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What Steps Can the US Take to Foster Peace Talks in Ukraine?

Sep 8, 2021

Paperback now out for my The United States of War: A Global History of America's Endless Conflicts, from Columbus to the Islamic State (LA Times Book Prize finalist)! It explains 20 yrs of #foreverwar since 9/11 + what we must do urgently to stop fighting ucpress.edu/book/978052030

Surrounding China w/ more military bases such as 4 new ones in the Philippines is likely to encourage China to respond militarily, escalating military tensions + the risk of war--i.e. a potentially species-ending nuclear war. Time to stop military escalation + use diplomacy. 3/3

As people in the US react to a Chinese balloon flying overhead, w/ some demanding a military response, consider how it would feel to live surrounded by Chinese military bases. These bases don't exist however Chinese folks live surrounded by hundreds of US bases everyday. 2/3

For context about a Chinese balloon floating over the US + the announcement of US access to 4 new bases in the Philippines, note the US already has hundreds of bases + tens of thousands of troops surrounding China. 1/3

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How about listening to voices of reason re what the US could do to stop escalating the war in Ukraine and instead promote peace talks?

commondreams.org

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists has just issued its 2023 Doomsday Clock statement, calling this "a time of unprecedented danger." It has advanced the hands of the clock to 90 seconds to...

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Jan 26

New research by Miriam Pemberton describes how military contractors began spreading their subcontracting chains more widely across the American landscape in the years following the Cold War. [2/8] watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/pap

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Jan 26

THREAD: Transferring manufacturing resources from military to civilian use can help avert climate catastrophe, and defense industry workers surveyed support that transition. Read the latest Costs of War research. [1/8] watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/pap

The House just passed a $1.7 trillion omnibus bill. Nearly two-thirds of its funding goes to military and law enforcement programs: stephensemler.substack.com/p/only-about-a

The 2023 omnibus bill has $1.1 trillion for military and law enforcement programs. This chart shows a single column that adds up to $1.7 trillion. Of the $1.1 trillion: DOE nuclear weapons, foreign military aid, DHS and DOJ prisons and law enforcement programs; and the base budget of the DOD. Data: House, Senate appropriations committees. DHS, DOJ figure includes: CBP, ICE, Secret Service, Coast Guard, TSA, BOP, ATF, DEA, FBI, Marshals Service, police grants. Full methodology/analysis: stephensemler.substack.com

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Dec 22, 2022

In addition to Qatar US bases can be found in at least 37 more non-democratic countries and colonies. In total the US government maintains ~750 bases outside the 50 states + Washington, DC, which is at least 3x as many overseas bases as every other country combined. 9/9

US bases in Qatar helped launch and wage the catastrophic US-led wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, while also participating in disastrous US and Qatari-backed wars in Libya and Yemen. These wars likely have resulted in millions killed and tens of millions injured and displaced. 8/

Current and former workers report being effectively trapped in their jobs and required to obtain release letters from their employers to move to another job or to leave the country for medical treatment. 7/

The US Government appears to be supporting similarly appalling labor conditions as foreign workers face elsewhere in Qatar. A recent

@washingtonpost

exposé showed that some workers at Al Udeid Air Force Base make as little as $1.52 to $3.70 an hour. 6/

With all the attention to labor conditions and the deaths of thousands of foreign workers during the construction of World Cup stadiums and other infrastructure, few asked who built US bases in Qatar. And who is working on these bases now? 5/

Holding the World Cup in Qatar was an outrage. Maintaining US bases in Qatar is an even greater outrage. They should be closed and US troops should come home. 4/

The presence of US bases in Qatar means the US government and US taxpayers have been supporting and helping prop up the Qatari regime, including its undemocratic rule and human rights abuses including its systematic labor exploitation and discrimination against LGBTQ people. 3/

US bases + troops in Qatar + US support for the Qatari government was supremely overlooked during the World Cup. If this was a World Cup 'soaked in blood,' as many rightly said, what does it mean that the US government has been one of Qatar's biggest backers for decades? 2/

Messi + Argentina have taken the World Cup home from Qatar but why isn't the US leaving?? That's bc the US has military bases in Qatar that have supported the human rights-abusing undemocratic regime for decades. I discussed this outrage here @ min. 8:37 🧵

Dec 20, 2022

BREAKING: Our latest report reveals labor abuses of foreign workers in Afghanistan. The U.S. government has done little to enforce a key law to protect workers, regardless of nationality, injured under U.S. contracts. [THREAD, 1/9] watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/pap

The funding imbalance between military and non-military spending in the FY23 omnibus bill — $858 billion to $772 billion — is even more severe than it was in the FY21 iteration, which Trump signed into law. We’re headed in the wrong direction

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Caitlin Emma

@caitlinzemma

Dec 20, 2022

TOPLINES: — $858B for defense — $772B for nondefense (not including automatic adjustments) — $45B for Ukraine, exceeding Biden’s $37B request — $40B in disaster aid for storms and wildfires Summary: appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/

The FY2023 omnibus bill has $0 for COVID. This is the *fourth* time Biden has failed to secure emergency pandemic relief this year. A timeline: stephensemler.substack.com/p/a-timeline-o

Biden punted on COVID relief four times in 2022. March 2 Biden requests emergency pandemic funding worth $22.5 billion. March 15 White House releases statement that COVID programs are running out of money. March 15 Biden signs FY22 omnibus bill after Rep. Pelosi strips pandemic funding. April 28 Biden requests emergency pandemic funding worth $22.5 billion. May 6 White House projects 100M COVID infections, surge in deaths in the fall and winter. May 9 Biden drops pandemic funding request because it "would slow down action on the urgently needed Ukrainian aid”. Sep 2 Biden requests emergency pandemic funding worth $22.4 billion. Sep 18 Biden says "the pandemic is over" in 60 Minutes interview. Sep 26 Sen. Schumer removes pandemic funding from the short-term spending bill. Nov 15 Biden requests emergency pandemic funding worth $10 billion. Dec 20 Democrat appropriators agree to strip pandemic funding from FY23 omnibus bill. More at stephensemler.substack.com

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The Senate just passed the $858 billion FY2023 NDAA, 83-11. Trump and Biden have teamed up to create a military buildup that puts Reagan’s to shame. Meanwhile two-thirds of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck.

The House just authorized $858 billion for the Pentagon by passing the FY2023 NDAA. That’s $80 billion higher than FY22, and $118 billion higher than when Biden entered office

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We should all be outraged. The Military Industrial Complex is again in the working to steal nearly $1 Trillion from US taxpayers thanks to negotiations conducted in secret. This is THEFT as President Eisenhower rightly called it.

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Justin Amash

@justinamash

Dec 8, 2022

A reminder that most Democrats in Congress aren’t antiwar and most Republicans in Congress aren’t fiscally conservative. And neither party cares about representative government. They voted yes on a bill they didn’t read! So much for representing you. NDAA passed overwhelmingly. twitter.com/justinamash/st…

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Dec 9, 2022

Military spending is “fundamentally a distribution of wealth,” writes

@StephenSemler

, who estimates this year’s Pentagon budget will give $452 billion to military contractors. stephensemler.substack.com/p/house-author

On average, House members who voted to increase Pentagon spending by $80 billion took *seven times* more money from the weapons industry than those who voted against the increase: stephensemler.substack.com/p/comparing-vo

House members who voted for $80 billion military spending increase took 7 times more cash from military contractors. The FY 2023 NDAA authorized #80.4 billion more than the FY2022 iteration. This chart shows two sets of data, one that shows the average value of political donations received by House members who voted Yes on the FY2023 NDAA; the other shows the average amount of members who voted No. Each set has three columns: one for House Democrats, one for House Republicans, one for the House overall. Democrats who voted Yes took $37,178, those who voted No took $4,278 on average. Republicans: $44,869 compared to $8,091. House average: $41,012 compared to $5,946. Data for arms industry campaign and PAC contributions via OpenSecrets. Full analysis at stephensemler.substack.com

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This "Thanksgiving" holiday in the US is a good opportunity to abandon colonial myth-making and recommit to supporting the struggles of indigenous peoples worldwide, including the Chagossians.

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Human Rights Watch

@hrw

Nov 13, 2022

Did you know that Britain still has a colony in Africa? It's time for the UK, US, and Mauritian authorities to right the wrongs against the Chagossian people. #Chagos

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YES!

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CRG UK

@UKCRG

Don’t ignore chagossians for a second time ,Respect our Fundamental Rights @JamesCleverly @RishiSunak @GOVUK @FCDOHumanRights

LISTEN to Chagossians! They must be involved in negotiations about the sovereignty of their islands and the islands of their ancestors! They must have the right to return home that is their right under international law and under any standard of human decency.

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CRG UK

@UKCRG

#Chagossians must be consulted and be involved in all negotiations between Uk and Mauritius concerning the chagos island @JamesCleverly @ZacGoldsmith @RishiSunak @trussliz @FCDOGovUK

UK gov't: "it is our intention to secure an agreement on the basis of international law to resolve all outstanding issues, including those relating to the former inhabitants of the Chagos Archipelago." Opening negotiations is a ways from Chagossians going home but this is huge.

THIS IS HUGE!!! Chagossians are one huge step closer to returning to their homeland! The UK has said it will start negotiations w/ Mauritius over returning sovereignty of the Chagos Islands. Mauritius has committed to allowing Chagossians to return to their homeland.

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BBC News (UK)

@BBCNews

UK to open negotiations with Mauritius over future of Chagos Islands bbc.in/3DtG7Ku

Catherine Cortez Masto

@CortezMasto

Thank you so much for your support

@EvaLongoria

! She's right - Nevadans, your vote is powerful. Please, get out and vote!

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Governor

got us our jobs back after the pandemic, invested $500 million for affordable homes, & supports limiting rent increases. Governor Sisolak has our backs. We have his. Former President

@BarackObama

has a message for you! 🗳️ Vote Steve Sisolak for Governor!

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Minister King X Pyeface - I Stand 2 Vote (Official Video) ft. Stone...

Need inspiration for November 8?! Check out this 🔥🔥🔥 video "I stand 2 vote" from Oakland's own Minister King!

youtube.com

Nov 2, 2022

It's not too late to VOLUNTEER in a SWING STATE this weekend through election day! Here's one way in AZ, GA, NV, PA, NC: seedthevote.org I worked w/ someone in NV yesterday who used her airline points to come up for a day! She was amazing.

Nov 2, 2022

focus4democracy.org statesproject.org/get-involved/g 3. Donate to Grassroots Groups Organizing POC in Swing States walkthewalkusa.org

Worried about some of the polls showing Democrats behind in some midterm races??? Don't despair or assume anything! Do something! 1. Make Calls, Go In Person, Donate: seedthevote.org 2. Donate to Dems in Swing States: candidates.moveon.org justicedemocrats.com/candidates/#Ch

In 2018, we shocked the country when I became Nevada’s first elected Democratic Governor in two decades. Since then, we expanded health care, gave teachers their first raise in over a decade, protected abortion & bolstered Nevada's economy. With your help, we'll do it again.

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The wave of leftist victories in Latin America is a hugely encouraging development. Helping these governments deliver on their promises is one of the most important things the US could do to confront the global authoritarian tide.

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