Like the 'Toys Are Us'  stores, the Empire is US, as in you and me. 'They' Are Us. WE do the dirty work of the empire. When we are aware that there are homeless or malnourished people in our neck of the woods, and we don't think about it with at least some hint of sympathy,, WE are the empire.

Ever since the Biden administration began bombing Yemen, its official spinmeisters have been babbling about commerce and global container shipping to justify it. The unspoken premise behind this justification is that an active genocide should be permitted to continue with zero economic repercussions of any kind, for Israel or anyone else.

Reading by Tim Foley.

The Biden Administration's Absurd Justification For Its Yemen War

Everyone says they want peace, but they mean different things by this. To an anti-imperialist, peace means the end of violence, oppression and exploitation. To a Zionist, peace means Palestinians lie down and accept their fate and neighboring nations cease disobeying Israel. To a supporter of the US empire, peace means all nations around the world submit to US unipolar hegemony. Many say they want peace when what they really want is tyranny.

Reading by Tim Foley.

Many Say They Want Peace When What They Really Want Is Obedience

What strange groceries that man is carrying
Odd shapes in two plastic bags
Dripping blood
They look like they weigh more than the world
Head bowed
Eyes screwed shut
Step after step, feet like lead
Allah, Allah, Allah, Allah
What are those strange groceries you carry, sir?
These are my children, he says through a clenched jaw
They have had a long and weary day
And it is time to put them to bed
His face is wet with tears
And his arms are shaking
He walks on
Heavy feet with a heavy burden
Allah, Allah, Allah, Allah
Oh Allah

_____________

Reading by Tim Foley.

Strange Groceries

UNRWA is Hamas. The hospitals are Hamas. The ambulances are Hamas. The journalists are Hamas. The schools are Hamas. South Africa is Hamas. People tweeting unfavorable things about Israel are Hamas. Basically everyone Israel and its supporters want killed is Hamas.

Reading by Tim Foley.

Everything Israel Wants To Destroy Is Hamas

Saying the US does not seek conflict in the middle east is like saying the Kardashians do not seek attention. It's like saying Jeff Bezos doesn't seek money. It's like saying the Hamburglar doesn't seek hamburgers. It's kind of their thing. To make such a ridiculous claim while actively raining military explosives upon the middle east, in "retaliation" for an attack which the people you're bombing didn't even commit, is just extra icing on the cake of ridiculousness.

Reading by Tim Foley.

Biden Says The US "Does Not Seek Conflict In The Middle East" While Actively Dropping Bombs There

So it turns out the IDF has been running a Telegram channel featuring homemade snuff films in which Gazans are brutally murdered by Israeli forces, captioned with celebrations of the gore and pain therein like "Burning their mother… You won't believe the video we got! You can hear their bones crunch." The IDF had previously denied any association with the channel, but Haaretz now reports that it was directly run by an IDF psychological warfare unit.

Reading by Tim Foley.

However Bad You Think Israel Is, It's Worse

This is the sort of person who gets hired to multiple executive positions in multiple highly influential western media platforms. If you've ever wondered why it looks like the western press function in pretty much the same way as the state propaganda services in the autocracies the west proudly sets itself apart from, this is why. The corporate media are owned and controlled by plutocrats who have a vested interest in preserving the status quo power structure upon which their kingdoms are built, and state broadcasters like the BBC have the same interest for the same reason. They decide who the executives of those outlets will be, and those executives make policy and hiring decisions which cause the outlet to function in a way that is indistinguishable from state propaganda.

Reading by Tim Foley.

CNN's CEO Is Making Staff Churn Out Israel Propaganda

That's right, we've got a podcast out. Caitlin and Tim discuss the harrowing experience of following Israel's mass atrocities in Gaza for four months, then answer some questions from readers and trolls. 

Questions we address here include:
"Who is Tim?"
"Do you guys ever disagree on the topics you cover?"
"What are the ways that people deeply attached to the status quo - even whilst recognising it stinks - can be encouraged to let go their grip?"
"Do you ever tweet anything that isn't either anti-Israel or anti-USA?"
"Who do you support for President?"
"What kind of world should we strive for?"

Podcast: Four Months Of Genocide

This entire sick dystopia is held together by psychological compartmentalization. By the fact that it's more comfortable to avoid looking directly at the horrors of the status quo we live under, even though on some level we all know those horrors are there.

Reading by Tim Foley.

The Empire Depends On Our Unwillingness To Look At Its Crimes

One point I keep trying to drive home here in as many ways as I can is that this is the dystopia we were warned about. The main difference between this mind-controlled dystopia and the fictional dystopias in novels like 1984 is that in 1984 people knew they weren't living in a free society, whereas in this dystopia the people believe they are free.

Reading by Tim Foley.

You Only Need To Cage A Bird If It Knows That It Can Fly

They're really going to try to pin all the blame for the incineration of Gaza on Benjamin Netanyahu so that nothing has to change when this is over. The western empire has chosen a single scapegoat to carry away its sins so the status quo can march on unhindered by guilt or consequence.

Reading by Tim Foley.

They're Really Going To Try To Lay All The Blame For Gaza On Netanyahu

Readings of all Caitlin Johnstone's articles, usually by her co-writer Tim Foley.

The Empire Depends On Our Unwillingness To Look At Its Crimes

Caitlin Johnstone

Recent comments

Jean-Louis Turcot

Related tracks