by Ramin Mazaheri for The Saker Blog cross posted by permission with PressTV
(Ramin Mazaheri is the chief correspondent in Paris for PressTV and has lived in France since 2009. He has been a daily newspaper reporter in the US, and has reported from Iran, Cuba, Egypt, Tunisia, South Korea and elsewhere. He is the author of “I’ll Ruin Everything You Are: Ending Western Propaganda on Red China”.)
Last month I was in Tehran for the end of Ramazan, and the night before Eid e-Fitr my family and I went to a public street food festival downtown.
It might surprise many non-Iranians, but the array of live music included electric guitars and rock and roll. The rockers did not draw a bigger crowd than an excellent, traditionally-dressed Sufi singer playing the daf (a Middle Eastern hand drum).
It will likely not surprise non-Iranians, however, that there was not any performer who resembled Nicki Minaj.
Saudi Arabia provoked indignation across the Muslim world by inviting Minaj, an American rapper known for her nearly-naked live performances and profanity, to perform in public at a cultural festival in Jeddah.
Saudi women fairly complained: How can the government (and probably also their grandmothers) compel them to wear modest clothing in public, but then give a stage to Minaj?
Saudi women who support their dress code – and credible polls show that Saudi women overwhelmingly support both the code as well as the most modest forms of female Muslim dress – fairly screamed that Mohammad Bin Salman is helping Minaj break a rule which they truly treasure.
Minaj’s concert would have come just ahead of the annual Hajj pilgrimage, adding another layer of democratic disapproval at home and shock across the Muslim world. The Minaj invitation provided yet another reason why Muslims are openly boycotting Hajj like never before: The Saudi monarchy clearly does not respect the values of Islam, and they are committing horrific crimes against Muslims.
Minaj has just pulled out of the concert, saying that she did not want to perform in a country where “women have no rights”, adding that her decision was not intended to “disrespect” the Saudi government. Minaj shows her lack of political modernity by declaring her respect for the reactionary and outdated form of government of monarchism, but MBS is sure to be very sad-faced about her decision – this puts him at odds with the average Saudi person’s morality, yet again.
Our headline does not equate the death of (psuedo-dissident) Jamal Khashoggi with the now-cancelled performance of a stripteasing rapper – it points out how both are cases of the Saudi monarchy evincing no respect for humanity nor for the democratic will of Saudi Arabians.
Minaj and her values are embraced and encouraged in the US, and that is their decision – it is not for Saudi Arabia to impose their choices on the US, any more than the average Saudi wants the US to decide how they should live. However, it seems rather obvious that the average Saudi woman and man absolutely disagrees with Minaj’s values, and it is the obligation of rulers (we cannot use the phrase “civil servants” in the Saudi context) to respect their own people (subjects, in the Saudi context).
Yet we should never be surprised that MBS – or any Arab monarch – so blatantly defies public opinion, because these Western-propped governments lack anything resembling modern democratic structures. Who knows what whim possesses them to do anything? What is certain is that they act with zero accountability, zero democracy, zero notions of post-aristocratic ideals, and in a manner which is totally unbecoming of the custodians of Islam’s most important sites.
The goal of the Minaj invitation seemed obvious, and we see Israel do the same thing: it was an attempt to whitewash the regime’s crimes within the Western public: By slavishly showing the West that they embrace Western pop culture, they are trying to “normalise” reactionary, murderous and apartheid-like conditions.
This is why the Saudis promised fast-tracked electronic visas for international visitors: they want the West’s 1% taste-makers to visit, and then return home saying, “Saudi Arabia is just like us – our Western government is right to support them.”
Their governments are not right.
The show would have been broadcast by MTV, which would have furthered the reach of this attempt to normalise an abnormal government. MTV would have surely billed Minaj’s performance as a “step forward for female empowerment in Saudi Arabia”, which is preposterous.
If Minaj truly wanted to empower the average Saudi Arabian woman she could have considered performing in local clothing – that would say, “Saudi women have a culture worthy of admiration, emulation and respect.” Minaj performing in an abaya could show young, impressionable MTV viewers that Islamophobia is wrong, and that the anti-hijab laws across Europe are racist, anti-democratic and produce violent attacks on Muslim women. But fighting Muslims – not fighting Islamophobia – is the goal of the West’s leadership, from their political leaders to their cultural elite.
The Saudi monarchy is also not right in supporting Minaj’s brand of rap. I reviewed some of her lyrics, as I am unfamiliar with her music: her lyrics openly glorify her pride in exchanging her beauty for money and luxury; they glorify criminality and drug-dealing; they are ragingly capitalist and obsessed with asserting her self-importance and your inferiority.
When I read Minaj’s lyrics I don’t see an artist, but I do occasionally see an attempt at art: Minaj deserves credit for also talking about how her African-American community has been absolutely devastated by the incredibly racist policies of the United States at all levels of their government.
It is no wonder that the vast majority of Minaj’s lyrics are so debased – she is from a community which has been degraded for 400+ years simply because of their color. The recognition of this degradation is why during the occupation of the US embassy in 1979 the modern Iranian leadership freed not just the embassy’s women but also the African-Americans.
But, excepting their slave era, it is now worse than ever for African-Americans: Since 1980 their imprisonment rates have skyrocketed by well over 300%, a community-crushing experience which may only be paralleled by Palestinians. This has devastated African-American families, and thus gutted their culture and music of peace, hope, harmony and love.
Compounding this sadness is the fear and violence they live with – guns and gang warfare are permitted to flourish in the African-American part of town, whatever town that is, and this is expressly by American cultural design. The US government, at all levels, has no interest in providing African-American citizens and taxpayers with safety or law and order. Even Europe’s Roma don’t live with such violence, at least.
Adding to all that: The economic and political power redistribution efforts finally begun in the 1960s were killed by the Democrat Bill Clinton, and thus endemic poverty in the African-American community adds yet another level of hardship and tremendous suffering to their daily lives.
Therefore, considering how often she has seen her fellow African-Americans die young, and spend their lives in prison, and spend their lives in poverty, then I can understand why Minaj’s lyrics are so unconcerned with consequences and so concerned with immediate, greedy acquisition. After all, acceptance of these degraded concepts have been been violently forced upon the African-American community, just like drugs, guns, poverty and familial dissolution.
Minaj is thus just another raging American capitalist – with all the depravity that implies – because African-Americans are given no other way out. She sells her body just as violently as a Black American football player from the ghetto does in the hope of acquiring a university education.
Given this reality, when Washington’s officials and NGOs try to lecture Iran about human rights, I wonder if they have ever even set foot inside the entire African-American-majority cities of Gary, Indiana, or Flint, Michigan, or most of the west side of Chicago, or any of the thousands of “American Apartheid” towns and neighbourhoods. The systematic oppression of African-Americans may be ignored by them, but it is not going unnoticed by the rest of the world. When Iranian officials say that the values of Washington make diplomacy impossible – and this was heard long before the JCPOA – this is certainly one of the situations they are referring to.
All these things cannot be admitted in the United States. The oppression, delusion and total hypocrisy in the US regarding this abomination is so extreme that I find it hard to conceive that African-Americans could acquire justice before Palestinians do.
Minaj has certainly not been elevated by their mainstream media for her prideful lyrical defences of her besieged community, although I can imagine that does explain part of her popularity among the African-American community. No, Minaj is elevated as a “liberator” and “model example” by the Western 1% expressly because of her vulgarity, both romantic and ideological.
Minaj actually serves an important function: she injects this culture of desperation, violence and self-centeredness – which is required to survive in a US ghetto – into the culture of the middle and upper classes, which have no need to resort to such desperate tactics, and this helps perpetuate US neo-imperialist culture at home and abroad. US capitalism-imperialism first requires, of course, domestic indoctrination of their own people.
But the problems of the African-American community are not the responsibilities of MBS and the Saudi monarchy – reflecting the moral standards and public opinion of the Saudi people is.
Minaj victimises everyone with her lyrics, probably because she doesn’t realise that she has been victimised herself by US culture. While it technically could depend on the song she chooses to rap and the manner in which she would have appeared on stage to rap it, barring some sort of immediate and drastic conversion she would have certainly victimised impressionable Saudi Arabians as well.
I personally respect Nicki Minaj a great deal – she is a human being and a woman, and she deserves much better than being paid to gratify a leering, murderous sheik.
I also personally respect the people of Saudi Arabia and their wishes for democratic empowerment – I hope they finally realise that their reactionary monarchy do not, and never will.
Poor African-Americans, nothing is their own fault!
If you must know, the wasp slavers bred large negroes by unnatural selection and then have had to include the right to bear arms in the Constitution (latterly bolstered by a “stand your ground” addendum) to feel safe against the physically huge intimidating menace.
The right to bear arms was inherited from the British. According to Sir William Blackstone (1765) ‘…a public allowance, under due restrictions, of the natural right of resistance and self-preservation, when the sanctions of society and laws are found insufficient to restrain the violence of oppression.’
I doubt that Blackstone was thinking of Uzis, assault rifles and sniper rifles, somehow. A bad idea is bad, no matter how great its antiquity.
I’m happy for you to oppose state oppression and violence with your blunderbuss, but personally my preference would be for self-defense equipment that actually works.
But they’ll quickly outgun you, Hajduk, and you’ll be mince-meat. If you’re known to be heavily armed, they’ll probably use a Hellfire missile fired by a drone on you.
Something like an underarm holster with a big revolver that I could buy from Ari ben Menashe. I haven’t forgotten that response Mulga.
Dear Mulga,
I think Blackstone would have been horrified with what was actually found at Seascape Cottage in regards to firearms found in situ that were supposedly used by Martin Bryant in the siege there to keep the Tasmania SOG’s at bay. Those weapons included an air rifle and two ,22 barrels as per Sgt Gerard Dutton’s police statement which our media suggested was up to 40 firearms including a relic .303 where the ammunition was actually found outside the cottage.
What was even more fantastic were the three AR-15s involved in this massacre , (the one used in the massacre at the Broad Arrow Café, the one found by Dutton in the ashes of Seascape Cottage and the one actually owned by Martin Bryant had all previously been owned by the Victoria Police SOG’s and then sold unlawfully and to cover this unlawful act had the firearms listed as being destroyed at the Sims Metal Furnace at Braybrook.
And these points were never mentioned by you throughout your campaign to demonstrate that Martin Bryant was innocent!
That is a far different picture than what you paint with Israeli Uzi pistols, ‘Assault rifles’ and as for sniper rifles, the Carcano supposedly used by LHO but never found at the TSDB, it was a Mauser, remember!
And I’m quite certain that William Blackstone would have been thinking of similar cases of government overkill, considering James Gunpowder plot of 1608 which compares with not just Seascape Cottage and Dunblane, but also of Ruby Ridge, Oklahoma, Waco and 911 in the murder of men, women and children, by governments to force an unconstitutional agenda upon its citizens.
William Blackstone was well aware that governments, like leopards never change their spots.
I have never campaigned to prove Bryant’s ‘innocence’. Where do you get that idea from?
Just comments from Mark Delmege, Andrew Winkler and John Kaminski.
Perhaps you should peddle that notion to Israeli citizens who have to deal with attacks – even tractor drivers in fields have an Uzi as part of the vehicle equipment. Would they side with Blackstone or you ?
Wasn’t just “wasp slavers.” The Jews were among the biggest participants in the slave trade between Africa and the United States. Funny how that’s not mentioned much in the mainstream corporate media…
Not to forget the huge numbers of white slaves in the new world.
The majority al-ghamdy tribe in the Hejaz/Nejd are very cowardly, and the oil from the shia eastern province is enough to turn them into complacent obese traffic and haram police. The 3500 saud family is safe for now. Russia needs to be pro-active and supply the houthi with a missile to knock out the 14mbpd salt water plant at Qurayyah which when pumped into the Ghawar/Khurais oilfields inland results in a 60% recovery of 8.5mbpd of crude ie 85% of TOTAL ksa crude production. For Russia the karma plus points of preventing the Yemen carnage will be a bonus on top of an extra $350 BILLION a year ie $70 (oil price rise) x 365 x 14mbpd (Russian annual oil/gas equivalent exports !!!
Eastern region of Saudi Arabia is Suni since prophet Muhammad peace upon him . Shie was brought by Briton from Iran. They are welecom to stay however any sign of helping our enemy the persian they will be deported to were they came from. Iran and its surrogate will be defeated. Alqadisia before and Alqadisia comming soon. The Arab land graped by Iran will return .
Eastern Arabia has been in the Persian world since 300CE, and Shia since the Qarmatians (899CE).
The Afro American community’s backbone has been its churches and its middle class which has been destroyed by assimilation into mainstream America ie they moved out of the neighborhood s leaving them to become “the Hood”.
You really cannot effectively speak coherently about the USA without linking class and race. There is an unspoken taboo in Looneylandia not to do so. There are rappers who are not gangstas but they get no press..Minaj by profiting from the debasing of her own community is. Yes ,let’s say it ,is a race traitor.
By the way many of the young Black talented musicians start as children in the Choirs of their own Churches.
Yes, but only the (questionable) talented blacks make it, questionable you say? Let’s quote Snoop Puppy after leaving Tupac’s funeral, “that was the blackest funeral I ever attened, with a Rabbi officiating”. As in, the Rabbi was the only white person there. Must be hard to find a black rabbi, like, an orthodox one!
Music, movies, books, tv, the entertainment world (mainstream) is a highly controlled closed shop. You only get play when you say ‘oy vey’.
Rahmin,I am an African and this is the best yet I’ve read on race in the United States.
Thank you Rahmin.
sigh. My person rule is not to post twice on a subject because I just get myself into trouble but here goes:
The real heroes in this story are the women of Saudi Arabia because they smelled the rat i.e. a debased ‘woman of color’ who was being promoted to come to their country to spread her “art” which demeans their womanhood, their families and their religion ( the core of their very being) And they called out the hypocrisy of their own ruling elite. Here is what I say to each and every one of them:
You go, Girl!!
“Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned” may the women of Saudi Arabia arise,
and :
Heaven has no rage, like love to ambition and vanity turn’d'” . may the worlds women sleep.
(nod to Shakespeare)
And you are just another khariji criticizing muslim rulers which is against the sunnah. You want democracy and it’s kufr because hukm, law making is from Allah not from people. So learn about religion (unnecessary taunt removed; mod) because you surely will be judged by your actions.
Wahhabism is not Islam. It is a genocide cult founded by doenmeh, ie cryptoJews, followers of Sabbatai Zevi. Perhaps it is you who needs to study further.
” *By Allah!Not for even a single day did they bring about any good*”
Ibn Saʿd relates:
“A group of Muslims came to al-Hasan al-Basrī seeking a verdict to rebel against al-Hajjāj (a tyrannical and despotic general). So they said, *“O Abu Saʿīd! What do you say about fighting this oppressor who has unlawfully spilt blood and unlawfully taken wealth and has done this and done that?”* So al-Hasan said, *“I hold that he should not be fought. If this is a punishment from Allāh, then you will not be able to remove it with your swords. If this is a trial from Allāh, then be patient until Allāh’s judgement comes, and He is the best of judges.”* So they left al-Hasan, disagreed with him and rebelled against al-Hajjāj – so al-Hajjāj killed them all. Al-Hasan used to say, *“If the people had patience when they are being tested by their unjust ruler, it will not be long before Allāh will give them a way out.* However, they always rush for their swords, so they are left with their swords. *By Allāh! Not even for a single day did they bring about any good.”*
Tabaqāt al-Kubrā (7/163-165)
Hasan al-Basrī (died 110H) was a great scholar of the first Islamic century and there is no dispute regarding his credentials and immense knowledge.
Iyad ibn Ghanam reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Whoever intends to advise one with authority, then he should not do so publicly. Rather, he should take him by the hand and advise him in seclusion. If he accepts the advice, then all is well. If he does not accept it, then he has fulfilled his duty.”
Source: Musnad Aḥmad 14909
Grade: Sahih (authentic) according to Al-Albani
Imam An-Nawawee said “Sincerity to the Leaders is to help them upon the truth. To obey them in it, to order them with it, to remind and advise them with kindness and gentleness (does not include backbiting, slandering or name calling the Muslim ruler), to remind them of that which they are heedless and neglectful of, to help them fulfil those rights of the Muslims that have not reached them yet. Not to rebel against them and to enamour the hearts of the people with obedience to them.”
Imam al-Khattaabee said “From sincerity to them is Prayer behind them, Jihad along with them (not jihad against them), to give the zakat (charity) to them, and not to rebel against them(the Muslim rulers) with the sword when injustice or bad treatment appears from them (the Muslim rulers). And that they are not praised with false praises, and that duaa (supplication) is made for their righteousness.
(Fudayl Ibn Iyaad (d.187H) said, “If I had a supplication that would be answered, I would not make it, except for the ruler. Because when the ruler becomes righteous, the towns and the servants become safe and secure.” Refer to Hilyatul-Awliyaa (8/91-92).
Imam Ahmad Ibn Hanbal (d.241H) said, “Verily I supplicate for the ruler, for his correctness, success and support – night and day – and I see this as being obligatory upon me.’’ Refer to as-Sunnah (no. 14) of Aboo Bakr al-Khallaal.
Imam Al-Barbahari states, “If you see a man supplicating against the ruler, know that he is a person of desire (meaning a person from Ahlu Bidah), and if you see a man supplicating for the ruler, know that he is a Sunni (meaning from Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jamaah) inshallah.” (Sharh Al-Sunnah p113, 114))
Once when Ibn Aamir was delivering a sermon and he was wearing a fine garment. So Abu Bilaal said ‘Look at our ruler wearing the garment of the sinners!’ So Abu Bakrah said ‘Be Silent!! I heard the Messenger of Allah say ” Whoever sends scorn upon the one whom Allah has given rulership to upon the earth, Allah will scorn him.’hasan by Shaykh Albaani in Ibn Abee Asim’s As Sunnah)
Studying 6 years in Medina. Know bases of our methodology. Quotes from scholars before Mohammed Ibn Abd Al Wahab
to: Mulga Mumblebrain
You are correct. It ist more a cult much ‘advertised’ or “supported” by USA after 1990.
It has been “sold” as Islam mostly in Western countries (and Saudies up till now don’t even realize that they have been “sold out” not to their advantage!!).
Islam in its trueness is much more tolerant, especially to Christians and Jews.
Also it has a lot of advice for protecting women and children. In Middle East you will find many more churches than mosques in the whole Europe !
During a UNO-spectacle in 1994/or 95 in Egypt, Cairo, the highest representative of Islam (I think it was the Imam of Egypt) stressed during his speech to the auditorium that while Islam cannot tolerate abortion (as it is abandoning life) it advises women to take anti-baby-pills if necessary. He put a great effort to point out that parents/people should take into consideration that children need a proper up-coming, i.e. food, school (education), clothing and environment. And that parents are held (by God) fully responsible to take care about.
I was greatly ashamed by the speech of the pope (if I remember it right it was the pope; for the Roman-Catholics) at this time. Sure, the Vatican has the protective age for children up till 12 years only.
Selam Ibrahim,
What makes a ruler Muslim?
You think long and hard about that question…
What an enlightened article, thank you. I grew up in the US south and although the facts being sanitized in the MSM today, it was completely and officially apartheid.
We must never forget the fact that Civil Rights Movement in U.S was never really pro black and certainly not pro black women, but pro black men. It was liberation for black men to go after white women or that became traveling penises or walking dildos.
If you want to know the ugly truth of Blackistan you should ask black women who somehow have managed to escape Blackistan and its toxic masculinity and that pathetic and lousy “black struggle love”. These women know the truth. They know that just like Civil Rights Movement was pro black men, the problem inside black community is – the black men. Why? Because black men can’t protect, produce, provide and solve problems. Divested free and happy black women know the ugly truth of Blackistan: the history of black man as a king pimp.
Travis, Black men in the USA have a little problem called mass incarceration. Perhaps you have heard of it. And then the police seem to have a penchant for killing them, or torturing them, prior to the rigged judicial system warehousing them. Then there is poverty, unemployment, low pay, malign neglect, drug trafficking, divide and rule tactics and the patronage of House Negros like Obama and the Black Congressional Caucus, and a mass culture, controlled by non-Blacks, that portrays them as animals.
Tell ’em,Mulga!
Minaj has no discernible musical talent so she performs as a hooker, but you may only perve, like a good voyeur, but not touch. As a ‘role model’ for girls, she leaves a bit to be desired. America is inundated in all types of voyeurism, a society of the onanistic spectacle, of sexual love desacralised and commodified, for sale to the highest bidder-the likes of Jeffrey Epstein and Donald Trump.
woman should respect and loved,but a woman promotes immorality. I don’t think so if they deserve it.
Ramin, you mean ‘south side’ of Chicago?
The South Side of Chicago has some of the richest areas in all Chicago. The West Side is nothing but poverty. Used to be where the Czechs and Polish lived, but now it’s all poor blacks and latinos. That’s where the 60-70 people get shot every week – check the Daily/Weekly Shootings Roundup in the Chicago Sun-Times.
Chicago – my kind of town
MBS is most hated ruler to common mass in Islamic world & West as well. Trump, Modi n Sissi are other 3 most disliked rulers.
Great info. Thank you Ramin. Love you
Professor Thomas Sowell (African American) have studied problems inside black community and i recommend everyone to read his book “Black Rednecks And White Liberals”. The problem inside black community is plantasian system of two main parties controlling black Americans. Sowell has found how vital role black subculture has played destroying black family, black church, black unity especially after 1960. Tragedy is that Civil Rights Movement not only couldn’t stop destruction, it made things even worse.
78% of black children are born out of wedlock while in 1960 the share was less than 14%. Do you blame black women of that tragedy? Or do choose the easiest way and blame white men? Why not at one time take some time and think black men and their role of “decent”, “responsible” and “stable” – to be real man and not just some looser with sagging pants. Think about the fact that 60% of American pimps are black men. Why is it so hard to admit that black men becoming totally incompetent to be decent fathers and caring spouses?
I’m gonna give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you’re not American. These statistics don’t mean anything unless you understand how it all got there.
1. The black male was targeted in a very sly way by this campaign by Nancy Reagan, ‘say no to drugs’. All it did was lock up young black males disproportionately for carrying an eighth of weed for years on end. That took a generation of males away and the kids born in that generation grew up without fathers or family. Typically the grandparents raised them and did what they could while mom’s were railroaded to deadend low paying jobs and one pay check or out of process incident away from being on the streets and credit wrecked. This was the late 80’s and early 90’s.
2. Then came the first ‘black’ president of America, Bill Clinton, who took an even bigger stick to the same population that grew up without fathers. He said, ‘three strikes and you’re out’. Some states, like Louisiana went further and said ‘a strike and you’re out’. Locked up another generation of disproportionately minority men and this resulted in another generation of father less children born to father less ones.
3. Then can Rudy the mayor. He went even further in his big city with ‘zero tolerance’. Just lock’em up. And that netted even more and similar slogans were used in other cities to same effect.
So, between late 80’s to early 00’s the generation of black children came to the world missing their fathers or knowing a family. They grew up on the streets where anything goes and survival means not seeing prison. If you expect them to not be angry at the system or feel betrayed by the system, may be you deserve sainthood.
If the rap music has the same sense of anger and cop killer lyrics and getting rich in this material society and showing off the bling and rocking it out with your bling out, its nothing more than exhaling to stay alive and show success some way or the other.
This matches your stats and now you know why.
do white people have any intent at all of allowing Black people to survive?
I don’t think so. white people are afraid or retribution and are trying to pre empt that potential.
but white fear of Black retribution coincides with the stage of advanced technology that in the hands of the capitalists is eliminating jobs and labor. population reduction seems a major need of the capitalists and that means eliminating people. but advanced technology eliminates ordinary whites as well. in the hands of the capitalists. that is capitalist social control means hell bent on reducign the human population.
in the hands of ordinary people, those who work advanced technology is not a danger to ordinary people. ordinary people in ownership of the means of production will not vote to eliminate themselves but can use the technology in all its advance, continuing advancement..to actually reduce labor even as profits increase and they can pay themselves more
and in social control ordinary people can organize all of society on the basis of popular ownership of the means…
we all have an idea what that means. popular ownership can be started on the principle of worker co-ops on the base that all who work in any and all industries must own their industry. we must find ways if even at first to buy out ownership in the interest of co-op ownership. ultimately if it becomes necessary and possible simple appropriate the business and allow the workers to take it over, to run in in their own collective interests. advanced technology is not a social danger then. it is now in the hands of the capitalists
in such a situation..in worker/ordinary movement to social control the Black white paradox can be resolved peacefully, with the survival of all parties concerned. the truth becomes available and accessible in ordinary social control. truth is the enemy of exploitative society but not of popular democracy. in the truth ordinary people can see how we were all used and resolve the situation by the practicality of the democracy they set up, create that can and does meet all need by that very democracy and its social purpose to make society safe
there are enough resources to go around many times more. and advanced technology adds the an exponent to human capacity and production that is immense, way beyond 7 billion to eat up and leave starvation. then again the kind of security that would flow from such democracy would in fact reduce population ultimately.. but not by capitalist genocide, but by a population with options in life limiting children so they who would be parents can ‘enjoy life, follow careers etc.’
it is crucial for there to be social change driven from the bottom of society. the capitalist have worked assiduously to pre empt all reaction to their exploitation of the world. they have regime changed to their hearts content, corrupted every government, infiltrated and taken over every political party globally, all NGO’s everywhere. they have even started parties and organizations stated to meet some popular need but were intended to intercept popular response to capitalist depredation and lead such reaction astray
the people must forget about pyramid structured organization with power constituted at their apex…too easy to subvert. popular organization of non structured forms that aggregate at any time, quickly with no head or cabinet..simply all capable of all that is required to be done in the interest of the society for which the movement coalesces
It’s the oldest trick in the racist book to blame some underclass of a different complexion or history, for their social distress. It has nothing to do with social and economic arrangements controlled by the tiny ruling elites, and centuries of history of oppression and worse. No, it’s all the victims’ fault, because they are inferior. The same process is used along class lines, to vilify the poor. Now if you were to say that, despite centuries of oppression from slavery up to today’s mass incarceration and economic exploitation, that many if not most US Black men still manage to behave in dignified manner, you’d be closer to the truth. Racists, particularly those associated with the ruling regime and the Murdoch cancer, here in Austfailia, use the same denigratory tactics against our indigenous and African refugees, recently arrived here.
Read Quran chapter 3___103
Quran 3___ 14
As long you are with America ,England ,France and zonist isreal (saudia Arabia is a terrorist too)
Mr Mazaheri’s article seems to assume that the US has some coherent ideology. It’s important that this falsehood is identified because somewhat like Islam, there is no one voice there. America’s strength lies in it’s economy, not one ideology, but a tolerance of sorts to many, and the economic power that comes from striving toward equality. There is of course as he points out, places where equality remains a dream, but unlike Saudi Arabia, it’s a work in progress.
to Lynette Shumack on July 14th:
Your remark would be more appreciated (at least by me) if:
1) USA wouldn’t have invaded too many countries and murdered too many millions of people.
2) US inhabitants seem not to care what their government is doing to other people in other countries – mostly far away and no danger to USA at all.
3) If the inhabitants of USA wouldn’t regard almost too many soldiers as “heroes” retuning home from foreign simple invasions and murdering even children ? Civilians ? Raping women ?
If that is no “ideology” so what? A sort of ideology that USA is “superior” and can do what its government want and simply to state: the whole population in US don’t care otherwise it wouldn’t happen that millions and millions of humans had been murdered.
The reason: “superiority”. The government can do what it wants to show it to the world how “superior” it is.
When a population doesn’t interfere what its government (in such big scales of invasions of other countries) does what does it tell ?
And to speak of the above written topic: Far too many are “following” the mass medias “brainwashing”. What do the inhabitants of USA think ? Oh mostly “following” and not protesting some sort of introduced agenda.
Doctors have no hesitation to manipulate hormones of children still growing-up ?
What does the population think ? Where is the scream ?
That’s the point: where is the “scream” ???
I just fell over laughing. The USA’s ‘…economic power….comes from striving towards equality’??!! The USA, the most unequal society in the OECD, striving for equality? The USA where productivity has grown 80% since 1980, whereas average wages have grown 8%, striving for equality!!?? The USA, where the top three billionaires own as much wealth as the bottom 165 million, striving for equality??!! I could go on and on, but my sides are hurting. If I got onto the USA’s ‘tolerance’ of ‘…not one ideology…but…many’, I’d fear for my well-being.
The writer in my aopion he surfers from celebral myopia.
He doesn’t see that’ the problems faced by black Americans is an area of need and a very big opportunity for him to rather make a difference than add on to what his ancestor Muslims did create when they sold our people as slave for mirrors and beads.
This benefactor of his ancestors spoils want sound rational but we see right through him.
This is miss use of the ill gotten privileges it would have a different view of him if rather sought do some damage control created by his ancestors. But complaining through the media owned by capitalists thinking that his making any Sence is actually by laughed by the same owners. He should have rather gone to the Muslim world especially those who have no respect for those who aren’t Muslims they would easily catch on his drift.
We are certainly aware of the systematic attacks on us hitherto. We know who we are and certainly that drive great fear to our attackers that why they are relentlessly he’ll bent on oppressing us to extermination but we’ll be the last man standing come the end! Watch this space.
to Frank:
General history seems not be your strength.
Seems that you never had contact with other cultures and haven’t the slightest idea what about other religious beliefs – in your posting lies some sort of indifference/ignorance and might be also some arrogance (especially the last sentence).
Sorry, but we are in the 21st century and it is really easy to read about general history before making any remarks. Concerning the above topic it would surely be necessary to read about United States, Canada, Great Britain, France, Italy, Germany and Spain in order to get some idea at least.
Or maybe you are just some sort of a “troll”.
Ramin Mazaheri article on Saudi monarchy and the” concept of decadence” started well but just like everything else in the middle east it went Out of Focus.
You started positively in identifying the decadence, decaying, destruction of Saudi(Fake Muslim) Wahhabi monarchic system and its yo0ung, tribalistic and schizophrenic zionist Ruler MBS who is obfuscating modernization with western cultural imperialist and consumerism as Progress!
Your focus should have been 100% with the absolute rule of the Wahhabi racist and socio-psychological trauma of the Saudi system and its dying and culturally, spiritually and intellectually dead society.
Not by attacking an Afro-Caribbean -Amerikkkan singer who is no diffrent from zionist owned Entertaiment and Hollywood complex. Why Single out an African American Singer of ALL the Western and Entertainers and Muscians who are 100% owned, controlled, funded, managed and propagated by Zionist Islamophobic ???
My concluding rebuttal is that:
1) You missed a chance for a critical analysis of the Fake , superficial and schizophrenic ‘reformist ‘ credentials of MBS, By attacking Ms. MINAJ
2) African Americans are neither your enemy nor do they NEED your support for liberation.
BTW is was the Anti-Imperialist, Anti-Fascist, Anti-Racist Ideology, Teachings & Vision of IMAM KHOMEINI and the IR of Iran revolutionary leadership in 1980 that released the African Americans which has nothing your innate and covert Anti-Black , Racist attitude towards Black Amerikkka.
3) Lastly, you should not should the victim(Minaj) rather then the Victimizer(Crypt o-zionist Wahhabi head choppers of Saudi leadership)
4) There Western Entertainment Complex( sports and Music personalities) All over The GCC and specially Saudi+ Emiratis and majority of them are Anglo-American Jewish personalities who selling their skills and Brand of culture. May be you should focus on these rather then African Americans who r the least of your cultural, economic, spit ritual and political issue with Saudi Monarchy.