News & Articles

We’re paying the price

The U.S. media love to interview indignant Iranian ex-pats in the U.S. who are pleased with the U.S. bombing spree against Iran while war crime perpetrator Netanyahu, who has the blood of 60,000 Gazans on his hands, is now virtually in charge of the latest U.S. war in the Middle East.
Why? Because Israel is key to U.S. imperial ambitions in the region. For this reason, Israel not only has a free hand in Gaza but also in the Occupied West Bank as it seeks to complete its colonial project in Palestine. With the latest U.S./Israel war grabbing the headlines from Iran, the thousands of bodies rotting under the rubble in Palestine will continue to remain unseen and silent.

All imperialism exacts a price, but most of the price paid in blood comes from the occupants of Gaza, southern Lebanon, the Occupied West Bank of Palestine, and now Teheran and other wide areas of Iran which have also become piles of rubble.
But there are other prices to be paid. Most estimates average out to $1 billion per day. Foremost is the cost of underwriting Israel’s war machine with endless shipments of bombs, missiles and drones from the U.S. to Israel. These costs will be borne by U.S. taxpayers, that is, those who actually pay taxes, as opposed to the untaxed billionaire class who populate both major parties (not to mention those who actually profit from weapons sales).

Closer to home are the school closings all over our region and the reduction of services in those schools that manage to stay open. Add to this the rising gas prices, cutbacks in snow plowing, street repair, lead pipe replacement, etc., etc., all of which must compete with the newest high tech killing machines.

Who profits, who pays and who decides? These are the questions that a really vibrant democracy would be asking.
How much has war in Iran cost the U.S.?
Iran updates: First 6 days of the war cost U.S. taxpayers $11.3 billion
Robert Kosuth
Duluth, Minnesota
 
Let’s admit our lacks of wisdom

When I think of all the hate-filled accusations fundamentalist “Christians” have made about me – and in general, anybody who doubts they are the one true emissaries of Jesus, I begin to wonder, Why do they feel so persecuted?
Remember the funeral for the brave soldiers when demonstrater’s voices were only a few blocks away – hollering  that they did not deserve God’s love or even compassion of Christians who feel their protests represent an unfaltering spiritual journey taken by members of the Westboro Baptist Church, who believed their insults only made them glory bound for Heaven.

However, it’s hard to keep my lunch down after hearing how a sacred Christian ritual like this funeral was deliberately sabotaged by those claiming to know the love of Christ in the Westboro Baptist church,while the mourners of brave soldiers heard every rotten, hateful, insult spewed from the mouths of these supposedly”Born again” Christians? 

I hate self-righteous Christians like these as much as I hate Nazis, and I’d put any Christian Nationalist back in prison after reviewing overwhelming evidence against them filmed during the Jan 6th insurrection. But apparently, the Bill of Rights, and the tears of those who mourn their beloved sons and daughters – who truly were more powerful examples of love. However,the judge’s initial award of $10 million dollars was later trimmed down to $5 million because of USA’s Bill of Rights is (enshrined in the American constitution)

So the judge realized that if we imprisoned anyone just for voicing strongly held Ideas, perhaps the next defendants on trial could be thrown in Jail just for speaking out loud and but are protected by the bill of rights.
The point is, that whatever I or any ideological or theological system my enemies cherish - is protected by the Bill of Rights – because if not, the next group fined or jailed, might be a group of girl scouts who sell cookies door to door. So If anyone decides to criticize them, the first Amendment can legally be their best defense because (their sincere beliefs) are also guaranteed unnder our First Amendment rights

There is a guy who sends letters to me that never includes his return address. And he scribbles all over the outside of the envelope, invoking his first amendment rights, saying “Woodrow” desires to impose his “cultural Marxist views” upon a free “liberty-loving America” and he’s absolutely right – as long as our government is not just a political group out to spread its own biased values – nor a government able to tell new churches when to lock their doors and throw their Bibles away, (because a Democracy hating and violent”cultural Marxism”are in town)? However, despite all the checks and balances on our legal system, extreme right wing fundamentalists have now become violent sword wielding enemies – even though their enemies are really just flickering shadows on the wall.

As past and present human history points out, Americans are very prone to over step the legal boundaries just to turn all believers into sock puppets who are very willing to share hatred towards anyone who rejects their own narrow views, (NOT GOD’S views) but those which are typically insincere limitation on human injustice. So, remember all you sincere Christians out there, (and you ARE there) – the good book says only Jesus has the power to spiritually judge human beings!

Oh yes, my middle name is Woodrow because my mother cherished his life-long hope of establishing a world body that could really keep enforcing peace, and truly make WWI “The last War.” But now my pseudointellectual attacker only thinks its funny, during his recess filled lunch hour at the sand box philosopher’s parade.
Peter W. Johnson
Superior, Wisconsin