What To Read

You won't likely read about this event in Maine's newspapers or see it featured on local news tv channels even though they will all receive a press release about it.
Image credit: Elizabeth Olbert

I do this every few years: respond to inquiries about what news, opinion, or analysis sources I consider worthy of my time. Of course the list keeps changing as tighter control of dissident opinions is effected, especially via social media distribution denials and outright censorship.

It's time for a new list for a few reasons.

• I'm going to participate in National Novel Writing Month (nanowrimo.org) beginning November 1. It's my third attempt to produce a first draft short novel in a month; in 2021, nanowrimo got me started on a fictional tale about kids growing up in poverty, and two long excerpts from Heaven Spelled Backwards will be published soon by the Bollard. So, I won't be posting as often to my blog in November and when I do it will probably be to re-post some popular and/or relevant past content.

• Corporate media are doing an unprecedentedly bad job covering the massive outpouring of support for Palestine as Israel moves into phase two of its plan to either kill or relocate every person in Gaza and the West Bank.

• Alternative media sources I once trusted -- e.g. Democracy Now!, The Intercept) have changed their tune, probably because of a desire to please their funding sources.

My list will privilege text sources over video only because I, personally, like to read and dislike watching videos to get information. But I'll include some good video sources at the end of my list as I know many of my readers feel differently.

What to read

The Cradle

Mondoweiss

Consortium News

Pearls & Irritations

System Update (Glenn Greenwald's streaming video show also publishes a transcript which I often read)

Reality Theories (Eva K. Bartlett)

Black Agenda Report

Workers World

Peace & Planet News

Counterpunch

Belfast, Maine for Gaza October 29, 2023 -- photo credit: Robin Farrin

Caitlin Johnstone

Organizing Notes (Bruce Gagnon)

Popular Resistance 

Electronic Intifada

Scheerpost

RT

Danny Haiphong's substack

Kit Klarenberg's substack

Al Jazeera

CGTN

World Socialist Website

telesurEnglish

Geopolitical Economy Report (video format but comes with a transcript)

Racket News (Matt Taibbi)

Scott Ritter Extra

MintPress News

Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (F.A.I.R.)

Ellsworth, Maine for Gaza  October 28, 2023

What to watch

Empire Files with Abby Martin

Sabby Sabs

Revolutionary Blackout Network

Middle Nation (Shahid Bolsen)

The Grayzone

Useful Idiots (actually a podcast)

This is not an exhaustive list. Did I skip one of your favorites? Consider adding it in the comments.

Why We Stand With Gaza

All photos (by Robin Farrin) are actually from October 19 in Brunswick as no one took photos yesterday. But these are our signs and banners.

Why do we stand up for Gaza? Because we hate funding genocide with U.S. "aid" to Israel (really credit to buy more U.S.-made weapons). We don't accept Israel bombing a concentration camp where Palestinians are trapped, unable to escape.  

But why do we stand out in public? Wouldn't occupying the nearest congressional office be more to the point? (As if any of my state's congressional delegation, whether Democrat, Republican, or Independent aren't beholden to the Israel lobby.) 

Yesterday I pulled together a hasty demo for Gaza at 5pm in Brunswick, Maine. (The demo I had planned to attend Saturday in Lewiston was cancelled because of the mass shooting event there earlier in the week.) 

Thus I found myself standing with my husband and three of our friends with signs and banners supporting Gaza and demanding an end to the accelerating genocide.

Motorists passing by often honked, waved, or flashed us the peace sign.

Toward the end of our hour we were approached by a handsome college student who said, "My name is Hussein and I am Gazan. I want to thank you for being here." He went on to say he was in town for family weekend at nearby Bowdoin College and that his host family had seen us while driving by and had called him.

Asked about his family in Gaza he said, "I haven't heard from them in three days. I don't know whether they are dead or injured or alive."

Another student, this one from Bowdoin, soon came by and began calling friends to try and draw some students out. They told one of us they were encouraged to see some old folks standing for Gaza.  Other passersby stopped to chat and soon our group was up to eight.

Hussein made his way down the line introducing himself and thanking everyone personally. He apologized for needing to go and we saw him a few minutes later waving from the backseat of a car with out-of-state license plates. 

If we only reached a few people yesterday with our messages, I'm grateful that Hussein was one of them.

https://twitter.com/QudsNen/status/1718575833877475693

We stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people and especially with Gaza as it endured its second night of darkness, no internet, and horrific bombing. The videos of the injured and terrified screaming in the darkness may be found on social media but I'll never be able to sleep again if I spend too much time witnessing.

World wars always kick off with a genocide, don't they? To name just a few, Armenians slaughtered by the Ottoman Empire just prior to WWI; Chinese in Nanking slaughtered and tortured by the Japanese Imperial Army. Now the massacre of 7,000+ Gazans plus a second Nakba complete with pogroms underway in the occupied West Bank does not bode well.

Genocide In Gaza Supposedly Justified By Israeli Claims Al-Aqsa Flood Was A 9/11 Event

When the first announcements came that Israel had experienced its own 9/11 on October 7 with Hamas breaking out of the Gaza concentration camp to attack its jailers, I was skeptical of the analogy. 

First, bulldozing a fence and launching a ground attack from an open air prison seemed to me quite different from flying passenger jets into buildings mysteriously causing total demolition of modern skyscrapers. 

Second, around 3,000 people died on September 11, 2001 while about one-third that many were killed in the Al-Aqsa Flood event. Many Israelis were killed by their own military, and the subsequent death of hostages not yet released by Hamas has been ignored as Israeli bombs rained down on Gaza.

But when we examine the uses that were made of both events, similarities do emerge.

9/11 was used as the pretext for the U.S. invading Afghanistan where roughly a quarter of a million Afghans perished over the course of 20 years, invading Iraq where a million people died, invading Syria to occupy their oil fields (ongoing), invading Libya to topple the Gaddafi regime, and drone bombing all over the Middle East and Africa.

Also to push through the Patriot Act which destroyed many of the constitutional protections previously enjoyed by white people in the U.S. who were not too poor to afford some justice.

The Al-Aqsa Flood is being used right now as the pretext for carpet bombing and invading Gaza, an Egyptian territory once illegally occupied by Israel and then illegally blockaded after Israel withdrew its military and settlers in 2005. 

https://twitter.com/Soureh_design2/status/1718024724356182243

How many millions will die as a result? Check your sources because the best the doddering President of the U.S. has got is to send more weapons quickly while casting doubt on the accuracy of casualties reported by the Gaza Ministry of Health. It's clear my government would like to minimize the evidence of its complicity in genocide.

The Al-Aqsa Flood is also being used to ram through laws criminalizing dissent, both in Israel itself and across Europe where U.S. vassal states have lit up their public monuments with the colors of Israel's flag while arresting protesters for the crime of holding Palestine's flag.

Police in Manchester, UK monitor thousands marching for Palestine October 28. Source: Manchester Evening News

Also, it's quite likely that both the Al-Aqsa Flood and 9/11 were on national security radar but were allowed to proceed anyway. Put another way, both Israel and the U.S. appear to accept mass murder of their own people in a spectacular way in order to make what was already planned to follow look like a reasonable response to "terror." 

For Gaza what was planned already was genocide, now well underway. Last night (October 27) Gaza was plunged into darkness without electricity, internet, water, food, fuel, or a functioning media to report on events. The worst bombing thus far aimed at the southern part of Gaza where internally displaced people from northern Gaza had been deliberately herded by Israel to be massacred.

But here's the thing: with every bombing sortie, Israel creates the next generation of resistance fighters. Much like the U.S. did in Afghanistan and Iraq, where it was never able to prevail against insurgents fighting to rid hated occupiers from their homeland.

But the biggest contrast between the two events as I see it is that 9/11 worked to gin up pubic support for the so-called War on Terror. The genocide of Gaza is doing no such thing.

Jewish Americans marching to the federal building in Boston, Massachusetts October 27  Source: IfNotNow

Protesters gather at Grand Central Terminal during a rally calling for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on Friday, Oct. 27, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Jeenah Moon)

Former UK Ambassador Craig Murray in Consortium News on October 25 "The Chances of a Regional War":

The gap between the western political and media elites and their people on this issue is simply enormous.

While Western governments and their compliant media rush to defend Israel's brutality, people all over the world are rising up in the millions to demand a ceasefire in the short term and a free Palestine in the long term.

Protesters shout slogans as they unfurl Palestinian flags during a rally supporting the Palestinian people, outside the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, Saturday, October 28, 2023. (AP)

Source: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/pqC3ufGEtYI

Analyst Pepe Escobar in The Cradle October 27, "Iran-Russia set a western trap in Palestine":

The White House’s wishful thinking that the Forever Wars in Ukraine and Israel are inscribed in the same lofty “democracy” drive and essential to US national interests, has already backfired – even among American public opinion..  

Both Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) went to Lebanon to visit Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah in person this week. That spells out unity of purpose – or what the region's Axis of Resistance calls the “Unity of Fronts.”    

Even more eye-opening was Hamas' visit to Moscow this week, which was met with impotent Israeli fury. The Hamas delegation was headed by a member of its Politburo, Abu Marzouk. Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri came especially from Tehran and met two of Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov’s key deputies, Sergei Ryabkov and Mikhail Galuzin.   

That spells out Hamas, Iran, and Russia negotiating at the same table.  

Hamas has called on the millions of Palestinians in the diaspora, as well as the whole Arab world and all lands of Islam, to unite. Slowly but surely, a pattern may be discerned: could the Arab world – and great swathes of Islam - be on the verge of significantly uniting to avenge their own “century of humiliation” – much as the Chinese did after WWII with Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping? 

 

UN roll call showing overwhelming support for Gaza

To round out my analogy, I believe 9/11 will be viewed by historians (if humankind survives nuclear war, that is) as the actual kick-off of WW3. In contrast, the genocide of Gazans will be viewed as the event that solidified effective mass resistance to colonial rule by Western nations and Israel as they use their dwindling military might in a futile attempt to hold onto power.

However, don't expect the U.S. and its lackeys to understand that. At least, not the old people.

Maine Is One Big Small Town & Now We Have Mass Shootings, Too

Awoke to news that an Army Reserve firearms instructor who is living with psychosis (hears voices, and was hospitalized for psychiatric treatment recently) shot up a bar and a bowling alley in Lewiston last night. The above photo is allegedly security cam footage from the bowling alley. The shooter is white and in his 40's, on the run, and considered dangerous.

Bowdoin (pronounced Boh-den) is really taking a beating lately. The shooter is from that very small town as was last summer's shooter who came out of prison in another state and immediately massacred his parents and two of their friends. Then went out to Interstate 295 and started shooting at cars.

The college by the same name, which is in Brunswick not Bowdoin, is on lockdown this morning. So is Bates College where my gun-loving representative, Marine veteran Jared Golden earned his degree after returning from killing people in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Why can other countries control gun violence but the U.S. won't or can't?

Shooter Robert Card's social media presence was that of a right wing nut case. You know, kind of like the new Speaker of the House whose first act in office will be bringing forward a bill to send Israel more billions to continue their slaughter of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.

Not achieving gun control is a Democratic Party strategy akin to not saving abortion access -- so useful to fundraise off of that there is low motivation to solve the problem. 

In Maine, a hunting state with weak gun control laws, the Democrats control both the Senate and the House, and the Governor is a Democrat also. Will this be enough to pass strong gun control laws in the wake of last night's massacre? Doubtful, but I can hope.

When I say Maine is one big small town I mean things like my grandson's cousins on his mom's side live in Auburn, a twin city to Lewiston. His older cousin will not attend school today as all schools for miles around are closed while the manhunt continues.

Back in 2020 when I ran against Susan Collins for her senate seat, Project Veritas "tricked" me into admitting I believe in gun control. Subsequently Collins voted "no" on background checks, a fact being circulated widely on social media. 

Both corporate parties profit from violence, domestically and abroad. Neither will do anything meaningful to stop it. We have lost our representation in government, which breeds fear, which spikes gun sales. Meanwhile we have hugely inadequate mental health care because we have hugely inadequate health care of any sort.

It doesn't have to be this way, but it will continue until the people wrest control of their government back from corporate interests. Second Amendment defenders will tell you that's why they need to cling to their guns, to ward off tyranny. Sorry fellas but the government's drones, robots, lasers, and directed energy weapons are not threatened by your AR-15.

But you are, because the people most likely to die of gun violence are...gun owners.

The way to bring down this miserable government is a general strike. But that is a subject for another time.

Cheerleading For WW3: Biden's Speech

"Geneva October 14, 2023. [Fabrice Coffrini/AFP]"
Source: Aljazeera "Tens of thousands rally around the world in solidarity with Palestine"

It's taken me a minute to respond to Biden's recent speech cheerleading for WW3 because I was busy presenting a webinar on U.S. pipe dreams of Full Spectrum Dominance and out in the streets several times this week demonstrating support for Gaza. 

Back on the original bridge I went to in Skowhegan, my husband and I were amazed at the outpouring of support expressed by passing motorists. At times, the honking was continuous. We haven't stood in that particular spot since 2020 and the public's mood has clearly changed. 

Or maybe, as some suggested, the response was due to it being the day after Biden's warmongering speech?

At first I thought I'd go through his speech and highlight the lies. But if Biden's lips are moving he is probably lying, so it would be more efficient to highlight any discernible truths in what the teleprompter told him to say.

Remarks by President Biden on the United States' Response to Hamas's Terrorist Attacks Against Israel and Russia's Ongoing Brutal War Against Ukraine (Adjectives are working overtime in this title but the biggest lie is the inversion: Israel has been attacking civilians in Gaza non-stop, and NATO's war on Russia via Ukraine has indeed been brutal for the half a million Ukrainians used as cannon fodder.)

October 20, 2023
 
THE PRESIDENT:  Good evening, my fellow Americans.  We’re facing an inflection point in history — one of those moments where the decisions we make today are going to determine the future for decades to come.  That’s what I’d like to talk with you about tonight. 
 
You know, earlier this morning, I returned from Israel.   They tell me I’m the first American president to travel there during a war. (While in office Nixon, Carter, Clinton, Bush Jr., Obama, and Trump all visited Israel, a country perpetually at war with its neighbors.)
 
I met with the Prime Minister and members of his cabinet.  And most movingly, I met with Israelis who had personally lived through horrific horror of the attack by Hamas on the 7th of October. 
 
More than 1,300 people slaughtered in Israel, (Passive voice, but the preceding sentence pins this on Hamas. In fact, survivor testimony indicates witnessing Israel's military mowing down Israelis.) 

"Yasmin Porat, a survivor of the bloodshed at Kibbutz Be’eri, near the boundary with Gaza, says many Israeli civilians were killed by Israeli forces." Source: Electronic Intifada

including at least 32 American citizens.  Scores of innocents (Some were innocent, but others were adult residents of a kibbutz located just outside the concentration camp fences that surround Gaza.) — from infants to elderly grandparents, Israelis, Americans — taken hostage.  
 
As I told the families of Americans being held captive by Hamas, we’re pursuing every avenue to bring their loved ones home.  As President, there is no higher priority for me than the safety of Americans held hostage. (For context, Israel has tens of thousands of Palestinian political prisoners, many of whom are not yet adults. So negotiating to swap the hostages for those prisoners would actually be the avenue to pursue. Instead, the U.S. sent Israel more weapons.)
 
The terrorist group Hamas (Hamas is the elected government of Gaza.) unleashed pure, unadulterated evil  in the world. (Oppressed people rising up against their oppressors is not evil.) But sadly, the Jewish people know, perhaps better than anyone, that there is no limit to the depravity of people when they want to inflict pain on others. (Wake up, Biden. The whole world sees the depravity of Israel inflicting dehydration and starvation plus air strikes on a captive civilian population.)

In Israel, I saw a people who are strong, determined, resilient, and also angry, in shock, and in deep, deep pain. (Colonial oppressors are not the victims, Joe.)
 
I also spoke with President Abbas of the Palestinian Authority and reiterated that the United States remains committed to the Palestinian people’s right to dignity and to self-determination.  The actions of Hamas terrorists don’t take that right away.  
 
Like so many other[sic], I am heartbroken by the tragic loss of Palestinian life, including the explosion at a hospital in Gaza — which was not done by the Israelis. (All evidence points to Israel; as many have observed, if Hamas had missiles that could destroy a hospital complex, Tel Aviv would be in rubble.)
 
We mourn every innocent life lost.  We can’t ignore the humanity of innocent Palestinians who only want to live in peace and have an opportunity.
 
You know, the assault on Israel echoes nearly 20 months of war, tragedy, and brutality inflicted on the people of Ukraine — people that were very badly hurt since Putin launched his all-out invasion.  
 
We’ve have not forgotten the mass graves, the bodies found bearing signs of torture, rape used as a weapon by the Russians, and thousands and thousands of Ukrainian children forcibly taken into Russia, stolen from their parents.  It’s sick. (All these lies have been debunked by multiple analysts.)
 
Hamas and Putin represent different threats, but they share this in common: They both want to completely annihilate a neighboring democracy — completely annihilate it.
 
Hamas — its stated purpose for existing is the destruction of the State of Israel and the murder of Jewish people. 
 
Hamas does not represent the Palestinian people. (Gazans elected them in 2006.) Hamas uses Palestinian civilians as human shields, and innocent Palestinian families are suffering greatly because of them. 
 
Meanwhile, Putin denies Ukraine has or ever had real statehood.  He claims the Soviet Union created Ukraine.   And just two weeks ago, he told the world that if the United States and our allies withdraw — and if the United States withdraw, our allies will as well — military support for Ukraine, it would have, quote, “a week left to live.”  But we’re not withdrawing. 
 
I know these conflicts can seem far away.  And it’s natural to ask: Why does this matter to America?
 
So let me share with you why making sure Israel and Ukraine succeed is vital for America’s national security.  You know, history has taught us that when terrorists don’t pay a price for their terror, when dictators don’t pay a price for their aggression, they cause more chaos and death and more destruction.  (U.S. terror inflicted on Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Korea, Vietnam, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Palestine, et al. continues with the price yet to be paid.) They keep going, and the cost and the threats to America and to the world keep rising. 
 
So, if we don’t stop Putin’s appetite for power and control in Ukraine, he won’t limit himself just to Ukraine.  He’s — Putin has already threated to “remind” — quote, “remind” Poland that their western land was a gift from Russia.
 
One of his top advisors, a former president of Russia, has called Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania Russia’s “Baltic provinces.”  These are all NATO Allies.  (But remember, the war in Ukraine is "not about NATO" expansion.)
 
For 75 years, NATO has kept peace in Europe and has been the cornerstone of American security.  And if Putin attacks a NATO Ally, we will defend every inch of NATO which the treaty requires and calls for.
 
We will have something that we do not seek — make it clear: we do not seek — we do not seek to have American troops fighting in Russia or fighting against Russia. (Probably the most blatant lie in these remarks, because U.S. troops have been in Ukraine -- and in Israel, for that matter -- all along.)
 
Beyond Europe, we know that our allies and, maybe most importantly, our adversaries and competitors are watching.  They’re watching our response in Ukraine as well.
 
And if we walk away and let Putin erase Ukraine’s independence, (Ukraine has been a U.S. puppet since 2014 when Victoria Nuland's coup went down.) would-be aggressors around the world would be emboldened to try the same.  The risk of conflict and chaos could spread in other parts of the world — in the Indo-Pacific, in the Middle East — especially in the Middle East. 
 
Iran is — is supporting Russia’s U- — in Ukraine, and it’s supporting Hamas and other terrorist groups in the region.  And we’ll continue to hold them accountable, I might add.

The United States and our partners across the region are working to build a better future for the Middle East, one where the Middle East is more stable, (The U.S. military and NATO are the most destabilizing actors in the "Middle East" for decades now.) better connected to its neighbors, and — through innovative projects like the India-Middle East-Europe rail corridor that I announced this year at the summit of the world’s biggest economies.  More predictable markets, more employment, less rage, less grievances, less war when connected.  It benefits the people — it would benefit the people of the Middle East, and it would benefit us.

American leadership is what holds the world together.  (LOL) American alliances are what keep us, America, safe. (Arming Israel has turned the U.S. into a pariah.) American values are what make us a partner that other nations want to work with. (Then how come so many want to join BRICS?) To put all that at risk if we walk away from Ukraine, if we turn our backs on Israel, it’s just not worth it.

That’s why, tomorrow, I’m going to send to Congress an urgent budget request to fund America’s national security needs, to support our critical partners, including Israel and Ukraine. 

It’s a smart investment that’s going to pay dividends for American security for generations, help us keep American troops out of harm’s way, help us build a world that is safer, more peaceful, and more prosperous for our children and grandchildren.

In Israel, we must make sure that they have what they need to protect their people today and always.

The security package I’m sending to Congress and asking Congress to do is an unprecedented commitment (Did you think WW3 was gonna be cheap?) to Israel’s security that will sharpen Israel’s qualitative military edge, which we’ve committed to — the qualitative military edge. 

We’re going to make sure Iron Dome continues to guard the skies over Israel.  We’re going to make sure other hostile actors in the region know that Israel is stronger than ever and prevent this conflict from spreading.

Look, at the same time, President [Prime Minister] Netanyahu and I discussed again yesterday the critical need for Israel to operate by the laws of war.  That means protecting civilians in combat as best as they can.  The people of Gaza urgently need food, water, and medicine.

Yesterday, in discussions with the leaders of Israel and Egypt, I secured an agreement for the first shipment of humanitarian assistance from the United Nations to Palestinian civilians in Gaza.

If Hamas does not divert or steal this shipment — these shipments, we’re going to provide an opening for sustained delivery of lifesaving humanitarian assistance for the Palestinians.

And as I said in Israel: As hard as it is, we cannot give up on peace.  We cannot give up on a two-state solution. (The U.S. cannot give up because if Israel/Palestine became one state the Zionists would be thrown out of government.)

 

Israel and Palestinians equally deserve to live in safety, dignity, and peace.

You know, and here at home, we have to be honest with ourselves.  In recent years, too much hate has been given too much oxygen, fueling racism, a rise in antisemitism and Islamicphobia [Islamophobia] right here in America. 

It’s also intensified in the wake of recent events that led to the horrific threats and attacks that both shock us and break our hearts.

On October 7th, terror attacks have triggered deep scars and terrible memories in the Jewish community. (Many Jewish people, survivors like Dr. Gabor Mate, have expressed disgust with using the Holocaust as an excuse to steal land from the Palestinians.)

Today, Jewish families worried about being targeted in school, wearing symbols of their faith walking down the street, or going out about their daily lives. (Israel's role as an apartheid state claiming to represent Judaism endangers Jewish people everywhere.)

You know, I know many of you in the Muslim American community or the Arab American community, the Palestinian American community, and so many others are outraged and hurting, saying to yourselves, “Here we go again,” with Islamophobia and distrust we saw after 9/11. 

Just last week, a mother was brutally stabbed, a little boy — here in the United States — a little boy who had just turned six years old was murdered in their home outside of Chicago. 

His name was Wadea — Wadea — a proud American, a proud Palestinian American family. 

We can’t stand by and stand silent when this happens. (We must help Israel kill more Palestinian children.)  We must, without equivocation, denounce antisemitism.  We must also, without equivocation, denounce Islamophobia. (While rushing more military support to a nation led by lunatics who publicly denounce Palestinians as "animals.")

And to all of you hurting — those of you who are hurting, I want you to know: I see you.  You belong.  And I want to say this to you: You’re all America.  You’re all America. (America is a continent, not a country.)

This is in a moment where there’s — you know, in moments like these, when fear and suspicion, anger and rage run hard, that we have to work harder than ever to hold on to the values that make us who we are. 

We’re a nation of religious freedom, freedom of expression.  We all have a right to debate and disagree without fear of being targeted at schools or workplaces or in our communities. (Weaponized threats of anti-semitism are stifling debate at universities all over the U.S.)
 
And we must renounce violence and vitriol, see each other not as enemies but as — but as fellow Americans.
 
When I was in Israel yesterday, I said that when America experienced the hell of 9/11, we felt enraged as well.  While we sought and got justice, we made mistakes.  (See U.S. wars on Afghanistan and Iraq among other places.) So, I cautioned the government of Israel not to be blinded by rage.
 
And here in America, let us not forget who we are.  We reject all forms — all forms of hate, whether against Muslims, Jews, or anyone.  That’s what great nations do, and we are great nation.
 
On Ukraine, I’m asking Congress to make sure we can continue to send Ukraine the weapons they need to defend themselves and their country without interruption so Ukraine can stop Putin’s brutality in Ukraine.
 
They are succeeding. (Possibly the biggest lie here as Ukraine has lost, is losing, and will continue to lose until negotiations are allowed by the U.S.)
 
When Putin invaded Ukraine, he thought he would take Kyiv and all of Ukraine in a matter of days.  Well, over a year later, Putin has failed, and he continues to fail.  Kyiv still stands because of the bravery of the Ukrainian people.
 
Ukraine has regained more than 50 percent of the territory Russian troops once occupied, backed by a U.S.-led coalition of more than 50 countries around the world all doing its part to support Kyiv.
 
What would happen if we walked away?  We are the essential nation.
 
Meanwhile, Putin has turned to Iran and North Korea to buy attack drones and ammunition to terrorize Ukrainian cities and people.
 
From the outset, I have said I will not send American troops to fight in Ukraine.
 
All Ukraine is asking for is help — for the weapons, munitions, the capacity, the capability to push invading Russian forces off their land, and the air defense systems to shoot down Russian missiles before they destroy Ukrainian cities.
 
And let me be clear about something: We send Ukraine equipment sitting in our stockpiles.  And when we use the money allocated by Congress, we use it to replenish our own stores — our own stockpiles with new equipment — equipment that defe- — that defends America and is made in America: Patriot missiles for air defense batteries made in Arizona; artillery shells manufactured in 12 states across the country — in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Texas; and so much more. (Ka-ching! Profits are soaring and stocks are through the roof for those invested in weapon systems.)

 

Source: Unusual Whales

You know, just as in World War Two, today, patriotic American workers are building the arsenal of democracy and serving the cause of freedom. 
 
Let me close with this.  Earlier this year, I boarded Air Force One for a secret flight to Poland.  There, I boarded a train with blacked-out windows for a 10-hour ride each way to Kyiv to stand with the people of Ukraine ahead of the one-year anniversary of their brave fight against Putin.
 
I’m told I was the first American [president] to enter a warzone not controlled by the United States military since President Lincoln.
 
With me was just a small group of security personnel and a few advisors.
 
But when I exited that train and met Zelenskyy — President Zelenskyy, I didn’t feel alone.  I was bringing with me the idea of America, the promise of America to the people who are today fighting for the same things we fought for 250 years ago: freedom, independence, self-determination.
 
And as I walked through Kyiv with President Zelenskyy, with air raid sirens sounding in the distance, (There were air raid sirens, but it was staged.) I felt something I’ve always believed more strongly than ever before: America is a beacon to the world still.  Still.
 
We are, as my friend Madeleine Albright said, “the indispensable nation.” (Her much more famous quote, though, is about half a million children in Iraq dying due to sanctions on food and medicine: "We think the price was worth it.")
 
Tonight, there are innocent people all over the world who hope because of us, who believe in a better life because of us, who are desperate not be forgotten be- — by us, and who are waiting for us.
 
But time is of the essence.  (The timing of Biden's speech can be explained by the fact that funding cannot continue with the U.S. House of Representatives still without a speaker. The previous speaker fell victim to cooperating with Biden's last attempt to tack funds for Ukraine onto unrelated legislation.)
 
I know we have our divisions at home.  We have to get past them.  We can’t let petty, partisan, angry politics get in the way of our responsibilities as a great nation.
 
We cannot and will not let terrorists like Hamas and tyrants like Putin win.  I refuse to let that happen.
 
In moments like these, we have to remind — we have to remember who we are.  We are the United States of America — the United States of America.  And there is nothing — nothing beyond our capacity if we do it together.
 
My fellow Americans, thank you for your time.
 
May God bless you all.  And may God protect our troops.

I'll leave you with a voice of reason, Economics Professor Michael Hudson (his full interview on the Rumble channel New Rules can be seen here):

It's almost a religious fervor that you're finding on the part of the US National Security Council and the CIA, the deep state. They really believe that God is on their side..

The United States is deliberately risking and even triggering World War 3 because it realizes that the United States is losing its military power. [They realize that] our position is weakening, so if we're going to blow up the world, let's do it now, because we're going to lose even more heavily if we do it in the future.