Mere hours before Trump's 8pm Tuesday deadline yesterday, Pakistan's government contacted Iran with a US-written proposal for a two-week ceasefire, explicitly stated to also include Lebanon, during which they would negotiate a permanent end to the war on the basis of Iran's 10 Points. Among other things, these points include 1) maintaining strict control (joint with Oman) over Hormuz, complete with a toll; 2) the end of sanctions on Iran; 3) keeping their enriched uranium; 4) a withdrawal of US forces from the Middle East [stated by the Supreme Leadership Council but not in the 10 Points, so who knows], and 5) some plausible guarantee that Iran would never be attacked again. I've heard rumors that China may have prodded Iran to accept these terms.
In theory, these are relatively confident and maximalist demands. In practice, Iran has already achieved military and economic control over Hormuz and the withdrawal of many US troops and bases from the region, so at least a few of Iran's demands are, to a greater or lesser extent, already achieved, and with little hope for an increasingly exhausted US to undo these achievements short of nukes.
A couple hours after the ceasefire, the Zionist entity began a wave of airstrikes in Lebanon, killing hundreds of civilians, as well as flying drones into Iranian airspace. This was a strange move to make even if you assume - very sensibly - that the US is completely agreement non-capable: why not agree to the ceasefire and simply pretend to negotiate for two weeks while regrouping/repairing what assets you can and then start hitting Iran again?
One theory is that the Zionists are testing to what degree Iran is actually willing to have solidarity with Lebanon and Hezbollah. While the Resistance has been relatively united since October 7th, the formation of separate peaces instead of negotiating terms as a united front has been a major exploitable weakness. Alternatively, it's been proposed that the US didn't even consider using the ceasefire to regroup and deceive Iran, and that Trump merely wanted a way to chicken out of his threat on Iran's electrical grid - the fact that US officials have since stated that Iran's 10 Points were not the same ones they agreed to is a point supporting this, I suppose. If the conflict resumes and Trump does not deliver another 48 hour deadline (and/or makes it something silly like a month from now) then this could be the explanation.
From Iran, I am getting the sense that a lot is happening behind the scenes. Statements from top officials like Araghchi have stated quite plainly that there will be no ceasefire and no negotiations unless the Zionists stop attacking Lebanon, but as of ~24 hours after the ceasefire began, there has been no significant military response from Iran yet. There have apparently been phone calls between Araghchi and numerous regional officials, but it is unknown to what end. All the while, the global economic situation continues to deteriorate. Over the next week or two, the last tankers that left Hormuz before it closed will arrive at their destinations. If the missile exchanges begin once more, then the West, much like most of the rest of the world, will be experiencing all sorts of fuel, energy, food, and product shortages while trying to justify why they broke the ceasefire to kill more Lebanese civilians.
Last week's thread is here.
The Imperialism Reading Group is here.
Please check out the RedAtlas!
The bulletins site is here. Currently not used.
The RSS feed is here. Also currently not used.
The Zionist Entity's Genocide of Palestine
Sources on the fighting in Palestine against the temporary Zionist entity. In general, CW for footage of battles, explosions, dead people, and so on:
UNRWA reports on the Zionists' destruction and siege of Gaza and the West Bank.
English-language Palestinian Marxist-Leninist twitter account. Alt here.
English-language twitter account that collates news.
Arab-language twitter account with videos and images of fighting.
English-language (with some Arab retweets) Twitter account based in Lebanon. - Telegram is @IbnRiad.
English-language Palestinian Twitter account which reports on news from the Resistance Axis. - Telegram is @EyesOnSouth.
English-language Twitter account in the same group as the previous two. - Telegram here.
Mirrors of Telegram channels that have been erased by Zionist censorship.
Russia-Ukraine Conflict
Examples of Ukrainian Nazis and fascists
Examples of racism/euro-centrism during the Russia-Ukraine conflict
Sources:
Defense Politics Asia's youtube channel and their map. Their youtube channel has substantially diminished in quality but the map is still useful.
Moon of Alabama, which tends to have interesting analysis. Avoid the comment section.
Understanding War and the Saker: reactionary sources that have occasional insights on the war.
Alexander Mercouris, who does daily videos on the conflict. While he is a reactionary and surrounds himself with likeminded people, his daily update videos are relatively brainworm-free and good if you don't want to follow Russian telegram channels to get news. He also co-hosts The Duran, which is more explicitly conservative, racist, sexist, transphobic, anti-communist, etc when guests are invited on, but is just about tolerable when it's just the two of them if you want a little more analysis.
Simplicius, who publishes on Substack. Like others, his political analysis should be soundly ignored, but his knowledge of weaponry and military strategy is generally quite good.
On the ground: Patrick Lancaster, an independent and very good journalist reporting in the warzone on the separatists' side.
Unedited videos of Russian/Ukrainian press conferences and speeches.
Pro-Russian Telegram Channels:
Again, CW for anti-LGBT and racist, sexist, etc speech, as well as combat footage.
https://t.me/aleksandr_skif ~ DPR's former Defense Minister and Colonel in the DPR's forces. Russian language.
https://t.me/Slavyangrad ~ A few different pro-Russian people gather frequent content for this channel (~100 posts per day), some socialist, but all socially reactionary. If you can only tolerate using one Russian telegram channel, I would recommend this one.
https://t.me/s/levigodman ~ Does daily update posts.
https://t.me/patricklancasternewstoday ~ Patrick Lancaster's telegram channel.
https://t.me/gonzowarr ~ A big Russian commentator.
https://t.me/rybar ~ One of, if not the, biggest Russian telegram channels focussing on the war out there. Actually quite balanced, maybe even pessimistic about Russia. Produces interesting and useful maps.
https://t.me/epoddubny ~ Russian language.
https://t.me/boris_rozhin ~ Russian language.
https://t.me/mod_russia_en ~ Russian Ministry of Defense. Does daily, if rather bland updates on the number of Ukrainians killed, etc. The figures appear to be approximately accurate; if you want, reduce all numbers by 25% as a 'propaganda tax', if you don't believe them. Does not cover everything, for obvious reasons, and virtually never details Russian losses.
https://t.me/UkraineHumanRightsAbuses ~ Pro-Russian, documents abuses that Ukraine commits.
Pro-Ukraine Telegram Channels:
Almost every Western media outlet.
https://discord.gg/projectowl ~ Pro-Ukrainian OSINT Discord.
https://t.me/ice_inii ~ Alleged Ukrainian account with a rather cynical take on the entire thing.
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A bad argument is a bad argument. "You can't criticize inequality until you give away everything you have (and then we'll just ignore you)" is a bad argument. It's not going to convince anyone of anything, and socialists using it on one hand and complaining about it on another just makes us look incoherent.
It's good to criticize the Catholic church -- I'm saying put some thought into it and don't put words in your comrades' mouths when someone points out your criticism isn't sharp.
Well except we believe in systematic permanent wealth redistribution while Catholics believe in charity and Christ commanded to give away everything at once. So socialists aren’t being hypocrites when they don’t give away their capital while Christians are.
Socialists don’t believe in a one time wealth giveaway. Catholic and Christians do. Hence the argument is valid against them.
Whether you should travel in the Mark, you ask — travel into the Mark?
The answer to this question is not exactly easy. And yet it would not become me to evade it or even to say a outright “no.” So then: “yes.” But “yes” with conditions. Let me enumerate point by point what I consider indispensable. Whoever wants to travel in the Mark must first bring with him a love for “land and people,” or at least no prejudice. He must have the good will to find the good good, instead of killing it through carping comparisons. The traveler in the Mark must furthermore feel himself equipped with a finer kind of sense for his surrounding . There are coarse eyes that immediately demand a glacier or a sea-storm in order to be satisfied.
These had better stay at home.
But if you have now carefully weighed all these points, if you have, as the English say, "made your soul ready,” and if you have come to the conclusion: “I can venture it,” then venture it boldly.
Venture it boldly!
And you will not regret it. Peculiar joys and pleasures will accompany you. You will make discoveries, for wherever you go you will, from the tourist’s point of view, be entering “virgin land.” You will come upon monastery ruins of whose existence perhaps only the nearest town has a faint knowledge; in old village churches, whose crumbling shingle tower seems to speak only of poverty, you will find great wall-paintings or, in crypts without stairs, rich copper coffins with crucifixes and gilded coats of arms. You will cross battlefields, churchyards, heathen graves of which people know nothing anymore; and instead of guidebooks and commonplace histories, sagas and legends. Here and there even fragments of long-forgotten songs — will speak to you. But the best thing you will encounter will be the people themselves, provided you know how to find the right word for the “common man.” Do not disdain the straw sack beside the coachman; let him tell you about his house and farm, about his town or village, about his soldiering days or his wandering years, and his chatter will envelop you with the magic of what is natural and alive When you return home, you will not have heard anything learned by rote, as on the great tours where everything has its fixed price place and tariff. The man himself, however, will have opened up before you. And that, after all, remains the best.
what do you think is something that is more well known in the World , then that the Catholic Church did bad things , and misappropriates funds and Burned Critics and has Childsexscandals ,etc. ?
Like its Extremly well known in my opinion. Because Church is so very Central to western History , Development , Holidays , Realms of Councious , Colonialism , Witchbuning , Crusading , Calendar , City Development , Jesus , City Founding , Music .. everywhere ! Yes there as well .
Like its the Church. Its very Important. Yes ? it can be assumed people are informed. on a certain level about it.
And the Pope - The Leader of the Church - of this very important thing - this central aspect of: the globals South , of Megachurches in Latin America , Of Africa and Asia . - (with many christian communities currently ravished by war and terror in Syria and Lebanon , with ancient Holysites beeing bombed) , he said something political.
Things like that are newsworthy.
Yes China had Tianamen Square! , yes in Russia People fell from windows , And yes Catholic church does "Removed" ,Burned witches and does Preach Water while Drinking wine.
Yes.
Panta rhei
Imagine Lenin reading this
Lenin speaking about the Catholic Church, which he considered a bastion of the reactionary bourgeoise