imperialism – Page 4 – Engaging Peace

Kerala: The The graveyard of all war propaganda, Part II

Posted on July 17, 2019August 10, 2019 by kathiemm

by Ian Hansen, PhD

Pointless War #1: The War on Communism/Socialism/Equality/Human development

Consider the battle against communism. Communism was supposed to be so evil that stopping it required slaughtering millions of people, developing expensive and expansive programs of government torture and mind control, and terroristically overthrowing multiple democratically-elected or otherwise popular governments throughout the world. But Kerala is the most communist state in India. Since 1957 it has regularly elected communists into governance. These were and are free, contested elections by private ballot, with rights to assembly, protest and dissent constitutionally guaranteed. And yet (or therefore, or “as luck would have it”) Kerala is also an Indian standout with regard to education and literacy, high life expectancy, low infant and maternal mortality, and high voter turnout. Other regularly communist-electing states in India also stand out in these regards. In regions outside India, even places like “totalitarian¹” undemocratic communist Cuba and “totalitarian genocidal²” China (communist for four decades, and still ruled by The Party) stand out in human development terms: life expectancy, mortality, and literacy. Of course questions of voter turnout are moot in both Cuba and China.

Pointless War #2: The War on Terror/Islam/Religion

And consider also religion, the bugaboo of contemporary War on Terror ideology. The genocidal part of “totalitarian genocidal” China, mentioned above, reflects China’s dictatorial enthusiasm to one-up the US “Countering Violent Extremism” (CVE) program by murdering and brainwashing Uighur Muslims. Uighurs hail from Xinjiang, a Western Chinese province that is, not coincidentally, just north of Tibet. The US CVE program is rooted in an Islam-impugning junk science that China has only been too happy to capitalize on, as part of their longstanding hostility to religion. The US CVE program reflects the fact that in the post-9/11 political economy and propagandaverse, the US increasingly resembles China. In our 21^st century “War on Terror” culture, religion, especially Islam, is supposed to be so evil that we Americans must eviscerate all our own rights and freedoms, kill hundreds of thousands of people, and wantonly destroy cradles of civilization to stop it.

But in Kerala, religion-including-Islam doesn’t look so bad. Kerala is about as religious as the rest of India (that is, very religious)—with approximately half of other Indian states being more religious than Kerala and half being less religious. Kerala is about 52% Hindu, 20% Christian, and 28% Muslim. This means Kerala has one of the largest proportions of Muslims among the Indian states. Nevertheless (or therefore, or as luck would have it), in addition to enjoying the human development benefits listed in the previous paragraph, Kerala is also a standout in women’s equality, and the undisputed leader in India with regard to LGBTQ rights, particularly transgender rights.

And various lines of research, many of them cited in an article I co-authored for Religion, Brain and Behavior (“Religion and Oppression”), suggest that in general religion is okay. Specifically, the core God-worshipping element of religion appears to attenuate oppression and oppression-related prejudices and inclinations to violence. Religion does not, as War-on-Terror ideologists would claim, cause or exacerbate oppression. As for the supposed perils of Muslim religiosity, supplementary analyses for the same article suggest that among Muslim majority countries, the more religious their populations are, the freer they are.

Footnotes

1. The word “totalitarian” evokes a sense of the impossibility of normal life due to a total, and often death-threatening, intrusion of the state into all aspects of life. Cuba and China are more “lapsed totalitarian” in this regard, and their relics of totalitarianism blend into ordinary authoritarianism. Near-constant fear of the state varies greatly individual by individual and group by group, and “normal life”—with humor, friendship, parties, intellectual discussions, social enjoyment, etc—abounds in both countries. The ever-present menace of the state often registers as little more than a faint background hum.

2. The word “genocidal” evokes a sense of organized millions-killing mass murder on the scale of the Holocaust. It can also refer, though, to attempts to exterminate a culture or religion by mostly cultural means like “education”, or sublethal/minimally lethal means like deportation and resettlement. These attempts are often backed up with only a punctuated drip of state murder, rather than a roaring river thereof. China is genocidal in this latter respect, though by no means unique—a “soft” genocidal zeitgeist is sweeping countries of various ideological histories in recent years, including India and the US. The fires of war could turn these relatively soft genocides hard pretty quickly though.

And ye shall inherit the whirlwind (or learn to live in gratitude and grace), Part 2

Posted on July 10, 2019August 10, 2019 by kathiemm

By Stefan Schindler

The vast majority of American citizens have been conditioned to think that democracy and capitalism are synonymous, and that socialism equals fascism. To which we can apply Mark Twain’s observation: “Loyalty to petrified opinion never yet broke a chain or freed a human soul.”

John Lennon said: “I think our society is run by insane people for insane objectives. I think we’re being run by maniacs for maniacal ends. I think they’re all insane. But I am liable to be put away as insane for expressing that. That’s what is insane about it.”

Noam Chomsky notes: “I don’t know what word in the English language … applies to people who are willing to sacrifice the literal existence of organized human life so they can put a few more dollars into highly stuffed pockets. The word ‘evil’ doesn’t even begin to approach it.”

Plato said in The Phaedo that “all wars are fought for the acquisition of wealth.” Today, the American landscape is littered with statues of generals on stallions, while memorials to prophetic peacemakers are barely to be found.

War memorials abound, but where are the institutes for the study and practice of peace that could hold the promise of a better future?

Imperialism is the most potent and nefarious force in human history, and it haunts us today. America has nearly a thousand military bases scattered across the globe, mostly in countries that don’t want them there. New York calls itself “The Empire State;” and the Empire State Building on Fifth Avenue in New York City remains a popular tourist attraction, its very name unrecognized as a paean to the unrelenting violence, death and destruction of mega-wealth’s imperial ambitions.

Decade after decade, American students say history is the most boring subject in school. Perhaps this would change if every history textbook began with Mark Twain’s observation that “America’s flag should be a skull-and-crossbones,” and if parents and students demanded to know why he said that, and teachers were sufficiently well-informed to provide an honest answer.

The only sane and civil alternative to global capitalism gone amok is democratic ecosocialism, wherein citizens are keenly attuned to the lessons of history, respect and revere the biosphere, have ample time to continue their self-education, and are well-schooled in the critical thinking skills necessary to detect and refute sophistic speechifying.

A just society is committed to the well-being of all, and is therefore committed to egalitarian economics, universal healthcare, voluntary simplicity, free lifelong educational opportunity, preservation of natural resources, and a modest and well-tamed military overseen by “guardians” committed to peace.

Note from Kathie MM:

Pegean says, “”Joy is a form of resistance.” (Attributed to Maya Angelou)

And resistance can be joyful.

The Big Lie

Posted on May 3, 2019May 5, 2019 by kathiemm

By Arsen Gourjian

End US military wars and US drug wars. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. Author: Jeff Davis Show

The big lie peddled by our leaders at the beginning of this millennium was that the military had to go into Iraq because Saddam Hussein was in possession of weapons of mass destruction. Although the rationale for military intervention was based on inconclusive reports, the lie was still sold to the public. The cartoon Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire, published on Engaging Peace April 15, 2019, brilliantly illustrates the tactics that the government used to sell that lie.

Even prior to September 11, 2001, the military-industrial complex did a rather good job of drumming up public support for the invasion of Iraq. However, the level of that support reached an apex following the September 11 attacks. In fact, according to a Gallup poll conducted at the time, the majority of surveyed individuals falsely believed that Iraq was responsible for those attacks. It is my firm belief that this was no accident. It seems that the government’s propaganda machine was working overtime to convince the public that it really was Iraq that was responsible. Perhaps this was done to exploit Iraq’s strategically advantageous geographic location, or perhaps the U.S. had long felt that it was time for Saddam to go because they could no longer exert enough influence over him. Either way, they undoubtedly felt that it was the right moment to push for war, given the public outrage over 9/11.

The devastating destabilization resulting from the power vacuum created in Iraq is still being felt to this day. It is quite unfortunate, but the U.S. has long been having a direct impact on the instability that some countries face. For instance, I strongly believe that many Mexican migrants are fleeing a never-ending war that is not often spoken about anymore — the “War on Drugs.” It is, in fact, the same “War on Drugs” that was used to justify the U.S. invasion of Panama in 1989. This war, propagated by the U.S., has fueled the rise of ruthlessly violent cartels, who have caused political corruption, violence, and instability in Mexico. This has led some Mexican citizens to seek refuge in the United States.

I am very understanding of their plight and believe that people such as this should be treated as refugees by our government. However, I also feel that a good number of those people would have liked to stay in Mexico, but could not, in large part due to the havoc wreaked by the cartels running their towns. Yet, I firmly believe that the power to wreak such havoc is mandated to the cartels as a result of the “War on Drugs.” As with Alcohol Prohibition in the first half of the twentieth century, it has created an increasingly lucrative black market, with profit margins (as well as substance use) actually increasing over time.

As a strong proponent of civil liberties, I believe that the government has long been abusing their powers by perpetuating the “War on Drugs,” leaving countless casualties in their wake. A lot of politicians talk about accepting migrants as refugees, but very few talk about the uncomfortable fact that oftentimes, our government is creating refugees by destabilizing nations. Sadly, it appears that this has been the case in both Latin America and Iraq.

Note from Kathie MM: Please check out the cartoon that inspired Arsen to write this post.

Arsen Gourjian earned a master’s degree in Psychology from Boston University and a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Worcester State University. He currently works as a Research Psychologist at The Fireside Center: Learning & Teaching International, a Massachusetts based clinic for psychological and educational services. He is also working towards his graduate degree in Applied Behavior Analysis at Regis College, with aspirations of becoming a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. In addition to Psychology, Arsen’s academic and research interests include Criminology, History, and Geopolitics.

A plea for sanity and virtue, Part 1

Posted on April 29, 2019May 5, 2019 by kathiemm

by Stefan Schindler

Part One: Resurrecting the Wisdom and Spirit of Tom Paine, Mark Twain, Emerson, and Kurt Vonnegut

Future historians will write that, with all too few exceptions, the difference between the Democratic Party and the Republican Party is the difference between neurotic and psychotic. They will show that America’s self-destruction was caused primarily by three factors. 1) A lack of viable multi-party pluralism. 2) A lack of authentic education. 3) The failure of the mainstream news media to inform, edify, enlighten.

Almost all mainstream news media in the USA exemplify “fake news,” and this has long been the case. Their primary function is to ignorate, not educate. That’s precisely why, for example, Americans ended up with such viciously criminal presidents as Nixon, Ford, Reagan, Bush, Cheney-Bush, and Trump, and why most American citizens remain equally oblivious of the war crimes of Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Carter, Clinton, and Obama.

There is nothing in American history as unpatriotic as the USA Patriot Act. And there is nothing in recent American history as self-defeating as the overturning of the Glass-Steagall Act and the passing of the Citizens United Act. Yet most Americans could neither date nor explain these democracy-shredding events.

Americans are the most historically illiterate citizens in the advanced industrial Western world. They are products of an educational system almost wholly devoted to ignoration. Right-wing religious and neo-conservative radio and television have in recent decades made the problem infinitely worse. Newt Gingrich and his beloved bastard Rupert Murdoch institutionalized the postmodern quantum leap into the vortex of political and news-media sophistry and lies.

Insofar as most teachers, politicians, journalists, intellectuals and scientists fail to emphasize these points, they embody what a modern philosopher calls “bullshit.” A kind of intellectual masturbation which, along with omnipresent advertising, is the curse of the modern world. A self-imposed alienation from the catastrophic lack of relevant insight that dominates what currently passes for “civilization.”

We face a quaternity from hell. Economic apartheid, another Great Depression, ecological apocalypse, and nuclear holocaust. What is to be done?

Commit to a life of voluntary simplicity and lifelong self-education. Demand an end to the American empire. Bring the troops home and have them engage in ecological cleanup, reforestation, infrastructure repair, and the nation-wide building of solar panels, windmills, and recycling centers.

Promote discussion of universal health care and progressive taxation. Challenge the Pentagon budget. Support authentically progressive people and causes. Institute comprehensive and forceful regulation of the banking system. Educate about the nation-wide Savings and Loan institutions destroyed during the Reagan Administration. Become historically informed. Be the change you want to see in the world.

Vote in local as well as national elections, not least in order to preserve sanity and virtue in local school boards.

Monitor your children’s education and teach them what they are not learning in school, especially about modern American history and imperialism since World War Two, and most especially about the wholly unconstitutional and morally depraved House and Senate Un-American Activities Committees in the late 1940s and early 1950s and the not-so-surreptitious efforts of the Republican Party to bring them back to life.

And meanwhile spread the word: What we do to others and the earth we do to ourselves.