FALSE DEMOCRACY

Glenn discusses the recent origins of AOC’s political career, and how much she has already distanced herself from her initial anti-establishment positions. The charitable interpretation is that AOC could not resist the forces of corruption that define the US duopoly, but that would require us to see at least some attempt on her part to oppose such forces, instead of simply caving in almost at once. The fake left co-optation rhetoric continues, of course. And the same goes for the rest of the “Squad” and the notorious Bernie Sanders.

It’s symptomatic of the degeneration of the so-called left in the US that it is libertarians like Rand Paul who are getting the credit for opposing the US government blatant effort to completely control political speech.

FINIAN CUNNINGHAM—The widespread Western public ignorance over what is happening in Ukraine – the violent background to the present conflict, the CIA coup in 2014, the Nazi paramilitaries attacking Russian-speaking people in the Donbass, the relentless NATO weaponizing of the Russophobic regime, training of its Nazi paramilitaries by NATO troops and so on – is largely due to the Western media’s systematic lying, omission, and distortion.

However, the brain-dead function of the Western media is especially highlighted this week by the death of Madeleine Albright and the total silence about how her career is tightly entwined with today’s conflict. The war in Ukraine is but the front line of a wider proxy war between the United States, NATO and Russia.

CNN and the New York Times echoed a blatant lie from the Department of Homeland Security, falsely claiming it does not monitor Americans. DHS has for years spied on US journalists and protesters.

GILBERT DOCTOROW—Over the course of the past six weeks, I have several times pointed to the changing mood of Shakhnazarov with respect to the ‘special military operation in Ukraine.’  At first he was buoyant, then he was fearful that the operation was going badly and running out of control, and finally he appeared to be ‘all in,’ looking for ways for Russia to win decisively and quickly.

Last night, we heard from yet another mood swing.  I bring it to the attention of readers, because it has great relevance to the current complete passivity of our general public in the face of some very peculiar policy decisions with respect to Russia being made at the highest levels in the USA and in Europe, with zero public consultation so far.

To be specific, Shakhnazarov expressed amazement and deep worry that Western leaders have literally ‘lost their minds’ by pursuing measures to destabilize Russia in the hope of precipitating the overthrow of Vladimir Putin and maybe even the disintegration of Russia in a way similar to the dissolution of the USSR in late 1991.