alternet--2020-12-15--Will Biden’s America stop creating Terrorists?

Joe Biden will take command of the White House at a time when the American public is more concerned about battling coronavirus than fighting overseas wars .
But America 's wars rage on regardless , and the militarized counterterrorism policy Biden has supported in the past—based on airstrikes , special operations and the use of proxy forces—is precisely what keeps these conflicts raging .
In Afghanistan , Biden opposed Obama 's 2009 troop surge , and after the surge failed , Obama reverted to the policy that Biden favored to begin with , which became the hallmark of their war @ @ @ @ @ @ @ In insider circles , this was referred to as `` counterterrorism , '' as opposed to `` counterinsurgency . ''
In Afghanistan , that meant abandoning the large-scale deployment of U.S. forces , and relying instead on air strikes , drone strikes and special operations `` kill or capture '' raids , while recruiting and training Afghan forces to do nearly all the ground fighting and holding of territory .
In the 2011 Libya intervention , the NATO-Arab monarchist coalition embedded hundreds of Qatari special operations forces and Western mercenaries with the Libyan @ @ @ @ @ @ @ train local militias , including Islamist groups with links to Al Qaeda .
The forces they unleashed are still fighting over the spoils nine years later .
While Joe Biden now takes credit for opposing the disastrous intervention in Libya , at the time he was quick to hail its deceptive short-term success and Colonel Gaddafi 's gruesome assassination .
`` NATO got it right , '' Biden said in a speech at Plymouth State College in October 2011 on the very day President Obama announced Gaddafi 's death .
`` In this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and did n't lose a single life .
This is more the prescription for how to deal with the world as we go forward than it has in the past . ''
While Biden has since washed his hands of the debacle in Libya , that operation was in fact emblematic of the doctrine of covert and proxy war backed by airstrikes that he supported , and which he has yet to disavow .
Biden still says he supports `` counterterrorism '' operations , but he was elected president without ever publicly answering @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the massive use of airstrikes and drone strikes that are an integral part of that doctrine .
In the campaign against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria , U.S.-led forces dropped over 118,000 bombs and missiles , reducing major cities like Mosul and Raqqa to rubble and killing tens of thousands of civilians .
When Biden said America `` did n't lose a single life '' in Libya , he clearly meant `` American life . ''
If `` life '' simply means life , the war in Libya obviously cost countless lives @ @ @ @ @ @ @ UN Security Council resolution that approved the use of military force only to protect civilians .
As Rob Hewson , the editor of the arms trade journal Jane 's Air-Launched Weapons , told the AP as the U.S. unleashed its `` Shock and Awe '' bombardment on Iraq in 2003 , `` In a war that 's being fought for the benefit of the Iraqi people , you ca n't afford to kill any of them .
But you ca n't drop bombs and not kill people .
There 's a real dichotomy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ same obviously applies to people in Libya , Afghanistan , Syria , Yemen , Palestine and wherever American bombs have been falling for 20 years .
As Obama and Trump both tried to pivot from the failed `` global war on terrorism '' to what the Trump administration has branded `` great power competition , '' or a reversion to the Cold War , the war on terror has stubbornly refused to exit on cue .
Al Qaeda and Islamic State have been driven from places the U.S. has bombed or invaded , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ regions .
Islamic State now occupies a swath of northern Mozambique , and has also taken root in Afghanistan .
Other Al Qaeda affiliates are active across Africa , from Somalia and Kenya in East Africa to eleven countries in West Africa .
After nearly 20 years of `` war on terror , '' there is now a large body of research into what drives people to join Islamist armed groups fighting local government forces or Western invaders .
While American politicians still wring their hands over what twisted motives can possibly account @ @ @ @ @ @ @ out that it 's really not that complicated .
Most fighters are not motivated by Islamist ideology as much as by the desire to protect themselves , their families or their communities from militarized `` counterterrorism '' forces , as documented in this report by the Center for Civilians in Conflict .
Another study , titled The Journey to Extremism in Africa : Drivers , Incentives and the Tipping Point for Recruitment , found that the tipping point or `` final straw '' that drives over 70 % of fighters to join armed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a family member by `` counterterrorism '' or `` security '' forces .
The study exposes the U.S. brand of militarized counterterrorism as a self-fulfilling policy that fuels an intractable cycle of violence by generating and replenishing an ever-expanding pool of `` terrorists '' as it destroys families , communities and countries .
For example , the U.S. formed the Trans-Sahara Counterterrorism Partnership with 11 West African countries in 2005 and has so far sunk a billion dollars into it .
In a recent report from Burkina Faso , Nick Turse cited U.S. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of U.S.-led `` counterterrorism '' have only fueled an explosion of terrorism across West Africa .
The Pentagon 's Africa Center for Strategic Studies reports that the 1,000 violent incidents involving militant Islamist groups in Burkina Faso , Mali and Niger in the past year amount to a seven-fold increase since 2017 , while the confirmed minimum number of people killed has increased from 1,538 in 2017 to 4,404 in 2020 .
Heni Nsaibia , a senior researcher at ACLED ( Armed Conflict Location Event Data ) , told Turse that , `` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ embracing a strictly military model has been a major mistake .
Ignoring drivers of militancy , such as poverty and lack of social mobility , and failing to alleviate the conditions that foster insurgencies , like widespread human rights abuses by security forces , have caused irreparable harm . ''
Indeed , even the New York Times has confirmed that `` counterterrorism '' forces in Burkina Faso are killing as many civilians as the `` terrorists '' they are supposed to be fighting .
A 2019 U.S. State Department Country Report on Burkina @ @ @ @ @ @ @ extrajudicial killings of civilians as part of its counterterrorism strategy , '' mainly killing members of the Fulani ethnic group .
Souaibou Diallo , the president of a regional association of Muslim scholars , told Turse that these abuses are the main factor driving the Fulani to join militant groups .
`` Eighty percent of those who join terrorist groups told us that it is n't because they support jihadism , it is because their father or mother or brother was killed by the armed forces , '' said Diallo .
`` So @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been no justice . ''
Since the inception of the Global War on Terror , both sides have used the violence of their enemies to justify their own violence , fueling a seemingly endless spiral of chaos spreading from country to country and region to region across the world .
But the U.S. roots of all this violence and chaos run even deeper than this .
Both Al Qaeda and Islamic State evolved from groups originally recruited , trained , armed and supported by the CIA to overthrow foreign governments : Al Qaeda @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Nusra Front and Islamic State in Syria since 2011 .
If the Biden administration really wants to stop fueling chaos and terrorism in the world , it must radically transform the CIA , whose role in destabilizing countries , supporting terrorism , spreading chaos and creating false pretexts for war and hostility has been well documented since the 1970s by Colonel Fletcher Prouty , William Blum , Gareth Porter and others .
The United States will never have an objective , depoliticized national intelligence system , or therefore a reality-based , coherent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ghost in the machine .
Biden has chosen Avril Haines , who crafted the secret quasi-legal basis for Obama 's drone program and protected CIA torturers , to be his Director of National Intelligence .
Is Haines up to the job of transforming these agencies of violence and chaos into a legitimate , working intelligence system ?
That seems unlikely , and yet it is vital .
The new Biden administration needs to take a truly fresh look at the whole range of destructive policies the United States has pursued around the world @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the CIA has played in so many of them .
We hope Biden will finally renounce hare-brained , militarized policies that destroy societies and ruin people 's lives for the sake of unattainable geopolitical ambitions , and that he will instead invest in humanitarian and economic aid that really helps people to live more peaceful and prosperous lives .
We also hope that Biden will reverse Trump 's pivot back to the Cold War and prevent the diversion of more of our country 's resources to a futile and dangerous arms race with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ problems to deal with in this century - existential problems that can only be solved by genuine international cooperation .
We can no longer afford to sacrifice our future on the altar of the Global War on Terror , a New Cold War , Pax Americana or other imperialist fantasies .
Medea Benjamin is cofounder of CODEPINK for Peace , and author of several books , including Inside Iran : The Real History and Politics of the Islamic Republic of Iran .
She is a member of the writers ' group Collective20 .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ journalist , a researcher with CODEPINK and the author of Blood On Our Hands : the American Invasion and Destruction of Iraq .

Joe Biden will take command of the White House at a time when the American public is more concerned about battling coronavirus than fighting overseas wars. But America's wars rage on regardless, and the militarized counterterrorism policy Biden has supported in the past—based on airstrikes, special operations and the use of proxy forces—is precisely what keeps these conflicts raging.
In Afghanistan, Biden opposed Obama's 2009 troop surge, and after the surge failed, Obama reverted to the policy that Biden favored to begin with, which became the hallmark of their war policy in other countries as well. In insider circles, this was referred to as "counterterrorism," as opposed to "counterinsurgency."
In Afghanistan, that meant abandoning the large-scale deployment of U.S. forces, and relying instead on air strikes, drone strikes and special operations "kill or capture" raids, while recruiting and training Afghan forces to do nearly all the ground fighting and holding of territory.
In the 2011 Libya intervention, the NATO-Arab monarchist coalition embedded hundreds of Qatari special operations forces and Western mercenaries with the Libyan rebels to call in NATO airstrikes and train local militias, including Islamist groups with links to Al Qaeda. The forces they unleashed are still fighting over the spoils nine years later.
While Joe Biden now takes credit for opposing the disastrous intervention in Libya, at the time he was quick to hail its deceptive short-term success and Colonel Gaddafi's gruesome assassination. "NATO got it right," Biden said in a speech at Plymouth State College in October 2011 on the very day President Obama announced Gaddafi's death. "In this case, America spent $2 billion and didn't lose a single life. This is more the prescription for how to deal with the world as we go forward than it has in the past."
While Biden has since washed his hands of the debacle in Libya, that operation was in fact emblematic of the doctrine of covert and proxy war backed by airstrikes that he supported, and which he has yet to disavow. Biden still says he supports "counterterrorism" operations, but he was elected president without ever publicly answering a direct question about his support for the massive use of airstrikes and drone strikes that are an integral part of that doctrine.
In the campaign against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, U.S.-led forces dropped over 118,000 bombs and missiles, reducing major cities like Mosul and Raqqa to rubble and killing tens of thousands of civilians. When Biden said America "didn't lose a single life" in Libya, he clearly meant "American life." If "life" simply means life, the war in Libya obviously cost countless lives, and made a mockery of a UN Security Council resolution that approved the use of military force only to protect civilians.
As Rob Hewson, the editor of the arms trade journal Jane's Air-Launched Weapons, told the AP as the U.S. unleashed its "Shock and Awe" bombardment on Iraq in 2003, "In a war that's being fought for the benefit of the Iraqi people, you can't afford to kill any of them. But you can't drop bombs and not kill people. There's a real dichotomy in all of this." The same obviously applies to people in Libya, Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen, Palestine and wherever American bombs have been falling for 20 years.
As Obama and Trump both tried to pivot from the failed "global war on terrorism" to what the Trump administration has branded "great power competition," or a reversion to the Cold War, the war on terror has stubbornly refused to exit on cue. Al Qaeda and Islamic State have been driven from places the U.S. has bombed or invaded, but keep reappearing in new countries and regions. Islamic State now occupies a swath of northern Mozambique, and has also taken root in Afghanistan. Other Al Qaeda affiliates are active across Africa, from Somalia and Kenya in East Africa to eleven countries in West Africa.
After nearly 20 years of "war on terror," there is now a large body of research into what drives people to join Islamist armed groups fighting local government forces or Western invaders. While American politicians still wring their hands over what twisted motives can possibly account for such incomprehensible behavior, it turns out that it's really not that complicated. Most fighters are not motivated by Islamist ideology as much as by the desire to protect themselves, their families or their communities from militarized "counterterrorism" forces, as documented in this report by the Center for Civilians in Conflict.
Another study, titled The Journey to Extremism in Africa: Drivers, Incentives and the Tipping Point for Recruitment, found that the tipping point or "final straw" that drives over 70% of fighters to join armed groups is the killing or detention of a family member by "counterterrorism" or "security" forces. The study exposes the U.S. brand of militarized counterterrorism as a self-fulfilling policy that fuels an intractable cycle of violence by generating and replenishing an ever-expanding pool of "terrorists" as it destroys families, communities and countries.
For example, the U.S. formed the Trans-Sahara Counterterrorism Partnership with 11 West African countries in 2005 and has so far sunk a billion dollars into it. In a recent report from Burkina Faso, Nick Turse cited U.S. government reports that confirm how 15 years of U.S.-led "counterterrorism" have only fueled an explosion of terrorism across West Africa.
The Pentagon's Africa Center for Strategic Studies reports that the 1,000 violent incidents involving militant Islamist groups in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger in the past year amount to a seven-fold increase since 2017, while the confirmed minimum number of people killed has increased from 1,538 in 2017 to 4,404 in 2020.
Heni Nsaibia, a senior researcher at ACLED (Armed Conflict Location Event Data), told Turse that, "Focusing on Western concepts of counterterrorism and embracing a strictly military model has been a major mistake. Ignoring drivers of militancy, such as poverty and lack of social mobility, and failing to alleviate the conditions that foster insurgencies, like widespread human rights abuses by security forces, have caused irreparable harm."
Indeed, even the New York Times has confirmed that "counterterrorism" forces in Burkina Faso are killing as many civilians as the "terrorists" they are supposed to be fighting. A 2019 U.S. State Department Country Report on Burkina Faso documented allegations of "hundreds of extrajudicial killings of civilians as part of its counterterrorism strategy," mainly killing members of the Fulani ethnic group.
Souaibou Diallo, the president of a regional association of Muslim scholars, told Turse that these abuses are the main factor driving the Fulani to join militant groups. "Eighty percent of those who join terrorist groups told us that it isn't because they support jihadism, it is because their father or mother or brother was killed by the armed forces," said Diallo. "So many people have been killed—assassinated—but there has been no justice."
Since the inception of the Global War on Terror, both sides have used the violence of their enemies to justify their own violence, fueling a seemingly endless spiral of chaos spreading from country to country and region to region across the world.
But the U.S. roots of all this violence and chaos run even deeper than this. Both Al Qaeda and Islamic State evolved from groups originally recruited, trained, armed and supported by the CIA to overthrow foreign governments: Al Qaeda in Afghanistan in the 1980s, and the Nusra Front and Islamic State in Syria since 2011.
If the Biden administration really wants to stop fueling chaos and terrorism in the world, it must radically transform the CIA, whose role in destabilizing countries, supporting terrorism, spreading chaos and creating false pretexts for war and hostility has been well documented since the 1970s by Colonel Fletcher Prouty, William Blum, Gareth Porter and others.
The United States will never have an objective, depoliticized national intelligence system, or therefore a reality-based, coherent foreign policy, until it exorcises this ghost in the machine. Biden has chosen Avril Haines, who crafted the secret quasi-legal basis for Obama's drone program and protected CIA torturers, to be his Director of National Intelligence. Is Haines up to the job of transforming these agencies of violence and chaos into a legitimate, working intelligence system? That seems unlikely, and yet it is vital.
The new Biden administration needs to take a truly fresh look at the whole range of destructive policies the United States has pursued around the world for decades, and the insidious role the CIA has played in so many of them.
We hope Biden will finally renounce hare-brained, militarized policies that destroy societies and ruin people's lives for the sake of unattainable geopolitical ambitions, and that he will instead invest in humanitarian and economic aid that really helps people to live more peaceful and prosperous lives.
We also hope that Biden will reverse Trump's pivot back to the Cold War and prevent the diversion of more of our country's resources to a futile and dangerous arms race with China and Russia.
We have real problems to deal with in this century - existential problems that can only be solved by genuine international cooperation. We can no longer afford to sacrifice our future on the altar of the Global War on Terror, a New Cold War, Pax Americana or other imperialist fantasies.
Medea Benjamin is cofounder of CODEPINK for Peace, and author of several books, including Inside Iran: The Real History and Politics of the Islamic Republic of Iran. She is a member of the writers' group Collective20.
Nicolas J. S. Davies is an independent journalist, a researcher with CODEPINK and the author ofBlood On Our Hands: the American Invasion and Destruction of Iraq.


alternet--2020-12-15--How right-wing conservatives laid waste to America for 50 years

What is a conservative ?
We 've seen a lot of them in 2020 , refusing to respect the needs of society .
The Heritage Foundation says : `` Foremost among [ conservatism 's ] transcendent values is the individual 's use of his God-given free will , whence derives his right to be free from the restrictions of arbitrary force . ''
Stanford University adds : `` For conservatives , individuals and local communities are better assessors of their own needs and problems than distant bureaucrats . ''
A 2003 study for the American Psychological Association stated : `` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to change and justification of inequality . ''
There are many other forms and definitions of conservatism as political , economic , and social philosophies .
The usage here may best be understood as the evolving marriage of individualism and neoliberalism ( privatization , deregulation , low taxes , austerity ) since the 1970s .
Conservatism has made 'social ' a dirty word .
Here are some of the details of fifty years of damage inflicted on America .
The Disastrous Effect of Placing Individuals Over Society The anti-government , `` all about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ terribly in a time of national emergency .
How did the misdirected mindset get its start ?
With Friedrich Hayek and Milton Friedman , who are commonly referenced with connection to neoliberalism .
Friedman is the author of some remarkable quotes : `` The free market system distributes the fruits of economic progress among all people . ''
And , according to The Guardian : `` There is evidence that a democratic society , once established , destroys a free economy . ''
Then came Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher .
The former @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` There is no such thing !
There are individual men and women and there are families .
`` Reagan , whose campaign slogan was , familiarly , `` Let 's make America great again , '' famously stated that `` Government is not the solution to our problem ; government IS the problem . ''
So now , at a time when we need to work together as a society rather than as a crowd of individuals , we 've been betrayed by conservatism .
As historian Neil J .
Young puts @ @ @ @ @ @ @ later amid a global pandemic , that unbridled individualism has shown its deadly dimensions in Trump and the Republicans ' lack of response to COVID-19 ... it 's evident in the millions of Americans who—in refusing to wear masks , practice social distance , and momentarily deny their self-gratification—have selfishly exploited the language of 'individual responsibility ' as license for their own recklessness . ''
Just as frightening is the recent conservative Supreme Court church-gathering decision that `` placed religious freedom before pandemic precautions . ''
Deregulation and Subsidies : Corporations Running Rampant @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is an example of the deceptive measures used by conservatives .
CU refers to an initiative that `` seeks to reassert the traditional American values of limited government , freedom of enterprise , strong families , and national sovereignty and security . ''
But it helps corporations , not citizens , by allowing unlimited funding for corporate-friendly candidates .
Conservatives argue for less government intervention—except when it comes to subsidies .
Leading the pack of favor-seeking lobbyist groups is the pharmaceutical industry .
Few companies have benefited more than Pfizer , whose former @ @ @ @ @ @ @ taxes had his company fighting `` with one hand tied behind our back . ''
In 2019 Pfizer made nearly half of its $ 17.7 billion in profits in the U.S. , yet the company claimed $ 1.8 billion in federal and state tax refunds .
And it takes from America in another way .
In recent years Pfizer has increased the prices of dozens of prescription drugs at over ten times the rate of inflation .
Now Pfizer is basking in the glow of media coverage for the so-called `` Pfizer Vaccine @ @ @ @ @ @ @ its all-out efforts to distribute the medication to millions of people .
But the vaccine was created by the Turkish/German founders of BioNTech , Ugur Sahin and Ozlem Tureci , who guided the development of the messenger RNA process that triggers an immune reaction against Covid .
The groundwork for the relatively rapid production of the vaccine was laid in place at the National Institutes of Health and the University of Pennsylvania by research on the prior SARS and MERS outbreaks .
More expertise came from the taxpayer-funded Department of Health and Human @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Disease Control ( CDC ) .
According to Dr. Anthony Fauci , `` The speed is a reflection of years of work that went before . ''
Indeed , a successful vaccine is the product of long-term social cooperation , not individualism .
Inequality : Going Viral Thanks to the insidious conservative-minded 50-year-old `` trickle-down '' philosophy—which astoundingly continues to be preached by many of the super-rich—inequality has stretched our nation nearly to the breaking point .
At one end , the 25 million adults who make up the richest 10 % of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year by an average of $ 200,000 each .
At the other end : it is estimated by Moody 's Analytics that nearly 12 million American renters will owe an average of $ 5,850 in back rent and utilities by the beginning of 2021 .
Little of America 's surging income and wealth since the 1970s has gone to the poorest 50 % .
Some Hope ?
Philosopher and political economist John Stuart Mill once said , `` Conservatives are not necessarily stupid , but most stupid people are conservatives . ''
As @ @ @ @ @ @ @ also gravitated to the conservative side .
Among them were the aforementioned anti-government crusaders Friedrich Hayek and Milton Friedman , who expressed support for a Universal Basic Income .
In fact , the UBI concept has been promoted by both political parties over the years .
But it will take the will and fortitude of Congress to make it a reality .
And Congress is overflowing with John Stuart Mill 's conservatives .
Paul Buchheit is an advocate for social and economic justice , and the author of numerous papers on economic inequality @ @ @ @ @ @ @ named one of 300 Living Peace and Justice Leaders and Models .
He is the author of `` American Wars : Illusions and Realities '' ( 2008 ) and `` Disposable Americans : Extreme Capitalism and the Case for a Guaranteed Income '' ( 2017 ) .
Contact email : paul ( at ) youdeservefacts.org .

What is a conservative? We've seen a lot of them in 2020, refusing to respect the needs of society.
The Heritage Foundation says: "Foremost among [conservatism's] transcendent values is the individual's use of his God-given free will, whence derives his right to be free from the restrictions of arbitrary force." Stanford University adds: "For conservatives, individuals and local communities are better assessors of their own needs and problems than distant bureaucrats." A 2003 study for the American Psychological Association stated: "The core ideology of conservatism stresses resistance to change and justification of inequality." There are many other forms and definitions of conservatism as political, economic, and social philosophies. The usage here may best be understood as the evolvingmarriage of individualism and neoliberalism (privatization, deregulation, low taxes, austerity) since the 1970s.
Conservatism has made 'social' a dirty word. Here are some of the details of fifty years of damage inflicted on America.
The Disastrous Effect of Placing Individuals Over Society
The anti-government, "all about freedom" individuality of conservatives has failed terribly in a time of national emergency. How did the misdirected mindset get its start? With Friedrich Hayek and Milton Friedman, who are commonly referenced with connection to neoliberalism. Friedman is the author of some remarkable quotes: "The free market system distributes the fruits of economic progress among all people." And, according to The Guardian: "There is evidence that a democratic society, once established, destroys a free economy."
Then came Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher. The former UK Prime Minister said about society: "There is no such thing! There are individual men and women and there are families."Reagan, whose campaign slogan was, familiarly, "Let's make America great again," famously stated that "Government is not the solution to our problem; government IS the problem."
So now, at a time when we need to work together as a society rather than as a crowd of individuals, we've been betrayed by conservatism. As historian Neil J. Young puts it, "Now, 40 years later amid a global pandemic, that unbridled individualism has shown its deadly dimensions in Trump and the Republicans' lack of response to COVID-19...it's evident in the millions of Americans who—in refusing to wear masks, practice social distance, and momentarily deny their self-gratification—have selfishly exploited the language of 'individual responsibility' as license for their own recklessness."
Just as frightening is the recent conservative Supreme Court church-gathering decision that "placed religious freedom before pandemic precautions."
Deregulation and Subsidies: Corporations Running Rampant
The euphemistically-named Citizens United(CU) is an example of the deceptive measures used by conservatives. CU refers to an initiative that "seeks to reassert the traditional American values of limited government, freedom of enterprise, strong families, and national sovereignty and security." But it helps corporations, not citizens, by allowing unlimited funding for corporate-friendly candidates.
Conservatives argue for less government intervention—except when it comes to subsidies. Leading the pack of favor-seeking lobbyist groups is the pharmaceutical industry. Few companies have benefited more than Pfizer, whose former CEO Ian Read once complained that U.S. taxes had his company fighting "with one hand tied behind our back." In 2019 Pfizer made nearly half of its $17.7 billion in profits in the U.S., yet the company claimed $1.8 billion in federal and state tax refunds. And it takes from America in another way. In recent years Pfizer has increased the prices of dozens of prescription drugs at over ten times the rate of inflation.
Now Pfizer is basking in the glow of media coverage for the so-called "Pfizer Vaccine." The company deserves credit for its all-out efforts to distribute the medication to millions of people. But the vaccine was created by the Turkish/German founders of BioNTech, Ugur Sahin and Ozlem Tureci, who guided the development of the messenger RNA process that triggers an immune reaction against Covid. The groundwork for the relatively rapid production of the vaccine was laid in place at the National Institutes of Health and the University of Pennsylvania by research on the prior SARS and MERS outbreaks. More expertise came from the taxpayer-funded Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Centers for Disease Control (CDC). According to Dr. Anthony Fauci, "The speed is a reflection of years of work that went before." Indeed, a successful vaccine is the product of long-term social cooperation, not individualism.
Inequality: Going Viral
Thanks to the insidious conservative-minded 50-year-old "trickle-down" philosophy—which astoundingly continues to be preached by many of the super-rich—inequality has stretched our nation nearly to the breaking point.
At one end, the 25 million adults who make up the richest 10% of America increased their wealth in this pandemic year by an average of $200,000 each.
At the other end: it is estimated by Moody's Analytics that nearly 12 million American renters will owe an average of $5,850 in back rent and utilities by the beginning of 2021. Little of America's surging income and wealth since the 1970s has gone to the poorest 50%.
Some Hope?
Philosopher and political economist John Stuart Mill once said, "Conservatives are not necessarily stupid, but most stupid people are conservatives."
As Mill made clear, smart people have also gravitated to the conservative side. Among them were the aforementioned anti-government crusaders Friedrich Hayek and Milton Friedman, who expressed support for a Universal Basic Income. In fact, the UBI concept has been promoted by both political parties over the years. But it will take the will and fortitude of Congress to make it a reality. And Congress is overflowing with John Stuart Mill's conservatives.
Paul Buchheit is an advocate for social and economic justice, and the author of numerous papers on economic inequality and cognitive science. He was recently named one of 300 Living Peace and Justice Leaders and Models. He is the author of "American Wars: Illusions and Realities" (2008) and "Disposable Americans: Extreme Capitalism and the Case for a Guaranteed Income" (2017). Contact email: paul (at) youdeservefacts.org.


alternet--2020-12-14--'It never had to be like this': 300,000 have died in the US From COVID-19 under Trump

On the same day the first American received a coronavirus vaccine , the U.S. pandemic death toll surpassed 300,000 on Monday , another grim milestone that comes less than four weeks after the number of Covid-19 deaths in the country reached 250,000 .
The Associated Press put the staggering statistics into context : `` The number of dead rivals the population of St. Louis or Pittsburgh .
It is equivalent to repeating a tragedy on the scale of Hurricane Katrina every day for 5 1/2 months .
It is more than five times the number of Americans killed in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a 9/11 attack every day for more than 100 days . ''
At the same time , Brian Walter , who lost his 80-year old father to the disease , told NPR that `` the numbers do not reflect that these were people .
Everyone lost was a father or a mother , they had kids , they had family , they left people behind . ''
According to the Covid-19 Tracking Project , the U.S. is now averaging nearly 2,430 deaths per day .
Jennifer Nuzzo , a public health researcher at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` to think now we can just absorb in our country 3,000 deaths a day as though it were just business as usual , it just represents a moral failing . ''
Despite constituting just over 4 % of the global population , the U.S. is home to nearly 19 % of the more than 1.6 million Covid-19 deaths that have occurred worldwide .
The disproportionate impact of the pandemic on the American population was called `` a catastrophic failure '' of leadership to be blamed on President Donald Trump , who baselessly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the verge of disappearing .
`` There 's no need for that many to have died , '' David Hayes-Bautista , a professor of medicine at the University of California , Los Angeles , told the New York Times .
`` We chose , as a country , to take our foot off the gas pedal .
We chose to , and that 's the tragedy . ''
As Common Dreams reported earlier this month , progressives have argued that the catastrophic handling of the coronavirus crisis in the U.S.—while made worse @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as the product of several decades of `` free-market '' ideology and associated policies that exacerbated inequalities and hampered an effective governmental response to the disaster as it unfolded .
Although Monday 's coronavirus vaccine rollout represents good news in the fight against the pandemic , physician and public health expert Ashish Jha of Brown University lamented that the worst is yet to come .
As a result of `` infections that have already happened or will this week ... we will pass 400,000 deaths ... in January . ''
He said that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if we are serious about meeting the challenge of preventing the Covid-19 death toll from reaching 500,000 , `` we can [ and ] must do more '' to stop the spread of the coronavirus .
`` Actions taken collectively can really change the course of what is happening , '' Nicholas Reich , a biostatistician at the University of Massachusetts , told the Times .
`` One reason this is hard to predict is to some extent the power is in our hands . ''

On the same day the first American received a coronavirus vaccine, the U.S. pandemic death toll surpassed 300,000 on Monday, another grim milestone that comes less than four weeks after the number of Covid-19 deaths in the country reached 250,000.
The Associated Pressput the staggering statistics into context: "The number of dead rivals the population of St. Louis or Pittsburgh. It is equivalent to repeating a tragedy on the scale of Hurricane Katrina every day for 5 1/2 months. It is more than five times the number of Americans killed in the Vietnam War. It is equal to a 9/11 attack every day for more than 100 days."
At the same time, Brian Walter, who lost his 80-year old father to the disease, told NPR that "the numbers do not reflect that these were people. Everyone lost was a father or a mother, they had kids, they had family, they left people behind."
According to the Covid-19 Tracking Project, the U.S. is now averaging nearly 2,430 deaths per day.
Jennifer Nuzzo, a public health researcher at Johns Hopkins University, told AP that "to think now we can just absorb in our country 3,000 deaths a day as though it were just business as usual, it just represents a moral failing."
Despite constituting just over 4% of the global population, the U.S. is home to nearly 19% of the more than 1.6 million Covid-19 deaths that have occurred worldwide. The disproportionate impact of the pandemic on the American population was called "a catastrophic failure" of leadership to be blamed on President Donald Trump, who baselessly claimed in February that the virus was on the verge of disappearing.
"There's no need for that many to have died," David Hayes-Bautista, a professor of medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles, told the New York Times. "We chose, as a country, to take our foot off the gas pedal. We chose to, and that's the tragedy."
As Common Dreamsreported earlier this month, progressives have argued that the catastrophic handling of the coronavirus crisis in the U.S.—while made worse by Trump and non-cooperative individuals—is better understood as the product of several decades of "free-market" ideology and associated policies that exacerbated inequalities and hampered an effective governmental response to the disaster as it unfolded.
Although Monday's coronavirus vaccine rollout represents good news in the fight against the pandemic, physician and public health expert Ashish Jha of Brown University lamented that the worst is yet to come. As a result of "infections that have already happened or will this week... we will pass 400,000 deaths... in January."
He said that "vaccines will help," but if we are serious about meeting the challenge of preventing the Covid-19 death toll from reaching 500,000, "we can [and] must do more" to stop the spread of the coronavirus.
"Actions taken collectively can really change the course of what is happening," Nicholas Reich, a biostatistician at the University of Massachusetts, told the Times. "One reason this is hard to predict is to some extent the power is in our hands."


alternet--2020-12-14--Bill Barr is out — and leaves behind a stunning letter

Attorney General Bill Barr is leaving the administration on Dec. 23 , President Donald Trump revealed on Twitter Monday evening .
Perhaps not coincidentally , the announcement came just as the Electoral College gave Joe Biden enough votes to officially become president-elect , yet another nail in the coffin for Trump 's exceptionally dead efforts to remain in power .
Trump likely wanted to distract from that development .
It 's not exactly clear if Barr was pressured to leave or left of his own volition .
He has come under fire from Trump for failing to find evidence of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and also for failing to provide any damning revelations about Biden or his family before Election Day .
But the letter Trump shared from Barr seemed to suggest the attorney general was leaving willingly .
Notably , while Barr said that the department is still looking into `` voter fraud allegations in the 2020 election , '' he did n't give any hint that he 's changed his mind since he told the AP there was no evidence of widespread irregularities that would change the result .
This seems like a way to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fictions without stating anything the department ca n't back up with facts .
The letter itself was over-the-top in its obsequiousness , lavishing the president with praise for everything he takes pride in and lashing out at his favorite targets , such as the Russia investigation .
For example , Barr said : This is n't any better than the kind of drivel you 'd expect to hear on Fox News or OANN , let alone from the attorney general who took it upon himself to make the determination about whether former Special @ @ @ @ @ @ @ evidence that the president committed a crime .
Barr 's claim that the Russia investigation was `` baseless '' is just false — his department 's own inspector general concluded the probe was properly predicated .
But Barr has long since proved himself to be addicted to the right-wing disinformation sphere .
And he probably thought buttering Trump up on his way out the door was the best way to avoid a humiliating ouster .
Of course , some might think this is a more humiliating way to leave than with an insult @ @ @ @ @ @ @ some excessive praise for himself : Once Barr is gone , he will be replaced by Deputy Attorney General Jeff Rosen , which follows the ordinary course for the succession of power in the department .
It 's not clear if Rosen will be willing to take steps that Barr was thus far unwilling to take , such as making official DOJ claims that support Trump 's bogus allegations of voter fraud or announcing a special counsel to investigate Hunter Biden .

Attorney General Bill Barr is leaving the administration on Dec. 23, President Donald Trump revealed on Twitter Monday evening. Perhaps not coincidentally, the announcement came just as the Electoral College gave Joe Biden enough votes to officially become president-elect, yet another nail in the coffin for Trump's exceptionally dead efforts to remain in power. Trump likely wanted to distract from that development.
It's not exactly clear if Barr was pressured to leave or left of his own volition. He has come under fire from Trump for failing to find evidence of significant voter fraud in the 2020 election and also for failing to provide any damning revelations about Biden or his family before Election Day. But the letter Trump shared from Barr seemed to suggest the attorney general was leaving willingly.
Notably, while Barr said that the department is still looking into "voter fraud allegations in the 2020 election," he didn't give any hint that he's changed his mind since he told the AP there was no evidence of widespread irregularities that would change the result. This seems like a way to mollify Trump by referring to his conspiracy fictions without stating anything the department can't back up with facts.
The letter itself was over-the-top in its obsequiousness, lavishing the president with praise for everything he takes pride in and lashing out at his favorite targets, such as the Russia investigation.
For example, Barr said:
Your record is all the more historic because you accomplished it in the face of relentless, implacable resistance. Your 2016 victory speech in which you reached out to your opponents and called for working together for the benefit of the American people was immediately met by a partisan onslaught against you in which no tactic, no matter how abusive and deceitful, was out of bounds. The nadir of this campaign was the effort to cripple, if not oust, your Administration with frenzied and baseless accusations of collusion with Russia.
Few could have, weathered these attacks, much less forge ahead with a positive program for the country. You built the strongest and most resilient economy in American history — one that has brought unprecedented progress to those previously left out. You have restored American military strength. By brokering historic peace deals in the Mideast you have achieved what most thought impossible. You have curbed illegal immigration and enhanced the security of our nation's borders. You have advanced the rule of law by appointing a record number of judges committed to constitutional principles. With Operation Warp Speed, you delivered a vaccine for coronavirus on a schedule no one thought conceivable — a feat that will undoubtedly save millions of lives.
This isn't any better than the kind of drivel you'd expect to hear on Fox News or OANN, let alone from the attorney general who took it upon himself to make the determination about whether former Special Counsel Robert Mueller's report found conclusive evidence that the president committed a crime. Barr's claim that the Russia investigation was "baseless" is just false — his department's own inspector general concluded the probe was properly predicated. But Barr has long since proved himself to be addicted to the right-wing disinformation sphere. And he probably thought buttering Trump up on his way out the door was the best way to avoid a humiliating ouster.
Of course, some might think this is a more humiliating way to leave than with an insult from Trump
Barr also decided to claim some excessive praise for himself:
During your Administration, the Department of Justice has worked tirelessly to protect the public from violent crime; worked closely with leaders in Mexico to fight the drug cartels; cracked down on China's exploitation of our economy and workers; defended competition in the marketplace, especially the technology sector; and supported the men and women of law enforcement who selflessly—and too often thanklessly—risk their lives to keep our communities safe.
Once Barr is gone, he will be replaced by Deputy Attorney General Jeff Rosen, which follows the ordinary course for the succession of power in the department. It's not clear if Rosen will be willing to take steps that Barr was thus far unwilling to take, such as making official DOJ claims that support Trump's bogus allegations of voter fraud or announcing a special counsel to investigate Hunter Biden.


alternet--2020-12-14--The electors make it official: Biden is president-elect

With the vote of California 's electors , President-elect Joe Biden 's Electoral College win over Donald Trump is formalized @ @ @ @ @ throughout the day , but it took California 's 55 votes to bring Biden over @ @ @ @ @ .
Hawaii 's four electors still have to cast their votes , but Biden 's @ @ @ @ @ that we should expect a gracious—or any—acknowledgement from Trump .
Earlier in the day , @ @ @ @ @ McEnany refused to even answer a question about whether Trump would accept the result .

Understand the importance of honest news ?
So do we.
The past year has been the most arduous of our lives. The Covid-19 pandemic continues to be catastrophic not only to our health - mental and physical - but also to the stability of millions of people. For all of us independent news organizations, it’s no exception.
We’ve covered everything thrown at us this past year and will continue to do so with your support. We’ve always understood the importance of calling out corruption, regardless of political affiliation.
We need your support in this difficult time. Every reader contribution, no matter the amount, makes a difference in allowing our newsroom to bring you the stories that matter, at a time when being informed is more important than ever. Invest with us.
Make a one-time contribution to Alternet All Access, or click here to become a subscriber. Thank you.
Click to donate by check.


alternet--2020-12-14--Republican congressman reveals he's leaving the GOP over disgust with Trump

Michigan Republican Rep. Paul Mitchell announced on Monday to CNN 's Jake Tapper that he is officially leaving the GOP over his disgust with President Donald Trump and his increasingly reckless attempt to overturn the 2020 election Mitchell is retiring and did not run for re-election to his seat , yet another sign that Republicans ' willingness to turn on Trump depends on what they see as the prospects for their political future .
Like Michigan Rep. Justin Amash before him , he 's become an independent ahead of leaving Congress altogether .
But Mitchell is n't an insignificant figure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ part of House GOP leadership , and he consistently voted with Trump during his presidency .
He also said he voted for Trump both in 2016 and in 2020 .
But on Twitter , Mitchell had grown increasingly critical of the president in recent days .
He had previously been critical of Trump , though he did not vote in favor of the president 's impeachment .
Speaking to Tapper , Mitchell said : `` This party has to stand up for democracy first , for our constitution first , and not political @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lawsuit brought by Texas , joined by Republican attorneys general and a majority of his fellow GOP members , as part of the reason for his break with the party .
`` We 've gone through the process , '' he said .
`` And I saw that amicus brief , as well as discussions over the weekend in the national media , it became clear to me that I could no longer be associated with a Republican Party that leadership does n't stand up and say : 'The process , the election @ @ @ @ @ @ @ over today !
And then I saw the president tweet out that it 's not over until Jan. 20 .
Somehow he 's going to continue to combat this .
The people have voted ! ''

Michigan Republican Rep. Paul Mitchell announced on Monday to CNN's Jake Tapper that he is officially leaving the GOP over his disgust with President Donald Trump and his increasingly reckless attempt to overturn the 2020 election
Mitchell is retiring and did not run for re-election to his seat, yet another sign that Republicans' willingness to turn on Trump depends on what they see as the prospects for their political future. Like Michigan Rep. Justin Amash before him, he's become an independent ahead of leaving Congress altogether. But Mitchell isn't an insignificant figure in the caucus. He was a part of House GOP leadership, and he consistently voted with Trump during his presidency. He also said he voted for Trump both in 2016 and in 2020.
But on Twitter, Mitchell had grown increasingly critical of the president in recent days.
He had previously been critical of Trump, though he did not vote in favor of the president's impeachment.
Speaking to Tapper, Mitchell said: "This party has to stand up for democracy first, for our constitution first, and not political considerations."
He cited the recent lawsuit brought by Texas, joined by Republican attorneys general and a majority of his fellow GOP members, as part of the reason for his break with the party.
"We've gone through the process," he said. "And I saw that amicus brief, as well as discussions over the weekend in the national media, it became clear to me that I could no longer be associated with a Republican Party that leadership doesn't stand up and say: 'The process, the election, is over.' It's over today! And then I saw the president tweet out that it's not over until Jan. 20. Somehow he's going to continue to combat this. The people have voted!"
Watch the clip below:


alternet--2020-12-14--The disturbing and growing reach of Amazon's surveillance

For many , Amazon represents not just a massive online retailer , but the harbinger of a new caste-based society .
When Amazon wanted to create its second headquarters in Queens , a huge intersectional coalition of grassroots social justice activists took to the streets to protest .
After the coalition gained support from political luminaries like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez , the corporate monolith gave up its expansion plan in the borough .
One of the major concerns activists brought up was that poorer residents would have been pushed out of their homes in droves , thanks to the skyrocketing real @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
But gentrification , whereby these residents are replaced by non-local , higher-wage young professionals from around the country and world , also ironically correlates with local NIMBYism ( `` Not in my Backyard '' ) and a troubling trend of surveillance .
Amazon Ring is a smart doorbell-camera combo that is now relatively standard fare for newly constructed middle-to-upper class homes , especially in cities .
The outdoor camera provides a live feed to the homeowner 's smartphone , and also records video footage when its motion sensor is triggered .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the doorstep of the home , but extends to the public thoroughfare , especially in urban homes without a large front yard .
As a result of Amazon teaming up with hundreds of police departments and counting , these devices are increasingly hooked up to police monitors .
Most recently , the Electronic Frontier Foundation called out an imminent live-streaming feature in Jackson , Mississippi , whereby police can tap into the Ring footage of participating residents in real time .
The society-as-panoptic prison as envisioned by French philosopher Michel Foucault has never @ @ @ @ @ @ @ still scarce , one can predict that Ring partnerships will not help police solve many serious violent crimes .
Instead , the video footage will provide irrefutable evidence for petty violations of law arising from difficult personal circumstances , such as `` loitering '' as a homeless person , or public drug use .
Pro-reform prosecutors are among those who increasingly acknowledge that such `` crimes '' are public health issues , and that their prosecution creates public harms .
Ironically , Jackson , Mississippi is a Democrat-dominated city , with nominal progressives @ @ @ @ @ @ @ District Attorney seats .
But `` progressivism '' is too often seen as compatible with NIMBYism .
Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba , seemingly in support of this massive escalation in surveillance , explained that `` It would save [ us ] from having to buy a camera for every place across the city . ''
Newly elected District Attorney Jody Owens , who campaigned as a moderate criminal justice reformer , and won despite facing a long list of sexual harassment allegations , has failed to comment on the issue .
NIMBY is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ system based on exclusion .
Those labeled undesirables by the NIMBYs are shunned or persecuted in the name of neighborhood `` quality of life '' or `` historical preservation . ''
NIMBYism frequently acts directly against harm reduction , as seen for example , in the blocking of Philadelphia 's mooted first safe consumption site in the nation , or campaigns against syringe programs .
But perhaps the number one manifestation of NIMBYism is the cutting off of new home-building plans , above all when new developments are intended for low- or mixed-income @ @ @ @ @ @ @ conceal the prejudices behind their objections .
As Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf said about hearings related to housing in Cupertino , California after the creation of Apple Park , `` These were offensive things that were said during these hearings , about low-income people , 'uneducated ' people , moving into the community .
That is racist .
That is classist .
It 's NIMBYism , and it does not serve our housing or environmental agenda . ''
Controlling the housing stock is a great way to ensure homogeneity of race and class @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nothing to stop all kinds of people from shopping , working , walking around or hanging out in the area .
That 's where police have often become the most important enforcers of a NIMBY agenda .
And now , thanks to the heavy mainstreaming of products like Amazon Ring , NIMBYs do not have to take the risk of going viral for calling the police on a person of color for doing nothing .
It will be important for privacy advocates and harm reductionists alike to keep abreast of Ring developments , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ months .
The desire of some Americans to constantly search for incriminating evidence on people they deem undesirable , often due to race , health status , drug use or poverty , demands constant vigilance in kind .
It also makes the decriminalization of drugs more crucial than ever .
This article was originally published by Filter , a magazine covering drug use , drug policy and human rights .
Follow Filter on Facebook or Twitter .

For many, Amazon represents not just a massive online retailer, but the harbinger of a new caste-based society. When Amazon wanted to create its second headquarters in Queens, a huge intersectional coalition of grassroots social justice activists took to the streets to protest. After the coalition gained support from political luminaries like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the corporate monolith gave up its expansion plan in the borough.
One of the major concerns activists brought up was that poorer residents would have been pushed out of their homes in droves, thanks to the skyrocketing real estate prices that would almost certainly follow. But gentrification, whereby these residents are replaced by non-local, higher-wage young professionals from around the country and world, also ironically correlates with local NIMBYism ("Not in my Backyard") and a troubling trend of surveillance.
Amazon Ring is a smart doorbell-camera combo that is now relatively standard fare for newly constructed middle-to-upper class homes, especially in cities. The outdoor camera provides a live feed to the homeowner's smartphone, and also records video footage when its motion sensor is triggered. The camera is often not trained precisely on the doorstep of the home, but extends to the public thoroughfare, especially in urban homes without a large front yard.
Recently, the Electronic Frontier Foundation called out an imminent feature in Jackson, Mississippi, whereby police can tap into Ring footage in real time.
As a result of Amazon teaming up with hundreds of police departments and counting, these devices are increasingly hooked up to police monitors.
Most recently, the Electronic Frontier Foundation called out an imminent live-streaming feature in Jackson, Mississippi, whereby police can tap into the Ring footage of participating residents in real time. The society-as-panoptic prison as envisioned by French philosopher Michel Foucault has never been more real.
While data are still scarce, one can predict that Ring partnerships will not help police solve many serious violent crimes. Instead, the video footage will provide irrefutable evidence for petty violations of law arising from difficult personal circumstances, such as "loitering" as a homeless person, or public drug use. Pro-reform prosecutors are among those who increasingly acknowledge that such "crimes" are public health issues, and that their prosecution creates public harms.
Ironically, Jackson, Mississippi is a Democrat-dominated city, with nominal progressives of color holding both the mayor and District Attorney seats. But "progressivism" is too often seen as compatible with NIMBYism. Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba, seemingly in support of this massive escalation in surveillance, explained that "It would save [us] from having to buy a camera for every place across the city." Newly elected District Attorney Jody Owens, who campaigned as a moderate criminal justice reformer, and won despite facing a long list of sexual harassment allegations, has failed to comment on the issue.
NIMBY is shorthand for what is ultimately an ideological system based on exclusion. Those labeled undesirables by the NIMBYs are shunned or persecuted in the name of neighborhood "quality of life" or "historical preservation."
NIMBYism frequently acts directly against harm reduction, as seen for example, in the blocking of Philadelphia's mooted first safe consumption site in the nation, or campaigns against syringe programs. But perhaps the number one manifestation of NIMBYism is the cutting off of new home-building plans, above all when new developments are intended for low- or mixed-income populations.
NIMBYs often hardly bother to conceal the prejudices behind their objections. As Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf said about hearings related to housing in Cupertino, California after the creation of Apple Park, "These were offensive things that were said during these hearings, about low-income people, 'uneducated' people, moving into the community. That is racist. That is classist. It's NIMBYism, and it does not serve our housing or environmental agenda."
Controlling the housing stock is a great way to ensure homogeneity of race and class in a neighborhood, but still does nothing to stop all kinds of people from shopping, working, walking around or hanging out in the area. That's where police have often become the most important enforcers of a NIMBY agenda.
And now, thanks to the heavy mainstreaming of products like Amazon Ring, NIMBYs do not have to take the risk of going viral for calling the police on a person of color for doing nothing.
It will be important for privacy advocates and harm reductionists alike to keep abreast of Ring developments, especially in Jackson, in the coming months. The desire of some Americans to constantly search for incriminating evidence on people they deem undesirable, often due to race, health status, drug use or poverty, demands constant vigilance in kind. It also makes the decriminalization of drugs more crucial than ever.
This article was originally published by Filter, a magazine covering drug use, drug policy and human rights. Follow Filter on Facebook or Twitter.


alternet--2020-12-14--Trump sends ominous threat to fellow Republicans if Georgia doesn't overturn Biden's win

On Monday , the Electoral College met to formalize the results of this year 's presidential election — and that included electors in Georgia , where President-elect Joe Biden won the state 's 16 electoral votes .
President Donald Trump , however , has pushed a disinformation campaign alleging he was the real winner in Georgia .
And on Twitter , Trump threatened that the state 's two incumbent GOP senators competing with Democrats in runoffs could have a `` bad day '' on January 5 if the presidential election result is n't overturned .
With Democrat Stacey Abrams presiding @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cast for Biden on Monday .
And it was also on Monday that Trump angrily railed against Gov .
Brian Kemp on Twitter .
Trump is furious with Kemp as well as Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger , both Republicans , for acknowledging that Biden won Georgia .
Trump tweeted : The incumbent Republican senators in Georgia that Trump is referring to are Sen. Kelly Loeffler and Sen. David Perdue .
While Perdue is competing with Democrat Jon Ossoff , Loeffler 's Democratic opponent is the Rev .
Raphael Warnock .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or not Republicans maintain control of the U.S. Senate .
If Warnock and Ossoff are victorious , Democrats will obtain a narrow Senate majority — with the help of a tie-breaking vote from Vice President-elect Kamala Harris — and Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky will be Senate minority leader rather than Senate majority leader .
Kemp recently rejected Trump 's demand for a `` special session '' to oppose the election results .
Earlier this month , Kemp and Lt. Gov .
Geoff Duncan warned , in an official statement , `` Any @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that process for the November 3 election would be unconstitutional and immediately enjoined by the courts , resulting in a long legal dispute and no short-term resolution . ''

On Monday, the Electoral College met to formalize the results of this year's presidential election — and that included electors in Georgia, where President-elect Joe Biden won the state's 16 electoral votes. President Donald Trump, however, has pushed a disinformation campaign alleging he was the real winner in Georgia. And on Twitter, Trump threatened that the state's two incumbent GOP senators competing with Democrats in runoffs could have a "bad day" on January 5 if the presidential election result isn't overturned.
With Democrat Stacey Abrams presiding, Georgia's 16 electoral votes were cast for Biden on Monday. And it was also on Monday that Trump angrily railed against Gov. Brian Kemp on Twitter. Trump is furious with Kemp as well as Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, both Republicans, for acknowledging that Biden won Georgia. Trump tweeted:
On Saturday, Trump tweeted:
The incumbent Republican senators in Georgia that Trump is referring to are Sen. Kelly Loeffler and Sen. David Perdue. While Perdue is competing with Democrat Jon Ossoff, Loeffler's Democratic opponent is the Rev. Raphael Warnock.
The outcome of these races will determine whether or not Republicans maintain control of the U.S. Senate. If Warnock and Ossoff are victorious, Democrats will obtain a narrow Senate majority — with the help of a tie-breaking vote from Vice President-elect Kamala Harris — and Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky will be Senate minority leader rather than Senate majority leader.
Kemp recently rejected Trump's demand for a "special session" to oppose the election results. Earlier this month, Kemp and Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan warned, in an official statement, "Any attempt by the legislature to retroactively change that process for the November 3 election would be unconstitutional and immediately enjoined by the courts, resulting in a long legal dispute and no short-term resolution."


alternet--2020-12-14--The myths of neoliberalism: Solutions to our most pressing problems are at hand — if only we use the

The myths of neoliberalism: Solutions to our most pressing problems are at hand — if only we use them

Martin Luther King , Jr. , offered this all-too-relevant comment on his moment in his 1967 speech `` Where Do We Go from Here : Chaos or Community ? ''
King concluded that American society was degrading human life by clinging to old thinking rather than turning to bold , visionary solutions -- words that ( sadly enough ) ring even truer in our day than in his.In late October as the coronavirus pandemic raged , the Economic Policy Institute released a study showing that it is n't just morally right but an economic necessity to deal with poverty in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ America does not address what 's happening with visionary social and economic policy , '' as that study put it , `` the health and well-being of the nation are at stake .
What we need is long-term economic policy that establishes justice , promotes the general welfare , rejects decades of austerity , and builds strong social programs that lift society from below . ''
Even as , almost two months later , we remain trapped in an unprecedented crisis of spreading illness , there is increasingly clear evidence that , were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , we would no longer need to live burdened by the social ills of old .
Oddly enough , because of the Covid-19 crisis , we 're being reminded ( or at least should be reminded ) that , in reality , solutions to many of the most pressing issues of our day are readily at hand if those issues were prioritized and the attention and resources of society directed toward them .
In a moment overflowing with lessons , one of the least discussed is that scarcity is a lie , a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reserves of capital and technology facilitating the enrichment of the few and justifying the pain and dispossession of so many others .
Our present reality could perhaps best be described as mass abandonment amid abundance .
Indeed , the myth of scarcity , like other neoliberal fantasies , is regularly ignored when politically expedient and conjured up when the rich and powerful need help .
The pandemic has been no exception .
Over the last nine months , the wealth of American billionaires has actually increased by a third to nearly $ 4 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Americans have filed for unemployment and more evictions loom than ever before in U.S. history .
Now , politicians in Washington are haggling over a `` compromise '' relief bill that offers little in the way of actual relief , especially for those suffering the most .
At the same time , with the health of everyone , not just the poor and marginalized , at risk , the government has proven itself remarkably capable of mobilizing the necessary resources for decisive and historic action when it comes to producing a Covid-19 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ same could be done when it comes to protecting the most vulnerable and abolishing poverty should be obvious , if only the nation saw that , too , as a crisis worthy of attention .
Where There 's a Will , There 's a Way In 1918 , with an influenza pandemic raging in the United States , cities closed down and doctors prescribed painkillers like aspirin as a national debate ( remarkably similar to the present one ) raged over the necessity of quarantine and masks .
At that time , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who were infected to die or develop immunity .
Before it was over ( in a far less populous land ) , at least 675,000 Americans perished , more than in every one of our wars since the Civil War combined .
A century later , when the Covid-19 pandemic exploded this March , the country ground to a similar terrifying halt , but under different conditions : for one thing , the shutdown was accompanied by the promise that the government would invest billions of dollars in a potentially successful vaccine produced @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Nine months later , after the Trump administration had funneled those billions into research and had guaranteed the manufacture and purchase of viable vaccines ( radically reducing the business risk to pharmaceutical companies in the process ) , it appears that we are indeed there .
Last month , multiple companies released trial data for just such vaccines that seem to be nearly 95 % effective ; and Great Britain has , in fact , just rolled out the first doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine with the U.S. not far behind .
On @ @ @ @ @ @ @ authorized Pfizer 's vaccine for emergency use .
A long list of grave questions remains when it comes to the oversight of , and accountability of , those private companies that now hold the health of the world in their hands .
Already , the British government has granted Pfizer , which stands to earn billions by beating the competition to market , legal indemnity from any complications that may arise from its vaccine , and the Trump administration has made similar agreements .
Much also remains uncertain when it comes to how @ @ @ @ @ @ @ here and across the world , and whether they will be safe , effective , and free .
( I recently signed onto a public letter to the incoming Biden administration calling for a `` people 's vaccine . ''
) Still , it does seem that the historic speed with which this novel virus could eventually be curbed by just such a vaccine ( or set of them ) is likely to prove astonishing .
Historically , on average , successful vaccines have taken 10 to 14 years to develop .
Until @ @ @ @ @ @ @ produced was the mumps vaccine and that took four years .
Nearly as remarkable is how so many people have received the news of the coming of those coronavirus vaccines as if it were the norm .
If anything , in a time of constant , rapid technological revolution , there 's a noticeable impatience , stoked by Donald Trump and others , that it 's taken this long .
The Covid-19 vaccine experience does show one thing , however -- what can be done when the resources of this country are marshalled @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Imagine if the same approach were taken when it came to systemic racism , climate change , or the poverty that has only deepened in the midst of the pandemic crisis .
Indeed , if the political will were there , Americans could clearly tackle massive problems like hunger and homelessness no less effectively than developing a vaccine , instead of spending millions of dollars on cruel attempts to drive the homeless away by redesigning park benches and other urban architecture to repel those with nowhere to stay .
After all , in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is rampant , there are more vacant houses than there are homeless people .
Although the politics of austerity generally reign supreme on both sides of the aisle in Congress ( especially when it comes to antipoverty programs like welfare ) , it 's also true that public spending is regularly and abundantly martialed to solve issues that affect certain parts of society -- namely , the private sector and the military .
From subsidies to major companies like big agriculture to critical R & D expenditures for Silicon Valley to public university @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from the state is often the invisible backbone of American business operations and advances .
Likewise , spending on the military makes up more than half of the federal discretionary budget , funding everything from the 800 American military bases that circle the planet to expensive and risky new technologies and war machines .
Back in March , the writer Arundhati Roy spoke of the pandemic as `` a portal . ''
She was perhaps suggesting that the widespread suffering caused by Covid-19 could open a doorway into a future in which we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the planet with greater devotion .
In another sense , however , the pandemic has also been a portal into our past , a way of showing us the conditions that have laid the groundwork not just for the devastation that now consumes us but for possibly far worse to come .
No one could have expected this exact crisis at this exact moment in exactly this way .
Yet , before Covid-19 , society was already teetering under the weight of poverty and inequality , and a sober look at history offers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ now has the highest Covid-19 case tally and death toll in the world .
Too many have died because our country 's preexisting conditions of systemic injustice have gone untreated for so long and those in power never seem to learn the applicable lesson of this moment : pandemics spread along the fissures of society , both exposing them more and deepening them further .
Before Covid-19 , there were already 140 million people in this country who were poor or a $ 400 emergency -- one job loss , accident , illness @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Across America that meant close to 80 million people were uninsured or underinsured , 60 million people had zero ( zero ! )
wealth other than the value of a family car , more than a million people were defaulting on federal student loans annually , and more than 62 million workers were making less than $ 15 an hour , with more than two million in Florida alone making only $ 7.25 an hour , the federal minimum wage .
And that 's just to begin down a nightmarish list .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ million other people , it meant a lack of access to piped water and sewage systems .
Before Pamela , who is Black , contracted Covid-19 and died in July , she lived in a mobile home in Lowndes County , Alabama , where human waste festered in her backyard because she did n't have proper plumbing , and in a state that still has n't expanded Medicaid , and in a country that has no federal guarantee of either healthcare or clean water .
Covid-19 may have been the immediate cause of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was racism and poverty .
During these pandemic months , a popular notion has been that the virus is a great equalizer because everyone is susceptible .
Yet the human and economic toll has been anything but equal across society .
It will take more time to find out just what the mortality rate among the poor has been , but it 's already clear that those of us with compromised immune systems , disproportionately poor and people of color , are at greater risk of hospitalization and death from the coronavirus , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have higher death rates .
An unsurprising but alarming new study found that more than 400,000 Covid-19 cases are associated with the lifting of eviction moratoriums , forcing people out of the safety of their homes ; such numbers will only worsen this winter as evictions continue , if such moratoriums are n't extended into the new year .
Beyond the toll of the virus itself , the economic fallout has been devastating for the poor .
Between six and eight million people have fallen below the federal poverty line since March ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ broken standard ) .
The true numbers are undoubtedly far higher .
The last 38 weeks have seen unemployment claims greater than the worst week of the Great Recession of 2007-2008 .
Some economists are now talking about a possible quick bounce back once the virus is controlled and yet the long-term damage is only beginning to reveal itself .
After all , 10 years after the Great Recession , a time when little in the way of long-term relief was provided , the majority of workers had still not recovered from it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deeper and wider should give us pause as we consider what the next decade will look like if this country does n't alter its bleak course .
The fissures in our society were vast before Covid-19 hit and they 've only broadened .
A vaccine will address the most visible of them , but we as a nation will continue to stumble from crisis to crisis until we learn the most important lesson this moment can teach : that our yet-to-be-United States will only heal as a society when every person 's needs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one person without food , water , healthcare , or housing puts everyone at risk .
The same is , in fact , true in non-pandemic times , for a society riven by poverty and deprivation will always be unstable and vulnerable .
Martin Luther King once told a crowd in St. Louis that `` we must learn to live as brothers or perish together as fools . ''
Today , the balance is tipping perilously toward the latter category , as Congress painfully debates a thoroughly anemic relief bill that promises little @ @ @ @ @ @ @ precedent for the coming months .
In a recent letter to Joe Manchin , the self-proclaimed `` centrist '' senator from West Virginia , Reverend William Barber II ( my co-chair on the Poor People 's Campaign ) wrote : '' I am ashamed of this nation .
I know you want to do the right thing , and Republicans are tying your hands , but please do n't call this a 'centrist plan . '
It 's more cynical than centrist .
It 's damn near criminal that millions are hurting , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are dying , poverty is expanding , and the Senate ca n't do the right thing . ''
Indeed , the most important things to note in the coming stimulus bill are these : it protects corporations ( that have not protected their workers ) from any accountability or legal responsibility ; it continues to bail out the rich , not the rest of us , with no provisions for stimulus checks and insufficient funding to states and municipalities ; it lowers unemployment benefits to $ 300 per week ( based on wages @ @ @ @ @ @ @ than $ 600 per week ( based on $ 15 an hour ) ; it is not only significantly less than the nation needs , but less than what was on offer months ago .
The cynicism of this relief bill lies in the way it diminishes life for political gain and corporate profit and in the false contention that this is the most that 's available to us , the best the nation can do .
Call it a cruel stroke of history that Congress should be deliberating on the welfare of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , especially since so many of the key players call themselves `` Christians . ''
This holiday season and the winter beyond it promise to be a long , dark portal to who knows where , as temperatures drop , Covid-19 cases continue to rise , and poverty and homelessness are transformed into so many more death certificates .
The timing of Congress 's new `` relief '' bill is particularly wicked if , as a Christian , you were to remember the details of Jesus 's birth in that manger in Bethlehem @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a homeless refugee to an unmarried teenage mother and had to flee to Egypt with his family as a baby because the ruling authorities already deemed that this poor Palestinian Jewish boy would grow up to be a threat to the established order of injustice .
But the powers and principalities of his day were never the only ones who mattered .
There were always those who recognized in his birth that , to right the wrongs of society , to protect the lives of countless innocent victims , another way was possible @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and marginalized , not with those already full to the brim .
It 's too bad that some of the congressional representatives who call themselves Christian are so unwilling to take a moment to consider the homeless revolutionary who was long ago sent to lead a moral movement from below .
They should remember that the story of Christmas celebrates the birth of a poor , brown-skinned leader who , in the Gospel of Luke , is born to `` scatter those who are proud , bring down rulers from their thrones , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fills the hungry with good things but sends the rich away empty . ''
In a time when more children are on the brink of being born into poverty , homelessness , and state-sanctioned violence , rather than , as Martin Luther King , Jr. said , `` compress our abundance into the overfed mouths '' of the wealthy and corporations , Americans would do well to recognize that scarcity could vanish and that it 's time to address systemic inequality .
Liz Theoharis , a TomDispatch regular , is a theologian , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Director of the Kairos Center for Religions , Rights and Social Justice at Union Theological Seminary in New York City and co-chair of the Poor People 's Campaign : A National Call for Moral Revival , she is the author of Always With Us ?
What Jesus Really Said About the Poor .
Follow TomDispatch on Twitter and join us on Facebook .
Check out the newest Dispatch Books , John Feffer 's new dystopian novel ( the second in the Splinterlands series ) Frostlands , Beverly Gologorsky 's novel Every Body Has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ A Nation Unmade by War , as well as Alfred McCoy 's In the Shadows of the American Century : The Rise and Decline of U.S .
Global Power and John Dower 's The Violent American Century : War and Terror Since World War II .

Martin Luther King, Jr., offered this all-too-relevant comment on his moment in his 1967 speech "Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?"
The contemporary tendency in our society is to base our distribution on scarcity, which has vanished, and to compress our abundance into the overfed mouths of the upper classes until they gag with superfluity. If democracy is to have breadth of meaning, it is necessary to adjust this inequity. It is not only moral, but it is also intelligent.
King concluded that American society was degrading human life by clinging to old thinking rather than turning to bold, visionary solutions -- words that (sadly enough) ring even truer in our day than in his.In late October as the coronavirus pandemic raged, the Economic Policy Institute released a study showing that it isn't just morally right but an economic necessity to deal with poverty in this country and fast. "If America does not address what's happening with visionary social and economic policy," as that study put it, "the health and well-being of the nation are at stake. What we need is long-term economic policy that establishes justice, promotes the general welfare, rejects decades of austerity, and builds strong social programs that lift society from below."
Even as, almost two months later, we remain trapped in an unprecedented crisis of spreading illness, there is increasingly clear evidence that, were those in power to make other choices, we would no longer need to live burdened by the social ills of old. Oddly enough, because of the Covid-19 crisis, we're being reminded (or at least should be reminded) that, in reality, solutions to many of the most pressing issues of our day are readily at hand if those issues were prioritized and the attention and resources of society directed toward them. In a moment overflowing with lessons, one of the least discussed is that scarcity is a lie, a political invention used to cover up vast reserves of capital and technology facilitating the enrichment of the few and justifying the pain and dispossession of so many others. Our present reality could perhaps best be described as mass abandonment amid abundance.
Indeed, the myth of scarcity, like other neoliberal fantasies, is regularly ignored when politically expedient and conjured up when the rich and powerful need help. The pandemic has been no exception. Over the last nine months, the wealth of American billionaires has actually increased by a third to nearly $4 trillion, even as tens of millions of Americans have filed for unemployment and more evictions loom than ever before in U.S. history. Now, politicians in Washington are haggling over a "compromise" relief bill that offers little in the way of actual relief, especially for those suffering the most.
At the same time, with the health of everyone, not just the poor and marginalized, at risk, the government has proven itself remarkably capable of mobilizing the necessary resources for decisive and historic action when it comes to producing a Covid-19 vaccine in record time. That the same could be done when it comes to protecting the most vulnerable and abolishing poverty should be obvious, if only the nation saw that, too, as a crisis worthy of attention.
Where There's a Will, There's a Way
In 1918, with an influenza pandemic raging in the United States, cities closed down and doctors prescribed painkillers like aspirin as a national debate (remarkably similar to the present one) raged over the necessity of quarantine and masks. At that time, the country simply had to wait for those who were infected to die or develop immunity. Before it was over (in a far less populous land), at least 675,000 Americans perished, more than in every one of our wars since the Civil War combined.
A century later, when the Covid-19 pandemic exploded this March, the country ground to a similar terrifying halt, but under different conditions: for one thing, the shutdown was accompanied by the promise that the government would invest billions of dollars in a potentially successful vaccine produced far faster than any ever before. Nine months later, after the Trump administration had funneled those billions into research and had guaranteed the manufacture and purchase of viable vaccines (radically reducing the business risk to pharmaceutical companies in the process), it appears that we are indeed there. Last month, multiple companies released trial data for just such vaccines that seem to be nearly 95% effective; and Great Britain has, in fact, just rolled out the first doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine with the U.S. not far behind. On Friday, the Food and Drug Administration authorized Pfizer's vaccine for emergency use.
A long list of grave questions remains when it comes to the oversight of, and accountability of, those private companies that now hold the health of the world in their hands. Already, the British government has granted Pfizer, which stands to earn billions by beating the competition to market, legal indemnity from any complications that may arise from its vaccine, and the Trump administration has made similar agreements. Much also remains uncertain when it comes to how American-produced vaccines will be fairly distributed, here and across the world, and whether they will be safe, effective, and free. (I recently signed onto a public letter to the incoming Biden administration calling for a "people's vaccine.")
Still, it does seem that the historic speed with which this novel virus could eventually be curbed by just such a vaccine (or set of them) is likely to prove astonishing. Historically, on average, successful vaccines have taken 10 to 14 years to develop. Until now, the fastest effective one ever produced was the mumps vaccine and that took four years. Nearly as remarkable is how so many people have received the news of the coming of those coronavirus vaccines as if it were the norm. If anything, in a time of constant, rapid technological revolution, there's a noticeable impatience, stoked by Donald Trump and others, that it's taken this long.
The Covid-19 vaccine experience does show one thing, however -- what can be done when the resources of this country are marshalled to immediately address a crisis-level issue. Imagine if the same approach were taken when it came to systemic racism, climate change, or the poverty that has only deepened in the midst of the pandemic crisis. Indeed, if the political will were there, Americans could clearly tackle massive problems like hunger and homelessness no less effectively than developing a vaccine, instead of spending millions of dollars on cruel attempts to drive the homeless away by redesigning park benches and other urban architecture to repel those with nowhere to stay. After all, in cities like San Francisco, where homelessness is rampant, there are more vacant houses than there are homeless people.
Although the politics of austerity generally reign supreme on both sides of the aisle in Congress (especially when it comes to antipoverty programs like welfare), it's also true that public spending is regularly and abundantly martialed to solve issues that affect certain parts of society -- namely, the private sector and the military. From subsidies to major companies like big agriculture to critical R&D expenditures for Silicon Valley to public university research that benefits private industry, funding from the state is often the invisible backbone of American business operations and advances. Likewise, spending on the military makes up more than half of the federal discretionary budget, funding everything from the 800 American military bases that circle the planet to expensive and risky new technologies and war machines.
Lessons from the Pandemic
Back in March, the writer Arundhati Roy spoke of the pandemic as "a portal." She was perhaps suggesting that the widespread suffering caused by Covid-19 could open a doorway into a future in which we humans might begin to treat ourselves and the planet with greater devotion. In another sense, however, the pandemic has also been a portal into our past, a way of showing us the conditions that have laid the groundwork not just for the devastation that now consumes us but for possibly far worse to come.
No one could have expected this exact crisis at this exact moment in exactly this way. Yet, before Covid-19, society was already teetering under the weight of poverty and inequality, and a sober look at history offers clues as to why the United States now has the highest Covid-19 case tally and death toll in the world. Too many have died because our country's preexisting conditions of systemic injustice have gone untreated for so long and those in power never seem to learn the applicable lesson of this moment: pandemics spread along the fissures of society, both exposing them more and deepening them further.
Before Covid-19, there were already 140 million people in this country who were poor or a $400 emergency -- one job loss, accident, illness, or storm -- away from poverty. Across America that meant close to 80 million people were uninsured or underinsured, 60 million people had zero (zero!) wealth other than the value of a family car, more than a million people were defaulting on federal student loans annually, and more than 62 million workers were making less than $15 an hour, with more than two million in Florida alone making only $7.25 an hour, the federal minimum wage. And that's just to begin down a nightmarish list.
For Pamela Sue Rush and about 1.5 million other people, it meant a lack of access to piped water and sewage systems. Before Pamela, who is Black, contracted Covid-19 and died in July, she lived in a mobile home in Lowndes County, Alabama, where human waste festered in her backyard because she didn't have proper plumbing, and in a state that still hasn't expanded Medicaid, and in a country that has no federal guarantee of either healthcare or clean water. Covid-19 may have been the immediate cause of her death, but the underlying one was racism and poverty.
During these pandemic months, a popular notion has been that the virus is a great equalizer because everyone is susceptible. Yet the human and economic toll has been anything but equal across society. It will take more time to find out just what the mortality rate among the poor has been, but it's already clear that those of us with compromised immune systems, disproportionately poor and people of color, are at greater risk of hospitalization and death from the coronavirus, and early reports suggest that poorer counties have higher death rates. An unsurprising but alarming new study found that more than 400,000 Covid-19 cases are associated with the lifting of eviction moratoriums, forcing people out of the safety of their homes; such numbers will only worsen this winter as evictions continue, if such moratoriums aren't extended into the new year.
Beyond the toll of the virus itself, the economic fallout has been devastating for the poor. Between six and eight million people have fallen below the federal poverty line since March (although that measure is an old and broken standard). The true numbers are undoubtedly far higher. The last 38 weeks have seen unemployment claims greater than the worst week of the Great Recession of 2007-2008. Some economists are now talking about a possible quick bounce back once the virus is controlled and yet the long-term damage is only beginning to reveal itself. After all, 10 years after the Great Recession, a time when little in the way of long-term relief was provided, the majority of workers had still not recovered from it. That this crisis is already significantly deeper and wider should give us pause as we consider what the next decade will look like if this country doesn't alter its bleak course.
The fissures in our society were vast before Covid-19 hit and they've only broadened. A vaccine will address the most visible of them, but we as a nation will continue to stumble from crisis to crisis until we learn the most important lesson this moment can teach: that our yet-to-be-United States will only heal as a society when every person's needs are met. In a pandemic, one person without food, water, healthcare, or housing puts everyone at risk. The same is, in fact, true in non-pandemic times, for a society riven by poverty and deprivation will always be unstable and vulnerable.
Martin Luther King once told a crowd in St. Louis that "we must learn to live as brothers or perish together as fools." Today, the balance is tipping perilously toward the latter category, as Congress painfully debates a thoroughly anemic relief bill that promises little for most Americans and sets a dangerous precedent for the coming months. In a recent letter to Joe Manchin, the self-proclaimed "centrist" senator from West Virginia, Reverend William Barber II (my co-chair on the Poor People's Campaign) wrote:
"I am ashamed of this nation. I know you want to do the right thing, and Republicans are tying your hands, but please don't call this a 'centrist plan.' It's more cynical than centrist. It's damn near criminal that millions are hurting, billionaires are getting richer, sick people are dying, poverty is expanding, and the Senate can't do the right thing."
Indeed, the most important things to note in the coming stimulus bill are these: it protects corporations (that have not protected their workers) from any accountability or legal responsibility; it continues to bail out the rich, not the rest of us, with no provisions for stimulus checks and insufficient funding to states and municipalities; it lowers unemployment benefits to $300 per week (based on wages of $7.50 an hour) rather than $600 per week (based on $15 an hour); it is not only significantly less than the nation needs, but less than what was on offer months ago. The cynicism of this relief bill lies in the way it diminishes life for political gain and corporate profit and in the false contention that this is the most that's available to us, the best the nation can do.
The Ghosts of Christmas Present
Call it a cruel stroke of history that Congress should be deliberating on the welfare of millions only a few weeks before Christmas, especially since so many of the key players call themselves "Christians." This holiday season and the winter beyond it promise to be a long, dark portal to who knows where, as temperatures drop, Covid-19 cases continue to rise, and poverty and homelessness are transformed into so many more death certificates. The timing of Congress's new "relief" bill is particularly wicked if, as a Christian, you were to remember the details of Jesus's birth in that manger in Bethlehem.
After all, he was born a homeless refugee to an unmarried teenage mother and had to flee to Egypt with his family as a baby because the ruling authorities already deemed that this poor Palestinian Jewish boy would grow up to be a threat to the established order of injustice. But the powers and principalities of his day were never the only ones who mattered. There were always those who recognized in his birth that, to right the wrongs of society, to protect the lives of countless innocent victims, another way was possible, if society started with the poor and marginalized, not with those already full to the brim.
It's too bad that some of the congressional representatives who call themselves Christian are so unwilling to take a moment to consider the homeless revolutionary who was long ago sent to lead a moral movement from below. They should remember that the story of Christmas celebrates the birth of a poor, brown-skinned leader who, in the Gospel of Luke, is born to "scatter those who are proud, bring down rulers from their thrones, but lift up the humble. He fills the hungry with good things but sends the rich away empty."
In a time when more children are on the brink of being born into poverty, homelessness, and state-sanctioned violence, rather than, as Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "compress our abundance into the overfed mouths" of the wealthy and corporations, Americans would do well to recognize that scarcity could vanish and that it's time to address systemic inequality.
Liz Theoharis, a TomDispatch regular, is a theologian, ordained minister, and anti-poverty activist. Director of the Kairos Center for Religions, Rights and Social Justice at Union Theological Seminary in New York City and co-chair of the Poor People's Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival, she is the author of Always With Us? What Jesus Really Said About the Poor.
Follow TomDispatch on Twitter and join us on Facebook. Check out the newest Dispatch Books, John Feffer's new dystopian novel (the second in the Splinterlands series) Frostlands, Beverly Gologorsky's novel Every Body Has a Story, and Tom Engelhardt's A Nation Unmade by War, as well as Alfred McCoy's In the Shadows of the American Century: The Rise and Decline of U.S. Global Power and John Dower's The Violent American Century: War and Terror Since World War II.
Copyright 2020 Liz Theoharis