The world’s first laboratory-grown presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg met with boos and chants of “Wall Street Pete” at a recent Democratic Party event in New Hampshire for taking a dig at the revolution-minded rhetoric favored by Bernie Sanders and his supporters.

“We cannot risk dividing Americans’ future further, saying that you must either be for a revolution or you must be for the status quo,” Buttigieg said. “Let’s make room for everybody in this movement.”

This is a talking point that the tightly scripted and focus group-tested Buttigieg has been repeatedly regurgitating all month, so it’s worth taking a look at.

https://twitter.com/CANCEL_SAM/status/1226342356242378757

Claiming that it isn’t necessary to choose between revolution and the status quo is claiming that you can change the status quo without any kind of revolution. You are saying that the establishment which has created and reinforced the status quo can now suddenly, for some strange and mysterious reason, be counted upon to change it. That the status quo will change the status quo.

Anyone who has paid attention to US politics for more than a few years already knows that this is objectively false. From administration to administration, regardless of who sits in the Oval Office or who controls the House or the Senate, the status quo has been adamantly enforced along a rigid trajectory toward ever-increasing military expansionism, exploitative neoliberal economic policies, income and wealth inequality, police militarization, mass-scale imprisonment, Orwellian surveillance programs and increasing restrictions on journalism and free speech.

Change is not going to come from those institutions, it’s going to come from the people using the power of their numbers to force important changes that those institutions do not want to make. And Pete Buttigieg knows this. And so do the spooks and oligarchs who are backing him.

It is very appropriate that a military intelligence officer with ties to the CIA, who is beloved by intelligence/defense agency insiders and who appears to have been groomed by national security mandarins from the very beginning of his career, should be actively working to kill a revolutionary zeitgeist. After all, backing counter-revolutionaries is a favorite CIA activity.

https://twitter.com/KaeySonPoint/status/1226368369533865985

Progressives already got suckered into forfeiting their revolutionary spirit in exchange for flowery prose and empty rhetoric the last time they elected Pete Buttigieg for president, back when Pete Buttigieg was named Barack Obama. It was literally the exact same script they’re trying to recycle with Puppet Pete: a plucky young underdog with a knack for sparkly verbiage overcomes the frontrunner in Iowa in a stunning upset, then rides the momentum from that initial victory on to the Democratic nomination.

And now we’re seeing the Democratic Party officially award Buttigieg the largest delegate count in Iowa, after a massive scandal and despite countless unresolved discrepancies in the numbers, and establishment narrative managers are now preparing their heartwarming David-and-Goliath stories about the small town mayor knocking out the big bad socialist frontrunner for a second consecutive time in New Hampshire in defiance of the odds and polling expectations. If that falls through they’ve got Nevada, where shit really started to get crazy in 2016, and where they’re preparing to implement a brand new caucus app which they keep trying to say is not an app but a “tool” made for iPads (which is the thing that an app is).

All this to install a man who has managed to pack an astonishing amount of corruption and scandal into a relatively brief, small-scale political career.

That’s what not choosing between revolution and the status quo looks like. It looks like continuing the status quo.

Which is why it’s so dumb when Buttigieg says “Let’s make room for everybody in this movement.” Movement? What movement? You don’t get to call it a “movement” when its entire agenda is to prevent any movement. Use a different word. “Let’s make room for everybody in this inertia,” or “Let’s make room for everybody in this stasis” or something.

As I’ve said many times before, I’m interested in this presidential election not because I am under the delusion that presidential elections tend to change things, but because the attempts to manipulate it, and the public’s response to those manipulations, could shake something loose that actually might. If enough people in the world’s most powerful nation wake up to the fact that they don’t have the kind of political system they were taught about in school, if they realize that everything they’ve been told about how their government operates is a lie, if they realize their lives have been made so unnecessarily difficult by a ruling oligarchic class with a vested interest in keeping them impoverished and distracted, well, then we’re looking at an actual transformative force.

Then we’re looking at the possibility of a real revolution. Not a violent revolution; those always result in a continuation of the same ills under a different system, and there’s nothing revolutionary about that.

I’m talking about a real revolution. One where people begin to open their eyes to the reality that their entire understanding of what’s going on in the world has been the result of mass psychological manipulation throughout their entire lives at the hands of the school system, the billionaire-controlled news media, and the political establishment. One where people open their eyes so wide to the power of narrative control that they become impossible to propagandize. One where people begin weaving their own narratives. Their own understandings of the world. Built not for the benefit of the powerful, but for the benefit of the people.

We’re seeing a lot of movement already in 2020, and it’s just getting started. I see the potential for a lot of light to reach a lot of new areas between the cracks which open up in that movement. And I see the guardians of the status quo having a harder and harder time maintaining the state of stasis. Their increasingly ham-fisted manipulations, such as installing a jarringly phony puppet like Pete Buttigieg, say a lot about their desperation.

Find ways of forcing them to overextend themselves and overplay their hand. Let’s show everyone what they’re hiding behind the puppet theater.

________________________

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104 responses to “Puppet Pete Says Revolution And The Status Quo Aren’t Mutually Exclusive”

  1. ‘Not a violent revolution; those always result in a continuation of the same ills under a different system, and there’s nothing revolutionary about that.’
    .
    In other words, no real-world phenomenon ever referred to as a ‘revolution’ has been revolutionary in the way you (re-)define ‘revolutionary’, namely ‘eliminating all previous ills’. However, that’s not what the words ‘revolution’ and ‘revolutionary’ have generally been used to mean. (Unsurprisingly, since people usually need words to refer to things that actually occur, and changes eliminating all previous ills have never occurred.) Rather, they have been used to refer to the revolutions that have actually occurred, with their positive *and* negative sides. Instead of redefining ‘revolutionary’, you should come up with a different word for your preferred phenomenon. A few might exist already. One adjective that comes to mind is ‘millenarian’. A noun is ‘panacea’. A downside might be that neither of these words has very good connotations, but that is arguably just a result of the nature of what they refer to.
    .
    If the outcome really is ‘a different system’, then it certainly is a revolution. It may also be a better system – not one eliminating *all* ‘previous ills’, but a better one – and its arising through violence does not preclude that.

  2. Those in power want to keep it. Only those who genuinely do not want power can win peace. But power, manifested as interest, has been present in every conflict of the past – no exception. It is the underlying motivation for war. Interest cuts across all apparently unifying principles: family, kin, nation, religion, ideology, politics – everything. We unite with the enemies of our principles, because that is what serves our interest. It is power, not any of the above concepts, that is the cause of war.
    https://www.ghostsofhistory.wordpress.com/

    1. Step O'Rafferty Avatar
      Step O’Rafferty

      Yes Peter, and the irony (or the tragedy) is that people who do not desire power are not inclined to enter the political arena. What a terrible paradox!
      I realize that western peoples have been brainwashed into believing that Muammar Al Qathafi, (I think some times his name is spelled Gadaffi) was an evil man but in fact he was loved by Lybians. It is very worth while having a read of his “The Green Book” as it outlines a non violent system of self government which was in the process of being implemented when someone from America “Came, saw, and he died.”

  3. “We cannot risk dividing Americans’ future further, saying that you must either be for a revolution or you must be for the status quo,” Buttigieg said. “Let’s make room for everybody in this movement.”

    Sounds like the DNC’s version of the (UK) Labour party right-wing’s “Broad Church” bullshit. It’s like they’re singing from the same hymn-sheet or something!

  4. Anybody believe tonight’s announced results? I don’t.

    Bernie led the very last poll: Sanders 28% Buttplug 21% Clobberchar 11%

    yet he winds up with vote totals of: Sanders 25% Buttplug 24% Clobberchar 19%

    I think there was a little massaging of the data to make it seem like there was a groundswell for the establishment pawns.

    Moreover, Bernie received half the popular vote he got 4 years ago: 71,000 vs 152,000

    I doubt his popularity dropped in the interim, especially against the ghastly competition.

    So far they assign him 9 delegates as opposed to 15 delegates 4 years ago. Doesn’t pass the smell test.

    I sincerely doubt that America has decided it needs a gay acolyte of Wall Street and the CIA as prez or some dipsy character out of Fargo standing on a platform of Russophobia and warmongering.

    The insiders are simply shaving as many delegates away from Sanders to ensure he can’t win on the first ballot so the super delegates can pick another right winger who will either purposely lose to Trump or roll over for the GOP agenda should he or she win in spite of their glaring defects.

  5. Given that the status quo is a revolution against humanity and natural law, Pete is correct, they can indeed coexist.

  6. Think I am paranoid? Look at how MSNBC commentator Jake Johnson (supposedly a political scientist professor!) freaked out when Bernie Sanders spokeswoman Nina Turner referred to Democratic Primary late buy-in candidate Mike Bloomberg, $60-billion former mayor of New York City and worlds 12th-richest person, an “oligarch.” Please read this eye-opening article here:
    https://thiscantbehappening.net/the-red-baiting-of-bernie-sanders-has-already-begun-and-is-already-laughable/

    1. Step O'Rafferty Avatar
      Step O’Rafferty

      Ron that is a very informative article and a concise outline of what socialism is and what it is not. The fear that the word socialism conjures in many Americans’ minds has always puzzled me, why are Americans so afraid of a fair and just society?

      1. ” Stepping on other people ” is the ” American Way ” taught in schools and practiced throughout our society. After I retired I had the time to look back and reflect upon the brainwashing the government forces into all of us. The two minute hate is alive and well from sea to shining sea.

  7. Puppet Pete is the Juan Guaido of the Democrap Party.

  8. America has been a warring nation-a military empire intent on occupation and conquest-for so long that perhaps we, the citizens of this warring nation, have forgotten what it means to live in peace, with the world and one another.
    We Are All in This Together: A Case for Not Giving Up on the United States of American Dream By John W. Whitehead. Please read this great article here:
    https://www.rutherford.org

    1. Please stop spamming.

  9. The Iowa debacle has not been conducive to Democratic Party unity, either between campaigns or between state parties and the national party. On Sunday, The Washington Post described the situation as on “the brink of open war.” The Iowa situation brought up difficult memories of the 2016 campaign for Bernie Sanders supporters, who believe the Democratic National Committee may be prejudiced against them. “They can shout unity all they want,” Nina Turner, a national co-chair of the Sanders campaign told the Post, “but the actions show otherwise.” Please read this fine article here:
    https://www.truthdig.com/articles/how-democrats-failed-voters-in-iowa/

  10. Caitlin had provided (Feb 2018) a video link to Bernie going full loon in his promotion of the intelligence community’s psyop operation (Russiagate).
    .
    It must be asked, “Bernie: puppet then, puppet now?”
    .
    Think before you vote.
    .

      1. I can accept Bernie being wrong about that and still by far the best for the country.

        1. Shouldn’t he apologize?
          .
          Also, it is weird hearing him talking nonsense about Russia interfering in the election, this being days after the Iowa “caucau”. And also he at the time (2018) of the video knew the DNC absolutely had interfered with him and that the MSM absolutely had interfered with him, but no mention of them just bs from him.
          .
          Bernie is a disappointment.

          1. >Shouldn’t he apologize?

            No.

          2. Bernie also mentions the Steele Dossier and wants us to believe that portions of the dossier had already been verified.
            .
            Forget the apology from Bernie .It is meaningless from the likes of a CIA stooge.

  11. We focus on US politics but the system is just as firmly in place in all other countries too. There are some however simply out of control as well such as Sweden.

  12. “We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”

    Albert Einstein

    1. “Among the most notable of such failures are Noam Chomsky, Alexander Cockburn, Howard Zinn, and Chris Hedges, men idolized by many liberals and leftists. And there are many others who have been deeply influenced by Chomsky, Cockburn, and Zinn and follow in their footsteps.“

  13. When Mayor Buttplug was talking about his movement, he was referring to an impressive job he did in his KYBO.

  14. Buttigigobbledigook: “Trust the status quo to overturn the status quo.”

    You know what? In a sense, I take his word for it. The status quo (not the band) have been busy. In the Rump Era, the emperor is already butt naked. By the end of the year, neither Team Blue nor Team Red will have any credibility left.

    I don’t think Bernie will be president. The way he won’t be president, however, promises to be very interesting.

  15. In things that are more real tha Pete Buttplug
    You forgot:
    Hillary landing under sniper fire.

    1. Buttplug is pretty good. I’ve been using “Buttgiggles.”

  16. Why do the Democrats keep swinging and missing at Donald Trump?
    They can not make a good case for abuse of power because they do not really oppose Donald Trumps most egregious abuses of power.
    Congress, with a few exceptions, strongly supports the President flouting the United States Constitution when it comes to overseas aggression and shoveling more money into the military-industrial complex. Please read this fine article here:
    http://ronpaulinstitute.org/archives/featured-articles/2020/february/10/democrats-ignore-trump-s-real-violations/

    1. Pretty hard to make a case against abuse of power while abusing power.

  17. “Then we’re looking at the possibility of a real revolution. Not a violent revolution; those always result in a continuation of the same ills under a different system, and there’s nothing revolutionary about that.”

    This claim beggars belief and shows the author to be blissfully ignorant of history and the real world. There has never been a non-violent social revolution in human history. If there were, all the bourgeois historians would have been crowing about it from the rooftops, ceaselessly. Can anyone name an example?

    And the ‘same ills’ were not continued following the French, English, Russian, Chinese, Cuban or other social revolutions. Different ills may have ensued but not the same ones. All these revolutions benefited their oppressed populations significantly compared to what they had endured before. Lords no longer could oppress ‘their’ peasantry after bourgeois revolutions; capitalists could no longer exploit ‘their’ workers after anti-capitalist ones. All social revolutions that have overthrown outmoded social systems have produced major advances in living standards for the populations concerned.

    Now, would the outcomes of the French and English revolutions, citing just two examples, have been any different if not accompanied by violence and civil war? Would the bourgeoisie not have become the ascendant ruling class and somehow not acted any differently? Would the capitalists not have exploited ‘their’ workers; or invaded, colonised and pillaged those parts of the world unfortunate enough to have a resource they craved; or divided the majority along race and sex lines, etc, in order to more effectively rule them? Hardly, and to think such outcomes wouldn’t have ensued if their revolutions weren’t violent is a rank, idealist stupidity. Yet capitalism is a qualitative advance on feudalism, but those who say we can’t have a revolution because it will be ‘violent’ only ensure the status quo stays, only ensure stasis.

    All revolutions are accompanied by violence overwhelmingly perpetrated by the deposed rulers. Believe it or not Virginia, the Bolshevik revolution occurred relatively bloodlessly, because of overwhelming mass support and organisation into workers, peasants and soldiers soviets that were quite prepared to use force if need be, and showed that they would. Most of the violence and repression occurred after the October revolution on the heels of furious counterrevolutionary efforts of the vanquished rulers who enlisted the aid of at least 14 imperialist powers to unleash and wage their civil war against the Bolsheviks. Over three years of struggle reduced an already ruined country to infinitely worse ruin (and paved the way for the rise of Stalin). Would ‘real’ revolutionaries have renounced their revolution in the face of such violence? No. They would have defended it to the death, just as the Bolsheviks did. Just as any successful revolution has done.

    No ruling class in history has surrendered its power peacefully. The current dominant one, the bourgeoisie, has a state machine of organised violence designed specifically to repress any hint of social unrest. Witness what they do when workers merely go on strike. It is a fatal delusion to think, and utter perfidy to promulgate that the bourgeois state won’t unleash its full panoply of violence against a ‘peaceful’, ‘real’ (!!) revolution. A ‘peaceful’ revolution can occur only when the class making the revolution can demonstrate that it has the overwhelming balance of forces its side and is prepared to use this force militarily. If the bourgeoisie can be cowed to give up, then all the better. But it’s a fatal delusion to count on that.

    On the other hand, anyone wishing to make a ‘real’ revolution in the ‘real’ world would of course strive to make it as peaceful as possible but should never be under any illusions that violence and civil war won’t ensue as the deposed rulers attempt to claw back their losses. And never count on persuading the bourgeoisie into giving up their wealth, privileges and power by telling them in advance that the ‘real’ revolution will entail no violence or even its threat. They’d laugh in your face and carry on as before.

    Those who use revolutionary phraseology should understand its consequences and implications. Otherwise to advocate this oxymoron of a ‘peaceful revolution’, as does another ‘revolutionary’ phrasemonger, Chris Hedges, especially when none has ever occurred, is exactly the same as what Buttgig advocates: ‘have your revolution, but please don’t upset the status quo’. Such ‘revolutionaries’ who hope for the best but won’t countenance planning for the worst will lose, always. And anyone advocating a non-existent, impossible ‘peaceful’ revolution indeed is arguing that the status quo and such a ‘revolution’ aren’t mutually exclusive at all.

    1. Step O'Rafferty Avatar
      Step O’Rafferty

      There is a commandment: Thou Shalt Not Kill. Anyone who disobeys this commandment, for whatever cause, ‘just’ or ‘unjust’ will condemn themselves to years, decades, a life time of self-hatred and self punishment because they know within their hearts that murder is a terrible thing. We only need to look at the mental health of our combat veterans to verify this.
      The time for war is over and the whole world must understand this. the human race is intelligent enough to work out a solution to the issue of fair wealth distribution without murder. It will require some sacrifice of luxuries and a lot of co-operation between all people but it can be done.

      1. It’s impossible to rationally accept any ‘commandments’ from kill-crazy, sado-masochistic death-cult religions like Christianity or any of the others. The cruelties in the stone-dead hypocritical Christian bible are legion. Mutuality is a far simpler and ethical creed to follow, without invoking an infinitely powerful invisible best friend to help you fight your wars for you, or to make you be ‘moral’ or toe some line.

        No-one ever has suffered a ‘lifetime of self-hatred’ by killing in self-defence, to save their own or the lives of their loved ones. Yes, to take a life is horrifying and leaves indelible mental images until death, but war veterans suffer self-hatred overwhelmingly because of the senseless killing they’ve been ordered to perform, or have witnessed, in the service of their political masters. They hate themselves because they thought what they were doing was good but clearly turns out not to be.

        Most of today’s US military is comprised of economic conscripts. And besides conscripts, who are there not by choice or out of some psychopathic joy of killing, the biggest sufferers of PTSD are those who under orders perpetrate war crimes on innocent civilians or on combatants who’ve already surrendered. In Vietnam officers quite rightly were ‘fragged’ for some of the orders they gave. Vengeance is sometimes needed, and it behoves anyone to deny the valour and sacrifice of 3,000,000 Vietnamese lives against 56,000 US lives in liberating their country from the US imperialist juggernaut.

        But many war criminals don’t suffer anguish because they’re either born psychopaths or brutalised into psychopathy by the military and what it orders them to do. After all, boot camp tries to instil the will to kill. Many go on to become mercenaries and guns for hire or they join the KKK or some other fascist outfit. I don’t think one of those gunners in the helicopter crew of ‘Collateral Murder’ is suffering any pangs of guilt today. Their psychopathy was on full display, and that’s exactly what the US ruling class hated being shown. Like in Michael Herr’s Dispatches, these brutalised oafs probably sent ears or something similar home to their loved ones. Unlike in Dispatches, they’re not grunts who often see the whites of the eyes or can smell their victims.

        Airforce bomber crews or those even further removed getting medals for sitting in darkened drone kill rooms in Langley, or Creech or Nellis Air Force Bases operating joysticks in front of screens, aren’t losing much sleep either.

        The rulers say ‘Thou shalt not kill’, but they still insist on their death penalty and most importantly on their monopoly of violence as embodied in their state. The rulers don’t want us to kill them, but certainly are more than happy to kill us if need be, ‘legally’ of course. They don’t lose a wink of sleep either.

        1. Step O'Rafferty Avatar
          Step O’Rafferty

          I mostly agree with what you say Stephen. I am not religious and would not recommend religion to anyone. When i quoted: “Thou Shalt Not Kill” I did not intend that to be interpreted as a hypocritical order from the psychopaths who think they have the right to rule the planet. The instruction to humanity that I quoted predates any man-made religion. It comes from the beginning of civilization. It’s part of what defines humans as separate from animals: We can make the choice not to kill, and to achieve what we need without murder.

          1. Sometimes we can’t make the choice — when it comes to killing or being killed, for example. I’d sooner be alive than be dead from living by an absolutist interpretation, for example, that all killing is ‘murder’ which it isn’t.

            Humans before civilisation killed other rival tribes. The don’t kill rule was invoked only with respect to members of the clan or tribe. And retribution wasn’t by a death penalty either, but involved other more mundane ways without killing the tribal or clan offender.

            In civilisation the rule was invoked only in relation to the given polity governed by a state (with the latter exercising its monopoly over deciding who lives and dies) not with respect to rival polities. And so it is today. The ruling class certainly will kill us (especially if they order us to kill on their behalf and we refuse) if we’re not prepared to defend ourselves, by deadly means if necessary.

            Mutuality has held humanity in good stead since its dawn, but the social baggage that humanity is now saddled with has all but destroyed that.

        2. Great comments, Stephen and Step! After reading them, I have more hope for the future of humanity. I turn 70 this year. I think Step is also an old fart, but I may be wrong. Near-cadavers aren’t going to be much help in the future. I hope that you are a young person, Stephen.
          .
          I would add only that a truly successful “system” — one in which the 99% own the vast majority of LARGE SCALE capital equipment, wealth and land, instead of an increasingly microscopic percentage of the population in a “system” that can now be realistically described as a real-life game of Monopoly — will/MUST be based upon the Golden Rule “do unto others as you would have them do unto you”. IMO, there is no alternative. The moment that you operate on the idea that you are exceptional and deserve more power, etc. than anyone else on the planet, you lay the first paving stone on the road to a living hell, NOT utopia.

        3. I’m amazed stephen can claim to know so much about what happens inside so many other peoples heads. I actually find the authors writings far more interesting than your comments.
          ps no need to reply.. I don’t feed trolls.

      2. Many people say religion has caused more deaths than anything else. This is misleading. They should say that people in power use religion as an excuse to kill people. Those people of course have no faith and if not religion would find some other excuse to kill

      1. Indian independence wasn’t a social revolution.

    2. Step O'Rafferty Avatar
      Step O’Rafferty

      In the early 1970’s Australia underwent a significant shift towards socialism. Many social programs were introduced and workers felt emboldened to demand better pay and conditions. Much was achieved in a very brief period of time and there were plans for many more egalitarian reforms. This was unacceptable to the greedy psychopaths at the top of the economic pyramid. The CIA and the British royal family brought an abrupt end to Australia’s optimism and bright outlook for our future by sacking our visionary prime minister.
      All of this was achieved/perpetrated without bloodshed. The oligarchs killed no-one and the ordinary people did not kill any of the oligarchs.
      The only way we can bring the military industrial complex down is to stop supporting wars forever. Any kind of war.
      Even in a revolutionary war where the revolutionaries kill the cruel and evil people who dared to oppress them, the people who do the killing are the ones that become part of the new power structure. If these people were able to murder someone without becoming totally emotionally devastated that is an indication that they have no empathy. Do we want people who do not have empathy to hold positions of power in our new revolutionary government?
      By all means Stephen if you feel the urge to grab a weapon and kill an oligarch, go ahead and do it. Do not drag the rest of us into your bloodbath.

      1. I don’t advocate individual terror, nor have any desire to kill an oligarch. I advocate a revolution where the working class and its supporters uses its strength of numbers, discipline and arms to overwhelm and cow the rulers into submission. And to have the means and determination to crush the rulers if they attempt a counterrevolution. If you seek to smear me by inferring that I’m some kind of a murderous creature wanting a bloodbath thereby, fine. Those advocating revolution have always thus been treated, especially by the rulers and their erstwhile supporters.

      2. Step, you said it yourself:
        .
        “This was unacceptable to the greedy psychopaths at the top of the economic pyramid. The CIA and the British royal family brought an abrupt end to Australia’s optimism and bright outlook for our future by sacking our visionary prime minister.
        All of this was achieved/perpetrated without bloodshed. The oligarchs killed no-one and the ordinary people did not kill any of the oligarchs.
        The only way we can bring the military industrial complex down is to stop supporting wars forever. Any kind of war.”

        .
        The “much” that “was acheived” by the serfs was lost when the oligarchs did what they did. Put differently, the oligarchs put down the gentle revolution. The oligarchs did so without visible bloodshed, althrough there may have been what could euphemistically called “bloodshed” in the cuts that were made, or jobs lost, etc to whatever improvements their were in the lot of the little people. Of course the oligarchs defeated the serfs “legally”.
        .
        I well remember the violent DNC convention in Chicago in 1968. The oligarchs called the event a “riot” and the protesters who were in the streets call it a “protest”. (The situation in Hong Kong before the latest virus outbreak was IMO similar, although in the latter there was a lot more “outside” money involved.)
        .
        But the simple fact of the matter is that the, for lack of a better expression, living condtions for the average worker in the US (maybe in Australia, too, but I don’t know) has deteriorated dramatically since 1968, and IMO will continue to deteriorate until, simply put, the oligarchy is, by vote or by revolution, overthrown –ie. ceases to control the LARGE SCALE means of production for their own astronomical profit.
        .
        Stephen, please keep making commnents. I very much appreciate reading them. I continue to be amazed at how quickly “worker solidarity” can be demolished and people turned against each other. For just one example, if people cannot agree on the meanings of simple words, they have absolutely no hope of changing anthing except maybe the channel or web site.

    3. Step O'Rafferty Avatar
      Step O’Rafferty

      (In reply to Ishkabibble – This page format shrinks with each reply so I have gone back to reply to a wider post)
      The point of my part in this discussion is that I have faith that humans are very capable of resolving all the problems of inequality and wealth distribution by using frank and honest discussion. I believe that using weapons or threatening to use weapons as a means of solving problems is imbecilic and counter-productive. Surely, now that we have reached the stage where the whole population of the world can communicate with each other in an instant, it is timely that we step out of our old and primitive, violent paradigm where differences are resolved with a club to someone’s head or a nuclear bomb or directed energy weapon aimed at a city.
      The rich will always try to rule over us and exploit us and once the masses awaken from the media induced zombie state there will be plenty of aware people and we will become smart enough to dismantle the current economic system.
      First of all we must remove our corrupt parliamentary/congressional/senate ‘representatives’. This can easily be done by not voting for political parties. Do you think Lockheed Martin and their ilk would be able to corrupt a congress that is entirely filled with independent representatives? Any independent politician who becomes corrupt could easily be removed, without the need to confront a party juggernaut.
      Until people get involved at the local level, selecting the right person to represent them instead of a party hack, reform cannot happen.
      As for the events in Australia when our prime minister was removed, the oligarchs were able to put the reigns on Australia’s gentle revolution but they were unable to rescind some of our social achievements, such as medicare for all Australians and a fair social security system. Wages and conditions in Australia are higher and better than the USA because we still have strong unions here, although not as strong as they were 45 years ago.

      1. “Until people get involved at the local level, selecting the right person to represent them instead of a party hack, reform cannot happen.”
        The ruling sociopaths have us brainwashed to believe that we have to have representatives. That’s because we are always manipulated into making sociopaths our representatives. In actuality, we have the technology to allow each person to represent himself with no middleman involved. So why aren’t we doing it? Because it doesn’t serve the ruling sociopaths. Until sociopaths are identified early in life and properly managed, reform cannot happen.

        1. Step O'Rafferty Avatar
          Step O’Rafferty

          What kind of changes/reforms need to be implemented so we can get that technology working? Having no “representatives” no Congress and no Senate at all sounds better than my desire to see those places full of independents. Does the current system have to collapse before we can build the system where we represent ourselves? Or is there already a mechanism in place so this kind of reform can take place?

    4. Step O’Rafferty, good about permanent improvements for average Australians. Very good. Thanks for the education.
       
      I agree with your suggestion that intelligent, informed people should vote for better candidates — candidates who, after their election, will support each other to bring down the oligarchs. I have agreed with your suggestion for over 50 years but, in the US anyway, things have been going ever more rapidly downhill, while the US national debt goes increasingly steeply uphill through the roof……….most of it to pay for more weapons and more war. Supposedly, big cuts are coming for social programs in order to keep taxes for the 0.1% going downward and temporarily reduce the slope of the rise in the national debt. Absolute insanity.
       
      In short, the candidates of the two parties on the same coin that are chosen by the US electorate are always, so far anyway, just more of the same. The repetitive details of the US election cycle — the non-debate debates, all the ads bought by the candidates that are then braodcast 24/7 by the MSM, etc. “guides” the voters to Bilderberger pre-approved candidates. The millions of voters either directly or indirectly employed by the MIC don’t want to lose their jobs, so they’ll be voting for warmongers in the upcoming election. The latter will rationalize the US killing people around the world as “keeping America safe”; fighting terrorists over there rather than over here, etc.
       
      This pattern has been going on for many decades.
       
      Again, maybe as much as 20% of US voters are well-informed enough to vote for non-mainstream candidates, but that’s not enough voters to get those people elected. Andrew Yang was IMO a promising candidate, but he pulled out of the race the night of the NH primary. Gabbard is stil in the running, but for not much longer, IMO. In the past, Ron Paul and Ralph Nader were promising candidates — honest anti-war candidates, but voters did not select them. Farther back, George McGovern was a promising candidate, but voters did not select him. And these are just candidates for POTUS. Even if these anti-war candidates had been elected, they’d need congressional support, and congress people are also bought and paid for by the MIC. If Sanders miraculously becomes POTUS, he will have to somehow get the support of the congress. That’ll take yet another miracle.
       
      As I’ve said before many times, the MIC in the US is politically omnipotent because it is literally the foundation of the US economy and the instrument by which the USD hegemony/de facto world reserve currency is maintained. The USD has been on the drone standard ever since Tricky Dicky closed the gold window in 1971 and Secretary of the Treasury Bill Simon singed the petro-dollar deal with Saudi Arabia in 1974. The latter is why the US military can NEVER leave the middle east. Were the US do that and Saudi Arabia were to start having currency-sex with Russia, the US economy would instantly collapse– the US stock market would crash and another great depression ensue, in the US, anyway, maybe not worldwide. The financial powers-that-be in the US fully understand this reality. They also fully understand that the Fed can print a LITERALLY INFINITE number of drone-backed USD and that the one and only way to literally force the rest of the world to accept those printed-out-of-thin-air USD for their very REAL products, services, real estate, resources, etc. is the, ironically, also-USD-funded MIC. Do we understand the “circularity” here? This “system” legalizes theft. This “system” allows the Fed to hand freshly printed USD to its “primary dealers” who can then use those USD in absolutely any way they desire — even to buy land or companies or politicians or absolutely ANYTHING in Australia or anywhere else on planet earth. Great arrangement for The Greatest Nation On Planet Earth.
       
      If the oligarchs continue to concentrate wealth and more and more homeless people appear on the streets of the US, IMO violent, indiscriminate revolution becomes increasingly possible. Starvation and desperation are prime motivators of violent revolution. The 0.1% are going to grudgingly have to pay in increasing percentage of their wealth to employ an increasing percentage of the population that it will take to control/incarcerate the increasing percentage of homeless and poor people. If the 0.1% Elite are lucky, they can employ 30% of the population to control/incarcerate 69.9% of the population and maintain the system as it is. Likely the 30% will do their noble duties for dirt cheap, but the Elite will be seriously considering robots (a la the movie “Elysium”) to reduce labor costs and increase profit. Again, this is purported to be the best system possible for The Greatest Nation On Planet Earth.

      1. Step O'Rafferty Avatar
        Step O’Rafferty

        Thanks Ishkabibble for that very thorough and concise picture of the control system in place in the USA. You are right, the well-informed 20% of the population are not going to be able to change things while the other 79.9% are easily influenced by the expensive advertising campaigns conducted by the warmonger candidates. What a shame that people have been brain damaged to the extent that they cannot see through the charade.
        It will be extremely sad to witness America descend in to civil war. The security apparatus and the ordinary citizens will kill each other while the oligarchs simply hop on to their private jets and fly to an undamaged part of the Earth. Australia accepts oligarchs, war criminals and people escaping from the mess they have created in other countries, so if you’re looking for them in order to bring them to justice they will most likely be here or in New Zealand.
        America is such a sick nation with an enormous amount of people living on junk food and being stimulated by junk information. One could assume that this situation was engineered so that the zombie masses could be used as slaves, but the slaves are in China and central and south America. Maybe when the US dollar does eventually collapse, then the homeland slavery will begin.

      2. Step, this is why IMO the one and only way for anti-war candidates for POTUS and seats in congress to get elected is for them to spell out in great detail the conversion of the DoD contract system from one which grants contracts for the production of bullets to one which grants contracts for bullet trains, etc.
        .
        The entire DoD contract-issuing apparatus could remain exactly as it is. The only difference, again, would be WHAT the contract-winners would produce.
        .
        Politically speaking, this means that the millions of people/voters who are direct or indircet employees of those contractors would NOT lose their jobs in a peace-based system.
        .
        Gabbard and Sanders should detail such a plan immediately but, unfortunately, they probably won’t. They have both alluded to turning cannons into ploughshares in general terms, but unless they get right down to the actual details, like all the previous anti-war candidates that I mentioned, IMO neither will be elected and the cycle will continue until the nukes start dropping.

      3. Step O'Rafferty Avatar
        Step O’Rafferty

        That is an excellent and logical strategy, re-tooling the armaments industry to rebuild America’s infrastructure and truly, positively make America great again. As you say, the candidates should get right behind this strategy and work out a plan. It is so frustrating that people like Bernie are not doing this. I am certain that a huge majority of Americans would agree with you. We just don’t have $300 million to advertise the strategy.

  18. It is only from a special point of view that “education” is a failure. As to its own purposes, it is an unqualified success. One of its purposes is to serve as a massive tax-supported jobs program for legions of not especially able or talented people. As social programs go, it is a good one. The pay is not high, but the risk is low, the standards are lenient, entry is easy, and job security is still pretty good. ..In fact, the system is perfect, except for one little detail. We must find a way to get the children out of it.
    – Richard Mitchell, The Leaning Tower of Babel [1984]

  19. The list “Things that are more real than Pete Buttigieg” is epic.

    (It the kind of thing that Amanda Marcotte would write about Bernie Sanders, only when Caitlin does it it is on target.)

  20. My greatest fear these days is that those trying to obstruct Bernie will become so desperate when Bernie eventually seals the nomination that they’ll arrange for him what they arranged for RFK….

    1. You shouldn’t worry. Bernie has already pledged to roll over like a good doggy in due time, like he did in ’16. He’s not suicidal.

  21. Pam and Russ Martins excellent “Wall St on Parade” blog has a good piece on Mayor Butthead. She used to work as a trader on Wall St. If I’ve got the story correct, that ended when she sued her bosses for sexual harrassment. Thus, she brings a perspective and skill set of someone who’s seen Wall st from the inside.

    “10,599 Corporate Lawyers Have Donated to Buttigieg’s Campaign: Here Are the Dirty Little Secrets”
    https://wallstreetonparade.com/2020/02/10599-corporate-lawyers-have-donated-to-buttigiegs-campaign-here-are-the-dirty-little-secrets/

  22. ABSOLUTELY.Will people wake up in time or will ‘the virus’ be so devastating as to bring people to their needs calling for help from the very people who mare us all Debt Slaves, watch this space because NOTHING is beyond these devils who have taken control.

  23. Mr. Buttiguaido says his lines well enough to fool many minds.

  24. Months ago I felt that Pete Buttigieg was too good to be true. An artificial well-packaged political tropism. Somewhat to my own surprise, it now seems as if Pete Buttigieg is too good to be true.

    1. Mayor Pete is so scubbed and sterile in his crispy high collared shirt with tie…he reminds me of cold, unsalted, gooey oatmeal. Oh but wait…he’s GAY !! How novel. Could it be the US is ready for a G-A-Y president ?? Ohhhh…we elected one because of his skin pigmentation. NOW let’s usher in either one with female genitilia or one who prefers intimacy with their own gender. This is beginning to feel like reruns of a bad sitcom. Mayor Pete is more of the more of the more of the ………s-a-m-e. Go Bernie. Tulsi VP.

  25. A DNC Strategy – Losing: It is not a bug, it is a feature
    The DNC only maintains a modicum of legitimacy so long as they can point to gridlock and partisan interference from Republicans.
    That means they really do not want to control both houses and the executive branch at the same time. That happened briefly at the start of Barack Obamas first term until mid-term elections, and the consequences were terrible for Democrats.
    This is because Dems had no real intention to carry out Barack Obamas mandate from the election. Doing so would work against the very real commitments they made to the too big to fail banks, and other billionaires. Please read this excellent article here:
    https://www.strategic-culture.org/news/2020/02/10/are-democrats-trying-lose-2020-not-bug-its-feature/

  26. As a year year round resident of Marta’s Vineyard I can personally verify you are right on with your analysis. Yes, that includes, “smiles at a Martha’s Vineyard cocktail party”. Thank you!

  27. J Rochelle Karter Avatar
    J Rochelle Karter

    DEAR CONGRESSPERSON/REPRESENTATIVE/CONCERNED CITIZENS:
    This article portrays and should lead to an investigation that Trump and US Government agencies have used completely covert and internationally illegal methods on other sovereign nations, like instigating riots and demonstrations and even deadly sniper force to confuse, bully and force other countries to comply with demands which can only hurt citizens and never benefit the targeted countries.

    ADDITIONAL CASE AGAINST TRUMP:

    Excerpt Reprinted from “Asia Times” Feb 9, 2020

    “The outgoing Iraqi prime minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi complained bitterly in parliament on January 5 that in two telephone conversations US President Donald Trump had threatened him with precisely such protests, to overthrow him, if he didn’t comply with US demands.
    Trump allegedly threatened to position US Marine snipers “atop the highest buildings” to target and kill protesters and security forces alike in an attempt to pressure the prime minister.”

    Full article:
    https://www.asiatimes.com/2020/02/article/us-uneasy-over-iraqs-new-prime-minister/

    1. USA is uneasy enough that they have unleashed the death squads. Seems like a couple of key people close to Sadr have been assassinated recently.
      Those Washington bullets are killing again.

  28. EXCELLENT analysis and TRUTH TELLING. You are my all-time favorite, Caitlin, for your keen ability to see the truth and to weave it so beautifully and lucidly into a POWERFUL, highly digestible report such as this one. THANK YOU! <3 (Sharing!)

    1. Dare I say, “ditto” Dewey? This explains much.

  29. Caitlin is right: “Change is not going to come from those institutions.” But let me make my prediction clear: Change is not going to come from people using the power of their numbers. The reason: Firstly, those institutions make sure that most “numbers” continue supporting the status quo and applaud only minor changes like tax cuts. Secondly, there is no power in numbers only. Power comes from money and dissidents are a minority who don’t have much money and those who do have money buy into the status quo. That’s why the only time a revolution will succeed is when frustrated people study, understand and collectively put into practice the revolutionary strategy and tactics which Yeshua trained His Ambassadors to teach and practice. Unfortunately, His revolutionary strategy and tactics are so brilliant, exceptional and powerful that this is way above the mental abilities even for intelligent and well-educated people who fail to grasp what Yeshua said and meant when training His Ambassadors. Read more of this here: http://www.wisdompage.com/2013%20Articles/Molyneaux%20essay.pdf

    1. “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”

      –Margaret Mead

      1. Lisa, please quote an example from history where a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens changed the world. There are none! But history is not yet complete. There is always hope of a better world but hope is not enough. We need the right strategy and tactics.

  30. My principal objection to compulsory education is that it violates the freedom of the individual. No one should be required to give up personal sovereignty to comply with a state or federal government mandate — not through military conscription and not through compulsory education. Please read this eye-opening article here:
    https://www.fff.org/explore-freedom/article/compulsory-education-the-bane-of-learning-and-freedom/

  31. Concerning the USA and “the kind of political system they were taught about in school”
    Here is a quote from the “Civic education in the United States” Wiki page:
    “9 states [out of 50] require a social studies [civics] test as a requirement for high school graduation.”
    “dumbed-down” is the ‘state’ of “public education” in the USA.
    i.e.: “Pull the lever when told to pull the lever”
    It’s about ‘learning’ to follow instructions, NOT about learning to think critically.
    If you can’t change your mind, are you sure you still have one?

  32. Excellent article Caitlin! Nailed it to the WALL!

  33. Caitlin, thanks for bringing this up. Pete Buttigieg Is a corporate stooge. Here is some more evidence:
    10,599 Corporate Lawyers Have Donated to Buttigieg’s Campaign: Here Are the Dirty Little Secrets
    https://wallstreetonparade.com/2020/02/10599-corporate-lawyers-have-donated-to-buttigiegs-campaign-here-are-the-dirty-little-secrets/
    Spread the word…

  34. Stasis is not a good term to use here because Jeff Bezos has used this term in the context that stasis a bad thing. He wasn’t referring to the fact that political stasis is bad, but rather in terms of being a champion of the infinite growth model of economics. Bezos envisioned a trillion manipulable people living in giant gravity wheels in space so that his children could enjoy Earth as a beautiful garden which will be zoned industry free and those trillions of people would now be happily laboring in those industry zoned gravity wheels now completely decoupled from the Earth itself. Jeff Bezos shows illustrations of beautiful giant gravity wheels with mountains and valleys and forests just like Earth, except contained in planet sized gravity wheels. Like all grand plans like this, the reality is those giant gravity wheels in space would more lively resemble giant factories in space with no trees, mountains or valleys and will most likely more closely resemble a living hell; but hey, Jeff would be the first multi-trillionaire.

    So please qualify stasis when you use that term now, because the word stasis has already been poisoned.

    While we focus on this election cycle, we forget that Apple, Amazon, Alphabet/Google, Microsoft, and soon Facebook will top one trillion dollar net worth mark. Add to that list Exon/Mobile and Chevron and we are looking at around 7 trillion in total assets. That is over a third of the GDP, 21 trillion dollars of the United States.

    Considering that, wouldn’t it be imaginable that these companies have more influence in who gets to be elected President of the United States that all of the rest of the United States combined?

    If Google wants Buttigieg to win, they can customize their AI Neural Network search algorithm to give Buttigieg a ranking advantage in search results, which alone will give him a major advantage in the popular polls. At the same time they could make it so that Bernie Sanders would receive a negative search rank which would put him at a distinct disadvantage in the popular polls. On top of the Google and Facebook has the ability to provide users with personalized news which caters to their proclivities as determined by the profiles that Google and Facebook maintains for every American, such that they think their guy is winning when in fact he is loosing so that there is no public outcry of a foul being committed.

    Things to think about here

    1. I saw, myself, before the full caucus results were released that Google just was not working on the topic of the Iowa Caucus. Googling “Iowa caucus results 2020” resulted in top hits that were several days old despite that even MSM was questioning the process. I found it extremely problematic that the only way to get information at this point was to leverage Twitter to find out who my most trusted journalists felt were the most trustworthy elections specialists in the United States and to follow them on Twitter. In other words, I had to use a fuckoad of pre-existing knowledge to even point me in the direction of real or meaningful information.

      More importantly, though, was the visual rhetoric that existed for days when a person googled “Iowa caucus results 2020” — there was a photo of a jubilant Buttegieg in the upper righthand corner. It had been clipped from Wikipedia. Clicking on it actually resulted in photos of Pete and Bernie side by side, but it seemed to have been somehow clipped by Google so that googling the topic resulted in only this photo of Pete. I am trying to add a screenshot in this comment but cannot make that work.

      I am also concerned that Pete as candidate represents a “movement” — one that brings the horrific practices carried out in imperialist wars right onto the streets of the US. But I guess that is inevitable given that war zones and prisons always function as testing grounds for atrocities against humans.

      1. Yes, USNORTHCOM was created in 2002 following the 9/11 event.

        It is interesting that so much draconian legislation was at the ready following 9/11 that would have had zero chance of being approved in Congress prior to 9/11.

        The FISA Ammendments Act of 2008, legalizing the illegal practice under George W. Bush to wire tap American citizens.

        The USA Patriot Act, allows the government to search your home or business without telling you about it until months later.

        USA PATRIOT Act of 2001, Expanded the authority of the FBI to issue National Security Letters (NSL) requesting information from and about Americans.

        USA PATRIOT Act: The Supreme Court held that the First Amendment permitted criminalization, under the “material support” law, of efforts to provide advice to members of a terrorist group on how to use international law and other non-violent conflict-resolution mechanisms. Remember that Iran has been classifed as a terrorist group by the Trump Administration. Because of the borad language used in the Patyriot act, anyone considered by the governemnt to be an adversary can be swept up under the provision of this clause in the Patriot Act.

        Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004: Beginning in March 2010, TSA began employing some 450 full body scanners, which display an image of the passenger’s body underneath his or her clothing. Despite continued outrage from passengers, the D.C. Circuit of Appeals ruled in July 2011 that the use of scanners did not violate the 4th Amendment, which guards against unreasonable searches and seizures.

        US Customs and Border Protection and Department of Homeland Security Policy Changes: The new policy, introduced by the Bush administration and followed by the Obama administration, allows government officials to search any documents or papers, including the entire contents of laptops and other electronic devices, without any suspicion of wrongdoing.

        Attorney General Guidelines for Domestic FBI Operations, 2008: allows the FBI to conduct “assessments” using techniques such as informants, “pretext interviews” in which an agent surreptitiously questions an individual, and 24-hour physical surveillance—even in the absence of any factual predicate for the investigation.

        FBI Domestic Investigations and Operations Guide, 2008: The FBI’s 2008 domestic investigations guide institutionalized suspicion of Muslim Americans by allowing the FBI to map “locations of concentrated ethnic communities” and “ethnic-oriented businesses and other facilities” as permissible means of gathering information about potential terrorism.

        Military Commissions Act of 2006: The Obama administration has determined that it will continue to hold several of the men currently at Guantánamo without trial because the evidence against them is either insufficient or tainted by torture. This set a precident for the future. This essential say, because the governmnet acted in bad fiath, the victims will have to be held as prisoners of war indefinitely, I assumne becaue to do otherwise would open the governmnet to violation of the Geneva Convention charges.

        Military Commissions Act of 2006: In the spring of 2011, after Congress blocked the transfer of detainees to the US for civilian trial, the Obama administration officially reinstated military tribunals for prosecution of Guantánamo detainees.

        Torture: The Obama refused to allow any inquiry into the Bush administration’s systematic approval of torture; it asserted an overbroad version of the state secrets privilege to prevent lawsuits that would expose torture; and it continues to employ the practice of rendition — sending detainees to other countries where they are likely to be tortured.

        Americans’ right to privacy is under unprecedented siege as a result of a perfect storm: a technological revolution; the government’s creation of a post-9/11 surveillance society in which the long-standing “wall” between surveillance for law enforcement purposes and for intelligence gathering has been dismantled; and the failure of U.S. laws, oversight mechanisms, and judicial doctrines to keep pace with these developments. As a result, the most sweeping and technologically advanced surveillance programs ever instituted in this country have operated not within the rule of law, subject to judicial review and political accountability, but outside of it, subject only to voluntary limitations and political expedience. — American Bar Association https://www.americanbar.org/groups/crsj/publications/human_rights_magazine_home/human_rights_vol38_2011/human_rights_winter2011/privacy_and_surveillance_post_9-11/

        1. Then, in light of all of these immediate, ready-to-go upshots of the World Trade Center atrocity, ask yourself how three steel-girded skyscrapers, for the first time in human history, were crumbled into dust, in free-fall speed, into their footprints, by airplane crashes and office fires. Then spend a little time on the website of Architects and Engineers for 911 Truth. Then spread the word, because if enough Americans did this, we’d have that revolution.

    2. Timothy Michel, Really? Don’t use a word because Jeff Bozos used it in some off the wall fantasy scenario? Does his use of a word somehow make it his personal property? That is giving him way too much power. We need to give less weight and attention to what people like him say, not more. How manipulable are we if we change our very use of language because one person used or abused the same word? Think about that.

  35. What will be the role of the super delegates? Hillary Clinton’s shark fin is still visible circling out there. If not the presidency she would accept vice president. Biden / Clinton is easily imagined, but Buttigieg / Clinton?
    .
    It would be the kiss of death for his candidacy if Sanders accepted Clinton on the ticket, but the corrupt and totalitarian DNC wouldn’t care. Bernie bros would be sold the message of “hold your noses and support the ticket”.

    1. Lol! Omg, the visual of Hillary Clinton’s shark fin!

    2. If I have to “hold my nose” to vote, then I’ll stay home.

  36. Spot on as usual Caitlin!

  37. “And so do the spooks and oligarchs who are backing him.”… and, sadly, you may add people from organized crime to the list because it seems they are more and more embedded in the power structure and in the “System”.

    It was probably the case in the days of Noah because it is described as a violent society, probably not so different than our current society.

    It is because we are in the return of the days of Noah just before the Second Coming of Jesus and I pray the Rosary to hasten His Glorious return because I have seen enough of all the bullshit.

  38. Charles Andrew Robinson Avatar
    Charles Andrew Robinson

    Different subject here. But it is important to be able to laugh often.
    I just watched a 1958 movie called “Mon Oncle” on the Criterion channel. You can subscribe to the channel for $10.99 a month – it’s worth it – but they also let yo try it for free for a few days so you could watch it without having to pay.
    It;s a very good movie streaming channel though, lots of older movies and art films.

    But anyway, “Mon Oncle” looks amazingly modern for the time. It is in color and the brother in law is this Buster Keaton kind of funny character in this small French town, with dogs and kids running around. The hose Manufacturing boss has this very modern house with super modern appliances that make loud electronic noises and a too, too chic garden very hard to walk around due to the chic design. It’s a very charming and hilariously done film.

    1. Mon Oncle – the wonderful Jacque Tati. Yes, it’s timeless as are the characters – and it’s a good laugh as well.

  39. Just wondering, is there anyone in the U.S. that you do approve of. If so tell us who.

    1. I don’t know about Caitlin, but if you asked me I’d say no. Nobody in politics or public office. Same goes for Australia.

      1. Then why are you here?

    2. That is a very strange question, Charles.

      1. Charles Andrew Robinson Avatar
        Charles Andrew Robinson

        That was a question from me. A different Charles

        1. Charles Andrew Robinson Avatar
          Charles Andrew Robinson

          Wasn’t a question from me. Need an edit button.

    3. Green Party.

      Dr. Jill Stein gave the Green Party’s State of the Union 2020 the other day, which you can watch here:

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPSfFeqRKoA

      I was unable to get the video to play on Facebook, so I searched YouTube for “green state of the union 2020”, and still had to scroll through pages of Trump and Democrat videos to get to the one that had literally that title.

  40. Oh thank you! I can’t wait to use the delicious description ‘The world’s first laboratory-grown presidential candidate Pete’ and I will credit you.

    1. It is a great description, but I was wondering whether the first was actually Juan Guaidó.

  41. I never imagined that the F-35 would not carry nukes. Did anybody?
    What will happen with Wuhan virus in our world before November, and going forward to 2025?
    I think Sanders will be better in that mess than Trump, and would be very strongly supported with Tulsi Gabbard (not Hillary-the-murderess) as VP. There would be every reason for elites to NOT kill Sanders, who does make deals…
    “The question is when did Bernie and the doddering Sen. Leahy, who apparently was the prime mover and shaker to bring the F35 to Vermont, discover that the F35 would be nuclear capable? Greco says that public records shows that after Vermont was initially explored and dismissed by the Air Force as being an unsuitable location with South Carolina being the preferred location, Leahy personally intervened to bring the F35 to Vermont.”

  42. Theme song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SboRijhWFDU

    Work on the solution. Somebody less talented might fight.
    Work on living with tremendously less consumption. Grow vegetables and ride a bike places. It shifts your thoughts and insights into the developing paradigm of co-creation.
    We can become human, each of us, maybe a lot of us, or we can die serving the sociopathic master class.
    It’s Threat/Opportunity in the I-Ching. Right now. Already.
    This is the next step in our species evolution, becoming a peaceful species. We have it in us, but it’s not taught much. Start being that change. Start where you are. Prepare for quarantine where you are.
    http://www.johndayblog.com/2020/02/changing.html

    This interview with a physician who was instrumental in getting authorities and his hospital to grapple with the Wuhan coronavirus is good and informative. He seems open and factual.
    Peng: The biggest assault the virus launches is on a patient’s immune system. It causes a fall in the count of lymphocytes, the damage in the lungs and shortness of breath. Many serious patients died of choking. Others died of the failure of multiple organs following complications in their organs resulting from a collapse of the immune system.
    https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/reporters-notebook-life-and-death-in-a-wuhan-coronavirus-icu

    1. John! Very true “Truth is like a Lion it does not need protecting set it free it will protect itself” People need to stop making their God money, and stop the feeding off your energy! I have become 98% self sufficient and have become a natural Human being not a human doer! Have had Millions and lost Millions$$ and am happier now than ever! Take your power back go inside and ” Be the Change you want to see” [Mahatma Ghandi} What you believe will create your reality.Operate from the heart and be of service to others,Find Love not Fear!!!

  43. Bernie Sanders, in his own words on, believe it or don’t, Fox News. Compare what he says to that of Mayor Pete.

    1. Very strong and certain statements from Senator Bernie. He completely made his case while getting nibbled away at.
      ELECTABLE!

  44. Sanders and Buttigieg are both War Whores. The only hope for the Democrat party is Tulsi. She is the one who has been shut out of the process

    1. sanders is a war whore? he’s getting cheated left and right. to claim he’s not being shut out of the process is willful blindness. gabbard would make a great sos in a sanders administration.

      1. Here’s something you may or may not know about Sanders (who, IMO, if he is elected, will suddenly morph into another Mr. Hope and Change O’bomb’em).

        http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/51464.htm

      2. Do people know that Sanders agrees with the so-called intelligence community’s unsubstantiated allegations/accusations that the Russians hacked the DNC servers, meddled in the US election in 2016, tried to get Donito Assolini elected and tried to
        “undermine in a significant way American democracy. So I think the evidence is very clear that Russia did play a very harmful role — unacceptable role –and it is something that we have got to deal with. I think that what Mr. Trump appears to be saying is that no, it is not true, it is not accurate, I do not trust the intelligence community’s, and I think that is unfortunate position to hold.”
        .
        Just exactly WHAT IS the intellignece cummunity’s “evidence”, Bernie? Not only that, but Bernie is convinced that the Russians are doing so in other coutries around the world. Just exatly what constitutes “meddling”, Bernie?
        .
        Does this sound like a man who’s going to question the assessments of the intelligence community when it comes to, say, whether or not the next country on the intelligence community’s regime change list does or does not have weapons of mass destruction, or used chemical weapons on its own citizens, even when it is right on the edge of certain victory and knows that the US and its vassal states with certainly attack it for so doing?

        1. Damn good point.
          .
          Caitlin published this at Consortium News:
          .
          Title: Responding to Bernie’s Promotion of the New Cold War
          .
          https://consortiumnews.com/2018/02/01/responding-to-bernies-promotion-of-the-new-cold-war/
          .
          One wonders whether (gasp! dare I even think it?) Trump, being a lame duck in his second term, will have to worry less about the McCarthyists and can thus just get on with it – de-escalate tensions with Russia.
          .
          If John Durham comes through (doubtful) and eviscerates the likes of John Brennan and James Clapper, etc, etc, etc, for their role in the Russiagate coup attempt, then Trump will be less fettered in his attempt at reducing tensions in the world. (Yeah, I agree – dream on).
          .
          But, just how dangerous is Bernie? Hillary Clinton was a menace and threat to humanity without a doubt. Who is the *real* Bernie Sanders?

  45. Thank you, Caitlin, from a new subscriber! Will try to throw some change your way – I’m the opposite of those well-heeled Democratic elites – underemployed, in the precariat for some years but still can help now & then. I love your self-description as a “bogan socialist” – had to look up “bogan” – reminds me of your Aussie countrywoman, Kerry Greenwood, who despite being hugely successful stuck decidedly socialistic twists in her early novels abt Corinna the baker & Phryne Fisher (I would never have read her otherwise). I’m kind of a bogan myself, or at least working class … also appreciated the beautiful poem with the video by Sustainable Human – echoes ideas others have expressed (reiki masters, Lee Harris the UK channeler, etc) but is a good reminder.

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