The Evening Blues - 7-25-24
Hey! Good Evening!
This evening's music features Texas blues guitarist Frankie Lee Sims. Enjoy!
Frankie Lee Sims - She Likes To Boogie Real Low
"We're headed for what is called Type 1 Civilization, planetary civilization. Type 2 would be stellar civilization, like Star Trek. Type 3 Civilization would be galactic, like Star Wars. We are Type 0. We get our energy from dead plants, oil and coal. But the question is: Will we make it? Will we make the transition from Type 0 to Type 1? It's not clear."
-- Michio Kaku
News and Opinion
Netanyahu’s Speech Was As American As It Gets
Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech before Congress was everything you’d expect: packed full of lies and propaganda spin, yet simultaneously very illuminating and revealing.
The Israeli prime minister received no fewer than 58 standing ovations while speaking before both houses of Congress and spewing the most despicable lies you could possibly imagine in his conspicuously American accent. Depending on how politically aware you are, this spectacle could be perceived as either deeply un-American, or as American as it gets.
Netanyahu repeated evidence-free atrocity propaganda about what happened on October 7, falsely asserting that Hamas “burned babies alive” and killed two babies in an attic. He falsely claimed that Hamas “butchered 1,200 people”, pretending it’s not a well-established fact that many of the 1,139 Israeli deaths that day came from both indiscriminate IDF fire and deliberate targeting in implementation of the Hannibal Directive.
"This is what our ruling class has decided will be normal."
~ Aaron Bushnell https://t.co/omrIn5SNr1— Caitlin Johnstone (@caitoz) July 24, 2024
He made the completely baseless claim that Iran may be paying the anti-genocide demonstrators outside the Capitol Building during his speech, saying, “When the Tyrants of Tehran, who hang gays from cranes and murder women for not covering their hair, are praising, promoting and funding you, you have officially become Iran’s useful idiots.”
Netanyahu spent minutes ranting and raving about protests in America against his government’s atrocities in Gaza, during which he received a standing ovation from Congress that went on for nearly a minute.
He accused the International Criminal Court of “antisemitism” and “blood libel” for saying that Israel deliberately targets civilians, as though this hasn’t been conclusively established by mountains of evidence like the IDF’s Lavender AI system and statements from doctors describing what can only be deliberate sniper executions of children in Gaza.
He repeated Israel’s evidence-free claim that the only reason people are starving in Gaza is because Hamas is “stealing” all of the aid Israel allows in for itself.
Netanyahu went out of his way to frame Israel’s plight as civilized people against uncivilized barbarians, which only works if you harbor a supremely racist worldview. He kept repeating the word “civilization”, contrasting this with the “barbarism” of Hamas and its supporters, calling Israel’s US-backed military violence “a clash between barbarism and civilization” and saying “Israel fights on the frontline of civilization”.
He made these appeals to the racism that westerners harbor toward middle easterners in the same speech wherein he decried the “outrageous slanders that paint Israel as racist and genocidal”
Netanyahu said Israel “must retain overriding security control” over Gaza “for the foreseeable future”, an open admission of plans for indefinite military occupation.
This deluge of lies and racist invective received dozens and dozens of standing ovations. The same political class that’s spent the last eight years shrieking about the threat of misinformation, disinformation and foreign propaganda just normalized and applauded a foreign genocidal war criminal as he stood before Congress telling lie after lie after lie.
You couldn’t ask for a better example of everything Washington stands for than this. Both houses of Congress rising to feverishly applaud one of history’s worst genocidal monsters dozens of times as he lies over and over again is a much better representation of what the US government is about than anything you’ll see during the presidential race from now until November.
This is everything Israel is, and this is everything the US empire is. They’re showing you who they are. Believe them.
Noura Erakat: During Netanyahu Speech, Congress Cheered "What Is Essentially a War on Children"
Would you buy a slightly used war from this man?
Netanyahu tells Congress Israel’s ‘fight is your fight’ amid boycotts and protests
Benjamin Netanyahu lauded US support for Israel’s war in Gaza but offered few details on ceasefire negotiations as he addressed a raucous joint session of US Congress that was boycotted by dozens of Democratic lawmakers and protested by thousands outside the US Capitol. In a fiery speech in the House chamber, Netanyahu called for “total victory” in the nine-month-old war, dashing hopes among some that he would announce progress toward a ceasefire and the return of Israeli hostages before his meetings with Joe Biden at the White House on Thursday.
“We’re not only protecting ourselves. We’re protecting you … Our enemies are your enemy, our fight is your fight, and our victory will be your victory,” Netanyahu shouted, as House and Senate Republicans rose to their feet to applaud the Israeli prime minister.
Outside the fenced-off Capitol, police used pepper spray against protesters who chanted: “Netanyahu, you can’t hide. You’re committing genocide.” Streets in Washington’s downtown area were closed to traffic, while officers experienced in dealing with mass protests were drafted in from the New York police department.
Dozens of Democratic members of Congress – including the former House speaker Nancy Pelosi – said they would boycott the speech over humanitarian concerns about how Israel has prosecuted the war in Gaza, which has left an estimated 39,000 Palestinian civilians dead. Axios reported that nearly half of all Democratic lawmakers were absent from the joint session. ...
Netanyahu brushed aside humanitarian concerns for the civilian population of Gaza, denying that Israel was blocking shipments of food aid to Palestinians and issuing an appeal for the US to fast-track military aid to Israel: “Give us the tools and we’ll get the job done faster.” He thanked Biden for his “heartfelt support for Israel”, while also praising Donald Trump for his “leadership” during his first term. ... Netanyahu also delivered a provocative message against critics of the war, pandering to Republicans as he called anti-war college protesters “Iran’s useful idiots”.
How Netanyahu's Address to Congress Reveals U.S. Priorities with Journalist Max Blumenthal
Groups Demand Probe of Israeli Influence Operations Targeting Americans
Over two dozen organizations on Wednesday demanded that the Biden administration launch a multi-agency investigation into recent reporting that "the Israeli government is engaging in illicit social media influence operations targeting U.S. elected officials and U.S. civil society."
Pointing to June reports by The New York Times, Haaretz, and The Guardian, the groups—including the Center for International Policy, CodePink, Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), National Iranian American Council (NIAC), U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR) Action, and Win Without War—wrote to President Joe Biden and the departments of Homeland Security, Justice, and State.
As Israel began waging war on the Gaza Strip in retaliation for the Hamas-led October 7 attack, the country's Ministry of Diaspora Affairs "allocated about $2 million to the operation and hired Stoic, a political marketing firm in Tel Aviv, to carry it out," the Times reported June 5, citing related documents and unnamed Israeli officials.
Although the Israeli ministry denied involvement in the campaign and Stoic didn't respond to requests for comment, the newspaper noted that "at its peak, it used hundreds of fake accounts that posed as real Americans on X, Facebook, and Instagram to post pro-Israel comments. The accounts focused on U.S. lawmakers, particularly ones who are Black and Democrats."
As The Guardian reported on June 24, "That effort is only one of many such campaigns coordinated by the ministry."
The newspaper detailed "a sprawling relaunch of a controversial Israeli government program initially known as Kela Shlomo, designed to carry out what Israel called 'mass consciousness activities' targeted largely at the U.S. and Europe."
"Concert, now known as Voices of Israel, previously worked with groups spearheading a campaign to pass so-called 'anti-BDS' state laws that penalize Americans for engaging in boycotts or other nonviolent protests of Israel," The Guardian explained, referring to the Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement.
"Its latest incarnation is part of a hardline and sometimes covert operation by the Israeli government to strike back at student protests, human rights organizations, and other voices of dissent," according to the newspaper. "Voices' latest activities were conducted through nonprofits and other entities that often do not disclose donor information."
The conduct alleged in this report on Israeli government-funded efforts to influence American public opinion, policy and law via US entities potentially constitutes multiple violations of the Foreign Agents Registration Act.@DOJNatSec must investigate.https://t.co/S2GyaChYgl
— Dylan Williams (@dylanotes) June 24, 2024
The coalition calling on Biden to launch an investigation wrote that "it is incumbent on our government to protect its citizens from efforts by foreign governments to inappropriately interfere in our democratic process by spreading disinformation, targeting U.S. elected officials, and seeking to intimidate members of U.S. civil society."
Highlighting previous action "to punish and deter such nefarious behavior" by Russian firms, the groups argued that "as an administration that has defined itself as defenders of American democracy against threats from both domestic and foreign state actors, the news of the Israeli government's attacks on our democracy must be addressed."
NIAC president Jamal Abdi said, "What this letter asks for is very simple: that President Biden and his administration treat reports of inappropriate Israeli influence operations with the same seriousness that it has allegations of Russian and Iranian influence campaigns."
"Unfortunately, what has been reported thus far could just be the tip of the iceberg," he continued. "The administration must work to defend our democracy fully, and ensure that no foreign state has a green light to inappropriately target American citizens or manipulate our democratic process."
The U.S. government has provided weapons and diplomatic support for Israel's war on Gaza, which has killed at least 39,145 Palestinians and injured another 90,257, according to local officials, and is the subject of an International Court of Justice genocide case.
"The United States has failed to protect Palestinian communities, putting them at risk of harm to continue emboldening Israel," USCPR Action policy manager Mohammed Khader said Wednesday. "As the Israeli government and its foreign agents attempt to undermine our collective efforts on Palestinian rights, we strongly urge for the federal government to impose sanctions to hold Israeli officials and institutions accountable for violating the law."
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu disgraced the U.S. Congress today by blatantly lying about Israel’s war crimes and systematic killing and starvation of innocent Palestinian civilians. He banged the war drums repeatedly against Iran, and cast his government’s efforts to… pic.twitter.com/bKyP3SSEG8
— NIAC (@NIACouncil) July 24, 2024
In addition to the reported covert operations, there have been overt actions by Israel's leaders. As Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir on Wednesday endorsed former U.S. President Donald Trump for the November election, saying that he believes the Republican "will receive the backing to act against Iran," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was invited to address a joint session of Congress, despite protests from American lawmakers.
Trump, Biden, and Vice President Kamala Harris—now the presumed Democratic nominee for the November election—are all set to separately meet with Netanyahu while he is visiting the United States.
"It's time for the Biden administration to end its policy of exceptionalism towards Israel and hold all nations to the same standards," declared DAWN advocacy director Raed Jarrar. "The administration must take decisive action to protect our democracy from all forms of foreign interference."
Protesters Release MAGGOTS & BUGS All Over Netanyahu’s Hotel!
Israeli tanks massacre Palestinians in Khan Younis as Netanyahu arrives in Washington D.C.
The Israeli government pressed ahead with its genocide of the Palestinians in Gaza this week as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in Washington D.C. for his appearance Wednesday before a joint session of the US Congress and meetings with President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump.
Al Jazeera reported Tuesday that 89 Palestinians had been killed and 329 wounded throughout the Gaza Strip as Israel launched a new assault on the city of Khan Younis, about seven miles from the enclave’s southern border. Al Jazeera added that there are another 68 missing under the rubble of the attacks.
Israeli tanks rolled back into Khan Younis on Monday in the third assault on the city and 70 Palestinians were killed. Reuters reported, “The Palestinians were killed by tank salvoes in the town of Bani Suhaila and other towns fringing the eastern side of Khan Younis, with the area also bombarded from the air,” according to Gaza medics. “It is like doomsday,” one resident told Reuters via chat app. “People are fleeing under fire, many are dead and wounded on the roads,” he said.
The Gaza health ministry reported that the dead included several women and children and that at least 200 others had been wounded. Per the formula of the Zionist state, the massacre at Khan Younis was justified because Israeli intelligence said militants were firing rockets from the area and Hamas was attempting to regroup there. However, Palestinian authorities said 400,000 people were living in the targeted areas and dozens of families had started leaving their homes but were not given enough time to vacate the zone before the air strikes by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) began.
Ben-Gvir Endorses Trump, Says He's More Likely to Back War on Iran
Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir endorsed former U.S. President Donald Trump—the 2024 Republican nominee—for the White House in an interview published Wednesday in which he accused the Biden administration of preventing Israel from winning its war on Gaza.
"I believe that with Trump, Israel will receive the backing to act against Iran," Ben-Gvir, who heads the far-right Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power) party, told Bloomberg. "With Trump, it will be clearer that enemies must be defeated."
"A cabinet minister is supposed to maintain neutrality," the 48-year-old minister conceded, "but that's impossible to do after [U.S. President Joe] Biden."
"The U.S. has always stood behind Israel in terms of armaments and weapons, yet this time the sense was that we were being reckoned with—that we were trying to be prevented from winning. That happened on Biden's watch and fed Hamas with lots of energy," added Ben-Gvir, who was convicted in 2007 of incitement to racism after he advocated the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians.
Syrsky Ukr MSM Admit Ukr Military Crisis, Rus 14 Km Mirnograd, Destroys Ukr Tank Base, Takes Vocha
Ukraine FM Signals Readiness To Resume Talks With Russia During China Visit
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba visited China on Wednesday and signaled Ukraine was ready to resume peace talks with Russia.
According to Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry, Kuleba told Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi that Kyiv “is ready to engage the Russian side in the negotiation process at a certain stage when Russia is ready to negotiate in good faith, but emphasized that no such readiness is currently observed on the Russian side.”
The Kremlin responded and said that Kuleba’s comments were in line with Russia’s position. “We have all learned from reports from Beijing that he made such a statement at a meeting with Mr. Wang Yi. One might say that the message in itself is in line with our position,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
“You know, Russia has never rejected talks, remaining open for a negotiation process. However, details are important here and we don’t know them yet. So let’s wait for some clarifications that will apparently follow,” he added.
Rupert Murdoch in secret legal battle with children over media empire – report
Rupert Murdoch is in a secret legal battle pitching the ageing mogul and his heir apparent, Lachlan Murdoch, against three of his other children, according to documents seen by the New York Times.
Murdoch, 93, is attempting to secure Lachlan Murdoch’s control of the family’s media empire by changing the terms of a family trust that would have also given younger brother James, sister Elisabeth and half-sister Prudence a say in how the company is run.
Currently, the trust would hand control of the billionaire media tycoon’s sprawling empire to his four eldest children when he dies. But according to sealed court documents obtained by the New York Times, Murdoch is arguing that Lachlan should have sole control of the family’s investments in Fox News, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, the Australian and other assets, including the Sun and the Times in the UK.
Lachlan Murdoch is seen as the most conservative of Murdoch’s children and his father is arguing that his political beliefs are essential to maintaining the value of the right-leaning media company.
According to the Times, a Nevada probate commissioner found last month that the family’s irrevocable trust can be rewritten if Murdoch can prove he is acting in good faith to protect the value of the trust’s holdings. His effort to rewrite the trust is being led by William Barr, former US attorney general under George HW Bush and Donald Trump, the Times reported.
![the horse race](https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8704/17115703217_42a5d5eb4c.jpg)
Harris consolidates control of Democratic presidential nomination
The Democratic Party establishment is moving rapidly to guarantee the nomination of Vice President Kamala Harris well before the Democratic National Convention opens in Chicago August 19. The rules committee of the DNC voted Wednesday to hold a virtual nomination vote of all convention delegates during the first week of August, in order to meet ballot requirements in Ohio. ...
Since President Joe Biden announced Sunday he was withdrawing from the election campaign, there has been a surge of campaign cash into the Democratic Party’s coffers, as well as a deluge of flattering media publicity, hailing the supposed youthfulness and excitement that the 59-year-old former senator and California state attorney general brings to the campaign. Polls reportedly show that the race between Harris and Trump is effectively tied, particularly in the six or seven closely contested “battleground” states. ...
Harris made her first public appearance as the presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Tuesday in Milwaukee, where the fascist Republican National Convention was held last week. She made a series of demagogic pledges for actions that the Biden-Harris administration has been incapable of accomplishing, including guaranteeing that “every person has affordable health care, affordable child care, and paid family leave,” and “every senior can retire with dignity.” In reality, the Biden-Harris administration has subordinated all social spending to the demands of its aggressive and militaristic foreign policy, including all-out backing for the war against Russia in Ukraine, tens of billions for Israel to carry out genocide in Gaza and prepare for war against Iran, and a military build-up in the Indo-Pacific region directed against China.
Harris is fully committed to continuing all these policies and has the support of the bulk of the military-intelligence apparatus in doing so. They distrust the Trump-Vance ticket, regarding Trump as too erratic and impulsive and Vance as willing to do and say anything to keep in Trump’s good graces. This was demonstrated in an open letter signed by 350 former ambassadors, military officers, CIA executives and other national security officials, most of them Democrats from the Clinton, Obama and Biden administrations, but including many prominent Republicans and career government officials not affiliated with either capitalist party. The letter declared:
When it comes to handling America’s national security, Vice President Harris requires no on-the-job training. In fact, if elected President, she would enter that office with more significant national security experience than the four Presidents prior to President Biden [i.e., Clinton, Bush, Obama and Trump]. And in today’s global security environment, we need a strong and tested leader.
Vice President Harris’s record of diplomacy is outstanding. She has met with President Xi of China and dozens of leaders throughout the Indo-Pacific as part of our efforts to strengthen alliances and partnerships, grow our economy, and out-compete China. Across four trips to the Indo-Pacific and representing the United States at numerous global summits, the Vice President has strengthened alliances and partnerships in the Indo-Pacific, and in particular, Southeast Asia, in recognition of the importance of this region to American security and prosperity. She has met six times with President Zelenskyy of Ukraine, including in a meeting five days before Russia invaded Ukraine in order to warn him of the imminent invasion and help Ukraine prepare. She has traveled to NATO’s Eastern Flank and helped ensure NATO unity in the face of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Those signing the letter endorsing Harris include the national security officials most closely involved in the preparation and instigation of the US-NATO war against Russia in Ukraine, such as Victoria Nuland, former under-secretary of state for political affairs and chief organizer of the 2014 Maidan coup that overthrew the elected pro-Russian government in Kiev, as well as Obama’s two secretaries of state, Hillary Clinton and John Kerry, former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, former CIA Director Michael Hayden, former CIA Director and Pentagon chief Leon Panetta, former national security advisers Thomas Donilon and Susan Rice, and former US ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul, as well as former CIA general counsel Jeremy Bash, the former husband of CNN anchor Dana Bash.
First Polls REVEAL NEW Trump Vs Kamala Landscape
Judge declines to dismiss Trump defamation lawsuit against ABC News
A federal judge in Miami has denied a motion to dismiss Donald Trump’s defamation lawsuit against the ABC News TV network and one of its star journalists, George Stephanopoulos, concerning remarks made by the anchor in March that the former president had been “found liable for rape”.
In a 21-page ruling issued on Wednesday, the judge, Cecilia Altonaga of the US district court for the southern district of Florida, rejected arguments brought by the news division and its host. She said that a “reasonable jury” could conclude that Trump had been defamed, and, as a result, “dismissal is inappropriate”.
The decision allows the case to proceed to the discovery phase and possible trial.
Trump heralded the ruling as a “big win”. In a post on his Truth Social platform, he repeated his offensive moniker for the TV host as “LIDDLE GEORGE SLOPADOPOLUS” and said the judgment would force the “fake news media” to tell the truth.
Wealthy western countries lead in global oil and gas expansion
A surge in new oil and gas exploration in 2024 threatens to unleash nearly 12bn tonnes of planet-heating emissions, with the world’s wealthiest countries – such as the US and the UK – leading a stampede of fossil fuel expansion in spite of their climate commitments, new data shared exclusively with the Guardian reveals.
The new oil and gas field licences forecast to be awarded across the world this year are on track to generate the highest level of emissions since those issued in 2018, as heatwaves, wildfires, drought and floods cause death and destruction globally, according to analysis of industry data by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD).
The 11.9bn tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions – which is roughly the same as China’s annual carbon pollution – resulting over their lifetime from all current and upcoming oil and gas fields forecast to be licensed by the end of 2024 would be greater than the past four years combined. The projection includes licences awarded as of June 2024, as well as the oil and gas blocks open for bidding, under evaluation or planned.
Meanwhile, fossil fuel firms are ploughing more money into developing new oil and gas sites than at any time since the 2015 Paris climate deal, when the world’s governments agreed to take steps to cut emissions and curb global heating. The world’s wealthiest countries are economically best placed – and obliged under the Paris accords – to lead the transition away from fossil fuels to cleaner energy sources. But these high-capacity countries with a low economic dependence on fossil fuels are spearheading the latest drilling frenzy despite dwindling easy-to-reach reserves, handing out 825 new licences in 2023, the largest number since records began.
Classic “petrostates” such as Saudi Arabia or Russia – which rely heavily on oil and gas revenues to balance their budgets – have faced criticism for slowing action on the climate crisis. Yet countries including the UK, the US, Canada, Norway and Australia are increasingly being thought of by some experts as the “other petrostates” , given they have access to financial and technological resources that would make the energy transition less disruptive. While they are often portrayed as climate leaders on the world stage, these five wealthy countries are responsible for more than two-thirds (67%) of all new oil and gas licences issued globally since 2020.
Tree bark plays vital role in removing methane from atmosphere
Microbes in the bark of trees play a vital role in removing methane from the atmosphere, scientists have discovered. The greenhouse gas is a product of agriculture and the burning of fossil fuels and is 28 times more potent than carbon dioxide. However, it remains in the atmosphere for a shorter time. Methane has been responsible for about 30% of global heating since preindustrial times, with emissions currently rising at their fastest rate since the 1980s.
The team behind the study by the University of Birmingham, published in the journal Nature and led by Prof Vincent Gauci, investigated methane absorption levels in upland tropical forests in the Amazon and Panama; temperate broadleaf trees in Wytham Woods in Oxfordshire in the UK; and boreal coniferous forest trees in Sweden.
Methane absorption levels were found to be the highest in tropical forests, probably thanks to the microbes’ ability to thrive in warm and wet conditions. Previously, soil was thought to be the only terrestrial sink for methane, with bacteria in the soil able to absorb the gas and break it down to use as an energy source. But Gauci said the research highlighted “a remarkable new way in which trees provide a vital climate service”.
The Global Methane Pledge, launched in 2021 at the Cop26 climate summit, outlined the aim to cut methane emissions by 30% by the end of the decade. Gauci said: “Our results suggest that planting more trees, and reducing deforestation surely must be important parts of any approach towards this goal.”
Tree planting has become a key tactic in combating the climate crisis, with the UK government planning to spend more than £500m on trees and woodlands between 2020 and 2025. But another piece of research published on Wednesday shows countries must weigh up the benefits and disadvantages of tree planting, with natural forest regeneration proving more cost-effective in some circumstances.
Illegal fireworks ignited California blaze that caused $10m in damage, mayor says
Illegal fireworks ignited a blaze in southern California over the weekend that destroyed six homes and caused $10m in damages, officials said this week.
The Hawarden fire in Riverside county has scorched 527 acres, damaged seven homes and cost the county more than $1m in emergency response, Patricia Lock Dawson, the city’s mayor, said at a press conference on Monday. ...
The blaze in southern California comes as the west faces a grueling fire season, particularly in the Pacific north-west, and back-to-back heatwaves. Firefighters in Oregon are battling a nearly 245,000-acre fire that has become so large it is creating its own weather.
Also of Interest
Here are some articles of interest, some which defied fair-use abstraction.
10 Principles for Perpetual Peace in the 21st Century
Palestinian Factions Sign Unity Deal in China
Were Benjamin Netanyahu’s claims accurate in his speech to US Congress?
US Media Downplays and Ignores ICJ Ruling Declaring Israeli Occupation Illegal
Rashida Tlaib holds up ‘war criminal’ sign during Netanyahu address
Time Mag: It’s Time to Rethink the U.S.-Israel ‘Special Relationship’
Patrick Lawrence: The Wreckage Biden Leaves
Craig Murray: Who Runs America?
Nicaraguan Democracy Exposes the U.S. Oligarchy
AFT Signs On to UAW's Push for 2028 General Strike
‘High quality, low price and dizzying variety’: how the Chinese switched to electric cars
‘This used to be a beautiful place’: how the US became the world’s biggest fossil fuel state
Early mammal could help answer one of biology’s biggest questions, say experts
Over 100 Lawmakers Skip Netanyahu Speech to Congress Amid Protests over U.S. Support for War in Gaza
FBI Director STUNS With Shooter Search History
A Little Night Music
Frankie Lee Sims - Home Again Blues
Frankie Lee Sims - I'm Long, Long Gone
Frankie Lee Sims - Hey Little Girl
Frankie Lee Sims - Lucy Mae Blues
Frankie Lee Sims - Yeh, Baby!
Frankie Lee Sims - Misery Blues
Frankie Lee Sims - Walking with Frankie
Frankie Lee Sims - Married Woman
Frankie Lee Sims - Well Goodbye Baby
Frankie Lee Sims - My Talk Didn't Do No Good
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Comments
the NOLA manhole cover
.
brings back fond memories of the stumbling home blues
under which is a good place to stuff nutty yahoo and his
conspirators in congress, btw
thanks for the EB's
truth is considered foreign influence, world peace is a threat to national security
evening qms...
i say, shove 'em down there until the sewers back up or the alligators get offended.
Putin gives this speech to congress
.
Unfuckingbelievable that the asshole got a standing ovation from our government for speaking against Americans.
As the judge mentioned Monday Vance is talking about ending the Ukraine war so we can attack Iran. He says that we must be careful sending our military to war unless the need is great. Apparently he thinks the need is great to see lots of military members over there now wiped off the earth.
According to Cook courts should throw out every BDS case now that the world court has ruled. People who have been fired or made to sign a contract should take their cases back to court. But the information needs to get out. The corporate media didn’t bother covering the decision.
Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.
Voting is like driving with a toy steering wheel.
evening snoopy...
that's because netanyahu was speaking against the americans that congressworms hate. frankly, netanyahu's speech was good for pointing out who the racist, genocidal assholes in congress are.
Here is a list of Congress persons who boycotted
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/every-democrat-and-republican-sk...
The Netanyahoo speech. IDK if it is a complete list.
Mary Bennett
evening nastarana...
i'm not sure if it's complete either. i read that somewhere around half of dem reps skipped and about half of the dem senators skipped, too. rep massie also skipped according to axios.
@joe shikspack The list I found
Mary Bennett
This can not
be over-recommended. Spot on.
As my dear departed grey-haired mammy used to say, “Nice of ‘em to hold up their hands, innit?”
Yes. Yes, it is.
Twice bitten, permanently shy.
yep...
they were all shining faces and applauding hands.
Powerful essay by Patrick Lawrence
.
https://scheerpost.com/2024/07/25/patrick-lawrence-gaza-we-cannot-remain...
I have a hard time reading what is happening in Gaza and the West Bank because I can’t wrap my head around the evil that humans can do to each others. That our government invites the butcher of Gaza here and there kissed his ass while he denied doing evil should piss every American off. Instead too many would have cheered him too. Patrick explains why that is.
Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.
Voting is like driving with a toy steering wheel.
yep...
it's a pathetically cruel and evil world that our oligarchs have made to live in. is hell really better if you are running it?
After fact checking this short video there is nothing that
Scott Ritter said that is not correct.
evening humphrey...
i didn't hear anything that sounded wrong, ritter seems to be telling it as it is.
Good evening Joe, thanks for the EBs.
It looks like the Ukies have reached some new apex of magical thinking whereby thinks will continue down the same road and then they will win, with or without wunderwaffen. One begins to wonder if their ruling clown prince will even manage to know when to get out.
be well and have a good one
That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --
evening el...
i am still seeing propaganda in the guardian that anticipates the ukronazis turning this mess around and defeating the russians, who are lying about their military advances and economic security.
go figure. they could start a new religion with that much magical thinking.
I don't imagine that Blinken is jumping with joy upon hearing
this news.
https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/business/international/2024/07/25/china-and-...
Oh jeebus
.
.
first India cozies-up with Russia (US arch enemy #1)
now they are getting friendly with China (arch enemy #2)
heavy sanctions must follow for such diplomatic behavior /s
truth is considered foreign influence, world peace is a threat to national security
As an added bonus....
heh...
boy it would be nice to see two countries solve a territorial dispute without shots being fired or dick-waving displays of military prowess.
Formalizing the US-Japan-South Korea security partnership
At the same time North Korean trash balloons are falling again within the prohibited zone over and around the presidential office in Yongsan, Seoul.
These North Korean balloon trash missions actually landed on the presidential office grounds. A South Korean editorial in the Hankyoreh noted how this repeated serious security lapse was created by the Yoon administration's move to Yongsan from the traditional location of the presidential office at the more secure Blue House. The editorial also suggested that the South Korean propaganda balloons against North Korea be prohibited and the loudspeaker action on the DMZ be suspended. Too much common sense. Meanwhile the presidential office is too preoccupied with threats of investigation of the office, Yoon's family and the Cpl Chae investigation fiasco to carefully monitor the defense situation. The defense minister and the presidential national security advisors want to "lock in" the commitments to Japan and the US in the new updated tri-lateral arrangements. Ostensibly this is to tie Trump's hands. It is also to tie South Korea's hands.
Framework for S. Korea-US-Japan security cooperation nearly finalized, says SK defense chief
North Korean trash balloon falls on premises of South’s presidential office
North Korean drones crossed the DMZ and one entered into the prohibited zone around the presidential office last December. None of the drones were intercepted. A previous trash balloon incursion into the same prohibited area dropped debris near the War Museum which is just across the street from the presidential office in the Yongsan complex.
Thanks for the news and blues, Joe.
語必忠信 行必正直
evening soryang...
heh, i was just reading an article about the trash balloons on al jazeera. it says that rok is going to step up its propaganda broadcasts, which i'm sure will please the dprk to no end. i guess they'll all get their jollies annoying each other.
thanks for the updates, have a great evening!
Hmmm! This doesn't bode well for the US hegemony.
heh...
i suspect that as the institutions that are growing around china and russia grow, prosper and supplant western institutions in much of the world the approval of china will swell to greater numbers, since the west is a smaller portion of world population.
This doesn't help the US in the goodwill category
語必忠信 行必正直
Thanks soryang
I looked up the countries that are sanctioned in some form by the US. iI's quite a long list.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_sanctions#:~:text=Comprehens....
It seems as if Putin understands US politics.
heh...
sounds like a pretty deep understanding of u.s. politics.
Putin probably knows a lot more than we do
Isn't that ironic?
Presidential transitions
Not denying the wisdom of the Putin quote. But things don't instantly change. It actually takes months. Don't know how I got into this, it probably had something to do with the "attempted assassination" of Trump, and the timing of Joe's abandonment of his reelection bid. The presidential transition activity has to begin about the time of party convention for both parties. There is not enough time between election day and January 20 to get an administration ready. It's actually regarded as a "national security" matter. This is about the time when the guys with the briefcases arrive on the scene, and say you have to start working on this now, organizing the new administration. This starts with both parties candidates before either one is elected. The people who maintain this are in the briefcase category, and say it even applies to someone running for reelection (assuming they're competent enough to do so).
語必忠信 行必正直
Tweet of the year
Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.
Voting is like driving with a toy steering wheel.
bingo! n/t
CrowdStrike? Remember CrowdStrike?
When all the airline schedules crashed over the weekend, reporters were mentioning Crowdstrike. I happened to mention Crowdstrike in an article about Russiagate, here:
https://caucus99percent.com/content/okeydoke-americans-were-supposed-get
Here's what I wrote:
The first tell was last summer when the first word of Russia allegedly hacking the DNC’s computers became public. As we have come to find out, the DNC announced that it had been hacked but refused the FBI access to its servers. Why? Because the DNC preferred to have its own cybercrime experts examine them. And who were their cybercrime experts? CrowdStrike, owned by Dmitri Alperovitch, a Moscow-born immigrant who settled in the US as a youth. Curiously, he has a chair at the Atlantic Council, a Washington think tank that spends a lot of time thinking of reasons to go to war against Russia. How much do they want to go to war with Russia? A lot. Saudi Arabia and the Ukrainian World Congress are among their funders.
Well, sure enough, as could have been predicted, CrowdStrike did indeed find that Russia was hacking the DNC, although subsequently the hack information turned out to be unpersuasive. One piece of malware misidentified by Crowdstrike as Russian was actually Ukrainian. That’s a rather big mistake, if a malware’s country of origin proves anything at all, and in fact when the software’s country of origin was alleged to be Russian that was the logic in charging the Russians as the hackers. With recent Wikileaks revealing that the CIA has in its toolbox the ability to create hacks using others’ malware and then pinning the blame elsewhere, any claim of hacking and who authored the hacking should be open to question, as we’ve had enough proof to suspect all along. And, as always, the CIA is the last institution to trust when seeking the truth. This does not even address whether one of our moles in the Russian bureaucracy was aiding this okeydoke.
At the same time that the first indications of the Russian hack were announced, Alexandra Chalupa, a self-described “proud Ukrainian American” employed at the DNC, was doing opposition research on Trump, Manafort et al for their “connections” to Russia. In interviews last summer Chalupa was throwing around the words “treason” and “capital crime” in the direction of Manafort and Trump.
Note what we have: A self-contained scandal within the DNC, not open to contradiction by law enforcement (the FBI was kept out), pointing the finger at Russia for interfering with the “democratic process”. Our sacred democratic process!
evening bob...
seems like those crowdstrikers can't even do good when they're trying to.
Cloudstroke.
It is now Cloudstroke.
You don’t own your data, and it won’t survive the next hemorrhage in any case. Hope that doesn’t cause any inconvenience… (;-)
Twice bitten, permanently shy.