words

there was something telling in that last piece i posted. it was in the series of questions being lobbed by helen thomas, one of the few decent journalists left who can get within distance of the powerful. she had asked a question, and the white house guy had said "we support the right of israel to defend itself," and she responded "do you support the right of gazans to defend themselves?" of course, the man didn't say yes to this, but certainly, gazans are being attacked at a far greater level than israelis. it is a tenet of state power, and white supremacy for that matter (the two are often linked) that only certain people are entitled to use force. it gets to the very root of hypocrisy to speak of israel defending itself as it prosecutes a war of aggression, the greatest offensive crime there is. if the death totals are 630 to 10, how dare anyone speak of israel's right to defend itself? who is going without sleep, who is going without electricity, who is going without clean water, who is going without food? who is backed by the u.s, who has the fourth strongest military on earth, and who stole whose land? and yet, only israel has the right to "defend" (ie, offend gazans) itself. only those who don't need a great deal of defending have the right to defend themselves. and often, what little need they do have to defend themselves is brought on by the horrendous acts of offense they themselves partake in.

i notice that often, when the u.s or israel bombs people, they often hit un buildings. i truly believe they target the un to show that the organization means nothing to them. it is an act of utter arrogance. this got me to thinking that the un is really a hopeless, helpless enterprise with no teeth. so, i have an idea; i think we need an international people's army, or defense force. all those opposed to imperialism, colonialism, racism, and aggressive war should help to create such an organization. progressive governments, as well as those who would like to see a bulwark against american domination, should help to support it. worker co-ops could produce the weapons, governments could donate a portion of their existing arsenals, progressives around the world could enlist, or financially support it. venezuela and various arab states could donate some oil, bolivia some gas, cuba some doctors, russia, china, and other military powers some weapons, and all of us could donate time, people, and resources. once it got off the ground, soldiers could be paid, weapons purchased, sympathetic media could be formed. everyone involved would be put through a quality education. possible missions would be discussed, and resources and people would be allocated to defend people under attack. and when the u.s or israel, or anyone else, pulls some shit like iraq or gaza, the people's army would be there to fight alongside those being victimized. i think's it is time for left wing military men, for academics, for just plain old pissed off commoners to give this some thought. things like this have happened on a smaller scale, like volunteers for republican spain, or cuba's efforts against south africa, but it needs to be done on a far wider scale. i say this as someone who detests militarism and violence, but someone needs to stand up to the bully before none of us are left. for the moment, countries need to form regional military alliances. they need to produce, or buy their weapons from non american suppliers. they need to refuse to support wars. in fact they need to fight those who fight wars. in truth, that is the only war worth fighting. so onward to the international people's army! viva!!

speaking of violence, i just learned that an oakland cop shot an unarmed man who was lying face down on the ground. i rest easy, knowing this cop has likely been placed on administrative leave, with pay. in plain english, the killer is on a vacation. if it does go to trial, it warms my heart to know that a majority white jury, with perhaps 1 or 2 token people of color, will find the cop not guilty of murder. and we, the people can feel good, knowing that the system worked. for you see, the victim had his day in court. the cop "didn't get away with it." once, we had the rope and tree. we have since learned that cops and courts and prisons do just fine.

but all is well; a man with a kenyan father will soon be in the white house. and yes my friend, it will still be the white house. don't you worry about that.