Master of Space: Corporate plans for the militarization & privatization of space
DESCRIPTION: Bruce Gagnon will reveal the deadly connections between the corporate drive to ‘control and dominate’ space as spelled out in the US Space Command’s 1997 planning document called Vision for 2020.
Sun, Jan. 24, 2021: 10:30 am to 12:30 pm
The US Capitol Building Riot and Its Blowback:
The Only Thing Scarier than QAnon Is the Reaction to It
The right-wing riot at the US Capitol on January 6 was a spectacle, complete with Confederate flags and a QAnon shaman in red-white-and-blue face paint. Some half of the active electorate sympathized with the belief that the 2020 presidential election was a steal. The other half of the active electorate was abhorrent, speaking with semi-religious reverence about the desecration of sacred institutions. The true blue had suspected that the Russians stole the 2016 presidential election and, for the last four years, supported politicians ever vigilant against détente breaking out with the second most powerful nuclear state.
The US state has not been meeting the needs of its people, its naked dysfunctionality is bare for all to see, and the ruling circles are experiencing a crisis of legitimacy. The response of the rulers to mass discontent is not to address the root causes but to step up suppression. The aftermath of the events of January 6 has precipitated blowbacks by the ruling elites, such as proposed anti-domestic terrorism measures, in anticipation of popular resistance to the intensifying contradictions of the US imperial project.
Our speaker, Roger D. Harris, will begin the discussion with an abbreviated presentation followed by a Q&A period and robust group discussion on the many issues raised by the Capitol building riot. Was it a riot or a coup? Was it a trap for Trump and did the police collude with the rioters? What is the danger of fascism? What does the rising right-wing insurgency signify and what should be the response to it? Whither Trump and what about the Squad? And most of all, what do the developments of January 6 and its blowback mean for left organizing and progressive social change?
Roger is a member of the ICSS program committee and the human rights organization, the Task Force on the Americas. Roger recently wrote on the US Capitol riot of January 6: https://www.counterpunch.org/2021/01/13/the-only-thing-scarier-than-qanon-is-the-reaction-to-it/
Also recommended is the US Peace Council’s statement on the event and its aftermath, People’s Movement is Faced with a Serious Threat (Roger was one of the authors):
http://wpc-in.org/statements/people%E2%80%99s-movement-faced-serious-threat
Additional recommended reading are the blogs by the inimitable Caitlin Johnstone, who tells us “Modern liberalism is just QAnon for people with diplomas on their walls.” See on today’s topic:
https://caityjohnstone.medium.com/stop-trivializing-the-term-coup-notes-from-the-edge-of-the-narrative-matrix-fdc49a95fdd2
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Sun, Jan 17, 2021: 10:30 am to 12:30 pm The Farmer’s Movement in India Present protests of farmers...
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Sun, Jan 10, 2021: 10:30 am to 12:30 pm
Michael Roberts, The Story of the Year of the COVID: But What Now for 2021?
2020 will go down in history – a worldwide pandemic from a previously unknown virus deadly to humans, killing millions or leaving them with permanent health problems; forcing lockdowns across the world that destroyed the world economy in the worst slump in the history of capitalism; and driving millions globally into poverty and loss of livelihood. Where did all this come from? Can capitalism come out of this unscarred? With vaccines on the way is the crisis over? What are the prospects for lives and livelihoods in 2021?
For a preview, see Michael Roberts blog: Blogging from a Marxist economist. https://thenextrecession.wordpress.com
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Sun, Sep 27, 2020: 10:30 am to 12:30 pm
Labor and Immigration
David Bacon will talk about the struggles of farmworkers on the West Coast to organize, and the way it’s affected by their work lives and status as immigrants. He’ll include photographs and a description of his documentary work process.
Our speaker, David Bacon is a photojournalist, author, political activist, and union organizer who has focused on labor issues, particularly those related to immigrant labor. He has written several books and numerous articles on the subject. Bacon’s parents were strong supporter of unionism and his early interest in labor issues began with union organizing activities. He was involved in organizing efforts for the United Farm Workers, the United Electrical Workers, the International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union, the Molders’ Union and others.
ICSS Member Sharon Rose, will facilitate the meeting