The U.S. Empire and Ukraine w/ Prof. Clinton Fernandes

March 15, 2022Posted inForeign Policy, politics

Our latest episode on the Ukraine is a wide-ranging conversation with our good friend Prof. Clinton Fernandes on the U.S. empire and Russia’s invasion of the Ukraine. We discuss Russia and Putin’s adventures in Georgia and Ukraine to the lack of strategic empathy from the West (particularly the U.S.). We break down the motives of the U.S. drive to expand NATO and encircle Russia, and the effect it has on global politics.

Listen to part one here: https://apple.co/3I9zY6v

Listen to Part Two Here: https://apple.co/3JlgYn7

We discuss the tensions in the South China Sea and the impact of the Ukraine conflict on Australia’s coming election. Finally, we get an update on Clinton’s law suit trying to get the Australian government to release documents showing intelligence agencies supporting Pinochet’s coup in Chile in 1973.

Media Release- A Long March to War: the U.S., Russia and Ukraine

March 14, 2022Posted inForeign Policy
University of Houston history professor available for media on the Russia-Ukraine war, the U.S. and NATO.
As Professor Buzzanco sees it, “the current conflict, clearly an act of aggression by Russia in violation of international law, also has to be observed in the context of a long confrontation with Russia since the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991.  Despite George H.W. Bush and James Baker promised the USSR that NATO would not expand eastward, the U.S. did that in the later 1990s, moving into ex-Soviet areas, which Russian leaders warned would be a “hostile act.”  The U.S. also invested heavily in the Russian economy and political system as ex-Soviet industries were nationalized.  Because of this, American power grew exponentially in areas adjacent to Russia, thus merging Vladimir Putin’s plan to expand Russian power aggressively with defense concerns of encirclement as NATO grew closer to Russia’s borders.  Now, as the Russian attacks are destroying Ukraine and killing innocent people, the need for negotiations based not just on Russia’s violation of international law but also the legacy of 30 years of political conflict with the U.S. is necessary to stop the bloodshed.”

Flying into the Danger Zone: Ukraine and the History of No-Fly Zones

March 6, 2022Posted inForeign Policy, Peoples' History

A new Reuters poll shows that 74% of Americans, with strong majorities from both parties, support a NATO no-fly zone over Ukraine as Russia continues to shell civilian areas and populations. The Biden Administration, Chair of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Mark Milley, the head of NATO Jens Stoltenberg and politicians from across the political spectrum are opposed to any sort of intervention over the skies of Ukraine. The argument is that it’d lead to a wider war, and Russian leader Vladimir Putin has warned against it.

Listen in: https://apple.co/3sMCk6S

No-fly zones are only a recent historical development. Green and Red gets into that recent history starting with the aftermath of the first Gulf War when George H.W. Bush called on the Kurds in northern Iraq and the Shiites in southern Iraq to rise up and depose Saddam Hussein. Their subsequent slaughter by Saddam’s helicopter gunships led to the no-fly zones. We also discuss no-fly zones in the Balkan wars and the 2016 debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump over a no-fly zone in Syria.

War Pigs: Ukraine and the History of the Military-Industrial Complex

March 4, 2022Posted inForeign Policy, Peoples' History

Recently, Raytheon CEO Greg Hayes reported to his shareholders, “[W]e are seeing, I would say, opportunities for international sales. We just have to look to last week where we saw the drone attack in the UAE, which have attacked some of their other facilities. And of course, the tensions in Eastern Europe, the tensions in the South China Sea, all of those things are putting pressure on some of the defense spending over there. So I fully expect we’re going to see some benefit from it.”  While lauded in the press for his comments, Hayes’ thinking embodies structures established by government and private industry for over a hundred years.

Listen in: https://apple.co/34cn5KZ

Beyond Good vs Bad: More Background on Ukraine and Russia

February 28, 2022Posted inForeign Policy, Materialism and Economics, politics

We’ve got another briefing on the larger contexts of the current  conflict between Ukraine and Russia.  Sure, Putin is a horrible and  brutal force in the world and the attack on Ukraine is indefensible, but  we ignore the larger contexts at our own peril.

Listen in: https://apple.co/3hoJ5p5

We talk about the impact of the breakup of the USSR, the privatization of the Russian economy, the sense of western/NATO encirclement felt by  Russia, and U.S-Russia-Ukraine economic and trade relations.

Deep Background on Ukraine and Russia

February 26, 2022Posted inForeign Policy, politics

This week, Russia invaded the Ukraine sparking the largest land assault on the European continent since World War Two. The markets went into turmoil. The price of oil and gas went up. Political and media establishments scrambled to act on what’s next.  Biden moved 7000 US troops to the Polish-Ukrainian border and NATO is expected to send more troops. In cities across Russia, antiwar protestors took to the streets to protest Vladimir Putin’s war with over 2000 being arrested. Finally, the Biden administration and allies have begun a sanctions war against Russia’s people, it’s elite institutions and Putin himself.

Listen in: https://apple.co/3sn9w4T

In our latest episode, we go deep into the history of the Ukraine-Russian conflict and the bipartisan involvement by the U.S. ruling class.  We discuss the break up of the Soviet Union, the expansion of the North American Treaty Organization (NATO), the role of the 1999 war in Kosovo in all of this and the Russian invasion of the former Soviet republic of Georgia in 2008. Most importantly, we talk about how U.S. foreign policy has sought to contain Russia and wield economic and political influence over Europe and the former Soviet republics.

March 4th in Oakland: “From Activist to Terrorist” Ft. Jake Conroy

February 23, 2022Posted inanti-capitalism, Climate, Direct Action
Our first in person event! We’re excited to co-host our comrade and frequent guest Jake Conroy, aka the “Cranky Vegan,” in Oakland, CA on March 4th.
Climate justice organizers are the Bay Area is going to be hosting a series of talks and trainings this year focused on effective campaigns and bold action for climate justice.
The first talk will feature long time animal rights organizer and former political prisoner Jake Conroy. RSVP and join us.
WHERE: The Studio. 1601 18th St. Oakland CA.
WHEN: Friday, March 4th. Doors open at 630pm, talk starts at 7pm sharp.
DONATIONS: Much appreciated. $5-$15 sliding scale. No one turned away for lack of funds.

The Freedom Convoy, the Left and the Canadian State w/ Prof. Roberta Lexier and organizer James Hutt

February 23, 2022Posted inpolitics

For a month, a group of truckers, anti-vaxxers, anti-maskers and  various elements of Canada’s far right occupied the streets around Canada’s capital in Ottawa. They’ve also occupied border crossings between Canada and the U.S. The so-called “Freedom Convoy” has demanded  everything from an end to vaccine mandates and mask mandates to the jailing of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. They’ve targeted  Canada’s liberal ruling class, but have disrupted and harassed the lives of Ottawa residents. Police and the Conservative Party either have  stood by or been in active support

Listen in: https://apple.co/3IcjStP

This past week, Trudeau declared a state of emergency not seen since  unrest in Quebec in the 1970s. The police first cleared the trucker  blockade on the Ambassador Bridge. And then police moved in to clear the truckers occupation of Wellington Street resulting in 100 arrests.

The Myth of California’s Climate Exceptionalism ft. Gary Graham Hughes w/ Biofuelwatch

February 17, 2022Posted inClimate
pic via Dan Bacher

California prides itself on being more progressive than most on solving the issue of the climate crisis. Whether it’s phasing out the internal combustion engine or promises to take on the state’s many oil extraction sites. There is a notion of “climate exceptionalism” in California’s liberal ruling elite.

Listen in: https://apple.co/3uZ6ci4

But the California state government is captured by oil interests like many others. The pro-industry legislation and political action just comes in different forms.

Policing the Line 3 Pipeline feat. Alleen Brown w/ the Intercept

February 14, 2022Posted inClimate, Direct Action

Last year, Indigenous women led movements waged a fierce campaign to stop  Enbridge’s Line 3 pipeline. Police escalated in a multitude of ways (felony charges, high bails, rubber bullets, tear gas, etc) against water protecting pipeline opponents.

Listen in: https://apple.co/3sEjWfh

Thanks to the bold reporting of outlets such as The Intercept and Unicorn Riot, we’re still finding out the strategies that the Canadian oil giant and the Minnesota police state colluded on to neutralize water  protectors.