The soul is real and if we don't stand up against these rapacious forces of radical evil, our soul will die and we may not win but we must save our soul.
Whatever happened to Trump is the symptom of a far larger problem?
Too late Trump elected or appointed - has filled his cabinet with 10 or more billionaires - the merger of big business and government is out in the open and Trump has become the side show while Musk has taken over the WH while even jr tell's Trump he should just leave, it should be obvious where he got that one from.
In any case - It's revolution time.
The biggest obstacle is to get the uniforms on your side.
Thanks, Finn. The gift of Trump is that the oligarchic ownership and control of the government is now out in the open for all to see and experience as the country is disassembled and consumed. Fascism is no longer some abstract possibility, it's on full tawdry display. Now that's it's obvious for all to see, it is time -- as Hedges discusses -- for people resist.
My fear is that many people still don't understand what's really happening, while another group that should understand are far too busy trying to avoid defaulting on their mortgage.
From the perspective of the working class - the call for resistance has gone out - but no one it appears is paying any attention [because your fine article and that by Hedges aren't featured on the MSM.
I love Chris Hedges' writing, but he comes across as being very depressed to me at times. We need to keep our spirits up and organize. I think the upcoming Economic Blackout on February 28 is one way to capture the imagination of a large number of people and make a point to the billionaires that we're not cooperating with them and we can take them out by our sheer numbers and determination. Power to the people!
Well, RC, keep in mind, as a war correspondent Chris Hedges experienced combat. A colleague was gunned down right next to him. He experienced relentless bombing and sniper attacks in Kosovo and has seen countless, dead, shredded bodies, wounded and maimed. Most of them the victims of the US. He was one of the few journalists who rejected being embedded with US military units and doing fake reporting. He would take off on his own in contested battle areas with little or no back-up and do real journalism. He was held captive by Islamist extremists at one point.
After all that, the f'ing NYTimes fired him for challenging the lies leading us into the Iraq War.
Chris has a quality you don't often see on the left or in American journalism: he speaks the brutal truth too many on the left want to brush over or dismiss with propped up optimism. Chris is a realist. He has seen what this nation has done to others, and will do to us. Personally, I'm not interested in optimism. That's the psychotherapist part of me, and the journalist in me. I saw too much of that crap when I worked with Democrats as they betrayed working people and through their naive fecklessness paved the parade ground for the triumph of MuskTrump fascists.
When facing what we are facing, the grim reality must be seen in all its dark reality and detail, otherwise our response will -- again -- be inadequate.
This time the stakes are much higher. Sorry if that's a bummer, but it is the truth.
Now, if only I could find some serious lefty's near me to work with.
The truth is the truth -- but if you want to motivate people to work with you to build a better world, you're going to have to offer them something worth working toward. Without optimism, you're not going to attract or retain those workers. That's the reality of organizing.
My father went through a similar (and probably worse) experience as Chris did when he served in Korea in the early 1950s and came home minus his knee caps that were blown off in battle. Even with the pain and operations he endured to be able to walk again, he kept his optimism, went to school on the GI Bill, and worked toward peace in the 1960s-70s to stop the Vietnam War. To be effective as an activist, you have to "keep the faith". As my grandfather was also a Presbyterian minister like Chris, I look for evidence of his faith in his writings. Sometimes it's there; sometimes it's missing. It's the inconsistency there that concerns me. We need Chris's talents and his optimism to inspire others.
He discusses the faith piece at the end of the interview.
My experience with the Democrats and the Left has been seeing performative optimism underestimating the danger, strength and ability of the right without any serious work -- and I mean WORK -- to organize and motivate people.
I read accounts of the labor and union organizing and left wing reform movements during the Progressive Era and Great Depression and just find it amazing and nothing like now.
After leaving the Democratic Party I belonged to a local chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America and initially was pretty excited. I got involved helping on their comms and Facebook page. But it soon became apparent they were more interested being cool calling each other "Comrade" and getting all tied up in woke crap. It was all very performative ... no sweat. The members were all college-educated upper middle class with no real interest in reaching out to local labor unions.
I moved out of that community 4 years ago and just did an online check. The only thing I could find was a Reddit page with about ten comments ... and no activity for a year.
Do you have a local group/party that you are working with doing community organizing/action?
It's interesting with the Substack communications/messages I don't get any comments about people engaged in local actions/organizing. Seems like everybody is like me, writing stuff up and hoping to contribute to some form of change. I have read that Substack does a tech-bro thing of herding people into like-minded "pods" where -- essentially -- people just talk to each other. I don't know how true that is, but intuitively it resonates with me.
I fear nothing substantive is going to happen until things get really grim and ElonTrump are kicking us in that direction. Grim as in soup lines, even more homelessness, work camps, mass incarceration ... Great Depression 2.0. Maybe then the Left gets serious about organizing and with that seriousness some organic optimism/hope can rise up. I have felt for some time, with the numb passivity of most Americans, the prairie fire will have to burn before change can happen. Hope I'm wrong.
Vampires, I believe, Mark. Vampires resemble humans but they are not, and of course they have no souls. They reside in colonies; Israel is infested with them.
Sound crazy? I thought so too until I watched a program on vampire hunters. There are so many cryptids on this planet and just because some folks deny it ( the existence of the Sasquatch, for example) does not mean they have a clue.
This planet is filled with mysteries yet unsolved.
BTW Mark, did I mention to you that I witnessed my first UFO in the Rocky Mountains last summer? It was… enchanting!
When you look at the volume of child trafficking networks going on -- much of it for enjoyment of the ruling "elite" (there's nothing 'elite' about them -- they are infected scum) one has to ask what the hell is going on. Hadn't heard about your UFO experience. If we are being monitored by some alien presence and IF they are enlightened, sure wish they would do something to stop our suicidal dance.
Excellent bit of writing.
Whatever happened to Trump is the symptom of a far larger problem?
Too late Trump elected or appointed - has filled his cabinet with 10 or more billionaires - the merger of big business and government is out in the open and Trump has become the side show while Musk has taken over the WH while even jr tell's Trump he should just leave, it should be obvious where he got that one from.
In any case - It's revolution time.
The biggest obstacle is to get the uniforms on your side.
Thanks, Finn. The gift of Trump is that the oligarchic ownership and control of the government is now out in the open for all to see and experience as the country is disassembled and consumed. Fascism is no longer some abstract possibility, it's on full tawdry display. Now that's it's obvious for all to see, it is time -- as Hedges discusses -- for people resist.
My fear is that many people still don't understand what's really happening, while another group that should understand are far too busy trying to avoid defaulting on their mortgage.
From the perspective of the working class - the call for resistance has gone out - but no one it appears is paying any attention [because your fine article and that by Hedges aren't featured on the MSM.
Agree, Finn, and if the Current Bastards in Power start a war, that should do it.
They're involved in a war against humanity.
Revolutions have been known to start when the people can no longer afford the price of a loaf of bread.
Or even a slice.
I love Chris Hedges' writing, but he comes across as being very depressed to me at times. We need to keep our spirits up and organize. I think the upcoming Economic Blackout on February 28 is one way to capture the imagination of a large number of people and make a point to the billionaires that we're not cooperating with them and we can take them out by our sheer numbers and determination. Power to the people!
Well, RC, keep in mind, as a war correspondent Chris Hedges experienced combat. A colleague was gunned down right next to him. He experienced relentless bombing and sniper attacks in Kosovo and has seen countless, dead, shredded bodies, wounded and maimed. Most of them the victims of the US. He was one of the few journalists who rejected being embedded with US military units and doing fake reporting. He would take off on his own in contested battle areas with little or no back-up and do real journalism. He was held captive by Islamist extremists at one point.
After all that, the f'ing NYTimes fired him for challenging the lies leading us into the Iraq War.
Chris has a quality you don't often see on the left or in American journalism: he speaks the brutal truth too many on the left want to brush over or dismiss with propped up optimism. Chris is a realist. He has seen what this nation has done to others, and will do to us. Personally, I'm not interested in optimism. That's the psychotherapist part of me, and the journalist in me. I saw too much of that crap when I worked with Democrats as they betrayed working people and through their naive fecklessness paved the parade ground for the triumph of MuskTrump fascists.
When facing what we are facing, the grim reality must be seen in all its dark reality and detail, otherwise our response will -- again -- be inadequate.
This time the stakes are much higher. Sorry if that's a bummer, but it is the truth.
Now, if only I could find some serious lefty's near me to work with.
The truth is the truth -- but if you want to motivate people to work with you to build a better world, you're going to have to offer them something worth working toward. Without optimism, you're not going to attract or retain those workers. That's the reality of organizing.
My father went through a similar (and probably worse) experience as Chris did when he served in Korea in the early 1950s and came home minus his knee caps that were blown off in battle. Even with the pain and operations he endured to be able to walk again, he kept his optimism, went to school on the GI Bill, and worked toward peace in the 1960s-70s to stop the Vietnam War. To be effective as an activist, you have to "keep the faith". As my grandfather was also a Presbyterian minister like Chris, I look for evidence of his faith in his writings. Sometimes it's there; sometimes it's missing. It's the inconsistency there that concerns me. We need Chris's talents and his optimism to inspire others.
He discusses the faith piece at the end of the interview.
My experience with the Democrats and the Left has been seeing performative optimism underestimating the danger, strength and ability of the right without any serious work -- and I mean WORK -- to organize and motivate people.
I read accounts of the labor and union organizing and left wing reform movements during the Progressive Era and Great Depression and just find it amazing and nothing like now.
After leaving the Democratic Party I belonged to a local chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America and initially was pretty excited. I got involved helping on their comms and Facebook page. But it soon became apparent they were more interested being cool calling each other "Comrade" and getting all tied up in woke crap. It was all very performative ... no sweat. The members were all college-educated upper middle class with no real interest in reaching out to local labor unions.
I moved out of that community 4 years ago and just did an online check. The only thing I could find was a Reddit page with about ten comments ... and no activity for a year.
Do you have a local group/party that you are working with doing community organizing/action?
It's interesting with the Substack communications/messages I don't get any comments about people engaged in local actions/organizing. Seems like everybody is like me, writing stuff up and hoping to contribute to some form of change. I have read that Substack does a tech-bro thing of herding people into like-minded "pods" where -- essentially -- people just talk to each other. I don't know how true that is, but intuitively it resonates with me.
I fear nothing substantive is going to happen until things get really grim and ElonTrump are kicking us in that direction. Grim as in soup lines, even more homelessness, work camps, mass incarceration ... Great Depression 2.0. Maybe then the Left gets serious about organizing and with that seriousness some organic optimism/hope can rise up. I have felt for some time, with the numb passivity of most Americans, the prairie fire will have to burn before change can happen. Hope I'm wrong.
There’s no such thing as a soul!
For some.
Do souls wear soul clothes like ghosts wear ghost clothes or are souls always naked! lol
Of course there is, whether you’re religious or not. What we call the “soul” is the distillation of one’s essence.
And then there are the ghouls, like Elon, Trump, Biden, Zionists and the corporate oligarchy.
Vampires, I believe, Mark. Vampires resemble humans but they are not, and of course they have no souls. They reside in colonies; Israel is infested with them.
Sound crazy? I thought so too until I watched a program on vampire hunters. There are so many cryptids on this planet and just because some folks deny it ( the existence of the Sasquatch, for example) does not mean they have a clue.
This planet is filled with mysteries yet unsolved.
BTW Mark, did I mention to you that I witnessed my first UFO in the Rocky Mountains last summer? It was… enchanting!
When you look at the volume of child trafficking networks going on -- much of it for enjoyment of the ruling "elite" (there's nothing 'elite' about them -- they are infected scum) one has to ask what the hell is going on. Hadn't heard about your UFO experience. If we are being monitored by some alien presence and IF they are enlightened, sure wish they would do something to stop our suicidal dance.
Where are you getting your LSD from? lol
Do souls wear soul clothes like ghosts wear ghost clothes or are souls always naked! lol
Is your brain always in “sleep” mode, or is it absent altogether?
A soul is not a thing.