As long as we’re going to fixate on the economy rather than principles of our democratic Constitutional republic, we could start by democratizing the economy.

News from Upstate NY, where it is freezing cold.—-https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EE34jYWfw4w        —

#GreenSocialist Notes, Episode 104

–end of howiehawkins info–

A reason one views the Green Party as valid is the difference in perspective that can be expressed openly.  One such topic is the Ukraine/Russia War.  Some people see each war as a dust-up between differing factions of oligarchs with real manifestation of suffering and death enacted upon disinterested local-community members.  Neither Russia or NATO should be involved in imperialism.  But to challenge the imperialism of Russia without recognizing the imperialism of NATO feels disingenuous.  To require negotiation about peace while lining military equipment on the Russian border, as much as we all despise Russian imperialism, doesn’t feel realistic.

We should begin with realistic intentions.

One is interested in noticing Russian imperialism from a nation so colonized that we seldom remember our occupation of traditional homelands of Native Americans.  This is as convenient as ignoring the character of the Slavs.  Historically the Slavic tribes seemed as diverse and un-tethered as seemed to be Native American tribes.  The similarity is striking.  So these are the people we can ignore in order to discuss hierarchical Establishment presumption politics.  

For background, one may consider reading https://wcfia.harvard.edu/publications/gates-europe-history-ukraine        –Plokhy examines the history of Ukraine’s search for its identity through the lives of the major figures in Ukrainian history: Prince Yaroslav the Wise of Kyiv, whose daughter Anna became queen of France; the Cossack ruler Ivan Mazepa, who was immortalized in the poems of Byron and Pushkin; Nikita Khrushchev and his protégé-turned-nemesis Leonid Brezhnev, who called Ukraine their home; and the heroes of the Maidan protests of 2013 and 2014, who embody the current struggle over Ukraine’s future.

–end of wcfia info–

Dare one say that life is complicated?  Odd is using imperialism as the argument against other nations while ignoring the same in our own policies.  Ultimately this feels like an Establishment deflection from speaking to reality.  The reality is that war is between the elites of different nations in which the elite feel no ramification while the public suffers and dies.  Good work if you can get it, as they say.

Religious institutions seem to use a form of Effective Altruism concept to explain away tax-free status and ongoing solicitation of funds from the public.  Some of the wealthiest people on Earth explain away curious levels of control of extraordinary levels of wealth in the same way.

https://mronline.org/2022/12/24/the-egregious-arrogance-of-sam-bankman-fried-his-ilk/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=the-egregious-arrogance-of-sam-bankman-fried-his-ilk&mc_cid=92594a4c08&mc_eid=2833cdb99b  –I have been trying to pull together several threads of the story of how this all came about. In the account that follows, I’ll start with a quick exploration of Bankman-Fried’s parents and the kinds of values they inculcated– why not? Then, I’ll move to actors who had probably an even deeper, continuing influence on the decisions taken by the mop-haired fraudster during his “adult” years, namely, the leaders of a deeply wrong-headed and dangerous—but strangely influential—Oxford-based cult called Effective Altruism.

–end of mronline info–

Where did all the money go?—

From MRonline  —  https://mronline.org/2022/12/24/our-survival-depends-on-a-world-without-billionaires/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=our-survival-depends-on-a-world-without-billionaires&mc_cid=92594a4c08&mc_eid=2833cdb99b                          –A recent report from Oxfam entitled “Carbon Billionaires: The Investment Emissions of the World’s Richest People” points the finger at the wealthiest individuals for causing and continuing to fuel climate change through not only their individual carbon footprints but more importantly their investments in polluting industries. The study looks at the impact of 125 of the richest billionaires globally, whose carbon emissions equal those of France, or 67 million people, and shows that just the richest 10 of those individuals own more wealth than the poorest 40% of humanity. The average billionaire in the study is responsible for carbon emissions over one million times higher than the average person in the bottom 90% of humanity.

–end of mronline info–

From popularresistance  — https://popularresistance.org/gaining-power-in-the-struggle-for-a-better-world-with-vijay-prashad/         –Prolific academic Vijay Prashad is the Executive Director of Leftword books, a publishing house out of India. Recently he published a book with Noam Chomsky, “The Withdrawal: Iraq, Libya, Afghanistan, and the Fragility of U.S.” Vijay collaborates with social movements on an international level, including with the leadership of many left-wing Latin American governments.

–end of popularresistance info—-

****As one who would be perfectly contented to retain the Senate if they adhered to Oaths of Office more than to Citizens United campaign donations, one is interested in a topic raised as to the reason we maintain the US Senate—-

 This is a reminder of how much we don’t know.  This brings one around to Howie Hawkins, who continues to impress with original thought.  We also could acknowledge Hawkins often speaks to censored information.
One such topic about which one would never have even considered, is whether the USA needs The Senate.  Apparently The Senate is little other than expensive window dressing, promoting hierarchical interests, and too often placed in positions of power by big-money via Citizens United.  But the public gets to fund this curiosity of pompous supremacy.  Who knew?
The Democratic Branch of the Republican/Democratic Duopoly are especially functional in voter suppression—–https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNbdkuU1edw          —#GreenSocialist Notes #76
Howie Hawkins brings up the concept of whether the USA needs the Senate.  Apparently according to some people, the Senate isn’t necessary.  This brings up the blockage from the Senate of many bills that would benefit We The People.  Combined with Citizens United that promotes big-money interest choice of Senators, in which laws are passed that benefit big-money interest rather than We The People, and that We The People support economically, the members of the Senate, this seems a good topic for discussion.
The US Constitution doesn’t seem to sanction elections run by political Parties, and to permit control of political debates by political Parties seems equally corrupt.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQ7kn2-GEmM       —

Ross Perot in 1992 on NAFTA and the “Giant Sucking Sound”

Centralization is the lifeblood of the R&D duopoly.  It’s the way to enforce capitalism onto workers in 2022.———————–We can do better———-

That “we are a 2-Party system” is a fabrication of the Republican/Democratic duopoly and spread by MSM.  In FACT the majority of voters aren’t either registered Democratic or Republican.  The censorship about this info must be envied by bureaucrats of the Former USSR and their simplistic style of 1-Party elections.  

Regardless of which character sits in the Oval Office, We The People have work to do to maintain principles of our democratic (small d) Constitutional republic.  Several items to challenge—*We need the integrity of ranked-choice voting so voters won’t feel compelled to “hold your nose and vote”*Censored debates must be stopped.  The Democratic/Republican duopoly pretends to legitimate debates in what is nothing other than another campaign show.  Independent debates run by uninterested sponsors such as The League of Women Voters, must be restored.  (Access www.debates.org to understand the extent of duopoly control).  The so-called Debate Commission is a corporation to promote the Democratic corporation and Republican corporation, not to inform We The People*Challenge and stop gerrymandering that is a trick especially of the Republican branch of the duopoly.*Stop voter suppression by political Parties, and especially confront and stop Party suppression, which is the over-arching approach to voter suppression.  Party suppression seems to have been the responsibility of the Democratic corporation*Promote by law ranked-choice voting, so we won’t be told again, by D&R duopoly, to “hold your nose and vote”
If these issues are handled, our next elections can be honorable. 
*******************************************************************https://news.gallup.com/poll/15370/party-affiliation.aspx—-Political Party affiliation of voters.
    https://www.lwv.org/newsroom/press-releases/league-refuses-help-perpetrate-fraud–LEAGUE REFUSES TO “HELP PERPETRATE A FRAUD”

WITHDRAWS SUPPORT FROM FINAL PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE–end of lwv info–Murray Bookchin, who founded social ecology, a theory that strongly influenced early Green Socialist thought, strongly advocated the discussion and study group as the first step of any revolutionary movement. A group of individuals meets to expand their knowledge of radical thought and form a radical intellectual community; through the give and take of discussion, can eventually form ideas for next steps in organizing and political activity. According to Bookchin, study groups help create solidarity and a shared language — with a shared coherent vision — for building a mass, organizing, political movement!