Ben Norton

BEN NORTON—Economic Sanctions as a Weapon of War: Sanctions imposed by the U.S. have caused catastrophic damage to Venezuela’s economy, with UN experts estimating a loss of over 99% of government revenue. The sanctions prevent Venezuela from exporting oil, importing necessary technology, and conducting international trade, effectively functioning as an economic blockade designed to collapse the government and provoke regime change. This economic warfare disregards humanitarian consequences and international law.

GER—Unlike Western procedural democracy focused heavily on periodic [largely rigged] elections, China’s “whole-process people’s democracy” involves continuous citizen engagement in lawmaking, policy feedback, and enforcement oversight. This participatory model ensures laws are more responsive to societal needs and are monitored post-adoption for effective implementation. Such a system emphasizes democracy as a governance quality and good governance as a democratic outcome, challenging Western assumptions about the relationship between electoral mechanics and democratic legitimacy.

BEN NORTON—This video challenges the widespread Western narrative that frames Western governments, particularly the United States, as true democracies contrasting with authoritarian adversaries. It argues that Western regimes, including the US, Canada, the UK, France, Germany, and Italy, are not democracies but oligarchies or plutocracies where political power is dominated by economic elites, billionaires, and large corporations rather than the general populace. The video presents extensive evidence from academic research, political appointments, campaign financing, and policy outcomes to support this claim.

BEN NORTON—The Trump administration’s foreign policy is still consistent with much of the Wolfowitz Doctrine. Although Trump has de-prioritized Western Europe and the territory of the former USSR, he has dedicated significant resources to US military operations in East Asia and Southwest Asia (also known as the Middle East).

In fact, the main theme of Hegseth’s speech was that the Pentagon will not accept China challenging US dominance in the Asia-Pacific region.

“We will not be pushed out of this critical region”, Hegseth said, in a clear message to Beijing.

BEN NORTON—Israel officially calls its war in Gaza “Operation Gideon’s Chariots”. Olmert said this is an “illegitimate military campaign”, in which Israeli soldiers have gone on a “rampage”, and have turned Gaza into a “humanitarian disaster zone”.

The army is acting “recklessly, carelessly, and excessively aggressively”, he added.

The large number of Palestinian civilians killed in Gaza is “unreasonable, unjustifiable, unacceptable”, he wrote.

Olmert also admitted that Israelis “massacre Palestinian civilians in the West Bank as well”, and “commit heinous crimes every day in the West Bank”.