SARCASM

SARCASM via Facebook via Cindy Sheehan via motifake.com.

Guest Post: Cindy Sheehan on "The War Party and its Faux-gressive Minions"

[Cindy Sheehan is a well-know peace activist and mother who lost her son in the U.S. attack and occupation of Iraq. Her commentary below is from her essay published yesterday on Facebook. The photo shows Cindy and Lansing activist Chris Singer at the Cranbrook 2007 Peace Lecture in Detroit, Nov. 18, 2007.-- RTR]

By Cindy Sheehan

For years now, I have been writing about the duplicity of the Democrats and the shocking similarity between the two parties when it comes to the use of state-sanctioned terrorism against innocent populations.

This past week, after the betrayal of every American who elected Democrats to end the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan, I am wondering if there is anyone still in this nation who thinks that there’s any significant difference between the war ideologies of Democrats and Republicans.

I know many faux-gressive entities on the “left” whose silence on this matter is so loud it’s hurting my eardrums. Where was MoveOn.org over these past few weeks when the Dems were bludgeoning their caucus to vote “Aye” to extend the war crimes in the Middle East? Where were Markos Moulitsas (Daily Kos) and his bloggers that day? The day the funding bill passed, I wandered over to The Daily Kos and saw that it was all a-twitter about Senator Ensign (R) having an extra-marital affair. Nancy Pelosi, Steny Hoyer and Harry Reid may, or may not, be loyal spouses, but their calumny will kill, maim, torture or displace thousands of people over the next 4-8 years. I am not so interested in what happens in bedrooms as what happens in Democratic war zones.

Faux-gressives MoveOn.org and The Daily Kos supported me, and my work, as long as it solely focused on the Bush regime and the Republicans. However, when I had a late in life epiphany and figured out that the Democrats were abusing the energy of the anti-war movement to regain power, and I started to speak out against the entire War Party, not just one-half of it, I was kicked off blogging for The Daily Kos and ostracized by the fully co-opted MoveOn.org. Nathan Diebenow of the Lonestar Iconoclast then accused me of “alienating” my friends, to add insult to injury.

I think that I have unfortunately been vindicated by almost every single action that the Democratic Party has taken since 2006 when impeachment was taken “off the table,” but “blank-check” war funding was served up to the Military Industrial Complex on a bloody platter dripping with the flesh and blood of real human beings.

Our politicians have no integrity partly because the organizations in the movements that have the largest emailing lists have no integrity. Wars that were wrong under Bush become acceptable under Obama and the stain of torture fades into the woodwork or is hidden from sight like a demented relation because a Senator has an affair. As I understand it, MoveOn.org was founded to oppose the impeachment of Bill Clinton for the same thing Ensign did…now the gatekeepers of the War Party are going to crucify Ensign to distract their subscribers from real issues?

MoveOn.org sent this out in April 2008 in a fundraising email to its 5 million person list: No matter what happens in Iraq, the Bush Administration and John McCain always have the same answer: 6 more months. They're at it again this week, asking for six more months. But six months won't change anything—except the body count and the price tag.

They were not talking about the Democratic war funding this week. Apparently it’s fine to fund wars if we have a Democratic Despotism, but dangerous for our troops if we have a Republican Regime.

Hey MoveOn.org: ComeBack.org. Come back from the dark side of partisan politics. You look like Move America Forward, now:( a reich-wing organization that irrationally and blindly supports Republicans and unquestioningly supported BushCo). CODEPINK supported Barack Obama, but at least CODEPINK is over in Gaza trying to call attention to that crime, while MoveOn.org ignores the situation and most of the bloggers at The Daily Kos just like to sit behind their computer screens and snarkily criticize anyone who is actually on the streets doing the work.

What Pelosi and her Wrecking Crew did last week was disgraceful, but it’s shameful that people who opposed the exact same policies under BushCo support the same crimes of ObamaCo.

-- by Cindy Sheehan

You Are There: The Virtual UFPJ 4th General Assembly

One week ago, the 4th General Assembly of United for Peace and Justice (UFPJ), the largest coalition of peace and justice groups in America, was wrapped up in Chicago. Key action plans for the beginning months of 2009 were approved by the coalition. It also approved an impressive unity statement and strategic framework, as well as electing members of its national steering committee.

The UJPF has now published all of the finalized documents on its web site. Peace communities around the country should note the call for local actions on the Iraq 6th Anniversary on March 19, 2009, focusing attention on the cost of the U.S. military occupations and wars. The anniversary actions in March will kick off a countdown to a massive national mobilization in New York City on April 9, 2009, the anniversary of MLK's "Beyond Vietnam" speech and his assassination a year after the speech.

Get your buses ready -- and lots of 'em -- for a trip to the Big Apple to send a "Peace Now!" message to the new president and the Democratic Congress.

If you were not able to attend the UFPJ national assembly last weekend, I recorded most of the speakers and two panel discussions during the three-day assembly. (I did not record the breakout sessions or delegation debates and discussions.)

Below are links to the video recordings, which can provide a virtual feeling of being there in person (without the travel expense). Also, as an added bonus, I interviewed a few activists whom I caught on the final day of the assembly. Check them out; you won't be disappointed.

-- Rico Thomas Rico

You Are There: The Virtual UFPJ 4th National Assembly

Friday, December 12, 2008

Report from the National Director Leslie Cagan

Speech by George Paz Martin, Milwaukee Coalition for a Just Peace and UFPJ Co-Chair

Panel Discussion "Yes We Can: End the War!"

Tom Hayden, Activist and Author, ENDING THE WAR IN IRAQ

William McNary, President of USAction

Antonia Juhasz, Activist and Author, THE TYRANNY OF OIL

See Friday photos here.

__________________________________

Saturday, December 13, 2008

Panel Discussion "U.S. Foreign Policy: Next Steps in Building a New Internationalism:

Salam Talib of Iraq

Christine Jones of Canada (Canadian Peace Coalition)

Reiner Braun of Germany
Video is coming soon.

Ali Abunimah of Palestine

See Saturday photos here.

_________________________________

Sunday, December 14, 2008

"Voices of Peace" Interviews

Leslie Cagan, UFPJ National Director

Michael McPhearson, Veterans for Peace and UFPJ Co-Chair

Steve Burns, Wisconsin Network for Peace & Justice

Medea Benjamin, CodePink

Debra Sweet, World Can't Wait

See Sunday photos here.

The Shoes Heard 'Round the World

Driving back home on Sunday I was blissfully isolated with big city radio programming, which is much more interesting and diverse than what I'm used to. Going out of range of the compelling sounds, the real world came back into focus as I had no other good radio choices other than NPR news. That's when I got first word that an Iraqi journalist threw not one, but two shoes at President George W. Bush. Undoubtedly, this incredible moment will forever represent the full and final repudiation of Bush's foreign policy legacy. Unfortunately, it may fully represent the world's attitude toward America's world-wide military bullying.

Now the bookends of Bush's presidency will be, first, the egging of his limo in Washington, D.C., during the 2001 inauguration after having stolen his first election. (If you did not see this episode, that's because the corporate establishment press did not cover it.) The second bookend will be the recent incident in the highly secured Green Zone in Iraq.

I thought Dick Cheney promised we would be greeted as liberators? Is this anyway to treat liberators???

Well, what most Americans lack is the perspective of the citizens of Iraq. Because, again, the corporate establishment doesn't allow it. So we generally don't know that Iraqis -- and a vast swath of world citizens for that matter -- despise America's policy of gun-tote diplomacy. Democracy is not a pleasant principle when it is delivered at the point of a gun.

Of course, it does not score America popularity points as we carry through on our principle mission of stealing the Iraqi oil supply. If you still believe otherwise -- including the false premises of WMDs or Iraq complicity in 9/11 -- you probably watch way too much FOX news and probably deserve to get a couple of shoes thrown at you.

This shoe-throwing incident should not be a surprise. The surprise is that it didn't happen earlier. Shoes could rightfully have been tossed by Bush's Katrina victims, torture victims, renditioned victims, domestic spy victims, economic crash victims...you name the rest.

The shoe toss incident reminded me of the poignant speech given by Iraqi journalist, entrepreneur, and activist Salim Talib to the General Assembly of the United for Peace and Justice (UFPJ) on Saturday night, December 13, 2008. Talib's speech is provided below. I hope Americans now make an effort to seek out the views and voices of Iraqis like Talib. In this way, we can begin a reconciliation process, including new demands to bring our troops home. Now.

-- Rico Thomas Rico

Iraq Journalist Salam Talib
addressing UFPJ General Assembly
13 December 2008

A Cross, A Flag, A Curious Blogger

[I have wanted to share this video with you for a while now…and it is presented here for the first time now that I am able to roll out my recorded projects. – RTR]

For a long time now, my pickup truck has displayed the bumper sticker that quotes Sinclair Lewis: “When Fascism Comes to America it will be wrapped in a flag and carrying a cross.” So I did a double take when, as I drove down East Grand River Avenue in Okemos, Michigan (USA) recently, I saw a group of people marching on the sidewalk of the railroad overpass carrying a large American flag and a Christian cross.

My curiosity impelled me to turn around. As a person who participates in a number of public demonstrations, I was interested in knowing what this group was doing exactly – they had certainly caught my attention! So I parked the truck, grabbed my video camera, and met the demonstrators at the end of the bridge.

I did not find a bunch of Brownshirts. Instead, I found a seemingly rag-tag group of Christians on a march across Michigan. I took the opportunity to ask them about the Iraq war.

-- Rico Thomas Rico

Here is the impromptu interview: