From our earliest days our education system separates us into the “gifted” and the not-so gifted. When we're just small children, many of us are put on a path to be cogs in the machine.
David Swanson: Cost of Compensated Emancipation versus War Over Slavery
Civil Society, Commerce, Ethics, Government
As I head off to a rally for Trayvon Martin, I notice a column by Bob Koehler in which he says the unpaid work of slaves in the United States is now estimated at $1.4 trillion. Oddly, that's not terribly far from the $1.2 trillion or so, possibly more now, that we spend each year preparing for and fighting wars. If we abolished war we could perhaps afford to compensate descendants of those victimized by slavery. If we abolished prisons, we'd have at least another $100 billion. And, of course, we'd have all those savings again the next year and the next year and the next year.
I wrote a review recently of a film called Copperhead, and I brought up the idea of compensated emancipation. Wouldn't it have been wiser, I asked, to have compensated the slave owners than to have fought the Civil War. Since then, a number of readers have been sending me information on the extent to which compensated emancipation was discussed, proposed, or attempted — some of which I was unaware of.
Continue reading “David Swanson: Cost of Compensated Emancipation versus War Over Slavery”
SchwartzReport: Jimmy Carter – “America Has No Functioning Democracy”
Civil Society, Corruption, Government
In the nation's history this is one of the most extraordinary statements ever made by a former President. The fact that it has gone mostly unremarked by corporate media is, itself, a commentary on the country we have become.
President Carter Says America Has No Functioning Democracy
MAX ETERNITY – Truthout
John Maguire: Russia Goes to Full Strategic Combat Readiness (Troops & Bombers) Exercise in Eastern District (Furthest from Middle East)
Civil Society, Corruption, Government, Idiocy, Media, Military, Peace Intelligence
While everyone is distracted by the Trayvon Martin case….two stories.
From 14 July 2013:
WW3 Brews As Nation Distracted By Trayvon Martin Case
EXTRACT
Now enter new reports surfacing from the Russian Defense Ministry on orders of Vladimir Putin that the largest military ‘state of full combat readiness’ drill is taking place with around 160,000 troops ordered to report from all corners of the military. Specifically, the translated reports detail how Putin is calling together not just Armed Forces of Russia troops, but all forms of long-range aircraft, 70 naval ships, bomber and fighter aircraft, and so on.
According to a syndicated Russian announcement:
“On Friday, during a meeting with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu Russian, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an unexpected military drill, urging all forces to enter a state of full combat readiness on the night of July 13.”
SchwartzReport: Parents Struggle to Afford Food in USA
01 Poverty, 07 Other Atrocities, Civil Society, Commerce, Corruption, Government, IneptitudeI find the food trend in the U.S. utterly shameful. It says something really sad about us as a culture. Click through to see the charts which are very helpful.
In U.S., Single-Parent Households Struggle More to Buy Food
JESSICA STUTZMAN and ELIZABETH MENDES – The Gallup Organization
WASHINGTON, D.C. — In the U.S., 31% of single-parent households report times in the past 12 months when they struggled to afford food, much more than the 19% of two-parent households who say the same, according to an analysis of adults aged 18 to 50. Single-parent households also report greater difficulty affording food than do unmarried and single adults who do not have children. But, in households with two adults, the percentage who struggled at times to afford food is the same — 19% — regardless of the presence of children in the home.
Mini-Me: Uzbekistan Wants to Join NATO, Conquer Eurasia [We Do Not Make This Stuff Up] — Full Reading [English Below the Line] Makes Clear This Is A Manifesto — From Water to Genocide to Labor to Historical Grievances
02 Diplomacy, 06 Russia, 08 Wild Cards, 09 Justice, 10 Security, 11 Society, 12 Water, Civil Society, Commerce, Cultural Intelligence, Earth Intelligence, Government, IO Deeds of War, IO History, Military, Peace Intelligence
Huh?
Uzbekistan Media: We Should Join NATO, Conquer Eurasia
A recent piece in Uzbekistan's state-sanctioned media has advocated joining NATO and taking over the territory of Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and most of the rest of Eurasia. The piece, published on 12news.uz, was taken down shortly after being published, but was preserved on inoSMI.ru. [PBI: English translation below the line.]
The piece, at nearly 9,000 words, offers a number of controversial (to put it kindly) claims: that Tajiks are merely Persian-speaking Uzbeks, that Uzbekistan is the successor state to the Mongol Golden Horde, that the agreement between Russia and Kyrgyzstan to develop hydropower plants is invalid because it misspells “Kyrgyzstan,” among many others. Its main thesis, however, is that the “threats of a natural-technical character” — namely proposed hydropower plants in Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan — are the gravest security threats facing Uzbekistan, comparable to a nuclear bomb. And the solution is that Uzbekistan should join NATO.
The piece is a bit out there, but Uzbek analysts point out that it must have been officially sanctioned. “This site [12news.uz] is not just semi-official, it’s official,” dissident political analyst Tashpulat Yuldashev told uznews.net. “It's curated by Dilshod Nurullaev, former Security Commission chairman and advisor to the President,” he said. “There is total censorship in Uzbekistan, and such a politically charged article would not have been allowed to be published without permission from the very top.” That assertion was backed up by another Uzbek analyst to The Bug Pit.
BIG EVENT: 31 Jul – 4 Aug Geestmerambacht, The Netherlands OHM2013 — Observe – Hack – Make
Civil Society, Collective Intelligence, Cultural Intelligence, Earth Intelligence, Ethics, Gift Intelligence, Hacking, Peace Intelligence
About OHM2013
OHM2013 – Observe. Hack. Make. is a 5-day international outdoor technology and security conference. OHM2013 is currently requesting proposals for content.
A motley bunch of around 3000 hackers, free-thinkers, philosophers, activists, geeks, scientists, artists, creative minds and others will convene from all over the world for this informal meeting of minds to contemplate, reflect, share, criticize, look ahead, code, build, and more.
An otherwise unassuming stretch of land, just 30km (20mi) North of Amsterdam, will be transformed into a colourful oasis of light providing a backdrop for this unique event. It is an immersive experience, with an emphasis on interaction.
The four-yearly Dutch hacker camps provide a very open, friendly and relaxed atmosphere, with a high level of knowledge. The campsite is buzzing with energy, ideas and projects, not least because people from various backgrounds are interacting. It is a non-commercial community event where every visitor is also a volunteer.
Event Home Page and Call for Participation
Maps: OHM GIS – OpenStreetMap – Google Maps
Please Circulate Freely (txt version) (PDF version):
ROBERT STEELE: This is legitimate hacking's third wind (ham radio was the first, cyber and social engineering the second). This takes hacking to a new level, with an emphasis on “Do It Yourself” and thus fullfils the guidance from Buckminster Fuller: do not seek to repair a pathologically damaged system, instead create a new system to replace it, and route around the old system. I have proposed a lecture and a workshop (originally commissioned for the Wales Intelligence Conference in 2013), and am seeking donations to cover travel — estimated $1,500. I particularly solicit donations for pre-conference and post-conference sessions, in person or via Skype, anywhere in Europe including the UK that will help cover travel including side trips, and perhaps a bit more to support the work of our 501c3. I am on stand-by for Afghanistan and believe they won't move on replacing the KIA/WIA until September for a 1 October start date.
See Also:
