Category: Analysis
China Target in US Nord Stream ‘Deal’
worker | July 23, 2021 | 7:44 pm | Analysis, Germany, Joe Biden, Russia | Comments closed

https://sputniknews.com/columnists/202107221083438918-china-target-in-us-nord-stream-deal/

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There is so much misdirection over the big news this week that the US finally reached a “deal” with Germany to allow the Nord Stream 2 gas project to go ahead.

This is the mega pipeline under the Baltic Sea supplying Germany and the rest of Europe with natural gas from Russia. The project had been stalled by American sanctions, but now the Biden administration has announced that it will no longer stand in the way of its completion.

President Joe Biden knew well that there was no way of stopping Nord Stream 2 whose 1,230-kilometer construction route from Russia to Germany is over 95 percent complete. Berlin has repeatedly told Washington that it would not cancel the project which will double the flow of clean, economical Russian gas to fuel Germany’s industries and households.

So Biden had enough cop-on to know that the United States would only look pathetically weak when its imperious demands on Berlin were eventually snubbed.

 

Hence the spin this week that Washington had come up with a “deal” with Germany to let Nord Stream 2 proceed. In that supposed compromise, Berlin is obliged to provide financial aid to Ukraine and assure Kiev that Russia will not be allowed to use energy trade as a weapon against Ukraine by reducing an existing overland transit route for gas. This is more misdirection. 

Russia has condemned the politicization of the Nord Stream 2 project as anything other than a commercial transaction that benefits Europe. Moscow rejects the slur that it is weaponizing energy trade to allegedly threaten Ukraine. Such hysteria is just Washington’s propaganda to justify its own egregious interference and bullying in European-Russian affairs.

In any case, the real story behind the Nord Stream 2 “deal” this week is not Russia or Ukraine. It is China.

In announcing Washington’s “concession”, the State Department said the rationale was that the United States did not want to “alienate” Germany.

However, the Americans did not specify what the risk of alienation was about exactly. We can fill in the gap. It is about Washington keeping Germany and the rest of Europe in line for its bigger geopolitical objective of confronting and undermining China.

Russia and China are both fingered as “great power rivals” by numerous American politicians and pundits.

But the Biden administration has signaled that it considers China as the “top long-term threat” to US national security. The “threat” has less to do with military power and more to do with China’s global economic power. Beijing’s increasing global economic integration through its Belt and Road Initiative is perceived by the Washington establishment as the death knell for American dominance. US global power relies on unilateral hegemony. China’s advocacy of multipolar relations, mutual partnerships between nations and people-centered development is the nemesis of American imperial power.

Unlike the boorish Trump, the Biden presidency is more in tune with American imperial planners and the need to work with European allies to form a stronger front for pursuing US imperial objectives. Biden and his aides have been at pains to repair the transatlantic alliance that Trump damaged with his abrupt “America First” vulgarism.

In taking down China as a global rival, Washington knows it has to smooth out relations with Germany and the rest of Europe.

That is why the Biden administration appears to be making a concession over the Nord Stream 2 project. It knows that the gas trade with Russia is inviolable for Germany’s vital interests. So it offers a “concession”. But the real move is to recruit Germany and Europe into taking a tougher stance towards China.

It is no coincidence that this week also saw the US establishment ramping up hostility towards China by labeling the government in Beijing as complicit in global cyber hacking and espionage. The State Department called on “our partners and allies to promote responsible state behavior in cyberspace, counter cybercrime, and oppose digital authoritarianism.” In other words, to join US efforts to demonize China.

Nevertheless, here’s the rub. China has become Germany’s largest trade partner, surpassing the United States. China is far more important than the US for sustaining Germany’s export-led economy. Arguably, maintaining relations with Beijing is as vital to Berlin as the gas from Russia is for Germany’s long-term development.

Washington may think it is able to corral and hoodwink Berlin into an anti-China front. But the arrogant Americans will get hit with reality. Their days of bullying others are over.

The views and opinions expressed in the article do not necessarily reflect those of Sputnik.

‘It’s Not Politically Partisan to Attack Marxism’, Ousted US Space Force Officer Says
worker | May 18, 2021 | 8:11 pm | Analysis | Comments closed

https://sputniknews.com/us/202105181082925903-its-not-politically-partisan-to-attack-marxism-ousted-us-space-force-officer-says/

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Last Friday, the website Military.com reported that Lt. Col. Matthew Lohmeier, commander of the 11th Space Warning Squadron at Buckley Air Force Base, Colorado, had been ousted from his post “over a loss of confidence in his ability to lead”.

A US Space Force lieutenant colonel, who was recently relieved of his command, has claimed he is being “misportrayed” online over his Marxism-related comments.

Lt. Col. Matthew Lohmeier, commander of the 11th Space Warning Squadron at Buckley Air Force Base, Colorado lost his post late last week following his appearance on a podcast in which he advised members not to comply with diversity training because it is based on critical race theory, “which is rooted in Marxism”.

While Lohmeier hasn’t been discharged from the service, it’s unclear what his present assignment is. He had previously been in charge of a unit tasked with detecting ballistic missile launches.

In this photo released by the U.S. Air Force, Capt. Ryan Vickers stands for a photo to display his new service tapes after taking his oath of office to transfer from the U.S. Air Force to the U.S. Space Force at Al-Udeid Air Base, Qatar, Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2020.
© AP PHOTO / STAFF SGT. KAYLA WHITE
In this photo released by the U.S. Air Force, Capt. Ryan Vickers stands for a photo to display his new service tapes after taking his oath of office to transfer from the U.S. Air Force to the U.S. Space Force at Al-Udeid Air Base, Qatar, Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2020.

In an interview with Fox News on Monday, Lohmeier said he doesn’t believe he “was being partisan” and that “it is not politically partisan to expose or attack critical race theory or Marxism”.

“The reason I say that is because Critical Race Theory and Marxism are antithetical to American values. Critical race theory fuels narratives that attack America’s founding documents. I’m being misportrayed online – I don’t criticise any leader, or any person in the DoD [Department of Defence] or any elected officials – but I try to tee up ideas that I think are toxic”, the lieutenant colonel argued.

Critical race theory is an academic movement that emerged in the 1990s that sought to re-emphasise the continuation of racism and racial disparities in US culture and institutions in a direct challenge to the notion of a post-racial society that became popular after the civil rights upheavals of the 1960s and 70s.

Lohmeier’s comments followed him appearing on a podcast called “Information Operation” last week to promote his new self-published book, titled “Irresistible Revolution: Marxism’s Goal of Conquest & the Unmaking of the American Military”.

During the podcast, he said that “our diversity, inclusion and equity industry and the trainings we’re receiving in the military via that industry are rooted in critical race theory which is rooted in Marxism”.

Lohmeier also lashed out at US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin, saying, “I don’t demonise the man, but I want to make it clear to both him and every service member this [diversity and inclusion] agenda, it will divide us, it will not unify us”.

 

The remarks were followed by Lohmeier being removed from his post by Lieutenant General Stephen Whiting, who then initiated an investigation into Lohmeier’s comments. 

A Space Force spokesperson said that Whiting relieved Lohmeier of his post “due to loss of trust and confidence in his ability to lead”, adding that the decision was based “on public comments made by Lt. Col. Lohmeier in a recent podcast”.

The lieutenant colonel’s ouster was criticised by Republican representative Matt Gaetz, who described the move as evidence of the “wokeification of our military”, and pledged that he would be “seeking action on this in the Armed Services Committee”.

Gaetz was echoed by GOP Senator Ted Cruz, who dubbed the decision to oust Lohmeir a “troubling” development.

Sacrificed at the Altar of Democratic Party Fealty
worker | May 18, 2021 | 8:07 pm | Analysis | Comments closed
– from Greg Godels is available at:
http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/

If you do not wish to receive these notices, e-mail: zzsblogml@gmail.com with “unsubscribe” in the subject box.

 

The COVID pandemic called into question many of the deeply held, foundational beliefs of twenty-first century capitalism. “Universal truths” like the efficacy of just-in-time production, the sanctity of fiscal restraint, the necessity of balanced budgets, and the sin of direct cash handouts were either shattered or unceremoniously discarded.To read more, please go to: https://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/2021/05/sacrificed-at-altar-of-democratic-party.html

Marxism’s Missing Link
worker | March 16, 2021 | 8:19 pm | Analysis, Karl Marx, Marxism-Leninism | Comments closed
A new posting –

Marxism’s Missing Link

  

– from Greg Godels is available at:

The question of exploitation is the issue dividing the reformist from the revolutionary left. The reformist left has nowhere abated the existence or forward march of inequality in the context of capitalist social relations...  To read more, please go to: https://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/2021/03/marxisms-missing-link.html
The Next Neoliberal President
worker | January 25, 2021 | 7:47 pm | Analysis | Comments closed
COVID is Biological Class Warfare
worker | March 25, 2020 | 9:46 pm | Analysis, COVID-19, Donald Trump | Comments closed

Trump in his proper place

COVID-19 is Biological Class Warfare

by J. Thompson

There has been a lot of speculation about the COVID-19 crisis. Let’s examine some basic facts.

Most importantly, the $2 trillion stimulus package before Congress is one of the most obvious weapons of class warfare that the world has ever seen. It is obviously tilted towards the ultra-wealthy. Billions of dollars will be funneled to the corporations and wealthy individuals if it is passed. Some individual Congress persons such as Bernie Sanders have opposed this bailout of the ultra-wealthy. He is to be commended for his efforts.

If we examine which countries have been hardest hit by the COVID-19 crisis, we can see a clear pattern. China was first and hardest hit. China maintains that there was a contingent of US soldiers in Wuhan in October which was just before the first case was identified in December. China blames the US for the outbreak. Trump counters with a furious denial and dubs the crisis “The China Virus.” Trump has imposed countless sanctions and tariffs on China during his presidency. Trump and Obama have threatened the Chinese coast with US battleships and air carriers. Trump has offered China nothing but hostility and aggression and members of his administration have dubbed China the most serious threat to national security.

Iran has been hit very hard by the COVID-19 virus. Trump’s hostility towards that nation is well known. Again, countless tariffs and sanctions have been leveled against that nation. Iran is one of the few nations who have opposed US hegemony in the Middle East. The US does not have free reign to exploit the natural resources of Iran.

Italy has been hit very hard by the COVID-19 virus. The moderate politician Prime Minister Conte was elected over the ultranationalist right wing Trump puppet Salvini.

Is there a pattern emerging here?

Let’s turn to the USA.

When Mitt Romney announced that he was free of the COVID-19 virus, Trump responded with sarcastic tweets indicating that he was displeased with Romney’s prognosis. Mitt Romney was the only Republican to vote for Trump’s impeachment. They were bitter rivals in the presidential primaries in 2016.

Trump has voiced vigorous support for Texas Governor Greg Abbott who is notorious for his lack of response to COVID-19. The Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick announced his opinion that old people in the USA should sacrifice themselves for the economy. The Lieutenant Governor Patrick has a well documented history of two admissions to a psychiatric hospital for depression. We can easily presume that Lieutenant Governor Patrick is referring to older Americans who are poor. Wealthy older Americans would obviously be exempt from Patrick’s edict. In any case, Patrick should be indicted for agitating for mass suicide among older Americans.

Let’s turn to the geography of the United States.

There are three cities in the United States that have been hardest hit by the COVID-19 virus. They are Seattle, New York City and New Orleans. All three states where these cities are located have democratic governors. Two of the three states voted against Trump in the 2016 presidential election. New York and Washington voted against Trump. Louisiana voted for Trump, but it’s largest city, New Orleans, voted against Trump. New Orleans has a Democratic Mayor who happens to be an African-American woman. New Orleans is the hardest hit city in Louisiana.

The Trump administration has been highly critical of China for their response to COVID-19. However, China seems to have contained the virus quickly and responded appropriately to the crisis. The Trump administration, on the other hand, has been slow to provide needed information, personnel and equipment to fight the virus and treat the inflicted.

It is clear that working people will suffer from the virus disproportionately as compared with the ultra-wealthy who will have access to the best treatment that money can buy. Working people around the globe will die at a disproportionate rate when compared with the ultra-wealthy.

Does anyone else see a pattern here?

Trump is a liar, rogue, and thief
worker | May 8, 2018 | 8:21 pm | Analysis, Donald Trump, Iran | Comments closed

By A. Shaw

The decision of the reactionary bourgeois US regime to violate the terms of the Iranian nuclear deal further exposes Trump, the leader of this rogue US regime, as a liar, rogue, and thief.

THE LIAR
Trump lies when he says that Iran violates the nuclear deal. The US regime under the rule of Trump violates the deal.
THE ROGUE
Trump is a rogue because he acts outside and against the law.
Under Article 6 of the US Constitution, the Iranian deal is protected by the Supremacy Clause.
This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States 
which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; 
and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, 
under the Authority of the United States, 
shall be the supreme Law of the Land.”
 
The deal is a treaty made under the authority of the United States.
 
THE THIEF
 
Trump is a thief because the goal of Trump and his closest supporters is to extort
cash and business from Iran and from Trump allies which are also parties to the Iranian deal.