Sorrowful day for peace largely ignored thruout America

 Sorrowful day for peace largely ignored thruout America

The New Start Treaty between Russia and US expires today and America largely yawned. Big story on mainstream news? Faggedaboudit. Ask the person on the street about New Start and he might mutter something about giving disadvantaged kids free comprehensive early childhood education. Wait, wait…that’s Head Start.

Nope, New Start is the 16 year old treaty Obama signed with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on February 8, 2010. It caps the number of nuclear warheads each side can deploy at 1,550 and limits the number of deployed and non-deployed strategic launchers to 800. Still enough for either side to incinerate us all, but prevents a senseless arms race and symbolic of the critical need to reduce nuclear tensions.

But limited US Russian nuclear arsenals go back 54 years as 2010 Russian New Start signer Medvedev reminded us yesterday. “That’s it. For the first time since 1972, Russia (the former USSR) and the US have no treaty limiting strategic nuclear forces. SALT 1, SALT 2, START I, START II, SORT, New START – All in the past, winter is coming.”

President Trump rebuffed Russian President Putin’s offer to extend the limits for another year for sensible diplomacy to negotiate a new treaty.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio used the lame excuse that any new treaty must include China. But with a nuclear arsenal a pittance of the two nuclear giants, China demurred saying any treaty involving China must include US Russian nuclear stockpiles reduced to China’s level. Rubio knew his requirement was a poison pill deal breaker for any new extension of New Start.

Dumping nuclear agreements is nothing new for Trump. He left office in January 20, 2021 ignoring New Start’s eminent expiration. Successor Biden promptly renewed New Start for 5 years, exactly 5 years ago today. This time Trump has succeeded in letting it expire on his watch.

This gives Trump a trifecta in dumping critically needed nuclear agreements. In August 2019 Trump withdrew from the Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty that banned all land-based missiles with ranges between 500 and 5,500 km. . In November 2020, just before leaving office, Trump withdrew from the 2002 Open Skies Treaty which allowed the US and Russia to conduct short-notice, unarmed reconnaissance flights over each other's territory to monitor military activities.

The only positive glimmer to put on Trump’s refusal to extend New Start, even for a measly year to negotiate a long term agreement? Trump has no more nuclear agreements to withdraw from in the last sorrowful 3 years of his second term.

This January the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists moved the Doomsday Clock, symbolic of approaching global catastrophe, to 85 seconds to Midnight, the closest in its 79 year history. With Trump president, the Bulletin might want to quickly reconvene for another gander at our march toward world annihilation. Next January, none of us might around to hear the 2027 announcement.

Walt Zlotow West Suburban Peace Coalition Glen Ellyn IL

DePetris views America’s 66 years of degrading Cuban people largely from America’s perspective, not American imposed Cuban suffering

DePetris views America’s 66 years of degrading Cuban people largely from America’s perspective, not American imposed Cuban suffering

 

The Chicago Tribune’s foreign affairs columnist Daniel DePetris continues to do a disservice educating Tribune readers on America’s illegal, immoral and criminal foreign policies degrading, destroying numerous countries.

 

Case in point is his commentary ‘What kind of deal is the US looking for in Cuba?’

 

For DePetris, it’s all about US foreign policy interests without any mention of their illegality, immorality and criminality.

 

He begins by referencing how America’s murderous Venezuelan policy, killing over 200 in the boat bombings and capture of sitting Venezuelan President Maduro, is a “a force-multiplier for the administration’s Cuba policy, which centers on increasing economic pressure on the island until its aging rulers either wither away or negotiate their own demise. 

 

It may be a “force multiplier”, but it’s in service of another notch on America’s murderous, criminal regime change belt that toppled Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria, Venezuela regimes and hopefully soon Cuba and Iran regimes. DePetris writes in such neutral, clinical terms that the uneducated have nary a clue of how degrading, indeed murderous, US policy truly is on hundreds of millions worldwide.

Only at the end does DePetris point out “normalizing the U.S.-Cuba relationship would be the most effective and least costly policy proposal on the table.” Most effective and least costly for whom? The United States of course, not the Cuban people who may suffer anther 66 years unless sensible commentators push back. That certainly does not include Daniel DePetris.

 

DePetris inadvertently refutes 66 years of America’s shameful Cuban policy degrading life for its 11 million people by stating the obvious that applies to all aforementioned 5 states regimes America deposed: “Cuba isn’t a real national security threat to the United States anyway, (and)  can’t possibly compete with U.S. primacy”.

 

Sadly, the Chicago Tribune has long ceased editorializing on US foreign policy, the most critical existential issue facing Americans. Instead, the Trib has outsourced foreign affairs to Daniel DePetris, a proponent of US exceptionalism, who will never challenge America’s annual trillion dollar war machine wreaking havoc worldwide.

 

Walt Zlotow  West Suburban Peace Coalition  Glen Ellyn IL 

Trump to Congress: ’I don’t need your stinkin’ approval to fund Israeli genocide in Gaza’

 Trump to Congress: ’I don’t need your stinkin’ approval to fund Israeli genocide in Gaza’

Trump is so anxious to continue funding Israel’s genocide of Palestinians Gaza that he won’t wait for customary congressional approval.
 
He authorized a mammoth weapons tranche of $6.5 billion to Israel which includes:
·          AH-64E Apache Helicopters and related equipment costing $3.8 billion
·         Joint Light Tactical Vehicle and related equipment costing $1.98 billion
·         Armored Personnel Carrier equipment and related logistics support costing $740 million
·         AW119Kx Light Utility Helicopters and related equipment costing $150 million
 
Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY), the ranking member of the House oversight committee, blasted Trump’s action.
 “Just one hour ago, the Trump administration informed me it would disregard congressional oversight and years of standing practice, and immediately notify over $6 billion in arms sales to Israel. Shamefully, this is now the second time the Trump administration has blatantly ignored long-standing Congressional prerogatives while also refusing to engage Congress on critical questions about the next steps in Gaza and broader US policy,”
 
Trump has no interest in using our tax dollars to fund decent health care, education, affordable housing, green energy, infrastructure; indeed everything needed to uplift the commons. But like predecessor Biden did when Israeli Prime Minister calls for more genocide weapons, Trump listens…then stands and delivers. 

Walt Zlotow West Suburban Peace Coalition Glen Ellyn IL