Greek Pain, German Shame

When Italy’s fascist dictator Benito Mussolini invaded Greece (through Albania) on 10/18/1940, he imagined a victory to rival the military successes amassed by his Axis partner in crime—the Fuhrer of the Thousand year Nazi Reich—Adolf Hitler. Instead, the Greeks defeated the Italian army and pursued them into Albania. Hitler was temporarily forced to divert his attention away from his plans to stab Russia in the back (which he still managed to do in June of 1941) and bail out Mussolini. With the bulk of the Greek army in pursuit of the Italians in Albania, Nazi Germany launched a brutal blitzkrieg into Greece (joined by an opportunistic Bulgaria) on 4/6/1941. The Germans invested 680,000 troops, 1200 tanks, and 700 aircraft. Greece fell in a matter of months. During the ensuing “triple occupation”, there was widespread starvation (an estimated 40,000 people died in Athens alone), and the Greek economy was destroyed. In addition, between 60-70,000 Greek Jews (81% of their original population) were murdered as Hitler pursued his deranged attempts to eliminate all the Jews in Europe.
Tens of thousands more Greeks died as a result of Nazi reprisals against freedom fighters and at the hands of collaborators. Ironically, many Nazi collaborators escaped punishment for their crimes and became a part of the ruling class in Greece following the defeat of the communists in the bloody civil war that followed on the heels of World War II.
In 1942, the Greek Central Bank had been forced to provide a 476 million Reichsmarks loan (at 0% interest) to Nazi Germany. In 1960, Greece accepted 115 million Marks as what they viewed as partial payment for Nazi crimes. However, in 1990, immediately preceding the unification of East & West Germany, those two German entities signed the Two Plus Four Agreement with the U.S., Britain, France, and the Soviet Union. The Germans claimed that all matters concerning World War II—including further reparations due to Greece—were closed because Germany had surrendered to the Allies and no one else!
However, the Germans and the Troika (European Central Bank, European Commission, and the International Monetary Fund) recently unleashed a second blitzkrieg against Greece, this time in the form of severely punitive austerity measures (for the privilege of remaining in the Eurozone) guaranteed to have a devastating effect on the entire population—except the oligarchy and the banks.
Angela Merkel’s favorite punching bag, the much beleaguered Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, recently renewed Greece’s demand for reparations from Germany—somewhere in the amount of 269-332 billion Euro.
Leading French economist Thomas Piketty has noted that Germany has “no standing” to lecture other nations about debt repayment, never having paid back its own debt after World War II. Instead, Piketty argues that the same debt relief extended to Germany following the war ought to be extended to Greece now. If this doesn’t happen, let’s at least hope that Greece takes their reparations case before the World Court, and prevails. Imagine a humbled Wolfgang Schauble and Angela Merkel visiting Athens to finally hand over such a check: from justice deferred to justice secured.

"IMF Dirty MF"

This song was written by Bruce Cockburn, singer-songwriter and guitarist extraordinnaire, back in 1985. The IMF continues to place the interests of bankers, investors, and corporations above the needs of the poor. Its "structural adjustment policies" perpetuate an immoral system of modern day colonialism that's built on the weakening of labor laws & collective bargaining, the suppression of wages, trashing the environment, and continuing to relegate women around the world to a second-class status. Although it is funded with taxpayer money, the IMF continues to operate exclusively in the shadow world of central bankers and finance ministers. Most recently, the IMF has been a key member of the "troika"--who along with Germany-- appear hell bent on eviscerating the Greek people. The IMF is proof positive that the past is prologue.
I respectfully dedicate the following to Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and the people of Greece.

CALL IT DEMOCRACY

Padded with power here they come
International loan sharks backed with the guns
of market hungry military profiteers
Whose word is a swamp and whose brow is smeared
with the blood of the poor.

Who rob life of its quality
and render rage a necessity
by turning countries into labour camps
modern slavers in drag as champions of freedom.

Sinister cynical instrument
who makes the gun into a sacrament--
The only response to the deification
of tyranny by so-called "developed" nations'
idolatry of ideology.

North south east west
kill the best and buy the rest
It's just spend a buck to make a buck
you don't really give a flying fuck
about the people in misery.

IMF dirty MF
takes away everything it can get
Always making certain that there's one thing left
keep them on the hook with insupportable debt.

See the paid-off local bottom feeders
passing themselves off as leaders
Kiss the ladies shake hands with the fellows
and it's open for business like a cheap bordello.

And they call it democracy.
And they call it democracy.

See the loaded eyes of the children too
trying to make the best of it the way kids do
One day you're going to rise from your habitual feast
to find yourself staring down the throat of the beast
they call the revolution.

IMF dirty MF
takes away everything it can get
Always making certain that there's one thing left
keep them on the hook with insupportable debt.
And they call it democracy.

The Ongoing Adventures of Tempestuous Tom (Cotton)

In June, 2006, while serving as a 2nd Lieutenant in Iraq, Tom Cotton wrote an open letter to the New York Times criticizing the fact that the paper had published an article detailing a secret Bush administration program monitoring terrorist’s finances. Cotton demanded that three journalists—including NYT editor Bill Keller—be imprisoned for espionage. His letter inevitably gained wide circulation, but after several days Cotton had begun to worry about losing his position—or potentially facing court martial. Not only had his letter angered his immediate superiors, it had reached the desk of Gen. Peter Schoomaker, Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army, who had forwarded it via email to all his generals—sarcastically prefacing it by stating “attached for your information are words of wisdom from one of our great lieutenants in Iraq…” Cotton was subsequently reprimanded for his lack of discipline, lack of adherence to protocol, and refusal to respect his chain of command.
Recent events have made it painfully clear that while Cotton is allegedly “book smart” (a B.A. and law degree from Harvard), he’s completely lacking in common sense and self-restraint. It’s clear that the world must function as Tom Cotton sees fit, or there’s bound to be hell to pay. In fact, over time his impetuous actions only appear to have escalated in . In 2006 his targets were three NY Times reporters; in 2015 his target is the duly elected President of the United States—and Commander-in-Chief of its armed forces. Since Cotton doesn’t approve of the negotiations with Iran undertaken by France, Germany, Russia, China, Great Britain and the United States, he has taken the outrageous step of attempting to undermine and subvert the President’s bargaining position by means of a petulant and threatening letter allegedly aimed at the government of Iran, but one can more accurately assume it’s directed at the President of the United States. One might also reasonably question Cotton’s loyalties (and those of his fellow 46 signatories) at this point. After all, these negotiations have not been deeply controversial in France, Germany, Russia, China or Great Britain. What’s really at the root of the “mad dog” Republican reaction?
Meanwhile, Tom Cotton has gone merrily on his way, content to ignore the furor he’s ignited though oddly choosing to briefly address the “the gays of America”—noting that “at least you’re not living in Iran”. He’s left a lot of people shaking their heads. Thanks, Arkansas. It wasn’t enough that Texas foisted Ted Cruz onto the national stage, you had to counter with Tom Cotton?

Netanyahu's Darkness Can't Last Forever

A number of dark days have already passed since Benjamin Netanyahu was re-elected in Israel.

Fall-out from his pre-election rally in Washington D.C., which was underwritten and choreographed by John Boehner and the Republican congress, continues to this day. Like hyper-excited teen-age cheerleaders, McConnell, Graham, Cotton, Cruz, etc. frantically cheered themselves silly over every pronouncement from the thug-turned-prime-minister-turned-thug.

Netanyahu attempted to derail delicate nuclear negotiations and inserted himself—the Israeli Prime Minister—into the advise and consent role of the American congress. Talk about foreign interference!
Netanyahu returned home from this rather obvious campaign stop and promptly declared there will never be a Palestinian state as long as he is prime minister; directly contradicting his 2009 commitment to that very two-state solution.

Unfortunately, we shouldn’t have been surprised. In fact, Israel under Netanyahu is actively practicing apartheid—a system of unjust laws enforced by military power to restrict the human rights of one specific group, Palestinians, with the aim of keeping political power in the hands of another demographic group—Israeli Jews. They have imposed restrictions on residency, denied repatriation to refugees, demolished homes, illegally seized land and property, imposed restrictions on movement, and practiced discrimination in the allocation of natural resources.
Hopefully, Netanyahu’s “new” extremist coalition government will face renewed demands for peace and justice on several fronts. Since Netanyahu has repeatedly demonstrated his willingness to resort to scorched earth tactics, this allows us to dispense with any notions of violence.

The boycott, divestment and sanctions movement (BDS) was started by Palestinian political parties, trade unions and political movements in 2005. Signatories have included refugees, Palestinians in the occupied territories, and Palestinian citizens of Israel. Although the wheel turns slowly, perhaps this is one avenue well worth re-investigating.
Another, more immediate path, should present itself in Palestine’s membership in the International Criminal Court, which takes effect on April 1st. In spite of the Israeli government’s illegal and ill-advised attempt to intimidate the Palestinian Authority from joining this body by withholding over $120 million in collected tax revenues, the Palestinians are now in a position to refer the status of Israel’s occupied territories to the court for investigation.

In the meantime, the Palestinian people need a symbol in their struggle for statehood. Much as Gandhi utilized protest against the Salt tax to rally the Indian people in their fight for freedom from the colonial British Empire, the Palestinians need something with the same unifying power. I would argue they need look no further than the time-honored olive tree. More than “just trees”, these represent a part of Palestinians culture, heritage and livelihood. For reasons known only to them, Israeli authorities have recently seen fit to destroy over 2000 olive trees in the occupied West Bank.
One perfect solution to Netanyahu’s grim and repressive rule: replant Palestine, with thousands and thousands of olive trees. Life in contrast to death, light in contrast to darkness. Not even Netanyahu can delay change for long.

Ted Cruz for President???

I suppose we ought to thank Ted Cruz for effectively undermining what remains of the ultra-conservative “birther” movement by announcing he’s running for President (of the United States). None of his “red meat” supporters will be likely to do much talking about Kenya any longer, since Canada presents a much more serious issue. Ted Cruz is not (as the Constitution specifies) a “natural born” citizen. Heck, Donald Trump is already yapping about this one. However, this is something for constitutional scholars to debate, and I defer to their judgment.
Meanwhile, California’s iconic governor Jerry Brown has pummeled Cruz over a series of ignorant statements and for falsifying facts pertaining to global warming. Brown concluded by stating “It’s shocking, and I think that man has rendered himself absolutely unfit to be running for office.” Climate change, however, is merely the tip of the Cruz iceberg (my apologies).

I would argue that Ted Cruz can, in all fairness, be accused of treason. Among the definitions provided by Merriam Webster: “the offense of attempting by overt acts to overthrow the government of the state to which the offender owes allegiance (presumably not Canada); or to kill or personally injure the sovereign or the sovereign’s family.”
In fact, Ted Cruz and his cronies recklessly and knowingly pursued an action (shutting down the American government for purely partisan purposes) that inflicted a $24 billion blow to the economy of our country. He chose to do this at a time when the economy remained in a somewhat fragile state, recovering from a devastating recession. His actions could have triggered dire consequences, and Cruz was clearly hoping he could bring the Obama administration to its knees. Fortunately for the rest of us, he achieved little more than to provide both pleasure and solace to the enemies of our republic. Cruz was more than willing to inflict financial pain on his fellow citizens (American, not Canadian) since he enjoys one of the apparent perks of being a Senator; he’s also a millionaire.
Cruz has served as an opportunistic thug in the short time he’s been a Senator. Apart from shutting down the government (alienating members of his own party), his greatest “accomplishments” include: opposing immigration reform, vilifying gay Americans, acting as a lap dog for the gun lobby, opposing aid for victims of Superstorm Sandy, and, in particular, nattering on incessantly about his plans to repeal the Affordable Care Act. He seems to relish the thought of separating millions of Americans from their newly acquired healthcare coverage. No wonder he’s invited obvious comparisons to the late (though not lamented) Joseph McCarthy—demagogue extraordinaire.

Ted Cruz for President? “Unfit” barely scratches the surface!

Mary Mayhew's Ongoing War Against the Poor and Disenfranchised

Charles Dickens once wrote: “Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, benevolence, were all my business. The dealings of my trade were but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business.”
One might expect that the Commissioner of a state agency named the “Department of Health and Human Services” would exhibit the qualities Dickens mentioned. At the very least, one would hope to see a healthy dose of compassion.
Unfortunately, the state of Maine’s very own Mary Mayhew exhibits none of the above.
After having spent the better part of the past few years on the political defensive, Ms. Mayhew has apparently interpreted the shocking re-election of her mentor, Gov. Paul LePage, as some sort of sign to go on the attack. Unfortunately, she’s attempting to gain political traction at the expense of Maine’s least fortunate citizens; the chronically homeless, those suffering from mental illness, and individuals who are simply “down on their luck”. Mary Mayhew is a strident opponent of anyone who falls into these categories.
It wasn’t enough for Ms. Mayhew to stridently oppose an expansion of Medicaid that would have provided health insurance to more than 60,000 low income residents of our state (with the federal government paying 100% of expansion costs before gradually drawing down to a 90% reimbursement rate). It wasn’t enough for Ms. Mayhew to oversee the move of the DHHS Cumberland County regional office four miles away from the edge of Portland’s downtown to the Jetport—thereby making it more difficult to reach for those seeking state services/assistance. It wasn’t enough for Ms. Mayhew to oversee the botched $28.3 million contract with a Connecticut-based company (CTS) that consistently failed to provide the service for which it was hired—arranging rides for Medicaid patients. Finally, wasn’t it Mary Mayhew who (along with Gov. LePage) happily forked over a million dollars to the Alexander Group for an impartial and partisan PR report on Maine’s Medicaid and welfare programs—only to have the report exposed as a plagiarized sham?
Now we learn that Ms. Mayhew apparently commissioned an audit of Portland’s City shelters and found “irregularities”…as opposed to her own financial failures and shenanigans?
If Ms. Mayhew is (as some have suggested) entertaining the notion of running for Governor in 2016, then it’s time to rein in the flying monkeys, apologize to the city’s shelter staff and residents, and work to build a state government that focuses on the dignity of each and every human being. She should be willing to support a living wage, advocating the building of safe and affordable housing, and working to provide decent medical services, available to all—which should certainly include first class mental health care (no more Riverview fiascos, please) The people of Maine should expect no less from their (barely) re-elected leaders.

Joni Ernst??? Seriously, what's up, Iowa???

Watching the “official” Republican response to President Obama’s State of the Union Address left me with a question that keeps gnawing at my gut: what the heck is wrong with Iowa?
Joni Ernst, the freshman senator from that state read off the response (watching her eyes follow the teleprompter became fairly distracting; she possesses a certain Bachmannesque quality whereby you expect a counter-clockwise movement to develop at any moment), and she nearly drowned in her own sea of platitudes before the first few minutes had passed. She’s a mother, she’s a soldier; she came from poverty, not privilege. She shared her story of plowing the fields, working construction, and owning only one pair of shoes. You would think we’d be safe in assuming that here is a legislator with genuine empathy, and perhaps an understanding of income inequality.
Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth. In doing a little research into her record, it became obvious that Iowa replaced Senator Tom Harkin with a right-wing extremist. What’s up, Iowa?

Ernst talked about stagnant wages, but she vehemently opposes any increase in the federal minimum wage. She talks about the virtue of being raised to live simply, but demonstrates a fanatic allegiance to the 1% by opposing any tax increases that could affect them adversely – even if it means enacting a series of proposals to benefit the Middle class: universal free community college, guaranteed paid sick leave time, cutting mortgage costs, and tripling the childcare tax credit. Ernst is so determined to gut the Affordable Care Act that it sounds as though she’s perfectly likely willing to sacrifice the insurance policies acquired over the past two years by over 10 million previously uninsured Americans. What’s up, Iowa?

Ernst is an anti-choice extremist who supports fetal “personhood”. Ernst is an avowed opponent of same-sex marriage. Ernst has consistently called for state nullification of federal laws, even as the courts consistently rule this unconstitutional. Ernst recklessly called for President Obama’s impeachment and referred to him as a dictator. It’s clear she has no real understanding of our nation as a whole, of its checks and balances, and of due process. In her extremism she’s called for the elimination of the Department of Education, the Environmental Protection Agency (a fierce opponent of Clean Water legislation), and the IRS (given their popularity this is a brave stance indeed!). What’s up, Iowa?

One thing Joni Ernst does love is guns; here, there, and everywhere. No questions asked.
Tom Harkin was such a thoughtful Senator… what’s up, Iowa?