It could be argued that I have said all that is necessary about my fear concerning the attack that Trump is threatening on Iran, but I am not sure that is the case because it is continuing to haunt me.
We now know that by the time we wake on Wednesday morning, this attack might have happened. Rarely have I felt so worried about anything. But what worries me most of all is the complete uncertainty of this situation. The likelihood is that Trump himself has, as yet, no idea what he will do on Tuesday night.
We can be fairly sure that those remaining in the US armed forces who are possessed of a conscience will be arguing against the use of nuclear weapons in Iran. They might also be arguing that an assault on civilian positions is not only completely illegal, but also poor military tactics, likely to give rise to a response that will escalate the war in unforeseeable fashion.
We can also be fairly sure that those receiving these messages, from Pete Hesgeth onwards, will be treating them with contempt, precisely because they are the voice of reason.
But in all this, the great unknown is what will Trump do? On that, we are clueless, and that is precisely why I am so worried. The literal fate of millions of people hangs in the balance, to be determined by a man seemingly without a moral compass and not possessed of rational decision-making power.
The question that arises in that case is, how did we reach this position? How was the body politic of the USA so degraded that this man could be chosen not once, but twice as US president, leaving him in the position to wreak havoc, seemingly with the goal of saving himself from the consequences of his prior actions, whether with regard to promoting insurrection in 2021, or whatever else might be exposed in the Epstein files, while simultaneously enriching himself, his family and his cronies?
Some of us could see what was happening in the run-up to the 2024 election. We warned of fascism. We knew the calamity that would follow if Trump were elected. We said so. Some listened. Too many did not. Now we are facing disaster, including for those who voted for Trump, but at the same time for untold millions, and maybe billions, of others around the world who are the innocent victims of this collective failure by the people of the USA.
The fact is that what we are seeing is the consequence of a failed idea. That idea, of course, is the neoliberal agenda, which puts at its centre, contrary to the teaching of Adam Smith, the belief that the individual pursuit of personal well-being will always deliver the greatest well-being for humankind as a whole. And now we know that is not true.
In that case, the question now is: can we move on from this failure, and are we capable of creating a politics of care as an alternative to neoliberalism, which has brought us to the brink of disaster?
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tRump is a reaction to the collection of time serving clowns that have infested the US body politsic almost forever. Certainly since the early 1990s. Pelosi is a good example, 40 odd years of feathering her own nest – she is circa 80 (& take a look @ the other power-mad, on-the-take semi-permanent idiots like Mitch MaConnell?). That is the problem – parasites embed themselves in a system designed to change hardly at all. Term limits? funding limits? election boundaries that are not gerrymandered? nah. & why would they change it? they are making money, they enjoy power and prestige etc. Why did tRUMP get is a second time? cos the best the (non)democrats could do was put up a senile old git that should have retired from politics a decade ago. US politics – rotten to the very core – & RUMP a reaction to this.
I was reminded of a song of my youth.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zu0hh7eI4_A&list=RDZu0hh7eI4_A&start_radio=1
But we did survive.
One of all time favourite songs. For some unknown reason, I’ve been playing it a lot recently….
Ian, without opening the link I could guess which song you had chosen – Barry McGuire, Eve of Destruction. I remember buying the vinyl 45 in the school summer holidays in 1965. It was very relevant to that era and sadly, it is again.
‘How was the body politic of the USA so degraded that this man could be chosen not once, but twice as US president, leaving him in the position to wreak havoc, seemingly with the goal of saving himself from the consequences of his prior actions, whether with regard to promoting insurrection in 2021?’
The answer is simple. Money, lots and lots of money. Add in the fact that the people who handled that money were getting fat fees for doing so (the banks) with very little oversight from the authorities. Also, the avoidance of tax as something to celebrate.
It is the blindness of greed that has driven this too. How much of that money came from abroad?
Essentially this whole story is about letting weak human beings become too rich. They cannot wield the power justly because the money infects them and dehumanises them (pleonexia) and they lose self-control. Therefore we have to protect them – and us – by taxing them – a lot. They have to be brought under control of the collective – government, elected by voters.
That is the big lesson for me of 21st century thus far. The rich have had their day and blown it. They cannot be trusted because they become addicted to getting more as a means to an end. It’s as simple as that.
We are now in the ‘game over’ stage and still working out what to do. And the rich shall not go quietly.
Christian teaching Trump et al conveniently ignore to the detriment of us all.
6 Yet true godliness with contentment is itself great wealth. 7 After all, we brought nothing with us when we came into the world, and we can’t take anything with us when we leave it. 8 So if we have enough food and clothing, let us be content.
9 But people who long to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.
1 Timothy 6 v 6-10 NLT
Don’t forget the right-wing media and social media outlets that promote Trump 24/7. Those who don’t look outside that ecosystem don’t see or hear much of what he’s doing and saying. They are completely propogandized.
I know no more than you, of course, but I am slightly more optimistic. FWIW I think the reports that Iran and the USA have received a plan for a ceasefire will provide a way for Trump to procrastinate without withdrawing his threats. He can claim his words have brought Iran to to a negotiating position despite them having concerns. Iran’s threat of retaliation must be taken seriously, especially by the Gulf states who, I imagine, are asking Trump to hold back. The big unknown is Netanyahou and his clique, who have an altogether different aim in this war.
Noted
Hope RobinC is correct. I still cant quite believe Trump will do as threatened – all the gulf states will be saying no etc. But who knows?
For anyone looking for the quickest and non partisan updates on what is happening in this illegal war, go to Al Jazeera. Updates come in every few minutes of every day and are almost always way ahead of other news outlets. Their reporting suggests there is no dialogue between US and Iran, and Iran’s demands are paramount in any possible negotiations.
The problem isn’t perhaps that people didn’t hear the warnings that trump was a fascist who would unleash chaos and misery. The problem is that people head that and voted for it because that’s exactly what they wanted.
They need to learn the lesson now then
The buyer’s remorse is high in the USA. No US President has had polling this bad.
Robert Reich today reckons he’s mad
https://robertreich.substack.com/p/final-thought-hes-seriously-out-of
Could they/Would they implement the 25th Amendment in time?
But then it’s down to Vance …. Would he pause and think? Or is he too much a Trump lackey?
Of course they should use the 25th
They won’t
They are all making too much money behine his cover
This piece from Lewis goodall suggests that the hope that Trump is losing his MAGA support may be misplaced. It’s the first time I’ve seen this mentioned.
https://goodallandgoodluck.substack.com/p/maga-isnt-splitting-its-turning-on
It is good. I am already working on a post on it for the morning.
Trump’s non denominational spiritual adviser, Paula White, compares him to Jesus.
He says he will blast the Iranian population back to the Stone Age, where they belong, and then says, after the next bombardment, they will be living in hell.
Meanwhile Netanyahu is in pursuit of “Amalek”
In what kind of mental universe do these three people co-exist.
The US has been at war for over 90% of its existence. It’s what they do – a permanent war economy.
The huge military industrial complex would collapse if there was no war. This would really damage the US economy. Eisenhower warned about this many years ago.
The money is now pouring into the UK from the USA Christofascists and the rich in general, aimed at reversing all social policy that made us a social liberal state, and promoting far right con artists like Farage. Starmer and the Tories before, even to Thatcher, have destroyed our economic base and sold our country off. I just hope that what is left is a typically Britush bloody-minded F Off.
Iam just old enough to remember the Cuban missile crisis. The feeling of deja vu is getting stronger. I hope there is a similar happy outcome, but then Trump is not Jack Kennedy.
Agreed