Dear Friends,
The promise for perpetual war is quite real. The US cannot leave the Gulf Region, nor the Caucasus, as it cannot abandon the oil, cannot relinquish regional control. Yet the US military cannot defeat the residents of the regions, and cannot understand why. But the US is there to rob the regions of their natural resources, and their labor, and everyone there knows it, if most US citizens do not. So, that fighting will continue. And it will deepen as imperial rivals like the Russians, China, Japan, and Europe witness the weakness of US military and economic might.
The only thing Bush is telling the truth about is that the US ruling classes cannot lose, cannot retreat, in the oil regions. But they cannot win either, so they hope to send working class men and women to fight and die, not fighting against their enemies, but fighting the enemies of their greatest enemies.
The battle over oil is the most serious of battles, as oil independence in the US is simply not possible, and all military machines run on oil.
As the wars progress, we have long argued that fascism will emerge in the US, as it is. Two recent articles, one from the radical press, and one from a prominent Princeton professor, buttress that insight. Here is a link from Richard Falk, Princeton, “Will the Empire Be Fascist?”
and Greg Meyerson, here.
What can educators, students, and parents do in the face of these multiple crises? We can educate and organize to try to build a mass base of class conscious, ethical, resistance, in schools and out. Schools are a key choke point of US society, as elites insistence on NCLB demonstrates. Combined with the military, it is possible that youth in schools and in uniform, could take the lead in mobilizing anti-fascist resistance.
One aspect of that resistance is to build for the mass actions this coming Saturday, demanding that the US GET OUT of IRAQ NOW.
We should demonstrate, not so much to “show ourselves” to politicians, but as a test of our movement, a test of ourselves, our own courage and consciousness, our ability to bring others, to build close personal friendships, and to struggle with one another over our differing analyses of power and change in our communities–so we come away smarter.
We will not change the mind of the executive committee of the rich that is the US government today. But we will learn how far we have come in the process of defeating all of them, and their plan to extinguish hope and reason in the world.
The next step of that process is the Rouge Forum Conference, March 1 to 4, in lovely downtown Detroit, Wayne State University. The full schedule will be released by the conference committee this coming Sunday but, as this is mainly a participatory conference, plan to bring yourself and friends now.
People are already on the move, as people struggle to survive. Street kids recently invaded the World Social Forum and took the food they needed.
And, while school workers remain the most highly unionized people in the US, the percentage of the work force in unions dropped below 12 percent, one-third of the membership peak, perhaps indicating the irrelevance of US union leadership, despite their six figure salaries.
Apologies, again, to AOL users who find many of their Rouge Forum email updates blocked. We have worked with AOL on this problem for one year now, as have many similar list leaders. AOL refuses to assist, and remains, according to Consumer Reports, the worst server in the northern hemisphere. AOL is not only uncooperative and incompetent, their owners were among the first to turn over their members email to the government, on a simple request, when other providers, like Earthlink, refused. We urge you to leave AOL. After all, they do not want you as customers, as they themselves have said. There are many free alternatives, like Sharpreader.
In the meantime, we are troubled we are still blocked by AOL, and seeking hints on how to circumvent them.
Don’t forget, ALL OUT ON SATURDAY. US OUT OF IRAQ. You are welcome to download free posters and flyers from www.rougeforum.org.
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