professional career, and my charity activities indicate that I rightly belong on the side of the Democratic Party. I’m a woman with a graduate degree, a house in a suburb, a new car of a good make and model, and annual income that puts me squarely within the upper-middle class range. In addition, I’m an immigrant married to a refugee who is a Person of Color. I’m a retired college professor who volunteers with foster children and with refugees and immigrants, those legal and those not quite so, who need free English lessons. I give money to environmental organizations such as the Nature Conservancy. The only magazine with a regular subscription in our home is Science News.

It would thus seem incomparably easier for me to fit myself ideologically into the group to which I already demographically and culturally belong. It would cost me nothing. The tax-rate raise for the rich, who apparently don’t pay their fair share, promised by the Democratic Party, would not apply to me since I never achieved that level of affluence. Supporting the Democrats would not detract from my social standing. Quite the opposite: I would avoid conflicts with “my kind of people” and could, like them, look down at those ideologically challenged. Ola would still be my friend. My kids would “like” my social media posts instead of hiding their accounts from my view lest I leave a politically incorrect comment under their posts. 

So why did I find myself on the wretched side? Maybe because I’d rather not be on the side of accusatory hate that would command me to break off contacts with a friend in another country for supporting a political candidate who has nothing to do with my life. Or the red-hot hate that makes a person put on a black mask, pick up a baton, and beat unconscious a diminutive, gay Asian journalist for writing from the wrong perspective. Or the bigoted hate that attempts to cancel out of existence anyone who holds the incorrect values. The dangerous hate that brings to mind genocides like the Holocaust and Rwanda. The hate that prides itself on tolerance and believes that love conquers all.

My husband and I used to be Democrats. We both voted for Obama. Alas, the eight years of Obama’s presidency brought us only deep disappointments in all fields of government activity. Race and class divisions deepened, trust in the government diminished, corruption increased, the wave of hope that had brought Obama to the top of political popularity receded. Early in 2016 I knew I wouldn’t vote for Hillary Clinton, but I didn’t expect that I would end up voting for Trump. I did so without enthusiasm, with a smidgen of shame, choosing the lesser of two evils. Four years later, this November, I voted for Trump with full conviction, and if he chooses to run again in 2024 I’m fairly certain that I will vote for him again.

Despite unrelenting demonization, harassment, sneer, false accusations, and plots (amply documented) to deprive him of the presidency, some of which had started before he took office, and above all, contempt with which Trump and his followers had been treated by the liberal elites, the support of the regular people for their unorthodox leader not only held, but grew by millions. In the November 2020 elections, Trump received nearly 72,7 million votes: close to 10 million more than in 2016, and 3 million more than Obama at the peak of his popularity in 2008.

Contempt is one of the key factors that motivate chunks of the traditional electorate of the Democratic Party to switch camps. Hillary Clinton’s undiplomatic “basket of deplorables” comment cost her lots of precious votes, if not the presidency itself. The ridicule that Trump received for saying that he loves “the poorly educated” pitched the Democrats against those diploma-less, hardworking Americans, who then decided to support the man who was not embarrassed to stand by them. Alas, those lessons appeared wasted on Joe Biden, who didn’t hesitate to call Trump’s supporters “chumps” and “ugly folks.” Biden may have won the presidency–perhaps honestly, perhaps through massive fraud–perhaps we will never know. However, the “blue wave” predicted by the polls did not materialize.

Low- and medium-income, undereducated, working Americans have pride and do not allow themselves to be insulted. Pride is one of the few luxuries they can afford, especially in hard times. They recognize Trump as one of their own, who fights for their wellbeing. Trump is not a politician; he’s a street fighter who will not turn the other cheek, but will hit back twice as hard. He has no filters, only a strong tendency towards exaggeration, a loose treatment of facts, and a disregard for details. Like many other Trump supporters, I’m thoroughly annoyed by his antics, and put off by his crude comments and his total lack of diplomacy; because of that, I don’t follow his tweets and have never “liked” his Facebook page. I don’t approve of all his moves. However, I appreciate that he calls a spade a spade, and that he talks directly to the people, not to the cameras, media, or other politicians. And time after time, Trump’s outlandish statements ridiculed by his enemies and treated with skepticism by his followers somehow turn out to be true. Trump approaches all his tasks with boundless energy and the force of a Soviet tank. In his famous rallies, he invariably uses the pronoun “we”–in stark contrast to Obama, whose favorite pronoun was “I”. Trump renders to Cesar what is Cesar’s, giving ample credit to local politicians and activists as well as regular folks who have distinguished themselves in the process of making America great again.

Trump’s enemy is the Swamp: corrupt government agencies (including the FBI and CIA), the media, the "Big Tech" that rules the internet (the likes od Google, Yahoo, or Facebook), the entertainment industry, and institutions of higher education, that latter overzealous in propagating the ideologies of Marxism, theories of gender identity, and the critical race theory, according to which each member of the society is assigned to one of two groups: the oppressed and the oppressors. Trump has promised to drain the Swamp and restore dignity to average, much denigrated Americans.

Trump is the first president in the history of our collective memory to live up, at least in large part, to all the promises he had made to his supporters. "Promises Made, Promises Kept": Reduced corporate tax rates allowed bringing industrial plants from overseas, primarily from China, back to the States. The driving force of the economy was amplified by new international trade agreements coupled with relaxing a host of domestic regulations. Activity returned to the coal mines of Pennsylvania and West Virginia, fracking production of oil and gas heated up, closed oil pipelines reopened, and suddenly we reclaimed our energy independence from the Middle East, for the first time since 1957.  All these measures improved the labor market and caused the unemployment rate to drop to a historically low level of 3.7% in 2019 (i.e. just before the pandemic). Black and Latin unemployment has fallen to its lowest rates in the country's history.

In the Middle East, Trump dealt quickly and effectively with the Islamic Caliphate, moved the US Embassy from Tel-Aviv to Jerusalem, and has already mediated three peace agreements between Israel and Islamic countries. As a pragmatist who doesn’t believe in spending our money to make other countries happy against their will, Trump is withdrawing American troops from Afghanistan. Because it's not our war.

Our war is the one on our southern border, through which thousands of illegal immigrants, emboldened by friendly policies in the Democrat-run cities, have crossed with impunity. A steady stream of undocumented migrants not only from Latin America, but from all over the world, poured into our country in numbers exceeding a hundred thousand a month; not only work seekers, but also gang members, smugglers of fentanyl and young girls destined for prostitution, as well as individuals with criminal record, some previously deported back to their home countries. The wall, or rather the border fence, the agreement with Mexico, and changes to the procedures for granting political asylum have reduced the chances of criminal elements crossing our border without consequences. (Regarding children separated from their parents: the photos of children in cages circulating on the Internet date back to Obama's second term, when trainloads of children from Latin America were sent out alone, under the supervision of paid "coyotes", and let loose at our border crossings. The 500-plus children separated from adults, who were not necessarily their parents, during the Trump presidency, are remaining in the protective custody of the American government because their biological parents refuse to take them back, hoping to reunite with them on their next attempt to cross the border.)

It is impossible to enumerate all of Trump's achievements here because the list is too long. The gains for the country and the society are not advertised in the media because they contradict the narrative of the cultural elites who are no longer concerned with achieving the American Dream that Trump had promised to restore because they or their parents have already reached it. Recently, I got a phone call from a Polish friend who, together with her husband, fled from the Polish socialist poverty, from a squalid one-room rental with mold-covered walls, with no chance for a better future. They did hard manual labor for many years, cleaning smelly motels and lifting bricks on construction sites during the day, studying English and earning professional certifications at night. Krystian, their grown-up son, for whose studies they paid thirty thousand dollars a year with their capitalist savings and loans, announced right before the elections that he was going to vote for Biden because only socialism would guarantee equality for all Americans. “You Boomers don’t get it,” he dismissed the reactions of his shocked parents who had spent half their lives in socialism. I nodded with understanding because my own kids, when told that I voted for Trump in 2016, first growled at me, and then restricted my freedom of family speech to non-political topics.

As I write these words, I occasionally look out of the window, where Alejandro, Krystian's peer and also a son of immigrants, is laying out the boards of our new deck. It snowed last night and the morning is frosty, but the construction work does not stop because of the weather if there are paying customers. Alejandro, in a quilted coat and a hat pulled over his ears, keeps rubbing his freezing hands, but continues working. Alejandro did not go to college because he has to earn a living and help his family; besides, he didn’t do well enough in his Mexican ghetto school. He did not vote in 2016, but last week he joined the growing number of “Latinos for Trump” voters. Alejandro believes Trump's policies will help him achieve the American Dream. Krystian, on the other hand, is already used to living in comfort, and can therefore afford himself the luxury of theorizing about socialism.

"If Trump loses, we're totally screwed," says James, co-owner of a small, somewhat struggling company that employs Alejandro. If James's business goes under, Alejandro will lose his job. "All the small-business entrepreneurs and their employees in Reno are for Trump," says James. Robert, our electrician, independently confirms James' words. "We’d never had it so good before Trump," he adds. "We fear that our prosperity will end if the Democrats win.”

While the Democratic Party chose the so-called "identity politics" that divides people into groups according to race-and gender-based demographic indicators, Trump's politics began to unite people of average economic status–those whose income is not guaranteed, whose material comfort is not stable, but depends on fluctuations of the economy. The rich can afford to support the Democrats because they don't have to fear economic downturns; the rich can also afford the luxury of isolating themselves from the pandemic because they generally have a choice of earning money from home, and getting whatever they need delivered to their doors by peons like Alejandro. Those living on welfare have nothing to fear, either, especially if Democrats come into power. It’s the working people whose livelihoods are at stake if the economy flounders.

Two weeks before the elections, my husband David and I offered our services as canvassing volunteers, going door-to-door and reminding residents to vote. An appropriate phone app showed us party affiliations of households in the neighborhoods we canvassed: Republican houses were marked in red, and Democratic houses, in blue. The posher the neighborhood, the bluer the maps appeared. “Gated communities” turned out to be predominantly blue; as Republican volunteers, we were not even allowed beyond the gate. The generational division was also apparent: in many conservative homes, the parents complained that their adult children had changed their political affiliation in college or right after they graduated. "Universities have completely brainwashed them. Now we regret paying their tuition,"  they expressed exactly the same sentiment I’d heard from Krystian’s mother.

Our canvassing activity didn’t afford us any insight into the political views of racial minorities in our area as the suburbs of Reno are inhabited mainly by whites, with an occasional Asian or Latino family. However, on the national scale, the support for Trump among the racial minorities has increased significantly: 26% of minority voters chose Trump this time around. Among the Blacks, Trump secured the votes of 18% of men (by comparison, only 5% of Black men voted for a Republican candidate in 2008) and 8% of women (compared to 4% in 2016). 35% of the Latinos, such as Alejandro, cast their votes for Trump. Trump was even more successful with the indigenous populations: 59% of the Native Hawaiians and 52% of the continental Native Americans voted for him; perhaps they had never got the message that he’s a racist. Among the non-race based minority groups, Trump received electoral support from 28% of the LGBT community–so much for the claims of his homophobia. (The above calculations are based on exit polls). The Blacks and Latinos who cross over to Trump’s camp want to be treated as regular Americans, not as persecuted minorities and victims of “systemic” racism, courted every four years by the Democrats as dependable election fodder. “What do you have to lose?” Trump called out to them during his 2016 campaign. The People of Color began looking around and noticing that, in reality, they won’t be losing anything by abandoning the Democratic Party.

Neither the dilemmas of the People of Color who feel they’re being used by the Democrats, nor the uncertainty of James’s business future and Alejandro’s job situation would necessarily motivate me to vote for Trump. As the Polish expression goes, those are not my monkeys. I could easily and comfortably stand with Krystian, who has a double major in business and political science and counts on a good job for some corporation, in a fully air-conditioned office, with an income several times higher than Alejandro’s. I have earned my place among the elites, whose members would surely stop insulting me at every turn if I carried my club membership card. My children, not much older than Krystian, have also chosen the political and social comfort of the elites. Had I chosen to vote for Biden, I could have had redeemed myself from my fall for Trump four years ago, and maybe would regain the full member rights in my own family. Oh well.

It is nevertheless my concern for children that motivates me the most to support Trump. Not my own children, but other people’s. Not those from elite families, like my grandchildren, attending private schools or top public ones in gated community catchment areas, but those from families struggling to survive in poor neighborhoods or ethnic ghettos, attending schools which are intellectual deserts. Having worked with, or for, underprivileged children for most of my professional life, I know such schools only too well.

One of the prominent items on Trump’s political and social agenda is school choice: the right of families to send their children to schools best suited to their needs, interests, and abilities. The US is the only one among highly developed countries in which children are tied to their neighborhood schools like feudal peasants to land. There is a marked difference in the quality of schools in rich and poor areas: not only in the physical structures and equipment, but also in the breadth and depth of curricular offerings and the standards of instruction. Needless to say, graduates of excellent schools achieve higher test scores and better chances of admission to top universities than those from the schools in the ghettos; in some of the latter, not a single student achieves the lowest required threshold of academic performance (e.g., thirteen Baltimore City high schools achieved zero proficiency in mathematics; Baltimore has been a bastion of the Democratic Party since the 1960s).

Access to good schools is important to Americans. The quality of its public schools affects a neighborhood’s property values and apartment rent rates. People on limited incomes cannot afford to move, but they have no right to send their children to schools offering better educational perspectives. Thus the children of the less affluent are sentenced not only to years of academic mediocrity, but also to the influence and effects of drugs and crime in their school environments, perpetuating the patterns of failure and poverty.

The Trump administration has been battling the Democratic opposition to allow the money designated for the education of a child to follow each student to a school of his/her choice. All the highly developed countries, in which children and adolescents achieve high levels of academic performance, allow school choice; in some countries, school choice is a constitutional right. Only equal access to the same educational opportunities can erase the glaring economic imbalances by creating paths to prosperity and social equality for the future generations of Americans.

The Democratic Party and its ardent supporters, the teachers’ unions, are fiercely opposing all political and administrative efforts to guarantee the right to school choice for all citizens. The multi-million dollar financial contributions from the teachers’ unions to the Democratic Party’s Political Action Committees are to ensure that no school choice proposal will never be approved by the Congress. One has to wonder why the liberal elites so vehemently deny poor children access to good education; why they don’t consider those children as deserving of the same opportunities as their own offspring. Two words come to mind: control and contempt. Because the Swamp sucks you in.

And that’s why I voted for Trump.