We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Monday, April 18, 2011

WikiLeaks: U.S. secretly backed Syrian opposition groups

Click here to access article by Craig Whitlock from Washington Post via Global Research. (I normally post from the original source, but in the past I've noticed that after a period of time many articles disappear from their original links in mainstream media.)
The State Department has secretly financed Syrian political opposition groups and related projects, including a satellite TV channel that beams anti-government programming into the country, according to previously undisclosed diplomatic cables.
Once again, we see our tax dollars at work trying to destabilize countries in the interests of the global capitalist Empire. And then there are all the human casualties and crimes. Meanwhile, we are asked to sacrifice Medicare, Social Security retirement benefits, education, and numerous other social programs to pay for these nefarious activities. As I heard one NPR announcer say one day regarding public spending cuts, "it's the new normal". In other words, "suck it up, there is nothing you can do about it!."