People Power – Part 4: The Peace Dividend Strategy

The Peace Dividend strategy is a practical plan for achieving a very specific goal. That goal is regime change in Washington DC, i.e. replacing the pro-war, pro-Wall Street, anti-democratic, power-drunk megalomaniacs now in control, with individuals who reflect the real values and priorities of real people living real lives. It’s about getting rid of the lapdogs and liars and electing honest individuals who will answer to and serve the people who put them in office. 

Until WE THE PEOPLE seize power from those who now commandeer the machinery for setting foreign policy, who shape our military priorities and agenda, who view themselves as the indispensable, infallible rulers of the planet, until WE THE PEOPLE are able to decide the direction of our country, create a legal and economic framework which serves all of the people, not just the rich and powerful, the U.S. will continue to bully other countries, topple governments, kill innocent people for geopolitical advantage, create conflict and chaos, inflict untold misery and suffering on everyone on the planet (including increasingly its own citizens), and provoke Russia and China into a major, possibly human life-ending conflict. The rich will just get richer and our best and finest will be sent into battle to protect their portfolios.

Thus, the Peace Dividend strategy is about seizing power, putting it into the hands of a democratically-empowered citizenry, reversing the disastrous trajectory of our foreign policy and aggressive pursuit of world domination, and implementing peaceful solutions for the monumental problems confronting the world in these challenging, tumultuous times.

To lay a foundation for citizen participation and activism, the Peace Dividend strategy focuses on the abuse of political and military power from 1992 to the present. This time frame is chosen for a very specific reason. To achieve its stated goal, the Peace Dividend strategy lays out a carefully constructed but entirely truthful message which the general public, or at least 150-200 million of them, can grasp, appreciate, and embrace. The message is the impetus for very simple and achievable action.

Why take this approach?

Most peace messaging unfortunately is too abstract, too broad, too philosophical. It might seem noble and inspiring to those already in the peace movement, good folks dedicated to achieving a world without war. But to everyday citizens who are bogged down and preoccupied with the more practical pursuits of survival, raising a family, holding down a job, making it from one paycheck to the next, most of the appeals currently wielded by peace activists sound like hippie slogans and pie-in-the-sky pining. Often such activists are viewed as misfits who are out of touch with reality.

The reason is obvious. People can’t feel much empathy for cholera victims in Yemen or refugees in Syria, when members of their immediate family are suffering. Everyday folks can’t pay attention to our aggressions in the South China Sea and Russia’s borders, when they need to pay attention to keeping a job and food on the table.

The approach of the Peace Dividend strategy is simple and direct: Just tell the truth! Tell the truth about our endless wars and bloated DOD budgets! Expose the whole “defense industry” game for what it is: an enormous con, a rip-off, a massive fraud perpetrated on the American citizenry. The Afghanistan War was based on lies. The Iraq War was based on lies. Destroying Libya was based on lies. Attacking Syria was based on lies. The need to upgrade our nuclear weapons is a lie. The need for a Space Force is a lie. The need to go to war with Russia is a lie. The need to go to war with China is a lie. It goes on and on. Trillions and trillions of dollars wasted! Manufactured crises. Manufactured consent.

And then crucially, we connect all this fraud and waste to the rough times people are going through . . .

WAR IS MAKING US POOR!

People should be very angry. When they see what’s really happening, THEY WILL BE VERY ANGRY! Trillions of our taxpayer dollars have gone up in smoke. OUR MONEY has been squandered and our future mortgaged. The facts don’t lie. It’s even on the nightly news now! How $2.3 trillion was wasted in a 20-year war in Afghanistan, which to rub salt in our wounds WE LOST!

The Peace Dividend strategy doesn’t stop there. The war criminals and their puppets in Congress and the White House have stolen our money.

We want it back!

We want back at least some of the trillions taken from us as good, decent citizens under false pretenses, then used to fight unnecessary wars and buy military junk we never needed. Money which just ends up in the coffers of the defense industry, and ultimately in the bank accounts of wealthy investors who profit from the never-ending wars. It’s a pipeline right from the pocketbooks of everyday citizens and their meager family budgets, to the already incomprehensibly rich.

WE DEMAND OUR MONEY BACK!

The Peace Dividend refund currently totals $20,544 for each and every living U.S. citizen.

That’s over $82,000 for a family of four. Everybody gets the same amount. Warren Buffet and Jeff Bezos get the same as you and your 10-year-old kid, your grandma and the guy who picks up your trash.

And if you don’t think we can afford this, stop right there. See Paying For The Peace Dividend.

Understand something . . .

This is not helicopter money. It’s not Covid relief. It’s not UBI. It’s not a bribe. It’s not socialism.

IT’S A REFUND!

It’s everyday citizens getting back money which NEVER should have been taken from them in the first place, and putting that money back in their bank accounts where it belongs.

Our case is clear and our logic unassailable. The public for the past 30 years have been victims of the greatest rip-off in the history of the world!

Another way to look at this:  We are demanding “war reparations” in the form of a Peace Dividend Refund, for the war the power-drunk, war-crazed lunatics have been waging, not just on our alleged enemies, but on us, our families, our communities, our schools.

FOR THE WAR THEY’VE BEEN WAGING ON THE TRUTH!

Will our establishment politicians, now in the pockets of defense industry and Wall Street, beholden to the imperial fantasies of the neocon fanatics, go along with this?

Probably not. THAT’S THE POINT OF THIS STRATEGY. If they can’t serve the people, send them packing. They are fabulously talented. They can become an Amway distributor or a greeter at Walmart. Their phony smiles are perfect for any number of job opportunities.

Then again, maybe a few of the establishment politicians will come around. That’s fine. It’s entirely their choice: But either they commit in writing with the Peace Dividend candidate contract to GIVE US OUR MONEY BACK or . . . we don’t vote for them. We vote for someone who will. Then we’ll get a government that works for all of us and Walmart or Target will get a bubbly employee at the front entrance, just in time for Black Friday.

Is such an ultimatum really necessary?

YES! It’s come to this. The reason is simple. The war machine will continue to accelerate until we stop it.

However, there’s hope. There’s a very proven method for stopping our out-of-control government from further squandering. It’s a proven method! Works every time . . .

Empty the vault! No money. No money for military expansion. No money. No money for imperial wars.

This is exactly what the conservatives have done to us for years, only we’re turning the tables. THEY spend all the money on war and military. “Oh gosh, folks. We ran out of money. Sorry. We have to cut social programs. And there’s nothing now to fix our infrastructure.”

Ah hah! We see how this works! So . . .

We do exactly the same thing to them. THE REFUND (now we’re getting to the real reason for such an outrageous, drastic approach) EMPTIES THE VAULT. Refund $6.832 trillion to THE PEOPLE. No money for war. “Oh gosh, warmongers. We ran out of money. Sorry. You’ll have to close the bases. Start with Guantanamo and Okinawa. And we’ll have to cancel all that silly militarization of outer space. And the upgrading our nuclear weapons? Out of the question. Building more ships and tanks and missiles. FUHGEDDABOUDIT!”

Do you folks get this? This is so obvious. This could work!

But instead we flounder around talking about trimming this and trimming that. SCREW THE TRIMMING! Get people angry! Show them the LIES! The outrageous waste and fraud. Get people to DEMAND THEIR PEACE DIVIDEND REFUND … $20,544 for every single citizen! Spend the money on THE PEOPLE! No money for senseless wars!

How can the people get the power back?

How can we get our military, our economy, our government back on track?

ONLY VOTE FOR PEACE DIVIDEND CANDIDATES!

If we get a veto-proof majority in the House and the Senate, and these newly elected representatives go to DC and pass the Peace Dividend legislation, EVERYTHING CHANGES! Just sit back with a glass of your favorite evening comfort drink and think about it. EVERYTHING CHANGES … at least for now. People get a windfall. The DOD is stopped in its tracks. The MIC has to completely rethink and retool. And we can actually talk about things that matter to most Americans. The entire two-party duopoly gets turned on its head. Why? Because 99% of the establishment candidates from the two major parties will refuse to go along with this. They’ll fight it tooth, nail, cloak, dagger, go nuclear, go INSANE! I already know the kaka that they’ll be spewing. You do too. You hear it every time anybody wants to do something for THE PEOPLE of this country.

Listen, folks. We’ve got nothing to lose here. Here’s the worst case scenario . . .

Even if we don’t get our refund, if we got this in front of the public, if we got media to pay attention to this idea — and yes, if in 250 congressional races THIS was a big deal, it would be headline news on MSM —  for the first time in decades we’d be talking about the insanity and waste and lies surrounding the endless wars. We’d be talking about PEACE for a change! And maybe have a serious discussion about how truly screwed up the priorities are right now.

Please keep this thought front and center at all times: The Peace Dividend Project has a very specific goal. Stop the war machine before it destroys the country and possibly all life on the planet. Of course, I feel horrible for the people in Yemen, Ukraine, Syria, Venezuela, Cuba and all the other victims of U.S. military aggression and twisted foreign policies. But none of them are HERE in the belly of this horrible beast. None of them can vote. We start here and if we can stop the hate and lies inside our borders, we can start spreading the love and truth outside our borders. Maybe the world will forgive us our sins and we can get a fresh start.

By the way, if you want to participate in the Peace Dividend Project, please sign up here . . .

Join us in making the world safer and more peaceful.

[ This originated at the author's personal website . . . https://jdrachel.com ]

People Power – Part 4: The Peace Dividend Strategy | John Rachel

People Power – Part 3: The Fraud of Endless War

There is not a single war or serious military confrontation since WWII involving the U.S. that needed to be fought. Every single conflict where soldiers and civilians suffered death or injury was — and is in the case of the ongoing fighting — unnecessary. These battles for territory, control, resources, subjugation, spite, are the direct result of greed, hubris, racist arrogance, ideological fanaticism, sometimes just pure ego. Predictably, we hear high sounding rhetoric in every instance about spreading democracy, safeguarding freedom, responsibility to protect, defending our national interests, rules based international order, yakkety yak blah blah blah. It’s all just spin to manufacture acquiescence and consent, to get us sheeple to stand down and let the warmongers and empire builders, the MIC and the war industry, have their way.

Those in the peace movement know the specific details rendered with this next graphic well. People who are preoccupied with living life and overcoming its many obstacles might dismiss it as fake news. But very tragically, it’s entirely factual. The U.S. just can’t stop attacking others.

There are three fundamental reasons why the U.S. is a belligerent, bullying aggressor, or as Martin Luther King, Jr. famously summed it up, “The greatest purveyor of violence in the world: my own government … I cannot be silent.”

Thus there are three reasons we are perpetually at war. These will be explored in greater depth in subsequent articles. But for now . . .

IDEOLOGICAL DRIVERS OF ENDLESS WAR

There has never been a shortage in recorded history of master race ideologies. We find them even enshrined in religious texts. The U.S. has its share of such doctrinal canons, each couched in marvelous language and noble-sounding rhetoric, promoted by a host of noted individuals and organizations, e.g. Paul Wolfowitz, Zbigniew Brzezinski, Council on Foreign Relations, Project for the New American Century, all anointing the U.S. as the indispensable nation, the world’s rightful heir as the master overlord. There is no ambiguity or nuance here. America has formally declared itself as the supreme authority over the entire planet. The latest buzz phrase is “rules-based order”, which effectively means the U.S. will make the rules to establish the order in the world, everyone else will obey or face the consequences. Those consequences take the form of economic or military terrorism, buttressed by the U.S. dollar as the world reserve currency and the awesome might of the largest military in the history of the world.

SOCIAL AND POLITICAL CONTROL DRIVERS OF ENDLESS WAR

Defending the homeland and war command our attention. They focus our energy, steel our resolve, unify us, add purpose and drama to otherwise mundane day-to-day life. They play on our most basic instincts for survival and protection of what’s dear to us. But on the flip side, they also shut down critical faculties, create a visceral bond with the worst aspects of human nature, and open the door for tyrannical control and elimination of basic freedoms and rights. War unites us alright . . . in fear, suffering, misery, deprivation, shame, anger, suspicion, hate, paranoia, dehumanization and death.

ECONOMIC DRIVERS OF ENDLESS WAR

There are huge fortunes to be made with war. Conquered nations can be plundered. At home, those who invest in war industries will see magnificent returns. The more war, the greater the profits. It’s no secret that military conflict is encouraged, in fact driven, by profiteers on Wall Street and from within the defense contractors themselves. There’s a rotating door between those who head up defense companies and those who sit at the seats of power shaping policy and making the decisions which countries will be demonized, intimidated and attacked. Our current economic/political model incentivizes an unruly, aggressive, confrontational foreign policy and generously rewards the creation of war zones and arenas of conflict.

WHO NEEDS FRIENDS IF WE CAN HAVE ENEMIES?

It is often said that the U.S. cannot be without an enemy. This is only partially accurate. More to the point, it is the military-industrial complex that can’t be without an enemy. NATO’s massive bureaucracy and whole reason for existing cannot be without an enemy. What’s the point of the enormously bloated U.S. military, with its 800+ overseas bases, its vast fleets of battle ships and submarines, its vast array of military satellites and surveillance centers, its psyops and special ops and secret ops, its carving up the entire world into combatant command zones if there isn’t an enemy? Here’s how the U.S. sees the world.

Let’s bear in mind what all of this means by looking at the big picture.

The entire Imperial Project — world rule by the U.S. as a self-declared hegemon — is at its core and at every layer anti-democratic. It replaces self-determination in the countries we dominate with our authoritarian control — a polite phrase for totalitarian subjugation — making it ironic and odiously cynical that the U.S. claims to spread democracy in the world, when it regularly overthrows democratically-elected governments, then replaces them with despots which do our bidding.

Just as tragically, the decision to be an empire, the entire program of global domination, mocks the idea of democracy in America itself, It was conceived of and initiated by a tiny minority of power-drunk, monomaniacal, avaricious psychopaths, supported by a ruling elite which sees conquest and plunder as just another day at the office. Put simply and directly: We as citizens never voted for any of this. And if we understood the true nature and agenda of the Imperial Project, we would without hesitation or equivocation entirely reject it and the misery and impoverishment it ultimately entails, both domestically and overseas.

Right here at home, the Imperial Project by forcing its agenda on U.S. citizens, obliging us to underwrite it every single day of our lives with in-kind and out-of-pocket cash payments of our hard-earned dollars, coupled with the loss of freedom and opportunity, a complete silencing of the voice and priorities of everyday citizens, is at its core and at every layer anti-democratic, despotic, and exploitative. We as citizens have become an ATM machine for the warmongering lunatics trouncing other countries across the globe. We are indentured slaves to a militarized economy which requires war to function, frightened subjects of a regime that creates enemies everywhere, pawns of a power game and calculated strategy to set us against one another, a social/political climate intentionally engineered to maintain “total spectrum domination”, meaning totalitarian control even within our own borders.

Maybe the idea of a benevolent, enlightened, inspired and visionary U.S. leading the world into a new age of affluence and harmony, guided by the best principles of democracy and driven by shared humanitarian values seems appealing. But it’s an illusion. It’s an illusion fostered by massive deceptions, propaganda, brainwashing, engineered for our compliance and complicity in the madness that has overtaken our governing institutions. Read the speeches of the mentors for this type of hyper-nationalistic insanity, the architects of the Third Reich, and see how closely they align with the promises of our current batch of build-back-better-make-America-great-again demagogues. Creepily, ‘Aryan super race’ and ‘American exceptionalism’ are bedfellows, the spawn of the same lunatic delusions. ‘Indispensable’ is nothing but code for ‘1000 year Reich’.

Yes, that avuncular icon at the top, embraced, lauded, and emulated by the patronizers of a naive, trusting and gullible citizenry, is pointing at us, you and I, entreating us to be a part of a sinister plan to take over the world.

We better make the right choice . . . while we still can make a choice.

Time is running out.

[ This originated at the author's personal website . . . https://jdrachel.com ]

People Power – Part 3: The Fraud of Endless War | John Rachel

No Excuse For Ignorance

I’m well aware of the deluge of lies, misinformation, disinformation, historical amnesia, ideological bias, and pure tribal hatred for Russia and Vladimir Putin, which saturates the media, with any mention of Russia, Ukraine, NATO, and the EU, by politicians, celebrities, commentators, every talking head who gets shoved in our faces via TV and the internet.

I’m going to make an audacious, totally irrefutable, unequivocal statement about all of this: There is absolutely no excuse for the ignorance which has become new normal for our fake thought leaders and authorities. Moreover, there is no excuse for any thinking person, any citizen who can read at a high school level or above — any of us everyday folks — to be taken in by the current phony narrative about Russia and its relationship to the U.S.

It is degrading and insulting to the intelligence and common decency of anyone with a functioning brain to be so callously manipulated, so frightened, so stampeded into the group-think which unabashedly promotes hatred, suspicion, divisiveness, fear; requires unwavering agreement, silencing anyone from even asking sensible, obvious questions; which embraces perpetual war, even casually talks about nuclear war; which demands absolute, unbending loyalty and obedience, our bowing down to leaders and self-anointed authorities who are provably either clinically insane or colossally incompetent . . . or both.

The good news is we don’t have to go along with this charade.

Finding out the truth is simple. It will require: 1) turning off your TV, and taking a healthy break from social media, internet news, Twitter, chat groups, YouTube and its numerous spinoffs; and 2) reading three books.

These three books are not difficult to read. They are extremely well-written, accessible, full of vital facts, information, and explanations. They are not ponderous academic works. Read with genuine curiosity and open-mindedness, they are pleasurable reading.

I do have to caution you. Because much of what you’ll discover will not fit the “official narrative” — which last time I checked was 99 and 44/100 percent pure fabrication — you’re going to have your eyebrows raised quite a few times; you might occasionally get upset — because discovering people you trusted have been lying through their teeth is never pleasant; you will probably, and justifiably so, have a lot of thinking and rethinking to do. But trust me, it will be worth every minute of it. I believe much of what now troubles and puzzles you, what now leaves you confused and stressed about current crises and the prospects for major war, your understandable fears about the coming economic meltdown and what are the real causes for such a catastrophe, questions about who runs our country and what drives its current self-destructive policies, will finally get some sensible answers. At least you’ll understand why we’re in the mess we’re in, and have a good idea what needs to be done . . . for your own good and that of your family and community.

Here are the three books:

Just today I finished the late Stephen F. Cohen’s War With Russia? Sadly he passed away a little over two years ago. This was his last book. It’s an incredible work. He could have written it yesterday, because everything he says is totally relevant today, perhaps even more so. From the publisher: “Prescient and even more relevant than when originally released in 2019, this Memorial Edition of War With Russia? provides keen perspective to help readers understand the current Ukraine crisis. Are we in a new Cold War with Russia? Does Vladimir Putin really want to destabilize the West? War With Russia? answers these questions and more.”

Dan Kovalik is a dedicated peace activist, and has been a labor and human rights lawyer since graduating from Columbia Law School in 1993. He has represented plaintiffs in ATS cases arising out of egregious human rights abuses in South America. He received the David W. Mills Mentoring Fellowship from Stanford Law School, and has lectured throughout the world. The Plot to Scapegoat Russia is part of a series of excellent books which exposes the underbelly of U.S. foreign policy: The Plot to Attack Iran, The Plot to Control the World, The Plot to Overthrow Venezuela, and No More War: How the West Violates International Law by Using ‘Humanitarian’ Intervention to Advance Economic and Strategic Interests.

Ron Ridenour was born in the US Military Empire, 1939. After four years in the Air Force, in 1961 he rejected the American Dream, and has since acted as an anti-war, anti-racist and solidarity radical activist (Long Hot Summer, 1964, in Mississippi; Wounded Knee AIM 1973; anti-Vietnam war coordinator in Los Angeles). He has lived in many countries and worked as a journalist-editor-author-translator for five decades, including for Cuba’s Editorial José Martí and Prensa Latina (1988-96). His The Russian Peace Threat: Pentagon on Alert is truly a seminal work, a must read for anyone who wants a solid understanding of how Russia became “the enemy”, plunging us into a second Cold War, the ugly fruits of which we now see in Ukraine.

We often heard it said that truth wins out. Yes, the truth will set us free.

That’s true. But only if we can get to it. In an age of false flags and fake news, psyops like MKUltra and Operation Gladio, coupled with the wholesale capture of “official” media — e.g. the New York Times and Washington Post — by the national security agencies, it most certainly isn’t always easy. At least in terms of the accelerating hostility and potential hot war between the US and Russia, I’ve tried to make it much easier.

If these books make you angry, that’s a good sign. It means you’re a rational, sensible, caring, morally sound person.

[ This originated at the author's personal website . . . https://jdrachel.com ]

No Excuse For Ignorance | John Rachel

World War III is coming . . . LET’S DANCE!

We are sleepwalking into the greatest catastrophe in human history.

More accurately, we may be sleepwalking into the end of human history. The end of everything. Period!

Leaders in the US, NATO and the EU have openly stated they intend the Ukraine conflict to go on for a very long time. And remember, this is not about Ukraine. Zelensky is a joke, which makes sense, because he used to be a comedian. He’s perfectly qualified to be a joke. But these days he’s not funny. At all!

Russia does not want war. Russia does not want any of the animosity coming from the West. I can give hundreds of examples of Russia trying to cooperate with us. Now they’re simply fed up. They’re not going to tolerate the lies and broken promises anymore.

US and its NATO allies want to destroy Russia. That’s it in a nutshell. They have all along. Russia did not start this war. US and NATO gave Russia no alternative but to invade.

And the lunatics who are pushing for this will risk everything. They are even talking about nuclear war becoming more inevitable.

Are you getting this? Do you see where we’re headed?

We have one option: Removing these crazies from power. Appealing to them is ridiculous. They’re not listening. They don’t care what we sane and sensible people think. Period! They only know war and conquest. Now it’s destroy Russia and steal everything. Next it’s destroy China and steal everything. If we don’t all die in a nuclear holocaust, we will be in the middle of permanent war and slaughter for the next 20 years.

If there are any serious plans for stopping these maniacs, I’m not aware of them. The Peace Dividend strategy is a long shot. But as far as I can see, it’s all we have. You’ve heard the pleas emanating from the current peace movement . . . “Oh pretty please! Stop the wars. No more bombing Yemen. Bring the troops home. Let’s all be nice to one another!”

You want to see how well this will work? Try telling an anteater to stop eating ants. Next time there’s a thunderstorm, stand on your porch and yell at the clouds. 

So what’s with the title? Well, I have been known to venture into sarcasm . . . at least a few times.

Truth is, I’m completely overwhelmed, underwhelmed, shocked, numb, and baffled. Thus, if everyone now being subjected to the 24/7 barrage of war propaganda, runaway inflation, food shortages, elementary school shootings, a crumbling economy, a totally inept and corrupt governing class, Covid-19 fear porn, monkeypox fear porn, now even casual talk about throwing nukes into the equation . . . yes, if everyone one night just went out into the streets, all 330 million of us, and started dancing, honestly? . . . IT WOULD COME AS NO SURPRISE!

Because THAT’S how nuts everything is these days!

But you know what? Quite honestly, it would be phenomenal to see such a show of unity — as surreal a show as it might be. Because for a few happy moments at least, or however long our little street party lasted, we wouldn’t be at each other’s throats, we’d stop the yelling and blaming and hating, and instead be showing off our best dance moves, shaking our booties, and just having a darn good time. I think it’s a great idea!

Which is my way of saying that more than ever before, we need to stand shoulder-to-shoulder, back-to-back, belly-to-belly, embrace and celebrate what we have in common, and put aside all differences that ultimately aren’t that important. We need to feel human again. We need to fully appreciate one another and understand that unified we are strong, divided we are weak and just pawns in someone else’s game, and that someone else sees us as “expendables”, just cannon fodder in wars to protect their wealth and power. We need to see who the real enemies are. Don’t be fooled by the lies. It’s not you and I that are the problem. We don’t start wars, we don’t crash the economy, we don’t loot the Treasury, we don’t jack up the contagiousness of viruses and inflict them on the rest of humankind, we don’t deprive one another of our share of the vast wealth of this country.

So getting together, whether it’s to dance, or to protest the abuses and humiliations we all endure just trying to survive, or to show up en masse at the polls and vote the pay-for-play lapdogs of the rich and powerful out of office, or to just talk to one another and try to sort out the mess our country is in — yes, getting together — is exactly what we must be doing!

It’s not just a pretty thought. Frankly it’s a matter of survival!

These wars will never end until we the people end them. Or the wars end us.

Yes, it’s that bad. And getting worse by the day.

You think I’m exaggerating? When is the last time you heard any of these blabbermouths on TV, in the media, or in government talk about … wait for it … (drumroll) … PEACE?

I rest my case.

Not long ago I came across a video that turns me into a crying old fool every time I watch it. And I won’t tell you how many times that is. It’s embarrassing and I’m surprised I’m not a dehydrated pile of talcum powder. Check it out!

First off, some things are SO BEAUTIFUL, only tears can express the total profound joy I’m feeling. Such a magnificent song, with such a powerful message! Seeing every size and shape musician, from across the globe, every color and religion and culture, come together just to make great music, to make Cat Stevens’ work of genius come alive again. Whew!

But there’s a darker side to my tears. Cat Stevens performed this the last time in America at the height of his popularity, near the end of his legendary North America tour. That was 1976. Meaning this amazing call for peace has been around for close to a half century. And look at the state the world is in. As inspiring as this masterpiece was back then, we never got on the “peace train”. Now forty-five years later. No peace train. No peace.

And that’s also something to cry about.

[ This originated at the author's personal website . . . https://jdrachel.com ]

World War III is coming . . . LET’S DANCE! | John Rachel

The future is so bright . . .

Idiots in power! (I try not to judge people by their looks
but I have to be honest. These people are scary!)

Above are just some of the people in positions of enormous influence and power who are promoting the war in the Ukraine. Make no mistake about it. They couldn’t care less about Ukraine or the Ukrainian people. What they truly care about is destroying Russia.

Contrary to what 111.99% of what is reported in the Western MSM, Russia did not want this conflict. Putin did not want to “invade” Ukraine. Putin and the Kremlin do not want to kill innocent Ukrainian citizens. Russia does not want to take over and occupy Ukraine.

Russia was FORCED intentionally into this military action. This nightmare is the product of US/NATO provocation, intimidation, aggression, all engineered at minimum to give Russia a bloody nose, at maximum to liquidate Russia as an independent country.

So where is this heading?

Everyone in the idiot gallery above is for sending more arms to Ukraine. Of course, arming Ukraine with lethal weaponry, the threat of Ukraine arming itself with nuclear weapons, is what made it necessary for Russia to destroy the Ukrainian military — which is what it is now doing — because it had become an existential threat. So what’s the solution proposed by the above brain trust for addressing the crisis? How do they propose fixing this mess?

More arms . . . more weapons . . . more threats to Russia!

“Gee, what started that apartment building on fire, chief?”

“Apparently, open cans of gasoline and kerosene in the basement.”

“Well, gosh darn, there’s only one option. Let’s pour more gasoline and kerosene into the building and see what happens.”

Several of the idiots in the scary collage above have moreover suggested that NATO and the US establish a no-fly zone over Ukraine. Which will mean — please give this your full attention — US/NATO planes and missiles deployed to shoot down Russian aircraft. Translation: Direct engagement, military conflict — yes, war! — with Russia.

Gee . . . how will this turn out?

After decade after decade of bombing; after twenty years of the War on Terror; a meltdown of the economy in 2008-2009; two years and counting of Covid-19 technocratic terrorism still hovering over us like a sledgehammer; with a coming economic meltdown which will make 2008 look like a rounding error; with the raucous, maniacal, increasingly fever-pitch pounding of war drums and shrill harangues against Russia and China; with a Congress and White House apparently inhabited by the certifiably insane (again just look at the above collection of whackos) . . . hmm. Whaddya think?

What will the future look like?

My prediction is that if we keep going the way we are, the future will indeed be . . . bright!

Very bright! And hot! Here’s how I imagine it’ll turn out . . .

[ This originated at the author's personal website . . . https://jdrachel.com ]

The future is so bright . . . | John Rachel

The Peace Dividend: Could It Really Happen?

 

I came up with the Peace Dividend strategy over two years ago.  At the time, recognizing that the plan was -- to say the least -- very radical, completely unprecedented, totally outside-the-box, I thought that if it had even the slimmest chance of getting any traction, it was going to be a long and winding road to successfully "sell" and implement it.

To get the plan underway requires that we package peace in an entirely different way, that instead of only appealing to individual conscience, we target individual self-interest.

This is not meant to be cynical.  It's not that people don't care about suffering.  It's that most individuals care first about the suffering of those immediately around them, not that of those in far flung nations they can barely find on a map.

The Peace Dividend strategy is a bottoms-up, grass-roots approach especially targeting those on the bottom of our economy -- the 160+ million who are hovering around or are below the poverty line -- because these folks are most devastated by the economic impact of our war economy.

The Peace Dividend strategy is about letting citizens know what's really going on with the military waste and the endless wars, and making them very angry!  Angry enough to do something about it, certainly for their country, but most of all for themselves and their families -- those whose suffering they see every single day in the struggle for survival.

Such a citizen's "uprising" would be premised on generating a widespread, critical mass understanding that in terms of America's prosecution of wars, aggressive foreign policy, promoting militarism both overseas and here at home, we as citizens are "being lied to", we are victims of a huge scam, that the "system is rigged", that a bunch of "insiders" are running the show who couldn't care less what the general public considered important, what we as regular citizens wanted done.

Do "being lied to", "system is rigged", "insiders are running the show" sound familiar?

Trump's election as president, leaves little doubt that a large segment of the population, viewing our government establishment as a whole, do indeed believe those things.  It's obvious to anyone paying attention that everyday citizens are being taken advantage of, that we have been and continue to be had by a ruling elite, that they will suck every last drop of blood out of the American economy and us individually if we let them.

Therefore, I'm now convinced that if we as peace advocates make the case for the Peace Dividend with boldness and clarity, it is all but inevitable.  Yes!  It could really happen.

As rigorously documented in The Peace Dividend: The Most Controversial Proposal in the History of the World, the military-industrial-security complex allied with a lunatic inner circle within our foreign policy institutions have perpetrated over the past two-and-a-half decades the most odious fraud in history.  This conservatively amounts to stealing $4.82 trillion of tax payer money.  We have every right to and should demand not only that the deception and theft immediately end, but that as victims of this swindle we as citizens be compensated.  We deserve and demand full reimbursement:  The Peace Dividend Refund.



I consider the beauty of my approach to voicing our outrage and asserting our rights as citizens is that it is entirely legal, based completely on the official facts published by our government, assiduously aligned with the Constitution -- therefore not able to be labeled insurrectionist or illegal -- and consistent with democracy based on government of the people, by the people, for the people.

I'm not going to condense a mercifully short but still 86-page-long book for this article. What I will do is give you the "big picture" so that you don't so casually dismiss the idea.

RECOGNIZE:  No current elected official will go along with the Peace Dividend proposal. They and their ruling class puppeteers will oppose it with every dirty trick in the book.

CONSIDER:  When everyday people understand that they've been ripped off, defrauded, bilked out of at least $4.82 trillion, there might be a little bit of anger out there.

ACKNOWLEDGE:  When everyday people realize they have the power to demand this fraudulently collected tax payer money back in the form of a $14,952 refund to each and every living citizen, they might just get a little excited.  In fact, if the word gets around, I predict they will immediately, forcefully, uncompromisingly demand their money back -- every last dollar!

Let's put this together. The VOTING public demands their Peace Dividend refund.  The incumbents cannot, will not even fake interest in giving in to such an outrageous demand. They will dodge and lie and rail against it.  The VOTING public sees this as more evidence that the "system is rigged", that "they are getting shafted", that they are again being had by the establishment blowhards who never do anything for everyday citizens.  Here we have the seeds, the tinder for a MASSIVE VOTER REVOLT.  We unite these angry, frustrated voters into a VOTING BLOC, rejecting business as usual -- fraud as usual! -- behind the demand of justice and fair compensation in the form of a Peace Dividend Refund.  As a result, the vast majority of corporate lapdog incumbents are defeated and replaced by OUTSIDERS who agree to go to Washington DC and put into law . . .

The Peace Dividend Refund Act of 2019!

Sound at all familiar?  Sort of the way an OUTSIDER got elected to president, via a voter revolt that basically said:  "Fuck you! We're sick of it. The hell with politics as usual."

Is this mere fantasy?  In these outlandish, ridiculous times?  Really?

I think it's pretty clear.  And it will especially true after Trump and the current pack of bloodthirsty, Wall Street/ruling class puppets in Congress totally muck everything up.

People are going to be ripe for revenge!  They'll want their money back, I guarantee you!

By the way, please take a few minutes and look at the way the Peace Dividend is funded.  You will note that it drives a lot of the very things on any sensible progressive reform wish list.  Meaning, the Peace Dividend is a watershed for revamping the way our government does business.  I would think that alone would make it worth the time to carefully study, with an open and alert mind, and some creative engagement.

I know that marching in the streets, getting clubbed, pepper-sprayed, manhandled and arrested, are good times and all.  But a lot of people are working two or three jobs just to make ends meet, and can't join in on the fun.  All the Peace Dividend strategy requires is that people look at it, then stand strong and united -- stick up for themselves and other good decent American citizens who have been getting the shaft -- then go into the voting booth and only vote for candidates who give us a legally-binding guarantee that they will go to Washington DC and do what needs to be done.

And even if a lot of folks have extremely demanding schedules -- thus are too busy to fly to Washington DC to attend a peace rally -- I'm confident most will find the time to deposit $14,952 in their bank account.  

How about you?


[ This originated at the author's personal website . . . http://jdrachel.com ]



The Peace Dividend: Could It Really Happen?

War Games

 

I have been saying for some time that the U.S. wants a war with Russia.

Why? Because if it can cut Russia down to size, then the only country standing between America and total global domination is China. China and Russia have been cozying up lately.  Together they are a formidable threat. Take out Russia, China becomes a manageable opponent.  That's how the theory goes.

Let's cut to recent events.

Terrorist attack in Paris.  Refugee crisis escalates in Europe.  Russia is on the job offering serious opposition to ISIL.  France and other European countries are finally talking about working cooperatively with Russia to defeat ISIS.

French Prime Minister Hollande is scheduled to meet in the next few days with Putin to put their heads together and coordinate their military campaigns against the terrorists.

Turkey blows a Russian fighter jet out of the sky. Its F-16 were laying in wait. Probably the Russian fighter never crossed into Turkish air space. Even if it did, it was even by Turkey's own admission only allegedly in Turkish territory for 17 seconds.

In any case, blam! . . . down goes the plane.

IMMEDIATELY, Turkey turns to NATO -- America's proxy fighters -- to obtain unanimous support and approval for its unquestionably reprehensible deed.

Why?

Because under the terms of the NATO agreement, if any nation belonging to the alliance is attacked, it is regarded as an attack on all members and they must then fight together as a unified force against the alleged aggressor.

Are you seeing now how this works?

Russia had without any reasonable or legal justification one of its planes shot down.

Understandably, Putin has publicly announced that from this point forward, it will defend itself against any threat to its forces in Syria.  It now has a naval ship in the area with the deadly S-300 air defense system, and is sending the even more effective S-400 air defense system to the Syrian base in Latakia.

Voila!

If Russia shoots back in defense under any real or perceived threat -- like Turkish F-16s or Turkish ground defense locking Russian planes with target seeking radar -- in theory all of NATO must oppose it.

Total war!

Merry Christmas Ashton Carter, Victoria Nuland, and all of the other loathsome, wicked, hate-filled, neocon warmongers in our government.  Yeah, you get your big war, just like you wanted.

You don't think Mr. Peace Prize Prez is playing a role in this provocative and extremely dangerous scenario?  Right after the plane was shot down, Obama expressed no criticism of Turkey.  Instead, he asserted that "Turkey, like every country, has a right to defend its territory and its airspace."  Moreover, it is implausible that Turkey did this without either the knowledge or prompting of the U.S. government.  Understand that Obama has been on board with the Pax Americana imperialist program of conquest for most of his presidency. If not, how can you justify his precipitating and lying about the crisis in Ukraine.  How else can you interpret the buildup of troops right on Russia's borders, a direct provocation and chest-beating flaunting of our military power?  How else can you explain his unnecessary, counter-productive pivot to Asia, a publicly announced strategy for "containing" China?

Now the holiday season is upon us. We'll all be enjoying the cheer, the time together with family and friends, exchanging gifts, playing Trivial Pursuit, Monopoly, Risk, Scrabble, Candyland and Boggle.

Just so you know, while you're having all sorts of innocent fun, here we have the lethal game our crazed leadership is playing.

But this particular game is not fun for the whole family.

War games will mean fewer members of your family to enjoy the holiday season next year.


[ This originated at the author's personal website . . . http://jdrachel.com ]

War Games