Ending one war is not enough if the political and economic incentives that make future wars likely remain untouched.

The failed Reflecting Pool makeover is a metaphor for a decaying political system. A system where personal enrichment and image replace democratic accountability and public purpose.

The fact that questioning AIPAC’s influence is often treated as taboo shows the problem. Every lobby...weapons, oil, pharmaceutical, or foreign policy...deserves public scrutiny when it shapes decisions affecting millions.

A country that can spend nearly a trillion dollars on war should be able to guarantee healthcare, education, housing, and decent jobs without asking young people to risk their lives in return. www.wsws.org/en/articles/...

Today is the 85th anniversary of Operation Barbarosa. Barbarossa wasn’t just an invasion. It was a planned war of extermination. 27 million Soviet dead should never be reduced to a footnote in WW2 history. The defeat of Nazism was paid for above all by the Soviet people. www.wsws.org/en/articles/...

Forgiveness is still essential. It doesn’t mean forgetting what happened or pretending pain wasn’t real. It means choosing not to let anger control the rest of your life.

Socialism begins with a simple idea: society should be organized around human need, not private profit. #SocialismSunday

The problem isn’t that capitalism hasn’t returned to normal. The problem is that normal capitalism means inequality, crisis, war, and environmental destruction.

The U.S. has the most powerful military on Earth, but wars aren’t won by weapons alone. Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, and now Iran show that you can win battles and still fail politically.

The Silence of the Lambs is the more popular film, but Michael Mann's 1986 thriller Manhunter was the first to introduce Hannibal. Stylish and definitely 80s, it turns a serial killer story into a tragic meditation on what it costs to understand evil. www.youtube.com/watch?v=39Di...

A ceasefire can stop the shooting, but it doesn’t erase why the war happened. The tragedy is that the debate becomes “who won?” instead of asking why thousands had to die for geopolitical power struggles in the first place.

I've been watching Widow's Bay, and it's a fantastic show.

The Obama years are often remembered as a return to civility and hope, but behind the inspiring speeches were policies that protected Wall Street, expanded U.S. military operations, and left the same economic system intact that helped create the anger & instability that followed.

Newsome won't even support a meager 2% wealth tax on billionaires.

Juneteenth marks one of the most revolutionary moments in American history: the destruction of slavery. Freedom was not handed down from above; it was won through struggle. Honoring that history means continuing the fight against every form of oppression and inequality today.

Since 1991, failure after failure for the US, despite having overwhelmingly superior forces and power. Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, and now Iran. Each defeat prepared the ground for the next one.

The lesson from the Iran war isn’t that it wasn’t fought “effectively” enough. It’s that it should never have happened.

One of the strongest scenes from Thirteen Days (2000), an underrated historical thriller. A reminder that nuclear war isn’t prevented by “strength” or brinkmanship, but by restraint, diplomacy, and people willing to step back from the edge before it’s too late. youtu.be/RZvYIPh2Q4w?...

Bodily autonomy shouldn’t depend on whether politicians approve of who you are. The same logic used to restrict one group’s healthcare can be used against another. Rights aren’t rights if they come with a permission slip. We protect freedom by protecting it for everyone.

Trump didn’t fall out of the sky. A political system that allows billionaires to accumulate unimaginable wealth while millions struggle created the conditions for someone like him to rise.

Governments are normalizing the idea of a future war between nuclear powers, while ordinary people would pay the cost through austerity, lost rights, and potentially their lives.

The danger isn’t just Trump targeting Gavin Newsom. It’s the normalization of using the state as a weapon against opposition. And the bigger issue is a system where both parties fight each other while protecting the power of the wealthy. Working people will feel the consequences most.

We’re told there’s “no money” for healthcare, housing, schools, or feeding people. Yet one person can gain hundreds of billions through financial markets in days. The issue isn’t one billionaire. It’s a system that allows unimaginable private wealth and widespread insecurity. That’s oligarchy.

Empathy isn’t weakness. It’s the ability to see humanity in people outside your own experiences. A society that loses compassion loses something far more valuable than money or power.

From the beginning of America, the country was a mixture of peoples and cultures, even while those in power often tried to define “American” narrowly.

What do I know I am just a Stoner Philly Fan

“The war is not meant to be won, it is meant to be continuous. Hierarchical society is only possible on the basis of poverty and ignorance.” ~George Orwell

The lesson of Iran isn’t that the wrong people managed the war. It’s that the entire policy of endless war is a dead end.

The war with Iran is a total failure for Trump. Failed every strategic goal: removing Iran’s government, destroying its nuclear capabilities, forcing surrender through bombing and blockade, or controlling the Strait of Hormuz.

Being kind doesn’t mean being naive. It means refusing to let a harsh world take away your humanity.

A record of Obama's Conservative achievements www.obamatheconservative.com

The ceasefire PAUSES the U.S.-Iran war but doesn't offer a lasting peace. The Trump administration failed to achieve its stated strategic goals.

Turning the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence into a billionaire-backed cage fight on the White House lawn says a lot about where America is.

Democracy shouldn’t just be “protected,” it should be expanded. We’re constantly told to defend the sanctity of democracy, but millions feel their choices are narrowed by money, corporate power, lobbying, and institutions insulated from public control.

“There is no perfect system” is true. The question has never been perfection. I have never said socialism is perfect. It’s the system that best serves human needs, expands democracy, and reduces unnecessary suffering. Imperfection shouldn’t be used as an excuse to accept injustice.

This flies in the face of general consensus on here, but I don’t think it’s as simple as “people are stupid.” A lot of people are angry, struggling, and get misled. That doesn’t excuse everything, but the greater blame lies with the powerful people who know what’s happening and let it happen anyway.

#SocialistSunday Even more true today

The richest man on Earth becoming a trillionaire while food programs are gutted for people facing famine is a brutal picture of our priorities.

Higher taxes and stronger social programs are worth fighting for. But we’ve had periods with higher taxes and stronger unions before, & corporate power spent decades dismantling those gains. You have to ask whether regulating that power is enough, or whether it needs to be democratically controlled.

Truly confronting Trump would also mean confronting the corporate power, endless wars, and inequality that much of the political establishment has accepted for decades.

Democrats are unwilling to fight in a way that challenges the system they are part of.

The question isn’t just how much one billionaire pays in taxes. It’s why so much power over technology, resources, and the future of humanity rests in the hands of a tiny oligarchy instead of being democratically controlled by the people who actually make society run.

Elon Musk becoming the world’s first trillionaire isn’t a story of one man’s “genius.” It’s a snapshot of a society where unimaginable wealth piles up at the top while millions struggle with rent, healthcare, and basic needs.

The most effective authoritarian systems convince people that everything is normal. Bertram Gross called it Friendly Fascism. The danger isn’t only one politician. It's a system where trillionaires exist.

History shows these wars are never really “quick” or “easy.” They spiral, and workers in every country are the ones who suffer the consequences.

The threat of a ground invasion of Iran should alarm everyone. After months of bombing and escalation, the answer from Washington is more war, more destruction, and ordinary people paying the price through higher costs, austerity, and lost lives.

Russia’s government is a reactionary oligarchy that represses workers and its invasion has brought enormous suffering on ordinary Ukrainians.

Socialism, at its core, is the argument that democracy shouldn’t stop at the ballot box. If people can vote for leaders but have no say over the workplaces and economic forces that shape their daily lives, democracy is incomplete. Real democracy means political and economic power with the people.

Absolutely epic song. open.spotify.com/track/1WVMgd...

They told us for decades these wars were about “freedom” and “security.” Now they barely hide it. Threatening to invade Iran’s Kharg Island to seize oil isn’t defense, it’s old-fashioned imperialism with modern weapons. Working people pay the price while corporations chase the profits.