The future of the Progressive Left

[Hugo Stiglitz 23367]

LOL

 

[TheStoicPaisano 9953]

 

[Longhorn_Fan68 34103]

I can see this creating a tit-for-tat situation - especially for Abbott

 

[lmao 178]

On 1/26/2021 at 8:05 AM, Hugo Stiglitz said:

The online left is basically serious people vs unserious people and the unserious people get too much attention because they say dumb shit for attention. It’s annoying.  Folks like Krysal Ball, Dore, and Greenwald are not serious advocates for helping people. 

I think Dore truly wants to help people. However, he burns way too many calories on Twitter spats, gossip, drama, insulting people, etc. It's counterintuitive. 

[wildcat09 29579]

Jimmy Dore is a hack and a fraud.

[lmao 178]

11 minutes ago, wildcat09 said:

Jimmy Dore is a hack and a fraud.

Maybe. Haven't kept up with him tbh. He was right on forcing a M4A vote tho. I think he's just tired of Democrats who use progressive rhetoric but then are right wing when they actually govern. *Kind of his whole schtick.

Edited June 29, 2021 by lmao

[bad_teammate 13509]

the problem with Dore, ultimately, is that he's a Rogan-level intellect

[wildcat09 29579]

6 minutes ago, lmao said:

Maybe. Haven't kept up with him tbh. He was right on forcing a M4A vote tho. I think he's just tired of Democrats who use progressive rhetoric but then are right wing when they actually govern. *Kind of his whole schtick.

Dore's whole shtick is demobilizing the left.

[lmao 178]

9 minutes ago, wildcat09 said:

Dore's whole shtick is demobilizing the left.

Who would you define as left? Do you consider Joe Biden left?

[Longhorn_Fan68 34103]

5 minutes ago, lmao said:

Who would you define as left? Do you consider Joe Biden left?

not in the least. he's about as centrist as they come

[bad_teammate 13509]

Future for the progressive left: Being actively opposed by the highest levels of Dem power even in state-level races.

 

[wildcat09 29579]

Periodic reminder that Jimmy Dore is a hack and a fraud:

 

 

[bad_teammate 13509]

lol what a fucking maroon

[Biff Tannen 46163]

Who the fuck is jimmy dore?

[Satchel 6982]

Look who’s running against Sarah Huckabee?
 

 

[bad_teammate 13509]

2 hours ago, Biff Tannen said:

Who the fuck is jimmy dore?

a YouTuber who is very stupid but yells enough that he says things that terminally online leftists of the moron persuasion sometimes get excited about

 

[DigglerontheHoof 21550]

He's an incredibly impressive man, with an amazing wife.  But pigs will fly out of my ass before a black man is elected governor in Arkansas. 

[Satchel 6982]

On 7/22/2021 at 6:41 PM, DigglerontheHoof said:

He's an incredibly impressive man, with an amazing wife.  But pigs will fly out of my ass before a black man is elected governor in Arkansas. 

Thanks for bringing me back to earth.

[Fudge Nuggets 19453]

On 7/22/2021 at 6:41 PM, DigglerontheHoof said:

He's an incredibly impressive man, with an amazing wife.  But pigs will fly out of my ass before a black man is elected governor in Arkansas. 

Nolan Richardson could have pulled it off in 1994 / 1995.  That's about it though.

[UpperWestside 6273]

12 minutes ago, Fudge Nuggets said:

Nolan Richardson could have pulled it off in 1994 / 1995.  That's about it though.

Nolan could’ve just strolled right into the place. 

[MC Fresh Breath 4075]

Source is apparently a Marxist.  Yet....

 

 

 

 

[Sbbruin 22142]

2 minutes ago, MC Fresh Breath said:

Source is apparently a Marxist.  Yet....

 

 

 

 

Would have only cost $350 bil and funded by, shocker, MORE fucking taxes.  Of course the way projections work in this state, it probably would have ended up costing double or triple that.  No one really thought this had a prayer.  The author just wanted to show that "she tried".

[MC Fresh Breath 4075]

1 minute ago, Sbbruin said:

Would have only cost $350 bil and funded by, shocker, MORE fucking taxes.  Of course the way projections work in this state, it probably would have ended up costing double or triple that.  No one really thought this had a prayer.  The author just wanted to show that "she tried".

You apparently know more than me.  But I have to tell you, whenever I hear anyone toss out costs, I tend to personally wonder how we can afford other things. I wonder how much money health care lobbyists spend, for example.   How much the privatized prison system makes.  I don't know.   I wonder how politicians go in usually around middle class to upper middle class and somehow get rich(er).  I know I'm tilting at windmills.  I would even admit to being naïve, except that I don't expect anything seriously good to happen in terms of politics. 

[MC Fresh Breath 4075]

I also wonder @Sbbruin if your taxes would be off set by the single payer itself.   Take out costs of insurance and say an ER visit or two, and then compare to taxes.  Right?  Or wrong?

Then there is economic impact of people who can't afford health care.  I'm sure that's derogatory somehow.

 

But again, I don't believe anyone rebels against their corporate overlords.  Not in significant numbers anyway.

Edited February 1, 2022 by MC Fresh Breath

[MC Fresh Breath 4075]

Found a comment kind of expressing that:

Quote

To be clear here, the tax increases wouldn’t affect a good 90% of the people in the state - it was a corporate/payroll tax increase first and foremost, with a small income tax paid from income over $149k. I’m JUST over that line, and I would pay a whopping $30 more per year under this proposal.

 

and another:

Quote

 

It's not only how do we pay for it. We know how it's going to be paid for. The trick is to get people to understand that they will no longer be paying for insurance through their employer so saving around 200+ a month and in some cases might actually make more in base salary if the employer is required to pay back what they were previously calling "your compensation package" My employer offers 6k more in salary.

This is hard for people to understand because it requires things like thinking and effort. The effort comes in when people have to actually look at how much they are forking over through their employer and how much the employer is forking over...hint it's probably between 8 and 20 grand a year all in. Well that requires thinking too 'cause numbers and math and stuff. Then they have to imagine all the extras...I know, I know...it's a lot of thinking, but after paying about 10k to some faceless institution, they also ask that you pay a tincy weency extra when you go to the Dr...but only to your primary, if you go out of network that's even more extras! Oh and don't forget prescription copays!! We all love those don't we...I mean I know I feel so much more responsible for myself when I chip in and have some skin in the game and stop looking for freebies even though up to this point, all I have done is fork over all of my hard earned money...but thinking about it hurts my head and raises my blood pressure and I don't want to go to the Dr again...because it will just cost me more money!

So after ALL that thinking and effort and other hurty stuff, people have to understand that some of those costs (not all.. because the very existence of insurance makes health care more expensive) some of those costs need to added to the things you buy through taxes. But don't say that... it hurts to think about.

Problem is politicians skip all the hard stuff and just jump right into taxes,... even if they just ate....I mean it's hard explaining stuff and they don't want to think after thinking all day and neither do I.

 

 

These are unsourced comments, so I obvs can't verify the numbers.  But the train of thought makes sense to me.  Which, again, is why politics is so depressing.

Edited February 1, 2022 by MC Fresh Breath

[We’reTexas 1477]

20 minutes ago, MC Fresh Breath said:

I also wonder @Sbbruin if your taxes would be off set by the single payer itself.   Take out costs of insurance and say an ER visit or two, and then compare to taxes.  Right?  Or wrong?

Then there is economic impact of people who can't afford health care.  I'm sure that's derogatory somehow.

 

But again, I don't believe anyone rebels against their corporate overlords.  Not in significant numbers anyway.

The legislative analysis indicated that Californians spend some $330B on health care a year, but the plan would cost up to $390B a year - that’s $100B more than the state budget. And the financing plan largely assumes the federal government will foot the bill while raising payroll and income taxes to make up the rest. I’d be more supportive of such a transformational move if the financing were supported by another much-needed transformational move: dismantling the absurd Prop 13 system. 
 

Also, I don’t think the plan envisions any sort of residency requirement, meaning anyone could come to CA for free care. As with housing, this is well intentioned but something that needs to be addressed at a federal level. 

[Sbbruin 22142]

1 hour ago, MC Fresh Breath said:

Found a comment kind of expressing that:

 

and another:

 

These are unsourced comments, so I obvs can't verify the numbers.  But the train of thought makes sense to me.  Which, again, is why politics is so depressing.

 "it was a corporate/payroll tax increase first and foremost".  The problem is businesses here are taxed at already exorbitant rate.  Companies have been leaving in droves.  You can't keep tapping that well.  It's unsustainable.  

Personally I don't think you can have some states in and some states out.  We either do it nationally, or you have chaos.  People with underlying conditions will just move to states providing single payer and it'll break the projections to hell.  

[MC Fresh Breath 4075]

Catilyn could or could not be the dreaded left wing 'grifter' so many worry about.  But lately I find myself agreeing with her writings.  Her and Chris Hedges of course.

You Don't Get To Vote On Any Of Your Government's Most Consequential Actions

Quote

 

You’ll often hear Democrats calling people “privileged” if they talk about voting third party, or if they say it doesn’t matter whether Donald Trump or Kamala Harris wins the election in November. The idea is that if you’re not doing everything you can to make sure the Democrat wins, it must be because you are white and wealthy and coddled enough to be unconcerned about Donald Trump getting in and implementing racist and discriminatory policies.

This narrative is false. Nonvoters in the United States are statistically much more likely to be poor and nonwhite, because those groups tend to see both mainstream political factions as more or less equally worthless at helping to improve the condition of their lives. Turns out you need to have a degree of stability and comfort in your life to see any significant difference between these candidates, and many lack that stability and comfort — both in the US and around the world. They aren’t privileged enough to care one way or the other.

•     Palestinians, who will continue to be killed and oppressed by the state of Israel regardless of whether Trump or Harris wins.
•     Ukrainians, who will continue to die in Washington’s proxy war with Russia regardless of whether Trump or Harris wins.
•     Victims of US warmongering around the world, who will suffer and die from acts of mass military violence inflicted upon them regardless of whether Trump or Harris wins.
•     Victims of US economic sanctions, who will continue to suffer and struggle because their government had the audacity to disobey Washington’s dictates regardless of whether Trump or Harris wins.
•     Victims of US imperialist extraction, who will continue to have their labor and resources siphoned away by wildly unjust and exploitative systems regardless of whether Trump or Harris wins.
•     Homeless people in the United States, who will remain homeless regardless of whether Trump or Harris wins.
•     America’s working poor, who will continue to struggle to make ends meet in a constant state of toil regardless of whether Trump or Harris wins.
•     Victims of the US policing and prison systems, who will remain abused and mistreated by those systems regardless of whether Trump or Harris wins.

The truth of the matter is that you simply don’t get to vote on any of the most consequential things your government does.

You don’t get to vote on whether wars, militarism and imperialism should continue.

You don’t get to vote on whether your government should engage in nuclear brinkmanship with Russia and China.

You don’t get to vote on whether your government should keep systems in place which ensure the destruction of our biosphere.

You don’t get to vote on whether your government should be continuously working to subvert and destroy any nation anywhere on earth who dares to disobey its commands.

You don’t get to vote on whether your government should continue imposing sanctions on one-third of the world, disproportionately targeting the economies of low-income countries.

You don’t get to vote on whether your government should keep systems in place which allow the wealthy to exert control over labor to extract surplus value from workers at home and abroad.

You don’t get to vote on whether your government should keep systems in place which allow people to go homeless or die of treatable illnesses because they don’t have enough money.

You don’t get to vote on whether billionaires should remain billionaires while so many ordinary people struggle to survive.

You don’t get to vote on whether you and your compatriots should be subjected every single day to mass media propaganda which serves the information interests of your government and the status quo politics it relies on.

You don’t get to vote on whether your government should keep pushing more and more authoritarian measures like Silicon Valley algorithm manipulation, online censorship, surveillance, government secrecy, and the war on journalism to ensure the suppression of dissent.

You don’t get to vote on whether or not any of this murder, tyranny, oppression and exploitation should take place. All you get to vote on is what face should represent these things for the next four years, and whether that symbolic face will have a (D) or an (R) next to their name.

The functioning of a globe-spanning empire is seen as too important to be left in the hands of the voting public — so it isn’t. Nothing that is critical to the empire’s operation is ever on the ballot. They only let voters control a few superficial details about their society which make no difference to the powerful, while placing tremendous significance on elections and their outcomes so that voters really feel like they are making a difference.

Noam Chomsky was correct when he said “The smart way to keep people passive and obedient is to strictly limit the spectrum of acceptable opinion, but allow very lively debate within that spectrum.” Until you really understand that quote and how far it goes, you can’t understand anything about mainstream western politics and political discourse.

 

 

https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/you-dont-get-to-vote-on-any-of-your

 

[956 Worldwide 35592]

It’s so cool to post Kremlin propaganda, but Progressively. 
 

[MC Fresh Breath 4075]

 

Quote

 

One of earth’s most evil living beings, Dick “Darth Vader” Cheney, has officially endorsed Kamala Harris for president. His daughter, Liz Cheney, has also endorsed Harris.

“In our nation’s 248-year history, there has never been an individual who is a greater threat to our republic than Donald Trump,” said the former vice president in a statement, adding, “As citizens, we each have a duty to put country above partisanship to defend our Constitution. That is why I will be casting my vote for Vice President Kamala Harris.”

Cheney was a charter signatory to the notorious neoconservative think tank Project for the New American Century, and as vice president played a leading role in the George W Bush administration’s soaring warmongering, militarism and authoritarianism, including most famously the invasion of Iraq. He has the blood of millions of people on his hands, and he should be living out the rest of his miserable life in a cage.

His daughter Liz is an equally bloodthirsty warmonger who has spent her career pushing for mass military slaughter at every opportunity. After the Israeli assault on Gaza began last year she went on CNN to declare that all deaths which occur in the onslaught are “the responsibility of Hamas”, that protests against Israel’s actions are “antisemitic” in nature, and that the US should escalate against Iran and the Houthis because of their oppositional posture toward Israel.



 

The Cheneys join a growing list of formerly Republican warmongers who are migrating to the Democratic Party in droves to support Harris. Last month hundreds of staffers who served under Republicans George W Bush, John McCain and Mitt Romney signed a letter endorsing Harris, saying that “re-electing President Trump would be a disaster for our nation.”

“Abroad, democratic movements will be irreparably jeopardized as Trump and his acolyte JD Vance kowtow to dictators like Vladimir Putin while turning their backs on our allies,” the group writes, adding, “We can’t let that happen.”

It is here worth noting that contrary to the narratives circulated in both mainstream Democrat-aligned media and mainstream Republican-aligned media, Donald Trump actually spent his entire term ramping up aggressions against Russia and helped pave the way to the war in Ukraine. He also promoted many longstanding warmongering agendas against official enemies of the US empire like Iran, Syria, and Venezuela. But even Trump’s insane hawkishness is insufficient for these freaks.

In June of 2022, author Sarah Kendzior made the following predictions on the Gaslit Nation podcast:

 

Quote

 

“I’m gonna wrap this up with a warning, which is that there is a new plan for our already broken two-party system. The plan is to have two parties. One, a batshit crazy MAGA party led by Trump or DeSantis that will bulldoze your rights. And the second one will be a far-right “respectable” party led by Liz Cheney that will also bulldoze your rights. They will call the Cheney party the Democrats and pretend that a creeping capitulation to a right-wing agenda is some kind of act of healing bipartisanship.”

…

“When I mentioned this possibility on Twitter, someone wrote to me, ‘Liz Cheney is not becoming a Democrat.’ And I replied, ‘I agree. The Democrats are becoming Cheneys.’”

 

 

This is more or less what appears to have been happening, and it actually started several years ago. During the 2016 Trump campaign a bunch of neoconservative warmongers switched from defending George W Bush as a saint and decrying Obama as an Ayatollah lover, and began pivoting to endorse Hillary Clinton instead. After Trump won, this coalition between Democrats and Bush-era neocons grew even stronger with the creation of new Democratic think tank projects led by Iraq-raping neocons like Bill Kristol.

So now we’re seeing two warmongering oligarchic parties shoving the Overton window of acceptable opinion as far in the direction of imperialism, militarism and tyranny as possible under the leadership of some of the very worst people alive. By doing this they ensure that these matters are never on the ballot, and that elections are always about issues the powerful are completely indifferent toward like abortion and trans rights instead.

Progressives who want healthcare and a ceasefire in Gaza are being dismissed and ignored while alliances are being made with the world’s most blood-soaked imperialists. Things have been shoved so far to the right that this election is now a showdown between the Trump Party against the Cheney Party, and no matter who wins, the empire wins. 

A lot of fuss will probably be made about election-rigging after the results are announced in November, with the loser declaring that the results are the result of Russian interference or Deep State vote tampering depending on who that loser happens to be. But remember this: the worst election rigging is happening right out in the open, to ensure that oligarchs and empire managers are happy with either outcome.

 

 

I wouldn't call it Cheney's party like she does.  But there's a reason all these warhawk neocons are comfortable endorsing her (like many did Clinton).  

[MC Fresh Breath 4075]

11 minutes ago, 956 Worldwide said:

It’s so cool to post Kremlin propaganda, but Progressively. 
 

Unignored you for a second to see what you had to say. My mistake.

You cyring about propaganda is wild and funny.  I don't like RT.  And w/o digging into those particular thought pieces  I don't even know that they are russia propaganda.  Or just since they're not pro-US RT felt like they should carry them.

Also note I said I find myself agreeing w/her current writing and the opinion pieces I posted weren't from RT.   Also, nothing in those thoughts are "Russian propgadanda" you tool.

Side thought--it is interesting how much russia propaganda is cared about here while Israeli propaganda is loved.  Ditto multinational corpaganda.  Back to ignore you go.  You are never worth it, you disengenous war mongering state department stooge.

Edit:  Oh looky, she addresses you already:

"I myself am accused of being a peddler of Russian propaganda many times per day, and have been for years. This despite my hardly ever consuming Russian media, never receiving a penny from Russia, and never having worked for the Russian government or any other government at any time. Russian media have at times chosen of their own initiative to amplify my work since I have a standing invitation for anyone to do so, but I’m literally just an Australian woman writing her opinions online with her American husband. I only qualify as “Russian propaganda” because I disagree with US foreign policy."

Which is who you (and a lot of blue) are anyway these days.  Fuck, I must be a Russian bot myself.  Need to go collect some funds.



Oh 

Edited September 7 by MC Fresh Breath

[956 Worldwide 35592]

9 minutes ago, MC Fresh Breath said:

Unignored you for a second to see what you had to say. My mistake.

You cyring about propaganda is wild and funny.  I don't like RT.  And w/o digging into those particular thought pieces  I don't even know that they are russia propaganda.  Or just since they're not pro-US RT felt like they should carry them.

Also note I said I find myself agreeing w/her current writing and the opinion pieces I posted weren't from RT.  

Side thought--it is interesting how much russia propaganda is cared about here while Israeli propaganda is loved.  Ditto multinational corpaganda.  Back to ignore you go.  You are never worth it, you disengenous war mongering state department stooge.

I’m sorry your preferred political commentator is on the payroll of Kremlin controlled media.  Tim Pool fans might have some coping strategies to compare. 

[956 Worldwide 35592]

“Nothing in this think piece which says that Ukrainians are victims of proxy wars and that sanctions against Russia are victimizing innocent people could be considered Russian propaganda.  Also, progressive shouldn’t vote for Harris because there is no real difference between her and Trump.”

That’s the good stuff, the real galaxy brained stuff. 

[956 Worldwide 35592]

26 minutes ago, MC Fresh Breath said:

Unignored you for a second to see what you had to say. My mistake.

You cyring about propaganda is wild and funny.  I don't like RT.  And w/o digging into those particular thought pieces  I don't even know that they are russia propaganda.  Or just since they're not pro-US RT felt like they should carry them.

Also note I said I find myself agreeing w/her current writing and the opinion pieces I posted weren't from RT.   Also, nothing in those thoughts are "Russian propgadanda" you tool.

Side thought--it is interesting how much russia propaganda is cared about here while Israeli propaganda is loved.  Ditto multinational corpaganda.  Back to ignore you go.  You are never worth it, you disengenous war mongering state department stooge.

Edit:  Oh looky, she addresses you already:

"I myself am accused of being a peddler of Russian propaganda many times per day, and have been for years. This despite my hardly ever consuming Russian media, never receiving a penny from Russia, and never having worked for the Russian government or any other government at any time. Russian media have at times chosen of their own initiative to amplify my work since I have a standing invitation for anyone to do so, but I’m literally just an Australian woman writing her opinions online with her American husband. I only qualify as “Russian propaganda” because I disagree with US foreign policy."

Which is who you (and a lot of blue) are anyway these days.  Fuck, I must be a Russian bot myself.  Need to go collect some funds.



Oh 

My “I am not a Kremlin asset” t-shirt is raising a lot of questions that have already been answered by the shirt.”

[Hugo Stiglitz 23367]

1 hour ago, MC Fresh Breath said:

Israeli propaganda

This could be described as the bulk of the western media ecosystem. It’s regrettably unavoidable.

[wildcat09 29579]

On 9/7/2024 at 11:35 AM, MC Fresh Breath said:

Catilyn could or could not be the dreaded left wing 'grifter' so many worry about.  But lately I find myself agreeing with her writings.  Her and Chris Hedges of course.

You Don't Get To Vote On Any Of Your Government's Most Consequential Actions

 

https://www.caitlinjohnst.one/p/you-dont-get-to-vote-on-any-of-your

 

Come the fuck on man, you've got to have a better bullshit detector.

ETA: "Syria takes reveal a person's character" never fails:

Quote

Hundreds of people died — many of them in their sleep — when rockets laden with the nerve agent sarin struck Ghouta, a rebel-held area on the outskirts of the Syrian capital early one morning in August 2013. It was the deadliest chemical attack anywhere in the world since the 1980s.

Considering that Ghouta was under fire from the Assad regime’s forces at the time, that the casualties were on the rebels’ side and that the regime had previously admitted possessing chemical weapons, there was one obvious suspect. The regime, however, insisted it was not responsible.

Russia, as its chief ally, weighed in with vigorous support and so too did a number of small groups and individuals in the West — apparently sincere people who convinced themselves that one of the Middle East’s most oppressive regimes was the innocent victim of a plot to discredit it. Among them were an assortment of university professors, retired spies, “independent” journalists, “anti-imperialists” and more than a few habitual conspiracy theorists.

Under international pressure following the Ghouta attack, Syria joined the Chemical Weapons Convention, but that did not put an end to chemical attacks. During the next few years dozens more were reported, mostly involving chlorine but sometimes sarin. The deniers, eager to blame someone other than the Assad regime, claimed rebels were faking the attacks in an effort to falsely incriminate the regime and thus create a pretext for full-scale military intervention by Western powers.

The claims were not supported by credible evidence, but the deniers pointed to confirmed examples from the past where deception had been used in warfare. One that resonated particularly with the public was the way false claims about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq had been used to build public support for the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003.

...

Some of the American Herald Tribune’s articles did survive in other parts of the echo system. Seventeen of them had been cross-posted on the website of Mint Press News, which had similar sharing arrangements with several other “partner” websites including Project Censored, Free Speech TV, Media Roots, Shadow Proof, The Grayzone, Truthout, Common Dreams and Antiwar.com.

Based in Minnesota, Mint Press was established in 2012, ostensibly as a commercial venture employing six full-time staff. According to its editor, Mnar Muhawesh, the initial investment had come from “retired businesspeople,” though she declined to name them. The only time Mint Press made much impact (though for the wrong reasons) was in 2013, a few days after the sarin attack on Ghouta, when it reported claims from anonymous sources in Syria suggesting that Prince Bandar bin Sultan, then the Saudi intelligence chief, had provided rebel fighters with chemical weapons but neglected to tell the rebels what they were or how to use them. As a result, according to the sources, the rebels had handled the weapons “improperly,” accidentally causing mass deaths.

The story appeared to be based on rumors circulating in Damascus at the time, and there was no real evidence to support it. Saudi Arabia was not known to have chemical weapons, and the idea that it would supply them to rebels without instructions for use was highly implausible. Nevertheless, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov cited the story as evidence that the U.N.’s investigators in Ghouta had not done a thorough job.

Mint Press’s initially generous funding appears to have shrunk considerably shortly afterward. Its office closed in 2014 and from then on, the only way of contacting it was through a mailbox address or email. It encouraged regular donations from the public via Patreon and had occasional crowdfunding appeals. One of them, in 2018, had a target of $26,000 and was oversubscribed by $15,000.

Despite the fiasco of its Ghouta story, Mint Press won the “Serena Shim Award for Uncompromised Integrity in Journalism” — the echo system’s own version of the Pulitzers. Vanessa Beeley was another of its laureates. Named in memory of a Lebanese American journalist who died in a car crash while working for Iran’s Press TV, the award, according to its stated purpose, was to honor non-mainstream journalists who “tell challenging truths in difficult times” and provide them with financial support to “continue their work in an environment that penalises them for their clarity of vision and willingness to expose the powerful.”

The award’s website gave no details of the nomination process, who the judges were or how “uncompromised integrity” was assessed. The selection criteria became more apparent, however, from a look at the list of previous winners, of whom there were more than 40. Some were advocates for conspiracy theories, while numerous others were prominent defenders of the Assad regime.

Besides Mint Press, websites listed among the award winners included Consortium News, which disputed the claim that the Assad regime used chemical weapons, and The Grayzone, which accused OPCW investigators of a cover-up. Individual recipients included Caitlin Johnstone, an Australian blogger who supported “false flag” theories about the chemical attacks, historian/journalist Gareth Porter, who was a board member of Consortium News, plus three of The Grayzone’s staff — Max Blumenthal, Ben Norton and Aaron Maté. One odd inclusion in the list of winners was Peter Ford, a former British ambassador to Syria who wasn’t really a journalist but had written a few articles and given interviews. More notably, he was a director of the British Syrian Society — headed by Fawaz Akhras, al-Assad’s father-in-law.

 

Edited September 9 by wildcat09

[956 Worldwide 35592]

2 hours ago, wildcat09 said:

Come the fuck on man, you've got to have a better bullshit detector.

ETA: "Syria takes reveal a person's character" never fails:

 

Syria was a crucible for their kinetic tactics and information tactics.  Same playbook, a lot of chuds believed that Assad was defending Christians and they held a classical concert in Palmyra to show how they were spreading great culture.  The leftists got people like Caitlin Johnstone.

The right is far more useful for them in the U.S. but it’s a global machine and leftism is useful elsewhere. 

[MC Fresh Breath 4075]

3 hours ago, wildcat09 said:

Come the fuck on man, you've got to have a better bullshit detector.

ETA: "Syria takes reveal a person's character" never fails:

 

Will look into that article (which doesn't seem sourced)  but again nothing I posted was false or russian propaganda.  Even if it is the case of a broken clock, those 2 op-ed's are still accurate.  

As to the Russian propaganda concerns--when I see Zionist propaganda straight from the top in a candidate's party nomination acceptance speech, I find the concern hypocritical at best.  And again, there is also plenty of our own home grown propaganda as well. 

But yeah, I'll be more wary about Miss Johnstone.  Thanks.

[wildcat09 29579]

19 minutes ago, MC Fresh Breath said:

Will look into that article (which doesn't seem sourced)  but again nothing I posted was false or russian propaganda.  Even if it is the case of a broken clock, those 2 op-ed's are still accurate.  

As to the Russian propaganda concerns--when I see Zionist propaganda straight from the top in a candidate's party nomination acceptance speech, I find the concern hypocritical at best.  And again, there is also plenty of our own home grown propaganda as well. 

But yeah, I'll be more wary about Miss Johnstone.  Thanks.

Blaming the US for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is not “accurate.”

[Brisketexan 106885]

Blaming the US for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is not “accurate.”

Yeah…folks like this have such zeal for the “whatever the US’s position is on anything, it’s evil and wrong because it’s the US’s position,” that they necessarily end up advocating for the position of whoever opposes the US. Which has them dismissing/arguing away fucking evil and atrocities (seriously, when you ALWAYS take the same side/position of Putin, that’s a big fucking tell), which tells me that they really DON’T have any guiding principles other than “USA bad.” Fuck that shit.

[MC Fresh Breath 4075]

16 minutes ago, wildcat09 said:

Blaming the US for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is not “accurate.”

I didn't note that in the pieces I read.  Closest thing was a line about proxy war.

Do we need to go bit by bit to see if we think its propaganda or not?  OK, I'll start.

Quote

 

You don’t get to vote on whether wars, militarism and imperialism should continue.

You don’t get to vote on whether your government should engage in nuclear brinkmanship with Russia and China.

You don’t get to vote on whether your government should keep systems in place which ensure the destruction of our biosphere.

You don’t get to vote on whether your government should be continuously working to subvert and destroy any nation anywhere on earth who dares to disobey its commands.

 

I agree with those lines.  Do you?

 

Quote

 

You don’t get to vote on whether your government should continue imposing sanctions on one-third of the world, disproportionately targeting the economies of low-income countries.

You don’t get to vote on whether your government should keep systems in place which allow the wealthy to exert control over labor to extract surplus value from workers at home and abroad.

You don’t get to vote on whether your government should keep systems in place which allow people to go homeless or die of treatable illnesses because they don’t have enough money.

 

How about these lines?  Russian propaganda or no?

 

[MC Fresh Breath 4075]

15 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:

Yeah…folks like this have such zeal for the “whatever the US’s position is on anything, it’s evil and wrong because it’s the US’s position,” that they necessarily end up advocating for the position of whoever opposes the US. Which has them dismissing/arguing away fucking evil and atrocities (seriously, when you ALWAYS take the same side/position of Putin, that’s a big fucking tell), which tells me that they really DON’T have any guiding principles other than “USA bad.” Fuck that shit.

Man, I'm curious.

What's Putin's position on Israel?

How about on Venezuela?

Oooh, what his position on Libya?

How does he feel about our Pentagon budget I wonder.  Or insider trading by our leaders.  Hmm.  Do you think Putin thinks a plutocratic duopoly is the best we can do?  Does he like fracking and a border wall?

I need to know so I can know which propaganda is accetable.

[Brisketexan 106885]

Man, I'm curious.
What's Putin's position on Israel?
How about on Venezuela?
Oooh, what his position on Libya?
How does he feel about our Pentagon budget I wonder.  Or insider trading by our leaders.  Hmm.  Do you think Putin thinks a plutocratic duopoly is the best we can do?  Does he like fracking and a border wall?

I need to know so I can know which propaganda is accetable.

Israel: continued strife and division, with both sides at their throats, is what he wants. Each side empowered to cause chaos. So, at least 50% consistent with the clown you cited.
Venezuela: dude. You actually asked that question? He’s team Maduro. Like your clown.
Libya: I don’t know. Almost certainly for “continued chaos, and limited ability to pump oil.”
Pentagon budget: he wants it slashed, just like your clown.
Insider trading by senators: he definitely wants it to be able issue, and he surely doesn’t want it solved. So…50% with your clown.
US fracking: definitely opposed. Like your clown.
Border wall: in favor of a fight about it, so 50% like your clown.
This is not a good look.

[956 Worldwide 35592]

LOL, 90 percent of Maria Zakharova’s schtick is whining about sanctions, nuclear fear-mongering, and accusing the U.S of trying to destroy Russia and those are the lines this guy pulls to prove this lady isn’t spewing Red Square agitprop. Is this a bit?
 

I am kind of concerned about his position on Venezuela. 

[MC Fresh Breath 4075]

4 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:

Israel: continued strife and division, with both sides at their throats, is what he wants. Each side empowered to cause chaos. So, at least 50% consistent with the clown you cited.
Venezuela: dude. You actually asked that question? He’s team Maduro. Like your clown.
Libya: I don’t know. Almost certainly for “continued chaos, and limited ability to pump oil.”
Pentagon budget: he wants it slashed, just like your clown.
Insider trading by senators: he definitely wants it to be able issue, and he surely doesn’t want it solved. So…50% with your clown.
US fracking: definitely opposed. Like your clown.
Border wall: in favor of a fight about it, so 50% like your clown.
This is not a good look.

hey, you answered.  where I can find a true honest source on Putin's positions on these issues?  

re: fracking--so Putin was for the Green New Deal?  Does he like medicare for all?

[MC Fresh Breath 4075]

Have you read the book "Everything I don't like is Russian propaganda.  A neoliberal's guide to modern day Western politics?"

Edited September 10 by MC Fresh Breath
stupid punctuation.

[SydneyCarton 49477]

You guys haven’t realized MC is basically left GRUHorn by now? 

[MC Fresh Breath 4075]

Oh, hey, the band is back in town.  Repeating all the old hits.

 

[wildcat09 29579]

24 minutes ago, MC Fresh Breath said:

I didn't note that in the pieces I read.  Closest thing was a line about proxy war.

Do we need to go bit by bit to see if we think its propaganda or not?  OK, I'll start.

I agree with those lines.  Do you?

 

How about these lines?  Russian propaganda or no?

 

It's kindergarten level rhetoric and you should be embarrassed to be persuaded by it. You actually do get to vote on all of those things, indirectly. Every one of us votes on candidates for various offices and the output of those whom we elect is absolutely the product of our votes. If enough Americans didn't want those things we wouldn't have them. All you're actually whining about is that the left hasn't won elections despite its political incompetence. You're part of the fucking problem.

[SydneyCarton 49477]

6 minutes ago, MC Fresh Breath said:

Oh, hey, the band is back in town.  Repeating all the old hits.

 

Speaking of old hits…You’re literally citing someone from RT as a great source a week after the justice department released evidence of RT funneling tens of millions of dollars to push Pro Kremlin narratives. The perpetrators responded with “well I believed those things anyway.” 
 

And here you are on this thread, citing actual authors published on RTs website, and have the temerity to say “well that doesn’t mean they’re pushing Russian narratives” and “well I agree with what this person on RT is saying.” 
 

gosh why would anyone be skeptical of your intentions?

Edited September 10 by SydneyCarton