Read through the cheap shots at Biden and Harris early in the piece.
The sanctions and tariffs aren’t to keep the Chinese, Russians, et al out, they’re to keep Americans in.
The U.S. is not now and never has been a democracy. Oligarchy was baked into their constitution from the beginning. Only rich white males had the vote, women were not much more than property, POC WERE actual property, and the indigenous peoples were vermin to be genocided and their land stolen. Some window dressing has changed over the years but no actual power has shifted away from rich white males. Now they are not even bothering to hide it anymore.
When decent people do have elections, the liberal democrats are libeling them. Russia’s elections are not real, Venezuela’s elections are rigged, Georgia’s has been magically interfered with. Then they’re rigging elections, like in Moldova where Russian diaspora was prevented from voting.
Red flag #1. Most who care urgently about collapsing democracy in the US also care about collapsing democracy in other places in the world. Caring about only one side of the equation and making excuses for the other is what we call a tell.
There are people on the opposite side, who care deeply about Georgia but will tell you disenfranchisement of the people in America isn’t a problem, but most of them work for the US State Department.
These democracy grifters are like the wolf who cried wolf. Thankfully, nobody believes them. They get voted out at every fair opportunity.
Like in… Georgia? Venezuela? I was sincerely confused about what this was even talking about, but I think that’s what they mean.
Take Ukraine, as America did. Their actual democracy was couped in 2014 and now they have a literal actor playing a part. They fought much of their Russian-speaking population for years and then picked a fight with Russia itself, something no independent country would do because it’s stupid.
Ah, yes. Because that’s exactly what happened.
There are people on the opposite side, who care deeply about Georgia but will tell you disenfranchisement of the people in America isn’t a problem, but most of them work for the US State Department.
State Department cares deeply about a geopolitical square it could use to diminish Russia with. Yes democracy is rigged in US for Israel and oligarchy, but it is rigged in US favour everywhere else, especially its allies. Paying Venezuelan narco gangs to protest elections, or needing CIA-NGOs to tell Georgians that they will easily join Europe if they just start another stupid war, is never about “true democracy” or humanist prosperity. It is purely about control for purely evil ambitions of dominance.
Narratives that democracy is rigged whenever the winner doesn’t want to take bribes for cheap privatization deals, or serve as a sacrificial pawn in US empire’s war spending is too easy to make, and always made because the outcome is genuinely more in favour of the nation’s people than the US empire hoped.
The underlying thing I see in your comment is cynicism about the idea that anybody actually cares purely about human rights and democracy. Outside of government agencies, there are a lot of people who do.
The State Department rigs a lot of things, yes, and they don’t especially care about democracy except when it serves their interests. Certainly not historically.
I was saying that you didn’t seem to look at things in these few comments through anything other than the lens of, “is Russia going to diminish, and State Department prevail, or will it be the other way around.” You’re claiming to care about the people of Venezuela and Ukraine, but it always lines up perfectly coincidentally with what Russian state TV says is the right thing for the people of Venezuela and Ukraine. For reasons, of course, of “true democracy” and humanist prosperity.
The two governments are both pursuing oligarchy. Famously so. Your first paragraph that is criticism of the State Department for its brand of oligarchy, I roughly agree with.
What I am saying is that there is a whole new way to believe, which sees the independent people of Ukraine, Georgia, North Carolina, France, and Palestine as all deserving of setting their own destiny, and views all of their struggle in much the same light. Against oligarchy of all kinds. That’s what seems to be missing from your narrative. If I have missed it, tell me.
anything other than the lens of, “is Russia going to diminish, and State Department prevail, or will it be the other way around.” You’re claiming to care about the people of Venezuela and Ukraine, but it always lines up perfectly coincidentally with what Russian state TV says is the right thing for the people of Venezuela and Ukraine
You are right that I think that lens is important. You can be sure that the US position is always the most evil, because 1. it is their nature, and 2. they have the most power.
sees the independent people of Ukraine, Georgia, North Carolina, France, and Palestine as all deserving of setting their own destiny, and views all of their struggle in much the same light. Against oligarchy of all kinds. That’s what seems to be missing from your narrative.
The freedom of family planning and butt sex, like all freedom, is humanist. Previous US elections considered Israel first rulership with more of those freedoms as having a chance. Israel first rulership this time around needs to “finish the job of genocide”, and so the results were rigged to that despite impossible lies that the US will be reindustrialized with massive tax cuts on oligarchy, freedom from pollution and other restrictions on oligarchy, and regressive tariff taxes that will make costs of living that much more unaffordable for the vast majority of Americans. Plus no more family planning options or butt sex. The enhanced freedom for Americans is limited to the new opportunity to go into a strawberry picking career, and the freedom to be disgusted by other’s butt sex.
Celebrating democracy because Israel supremacism won, with theatrical Israel supremacist opponent, allowing traitor to escape jail, and allowing media/traitor/GOP to promise lies that will pillage the country for their sponsors is simply celebrating the pillage and collapse of America, in addition to human destruction through energy policy and war, and terrorism vulnerability/costs from anti-human policy (Dems not that much better).
Worshiping the word “democracy” allows US empire to declare “democracy” for its coups and election rigging which are always purely for pillage/diminishment and control over a country/ally. Often, calling democracy anti-democratic with not just pure baselessness, but intentional demonic disinformation that is integral to diminishment ambitions of “rival countries”. Every Russia and Venezuela election/referendum being prime examples.
The US Empire is a demonic liar wanting to oppress humanity for its oligarchy. The magical power of words like democracy, rules based world order, and NATO is a purely defensive alliance, is evil magic. Opposing a unipolar US empire is always more humanist, because it always provides people with more options. Georgia could rationally choose to trade with Europe more if didn’t mean complete subjugation to US empire as means to entry. Just as Canada should naturally have/seek good relations with US, Ukraine and Georgia should with Russia.
What you call my derangement for “better for Russia” rulership choices, I call better for world, and naturally better for people in the region to have good relations with Russia instead of a pawn to sacrifice in US ambitions of diminishing Russia through war. The only path forward for the world is the US accepting its collapse. Every success it has in its desperate flailing clinging to its despotic hegemony is a delay in that acceptance, and a delay to the real freedom of its colonies.
Sounds like I touched a nerve.
Anyone who wants to phrase the struggle for real freedom in terms of which hegemon people need to “have good relations” with, is probably lying.
You are the one who brought up “love your hegemon” and hate the “resistor” justification for always believing hegemon’s use of word democracy.
My point is that humanism should always matter more than propaganda of “democratic values” used by hegemon, and the hegemon’s power for such propaganda needs to be diminished.
I genuinely think the author would be incapable of passing a grade school exam relating to how governments work. Even, honestly, what a government is.