Jon Stewart, Keith Starmer, Blah Blah Blah

The leader of the Labour Party in Great Britian, Kieth Starmer, just made this bold, innovative, proposal at the recent Party Conference: "build a strong economy". No longer will they be following utopian Leftist dreamers like Jeremy Corbyn, uh uh, now it is capitalism with a human face, the crazy new...wait for it...social democracy! Strong growth, lots of jobs and a caring welfare state,Or, neoliberalism Light. Tony Blair with lipstick. Geez, why didn't I think of that? History doesn't repeat itself but it is certainly enamored with certain themes. Such as banality. Cowardice. Stupidity. Maybe Obama will run in 2024? And following our GroundHog Day Theme, Jon Stewart, America's favorite uber-liberal, is getting a new show. Expect banality, cowardice and stupidity. Mixed with a plea for "sanity" and simplistic, well worn, trite analysis around political economy.And lots of "caring". Both of these are perfect examples of what Greta Thunberg is calling "blah, blah, blah." She is now seeing the terrifying reality of The Spectacle, of the Upside Down World.

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This is from a long article posted on Truthout: " Water Protectors are modeling a relationship with the Earth that could help guide us into a new era." Except, as I tried to explain in my last post, if they "model" political defeat. Sure, we will have the example of a Beautiful and True cultural readout, one that expresses the desire for simplicity and raw authenticity craved by those alienated by capitalist modernity. But the reality will be a bunch of people returning to their harsh worlds as tar sands flow through a pipe beneath them. We don't need a model of utopia or "culture of mutual-aid", we need to stop the oil. What I hear is an echo of my own hippie generations yearning for "a relationship with the earth". Look how that turned out. As with Standing Rock, lots of those who still yearn go to these camps for a spiritual boost, like finding a Zen master or climbing Half Dome. A Personal Journey of Fulfillment. we are told over and over that the “building of a resistance community on the front lines” is an “under-respected, undervalued, but critical component to a healthy movement.” As I see it, this tactic has been used repeatedly and failed repeatedly and yet remains gospel, a standard part of the repetitive playbook that goes unquestioned. Because it feels good. Because it fills a human need. But it doesn't stop development. And the experience of defeat as the valves get turned on will have a much more lasting impact than the spiritual communion. No one is going to say this publicly because the action camps are run by indigenous people and a settler colonialist is going to find it difficult to criticize strategic decisions. Because it is indigenous run, much of the messaging is focused on sovereignty and treaty rights and wild rice. All important issues, but not THE issue. A few progressive politicians have shown up "to listen" and 800 protestors have been arrested in scattered, sporadic actions. The pipeline is 90% completed.