پرزیدنت اوباما در نوروز با ایرانیان صحبت کرد‬

Murdering Pompous Ass Hypocritical New Year Greeting


Every year Iranians, Kurds, Afghans, Iraqis and others celebrate the first day of spring as the new year. Unfortunately for all of those people, since 2009 the Nowruz celebration is marked by a phony greeting from president Obama. He will start killing Iranians as soon as he finds it convenient, but part of his scam is to look like the nice guy.

I do wish we had a dumb president who was easily dismissed. Mr. Blood Thirsty, smarty pants, nobel peace prize winner really gets on my nerves.

I send a happy new year greeting, but I'm not going to kill anybody.

Happy 1391

Today is the beginning of the Persian new year. Nowruz begins on the first day of spring. Kiss an Iranian today!

Slaves, Obey Your Masters

Slaves, obey your masters. So says the bible. The Pennsylvania Association of Nonbelievers quite rightly wanted to point out that the bible supports many things that no civilized person approves of any more. They installed this billboard in Harrisburg to prove a point to the state legislature, which declared “the year of the bible",” exhorting citizens to “study and apply the teachings of the holy scriptures.” Does the legislature want to bring back slavery? One would hope not, but the blanket approval of scripture would mean supporting slavery, the stoning of adulterers, and casting lepers out into the street.

Let’s just say that reaction to the billboard was swift, and not in a good way. The bill board was vandalized and groups such as the NAACP demanded an apology. The atheist group removed the vandalized board and apologized.

It isn’t clear to me what the fuss is about. The billboard shows a man shackled as many enslaved people were in horrific contraptions which kept them running away. I don’t think most people have this picture in their minds when they think of slavery, but they ought to. The billboard doesn’t support slavery, it merely points out that the bible says it was acceptable.

Christians always talk about discerning the scriptures, which ought to mean reading them critically. I guess if  the same message comes from atheists it can suddenly be ignored.

I think the brouhaha emerged because black people don’t know how to think about slavery. It is a subject which is just too painful for us to comprehend. We don’t see images of slavery like this, and we don’t want to either.

Attacking the bible is no small thing either. No one wants to hear that the book they are told is inerrant also supported the same thing that brings them so much pain.

As they say in church, this was a teachable moment. I hope someone was doing their homework.

No, I Don’t Like Obama Either

“I would have so liked to see an obvious madman at the helm of the national pirate ship, instead of a high-functioning sociopath who appears, superficially, to be a human being, and lends the whole mad and evil project a certain factitious gloss of reasonableness.” – Michael Smith

Ignore Rush Limbaugh

The 1% are laughing themselves silly. While they continue to steal the rest of us blind, and destroy the planet, democrats are having pissing matches with the likes of Rush Limbaugh because he called a college student a slut. The people and corporations at the top could give a rats butt about abortion or birth control because the two major parties do their bidding, even as they fight over social issues.

As I pointed out in my weekly Black Agenda Report column, republicans are taking extreme positions on abortion and birth control because Obama has stolen their thunder. As Ben Stein said, he is the perfect republican candidate. He has agreed to republican austerity measures, destroyed Libya, killed American citizens at will, and plans more war for Iran and or Syria. Instead of protesting these outrages, liberals get the pants in a twist over Rush Limbaugh. The divide and conquer strategy which keeps the status quo, very much status quo, is alive and well.

No, I wouldn't want Rush Limbaugh to call me a slut or a prostitute, but seriously people, the bail outs continue, unemployment numbers have improved only because millions are no longer counted in the numbers, and we spend time thinking about Limbaugh?

If he didn't exist, we would have to invent him. I have joked that Obama pays Limbaugh, Palin and company to make racist or sexist or stupid remarks, because everyone stops questioning him in order to defend him from the barbarians.

Here is the real question which should be on everyone's mind. Will Obama attack Iran before or after election day? Ponder that and ignore Rush Limbaugh.

Obama's phone call to the parents of the aggrieved young woman is all the proof one needs. The 1% get theirs, and we get political theater because the economic elite are in cahoots with both parties and the corporate media never point this out.

Words of the Week

"When Obama was elected many people were very happy because he was a black man; they thought he would be different. To me, he is neither black nor white, he is a capitalist; skin colour has nothing to do with who you are in Cuba ... I'm not disappointed in Obama because I never had any great expectations. The Cuban people now realise Obama is no different to all the others." – Victor Dreke, Cuban internationalist

I guess Obama is “post-racial” after all.

Cuba: An African Odyssey

“We always said, ‘All we’ll bring out of Angola is our comrades’ remains. We won’t take any oil, diamonds or anything. Only the remains of our dead comrades.’ ”  Jorge Risquet

Last night I saw a wonderful documentary, Cuba: An African Odyssey. It told the story of Cuba’s decades long support for liberation movements in Africa. The story spans some thirty years, from the rise and fall of Patrice Lumumba to the end of South African apartheid.

After watching the film, I had feelings of anger and embarrassment. I always feel this way when I realize the enormity of the lies and propaganda I have been fed my entire life.

Our government and the wealthy and powerful work hand in hand with the corporate media to keep us uninformed.  The specter of white supremacy is also a factor in the misleading of people in the telling of history. I was raised to read the paper and/or watch the news every day, but despite all my years of reading newspapers, I did not know that the Cubans were instrumental in freeing Nelson Mandela from imprisonment.

The Cubans agreed to leave Angola if the South Africans agreed to leave Namibia. The Cubans also demanded that Mandela be released. That important fact of history was left out of news reports of the day.

In other words, the New York Times and Washington Post and CBS and CNN lied to the world. Omissions are lies just as much as misstatements of fact are also lies. I was never told that Cubans attempted to continue Lumumba’s revolution in the Congo, or that Che Guevara led a command there, or that the Soviets attempted to dissuade the Cubans from their African involvements.

I suppose it isn’t my fault, but as a writer and a leftist who claims to have knowledge others do not, I still get very angry about the propaganda bombardment I and millions of others have been subjected to.

A luta continua.

Why Obama is Dangerous

The title of this video is a bit misleading. What Pilger really explains is what makes the Obama ascendancy such an act of evil genius. His rise to the presidency and his ability to maintain such strong support despite his actions, is a thing of marketing beauty.

Is America a Police State?

Is America a police state?

"You know you live in a police state when wardens force pregnant women prisoners to deliver their babies while in chains. (Not exactly “the new birth of freedom” of which Abraham Lincoln spoke.)

You know you live in a police state when the president orders the assassination (i.e., murder) of American citizens without bothering to arrest them and bring them to trial."

Answer, hell yes! Read the sad litany of proof here.

Picture Worth 1,000 Words

Pretty much says it all.

In Praise of Tim Thomas

Two days ago I had never heard of Tim Thomas. It turns out he is a professional hockey player, a member of the reigning Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins.

When the Bruins were invited to the white house for the standard champion’s photo opportunity with the president, Thomas demurred. He made this statement explaining his decision.

“I believe the Federal government has grown out of control, threatening the Rights, Liberties, and Property of the People. This is being done at the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial level. This is in direct opposition to the Constitution and the Founding Fathers vision for the Federal government. Because I believe this, today I exercised my right as a Free Citizen, and did not visit the White House. This was not about politics or party, as in my opinion both parties are responsible for the situation we are in as a country. This was about a choice I had to make as an INDIVIDUAL.”

Thomas has won few fans outside of his obviously tea partyish world. He has been called selfish, bush league, un-American, spoiled, petty, unpatriotic and a bad example of esprit de corps. My first observation was that Obama lovers had gotten themselves into yet another collective snit because someone doesn’t love their idol. I responded with a shrug of the shoulders and a determination not to be upset about the decision of a NHL goalie who I didn’t know existed until the story broke. I even called him a “loser” on my twitter page.

I now think that Thomas deserves some credit for his decision. Most people may rage against a particular president, threaten to leave the country because of his election and never pass up an opportunity to point out that person’s deficiencies. But if presented with an opportunity to visit the white house, how many would actually turn it down?

My issues with Obama are nothing like Thomas’s, but I would turn down a chance to visit the white house too, unless I had an assurance that I could dispense a piece of my mind. Despite what critics have said, no one has to “respect the president.” I don’t respect anyone who makes it to the oval office for the simple reason that having done so is proof of some serious evil doing.

Thomas made a principled decision based on his political beliefs. He and I probably don’t agree on anything and if I had to go out on a limb, I would say that he probably wouldn’t like me for the simple reason that I’m not white.

Even so, he doesn’t have to like Obama. It is fine if he doesn’t want to meet him. When Obama attacks Iran, no one of conscience should want to meet him either, but somehow I doubt that he will miss any dinner guests. Liberals will still flock to rub elbows with him, despite his war criminal status.

Unless Tim Thomas has sent drones to kill people, invaded countries and bailed out banksters, by comparison he isn’t such a bad guy anyway.

Israel Picks America's President

I nearly vomited when I watched this video. How is that foreign politicians endorse our president? Well, if the foreign politicians happen to be Israeli it apparently isn't a problem.

I could go on and on, but I have just one question. Am I now allowed to say that Israel controls America? Because if the Obama campaign can produce this masterpiece of propaganda with one clear audience in mind, I and every other anti-zionist should be free to state the obvious.

Zionists and their money control our political process. There I said it. The end.

Why Israel is Killing Iranian Scientists

These mourners at the funeral of Iranian scientist Mostafi Ahmadi Roshan know who to blame for his assassination. Israel is probably behind this murder and that of four other nuclear scientists in Iran. The goal is simple. First, those scientists will be too afraid to do their work, secondly, Iran may be goaded into firing the first shot. Israel also gets to yank Obama's chain, something they love doing to American presidents. Not that they have to, the U.S. is on board with their plans, but why not stick in the knife and twist it just to be sure.

I don't know what to say about the upcoming war. I don't say that casually, the thought brings me to tears. But it is clear that no one is going to stop the U.S., Israel and perhaps Britain, as they work together to attack Iran. Our only hope, and by us I mean all of humanity, is for Iran to be able to fight back. Hopefully it is the can of whoop ass that I hope it is, and Russia will not take kindly to its neighbor being attacked. If Americans have to pay more for gasoline they may even protest a little bit too.

Who am I kidding? Sorry, I couldn't help but fantasize.

Obama, Sharpton, Gingrich: Scoundrels

Here is a photo of the evil doers. See my post from two days ago.

Sharpton Loves Gingrich

“Sharpton is shuckin' and jivin' with the enemy – and presumably, getting paid.” – Glen Ford, Black Agenda Report

Two years ago, Al Sharpton, unofficial spokesperson of the Obama administration, went on an anti teacher union, pro charter school speaking tour with Newt Gingrich and Arne Duncan. Sharpton is now trying to live it all down, but the history can’t be forgotten.

Sharpton is the biggest scoundrel in the country, and that is saying quite a lot. When he ran for president in 2004 his campaign was taken over by the infamous GOP dirty trickster Roger Stone, who gave him hundreds of thousands of dollars and the marching orders that always go along with patronage. He also gave Sharpton direction, and assisted in the destruction of then democratic front runner Howard Dean.

When Obama became president, Sharpton knew a good thing, that is to say a meal ticket, when he saw it. He latched on to the president and became his defender on those rare occasions when black people asked a tough questions or two.

Sharpton always follows the money, and Barack Obama and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg know it. Sharpton can be counted on to defend them and get paid in the process. Sharpton has said nothing about Bloomberg’s horrific stop and frisk police state program. Why would he when he is on the payroll?”

So when Gingrich calls Obama the “food stamp president” or says that black children don’t see anyone who works and may as well be school janitors, remember that Sharpton and Obama have allied themselves with this man when they think it benefits them.

NYPD Arrests for Feet on a Seat

In my most recent column in Black Agenda Report, I wrote about the New York City police department’s use of “stop and frisk” to harass black and latino New Yorkers. Approximately 700,000 people,  few of them white, will be stopped and searched by the police this year, and for no lawful reason. I was going to say no good reason, but as my colleague Glen Ford points out, the reason is good in Mayor Bloomberg’s eyes.  Black people will get out of the city altogether if they are harassed enough.

In today’s New York Times, I read that 1,600 people were  actually arrested last year for putting their feet on a subway seat. They are arrested, not just summonsed, and they spend hours or perhaps days in jail. One man, Abdi Omar, was sent for psychiatric evaluation when he refused to be finger printed without proof of the warrant that police claimed he had.  As I read this story I wondered if I was living in 21st century New York or Mississippi fifty years ago.

As I pointed out in my column on stop and frisk policies, the only solution to this outrage is a political change. None of the candidates for mayor should get black votes without a promise to end police state tactics. It will be a very difficult fight, but this is a bright line issue, and no amount of pleading for democratic party unity or putting a black person in office should keep this issue off the table. No justice, no votes!

Can I Keep My Bowl Name Please?

In my sports loving family I grew up watching the Rose Bowl, Cotton Bowl, Orange Bowl, and Sugar Bowl among others. Those games signified the end of the college football season and crowned the best teams in the country. Of course everyone still argued about whether rankings truly indicated the best teams or whether or not there ought to be a playoff system to end these debates once and for all.

Now we not only have a slew of inferior bowl games but even the old time games have been christened with corporate names. The Allstate Sugar Bowl, Discover Orange Bowl, and ATT Cotton Bowl will all be played this week. If that isn't awful enough, we have bowl games which exist only for the purpose of advertising products, some of which the world would be better off without. Don't believe me? Why is there an Outback Bowl, a Capitalone.com Bowl, and a Chick-fil-A Bowl? You can see the list of infamy here.

I suppose this is yet another sign of the last stage of capitalism but it truly sickens me that we lose what little is left of our popular culture because corporations spare nothing in promoting their products and services. College football is not alone. Several years ago the New York City Marathon became the ING New York City Marathon. Yes, that is the official name. I suppose the marathon no longer belongs to the people of this city, it belongs to ING or whomever the future deep pocketed corporation turns out to be.

Of course college sports is all about the money, but in this horrific era there is not even a pretense that anything else matters or that we shouldn't mind giving up the things we always loved to corporate branding. If there were thrilling games in the Rose, Cotton or Sugar bowl, we remember that name, will we now have corporate names in our memories too?

It is like some horrible dystopian post apocalyptic nightmare. But then again I guess that is where we live now. We no longer have the rights to our own memories and to the things we love. If it can be branded it will be branded, and f*ck anyone who won't go along peacefully.

Happy 2012!

African Rape is America’s Porn

Here we go again. The New York Times has a story today about rape in war torn Somalia.

It is difficult to critique this sort of journalism without seeming to be blasé about sexual assault. I am not at all uncaring about rape survivors here or abroad, but I am very wary of the media showing interest in women of color only when they are rape victims and the circumstances permit wholesale finger pointing at all black people. The Times has never given its readers a true history of the Somalia conflict, which is a direct result of American intervention.

The al-Shabab are not some crazed group of so-called Islamists. They are the resistance fighting against the U.S. instigated Ethiopian incursion into their country. Somalia has been destroyed by the United States and that destruction has gone largely unreported. All of that country’s terrors, from rape to starvation, can be laid at Uncle Sam’s door step.

I wrote about this phenomenon of phony concern for black women in my column last year.

“Nothing excites the imaginations of Americans like lurid tales of sexual perversion among black people. The corporate media leap upon any and every report of sexual assault committed among black people with a peculiar delight. The scene of the crime may be Darfur, the Congo or Haiti, but the stories always create a narrative of animalistic Africans and give the impression that entire groups of people should not be considered human beings.”

The comments from Times readers were true to form, calling Somali men animals, blaming Islam, and of course advocating for more U.S. terror under the guise of humanitarian intervention.

If New York Times reporters want to write about sexual assault, they don’t have to go all the way to Somalia. They might talk to police in any American jurisdiction or go to one of the 70 prisons located in the state of New York and talk to victims of rapes carried out by other prisoners or prison personnel.

Of course, writing about rape in America’s prisons would open a can of worms which most people would rather not see. It is far easier to point the finger at a faraway land populated by black people.

Anyone horrified by the stories of these crimes does not have to write a check to an NGO. A better course of action is demanding that the U.S. leave Somalia alone. Talk about a can of worms, we might actually have to make demands of the president and congress. Wringing our hands about a newspaper article is a lot easier.

Yes, America is Officially Fascist

Mr. Peace Prize winner and constitutional law professor just doesn't give a sh*t, neither do the Obamabots.

Black America Hits Rock Bottom

Black people are at the bottom of the heap. The median income of Americans is only $50,000 per year, but a mere $32,000 for African Americans.

The wealth gap is even worse. White median net worth is $113,000 but it is only $6,325 for latinos and $5,677 for blacks.

I had more to say in my column in Black Agenda Report today. Common Dreams linked to it too. Thanks for the shout out!