Global

Some might argue that Antony Blinken is the worst Secretary of State that the United States has ever had to suffer under even though the competition for that accolade is fierce and includes his recent predecessor Hillary Clinton. Clinton, who more than anyone launched the war against Africa’s most developed nation, is remembered fondly for her giggled, grinning response when she was informed how deposed Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi had died after having a bayonet inserted in his anus when he was captured by rebels while on the run after being removed from power by the US and its NATO allies. She said “We came, we saw and he died!” All right, so it wasn’t exactly Julius Caesar’s terse description of the outcome of his Second Civil War battle against Pharnaces II of Pontus at Zela (modern-day Zile, Turkey) in 47 BC.

Two historical events regarding the Israeli occupation of Palestine have taken place on July 19 and September 18.

 The first was a most comprehensive ‘advisory opinion’ by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which reiterated that the Israeli occupation of Palestine is illegal and must come to an immediate end.

 The second, by the United Nations General Assembly, two months later, set, for the first time in history, an exact time frame of when the Israeli occupation of Palestine must end. 

The tragic arrogance & greed behind re-opening this 50-year-old nuke is beyond staggering.

See KILLING OUR OWN: THE DISASTER OF AMERICA'S EXPERIENCE WITH ATOMIC RADIATION to grasp nuke power's long-term threat to human existence.

I was at TMI in January, 1980, interviewing the victims. It was horrifying
 ( https://www.nytimes.com/1980/03/27/archives/ongoing-fallout-fear.html ) and will be again if this madness persists.

I first met James Earl Jones backstage at the Schoenfeld Theatre on Broadway (we were both there because we had been asked to speak at Gore Vidal’s memorial some 12 years ago). I was over the moon that within minutes I was going to get to meet him. I walked up and introduced myself. 

We had a nice talk, remembering our funny and poignant moments with Gore Vidal. Jones, who was born in Mississippi, grew up south of Traverse City, Michigan in Manistee County. Moving to northern Michigan, he said, was a culture shock, and the trauma he experienced from the treatment he received as one of the few Black kids in the area, and the ridicule he endured for having a serious stutter, caused him to go silent at the age of 5, to become “mute,” and he did not use his voice until he was in high school. 

I told him that I now live in Traverse City — “near where you grew up!”

He paused and looked intently at me. 

“Traverse City is racist,” he said to me, quietly. He then told me what happened to him there. I’ll let him explain it in his own words in these paragraphs from his autobiography:

Our scheduled talks are now taking shape. for Ireland, the UK, and the US.
You can check this document
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1WsvxIHdZDk7sT4RyIyt5BUhBWQcxtld1lyKkSImoHGA/edit

Mr. Mahmoud Abbas presented an eloquent speech at the UNGA  and got
applauded. Thanks to whoever is his speech writer. By contrast, war
criminal and genocide lord Netanyahu was almost a persona non grata at the
UN. Most delegates of countries chose not to attend or walked out as he
walked in (he had brought a few racist Zionists to attend as audience and
to cheer him). But these are side shows to an ongoing GENOCIDE. We live ina
world where only strength seems understood and the UN has become a hollow
chamber where politicians meet to state their positions and the US and