American empire: Parenti and Maher

Two people have done more to call a spade a spade and declare the USA to be an empire, these being Michael Parenti and Peter Dale Scott. Let me rephrase that, these are the two people who have called it that without advocating its expansion.
Recently Parenti wrote an article on American empire and the misdiagnosis of this particular strain of capitalism by some as just a matter of prestige and not as a necessary element of the capitalist expanding market. He covers the topic in a concise, yet detailed way here.

During a satire upon America’s new ‘teabaggers’ movement, HBO’s Bill Maher pronounces ‘We have an empire’ and discusses the absurdity of huge military spending and American capitalist economic crimes upon its own people. I say ‘its own people’, but capitalism has no peopel apart from those who invest in it. Solidarity with someone in your own class means more than any silly nationalist notion based on a flag and a song.

Greek don’t want bailout- Duh! But why?

In this reuters article featured on the Irish Times website a poll has revealed that more than 60% of Greece’s population do not want ‘bailout’ money from the EU and the IMF to pay off their climbing debt and to stabilise the countries economy.

I wonder why they don’t want this money, this gift from their chums in those bastians of neoliberalism. Well, reuters sure as hell aren’t going to tell you. Instead of doing an actual bit of journalism and telling you what the IMF wants in return (if they were just helping out a pal these ‘negotiations’ wouldn’t take more than a day), reuters gives you a point by point on what this means for Greek politicians at the polls and where the opposition stand.

More and more I think that these ‘politics’ correspondents could easily request for a transfer to the sports desk, as they cover nothing more than probabilities, match results and MVP listings. There is nothing of note in this article. Why then did I bring it to your attention? Because it’s so damned bad. Have you tried finding any information on what the IMF or the EU want Greece to do to their economy? Speicifaclly? I have, and I can’t find a drumstick of information about it. Why should Greek people support this bail out of their tanked economy, caused by an upper class so removed from them they might as well be living in a different century (and some of them do judging by the market orgies they engage in)?

The terms being banded around like ‘cutbacks’,and ‘belt tightening’ are code for public service cuts, removing the state from providing any services and making ordinary people pay for health, education and whatever the corporations can get their hands on. It’s all about expanding markets folks, and this is a prime opportunity for foreign multinationals to ransack and control another country. Call it what you want, the Washington consensus, the shock doctrine, Greece is going to get it bad. That’s why there have been strikes, that’s why there is no public support. Would reuters report this? No. They just don’t want the money, plain and simple. Those feckless Greeks just won’t play ball, what’s wrong with them? Just bitter because they’re not the empire anymore.

As one posted on youtube commented on an accompanying reuters video
“Greece better hold its ankles, cause it’s gonna get fucked”. My sentiments exactly I’m afraid.

Work Sucks!

Intro to the IWW

Robert Fisk : Obama will be worse than Bush

Interview – Richard Wilkinson – Why Greater Equality Makes Societies Stronger

A fantastic book that the underground radicals heartily endorse.

It’s all the facts and figures that we already knew, but it’s nice to see it on paper.
Although the data is compiled from market economies, the conclusions are striking.

Where’s the Peace Rally – Cynthia & Coy McKinney – December 12 DC

Michael Parenti on Capitalism’s Self-Inflicted Apocalypse-1/2

Exclusive: Honduran elections exposed

This shows what real journalism is and just how crappy the US media is.

Voter turnout was plucked out of a hat at 62%, that figure is more likely to be around the 30-35% mark.

The event was marred by voter intimidation, the round up of anti coup leaders and the political assassinations of those who resisted.

America cannot be the hegemon of Western Asia