The quietly—but highly—influential Gene Sharp. A new patron saint for the “nonviolent” anti-imperialist left, but is he as closely allied to the US intelligence services as many on the left believe? Steve Gowans, whose opinion we respect, tends to think not.
By Stephen Gowans, Editor, What’s Left
Thank you, Steve.
Samuel P. Jacobs’ Valentine’s Day article in The Daily Beast has a catchy title: “Gene Sharp, the 83 year old who toppled Egypt.” Sharp is a scholar who has spent much of his life developing ideas on how to overthrow authoritarian governments using nonviolence.
While Jacobs’ title is eye-catching, it’s also nonsense. Attributing the toppling of Mubarak to Sharp is like attributing the toppling of the Tsar to Karl Marx. Sure, their ideas may have inspired some of the people who sought the downfall of tyrants, but the connection stops there. Read more…
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BY KIM BARTLETT
Broccoli dish: where do we draw the line?
A common objection posed by meat-eaters to considering a vegetarian diet is that “plants have feelings” which may be comparable to the feelings of animals, or that the result of a vegetarian diet is for more plants to die than animals and thus the net amount of killing is somehow equal.
While it is essential to realize that these arguments are virtually always made by people as a way to dismiss the idea of not eating animals without having to seriously consider the moral advantage of a vegetarian diet, the vegetarian advocate must be prepared to respond to these objections. There are three main points to understand. Read more…
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By Patrice Greanville, TGP
The principles of the American Declaration of Independence—if put into practice— would be regarded as “terrorist” or “subversive” today by the American establishment.
The Founding Fathers: a communist cabal? How would Jefferson be handled these days by the establishment’s commentariat?
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Down the centuries, and especially in the age of “managed democracy” a lot of hot air has been heard in sanctimonious quarters on the matter of when violence is “legitimate” as a solution to institutionalized abuses. Violence, it scarcely needs saying, is never thought a good solution to the ills caused by the elite passing judgment on others. Read more…
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From our archives: # 3 in our series about capitalist propaganda
(NOTE: First published April 1982; unfortunately nothing much has changed in the way the media handle this fraudulent formulation. Presented as a debating points memo to OWS activists as they confront status quo defenders in various forums.)
“Capitalism and economic freedom are inseparable from political freedom and democracy, indeed their historical guarantors.”
Argentine families do not forget. The banner—in the nation’s colors—reads: “Popular Center for [National] Memory. Former Center for the Clandestine Detention, Torture and Disappearance of Persons. 1976—1979.” The building was used by the police and military during the appropriately named “Dirty War”, in which tens of thousands were arrested and disappeared. Many were simply dropped in the ocean from helicopters. The US government played a big role in training and supporting the criminals who carried out this massive repression.
By Patrice Greanville
“Capitalism and economic freedom are inseparable from political freedom and democracy, indeed their historical guarantors.” This claim, so readily bandied about by the media and capitalism’s apologists, can be easily shown to be a sham. First, as the tragic situation in the Third World illustrates, American-style “free enterprise” simply thrives in lands where democracy and the most elementary human and labor rights have been ruthlessly stamped out. In fact, in country after country where human rights have been brutally liquidated, private investment is on the rise, and so is the support of the American government. Read more…
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By Peter Hart, FAIR
With select original commentary
Amanpour: Pretend journalism for a pretend democracy.
Some of the media commentary around the debt ceiling bemoans the state of the partisanship in Washington. Much of the chatter is about a supposed failure to compromise. As Josh Marshall argues, “this is simply false, even painfully so.” By any reasonable standard, the White House and the Democratic leadership have made an array of drastic compromises in order to win favor with Republicans–who are basically refusing to go along, since denying Obama any kind of “victory” is a key part of their electoral strategy for 2012. Read more…
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Lobby, Lobbification, Lobbified – An Analysis
By Lawrence Davidson | Part One (Originally posted on 16 April 2011)
THE BUSINESS OF INFLUENCE PEDDLING Few politicos personify the seamless corruption permeating the American political system than Tom Daschle, a onetime top Democrat who now works as an unregistered lobbyist with the tacit benediction of the Obama White House, while his wife plows the same dirty waters as a well-connected registered lobbyist.*
Lobbification is a word I have just coined for the corruptive process that bends politicians to the will of special interests–that is to the will of lobbies. The result of lobbification can be seen in the stilted and fawning behavior of the lobbified political brain. Politicians with lobbified brains become the obedient instruments of the lobbies which have captured their political souls. Below are a few examples of the results of lobbification. Read more…
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