Obama and his Dick (Cheney)

Here’s how well they have us trained: The powers that be are no longer gonna call the illegally detained terrorism suspects (sic) by the name of “enemy combatants.” Like the pre-programmed robots we’ve all become, we’ll celebrate this as a welcome and much-needed change from the reviled Bush-Cheney administration. A step in the right direction, we might even say. In addition, the Pope of Hope has promised not to torture. Our society is so fuckin’ corrupt that a US president can announce-without... Read article

Text is a Verb

Would you give up the ability to text ttyl to your BFF in order to save a species from going extinct? In 2009, it’s not an insane question. The next time your cell phone rings, try focusing on these six simple words: The Democratic Republic of the Congo. I ask you to do this because one of the primary components of cell phone circuitry is a metallic ore called Columbite-Tantalite-or “coltan.” Eighty percent of the world’s known coltan can be found in African nation of The Democratic Republic... Read article

Pawns with Lawns

The single most irrigated crop in the United States is…(drum roll please) lawn. Yep, 40 million acres of lawn exist across the Land of Denial and Americans collectively spend about $40 billion on seed, sod, and chemicals each year. And then there’s all that water. If you include golf courses, lawns in America cover an area roughly the size of New York State and require 238 gallons of (usually drinking-quality) water per person, per day. According to the EPA, nearly a third of all residential water use... Read article

Radical Love

Mickey Z. interviews Natty Seidenverg… Natty Seidenverg is a writer and an activist from the high desert region of Cascadia. She’s been giving radical love workshops for about three years and was kind enough share her thoughts with me, via e-mail. Here’s the result: Mickey Z: What do you mean by the term “radical love”? Does it automatically imply polyamory? Does it automatically exclude monogamy? Natty Seidenverg: Radical love does not have a concrete definition, and that is purposeful.... Read article

American Apologies

During His inauguration speech, President Barack Obama declared: “We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense.” Hmm…if His Holiness is really defending my way of life, he’s slaughtering civilians and wasting billions in taxpayer dollars in the name of atheism, anarchism, veganism, and so on. How odd… Here’s a news flash for the Pope of Hope: “Our way of life” (in the more general sense) not only needs to be apologized for, it needs to be permanently altered…in... Read article

No Innocent Bystanders

An interview with Mickey Z by Gregory Elich Just out is the latest book by political activist Mickey Z, and like his other works this one is packed with incisive analysis and engaging wittiness. Never reluctant to take on sacred cows, Mickey looks at our political culture and lays bare all of its pretensions and illusions. [Q] Your new book, No Innocent Bystanders, is just out. It’s a book amply filled with food for thought and interesting insight. What were you looking to achieve with this book, and what audience do you... Read article

Obama, Guantánamo, and US Hypocrisy

Snapshots from the United States of Incarceration… So, the Pope of Hope announced his (purported) objective of closing the military detention center at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba (“Gitmo”) within one year and we’re expected to herald this announcement as a drastic break from the past. But—as some of the regulars on my blog instantly declared—if President Obama were serious about hope and change, he’d close the prison tomorrow, apologize to the detainees, and offer them financial reparations. That could be promptly... Read article

Dam Nation

“Every morning when I awake, I ask myself whether I should write or blow up a dam,” Derrick Jensen (http://www.derrickjensen.org/vio.html) writes. “I’ve written books and done activism, but it is neither a lack of words nor activism that is killing salmon here in the Northwest. It’s the dams. Anyone who knows anything about salmon knows the dams must go. Anyone who knows anything about politics knows the dams will stay.” To that, I’ll add: Anyone who knows anything about hydroelectric dams comprehends... Read article

Planet of Lost Souls

“For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? What shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” – Matthew 16:26 I wasn’t supposed to be born. After my mother gave birth to my sister, the doctors told her she’d never have another child. They couldn’t say exactly why (later, she was diagnosed with endometriosis) but they were pretty damn certain…the way doctors tend to be pretty damn certain. Wisely, my mother ignored such white coat condescension and less than two... Read article

Obama Nation upholds US terror

Let’s start with two facts: 1. The United States of America is a rogue state built on and maintained by terror 2. Barack Obama will do absolutely nothing to change or challenge the realities behind fact #1 In the name of providing context, let’s look back to the “good war” (a phrase in which—as Studs Terkel said—the noun and adjective don’t match) for an example of time-honored US terror tactics: In World War II’s Pacific theater—cheered on by the likes of Time magazine, which explained that “properly... Read article

Waves of Hope and Change

It’s holiday season in Manhattan and despite the economic downturn, there seems to be no shortage of well-dressed humans cavorting, laughing, and spending freely. Walking among them, a homeless man begs for money—shaking his tattered coffee cup (adorned with images of Greek architecture) to rattle the few coins therein. A veteran of the first Gulf War, this man is no longer concerned with yellow ribbons. Right now, he’d settle for a scrap of food and a dry pair of shoes. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) estimates... Read article

Counting Sea Gulls

It’s early November. I’m checking my mail when I decide to stand in front of my apartment building for a little air: Astoria, Queens, New York City, USA air. I notice five sea gulls flying overhead—north to south—well above the buildings, asphalt, and internal combustion engines. No more than a few seconds later, another eight gulls pass so I decide to count. Why not? In no time, I’m over 50. To my right, in the beautifully symmetrical little tree that graces my block, the sparrows are chirping up a storm. Proud... Read article

Obama Conspiracy

Mr. G.B. Shaw sez: “I often quote myself; it adds spice to my conversation.” With that concept in mind, I’ll remind you of something I said in a recent interview, re: St. Barack. Obama’s ascendancy, I posited, “is an excellent illustration of how the system handles dissent. A black face, a soothing voice and a vague message of change – all designed to keep the rabble pacified without changing anything at all.” This, I submit, could be deemed the ultimate conspiracy theory. The power elite, especially... Read article

Obama and the 2076 election

Before we get to 2076, first things first: Hail Obama, our brilliant, articulate, eloquent, half-black savior and prince. Okay, so maybe St. Barack is a tad less progressive than we imagined but you have to admit he’s brilliant and eloquent and half-black. And c’mon, folks, he’s not even in office yet. Give the poor guy a chance. Once he’s in, we’ll hold his feet to the fire and make real progress. We’ll get permits to hold weekend protests (with none of those nasty anarchists invited) and we’ll give voice... Read article

Woody Guthrie: A Little Recession Music, Please

If you were to open your mouth and belt out the words “this land is your land,” you could rest assured that someone nearby would add: “this land is my land.” The chorus to Woody Guthrie’s 1940 classic is common knowledge…as are the first couple of verses. But it ain’t until you get to the later verses—those often omitted from official versions—that you start comprehendin’ what good ol’ Woody had in mind: As I was walkin’ I saw a sign there And that sign said “No tresspassin’” But on the other... Read article

Obama Exploits Liberal Denial

By now, we should expect the soft Left (and more than a few radicals) to gleefully guzzle the Democrat Kool Aid every four years. In 2004, it was Anybody-But-Bush. This year, it was Attack of the Obamatrons. Hey, when you’re a liberal, harboring multiple delusions comes with the territory, e.g. * Sooner or later, the Democratic Party is gonna wake up and help us “take back” the country * No matter what we think of war, we must always support the troops because sooner or later, the men and women in uniform are gonna... Read article

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