Photograph by Nathaniel St. Clair
I thought to see if I could skip the contradictions and commandeer anomalies that gather two or three elements in a story form to match two or three elements in another story form. Walter Benjamin’s spirit is in charge.
First Anomaly:
The war in Ukraine, the US refusal to negotiate with Russia and Biden’s instance on sending billions in arms to Ukraine to kill Russians and Russians sending the same to kill Ukrainians. The proxy war focused on Russia (Biden: “Weaken them!”) Makes for a jolly persistent war effort one of three: Russia, then China and now Gaza and the Israelis.
Could it be that all this gun-running and warfare of the empire would influence the internal use of weapons by various soldier’s, ex-soldiers demented and not so demented, attacks on people inside the empire? Could it be that banning military weapons inside the US while making selling and using them around the world in many sanctioned countries big and small is impossible?
A foreign policy anomaly: Warfare all around but not inside the home country.
Second Anomaly:
Before the recent Israeli invasion large demonstrations erupted inside Israel. Thousands of flag-waving Israelis objected to Netanyahu and his right-wing friends attempting to diminish the authority of their judicial judges the top of the government (no constitution). The Israeli progressive liberal masse-objected and so demonstrations all around the clock. But the demonstrators carrying five-pointed star flags asked the Palestinians not to join in lest it confuse the issue of the undemocratic Netanyahu effort to stay in power. However, as soon as Hamas jumped the border and attacked Israel, the Netanyahu friends and generals stated they would go to war to wipe out, catch or mow down any and everything they could in Gaza. All the demonstrators for resistance to a reactionary government proposed by Netanyahu and his rightwingers, everyone rolled up their flags, and joined the IDF war against Hamas and the Palestinians. What happened to the intense ‘democratic’ demand sthey were engaged in? Does military training require tribalism and protection of the Jewish state, yet at the bugle call — everyone in uniform? “Lidice”: Save the Israeli state Kill the Palestinians.
One more anomaly, the third is our reception of these bizarre connections. Individual complaints get coverage but doesn’t hinder the Biden Demo group and the now Repo foreign military policy. US business expands, GDP up, while Ukrainians Russians, Palestinians and even some Israelis die off. Wars must be good for shopping!
