Don’t we wish the US oligarchy were ancient history instead of daily reality?
The term “oligarchy” applies to the US because of the military-industrial-congressional-insurance-incarceration-MEDIA-complex in our country. Too few people have too much money which creates too much power over our lives and those of our children and communities and planet.
Change is coming, however, and there are signs that people are organizing a sufficiently strong popular movement to achieve taxing the rich (duh!) and providing for people and planet.
I am writing this piece at the cusp of Black History Month and Women’s History Month, all the while wanting to do away with the oligarchy. How?
“By any means necessary”
Malcolm X’s fuller quote, as spoken in the last year of his life, is, “We want freedom by any means necessary. We want justice by any means necessary. We want equality by any means necessary.”
So, if the question is, “What means will you use to accomplish your goal of freedom, justice, and equality?” why in the world would anyone say, “Well, I’ve got a few things I’ll try and then if that doesn’t work I’ll give up.”
Saying “by any means necessary” included elections, peaceful movements, and organizing to meet basic needs. The congressional-media-etc oligarchs wanted people to fear that “any means necessary” only meant violence.
I became interested in Malcolm X again recently because his autobiography strongly inspired Dr. Butch Ware, the Green Party candidate for Governor of California in the June 2 primary election.
I sure hope Butch Ware places in the “top two” primary. He has a good chance. Then, hallelujah, in November we can vote for someone who is NOT an oligarchy-backed candidate! He will lead the state, which can then lead the country, toward life-enriching policies including accessible and affordable healthcare, education and a better environment. Let’s face it. It’s been 15 years that the Democratic Party has had a state “trifecta”, dominating all three centers of power: governor’s seat and both branches of the legislature. We need a change.
Women’s History Month — “Courage is Contagious”
Don’t shut up. That has been my fervent hope, and it looks like it is happening. The Epstein survivors are standing strong, so that future generations will not face the same threats.
Democracy Now!, the 30-year-old progressive news program, compiled a list of stories and headlines related to the Epstein horror. This small sampling of titles helps to tell the story. Note how shameful it is that the UK has been taking stronger action than the oligarchy of the US.
Democracy Now! sampling of reports from present back to October
— Documents Related to Trump Accuser are Missing from DOJ’s Release of Epstein Files
— Peter Mandelson, former British ambassador to the U.S., Arrested Amid Epstein Probe
— Epstein Fallout: As U.K. Arrests Ex-Prince, Where is the Accountability in U.S.?
— UN Panel Says Alleged Sex Crimes in Epstein Files Amount to Crimes Against Humanity
— Epstein Files Set Off Political Storm in Norway, Prompt Resignations at Goldman Sachs & DP World
— Former Palm Beach Police Chief Says Trump Told Him in 2006 That “Everyone” Knew of Epstein’s Behavior
— Protecting Pedophile Predators … Jeffrey Epstein & the Elite’s Veil of Silence
— “Billionaire Boys Club”: What the Latest Epstein Files Reveal About Elite Impunity
— A Distraction from Epstein Files? Trump Ramps Up Chaos in Minnesota, Greenland & Beyond
— “Heartbreaking” … Epstein Files & Survivors’ Fight for Accountability
— How Did Epstein Get Rich? … His “Scams, Schemes, Ruthless Cons”
— “The Epstein Class” … the Elite Network Around the Sexual Predator (LINK)
— Larry Summers Quits OpenAI Board and Harvard Teaching Role Amid Epstein Revelations
— “Bring the Truth Out of the Shadows”: Survivors Hail Congressional Vote to Release Epstein Files
— “This Is Me When I Met Jeffrey Epstein”: Survivors’ Ad Calls on Congress to Release Files
— Epstein & Israel: Drop Site News Investigates Jeffrey Epstein’s Ties to Israeli Intelligence
— “Nobody’s Girl”: Virginia Giuffre’s Memoir Details Sex Abuse by Epstein, Maxwell, Prince Andrew
Early Democracy Now! reports from 2019, more than six years ago!
— How Investigative Reporting & Survivor Testimony Toppled Billionaire Serial Abuser Jeffrey Epstein
— Jeffrey Epstein, a Billionaire Friend of Presidents Trump & Clinton, Arrested for Sex Trafficking
Change is coming. We have so much more power than we’ve been using. We can make it better, or worse. I believe that at some level we know what we each can do to ramp up change toward a better world.
That better world is possible.
Images by Aaron Mervin and Mst Monoara Khatun from Pixabay