Hillary groupies attack Sanders as the new Ralph Nader

  Any Hillary Clinton groupie who loathes Ralph Nader for running for president-without the blessing of the political establishment of the Democratic Party- is a disgrace to popular democracy.

   As for Bernie Sanders, " democratic socialism " advances without the permission of the American ruling class - which controls the corrupt two party system. I voted for Ralph Nader.

   I will consider voting for Jill Stein after the Hillary dictatorship succeeds ( inevitably ) in securing her nomination.

   We democratic socialists place the interests of the American working class- long abandoned by the neo-liberals- above the " victory " agenda of treacherous ,bought and sold career politicians.

   And I expect Bernie Sanders to do very well in California- a reminder of the Upton Sinclair's EPIC campaign there in 1934.

Thank God for Ralph Nader !

Astrophysicist Stephen Hawking perplexed by rise of Donald Trump

Stephen Hawking on Donald Trump

A Black Hole in politics ?

   On the whole Stephen Hawking is a Voice of Reason even in matters not-astrophysical. But he should not be perplexed by the rise of right wing demagogue Donald Trump in the United States.

  I suspect " The Donald " is really a lot more popular here than hawkish " Wall St. Hillary " Clinton.

   Is Stephen aware that our own celebrity astrophysicist, Neil De Grasse Tyson, has endorsed " socialist " opponent of Hillary, Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont ?

   Neil did this in a sly question : " Who would Jesus vote for ? " I suspect the New Atheists here were a little perturbed by his poetic endorsement.

In Mein Kampf Hitler said that socialism was a " Jewish plot ".

 Next year marks the 100th anniversary of the Russian Revolution - led by Lenin's Bolshevik Party that included many Jews -like his second in command and leader of the Red Army, Leon Trotsky.

 Hitler insisted in Mein Kampf that socialism was just a " Jewish plot ". He imagined that he could terminate this" menace " when he invaded the Soviet Union.

  The collapse of the Stalinist Soviet Union in the early 90s in no way discredited democratic socialists around the world.

Read Irving Howe's political autobiography " A Margin of Hope ". And Bernie Sanders' background -his socialist roots in Brooklyn - are vividly described in Howe's best seller " World of Our Fathers ".

Wither the Jewish Anti-Defamation League ?

  What is the big difference between the benign presence of the Jewish Anti-Defamation League in the legendary American civil rights movement in 1963 and the past few decades ?

  Many more intellectual Jews were associated with " democratic socialism " back then . The 1967 Israel war had a corrupting influence on Jewish " internationalism " . In relationship to the aggrieved Palestinians there was a gradual hardening of the heart.

The biggest mistake the ADL could make today would be to endorse hawkish Hillary Clinton who never has a kind word for the Palestinians. " Socialist " Democrat - and Jew- Bernie Sanders has a much more " progressive " tone- without questioning any people's " right to exist ".

 The worship of any nation state is foreign to democratic socialists everywhere.

The next great Holocaust will be multi-cultural -if not very politically correct.Was President Obama in Hiroshima recently hinting at Israel's nuclear arsenal ?

Our Memorial Days honor war

  If you are not besotted with the more toxic form of patriotism - the same in France, in Germany, in Russia as in America- you might easily conclude that our Memorial Days honor WAR- and rather monotonously.

[ “Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the Medal of Honor didn’t exist because there were no wars and we could all live in peace?”
Rarely ever do America’s media express that sentiment, never its warrior leaders, reflected in Obama’s 2011 proclamation saying:
“On this Memorial Day, we honor the generations of Americans who have fought and died to defend our freedom….From Gettysburg to Kandahar, America’s sons and daughters have served with honor and distinction, securing our liberties and laying a foundation for lasting peace.”
Waging multiple imperial wars, ready plans for others, and numerous proxy ones, his hypocrisy requires no comment, desecrating the graves he pretends to honor.]

  Socialist internationalism is the only anti-dote to Wilsonian " make the world safe for democracy " blather and brainless " My Country Right or Wrong " patriotism.

Reflect on the 100th anniversary of the " Madness of Verdun ". It makes me wonder if God is French.

Memorial Day hypocrisy

Humans still face primal malevolence

Japanese boy " abandoned " in wild forest

It seems that these Japanese parents just wanted to teach " bad boy " ( spoiled brat ? ) a lesson.But like most civilized human beings forgot how cruel Mother Nature can be.

    On the whole the " beautiful " universe treats human beings with benign indifference.But the so called Good Earth often seems positively malevolent to us.

   Those eerie wild woods are a terrible place to get quickly and hopelessly lost.

    The city is just as bad with rats in your toilet bowl and deadly spiders crawling up your bed sheets at 3:00 AM in the morning. And a radio report : WARNING- tornado alert in the Washington County area.

   No escape from the heart of darkness in human affairs either.

    Hug that little boy lost when they find him.The only guardian angels are mortal humans who still LOVE despite everything coldly and cruelly opposed to it- and the only anti-dote to our ancient, primal fears.

     And LOVE the only bridge between the living and the dead.

A classic horror story of malevolence of Nature

The " madness of Verdun " proves that God is French

  Wishing " Happy Memorial Day " sounds about as absurd as wishing Catholics " Happy Good Friday ".
   But religious people should be made uncomfortable by this secular religion of patriotism - so absurdly alike in the mutually warring nations of Old Europe and the Russia of the Czars.

   I would guess that God is French - as they remember today the " madness of Verdun " - the 100th anniversary : " a war to make the world safe for democracy". Wilsonian blather !

   It seems that our American Memorial Days mostly honor WAR.

" Make love not war ! "

No way will I vote for " Wall St. Hillary

As a critical supporter of Bernie Sanders I agree completely that not only Donald Trump has been over-vilified in the establishment news media but so have his millions of " angry white working class supporters ".

Betraying the American working class has been the only serious business of both the Democratic and Republican parties for decades now.

The Republicans have one secular religion in  common: the religion of capitalism, the " religion " of the militant atheist Ayn Rand.

The Democrats have all but declared war on " people of Faith " everywhere in the world. And now they offer us that Queen of Identity Politics and political correctness, Hillary Clinton.

No wonder " socialist " Democrat Bernie Sanders draws such enthusiastic crowds. His left-populist message of unacceptable economic inequality resonates with most of the 99 percent " underprivileged " Americans.

No way will I vote for " Wall St. Hillary ".

I hope Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren do not join the FALSE PEOPLE world

  The fossilized Democratic Party does not inspire any sentimental or spurious " loyalty " in voters concerned with the fate of the American working class.

   As a critical supporter of " socialist " Democrat Bernie Sanders I am sure that moment when Sanders says that Wall St. Hillary is OK, will be the moment when he becomes a political " little man " again.

   I will vote for -or write in- a candidate who does not betray the core values of Christianity inspired , democratic socialism. The world is full of false people - molded and warped by the social order of decaying capitalism.

  The first law of " progressive " political morality should be to expose the false friends of the common people.

  Should BOTH Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders start telling us with unctuous conviction that it is OK to deliver to hawkish, " Wall St. Hillary " your sacred vote, then we will know that the Democratic Party is now just the party of dead souls only.

   I would think : " Bernie, you could have been a contender , a man who made a difference ". And right wing demagogue , Donald Trump, will defeat " Wall St. Hillary " by a landslide. It can happen here .

Donald Trump does Stephen King's " The Dead Zone " ?

  I will definitely consider  voting for Jill Stein of the Green Party if Bernie Sanders is definitely frozen out of the nomination process of the Democratic Party.

 " Socialist " Sanders has nothing to gain in personal power or social prestige by becoming an elderly " fellow traveler " of neo-liberalism.

   To see both " progressives " Bernie Sanders and Senator Elizabeth Warren endorse - without blushing - " Wall St. Hillary " will make-my-day- in- a very-negative way.

   Donald Trump is an eerie reminder of the political demagogue played by Martin Sheen in the Stephen King movie " The Dead Zone ".

   A Hillary character might appear in some old film noir vampire movie.That satanic grin and laugh.
In demand ? : A Cartoon Guide to the 2016 Presidential Election.

'The Dead Zone:' Did Stephen King Predict The Rise Of Donald Trump?

www.inquisitr.com/.../the-dead-zone-did-stephen-king-predict-the-rise-of-donald-tru...

Mar 16, 2016 - Similarities between a character in that book and Donald Trump have ... And when you put Greg Stillson in the House of Representatives, you .

 An eerie character resemblance to " The Donald "

WATCHING AMERICA article : only Bernie Sanders represents the common people of the USA

The political nightmare of Trump vs. Hillary

   Excellent opinion piece. And I am speaking as registered Democrat- like Bernie Sanders also a ” democratic socialist “- in the state of Rhode Island. In the April Democratic Primary here Bernie stunned the political establishment by winning big over hawkish, ” Wall St. Hillary ” .

   If trends and momentum matter, Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign is a sinking ship. And recent polls have the hugely important California Democratic primary too close to predict the winner.

   The nervous or hysterical Democratic Party establishment is now smearing Bernie Sanders’ followers as having ” a propensity for violence “. Would Dr. Freud call that ” projection ” ?

  The Zeitgeist has made 2016 the Year of the Anti-Establishment Voter. And Hillary Clinton is the Queen of the Status Quo.

   I voted for ” socialist ” Democrat Bernie Sanders in the Rhode Island primary. I will not vote for Hillary Clinton as the ” lesser evil “. I will be very disappointed in Bernie Sanders if he should finally endorse ” Wall St. Hillary “.

  There is also Jill Stein, the presidential candidate of the Green Party. And only year ago I discovered the Socialist Equality Party and their outstanding World Socialist Web Site.

   Just on a tangent. Their movie review of ” The Money Monster ” has convinced me to see the movie at the local Warwick Cinema.

Money Monster: Who are the criminals?

By Joanne Laurier, 18 May 2016

Money Monster is the latest film to depict the consequences of the 2008 financial crash and the criminal manipulations of the financial elite...

Two party crisis gives us a very unpredictable election

If trends and momentum mean anything , hawkish " Wall St. Hillary " is a sinking ship. So annoyingly pro-Hillary is the " liberal " news media that they marginalize the proverbial elephant- no, the donkey-in the room : " socialist " Democrat Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont.
There is a profound crisis of the capitalist two party system in America. That gives us a very unpredictable election. 2016 is the year of the Anti-Establishment Voter.
And Hillary remains the Queen of the Status Quo.


Thank you for participating on NYTimes.com.
Your published submission can be found at this link:

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/29/us/politics/hillary-clinton-donald-trump.html?comments#permid=18678899

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We democratic socialists have 99 percent of the world on our side- potentially

So capitalism is all about increasing wealth for the many ? The profit system is all about economic democracy ?
 So both Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump are motivated by the same humanitarian impulse ? Even Ayn Rand was really a social democrat despite her cult book " The Virtue of Selfishness " ?

The conservative mentality in praising the logic of the free market- a better route to the worker's paradise ? - rejects the logic of history, rejects the logic of CHANGE.

 There is nothing eternal about the " laws of capitalism " anymore than the laws of feudalism or the laws of ancient slavery. For many long centuries the human race got along just fine without class divisions and sacrosanct private property.

The simple truth is that human civilization no longer needs the capitalist exploiters and oppressors- and war makers.

We democratic socialists question the moral legitimacy of so called " legitimate " wealth. And we have 99 percent of the world on our side - potentially.

A poverty of social imagination in capitalist America

  There is another aspect to billionaire Donald Trump not wanting to debate low key " socialist " Democrat Bernie Sanders : capitalism is the secular national religion of the American ruling class.

 They try very hard- through PUBLIC EDUCATION - to make it nearly impossible for young people to even IMAGINE an alternative to rotten capitalism.

   In a time of political and economic crisis the intellectual apologists for the ruling class grow more strident-and hysterical in defense of their wonderful capitalist system.

And the political system of the American ruling class is on the brink of self-destruction: threatened by " populist " democracy, the " democracy of the streets ".

What more do want than Gina Raimondo, NPR, and the Providence Journal ?

NPR interviews Gina Raimondo on " good government "

Listening to these complacent souls chatter on the radio about " good government " in Rhode Island you could easily conclude- if you lived on the North Pole-- " nope, nothing fundamentally wrong here ". To be sure, there are Democratic politicians who rise above this " good government " nonsense and TAKE generously from hapless middle class tax payers and their ruling class patrons.
The heroic campaign of the Providence Journal against entrenched corruption in the Democratic Party here culminates in endorsing " Wall St. Hillary " in the Democratic Party and fawning- no less than NPR - on " Cut Back Gina " Raimondo.
What do ordinary people here have to be " cranky " about ? What more do you want than Gina Raimondo, NPR, and the Providence Journal ?
Quite frankly, I miss " corrupt " " Buddy " Cianci. He always told the truth about the other ones.
What the Providence Journal at its best fails to grasp is that corruption is rooted in our much extolled " way of life " : the capitalist system.
Feel the Bern ? Not the editorial board of the Providence Journal. But Bernie Sanders won big here in the Democratic Primary anyway.
Gina, friend of Hillary, will not be going to Washington anytime soon.
And Hillary might just get a taste of the " Cianci Experience " in a federal prison.

I miss " corrupt " Buddy Cianci

The ghosts of Verdun cry out against world imperialism

100 years since " the madness of Verdun ".

It is hopeless for corrupted journalists and historians -all poisoned with bloody nationalism- to put any kind of noble spin on the Great War, " the war to make the world safe for democracy ". All that Wilsonian blather was exposed as the BIG LIE at the battle of Verdun. 

A mountain of bones at the battle site today still warns the world of the consequences of rival imperialisms and rotten global capitalism. 

Let us face this grim truth : our Memorial Day honors war- not any anti-war movements. 

No sane working class people should be expected to cheer on the New Colonialism today.

Did any good emerge from the insane Great War ? Yes, the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 : " Ten Days That Shook the World ". The socialist ideal for a saner world is still alive.

 And only international socialism speaks for the wretched mobs of refugees fleeing the horrors of the New Colonialism in the Middle East. 

Do you think for one moment that corrupt " Hawkish Hillary " Clinton will again " make the world safe for democracy " ? 

    The ghosts of Verdun shout from those haunted trenches : " Never again ! " 

Any young Americans besotted with patriotic fervor should read the Dalton Trumbo anti-war classic: " Johnny Got His Gun ". 

Today just say THANK YOU to any one who marched against our imperialist wars- from the Spanish American War to Vietnam and the " greatest foreign policy blunder of all time ", says " socialist " Bernie Sanders, the invasion and occupation of Iraq.  

I say THANK YOU to the anti-war movement in the United States. 

Memorial Day should not honor war.

Our Memorial Days really just honor WAR

CNN	Russian President Vladimir Putin warns he'll retaliate against NATO missiles   CNN  - ‎15 hours ago‎ (CNN) Russian President Vladimir Putin said Russia will retaliate against the placement of U.S. missiles in nearby countries such as Romania, according to Russia's state-run news agency TASS.

 

Calls mount for Hillary Clinton to drop out of the presidential race

Enough of Hillary already ?

  If momentum and trends count for anything, Hillary Clinton is a falling star. For months, despite one Bernie Sanders stunning victory after another, among working class voters in Democratic primaries, the mainstream news media -in pathological denial- has all but proclaimed " Wall St. Hillary " as the president elect of the United States.

   Have the Clintons bribed everybody who imagines himself or herself as some sort of " liberal " journalist ?

   The establishment of the Democratic Party -led by Hillary Clinton- can only be described as perfected rot.

   Feel the Bern ? Enough of Hillary's effete and fatuous " identity politics ". It is NOT time for this woman !

Anti-Trump crowds going to the barricades for Hillary ?

Anti-Trump protesters storm the streets

As a supporter of Bernie Sanders I do not recommend that the anti-Trump crowds harm themselves or endanger tense police officers by " doing the barricades " thing- for Hillary Clinton ?
Jesus would not vote for Trump ? Celebrity astrophysicist Neil De Grasse Tyson more than hinted that Jesus would vote for that Jewish socialist with roots in Brooklyn.

PEACE !

Hiroshima- terrorism of U.S. imperialism morally exalted ?

World not deceived by U.S. image making

    I don’t think ” Hollywood Magic ” is working in the Japanese city of Hiroshima after President Obama’s recent speech there of unctuous eloquence.

  The terrorism of U.S. imperialism is morally exalted; the terrorism of ISIS is nothing less than Satanic.

   Thank God in 2016 for ” socialist ” Democrat Bernie Sanders.

Mental health professionals in America should be ashamed of themselves

A psychiatrist reflects on his " job " -no longer a " calling "

Anybody working in the mental health profession in America should be ashamed of himself or herself, ashamed of the corruption of American psychiatry , ashamed of medicine in general as a business. 

They should be ashamed of our inhumane capitalist system. We do desperately still need a national health care plan - maligned as " socialized medicine ". 

Perhaps only " socialists " -like Bernie Sanders ? - can get us this " entitlement ". Our ruling class should know something about extravagant " entitlements ".

A Ray Bradbury nightmare: Books vanish from RIC's Adams Library

" Save our stacks " by Rebecca Schuman

 [ " The Bookies are quite right to want to save the stacks—but not just for the reasons they give, all of which could be dismissed as the sentimental drowning cries of Luddites. We must also save the stacks for another, more urgent reason altogether: Books, simply as props that happen also to be quite useful if you open them up, are the best—perhaps the only—bastions of contemplative intellectual space in the world.  " ]

This is Memorial Day weekend 2016. The above article makes me wonder about a Ray Bradbury inspired yet unwritten WEIRD TALE : " Memorial Day for Books ". A senior citizen in the habit of using local college libraries in the summer I was shocked to descend to the ground floor of the Rhode Island College Adams Library and seeing vast spaces of empty book shelves.  I love the new computer technology which makes easier the tedious research of the past. But BOOKS should still be treated with respect. " The soul of this place is gone ", I thought.

Real BOOKS vanishing from college libraries ?

Obama in Hiroshima : ISIS can also justify pure terrorism

   Yet another Memorial Day arrives in order that we may still honor WAR. Just a " liberal " thought.

on this article

President Obama spoke about as eloquently as he could about the meaning of Hiroshima. Whatever his more cynical emotions as Commander in Chief of the New Colonialism his more thoughtful words will resonate with people around the world actually serious about ending the threat of nuclear war. 

But just for the record : most honest scholars of American history reject the notion that " we " ( the U.S. ruling class ? ) just had to drop those atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki " for the greater good ". 

Really now, ISIS can justify its own terrorism in a similar way- " saving Islam " . Ah, wretched HUMAN NATURE !

EVIL = HUMAN NATURE ?

Why Trump reconsiders debating Bernie Sanders

Erratic Trump now says he won't debate Bernie Sanders

According to some credible polls Trump has an edge on Hillary.; but Sanders has the edge on Trump.Trump has more to lose than wrongly perceived " loser " Bernie Sanders

.There is , however, a deeper reason for Trump quickly changing his mind about debating " socialist " Democrat Bernie Sanders : The American plutocracy thinks that American capitalism is off limits for legitimate debate.

  They really prefer that the younger generation not even IMAGINE any alternative to the misery-for-many capitalist way of life. Yet Bernie is more of an FDR " liberal " than a militant socialist in the tradition of Eugene V. Debs.

   But as democratic socialist myself I find even old fashioned pro-working class liberals a breath of fresh air.I offer them my " critical support ". My vote is just problematic.

Comment on Colleen Johnson's " FIX THE RICH AND THE POOR " letter in the Warwick Beacon

" Fix RICH and POOR ", Warwick Beacon

I have referenced Colleen Johnson's letter here in my blog [ http://radicalrons.blogspot.com ]

 Yes, Colleen the entrenched Democrats in this state of Rhode Island are no friends of working class people. Politicians like Governor Gina Raimondo are as alienated from working class reality as any Ayn Rand Republican.

And working class Rhode Island knows it. No surprise that Gina's friend Hillary Clinton was soundly defeated in the April Democratic primary here by that " socialist " Democrat Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont-dismissed as a " loser " by the Hillary People but about to win the California primary.

We all lose when the neo-Democrats win. Their crazed " identity politics " will not put any butter on your bread.

Perhaps street beggars should WELCOME visitors to Rhode Island.

Working class woman complains about Wall St. Gina Raimondo

" Fix the ' rich and the poor ' "

Thank you for publishing this " voice of the working class " letter of Colleen Johnson of Warwick-calling out our governor for being rather oblivious to the problems of working class people in Rhode Island -desperately trying to " get ahead " through subsidized " higher education " at CCRI ( ? ) for example.

I voted for " socialist " Democrat Bernie Sanders in the Rhode Island Democratic Party rather than for the friend of Gina Raimondo, Hillary Clinton.

It seems that these Hillary Democrats are only interested in the Wall St. obsessed , status seeking crowd or in fatuous " identity politics ".

Time for Bernie's " political revolution " in Rhode Island. And I think he is about to win the California Democratic primary.

" Democracy Spring " in America.

But OUTSIDE is the class struggle.

News media fails to see Hillary as a sinking shop

 The sickeningly pro-Hillary news media continues to talk as if the Bernie Sanders campaign never even got off the ground. But a new poll shows that Hillary might have to face a humiliating defeat in the California primary.

   When the political establishment of the Democratic Party sobers up they will see  Hawkish Hillary as a sinking ship.

    The white working class has been abandoned - with scorn and contempt- by the Hillary Clinton campaign. Does she imagine that the strong support of the black bourgeoisie and jaded feminists will win the White House for her?

        A Trump- Sanders debate might well be one of the more significant events in American political history. It could prove that capitalism is NOT the secular national religion of 21st century America.

Poll shows close contest between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders in California

Los Angeles Times‎ 

How Senator Elizabeth Warren can become a JFK " Profile in Courage "

The latest poll shows Hillary Clinton in very real danger of losing the California Democratic primary to " socialist " Bernie Sanders.

 The news media- sickeningly pro-Hillary- still talks as if Hillary Clinton's nomination is the Mandate Of Heaven- not that of a nervous and trembling ruling class.

   Senator Elizabeth Warren can add a chapter to JFK's book " Profiles in Courage " by boldly endorsing the candidate so much closer to her own political and economic views : Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont.

   In California Bernie Sanders might remind some history students of socialist novelist Upton Sinclair's 1934 EPIC campaign there.Talk about shocking the bourgeoisie !

A blank chapter for Elizabeth Warren ?

A capitalist society in crisis- NEVER AGAIN ?

In short, the vile vandalism was the more " banal evil " of juvenile delinquency. There is most likely no budding George Lincoln Rockwell in my old Cranston neighborhood.

And I won't blame Republican Donald Trump for reviving the bullying tradition in American society. But his very words " YOU'RE FIRED ! " contain the essence of a bullying capitalist society.

 In a political and economic crisis the ruling class bullies get more news media attention. Trump-and the rest of the Republicans - have been Islamophobic for years now. Hillary Clinton rarely has a kind word for the oppressed Palestinians - in contrast to her " socialist " Democrat opponent Bernie Sanders.

Standing in the midst of the Hiroshima Holocaust, Obama says he has no apology to offer Japan here. He did apologize for an American rapist-connected to the Occupation Force in Okinawa.

What does juvenile " bullying " have to do with the high affairs of state, like the New Colonialism, and the old imperialism ?

On Memorial Day we honor war - not the neglected and homeless veterans. Does this not breed hate ?
Never again ?

Anti-Semitic vandalism in Cranston neighborhood

                

It is more foolish juvenile vandalism than any hint of a budding George Lincoln Rockwell in the Cranston area. In another era kids were restrained from more mindless delinquency by fear of " shaming their parents ".

 

 Imagine how heartbroken any half-decent parent would feel when confronted by a son's ( do girls ever do this ? ) vile graffiti?

      Serious scapegoating -as against the Jews in Nazi Germany- is a symptom of a society in crisis. I fear American capitalism is on the edge. Incipient fascism will not be stopped by the iron fist of academic based " political correctness ".

       Bernie Sanders' " democratic socialism " has its roots in the Jewish neighborhoods of New York City during the Great Depression. Socialist writer Irving Howe describes it  in his book" World of Our Fathers ".
For Howe - also a Jew- socialism was still " A Margin of Hope " until the last year of his life.

A George Lincoln Rockwell in Cranston neighborhood ?

Most " democratic socialist " types view religion with indifference-not malice

   Not a few readers will be surprised to learn that there is no generic LEFT devoted to persecuting religion. Many " democratic socialists " have been appalled by the war on God, especially Catholic Church bashing and rampant Islamophobia , for a long time.

          " Socialism " is hardly monolithic anywhere on the planet. Perhaps the biggest mistake of Soviet era " socialism/communism " was to make the state officially godless and atheistic -actively hostile to humanity's spiritual quest.

        In that infamous " Prayer on the Wall " controversy at Cranston West High School I thought the New Atheists were being arrogant and obnoxious.

       Catholic Bishop Tobin was just upholding church doctrine when he opposed gay marriage. I thought secular " marriage " was beyond the moral authority of the Pope. But there was never anything " hateful " about traditional Catholicism. I note the " progressive "- quasi-socialist ? - social philosophy of the Catholic Church.

   It is this always so politically correct pseudo-Left that is waging war on God. Their cult leader, Christopher Hitchens, wrote a nasty book titled " God is not Great - how religion poisons everything ".

None of the illiberal liberal New Atheists have a quarrel with " free market capitalism ".Or with the more fanatical brand of Zionism.


      I suspect most " democratic socialist " types view religion with benign indifference.

Controversial prayer on the wall at Cranston West

 

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Donald Trump clinches Republican presidential nomination- will Dems self-destruct this summer ?

It seems now that the Democratic Party- not very " democratic " with Bernie Sanders supporters - is more likely to self-destruct this summer at its national convention.

 Whereas ALL Republicans worship global capitalism there has always been some squeaky dissonance about this in the Democratic Party - still haunted by the ghost of that plutocrat " socialist " Franklin D. Roosevelt.

  For decades now the neo-Democrats - like Bill and Hillary Clinton- have prided themselves on rising above " class struggle " rhetoric - without rising above the objective reality. Only in " identity politics " do they succeed in rising above objective reality.

" It Can't Happen Here "  ?

Portmouth teacher , Michael Marra, rants against teacher seniority

Michael Marra's column in the Providence Journal got fulsome praise on local right-wing talk radio yesterday.

 

 No liberal would be self-satisfied with gasps of approval from those fans of Donald Trump or Ted Cruz. Their agenda is invariably anti-union and anti-working class.

       Does Marra teach the eternal wisdom of the market in his economic courses ? Does he defend with gusto the history of U.S. imperialism ?

       When hundreds of Providence public school teachers were fired in 2011 was that in the interests of the kids ? Were they all ripping off the proverbial harried tax payer ?

       I suspect other equally articulate and " passionate "-but less reactionary- public school teachers in Portsmouth are simply being muzzled-or are too frightened to comment here.

The Attack on Seniority: Cruella Strikes Again

Posted on February 2, 2013 by riredteacher

  [  The Providence Journal reports today that Rhode Island Education Commissioner Deb Gist is back at it, announcing a major attack on teachers’ seniority rights.  She declares that any district that uses seniority in placements, layoffs and promotions will face retribution from RIDE.
The arrogance of this tyrant knows no bounds.  Since Gist arrived in Rhode Island almost four years ago, teachers here have lived under a reign of terror.  Gist’s modus operandi has been to announce a new policy, stunningly reactionary in nature, and then to act as though RIDE policy has more weight actual law.  Certainly district contracts are minor impediments to her; state labor law is to be blatantly disregarded; and really any mildly democratic process for determining educational practice in this state is inferior to her magisterial will.  It’s particularly stunning to me that she has announced this renewed attack on seniority even as the Portsmouth lawsuit on teacher seniority is still pending.  Clearly, even the legal system has no validity in Gist’s eyes.
What is so bizarre about this woman is the extent to which she gives the air of being blissfully unaware of the interests she’s working for, downright scandalized by the suggestion that she’s undermining public education for the sake of corporate profit.  But look at her background: a graduate of the Broad Academy, a recipient of funds from right-wing organizations, this woman is no joke.  She is the deliberate tool of the corporate education “reformers...]

Coming attraction: a debate between Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders ?

 

  As a critical supporter of " socialist " Democrat Bernie Sanders  I am very interested in viewing a debate between the personification of " greed is good " capitalist Donald Trump and the personification of genteel Vermont country socialism, Senator Bernie Sanders - who won big here in the Rhode Island Democratic primary.

       I am not one of those who over-vilify The Donald who also speaks to the " angry white working class " with refreshing- but often TOO fresh - bluntness.

      Bernie Sanders emphasis on unacceptable economic inequality is on a higher moral and intellectual level than Hillary Clinton's banal " identity politics ".

         " Wall St. Hillary " will not debate " socialist " Bernie Sanders on the brink of the California Democratic primary. Bernie in California reminds me of Upton Sinclair's EPIC campaign there in 1934.

        Sinclair Lewis , a socialist novelist, wrote " It Can't Happen Here " in the 1930s too , a warning that fascism is never off the agenda of the American plutocracy.

       Upton Sinclair's novel " The Jungle " inspired reforms in turn of the century Robber Baron capitalism - a lot like today in USA .
Biden.

Washington Times See realtime coverage

Bernie Sanders pulls to within 2 points of Hillary   Clinton in CA: poll Washington Times  - ‎2 hours ago‎ Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., speaks during a campaign rally in Cathedral City, Calif., Wednesday, May 25, 2016.

In Rhode Island " The Virtue of Selfishness " is a bipartisan tradition

This movie shows the soul of the Donald Trump real estate business

  I too was recently " embarrassed for the Providence Journal ": when they endorsed the queen of these corrupt Democrats , Hillary Clinton, in the April Democratic primary ; and just yesterday when they published that " heroic " column by Portsmouth teacher, Michael Marra, bashing the teacher union seniority system.

 What would Hillary Clinton think about right-wing union busting ? Marra teaches the virtues of capitalist economics to naive high school students, I read ( it justifies laying off hundreds of Providence public school teachers in 2011 ) .

  Rhode Island NPR- so " independent " - should take the lead in exposing those so un-democratic Democrats.

  But would we like these rather shady Democrats to be routed in the next election by Ayn Rand Republicans ?

   In little Rhode Island belief in " The Virtue of Selfishness " is a bipartisan tradition.

" Heroic " attack on teacher seniority system ?

  This teacher's " heroic " Providence Journal column attacking the " seniority " system got fulsome praise on right-wing talk radio yesterday.

 As a democratic socialist I think it would take a lot more courage for a public school teacher to denounce ruling class control of public education.

 Training kids to survive in the capitalist rat race and the glorification of philistine " success " does more harm to the soul of the student than a few befogged older teachers with rancid " seniority " privilege.

   Union hating intrigue does not promote " Democracy in America ".

   Everywhere the ruling class has its pets.

Michael Marra: Protecting teacher seniority hurts R.I. students

Providence Journal‎ - 2 days ago

First, we must stop hurting our students. Second, we must stop ripping off the taxpayers. As a public high school history teacher of 30 years, ...

Cranston teachers reach tentative labor contract ... - Providence Journal

www.providencejournal.com/article/20141016/.../310169897

The Providence Journal

Oct 16, 2014 - ... against the School Committee when Rhode Island Commissioner of ... pressured Cranston to downgrade seniority as a criterion for teacher ...

Why did they fire the Providence teachers? | SocialistWorker.org

https://socialistworker.org/2011/03/01/providence-teachers-fired

SocialistWorker.org

Mar 1, 2011 - Taveras told the Providence Journal that "putting Providence back on solid ... Last fall, the PPSD stopped using seniority altogether in hiring decisions, ... teacher talked about the courage needed to speak out against what is ...

Since when does snobbery make you popular in America ?

  I  cannot imagine the typical Bernie Sanders supporter having the slightest interest in disrupting a Donald Trump rally or showing contempt for free speech rights and freedom of assembly of fellow Americans.

Yet the political establishment of the Democratic Party smears Sanders supporters as having  " a penchant for violence ".

      In a way neo-liberal " identity politics " plants the seeds of brainless " protest ". American universities are besotted with the " diversity " agenda.

   Oddly enough, they show a marked disdain for the " ignorant " white working class. Since when does snobbery make you popular in America ?

An Edward Snowden defense of Hiilary Clinton on e-mail carelessness

  I am a critical supporter of Bernie Sanders and I don't even consider Hillary Clinton an acceptable " lesser evil " for whom to vote. But I can offer an Edward Snowden inspired defense of  Hillary in this e-mail " scandal " : Above all,  State Department " secrets " and confidential correspondence are a ruling class conspiracy behind the backs of whatever " democracy " exists in America. They are hidden from the American public not in our own interests but in the interests of the foreign policy elite.
     Would working class Americans approve the drone killing of leaders of other countries like Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria ? Would working class Americans approve the New Colonialism in the Middle East with its daily crimes against humanity ?
          It is painfully clear that our Memorial Days honor war far more than they do fallen veterans of insane wars : like the Iraq War and the Vietnam War.
         This endless -and lost cause - " war on terrorism " is mostly a cover for this New Colonialism. That is Hillary Clinton's real " crime " as Secretary of State.
        You can expect a revival of the American anti-war movement in the near future.

Capitalist private property stymies help for the homeless

 Not Bernie Sanders himself but the " democratic socialist " perspective- goes to the root of the problem of homelessness here in America.

  It is obvious to ANY socialist that capitalist " private property " perpetuates the homeless condition. 

 In Kennedy Plaza in dowtown Providence , for example, dozens of homeless people are harassed by cops right in front of the vacant, blighted landmark " Superman Building " - long abandoned by the business community. It could easily be converted into cheap public housing.

More violence at Trump rally-but Trump is not the root of the evil

Violence at Trump rally in New Mexico

  As a democratic socialist I have observed a sinister disrespect for freedom of thought and freedom of assembly -even religious freedom- on the part of Neo-Liberalism.

   As a critical supporter of " socialist " Democrat Bernie Sanders I am certain that no sincere believer in his " political revolution " would want to disrupt any presidential candidate's rally.

   The root of evil in American capitalist society is not- all of a sudden- Donald Trump. There has been a long period of social rot and economic decay. So it is no wonder that so many people are fed up with the status quo.

   And the Queen of the Status Quo is " Wall St. Hillary " .

FEAR OF DEMOCRACY an epiphany for young Bernie Sanders supporters.

  The FEAR OF DEMOCRACY in America-not the phony celebration of it-should be an epiphany to young and idealistic supporters of Bernie Sanders '   " political revolution ".

 There is minimal internal democracy at the core of the Democratic Party. There is little internal democracy in those still powerful unions which support " Wall St. Hillary ".

    There is nearly complete contempt for " freedom of thought " in the capitalist news media. So many professional journalists are subservient to the capitalist ruling class - not to TRUTH.

     If Bernie Sanders is frozen out of this presidential campaign, his supporters should consider Jill Stein of the Green Party, for example. There is also the Socialist Equality Party.-and other militant socialist parties.

      In California right now Bernie Sanders reminds me of Upton Sinclair's EPIC campaign in 1934.

Wanted by FBI anybody named David Nelson ?

Name won't fly if you are David Nelson - Washington Times

www.washingtontimes.com/.../20030616-104109-4241r/?pag...

The Washington Times

Jun 16, 2003 - It's not a good time to fly for men named David Nelson. ... FBI and sometimes searched again in an apparent dragnet for a terrorist by that name.

Ron Ruggieri: No help for 'Ragged Dave' - Providence Journal

www.providencejournal.com/article/20140801/.../308019689

The Providence Journal

Aug 1, 2014 - In many ways, he is the anti-character of Horatio Alger's “Ragged Dick,” ... “Ragged Dave” is a story of a precipitous fall in early old age from ...