BRUCE LERRO—Using loaded language in politics supports narrowing the thinking process to heroes and villains, gods and devils, dictators or democrats. Working-class people do not initiate what these words mean, or in what contexts they are used. However, working class people circulate these words unconsciously when they talk about politics to others. Working-class people also internalize these words and this narrows the span of how they think about political processes. The purpose of this article and the next one is to challenge you to try purging from your vocabulary the words totalitarian dictatorship or democracy. Chances are very good that the Yankee anti-communist campaign is playing you.
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BRUCE LERRO—If any of you think that some hodgepodge of long discredited socialist party, communist party and raging anarchists are going to help move France forward, we don’t agree.
Had Le Pen’s party won there probably would have been no more arms to Ukraine, and a death knell for the EU and another nail in the coffin of NATO. They also would have reversed Macron’s austerity measures. Russia would have been invited into Europe to provide cheap gas.
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EDITOR—The panel discusses the delicate situation engulfing the EU and the United States, where the anti-immigrant issue has gathered considerable momentum, presenting difficult problems (and opportunities) for the reigning oligarchy. It’s noteworthy, says Dust James, that in both the US (capital/imperial core) and Europe (the periphery, where a “labor aristocracy” developed) the capitalists are drifting toward fascism. In America, where the economy continues to worsen for the working class, and the immigration issue (exploited mercilessly by Trump), adds fuel to the flames, such situation could easily drive some sort of fascistic movement forward, even if Trump himself may not be fully aware (or concerned) about the chaotic consequences of his careless opportunism. Mass immigration is an issue with no easy answers, notes Billy Bob; socialists could arguably defend or oppose either side of the equation. There is no doubt, however, that lowly paid Americans—including many Latinos—are fiercely hostile to “illegal immigration”, since any mass influx of undocumented workers will inexorably depress wages.
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EDITOR—The topic is Iran and Hamas, and Glenn Greenwald effectively and conclusively shuts down Alan Dershowitz’ big mouth in this amazing encounter. The clip illustrates the reason why powerful truthtellers capable of easily destroying the official Orwellian narrative such as Glenn Greenwald, Norman Finkelstein, Garland Nixon, Max Blumenthal, et al, are largely banned by the mainstream media. A system of psychotic criminals has no decency and no sense of fair play.
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BILLY BOB—China’s planned socialist economy did not allow massive slums to sprawl as they always do as an unwanted consequence of capitalist development and economic growth. Instead, China built hundreds of cities from scratch, including twenty cities that house over a million citizens. China developed the world’s greatest high-speed rail network, they became the world’s leading manufacturer of green energy as well as the world’s greatest user of green energy. China developed a world-class education system that leads the world in the number of patents and published research papers. Perhaps most importantly, China is working with the developing world and offering them a hand up, instead of a knee on their necks (as is offered by the Western imperialists).
