Iran, Zionism, and the Limits of US Control: An Interview with Faramarz Farbod
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Trump, Leakers, and Journalists
The Assange Precedent and Revisiting the Espionage Act
When campaigning in 2016, presidential candidate Donald Trump was delighted by leaked, hacked or disclosed material that wound its way to the digital treasure troves of WikiLeaks. The online publisher of government secrets had become an invaluable resource for Trump’s battering of the Democratic establishment hopeful, Hillary Clinton, with her nonchalant attitude to the security of email communications and a venal electoral strategy. “Very little pick-up by the dishonest media of incredible information provided by WikiLeaks,” he tooted on what was then Twitter. “So dishonest! Rigged system!” After winning the keys to the White House, he mysteriously forgot …
What July 5th Taught Me that July 4th Never Did
Growing up in Venezuela and now living in the United States, I’ve always felt caught between two independence days: July 4th and July 5th. Two celebrations. Two flags. Two very different ideas of what it means to be free.
In the U.S., the Fourth of July comes with fireworks, parades, and an almost unquestioned belief in the righteousness of the revolution it commemorates. However, in Venezuela, July 5th evokes different thoughts. It is not just a break from colonial rule but the beginning of a long, unfinished struggle to define freedom on our own terms. It’s not something we …
America’s Republicans’ Hatred of the Poor
The budget-and-tax bill that President Trump has placed before America’s U.S. Senators and Representatives to pass by a majority in each of the two houses of Congress is a total repudiation of the first Republican U.S. President (and the only progressive Republican U.S. President), Abraham Lincoln, as will here be documented.
The Republican Party was basically started by Lincoln, who (if he had lived) would have repudiated and condemned virtually all of his Republican successors. The assassination that killed him transformed his Party into its exact opposite, in the most important ways.
Here is Lincoln speaking, so that the transformation wrought …
Operation Midnight Hammer: Were Iran’s Nuclear Facilities Damaged?
The aftermath of Operation Midnight Hammer, a strike by the US Air Force on three nuclear facilities in Iran authorized by President Donald Trump on June 22, was raucous and triumphant. But that depended on what company you were keeping. The mission involved the bombing of the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant, the uranium-enrichment facility at Natanz, and the uranium-conversion facility in Isfahan. The Israeli Air Force had already attacked the last two facilities, sparing Fordow for the singular weaponry available for the USAF.
The Fordow site was of particular interest, located some eighty to a hundred metres underground and cocooned …
Magical Theatricality in the Ice Age Caves: Why it Should Matter to Socialists
Orientation
From the time of the Renaissance until representational art began to be challenged at the end of the 19th century, most of us think of secular art as consisting of separate disciplines – dance, theatre, singing, painting, sculpture and writing. The exception to this was the theatrical work of Richard Wagner, a German composer, theater director, essayist and conductor who understood that combining the arts can create altered states of consciousness in the German public. Speaking religiously, the Catholic church was and is a master at creating altered states …
A Battle for Humane Consciousness in a War Against Truth: Exposing the Dark Arts of War
Repairing the aparture of Western society
The total liberation and unification of Africa under an All-African Socialist Government must be the primary objective of all Black revolutionaries throughout the world. It is an objective which, when achieved, will bring about the fulfillment of the aspirations of Africans and people of African descent everywhere. It will at the same time advance the triumph of the international socialist revolution, and the onward progress towards world communism, under which, every society is ordered on the principle of –from each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.
— Osagyefo Kwame Nkrumah
Jeremy Kuzmarov was kind to spend an hour with …
Australia Backs US Strike on Iran
A Vassal’s Impulse
The initial statement from Australian government sources was one of constipated caution and clenching wariness. Senator Penny Wong’s time as head of the Department of Trade and Foreign Affairs has always been about how things come out, a process unsatisfyingly uncertain and unyielding in detail. Stick to the safe middle ground and sod the rest. These were the cautionary words of an Australian government spokesperson on June 22: “We have been clear that Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile program has been a threat to international peace and security.”
That insipid statement was in response to Operation Midnight Hammer, …
Carl von Clausewitz and the Clausewitzian Viewpoint of Warfare
A Theoretical Approach
In dealing with both theoretical and practical points of view about war, at least six fundamental questions arise: 1) What is war?; 2) What types of war exist?; 3) Why do wars occur?; 4) What is the connection between war and justice?; 5) The question of war crimes?; and 6) Is it possible to replace war with the so-called “perpetual peace”?
Probably, up to today, the most used and reliable understanding of war is its short but powerful definition by Carl von Clausewitz:
“War is merely the continuation of …
Charter Schools and “Paperism”
It is standard practice for most charter school owners, operators, promoters, commentators, reporters, and even some “critics” of charter schools to habitually describe charter schools, word-for-word, as they are spelled out in state charter school laws (while often overlooking inconvenient or unflattering descriptions as well). Even those who try to be somewhat nuanced or grounded in their descriptions of charter schools engage in this pattern.
This is “paperism”—dogmatically repeating what appears on paper without deeply thinking about, let alone questioning, how charter schools actually operate in practice. Part of this stems from an ossified prejudice that says there is no gap …
Anatomy of a Wrap-Up Smear
It could have been worse. It can always be worse.
Article in Wired magazine by “Beth Mole”
Speaking at an anti-vaccine rally in 2022, Malone spread dangerous falsehoods about mRNA Covid-19 vaccines: “These genetic vaccines can damage your children. They may damage their brains, their heart, their immune system and their ability to have children in the future. Many of these damages cannot be repaired.”
By the way, besides being a pro-pharma propaganda rag, Wired magazine appears to have ties with, shall we say, “the intelligence community”
Hold on to your horses there, “Beth …
Public Schools, Climate Disasters, Workers’ Control
When teachers’ union president Ray Cummings told the superintendent that her plan could put students in danger, he brought together problems of excluding workers from critical decisions and schemes to use climate disasters to privatize public schools.
On May 16, 2025 a tornado tore through predominantly Black north St. Louis, killing 5, and leaving thousands of homes, businesses and schools either destroyed or with roofs ripped off. A month later, many buildings still had blue tarps over the top as the only way to protect them from hot summer downpours.
Without consulting the teachers’ union, School Superintendent Millicent …
The Wobbly Planet
Science is under attack throughout the world. Meanwhile, there’s substantial scientific evidence that the planetary system is turning unstable. This may not strike most people as a big problem because ‘life goes on,’ an attitude that’s more, and more, prevalent and one of the factors behind anti-science attitudes. But, if in fact the planetary system is becoming unstable, if it is true, life will be hell.
Johan Rockström, joint director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research/Germany, internationally recognized for his work on global sustainability, recently gave a 30-minute speech that specifically addresses stability of the Earth system. This is …
NATO’s Promise of War
The Five Percenters
he confidence trickster was at it again on his visit to The Hague, reluctantly meeting members of the overly large family that is NATO. President Donald Trump was hoping to impress upon all present that allies of the United States, whatever inclination and whatever their domestic policy, should spend mightily on defence, inflating the margins of sense and sensibility against marginal threats. Never mind the strain placed on the national budget over such absurd priorities as welfare, health or education.
The marvellous irony in this is that much of the budget increases have been prompted by Trump’s perceived unreliability and …
What It Means to Be Human
How do you think- in words or images?
Various domesticated bird species usually run around the farm, including guinea fowl. We love our guinea fowl because they spend their days eating bugs: including ticks, flies, and other noxious pests. Guinea fowl are funny creatures, with colorful bald heads, speckled feathers, long legs, and oddly shaped bodies. We often view them as comic relief as they run around squawking and scurrying from here to there. They like to hang out under the horses, snapping up bugs that the horses disturb as they graze. Guinea fowl are a very …
Mamdani’s Win in NYC Transforms America’s Mid-Term Political Contests
A typical initial take on the totally unexpected landslide win, by the self-declared socialist Zohran Mamdani, of the Democratic nomination for (and thus almost certainly) the Mayoralty of NYC, was Eric Levitz’s June 25 Vox News article “What Democrats can (and can’t) learn from Zohran Mamdani’s triumph,” which said that
Some on the left have suggested that Mamdani’s victory proves Democrats do not need to moderate their party’s image to compete for national power. This argument does not make much sense. To secure a Senate majority in 2026, Democrats will need to win …
Mourning Bill Moyers
Bill Moyers, the esteemed journalist, presidential adviser and philanthropist, died on Thursday at age 91 in New York. In the early 2000s, Moyers played a pivotal role in creating and promoting Free Press and delivered a series of powerful appearances at the National Conference for Media Reform.
“You will search the dominant media largely in vain for journalists that tell the truth about the fading of the American dream,” Moyers told a crowd of more than 3,000 people assembled at the 2008 conference in Minneapolis. …
Depopulation
What and who is depopulation all about?
Insufficient Press Coverage of Big Data Surveillance
Corporate Media Erodes the Public’s Right to Know
As the second Trump administration is dispatching its minions to stalk US streets, smashing citizens’ First Amendment rights, in partnership with unregulated Big Tech, it also surveils online, helping itself to citizens’ personal identifiable information (PII).
In the age of surveillance capitalism, information is a hot commodity for corporations and governments, precipitating a multi-billion-dollar industry that not only profits from the collection and commodification of citizens’ PII, but also puts individuals, businesses, organizations, and governments at risk for cyberattacks and data theft.
Social security numbers, location details, health information, student …
Violence in Costa Rica and the Rush to Blame Nicaragua
The Politics of Accusation
Traditionally regarded as safe for visitors, Costa Rica has recently become Central America’s second most dangerous country, with 400 homicides recorded so far this year. The violence is attributed to an epidemic of drug-related crime, as the country has become a major staging post for narcotics smuggled to Europe. Costa Rica just detained a former security minister and ex-judge for drug trafficking following a US extradition request. Even the US State Department warns of the danger of “armed robbery, homicide, and sexual assault” in Costa Rica.
This month the violence claimed a Nicaraguan victim, Roberto …
NATO’s 5% Pledge: An Obscene Betrayal of Global Needs
No to NATO protest at The Hague, June 22, 2025. Photo credit: Xinhua News
At this week’s NATO summit in The Hague, leaders announced an alarming new goal: push military spending to 5% of nations’ GDP by 2035. Framed as a response to rising global threats, particularly from Russia and terrorism, the declaration was hailed as a historic step. But in truth, it represents a major step backward—away from addressing the urgent needs of people and the planet, and toward an arms race …
The Voice of the Far-Right is the Voice of the People
Over the past few years, the Europeans’ confidence in the current governments of the EU countries has been plunging. This trend is foremost caused by the unpopular policy of the ruling circles. They have made it clear to the population that total militarization requiring unprecedented $800 billion from the already shaky budget of the EU, as well as enhancing military and financial aid to Ukraine at the expense of the European taxpayers are now their top priorities. Earlier this year, the Netherlands and Sweden announced their aid packages of …
Choose a Side
Is politics a dichotomy? Or is it a political continuum?
More Transparency on US Forces in Australia
Hastie’s Sensible Advice
It was a blast to a past wiped out by amnesia, social media and mental decrepitude. Andrew Hastie, Australia’s opposition minister for home affairs, had been moved by an idea: greater transparency was needed regarding the US military buildup in Australia. It was an inspiration overdue by some decades, but it was worthwhile in its unaccustomed sensibility.
In an interview with the Insiders program on the ABC, Hastie proved startling in proposing that Australia needed “to have a much more mature discussion about our relationship with the United States. I think we need greater transparency.” He proceeded to recall the …
Ruling from Houses of Clay: Regime Change for Washington and Tel Aviv
“Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” — The Book Of Proverbs, 16:18
“CEASEFIRE IS IN EFFECT!” Trump shouts in upper case impotent rage into the pixel abyss.
To bring about and sustain peace, the leaders of empires must surrender the illusion that they can maintain control of people and events in far-flung places. It is imperative, an empire’s elites let go of their domination compulsions and live by the principles inherent to compassion. Hopeless and risible fantasy, huh?
Trump, who cannot quote a single line of scripture, hero to Christian evangelicals, …
Getting Away
“Those are called Abies alba, commonly known as silver fir. A type of evergreen. Once we walk past them we’ll reach the so-called timber line.”
Bill looks at me. “Which is…”
“The highest elevation where trees can still grow.”
“If you say so, boss.”
We’re climbing up the mountain at a pretty good clip. It’s getting dark and cold.
Bill suddenly stops. “Boss, is it just me… but the trees seem to be moving too… and at more or less the same pace as we’re approaching them.”
“Funniest thing, Bill, the exact same thought occurred to me just a minute ago. But how’s arbol strolling physically …
America’s Most Lawless Agency: ICE Is the Prototype for Tyranny
Experience should teach us to be most on our guard to protect liberty when the government’s purposes are beneficent. Men born to freedom are naturally alert to repel invasion of their liberty by evil-minded rulers. The greatest dangers to liberty lurk in insidious encroachment by men of zeal, well-meaning but without understanding.
— Justice Louis D. Brandeis
While the U.S. wages war abroad—bombing Iran, escalating conflict, and staging a spectacle of power for political gain—a different kind of war is being waged here at home.
This war at home is quieter …
Tulsi Gabbard: Another Lesser Evilist Offering
Part 2: On Being Trump’s Director of National Intelligence
On 20 June 2025, Galloway spoke about his dream team for the next presidential race: “Tulsi Gabbard, Tucker Carlson, president and vice president of the United States of America.”
He advised Gabbard to “resign if Trump joins the war and should make plain that she intends to run for president.” She hasn’t.
Given the public rebukes of her by Donald Trump, speculation had emerged of her doing just that: resigning. However, Gabbard has instead attempted to win her way back into Trump’s good book.
Unrelenting Bolivarian Resistance against Stubborn US Aggression
On the eve of Venezuela’s presidential election on 29 July 2024, Guardian correspondents, Tiago Rogero (based in Rio de Janeiro) and Sam Jones (based in Madrid) predicted the vote “could end 25 years of socialist rule.” It did not. The following, 30 July, another group of Guardian correspondents gave prominent coverage to far-right wing Venezuelan politician Maria Corina Machado, quoting her claim that “Maduro’s exit was inevitable.” Yet, Nicolas Maduro was inaugurated as the re-elected president for the 2025-2031 term on 10 January 2025.
The July 2024 presidential election was followed by the …
Bombs Away
“Iran, the bully of the Middle East, must now make peace. If they do not, future attacks will be far greater and a lot easier,” said President Trump as he addressed the American people shortly after announcing he was bombing Iran. I was too young to watch my political leaders spiral themselves into the war in Iraq – I was only old enough to be able to comprehend the final toll: one million Iraqis died because my country couldn’t help itself from another power grab in the Middle East. I can’t help but feel that the same thing is happening …