Jan 6, 2021: A 21st century Day of Infamy

It took nearly 41 years for the 20th Century Day of Infamy, December 7, 1941. But just over 20 for January 6, 2021, the 21st Century’s version.

The latter was infinitely worse. The 2,403 US military personnel killed shouldn’t have even been at Pearl Harbor. The US snatched Hawaii from the native Hawaiian natives in 1898, the first US move to become an imperial power. We had 2 reasons to commit that monstrous crime against Hawaii. We had to make Hawaii safe for Dole Pineapple and other rapacious US capitalists there. More importantly, Hawaii was the first leg of US entry into imperialism to compete with the UK, France, Germany, Belgium, Spain, among others. Pearl Harbor was a perfect launching pad for US power in the Pacific.

But January 6, 2021 nearly destroyed the American democratic experiment after 245 years. Had the Trump traitors breached the House chamber, Congressional blood would have flowed, allowing the Traitor In Chief to declare martial law, overturn his election defeat and remain in ruthless power.

Only astounding law enforcement bravery in the face of unrelenting sedition prevented Trump’s diabolical plan from succeeding.

Day of Infamy? Pearl Harbor has nothing on Trump Sedition Day.

McCarthy learned to govern? Please

Newly elected House Speaker Kevin McCarthy claimed the extraordinary 15 ballots to secure his House Speakership were good for the Party and country. “It’s taught us how to govern” McCarthy claimed.

For someone who’s been in Congress for 15 years to proclaim he’s finally learned how to govern is astonishing. What McCarthy did not say was that to become Speaker, he had to grovel before the Treason Wing of his party who disgrace the House and the country by even being present in the House chamber.

That should surprise no one. McCarthy joined with the majority of House Republicans in support of a Texas lawsuit to void the 2020 Presidential result by preventing Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin and Georgia voting the will of their electorates for Joe Biden. The Supreme Court waived off their frivolous effort to void the election.

He caved to all their pernicious demands having nothing to do with improving life in America. He gave them a one person ‘leave the Speakership’ card to initiate a snap vote to replace him. He ramped up the possibility of a government shutdown over insincere concern for fiscal responsibility. He encouraged their endless war on Social Security and Medicare.

Kevin McCarthy should have listened and learned from his Republican predecessor John Boehner who finally quit the Speakership in 2015, saying "This place (US House) was crazytown and I was the Mayor. It was populated by jackasses, and media hounds, and some normal citizens as baffled as I was about how we got trapped inside the city walls,. Every second of every day since Barack Obama became president I was fighting one batshit idea after another."

Crazytown, Speaker McCarthy? You ain’t seen nothing yet.

Chance for a more peaceful 2023?

Happy peaceful New Years. Let's hope 2023 is even just a tad better than 2022 on the peace front. That should not be difficult as last year was one of the most unpeaceful years in memory for the US.

2022 saw the US embark on new Cold Wars with both China over Taiwan, and Russia over Ukraine. To do so against the 2 other largest nuclear powers, who both issued red lines against US encroachment in their neighborhood, is reckless and inexplicable.

With China, the US blew up 50 years of the One China Policy, promising to go to war 8,000 miles from the Homeland to keep Taiwan independent. That simply ratcheted up threatening Chinese maneuvers over Taiwan never before seen.

With Russia, the US refused every sensible effort to prevent the Russian invasion by blowing up the Minsk II Accords giving autonomy to the beleaguered Russian speaking Ukrainians, and continuing to float NATO membership for Ukraine which could put US nukes just 7 minutes from Moscow.

Less likely to provoke nuclear confrontation, but provocative just the same, were very unpeaceful moves against North Korea, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Iran, Cuba, Venezuela, among others.

With North Korea, the US still proclaims ‘The sanctions will increase until all your nukes are destroyed.’ North Korea simply kept laughing at Uncle Sam, building more nukes and the ICBMs to deliver them.

In Syria, the US keeps 900 soldiers illegally occupying Syrian oil fields to steal Syria’s treasure and continue its 12 year long regime change effort.

In Yemen, the US continued for the 8th year to support Saudi Arabia’s war to control Yemen. Over 300,000 dead makes no dent on America’s conscious whatsoever.

While promising to return to the Iran Nuclear Agreement, President Biden reneged and increased the sanctions, in part because Iran is friendly to its neighbor and US enemy Russia.

Ditto for Biden’s promise to re-engage with Cuba after Trump overturned the Obama/Biden détente begun in 2013. Sanctions and embargo continued for the 62nd year, a campaign of malevolent cruelty against a wonderful people that disgraces America's worldwide standing.

Last year the US sent 500 US troops to Somalia and increased bombings by 30% to eradicate an imaginary threat to the Homeland.

Then America bragged about how many of those threatening Somalis we slaughtered.

Another decade’s long effort at regime change continued against Venezuela. After the hated socialist Nicholas Maduro won re-election in 2019, the US simply refused to accept the result. In its own version of Stop The Steal, we simply recognized US educated and Kennedy handsome Juan Guaido as the Venezuelan president. By the end of 2022 most of Venezuela and the world, except for America, have given up on American puppet Guaido. But America’s sanctions that have killed thousands and made life intolerable for millions, continue apace.

Yes, with just a tad bit of wisdom, decency and common sense, 2023 can see the US can turn the Titanic of perpetual war away from regime change, military adventurism and the looming specter of nuclear war. But we can’t count on it. As Pete Seeger sang in his anti Vietnam War song 'Waist Deep in the Big Muddy':

“We’re neck deep in the Big Muddy!

And the big fool says to push on”