NOT KEEPING IT REAL

This guy's up for attempted rape while the IMF continues with its crimes

I've said it before and I'll say it til my heart blows out: The American media sucks big time.

Unless you go to independent sources, the information we are served up is nearly all crap. Let's look at what we've got going right now. Two stories that won't go away: A bin Laden, postmortem soap opera; and the boss of the IMF (International Monetary Fund) up on attempted rape charges.

Without reading the endless procession of updates on these two non-stories -- which would be a stellar waste of time -- I think I have a quite accurate take on what's pertinent here.

1/ bin Laden. We're wallowing at the level of who did what, when, where and why. Who is/was opposed to it. Who knew what, when. Whether there were mistresses involved. Exploding vests. Hideout porn. And, yes, why our invasion-fueling president is a god because he (?!) "got" bin Laden. All of this swill tells me two things. Firstly, the waters are being muddied so we don't learn anything too important. Secondly, the waters are being muddied so we don't ask any questions about anything too important. Like: Why does nearly everything our governmnent do rely on muscle, subterfuge, lies and civilian casualties? I personally don't believe it's because the people in D.C are dumb. I believe it's because that's the way a bully gets what he wants and establishes a pecking order. Allies, U.N., scholars and humanitarians be damned. And if you think for one second that -- Wikileaks aside -- you're ever going to find out how all that bin Laden stuff went down, you're out of your mind. But as long as the government can keep us obsessively sniffing for it, we'll be pretty much out of their hair.

2/ The IMF dude -- Dominique Strauss-Kahn. Being held without bail for sexual assault/attempted rape. A serious issue. Yes. But front page material day after day... with all that we're faced with in this world? No way! The REAL story is why the IMF isn't on trial for raping the Third World for decades. And I say that with the utmost seriousness. But again, if the government/media/whomever can personalize an issue, we'll start to lose sight of the issue itself and instead demonize some individual who is, really, either not that important, or pretty easily dealt with. If Strauss-Kahn committed attempted rape, it is a very serious matter. It just isn't any more important in a GLOBAL WAY than what any other rapist does. And trust me, the IMF will manage to continue its plundering whether this geezer is in the big chair or not.

The message never changes: We have to keep our eye on the big picture because the mass/corporate media will never do that for us.

And that's one story that's as real as it gets.

Take care,
Adrian
PS: Thank you and welcome to those folks who've signed up for "House on Fire" in recent weeks. I really appreciate it and hope I am of service to you in some small way with this blog.

IF YOU FOUND THIS BLOG POST INTERESTING you might like to take a look at THE MASS MURDERERS OF WASHINGTON D.C.

OBAMA IS NOT YOUR FRIEND

Noam Chomsky isn't afraid to remind us that Obama knows which side his bread is buttered on

I've been surprised -- and then again, maybe not -- at the hero worship going on among some liberals at present.

Message threads for any stories about Obama on The Huffington Post -- a Dem/liberal news site -- have been praising the president's courage and candor, vision and integrity, because "he" got bin Laden.


He's Not One of Us

This is my take: Obama's a politician and a member of the elite. The whole bin Laden thing was conducted in such a way that if another nation had taken similar action on U.S. soil, a great many people in this country would be howling. But since "we" did it, it's okay with a lot of people (and NOT okay with a lot of people as well, I should add), and therefore Obama is the great architect and moral force behind this "necessary" murder.

Now, don't fly off the rails and tell me that bin Laden was a terrorist and murderer. Even though he never went to trial, most of us accept this to be true. But how is Obama not a terrorist and murderer when children in Afghanistan, to name one instance, are being killed by our armed forces/government? Remember: Obama is the Commander in Chief.


Laws are for Everyone

My point is that there are international laws and international bodies and correct ways of doing things. And if the U.S. government truly wants international respect, then the U.S. must treat all other nations, suspected criminals, and citizens everywhere according to international laws and conventions. It's a two-way street.

I say again: Obama's a politician and a member of the elite. I don't know what he came up with and what he didn't in terms of this whole "covert operation." But he certainly rubber stamped it. And now he's on "60 Minutes" and any podium that will hold him, squeezing all that strong-wise-leader juice out of the story and campaigning like a champion. Yes, that's all he's doing. Campaigning. If our politicians actually worked a fifth of the time they spent posturing for us, we'd be in a lot better shape. No, strike that. The corporations would have even sweeter deals. We'd probably still be in trouble.

I don't trust either party or any president I've seen. Why the hell would anybody? These people aren't our friends. Their motives aren't the same as ours. Personally, my allegiance is to the global common good. That's it.


Chomsky Tells it How it Is

Let me quote an extract from an interview with Noam Chomsky that was published in "The New Statesman" in September, 2010. Chomsky is a very astute critic of Obama, and is ever ready to give some factual perspective on the guy so we don't all fall into the trap of thinking that Bush was a demon (for the record, he was) and this guy is our savior (for the record, he's not):

"What are your thoughts on President Obama?

He’s involved in war crimes right now. For example, targeted assassinations are war crimes. That’s escalated quite sharply under Obama. If you look at WikiLeaks, there are a lot of examples of attacks on civilians.

What did you think when he was given the Nobel Peace Prize?

Considering the history of the Nobel Peace Prize, it’s not the worst example. It was given to him before he had the time to commit many war crimes.

Is there any point in us being in Afghanistan?

We wouldn’t have asked in 1985: 'Is there any point in the Russians being in Afghanistan?' The fact is that the invasion was a crime. Then comes the question: 'Is there any point in continuing?' But that presupposes legitimacy. Putting aside questions of morality and legality and simply asking about the goals of the US government is a very narrow consideration."

In another interview with The European Courier in March, Chomsky began his answer to the question "How would you summarize the presidency of Barack Obama as of now?" this way:

"Obama is a man of absolutely no principles. He has two constituencies. One of them is the popular constituency, the people who voted for him. For them he is doing essentially nothing. He has another constituency: the people who financed his campaign, the financial institutions. And they are getting rewarded."

Some food for thought. Bon appetit!

Adrian

IF YOU FOUND THIS BLOG POST INTERESTING you might like to take a look at THE MASS MURDERERS OF WASHINGTON D.C.