mintpressnews--2020-11-13--Meet the Filthy Rich War Hawks That Make up Biden’s New Foreign Policy Team

After triumphing in a bitterly contested presidential election , all eyes are on President-Elect Joe Biden and who he will choose to run his new administration .
For much of October , media spent their time dissecting the news that , despite living a lavish billionaire lifestyle , Donald Trump paid only $ 750 in federal income taxes in 2016 and 2017 .
In contrast , little was made of Biden ’ s self-published tax documents .
This is surprising because the returns show that he is rich .
Filthy rich .
The 77-year-old Delawarean likes to paint himself as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I entered as one of the poorest men in Congress , left one of the poorest men in government — in Congress and as vice-president , ” Biden said during the Democratic presidential nomination process .
And while that was technically true , since leaving the White House , he and his wife Jill have amassed a fortune of more than $ 16.7 million .
For comparison , the median net worth of U.S. households is $ 97,300 .
His tax returns show that he received over $ 900,000 from the University of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ When I left the United States Senate , I became a professor , ” at the Ivy League institution , he told the country in March .
Yet records show he has not taught even a single class during his time there .
Speaking engagements make up the majority of his earnings , where he is often paid princely sums for minutes ’ work .
For example , his tax returns show that he was paid over $ 134,000 for a talk in Fort Lauderdale , FL in January 2019 .
In this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ footsteps of the likes of Hillary Clinton , Barack Obama , and George W. Bush , who command enormous sums for public appearances — a practice often condemned as little more than payoffs for “ good behavior ” while in office .
Biden is no stranger to the rich and powerful .
He kicked off his presidential campaign last year with a dinner for ultra-rich patrons at a Manhattan hotel , insisting that “ nothing would fundamentally change ” if he were elected , reassuring them that he would never demonize the rich @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for growing inequality .
“ I need you very badly , ” he concluded .
The former vice-president ’ s team is also looking to be made up of extremely wealthy individuals as well .
His transition task squad has been , in his website ’ s words , crafted to ensure they “ reflect the values and priorities of the incoming administration , ” and includes executives from Lyft , Amazon , Capital One , Uber , Visa , and JP Morgan .
One name being strongly floated for a cabinet position @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , a move being met with vocal opposition from the left .
Emanuel ’ s first tour of duty in the White House came under President Bill Clinton , where he was one of the key architects of the North American Free Trade Agreement ( NAFTA ) , a deal that decimated manufacturing in the Midwest , hobbled union power , and sent well paying blue-collar jobs to Mexico .
In 2016 , Trump constantly brought up NAFTA as a weapon to attack Hillary Clinton , winning him votes ( and states ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ through welfare “ reform ” bills that sharply reduced benefits for the poor and worked with Biden on the now-infamous 1994 Crime Bill , a key accelerator of mass incarceration .
He then left politics to pursue a lucrative career in finance — something that quickly netted him a reported $ 16 million fortune — before returning and becoming President Obama ’ s advisor and enforcer .
Many of the president-elect ’ s potential picks for foreign policy positions — including Susan Rice and Michele Flourney — have onlookers worried .
“ With @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a continuation of the Middle East wars and possible escalations in places like Syria .
Biden could be better than Trump on Iran and Yemen , but judging by his potential cabinet picks , that should not be expected without significant pressure from antiwar activists and lobbyists in Washington , ” Dave DeCamp , assistant news editor of AntiWar.com told MintPress .
“ His administration will likely be more successful than Trump at expanding the empire , with a more diplomatic and coherent approach at building alliances to face Russia and China.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the United Nations and National Security Advisor under Obama , has amassed a fortune of around $ 40 million .
After leaving office , she was given a spot on the board of Netflix , being paid $ 366,666 as a base salary .
On top of that , she was given $ 2.3 million worth of the company ’ s stock .
However , it is her husband , former ABC News executive producer Ian O. Cameron ( whose father was a super-wealthy industrialist ) , who is the prime source @ @ @ @ @ @ @ key driver in U.S. action in Libya , and also successfully lobbied Obama to place harsher sanctions on North Korea and Iran .
Flournoy , meanwhile , was Under Secretary of Defense for Policy from 2009 to 2012 in the Obama administration under Secretaries Robert Gates and Leon Panetta .
After “ serving the country , ” she received lucrative consulting contracts , joined corporate boards , and began her own security think tank , WestExec Advisors .
By 2017 , she was making a reported $ 452,000 annually .
“ Certainly the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ WestExec advisors people is concerning , ” Biden biographer Branko Marcetic told MintPress .
“ Biden claims he wants an end to the Yemen conflict , but again , words are only so much .
It ’ s highly likely that he will have Michele Flornoy as his Secretary of Defense who was one of the voices that stated that weapons should continue to be sold to Saudia Arabia ( during the Yemen conflict ) , under certain conditions , as they have a right to protect themselves .
This speaks volumes , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for Public Accuracy .
Rice and Flournoy , she added , were vocal supporters of the disastrous Iraq War , which does not bode well for those concerned with peace .
Marcetic agreed , noting that , while in office , Flourney was “ a major liberal interventionist hawk who not only wants U.S. troops deployed all over the world , but has also publicly advocated for the U.S. to majorly exploit its fossil fuel reserves for global dominance , ” something which would be a “ disaster for containing climate catastrophe.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of them considerably richer than before ) into the new administration suggests that there will be few breaks from the past on policy , and more in the way of continuation .
Biden himself has largely acknowledged this , tweeting , “ When I ’ m speaking to foreign leaders , I ’ m telling them : America is going to be back .
We ’ re going to be back in the game.
” To many suffering under U.S. sanctions or hiding from U.S. bombs , these words will likely not comfort @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be no great difference in policy between Trump and Biden administrations : Everett offered a similar analysis , suggesting that , with pro-Israel zealots like Rice advising him , the Biden administration would “ expand ” on what Trump had done in Palestine as well .
Meanwhile , for Latin America , his foreign policy team intends to revive the so-called “ anti-corruption drives ” of the Obama era , which ultimately overthrew an elected government in Brazil and paved the way for the ascendency of far-right figure Jair Bolsonaro .
Marcetic suggested @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the international treaties and organizations that the Trump administration had undermined or pulled out of , including NATO and the Paris Climate Agreement .
Independent journalist Caitlin Johnstone recently mockingly wrote that Biden will have “ the most diverse , intersectional cabinet of mass murderers ever assembled.
” If representation is important , it is because it helps assure that people from all walks of life will have a seat at the negotiating table .
However , judging by Biden ’ s wealthy picks , it appears that yet again , no @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of working-class Americans .
Alan MacLeod is a Staff Writer for MintPress News .
After completing his PhD in 2017 he published two books : Bad News From Venezuela : Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting and Propaganda in the Information Age : Still Manufacturing Consent .
He has also contributed to Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting , The Guardian , Salon , The Grayzone , Jacobin Magazine , Common Dreams the American Herald Tribune and The Canary .

After triumphing in a bitterly contested presidential election, all eyes are on President-Elect Joe Biden and who he will choose to run his new administration. For much of October, media spent their time dissecting the news that, despite living a lavish billionaire lifestyle, Donald Trump paid only $750 in federal income taxes in 2016 and 2017. In contrast, little was made of Biden’s self-published tax documents. This is surprising because the returns show that he is rich. Filthy rich.
The 77-year-old Delawarean likes to paint himself as a man of modest means. “I entered as one of the poorest men in Congress, left one of the poorest men in government — in Congress and as vice-president,” Biden said during the Democratic presidential nomination process. And while that was technically true, since leaving the White House, he and his wife Jill have amassed a fortune of more than $16.7 million. For comparison, the median net worth of U.S. households is $97,300. His tax returns show that he received over $900,000 from the University of Pennsylvania in 2018 and 2019. “When I left the United States Senate, I became a professor,” at the Ivy League institution, he told the country in March. Yet records show he has not taught even a single class during his time there.
Speaking engagements make up the majority of his earnings, where he is often paid princely sums for minutes’ work. For example, his tax returns show that he was paid over $134,000 for a talk in Fort Lauderdale, FL in January 2019. In this sense, he is following in the footsteps of the likes of Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and George W. Bush, who command enormous sums for public appearances — a practice often condemned as little more than payoffs for “good behavior” while in office.
The Bidens’ Total Earnings: 1998–2019
Source | Forbes
Biden is no stranger to the rich and powerful. He kicked off his presidential campaign last year with a dinner for ultra-rich patrons at a Manhattan hotel, insisting that “nothing would fundamentally change” if he were elected, reassuring them that he would never demonize the rich and that they were not at fault for growing inequality. “I need you very badly,” he concluded.
Building Back Better?
The former vice-president’s team is also looking to be made up of extremely wealthy individuals as well. His transition task squad has been, in his website’s words, crafted to ensure they “reflect the values and priorities of the incoming administration,” and includes executives from Lyft, Amazon, Capital One, Uber, Visa, and JP Morgan.
One name being strongly floated for a cabinet position is former mayor of Chicago Rahm Emanuel, a move being met with vocal opposition from the left. Emanuel’s first tour of duty in the White House came under President Bill Clinton, where he was one of the key architects of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), a deal that decimated manufacturing in the Midwest, hobbled union power, and sent well paying blue-collar jobs to Mexico. In 2016, Trump constantly brought up NAFTA as a weapon to attack Hillary Clinton, winning him votes (and states) across the region. Emanuel also pushed through welfare “reform” bills that sharply reduced benefits for the poor and worked with Biden on the now-infamous 1994 Crime Bill, a key accelerator of mass incarceration. He then left politics to pursue a lucrative career in finance — something that quickly netted him a reported $16 million fortune — before returning and becoming President Obama’s advisor and enforcer.
Biden’s war room
Many of the president-elect’s potential picks for foreign policy positions — including Susan Rice and Michele Flourney — have onlookers worried. “With a Biden administration, we can expect a continuation of the Middle East wars and possible escalations in places like Syria. Biden could be better than Trump on Iran and Yemen, but judging by his potential cabinet picks, that should not be expected without significant pressure from antiwar activists and lobbyists in Washington,” Dave DeCamp, assistant news editor of AntiWar.com told MintPress. “His administration will likely be more successful than Trump at expanding the empire, with a more diplomatic and coherent approach at building alliances to face Russia and China.”
Rice, who was the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and National Security Advisor under Obama, has amassed a fortune of around $40 million. After leaving office, she was given a spot on the board of Netflix, being paid $366,666 as a base salary. On top of that, she was given $2.3 million worth of the company’s stock. However, it is her husband, former ABC News executive producer Ian O. Cameron (whose father was a super-wealthy industrialist), who is the prime source of her wealth. She was a key driver in U.S. action in Libya, and also successfully lobbied Obama to place harsher sanctions on North Korea and Iran.
Flournoy, meanwhile, was Under Secretary of Defense for Policy from 2009 to 2012 in the Obama administration under Secretaries Robert Gates and Leon Panetta. After “serving the country,” she received lucrative consulting contracts, joined corporate boards, and began her own security think tank, WestExec Advisors. By 2017, she was making a reported $452,000 annually.
“Certainly the possible selection of Michele Flournoy and other WestExec advisors people is concerning,” Biden biographer Branko Marcetic told MintPress.
This isn’t just because of their corporate/financial ties, though of course that’s alarming — can we be sure that people whose private sector career involved leveraging their government experience and contacts to help multinationals secure favorable business conditions will have their intentions calibrated toward good policy and not to their private sector career?”
“Biden claims he wants an end to the Yemen conflict, but again, words are only so much. It’s highly likely that he will have Michele Flornoy as his Secretary of Defense who was one of the voices that stated that weapons should continue to be sold to Saudia Arabia (during the Yemen conflict), under certain conditions, as they have a right to protect themselves. This speaks volumes,” said Mariamne Everett of the Institute for Public Accuracy. Rice and Flournoy, she added, were vocal supporters of the disastrous Iraq War, which does not bode well for those concerned with peace.
Marcetic agreed, noting that, while in office, Flourney was “a major liberal interventionist hawk who not only wants U.S. troops deployed all over the world, but has also publicly advocated for the U.S. to majorly exploit its fossil fuel reserves for global dominance,” something which would be a “disaster for containing climate catastrophe.”
Back in the game
The recycling of old faces (many of them considerably richer than before) into the new administration suggests that there will be few breaks from the past on policy, and more in the way of continuation. Biden himself has largely acknowledged this, tweeting, “When I’m speaking to foreign leaders, I’m telling them: America is going to be back. We’re going to be back in the game.” To many suffering under U.S. sanctions or hiding from U.S. bombs, these words will likely not comfort them. DeCamp suggested that there will be no great difference in policy between Trump and Biden administrations:
Despite Trump being painted as an ‘isolationist,’ his administration has actually expanded NATO, shored up the support of some Asian countries to counter China, and significantly increased Washington’s military footprint in the Pacific. Biden will continue this as he made clear in recent phone calls with Asian leaders and his tough talk on China’s claims to the South China Sea during the last presidential debate.”
Everett offered a similar analysis, suggesting that, with pro-Israel zealots like Rice advising him, the Biden administration would “expand” on what Trump had done in Palestine as well. Meanwhile, for Latin America, his foreign policy team intends to revive the so-called “anti-corruption drives” of the Obama era, which ultimately overthrew an elected government in Brazil and paved the way for the ascendency of far-right figure Jair Bolsonaro.
Marcetic suggested that Biden would attempt to rejoin many of the international treaties and organizations that the Trump administration had undermined or pulled out of, including NATO and the Paris Climate Agreement.
I expect the prevailing direction of U.S. foreign policy over these last decades to continue: more lawless bombing and killing multiple countries under the cover of “limited engagement,” continuing genocidal sanctions against countries like Iran and Venezuela, ongoing treatment of Latin America as an American fiefdom, and militarism and conflict continuing to be the dominant organising principle of U.S. foreign policy, rather than, say, co-operation and stopping climate change,” he added.
Independent journalist Caitlin Johnstone recently mockingly wrote that Biden will have “the most diverse, intersectional cabinet of mass murderers ever assembled.” If representation is important, it is because it helps assure that people from all walks of life will have a seat at the negotiating table. However, judging by Biden’s wealthy picks, it appears that yet again, no one will be representing the great majority of working-class Americans.
Feature photo | Graphic by Anontio Cabrera for MintPress
Alan MacLeod is a Staff Writer for MintPress News. After completing his PhD in 2017 he published two books: Bad News From Venezuela: Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting and Propaganda in the Information Age: Still Manufacturing Consent. He has also contributed to Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting, The Guardian, Salon, The Grayzone, Jacobin Magazine, Common Dreams the American Herald Tribune and The Canary.


mintpressnews--2020-11-16--Cuba Could be on the Brink of a Revolutionary COVID Vaccine, But US Sanctions Are Slowing It Down

Cuba has announced positive and promising results for a number of separate COVID-19 vaccines it is currently developing , but U.S. sanctions against the small island nation are hampering the development and rollout of the potentially life-saving treatments .
Two candidates , named Sovereign 1 and Sovereign 2 , have generated antibodies blocking infection in animals and are showing similarly encouraging signs on tests on human subjects .
Meanwhile , a separate vaccine , based on a protein from the hepatitis B virus , is unique in that it is delivered through the nasal tract and does not require a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ these efforts ultimately succeed , the Caribbean nation — already a medical powerhouse that has developed a lung cancer vaccine and methods to stop mother-to-baby HIV and syphilis transmission— will likely become an important supplier to other Latin American and developing countries who have been effectively shut out from purchasing COVID vaccines from Western companies , as rich nations have already begun hoarding coronavirus medicines .
Dr. Helen Yaffe of Glasgow University , author of “ We Are Cuba !
: How a Revolutionary People Have Survived in a Post-Soviet World , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , telling MintPress : However , Cuban immunization developments are being seriously hamstrung by the actions of the U.S. government , primarily due to the decades-long blockade on the island , something which the Cuban government estimates has cost it over 750 billion U.S. dollars .
As Reuters reported , cash-strapped Cuba can not afford to buy the raw materials necessary to upscale its vaccine development to help other countries .
Hospitals face huge obstacles importing lifesaving equipment from abroad due to the blockade , while the sanctions force the country , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , to spend far more on food than other nations .
As a result , almost one third of young children suffer from anemia due to the monotonous and sub-par nutrition available , according to the World Food Program .
The blockade also forces Cuba to continually repair its crumbling infrastructure and halt the importation of vehicles , even leading to a return of horse-drawn carriages on the island .
Food production is hampered ; with little petroleum available for agriculture , the country instead went back to relying on human or animal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the forced development of a domestic pharmaceutical and biotechnology sector , which has grown to become among the most advanced in the world .
Last November , the United Nations voted 187-3 in favor of ending the blockade ( with the U.S. , Israel , and Brazil voting “ no ” ) .
Almost two-thirds of Americans support an end to the action as well .
Despite this , the Trump administration has , in fact , intensified the pressure on Cuba , as Yaffe explained : One example of this , Yaffe @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Cuba and COVID-19 : Public Health , Science and Solidarity ” is that the island can no longer purchase ventilators or parts for existing machines because the Swiss company it dealt with was purchased by an American one and fearing potential reprisals , it halted any contact with Havana .
A more positive , but nevertheless difficult , challenge the Cuban government faces in testing its new vaccines is the lack of COVID-19 patients on the island , which has the highest proportion of medical professionals per capita anywhere in the world .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ only 7,639 cases and 131 deaths .
U.S.-backed conservative neighbors such as Brazil , Ecuador , and ( until last week ) Bolivia , that had expelled Cuban doctors working inside their borders , have fared far worse .
Under Trump , the U.S. also led the world in the theft of medical equipment and personal protective gear , confiscating shipments , and diverting supplies away from other countries to keep for itself .
And at the height of the outbreak in Iran , the government was unable to buy or import lifesaving @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no nation was willing to risk the wrath of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo , who threatened harsh sanctions on anyone willing to do business with Iran .
Finally , the World Health Organization directly intervened , gifting Iran supplies , sparking the Trump administration to leave the WHO among other reasons .
The U.S. , along with other wealthy nations , has also been quietly buying up the majority of any future supply of vaccines , cornering the market , and leaving little hope for developing nations to secure their own supply @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the research have made it clear that they intend to withhold production secrets in order to cash in .
Furthermore , they do not have the capacity to immunize the entire world .
U.S./German company Pfizer , for example , predicts that it could supply enough for only around 650 million people by the end of 2021 .
This is why the development of treatments outside the for-profit model is so important .
Today , Pfizer announced that its own trial , featuring over 43,000 people in six countries was a success , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only 94 people contracting the virus from the vaccine .
Massachusetts-based Moderna claims that its vaccine is even more effective , with a 94 % immunization rate , and does not have to be stored at -80°C temperature like Pfizer ’ s offering .
The first country to announce a potential vaccine was Russia , however , the government sharing the news in September , with researchers claiming “ Sputnik V ” was 90 % effective and that Russia could produce 500 million doses annually .
The Russian and American offerings appear to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and have produced broadly similar results .
However , the Russian vaccine has been near-universally panned in the Western press , while the American ones heralded as a historic achievement .
Thus , Sky News ’ headline described Pfizer ’ s breakthrough as a “ great day for science and humanity ” while casting doubt on the validity of Sputnik V , claiming the Russian ’ s secretive approach is a throwback to “ its spirit in the Cold War.
” Regardless if any or all of the treatments work , the world @ @ @ @ @ @ @ effort to immunize itself against COVID-19 , as no one company can possibly supply the entire planet .
By continuing the blockade against Cuba , the U.S. government might be condemning much of the world to living months longer under a deadly pandemic that has claimed the lives of over 1.32 million people .
Feature photo | A Cuban health worker collects a sample for a COVID-19 test from a baby who arrived in a flight from Mexico at the Jose Marti International Airport in Havana , Cuba , Nov. 15 , 2020 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is a Staff Writer for MintPress News .
After completing his PhD in 2017 he published two books : Bad News From Venezuela : Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting and Propaganda in the Information Age : Still Manufacturing Consent .
He has also contributed to Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting , The Guardian , Salon , The Grayzone , Jacobin Magazine , Common Dreams the American Herald Tribune and The Canary .

Cuba has announced positive and promising results for a number of separate COVID-19 vaccines it is currently developing, but U.S. sanctions against the small island nation are hampering the development and rollout of the potentially life-saving treatments.
Two candidates, named Sovereign 1 and Sovereign 2, have generated antibodies blocking infection in animals and are showing similarly encouraging signs on tests on human subjects. Meanwhile, a separate vaccine, based on a protein from the hepatitis B virus, is unique in that it is delivered through the nasal tract and does not require a needle to administer.
Should any of these efforts ultimately succeed, the Caribbean nation — already a medical powerhouse that has developed a lung cancer vaccine and methods to stop mother-to-baby HIV and syphilis transmission— will likely become an important supplier to other Latin American and developing countries who have been effectively shut out from purchasing COVID vaccines from Western companies, as rich nations have already begun hoarding coronavirus medicines.
Dr. Helen Yaffe of Glasgow University, author of “We Are Cuba!: How a Revolutionary People Have Survived in a Post-Soviet World,” was impressed and heartened by the news, telling MintPress:
Cuba now has four COVID-specific vaccine candidates under clinical trial. The fact that a small Caribbean island can achieve such a remarkable feat is testimony to its state-owned biotech sector, which is directed towards public health demands and integrated into its healthcare and education systems. After years of being told that only the market can lead to efficiency and innovation, Cuba’s socialist planned economy demonstrates what is possible when there is political will, good coordination, organization and the priority of social welfare.”
However, Cuban immunization developments are being seriously hamstrung by the actions of the U.S. government, primarily due to the decades-long blockade on the island, something which the Cuban government estimates has cost it over 750 billion U.S. dollars.
As Reuters reported, cash-strapped Cuba cannot afford to buy the raw materials necessary to upscale its vaccine development to help other countries. Hospitals face huge obstacles importing lifesaving equipment from abroad due to the blockade, while the sanctions force the country, which imports the large majority of its staples, to spend far more on food than other nations. As a result, almost one third of young children suffer from anemia due to the monotonous and sub-par nutrition available, according to the World Food Program.
The blockade also forces Cuba to continually repair its crumbling infrastructure and halt the importation of vehicles, even leading to a return of horse-drawn carriages on the island. Food production is hampered; with little petroleum available for agriculture, the country instead went back to relying on human or animal labor. The blockade also led to the forced development of a domestic pharmaceutical and biotechnology sector, which has grown to become among the most advanced in the world.
Last November, the United Nations voted 187-3 in favor of ending the blockade (with the U.S., Israel, and Brazil voting “no”). Almost two-thirds of Americans support an end to the action as well. Despite this, the Trump administration has, in fact, intensified the pressure on Cuba, as Yaffe explained:
Cuba has been subject to an additional 46 sanctions and new measures to tighten the blockade, to scare off foreign investors, to create scarcity, to create difficulty for Cuba to access raw materials, including for its biotech sector and for its pharmaceutical industry.”
One example of this, Yaffe notes in her new documentary, “Cuba and COVID-19: Public Health, Science and Solidarity” is that the island can no longer purchase ventilators or parts for existing machines because the Swiss company it dealt with was purchased by an American one and fearing potential reprisals, it halted any contact with Havana.
A more positive, but nevertheless difficult, challenge the Cuban government faces in testing its new vaccines is the lack of COVID-19 patients on the island, which has the highest proportion of medical professionals per capita anywhere in the world. To date, the country has recorded only 7,639 cases and 131 deaths. U.S.-backed conservative neighbors such as Brazil, Ecuador, and (until last week) Bolivia, that had expelled Cuban doctors working inside their borders, have fared far worse.
Under Trump, the U.S. also led the world in the theft of medical equipment and personal protective gear, confiscating shipments, and diverting supplies away from other countries to keep for itself. And at the height of the outbreak in Iran, the government was unable to buy or import lifesaving gear due to American sanctions, as no nation was willing to risk the wrath of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who threatened harsh sanctions on anyone willing to do business with Iran. Finally, the World Health Organization directly intervened, gifting Iran supplies, sparking the Trump administration to leave the WHO among other reasons.
The U.S., along with other wealthy nations, has also been quietly buying up the majority of any future supply of vaccines, cornering the market, and leaving little hope for developing nations to secure their own supply of vaccines. The for-profit corporations conducting the research have made it clear that they intend to withhold production secrets in order to cash in. Furthermore, they do not have the capacity to immunize the entire world. U.S./German company Pfizer, for example, predicts that it could supply enough for only around 650 million people by the end of 2021. This is why the development of treatments outside the for-profit model is so important.
Today, Pfizer announced that its own trial, featuring over 43,000 people in six countries was a success, with a 90% immunization rate and only 94 people contracting the virus from the vaccine. Massachusetts-based Moderna claims that its vaccine is even more effective, with a 94% immunization rate, and does not have to be stored at -80°C temperature like Pfizer’s offering.
The first country to announce a potential vaccine was Russia, however, the government sharing the news in September, with researchers claiming “Sputnik V” was 90% effective and that Russia could produce 500 million doses annually. The Russian and American offerings appear to be based upon the same scientific logic and have produced broadly similar results. However, the Russian vaccine has been near-universally panned in the Western press, while the American ones heralded as a historic achievement. Thus, Sky News’ headline described Pfizer’s breakthrough as a “great day for science and humanity” while casting doubt on the validity of Sputnik V, claiming the Russian’s secretive approach is a throwback to “its spirit in the Cold War.”
Regardless if any or all of the treatments work, the world will need a sustained and coordinated international effort to immunize itself against COVID-19, as no one company can possibly supply the entire planet. By continuing the blockade against Cuba, the U.S. government might be condemning much of the world to living months longer under a deadly pandemic that has claimed the lives of over 1.32 million people.
Feature photo | A Cuban health worker collects a sample for a COVID-19 test from a baby who arrived in a flight from Mexico at the Jose Marti International Airport in Havana, Cuba, Nov. 15, 2020. Ramon Espinosa | AP
Alan MacLeod is a Staff Writer for MintPress News. After completing his PhD in 2017 he published two books: Bad News From Venezuela: Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting and Propaganda in the Information Age: Still Manufacturing Consent. He has also contributed to Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting, The Guardian, Salon, The Grayzone, Jacobin Magazine, Common Dreams the American Herald Tribune and The Canary.


mintpressnews--2020-11-17--Our House: Why China’s New South Asian Trade Deal is Making Washington Sweat

For most Americans , the mention of Hanoi elicits memories of the Vietnam war and the peak of the antiwar movement in the United States .
Nearly half a century later , unexploded ordnances ( UXO ) left behind by U.S. soldiers are still killing and maiming Vietnamese people , but a new day has arrived for the long-suffering southeast Asian country along with fourteen regional countries , including powers China and Japan , with a blockbuster trade agreement that is sure to spark controversy in Washington , which was excluded from the 15-nation Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership ( RCEP @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Cambodia , Indonesia , Laos , Malaysia , Myanmar , the Philippines , Singapore , Thailand , and Vietnam are joining regional powerhouses China , Japan , and South Korea as part of a larger economic bloc that will account for one-third of the global economy and be composed of 2.2 billion consumers .
The deal strengthens an already tight-knit economic community of Asian countries , which in addition to the RCEP , already have bilateral trade agreements amongst each other .
It also marks a milestone in the relationship between China and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ agreement together for the first time .
More concerning for American industry , in particular , is the risk of losing market access worth $ 5.3 billion to U.S. industry in the region as these goods shift to production in Chinese firms .
Australia and New Zealand are the odd pair of Western axis nations forming part of the historic pact , whilst the U.S. is left outside looking in at the fruits of its Asia policy over the last 15 years that has now come back to haunt a reeling U.S. establishment @ @ @ @ @ @ @ war ” and an insistence by his predecessors in the White House to waive America ’ s big stick in the South China Sea .
The beginning of the end for American economic hegemony in South East Asia took place between the Bush and Obama administrations when the contours of what would become the Trans-Pacific Partnership ( TPP ) was handed to Barack Obama who would use it to execute his infamous “ Asian Pivot ” – a policy that mimicked past ‘ free trade and war ’ tactics employed throughout the world @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with South Asian countries , while at the same time expand U.S. military presence in the region to allow America “ and not countries like China , to write the rules of the road in the twenty-first century , ” according to then-president Obama .
Needless to say , China began to retreat from some of the overtures it had made to Western interests in previous years .
Hillary Clinton exacerbated tensions dramatically when she tried to impose U.S. will over China ’ s territorial disputes in the South China Sea , stating @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a collaborative fashion by the ASEAN bloc countries to keep the “ region open for normal commercial activities , ” according to Foreign Policy .
A move China clearly saw as a threat to its own hegemonic designs upon the region .
Trump adopted Obama ’ s belligerent position on China and further stoked the flames by starting a trade war against the Asian superpower and withdrawing from the TPP negotiations in 2017 .
China ’ s attempt to ally with the EU against the onslaught of U.S.-imposed tariffs was rebuffed by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ forge ahead with renewed diplomatic efforts to take the RCEP over the finish line .
Weak counter-arguments are already starting to proliferate across U.S. media with the Wall Street Journal publishing a screed desperately trying to downplay the significance of the RCEP , asserting that the “ weaknesses ” of the Chinese government prevented it from actually assuming a leadership role in the region , despite the trade deal .
Together with the TPP , which became the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership ( CPTPP ) , the RCEP is now @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fastest-growing economic region in the world where the U.S. is persona non grata .
Perhaps the most striking development is the historic rapprochement with Japan ; a move which was directly linked to the EU ’ s rejection of the Chinese proposal , forcing China to turn to its old rival .
The low-level trade talks that ensued between China , Japan , and South Korea in 2018 would eventually lead to the finalization of the RCEP economic coup .
The RCEP will eliminate up to 90 % of the tariffs on imports @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and also determine rules for e-commerce and intellectual property throughout each nation , which could potentially disrupt major Western markets like the pharmaceutical and tech industries .
Next Up on the Batting Order With the election all but decided in favor of Joe Biden , the next phase of American foreign policy in South East Asia is likely to remain the same and possibly a return to much more provocative Obama-era ideas like the Air-Sea Battle doctrine , which was first outlined in 2009 to prepare for a military confrontation with China .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ year later in 2010 and tested in 2014 .
It is highly conceivable that a Biden White House will rekindle a more aggressive push against China , even though no official policy statement on China has been released by the Biden transition team .
Nevertheless , Obama ’ s former Vice President has already signaled his intention to continue a belligerent stance against the Asian nation .
“ What I ’ d make China do is play by the international rules ” Biden stated at the one and only debate he had with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the rules .
You play by them , or you ’ re going to pay the price for not playing by them economically , ” Biden affirmed .
The likely future president of the United States is also expected to adopt Trump ’ s aggressive position on Chinese tech , which follows the same pattern we see from one administration to the next , where fundamental policies meant to expand American hegemonic control over other countries are passed on regardless of the colors on their party headquarters .
The RCEP may be the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a burgeoning alliance of Asian countries , which not only have the resources to keep up with and surpass American technological prowess but have also closed the gap considerably in terms of military capabilities with the West .
Feature photo | This image made from a teleconference provided by the Vietnam News Agency ( VNA ) shows the leaders and trade ministers of 15 Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership ( RCEP ) countries pose for a virtual group photo in Hanoi , Vietnam , Nov. 15 , 2020 .
VNA via AP

For most Americans, the mention of Hanoi elicits memories of the Vietnam war and the peak of the antiwar movement in the United States. Nearly half a century later, unexploded ordnances (UXO) left behind by U.S. soldiers are still killing and maiming Vietnamese people, but a new day has arrived for the long-suffering southeast Asian country along with fourteen regional countries, including powers China and Japan, with a blockbuster trade agreement that is sure to spark controversy in Washington, which was excluded from the 15-nation Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
ASEAN bloc countries Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam are joining regional powerhouses China, Japan, and South Korea as part of a larger economic bloc that will account for one-third of the global economy and be composed of 2.2 billion consumers.
The deal strengthens an already tight-knit economic community of Asian countries, which in addition to the RCEP, already have bilateral trade agreements amongst each other. It also marks a milestone in the relationship between China and Japan, who enter into a trade agreement together for the first time. More concerning for American industry, in particular, is the risk of losing market access worth $5.3 billion to U.S. industry in the region as these goods shift to production in Chinese firms.
Australia and New Zealand are the odd pair of Western axis nations forming part of the historic pact, whilst the U.S. is left outside looking in at the fruits of its Asia policy over the last 15 years that has now come back to haunt a reeling U.S. establishment after Trump’s disastrous “trade war” and an insistence by his predecessors in the White House to waive America’s big stick in the South China Sea.
Obama’s Asian Pivot
The beginning of the end for American economic hegemony in South East Asia took place between the Bush and Obama administrations when the contours of what would become the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) was handed to Barack Obama who would use it to execute his infamous “Asian Pivot” – a policy that mimicked past ‘free trade and war’ tactics employed throughout the world.
The plan sought to encourage trade with South Asian countries, while at the same time expand U.S. military presence in the region to allow America “and not countries like China, to write the rules of the road in the twenty-first century,” according to then-president Obama. Needless to say, China began to retreat from some of the overtures it had made to Western interests in previous years.
Hillary Clinton exacerbated tensions dramatically when she tried to impose U.S. will over China’s territorial disputes in the South China Sea, stating that all such claims should be addressed in a collaborative fashion by the ASEAN bloc countries to keep the “region open for normal commercial activities,” according to Foreign Policy. A move China clearly saw as a threat to its own hegemonic designs upon the region.
Trump adopted Obama’s belligerent position on China and further stoked the flames by starting a trade war against the Asian superpower and withdrawing from the TPP negotiations in 2017. China’s attempt to ally with the EU against the onslaught of U.S.-imposed tariffs was rebuffed by unanimity and ultimately drove the PRC to forge ahead with renewed diplomatic efforts to take the RCEP over the finish line.
Sour Grapes
Weak counter-arguments are already starting to proliferate across U.S. media with the Wall Street Journal publishing a screed desperately trying to downplay the significance of the RCEP, asserting that the “weaknesses” of the Chinese government prevented it from actually assuming a leadership role in the region, despite the trade deal.
Together with the TPP, which became the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), the RCEP is now the second massive trade agreement in the fastest-growing economic region in the world where the U.S. is persona non grata.
Perhaps the most striking development is the historic rapprochement with Japan; a move which was directly linked to the EU’s rejection of the Chinese proposal, forcing China to turn to its old rival. The low-level trade talks that ensued between China, Japan, and South Korea in 2018 would eventually lead to the finalization of the RCEP economic coup.
The RCEP will eliminate up to 90% of the tariffs on imports among signatories over the next 20 years and also determine rules for e-commerce and intellectual property throughout each nation, which could potentially disrupt major Western markets like the pharmaceutical and tech industries.
Next Up on the Batting Order
With the election all but decided in favor of Joe Biden, the next phase of American foreign policy in South East Asia is likely to remain the same and possibly a return to much more provocative Obama-era ideas like the Air-Sea Battle doctrine, which was first outlined in 2009 to prepare for a military confrontation with China.
ABS became an official military doctrine a year later in 2010 and tested in 2014. It is highly conceivable that a Biden White House will rekindle a more aggressive push against China, even though no official policy statement on China has been released by the Biden transition team. Nevertheless, Obama’s former Vice President has already signaled his intention to continue a belligerent stance against the Asian nation.
“What I’d make China do is play by the international rules” Biden stated at the one and only debate he had with Trump in October. “These are the rules. You play by them, or you’re going to pay the price for not playing by them economically,” Biden affirmed.
The likely future president of the United States is also expected to adopt Trump’s aggressive position on Chinese tech, which follows the same pattern we see from one administration to the next, where fundamental policies meant to expand American hegemonic control over other countries are passed on regardless of the colors on their party headquarters.
The RCEP may be the shot across the bow heard coming from a burgeoning alliance of Asian countries, which not only have the resources to keep up with and surpass American technological prowess but have also closed the gap considerably in terms of military capabilities with the West.
Feature photo | This image made from a teleconference provided by the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) shows the leaders and trade ministers of 15 Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) countries pose for a virtual group photo in Hanoi, Vietnam, Nov. 15, 2020. VNA via AP
Raul Diego is a MintPress News Staff Writer, independent photojournalist, researcher, writer and documentary filmmaker.


mintpressnews--2020-11-17--Yes, Election Fraud is Real. And its a Longstanding Tradition on Both Sides of the Aisle

American democracy is in limbo after the long-anticipated , contested election has finally come to pass .
More than a week removed from November 3 , Democrats and Republicans peddle their own version of events as a corporate media blitzkrieg tries to manufacture consent for Joe Biden as president-elect in true Guaidó style .
Trump plays the villain , ensconced in the Oval Office while his cabinet officials pitch weak legal challenges that fail to address substantive issues of electoral fraud and serve to simply prolong the stalemate and build up the tension for the grand finale .
Despite evidence @ @ @ @ @ @ @ infrastructure of the United States that leave the systems at the very heart of the democratic process open to election rigging on a massive scale , much of the American public is unaware of the extent of the problem and how easily election results can be manipulated without leaving a trace .
The bumbling incompetence of the Trump administration provides cover for the machinations of the U.S. establishment , which more nuanced independent coverage has revealed in great detail .
Taking the deliberate preparations made for this particular eventuality into consideration , complete @ @ @ @ @ @ @ new federal agencies and programs since the start of the 2016 presidential race , it is clear that the 2020 Election was targeted as an opportunity to fundamentally transform the American political juggernaut , in tandem with the ongoing worldwide economic reset .
A statement released last Thursday by the director of one of the newest agencies , in charge of overseeing cybersecurity infrastructure in the United States , claimed that there was “ no evidence [ … ] any voting system deleted or lost votes , changed votes , or was in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the head of the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency ( CISA ) , directly contradicted the Trump-appointed chairman of the Federal Election Commission ( FEC ) , who last week told the conservative outlet Newsmax that voter fraud was definitely taking place .
Part of the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency ’ s mission centers on assuring compliance with DHS dictates surrounding election security protocols .
The standalone federal agency with oversight from the Department of Homeland Security was formed two years after an embarrassing incident involving DHS occurred during the 2016 general @ @ @ @ @ @ @ secretary of state ,  – now governor – Brian Kemp , announced that cyberattacks on its voting systems had been traced to the federal law enforcement agency .
In 2020 with CISA firmly in place , DHS ’ cybersecurity division implemented a “ 24/7 war room ” to ostensibly guard against election hacking .
CISA ’ s Krebs , a former cybersecurity policy director at Microsoft , led the effort to “ monitor a network of every state ’ s election system simultaneously until every vote is counted , ” according to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bring a camera crew into the operation in Fort Meade , Maryland .
In the lead up to the 2020 election , warnings about Russian and Iranian cyberwarriors running roughshod over the electoral contest were everywhere in U.S. media .
Dire warnings of an existential threat to democracy by foreign actors that never materialized were leveraged to implement new security measures in partnership with the private sector .
Krebs floated the excuse for a conspicuously absent horde of Eurasian hackers , that America ’ s enemies chose to “ sit out this election @ @ @ @ @ @ @ article .
The fact is that neither Russia nor Iran have anywhere near the level of access to America ’ s election system as the handful of private companies who are part of an electronic voting machine cartel , which currently controls over 92 % of the elections market in the United States .
In a prolific time for draconian government overreach , one of the lesser-known pieces of legislation proposed by the Bush administration was the Help America Vote Act ( HAVA ) , passed by a Republican-controlled House and a unanimous @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2001 .
The bill was signed into law 11 months later and “ greatly accelerated the full computerization of U.S. elections , ” according to Jonathan Simon , an election integrity advocate and author of “ Code Red , Computerized Election Theft and The New American Century , ” in an interview with MintPress .
Simon describes the legislation ’ s carrot-and-stick approach to goad states into adopting technologies like touchscreen voting systems known as DREs , which were later replaced with barcode systems or BMDs , which were “ entirely lacking in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ process it promoted.
” Among the bill ’ s authors is none other than the current Senate leader and Republican kingmaker , Mitch McConnell , who has defended Trump ’ s right to challenge the election results without committing to a particular outcome .
“ If , as was claimed , ” Simon continues , “ HAVA would make voting easier and thus increase turnout , as we can see clearly today , that was decidedly not a GOP goal , certainly not of a tactician like McConnell.
” The partisan motivations Simon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and , as he points out , should have been clear to Democrats as well .
But , the argument that the American liberal establishment had no inkling of the ramifications fails to account for the Democrats ’ own forays into the closely held universe of electronic voting systems .
A week ago , FOX Anchor Maria Bartiromo casually let slip on air that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi ’ s chief of staff , Sidney Powell , had become a lobbyist for Dominion Voting Systems – one of a handful of companies that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ systems , which together control 92 % of the election marketplace .
Nevertheless , Dominion ’ s market share is dwarfed by ES & S ; the largest election voting machine company in the United States and whose “ subcontractors that [ do ] the actual programming , maintenance , and distribution ” are controlled by GOP political allies , according to Simon .
The wrangling these firms engage in to steal electoral markets from each other , and the inseparable political problems such dynamics can cause , was on full display in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ when its Democrat governor , John Bel Edwards , canceled a $ 95 million dollar contract that had been awarded to Dominion after competitor ES & S filed a complaint about the contracting process .
Edwards was accused by his Republican secretary of state of siding “ with his political buddies over election security , ” which contradicts the prevailing notions of a pure partisan split along this issue .
Experts on both sides of the political divide concede that both voter fraud and election fraud occur with considerable frequency since the advent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to Dominion and ES & S , only five other companies dominate this space : Tenex , SGO/Smartmatic , Hart InterCivic , Demtech , and Premier ( formerly Diebold ) .
Virtually all have been accused of vote count manipulation or other irregularities associated with their systems .
Hart , for instance , was accused of vote flipping ( the practice of switching the votes from one candidate to their opponent ) in Texas .
Dominion also ran into issues in the Lone Star state when its systems failed certification over accessibility problems @ @ @ @ @ @ @ used to record and count votes , ” explains Jonathan Simon , “ is either modem-equipped , which leaves it highly vulnerable to remote interference , or programmed with the use of other computers than are internet-connected , allowing the alteration of memory cards and code running in either precinct-level machines ( like BMDs , DREs , or Optical Scanners ) or central tabulators.
” Examples of these dangerous weaknesses were explored in a recent video published by a self-styled national security professional , L. Todd Wood , where conservative elections security expert @ @ @ @ @ @ @ findings from a forensic analysis of a 1000+ page voter log taken out of Dallas County ’ s central tabulation center in the aftermath of the 2018 midterm elections .
Ramsland identified instances of votes being replaced in 96 precincts , an inordinate number of database “ updates ” and other serious irregularities that point to vote-count manipulation and amount to election fraud .
His most explosive allegation centered around claims of real-time vote-swapping in the 2019 gubernatorial election in Kentucky , where Ramsland asserts that thousands of votes originally given for the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ CNN broadcast and added to the tally of the Democratic candidate , Andy Beshear , who would end up winning the election .
Ramsland also alleged that the election data of that race was being stored in a server in Frankfurt , Germany before being cycled through the central tabulation database , which syncs automatically with the numbers shown to television viewers .
This server has been pounced on by Trump supporters in recent days and repeated by Rudy Giuliani in his podcast on Friday when he also purported to have direct evidence @ @ @ @ @ @ @ practically impossible for the layman to unravel the complexities underlying the encryption and cloud technologies underlying the present-day election system in the United States , few can doubt that moving towards a digital voting system removes whatever last vestiges of control the regular American citizen had in a once participatory exercise of democracy .
Asked if democracy can even exist under such conditions , Simon refers to a prediction he made in “ CODE RED , ” in which he augurs “ an inexorable progression to where we are now : public trust @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , no one able to prove anything , [ and ] everyone kind of waking up to the realization that our concealed computerized vote-counting process does not yield evidence-based results.
” Giuliani ’ s promises of whistleblowers coming forward to save the day for the MAGA crowd and call the election off aren ’ t likely to produce anything of consequence as this charade only serves to further pave the way for the ruling classes , who are consolidating their grip on power and wealth at mind-boggling speeds thanks to the peculiar advantages @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Real evidence of election fakery is too widespread to confront as part of a national discussion , as that would threaten the position of the politicians who depend on a rigged system and the powerful interests that control them .
With the extremes of the American political spectrum lighting up in deep reds and blues , whatever emerges out of the ashes won ’ t resemble much that came before it , and regardless of the election results , America ’ s inexorable march towards techno-fascism is moving right along .
Actual @ @ @ @ @ @ @ every national American election and is just as prevalent in state and municipal elections , as well .
From vote splitting to voter suppression tactics to direct manipulation of election results , both political parties have usurped the electoral processes to lie and cheat their way into power more than once .
But with the advent of digital voting systems , even the scandals we always seem to hear about far too late will vanish from sight , as well .
The most straightforward aspect of democracy – voting – is disappearing behind @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only technocratic lackeys will be able to pull back .
Trump , who was plucked from the reality TV screen like Jeff Daniels in “ The Purple Rose of Cairo ” and inserted into the national contest for the highest office in the land , will do nothing to change that .
Publically available FBI documents show the sitting president has been an FBI informant since the early eighties and his rise to the highest office in the land was not the case of a brash , independent billionaire who decided to run @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Again.
” After all , Donald Trump ’ s long-standing ties with the very “ deep state ” many of his staunchest supporters are convinced he is dismantling , actually reveals a factional war among the ruling class behind the scenes .
With a president who is as deep state as it gets , if there ’ s something we can take away from the last four years and these last few days since the election , it ’ s that the American establishment ’ s over-the-top partisanship has been a ruse undertaken @ @ @ @ @ @ @ united in waging a class war like never before .

American democracy is in limbo after the long-anticipated, contested election has finally come to pass. More than a week removed from November 3, Democrats and Republicans peddle their own version of events as a corporate media blitzkrieg tries to manufacture consent for Joe Biden as president-elect in true Guaidó style. Trump plays the villain, ensconced in the Oval Office while his cabinet officials pitch weak legal challenges that fail to address substantive issues of electoral fraud and serve to simply prolong the stalemate and build up the tension for the grand finale.
Despite evidence of fatal vulnerabilities underlying the electronic voting infrastructure of the United States that leave the systems at the very heart of the democratic process open to election rigging on a massive scale, much of the American public is unaware of the extent of the problem and how easily election results can be manipulated without leaving a trace.
The bumbling incompetence of the Trump administration provides cover for the machinations of the U.S. establishment, which more nuanced independent coverage has revealed in great detail. Taking the deliberate preparations made for this particular eventuality into consideration, complete with table-top exercises and the creation of new federal agencies and programs since the start of the 2016 presidential race, it is clear that the 2020 Election was targeted as an opportunity to fundamentally transform the American political juggernaut, in tandem with the ongoing worldwide economic reset.
A statement released last Thursday by the director of one of the newest agencies, in charge of overseeing cybersecurity infrastructure in the United States, claimed that there was “no evidence […] any voting system deleted or lost votes, changed votes, or was in any way compromised.” Chris Krebs, the head of the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), directly contradicted the Trump-appointed chairman of the Federal Election Commission (FEC), who last week told the conservative outlet Newsmax that voter fraud was definitely taking place.
Cyberbullies
Part of the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency’s mission centers on assuring compliance with DHS dictates surrounding election security protocols. The standalone federal agency with oversight from the Department of Homeland Security was formed two years after an embarrassing incident involving DHS occurred during the 2016 general election, when Georgia’s then secretary of state, – now governor – Brian Kemp, announced that cyberattacks on its voting systems had been traced to the federal law enforcement agency.
In 2020 with CISA firmly in place, DHS’ cybersecurity division implemented a “24/7 war room” to ostensibly guard against election hacking. CISA’s Krebs, a former cybersecurity policy director at Microsoft, led the effort to “monitor a network of every state’s election system simultaneously until every vote is counted,” according to News Nation, which was allowed to bring a camera crew into the operation in Fort Meade, Maryland.
In the lead up to the 2020 election, warnings about Russian and Iranian cyberwarriors running roughshod over the electoral contest were everywhere in U.S. media. Dire warnings of an existential threat to democracy by foreign actors that never materialized were leveraged to implement new security measures in partnership with the private sector. Krebs floated the excuse for a conspicuously absent horde of Eurasian hackers, that America’s enemies chose to “sit out this election” in a recent New York Times article.
The fact is that neither Russia nor Iran have anywhere near the level of access to America’s election system as the handful of private companies who are part of an electronic voting machine cartel, which currently controls over 92% of the elections market in the United States.
You Don’t Really HAVA Choice
In a prolific time for draconian government overreach, one of the lesser-known pieces of legislation proposed by the Bush administration was the Help America Vote Act (HAVA), passed by a Republican-controlled House and a unanimous vote by a Democrat-led Senate in December 2001. The bill was signed into law 11 months later and “greatly accelerated the full computerization of U.S. elections,” according to Jonathan Simon, an election integrity advocate and author of “Code Red, Computerized Election Theft and The New American Century,” in an interview with MintPress.
Simon describes the legislation’s carrot-and-stick approach to goad states into adopting technologies like touchscreen voting systems known as DREs, which were later replaced with barcode systems or BMDs, which were “entirely lacking in cyber-security provisions to protect the increasingly concealed process it promoted.” Among the bill’s authors is none other than the current Senate leader and Republican kingmaker, Mitch McConnell, who has defended Trump’s right to challenge the election results without committing to a particular outcome.
“If, as was claimed,” Simon continues, “HAVA would make voting easier and thus increase turnout, as we can see clearly today, that was decidedly not a GOP goal, certainly not of a tactician like McConnell.” The partisan motivations Simon ascribes to HAVA are clear enough, and, as he points out, should have been clear to Democrats as well. But, the argument that the American liberal establishment had no inkling of the ramifications fails to account for the Democrats’ own forays into the closely held universe of electronic voting systems.
A week ago, FOX Anchor Maria Bartiromo casually let slip on air that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s chief of staff, Sidney Powell, had become a lobbyist for Dominion Voting Systems – one of a handful of companies that maintain a close-knit cartel of electronic voting systems, which together control 92% of the election marketplace. Nevertheless, Dominion’s market share is dwarfed by ES&S; the largest election voting machine company in the United States and whose “subcontractors that [do] the actual programming, maintenance, and distribution” are controlled by GOP political allies, according to Simon.
The wrangling these firms engage in to steal electoral markets from each other, and the inseparable political problems such dynamics can cause, was on full display in Louisiana just before the 2018 midterm elections when its Democrat governor, John Bel Edwards, canceled a $95 million dollar contract that had been awarded to Dominion after competitor ES&S filed a complaint about the contracting process. Edwards was accused by his Republican secretary of state of siding “with his political buddies over election security,” which contradicts the prevailing notions of a pure partisan split along this issue.
Fatal Vulnerabilities
Experts on both sides of the political divide concede that both voter fraud and election fraud occur with considerable frequency since the advent of electronic voting machines. In addition to Dominion and ES&S, only five other companies dominate this space: Tenex, SGO/Smartmatic, Hart InterCivic, Demtech, and Premier (formerly Diebold).
Virtually all have been accused of vote count manipulation or other irregularities associated with their systems. Hart, for instance, was accused of vote flipping (the practice of switching the votes from one candidate to their opponent) in Texas. Dominion also ran into issues in the Lone Star state when its systems failed certification over accessibility problems.
“Much of the equipment being used to record and count votes,” explains Jonathan Simon, “is either modem-equipped, which leaves it highly vulnerable to remote interference, or programmed with the use of other computers than are internet-connected, allowing the alteration of memory cards and code running in either precinct-level machines (like BMDs, DREs, or Optical Scanners) or central tabulators.”
Examples of these dangerous weaknesses were explored in a recent video published by a self-styled national security professional, L. Todd Wood, where conservative elections security expert, Russ Ramsland, breaks down his findings from a forensic analysis of a 1000+ page voter log taken out of Dallas County’s central tabulation center in the aftermath of the 2018 midterm elections.
Ramsland identified instances of votes being replaced in 96 precincts, an inordinate number of database “updates” and other serious irregularities that point to vote-count manipulation and amount to election fraud. His most explosive allegation centered around claims of real-time vote-swapping in the 2019 gubernatorial election in Kentucky, where Ramsland asserts that thousands of votes originally given for the Republican candidate were swapped live on a CNN broadcast and added to the tally of the Democratic candidate, Andy Beshear, who would end up winning the election.
Ramsland also alleged that the election data of that race was being stored in a server in Frankfurt, Germany before being cycled through the central tabulation database, which syncs automatically with the numbers shown to television viewers. This server has been pounced on by Trump supporters in recent days and repeated by Rudy Giuliani in his podcast on Friday when he also purported to have direct evidence of election fraud.
While it is practically impossible for the layman to unravel the complexities underlying the encryption and cloud technologies underlying the present-day election system in the United States, few can doubt that moving towards a digital voting system removes whatever last vestiges of control the regular American citizen had in a once participatory exercise of democracy.
Asked if democracy can even exist under such conditions, Simon refers to a prediction he made in “CODE RED,” in which he augurs “an inexorable progression to where we are now: public trust eroded, the losers making wild allegations, no one able to prove anything, [and] everyone kind of waking up to the realization that our concealed computerized vote-counting process does not yield evidence-based results.”
Spook Charade
Giuliani’s promises of whistleblowers coming forward to save the day for the MAGA crowd and call the election off aren’t likely to produce anything of consequence as this charade only serves to further pave the way for the ruling classes, who are consolidating their grip on power and wealth at mind-boggling speeds thanks to the peculiar advantages bestowed upon them by the pandemic protocols. Real evidence of election fakery is too widespread to confront as part of a national discussion, as that would threaten the position of the politicians who depend on a rigged system and the powerful interests that control them.
With the extremes of the American political spectrum lighting up in deep reds and blues, whatever emerges out of the ashes won’t resemble much that came before it, and regardless of the election results, America’s inexorable march towards techno-fascism is moving right along.
Watch | America’s Election Debacle Highlights Anti-Democratic Hijinks of Both Parties
Actual voter and election fraud takes place in every national American election and is just as prevalent in state and municipal elections, as well. From vote splitting to voter suppression tactics to direct manipulation of election results, both political parties have usurped the electoral processes to lie and cheat their way into power more than once.
But with the advent of digital voting systems, even the scandals we always seem to hear about far too late will vanish from sight, as well. The most straightforward aspect of democracy – voting – is disappearing behind a curtain of ones and zeros that only technocratic lackeys will be able to pull back. Trump, who was plucked from the reality TV screen like Jeff Daniels in “The Purple Rose of Cairo” and inserted into the national contest for the highest office in the land, will do nothing to change that.
Publically available FBI documents show the sitting president has been an FBI informant since the early eighties and his rise to the highest office in the land was not the case of a brash, independent billionaire who decided to run for president to “Make America Great Again.” After all, Donald Trump’s long-standing ties with the very “deep state” many of his staunchest supporters are convinced he is dismantling, actually reveals a factional war among the ruling class behind the scenes.
With a president who is as deep state as it gets, if there’s something we can take away from the last four years and these last few days since the election, it’s that the American establishment’s over-the-top partisanship has been a ruse undertaken to hide the fact that they are united in waging a class war like never before.
Feature photo | Graphic by Antonio Cabrera for MintPress News
Raul Diego is a MintPress News Staff Writer, independent photojournalist, researcher, writer and documentary filmmaker.


mintpressnews--2020-11-19--The Last Negotiator: The Death of Saeb Erekat Could Mark the End of Palestinian Reconciliation

The untimely passing of Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat marks the end of not only a period , but of a generation .
Almost 14 years to the day after the death of Yasser Arafat , Erekat succumbed to complications from Covid-19 , and it is remarkable to see that even though so many years have passed since Arafat ’ s death , there are still serious people who , like Erekat , hold on to the belief that a negotiated settlement with Israel is possible , and that a Two-State Solution is viable .
Unlike Arafat , who started his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Liberation Organization promoting “ radical ” ideas , like the liberation of Palestine and freedom for the Palestinian people , Erikat ’ s career began in what may be considered the final chapter of the PLO .
That chapter was marked by negotiation upon negotiation with the hope , unrealistic as it may have been , of reaching a negotiated peace agreement with the Israeli government .
I never met Saeb Erekat , but I know many people like him who , even today , hold on to the belief that Palestinians must @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cooperation and even collaboration with Israel are critical so that someday a Palestinian state can exist alongside Israel .
For three decades , from the mid-1970s to the day he died in 2004 – Yasser Arafat was the most consistent voice for peace in the Middle East .
When he spoke at the United Nations in 1974 , he said , “ I come with an olive branch in one hand and a gun in the other , ” and added , “ Do not let the olive branch fall from my hand.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ and held on to that olive branch for the rest of his life .
Under his leadership , the Palestinian national movement went from calling for the total liberation of Palestine through a military struggle , to a binational secular democratic state spanning all of Palestine , and from there , to recognizing Israel and denouncing “ terrorism.
” Arafat eventually accepted whatever part of Palestine that was made available for his people on the basis of a Two-State Solution and finally signed the Oslo Accords , which led to nothing but more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Israel .
The suffering and violent takeover by Israel was not new of course , only this time it had Arafat ’ s signature on it .
From decade to decade , starting in the 1960s , the Palestinian leadership went from revolutionary to accommodating and to what some would say , collaborating .
All under the leadership of the same man , Yasser Arafat .
The first time Yasser Arafat was introduced to the world was in a Time magazine cover story .
It was the December 13 , 1968 issue , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Arafat on the cover and an armed Palestinian fighter in the background .
Arafat was described as “ Fedayeen Leader ” and the caption across the top read , “ The Arab Commandos , a Defiant New Force in the Middle East.
” The piece began as follows , “ The revolution of Fatah exists !
It exists here , there and everywhere .
It is a storm , a storm in every house and village.
” The article quoted from the “ Voice of El-Fatah ” radio .
It went on to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the cover of Time largely because of the fame that followed the Battle of Karama .
It was in May of 1968 that Israel decided to invade Jordan and punish the Palestinian fighters in the village of Karama , which incidentally means dignity in Arabic .
The “ El-Fatah ” forces had been quite literally terrifying Israel .
Every Israeli , even children , became aware of the dangers of what we knew as “ Al-Fatah ” and “ Fedayeen.
” I describe the battle and the precise force that Israel mobilized for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The General Son.
” For now , suffice it to say that it was an enormous , cumbersome force that turned out to be as clumsy as it was bulky .
The operation included ground and air , commando and paratrooper as well as tank divisions .
The tanks got stuck in the mud and the whole thing was a terrible blunder with the Israeli forces being humiliated and paying a heavy price .
Although Palestinian and Jordanian forces also paid a heavy price , they saw the previously victorious Israeli army leave @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The Battle of Karama came to be known as a military victory and a morale boost for all Arabs , but none more than the Palestinians with Yasser Arafat as their leader .
Arafat was based in Karama , and his forces prevailed .
It was in the aftermath of Karama that his name appeared to the outside world .
In his first appearance in front of the UN General Assembly in 1974 , Arafat stood wearing his famous Keffiyeh and carrying a pistol .
Not unlike Che Guevara and other revolutionaries who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as a true revolutionary .
He spoke not only about the plight of his own people but of that of other nations who suffered the indignation and oppression of imperialism and settler colonialism .
He spoke harshly and truthfully about Zionism , about the racism and violence that it brought to his land and his people : Just as colonialists in Africa used religion , color , race , and language to justify exploitation and cruel subjugation , so too are these methods employed in Palestine .
Zionism is an ideology that is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pains our people greatly to witness the propagation of the myth that its homeland was a desert until it was made to bloom by foreign settlers , that it was a land without a people , and that the colonialist entity caused no harm .
Those who call us terrorists wish to prevent world public opinion from discovering the truth about us .
They seek to hide the terrorism and tyranny of their own acts .
When we speak of our hopes for the Palestine of tomorrow we include all Jews now living @ @ @ @ @ @ @ us in peace and without discrimination .
I call upon Jews to turn away one by one from the illusory promises made to them by Zionist ideology and Israeli leadership .
They are offering Jews perpetual bloodshed , endless war .
We offer them the most generous solution , that we might live together in a framework of just peace in our democratic Palestine.
” He ended his speech with the words , “ I have come bearing an olive branch and a freedom fighter ’ s gun .
Do not let the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I repeat : do not let the olive branch fall from my hand.
” As Arafat was making this speech , his top emissaries in Europe were making contacts with renegade Israeli figures like my father , Matti Peled , at that point a retired Israeli general , and Uri Avneri , a veteran of the 1948 war and a journalist .
Although both of them had come out criticizing Israel for its treatment of the Palestinian people and called for an end to the occupation of 1967 , both were staunch and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ my father marked a departure from the previous PLO policy of dealing only with anti-Zionist elements in Israel .
It clearly demonstrated a shift in thinking at the highest echelons of PLO leadership .
The contacts between Zionist Israelis and top PLO diplomats like Sa ’ id Hamami in London and Issam Sartawi in Paris , both of whom were consequently assassinated , took place under the auspices and full support of several notable figures .
These included the former German Chancellor Willy Brandt , Austrian Chancellor Bruno Kreisky , King Hassan II @ @ @ @ @ @ @ like the Quakers and particularly individuals like Landrum Bolling .
From the Israeli perspective , the purpose of these meetings was twofold : To legitimize the PLO in the eyes of Israeli public opinion – in which they failed – and to convince Yassar Arafat to recognize Israel and accept the Two-State Solution .
The latter objective succeeded but proved catastrophic for the Palestinian people .
In 1988 Arafat was once again invited to speak at the United Nations General Assembly .
However , as a result of Israeli pressure , the Regan-Bush @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the United States and the General Assembly had to meet in Geneva instead .
The 1988 speech that Arafat gave was very different from his 1974 speech .
By 1988 , Arafat had taken a new position on Israel and the recognition of the Zionist State was integral to his speech .
No more revolutionary .
Instead , appeasing .
It was about asking for negotiations and peace rather than justice and an end to racism and settler colonialism .
Talk of peace with Israel replaced freeing Palestine from Israel .
As these @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Authority reportedly announced its willingness to resume military and civilian coordination with Israel .
If there is any criticism today towards the generation of negotiators comprised of people who , like Saeb Erikat , believed that negotiating and talking was the only way forward , it is that they didn ’ t know when to stop .
Missing what became obvious to many , that three decades of Palestinian concessions were only making things worse for the Palestinians .
Once the PLO committed to the Two-State Solution , it held on to it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hold on to it today .
For decades , Israel claimed that the Palestinians were using the Two-State Solution as a stepping stone to replacing Israel through the creation of a Palestinian state on all of historic Palestine .
But that is little more than what some would call “ projecting.
” It was Israel who used the endless and fruitless negotiations as a tool by which to take more and more Palestinian land , to “ Judaise , ” as they call it , more and more of Palestine , and to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ genocide , and deepening of the apartheid regime .
One grieves the loss of a dedicated man like Saeb Erekat , and one grieves even more that Palestine is disappearing before our very eyes .
In his 1974 speech at the United Nations Yasser Arafat warned the world not to let the olive branch fall from his hand .
The truth is that he himself held on to the olive branch with such ferocity that one might say it cost him his own life .
Feature photo | Then-Vice-President Joe Biden shakes hands @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Biden ’ s arrival in the West Bank city of Ramallah on March 9 , 2016 .
Mohamad Torokman | Reuters Miko Peled is an author and human rights activist born in Jerusalem .
He is the author of “ The General ’ s Son .
Journey of an Israeli in Palestine , ” and “ Injustice , the Story of the Holy Land Foundation Five .
”

The untimely passing of Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat marks the end of not only a period, but of a generation. Almost 14 years to the day after the death of Yasser Arafat, Erekat succumbed to complications from Covid-19, and it is remarkable to see that even though so many years have passed since Arafat’s death, there are still serious people who, like Erekat, hold on to the belief that a negotiated settlement with Israel is possible, and that a Two-State Solution is viable.
Unlike Arafat, who started his career as a leader of the Palestinian Liberation Organization promoting “radical” ideas, like the liberation of Palestine and freedom for the Palestinian people, Erikat’s career began in what may be considered the final chapter of the PLO. That chapter was marked by negotiation upon negotiation with the hope, unrealistic as it may have been, of reaching a negotiated peace agreement with the Israeli government.
I never met Saeb Erekat, but I know many people like him who, even today, hold on to the belief that Palestinians must never stop negotiating. The belief that cooperation and even collaboration with Israel are critical so that someday a Palestinian state can exist alongside Israel.
Yasser Arafat: A leader of transformation
For three decades, from the mid-1970s to the day he died in 2004 – Yasser Arafat was the most consistent voice for peace in the Middle East. When he spoke at the United Nations in 1974, he said, “I come with an olive branch in one hand and a gun in the other,” and added, “Do not let the olive branch fall from my hand.” Arafat let go of the gun and held on to that olive branch for the rest of his life.
Under his leadership, the Palestinian national movement went from calling for the total liberation of Palestine through a military struggle, to a binational secular democratic state spanning all of Palestine, and from there, to recognizing Israel and denouncing “terrorism.”
Arafat eventually accepted whatever part of Palestine that was made available for his people on the basis of a Two-State Solution and finally signed the Oslo Accords, which led to nothing but more suffering for Palestinians and more control for Israel. The suffering and violent takeover by Israel was not new of course, only this time it had Arafat’s signature on it. From decade to decade, starting in the 1960s, the Palestinian leadership went from revolutionary to accommodating and to what some would say, collaborating. All under the leadership of the same man, Yasser Arafat.
Appearing on the world stage
The first time Yasser Arafat was introduced to the world was in a Time magazine cover story. It was the December 13, 1968 issue, and it featured a dramatic rendition of Arafat on the cover and an armed Palestinian fighter in the background. Arafat was described as “Fedayeen Leader” and the caption across the top read, “The Arab Commandos, a Defiant New Force in the Middle East.”
The piece began as follows, “The revolution of Fatah exists! It exists here, there and everywhere. It is a storm, a storm in every house and village.” The article quoted from the “Voice of El-Fatah” radio. It went on to describe it.
Faithful and unfailing as the muezzin’s call from the minaret, that heady cry goes out nightly from a radio station in Cairo to the Arab lands. It is the “Voice of El Fatah,” speaking for the Arab commando organization whose bands of raiders cross each night into hated Israel, bent on bringing death, destruction and terror. To Arabs huddled in wind-chilling refugee tents outside Amman, sipping thick coffee in drawing rooms in Damascus, or lounging in the common rooms of the American University of Beirut.”
Arafat made it to the cover of Time largely because of the fame that followed the Battle of Karama. It was in May of 1968 that Israel decided to invade Jordan and punish the Palestinian fighters in the village of Karama, which incidentally means dignity in Arabic. The “El-Fatah” forces had been quite literally terrifying Israel. Every Israeli, even children, became aware of the dangers of what we knew as “Al-Fatah” and “Fedayeen.”
I describe the battle and the precise force that Israel mobilized for this invasion in my book, “The General Son.” For now, suffice it to say that it was an enormous, cumbersome force that turned out to be as clumsy as it was bulky. The operation included ground and air, commando and paratrooper as well as tank divisions. The tanks got stuck in the mud and the whole thing was a terrible blunder with the Israeli forces being humiliated and paying a heavy price.
Although Palestinian and Jordanian forces also paid a heavy price, they saw the previously victorious Israeli army leave with its tail between its legs. The Battle of Karama came to be known as a military victory and a morale boost for all Arabs, but none more than the Palestinians with Yasser Arafat as their leader. Arafat was based in Karama, and his forces prevailed. It was in the aftermath of Karama that his name appeared to the outside world.
UN General Assembly, 1974
In his first appearance in front of the UN General Assembly in 1974, Arafat stood wearing his famous Keffiyeh and carrying a pistol. Not unlike Che Guevara and other revolutionaries who spoke at the UN, Arafat spoke as a true revolutionary. He spoke not only about the plight of his own people but of that of other nations who suffered the indignation and oppression of imperialism and settler colonialism. He spoke harshly and truthfully about Zionism, about the racism and violence that it brought to his land and his people:
Just as colonialists in Africa used religion, color, race, and language to justify exploitation and cruel subjugation, so too are these methods employed in Palestine.
Zionism is an ideology that is imperialist, colonialist, racist. It pains our people greatly to witness the propagation of the myth that its homeland was a desert until it was made to bloom by foreign settlers, that it was a land without a people, and that the colonialist entity caused no harm. Those who call us terrorists wish to prevent world public opinion from discovering the truth about us. They seek to hide the terrorism and tyranny of their own acts. When we speak of our hopes for the Palestine of tomorrow we include all Jews now living in Palestine who choose to live with us in peace and without discrimination. I call upon Jews to turn away one by one from the illusory promises made to them by Zionist ideology and Israeli leadership. They are offering Jews perpetual bloodshed, endless war. We offer them the most generous solution, that we might live together in a framework of just peace in our democratic Palestine.”
He ended his speech with the words, “I have come bearing an olive branch and a freedom fighter’s gun. Do not let the olive branch fall from my hand. I repeat: do not let the olive branch fall from my hand.”
As Arafat was making this speech, his top emissaries in Europe were making contacts with renegade Israeli figures like my father, Matti Peled, at that point a retired Israeli general, and Uri Avneri, a veteran of the 1948 war and a journalist. Although both of them had come out criticizing Israel for its treatment of the Palestinian people and called for an end to the occupation of 1967, both were staunch and patriotic Zionists.
Connecting with Avneri and my father marked a departure from the previous PLO policy of dealing only with anti-Zionist elements in Israel. It clearly demonstrated a shift in thinking at the highest echelons of PLO leadership.
The contacts between Zionist Israelis and top PLO diplomats like Sa’id Hamami in London and Issam Sartawi in Paris, both of whom were consequently assassinated, took place under the auspices and full support of several notable figures. These included the former German Chancellor Willy Brandt, Austrian Chancellor Bruno Kreisky, King Hassan II of Morocco as well as non-governmental groups like the Quakers and particularly individuals like Landrum Bolling.
From the Israeli perspective, the purpose of these meetings was twofold: To legitimize the PLO in the eyes of Israeli public opinion – in which they failed – and to convince Yassar Arafat to recognize Israel and accept the Two-State Solution. The latter objective succeeded but proved catastrophic for the Palestinian people.
A shift
In 1988 Arafat was once again invited to speak at the United Nations General Assembly. However, as a result of Israeli pressure, the Regan-Bush administration did not grant him entry into the United States and the General Assembly had to meet in Geneva instead. The 1988 speech that Arafat gave was very different from his 1974 speech.
By 1988, Arafat had taken a new position on Israel and the recognition of the Zionist State was integral to his speech. No more revolutionary. Instead, appeasing. It was about asking for negotiations and peace rather than justice and an end to racism and settler colonialism.
I have come to you in the name of my people, offering my hand so that we can make real peace. On that basis I ask the leaders of Israel to come here, under the sponsorship of the United Nations, so that together we can forge that peace. Our people, who seek dignity, freedom and peace for themselves and security for their State, want the same thing for all the States and parties involved in the Arab-Israeli conflict. Here, I would address myself specifically to the Israeli people Let us make the peace of the bold, of the courageous, I have come to you in the name of my people, offering my hand so that we can make real peace, peace based on justice.”
Talk of peace with Israel replaced freeing Palestine from Israel.
Till when?
As these words are being written, the Palestinian Authority reportedly announced its willingness to resume military and civilian coordination with Israel. If there is any criticism today towards the generation of negotiators comprised of people who, like Saeb Erikat, believed that negotiating and talking was the only way forward, it is that they didn’t know when to stop. Missing what became obvious to many, that three decades of Palestinian concessions were only making things worse for the Palestinians.
Once the PLO committed to the Two-State Solution, it held on to it and, in fact, continues to hold on to it today. For decades, Israel claimed that the Palestinians were using the Two-State Solution as a stepping stone to replacing Israel through the creation of a Palestinian state on all of historic Palestine. But that is little more than what some would call “projecting.”
It was Israel who used the endless and fruitless negotiations as a tool by which to take more and more Palestinian land, to “Judaise,” as they call it, more and more of Palestine, and to complete its plan of ethnic cleansing, genocide, and deepening of the apartheid regime.
One grieves the loss of a dedicated man like Saeb Erekat, and one grieves even more that Palestine is disappearing before our very eyes.
In his 1974 speech at the United Nations Yasser Arafat warned the world not to let the olive branch fall from his hand. The truth is that he himself held on to the olive branch with such ferocity that one might say it cost him his own life.
Feature photo | Then-Vice-President Joe Biden shakes hands with Palestinian Chief negotiator Saeb Erekat upon Biden’s arrival in the West Bank city of Ramallah on March 9, 2016. Mohamad Torokman | Reuters
Miko Peled is an author and human rights activist born in Jerusalem. He is the author of “The General’s Son. Journey of an Israeli in Palestine,” and “Injustice, the Story of the Holy Land Foundation Five.”