We have a thoroughly militarized, patriarchal culture—discounts to servicemen, “thank you for your service” on entertainment talk shows, Air Force flyovers at football games, camouflage clothing everywhere—and huge military budgets for the huge imperial/global/capitalist enterprise that is America—bipartisan, backed by popular culture, and co-opting feminists in its service. Oh, we need feminism, real, radical feminism, to fight a patriarchy that is alive, well and thriving.
[premium_newsticker id=”154171″]Parting shot—a word from the editors
The Best Definition of Donald Trump We Have Found
In his zeal to prove to his antagonists in the War Party that he is as bloodthirsty as their champion, Hillary Clinton, and more manly than Barack Obama, Trump seems to have gone “play-crazy” -- acting like an unpredictable maniac in order to terrorize the Russians into forcing some kind of dramatic concessions from their Syrian allies, or risk Armageddon.However, the “play-crazy” gambit can only work when the leader is, in real life, a disciplined and intelligent actor, who knows precisely what actual boundaries must not be crossed. That ain’t Donald Trump -- a pitifully shallow and ill-disciplined man, emotionally handicapped by obscene privilege and cognitively crippled by white American chauvinism. By pushing Trump into a corner and demanding that he display his most bellicose self, or be ceaselessly mocked as a “puppet” and minion of Russia, a lesser power, the War Party and its media and clandestine services have created a perfect storm of mayhem that may consume us all.— Glen Ford, Editor in Chief, Black Agenda Report
Most interesting (and spot on!) article by Prof. Ford. I agree with her entirely on the fact that the Democrats—and liberals in general—have co-opted true radicalism, including the very narrow (in my view) radicalism of a Susan B Anthony. In fact I would be grateful if Ms. Ford would at some point comment on a piece I read recently on Telesur on Anthony’s backdrop as a privileged white racist. Since I have been an admirer of Anthony for some time, the claims shook me. Here’s a sampler: Anthony famously put women’s right over the rights of others, especially the “negro,”… Read more »
What is so striking about how US society sees its women is in how they are ridiculed, diminished and pressured into being consumers only. The capitalist endgame makes everyone competitive (the slogan on US coins should not be ‘In God we trust’ but ‘in Competition we trust’), thereby reducing human beings to numbers that like amoeba bang into each other for sheer survival. Women and men need companionship, cooperation and human contact, reason why they remain in this kind of environment estranged and emotionally deprived. The warmth of belonging as found especially in older societies is lacking in the barren… Read more »