Here we are, three weeks into an undeclared, pointless war, and the story just keeps getting stranger. I've been avoiding the topic for the sake of my sanity, but I did want to comment on a couple developments.
First, there's the odd juxtaposition of Joe Kent and Tulsi Gabbard. The latter made a name for herself campaigning on being against unnecessary wars, but her actions show her real principles lie elsewhere. The former actually resigned over the pointless war he was told to justify. Brave The New World has a superb breakdown of this contrast.
Joe Kent will never work in this administration again. Trump called him "weak on security" within hours. The White House called him a "crazed egomaniac." AIPAC and the ADL tagged him as an antisemite. [...] A former Green Beret and CIA paramilitary officer. His wife Shannon was killed by a suicide bomber in Syria in 2019. Trump personally nominated him to lead the National Counterterrorism Center. [...] He was, by every measure, a MAGA loyalist.
I disagreed with Gabbard on many things, but I used to somewhat respect her anyway.
Used to.
No more.
Another person I once categorized as someone with whom I often disagreed, but somewhat respected, is Tucker Carlson. Unlike Gabbard, he has earned somewhat more respect over the same timeframe. I don't totally trust him by any means, but he seems to retain a sense of journalistic integrity which is largely dead in modern news media. Now, he is apparently under investigation for treason.
Why?
Long before the US was definitely not at war with Iran despite doing war things, Carlson was doing his job as a journalist by trying to talk with foreign officials. Remember the controversy over his interview with Vladimir Putin? He was allegedly in contact with Iranian leadership for similar purposes last year. As a result, some MAGA sycophants want him charged with rendering aid and comfort to this undeclared enemy.
If Tucker really worked with Iran against America’s interests he is a traitor and should be prosecuted.
Here's Carlson's view on the matter.
Talking to people isn't treason. The First Amendment in the Bill of Rights is supposed to protect journalists from federal interference. We still have no declaration of war now, much less last year. The Trump regime is dedicated to power, not truth or law.
It also seems it was definitely a US tomahawk missile that killed almost 200 people in that Iranian school, so that's something MAGA must reckon with at some point. Collateral damage on that scale would be seen as a war crime under any other circumstances. Hell, if Iranian missiles killed scores of Israeli schoolchildren when they shot back after being attacked, there would be no end to the outcry. But dead girls are just par for the course now under US policy?
Oh, one last thought: how do I get idiots with Trump bumper stickers to pay for my gas now that prices have nearly doubled locally? They're so proud of their guy, so they can bear the burden.
I don't really know how to close this little rant, so here's a meme I found in the wild.
I have a post or two in the works with more jewelry I made, now that photos have been cropped and resized, so keep an eye out for that soon.
UPDATE: Two Ways to Make Necklaces has been published.
Yeah, America the land of the free - my ass. Only if you're a sychophant, as you say.
Trouble is, where can one go? Emigrating from the US isn't easy either, and every other country has its own issues, including being subject to the whims of US foreign policy.
And despite my complaints, freedom varies by state, and one can escape some issues by moving within the US.
It's your country - you shouldn't be in a position where you're forced to leave it. You're right that every country has it's issues. It's just hilarious how the propaganda machine has positioned us to see China and other nation states as propagandists but now it's all quite clear to everyone that every country flies it's bullshit. Hopefully Australia doesn't follow you into war like it has every other time.
Australia is a lot closer to Iran than we are, but I don't see any real reason for them to join unless the UK decides to have a commonwealth reunion and join World War 3.
EDIT: There's a reference I needed to find. Why should I change where I live? The government is the ones who suck.
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