{"id":108548,"date":"2014-02-24T07:47:00","date_gmt":"2014-02-24T07:47:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/?guid=38f5f1a842ff7025e414c5100d9fa28d"},"modified":"2014-02-24T07:47:00","modified_gmt":"2014-02-24T07:47:00","slug":"an-open-letter-to-barack-obama","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/editorials\/an-open-letter-to-barack-obama\/","title":{"rendered":"An Open Letter to Barack Obama"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\"><b>An Open Letter to Barack Obama<\/b><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">by Stephen Lendman<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Congratulations, Mr. President. You&#8217;re the latest in a long line of lawless leaders. You achieved rogue status without really trying.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Contempt for rule of law principles, duplicity and moral cowardice define your administration. Pretense otherwise doesn&#8217;t wash.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Instead of improving lives for ordinary Americans, you created worse than ever conditions.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You more than ever made America a gangster state. Millions worldwide call it a pariah one. They do so for good reason.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You stole public wealth. You handed Wall Street crooks trillions of dollars. You gave war profiteers trillions more.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You impoverished millions. You left 100 million working-age Americans unemployed.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You ignore human need. Homelessness and hunger aren&#8217;t your concerns.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You&#8217;re systematically destroying middle class society. You&#8217;re heading America on a fast track toward third world status. A second one toward full-blown tyranny.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You promised hope and change. You campaigned for peace. You promised all US forces out of Afghanistan in your first year in office.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You assured Palestinian sovereignty free from occupation harshness. You said decades of what Israel imposed would end.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You promised Guantanamo closure once and for all. You pledged within one year of taking office.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Bush administration war criminals will be held accountable, you said. Torture will end by decree.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">So will indefinite detentions. Lawless military commissions trials won&#8217;t be tolerated.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Labor rights will be supported. So will public education. And you can keep your doctor, you said.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You guaranteed universal healthcare with a public option. It&#8217;ll be more affordable than before, you claimed.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You&#8217;ll end unconstitutional executive authority. You&#8217;ll help Americans facing foreclosure keep their homes.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You promised real immigration reform within one year of taking office. You&#8217;ll &#8220;revisit the Patriot Act.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You&#8217;ll &#8220;overturn unconstitutional executive decisions during the past eight years.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You&#8217;ll be a uniter, not a divider. You&#8217;ll serve all Americans equitably, justly, fairly and honorably.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">&#8220;It&#8217;s time to turn a page,&#8221; you said. &#8220;We&#8217;ll restore our values.&#8221; The &#8220;days of compromising them are over.&#8221;&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">We&#8217;ll &#8220;secure a more resilient homeland.&#8221; We&#8217;ll &#8220;adhere to the Geneva Conventions.&#8221;&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Freedom is too precious to lose. You&#8217;ve gone all-out to destroy it on your watch. You&#8217;ve done so at home and abroad.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You said openness and transparency in government will be a hallmark of your administration. You&#8217;ll increase whistleblower protections.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Big Brother will be banished. &#8220;(N)o more illegal wiretapping of American citizens,&#8221; you pledged.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">No more &#8220;spy(ing) on citizens who are not suspected of a crime.&#8221; No more privacy invasions.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">No more human and civil rights violations. &#8220;No more ignoring the law when it is inconvenient.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">No more extrajudicial operations. No more favoring monied interests over popular ones. No more wars for power and profit.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">No more less than treating everyone equitably and justly. No more defending the indefensible.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Arundhati Roy once called Tony Blair a &#8220;psychopath.&#8221; She described Bush the same way. She said you&#8217;re no different from them. And then some, this writer adds.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You did more to make America unfit to live in than any of your predecessors. You&#8217;ve waged political, economic and hot wars on humanity.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You threaten its survival. Your policies risk WW III. You&#8217;re unapologetic. Your rampaging continues.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Your waging multiple direct and proxy wars. You target all independent countries for regime change.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You&#8217;re waging war on Syria. You launched it. You killed tens of thousands. You bear full responsibility. You want a subservient pro-Western stooge replacing Assad.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You ravaged and destroyed Libya for the same purpose. You turned it into a charnel house. You&#8217;re doing the same thing to many other countries. Countless millions suffer horrifically on your watch.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Ukraine is your latest victim. Congratulations. You claimed another imperial trophy. As long as you can keep it.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">It&#8217;s at the expense of millions of Ukrainians deserving better. You want them marginalized, exploited, impoverished and denied fundamental freedoms.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You want Ukraine run by fascist extremists. You bought victory on the cheap. Keeping it is something else entirely.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Reports estimate you spent $5 &#8211; $10 billion transforming Ukraine from a democracy to a pro-Western fascist police state.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">It&#8217;s pocket change compared to multi-trillions waging war on Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria, and other countries below the radar.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You elevated anti-Semitic, hate-mongering, xenophobic, ultranational neo-Nazis to power.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You expressed support for their extremism. You called them &#8220;the voice of the people.&#8221; You blamed Ukraine&#8217;s legitimate government for their street crimes.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You endorsed usurpation of power. On Saturday, your<a href=\"http:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/the-press-office\/2014\/02\/22\/statement-press-secretary-ukraine\"><span style=\"color: #1255cc;\"> press secretary<\/span><\/a> lied, saying:<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">&#8220;We have consistently advocated a de-escalation of violence, constitutional change, a coalition government, and early elections, and today&#8217;s developments could move us closer to that goal.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Fact check: You planned violence. You initiated it. You stoked it. You funded it. You want total control over Ukrainian policy. You want ordinary Ukrainians having no say. &nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">&#8220;The unshakeable principle guiding events must be that the people of Ukraine determine their own future.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Fact check: You&#8217;ve gone all-out to prevent it. You stole their future. &nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">&#8220;We welcome constructive work in the Rada and continue to urge the prompt formation of a broad, technocratic government of national unity.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Fact check: Usurped Rada (parliament) authority has no legitimacy. It&#8217;s polar opposite real democracy.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You deplore it. You tolerate it nowhere. You deny Americans what they deserve. You operate the same way globally.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">&#8220;We welcome former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko\u2019s release from a prison hospital today, and we wish her a speedy recovery&#8230;&#8221;&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Fact check: She&#8217;s a criminal. She stole tens of millions of dollars. She did so at the expense of ordinary Ukrainians. She belongs in prison. Releasing her was lawless.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">&#8220;We continue to urge an end to violence by all sides and a focus on peaceful, democratic dialogue, working pursuant to Ukraine\u2019s constitution and through its institutions of government.&#8221; &nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Fact check: It bears repeating. You spent billions on violently toppling Ukraine&#8217;s legitimate government. You want pro-Western fascist extremism replacing it.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You got what you wanted so far. Keeping it may be something else entirely. The battle for Ukraine&#8217;s soul continues. It has miles to go. It&#8217;s outcome is very much undecided.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">&#8220;Going forward, we will work with our allies, with Russia, and with appropriate European and international organizations to support a strong, prosperous, unified, and democratic Ukraine.&#8221;&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">&#8220;\u2026(T)he Ukrainian people should know that the United States deeply values our long-standing ties with Ukraine and will support them as they pursue a path of democracy and economic development.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Fact check: Ukrainian youths are ignorant. They&#8217;re mindless about what&#8217;s going on. They&#8217;re easily manipulated. For how long matters most.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Older Ukrainians aren&#8217;t stupid. They know how America operates. They know wherever it shows up, extreme violence and human misery follow.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">They reversed George Bush&#8217;s Orange Revolution. Don&#8217;t bet they won&#8217;t undo your 2.0 version. The battle for Ukraine&#8217;s soul just began.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Note: Anonymous Ukraine monitors what&#8217;s ongoing. It&#8217;s members are divided. Some are brainwashed by Western propaganda.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Others know their country is being colonized for plunder. They&#8217;ll fight it. They want no part of exploitive EU membership.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">They reject US meddling in Ukraine&#8217;s internal affairs. They oppose NATO membership. They deplore fascist extremists usurping power. They know your dirty hands are involved.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">They want peace and stability. They want Ukrainians deciding their own future. They want sovereign independence defended.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">They&#8217;ll be heard from going forward. They won&#8217;t stand by idly watching you wreck their country. They won&#8217;t &#8220;go gentle into that good night.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">&#8220;Operation Independence continues,&#8221; they said. &#8220;Expect us.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">One coup d&#8217;etat isn&#8217;t enough for you. You want another. You want Venezuela&#8217;s democratic government toppled.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You want Bolivarian social justice destroyed. You want Venezuela returned to its bad old days.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You bear full responsibility for street violence. You&#8217;re funding it. You&#8217;re directing it. You pull the strings.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Destabilization continues. CIA operatives are involved. So are State Department organizations.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Coup plotting is violent. Days of violence caused 10 deaths so far. Scores were injured. Your funded fascists are responsible.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Since 1999, you, Bush and Clinton spent billions of dollars targeting Venezuela for regime change. Bolivarianism survived everything done to destroy it.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">It&#8217;s resilient. It&#8217;s institutionalized. The vast majority of Venezuelans support it. They won&#8217;t tolerate your plot to steal what&#8217;s too important to lose. Or the Hemisphere&#8217;s most democratic country.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">They&#8217;ll fight to keep hard won gains. Victor Hugo once explained nothing stronger than &#8220;an idea whose time has come.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">It&#8217;s deep-rooted in Venezuela. It reflects Simon Bolivar&#8217;s vision. He wanted the imperial curse &#8220;to plague Latin America with misery in the name of liberty&#8221; ended.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">He wanted national resources distributed equitably and fairly. Chavez was his modern-day incarnation.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Chavismo reflects his commitment. Maduro carries his torch.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">The battle to preserve Bolivarian values continues. They won&#8217;t wane and die. Your dirty scheme is familiar.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You want Venezuela looking like America. You want police state viciousness replacing democracy. You want neoliberal harshness replacing Bolivarian fairness.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">You want what Venezuelans won&#8217;t tolerate. You want what they won&#8217;t let you get.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Maybe Americans will awaken to reality. Maybe they&#8217;ll react the same way. It&#8217;s their future. If they won&#8217;t protect it, no one will do it for them.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">It bears repeating what other articles said. Resist or perish. There&#8217;s no in-between. Spread the word. Tell others. We&#8217;re all in this together. Defeating your agenda is too important a fight to lose.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px; min-height: 22px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">His new book is titled &#8220;Banker Occupation: Waging Financial War on Humanity.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">http:\/\/www.claritypress.com\/LendmanII.html<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">Listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">It airs Fridays at 10AM US Central time and Saturdays and Sundays at noon. All programs are archived for easy listening.<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 12px; min-height: 14px;\"><\/div>\n<p><\/p>\n<div style=\"font-family: Arial; font-size: 19px;\">http:\/\/www.progressiveradionetwork.com\/the-progressive-news-hour<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div><b>An Open Letter to Barack Obama<\/b><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>by Stephen Lendman<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Congratulations, Mr. President. You&#8217;re the latest in a long line of lawless leaders. You achieved rogue status without really trying.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Contempt for rule of law principles, duplicity and moral cowardice define your administration. Pretense otherwise doesn&#8217;t wash.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Instead of improving lives for ordinary Americans, you created worse than ever conditions.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You more than ever made America a gangster state. Millions worldwide call it a pariah one. They do so for good reason.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You stole public wealth. You handed Wall Street crooks trillions of dollars. You gave war profiteers trillions more.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You impoverished millions. You left 100 million working-age Americans unemployed.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You ignore human need. Homelessness and hunger aren&#8217;t your concerns.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You&#8217;re systematically destroying middle class society. You&#8217;re heading America on a fast track toward third world status. A second one toward full-blown tyranny.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You promised hope and change. You campaigned for peace. You promised all US forces out of Afghanistan in your first year in office.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You assured Palestinian sovereignty free from occupation harshness. You said decades of what Israel imposed would end.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You promised Guantanamo closure once and for all. You pledged within one year of taking office.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Bush administration war criminals will be held accountable, you said. Torture will end by decree.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>So will indefinite detentions. Lawless military commissions trials won&#8217;t be tolerated.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Labor rights will be supported. So will public education. And you can keep your doctor, you said.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You guaranteed universal healthcare with a public option. It&#8217;ll be more affordable than before, you claimed.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You&#8217;ll end unconstitutional executive authority. You&#8217;ll help Americans facing foreclosure keep their homes.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You promised real immigration reform within one year of taking office. You&#8217;ll &#8220;revisit the Patriot Act.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You&#8217;ll &#8220;overturn unconstitutional executive decisions during the past eight years.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You&#8217;ll be a uniter, not a divider. You&#8217;ll serve all Americans equitably, justly, fairly and honorably.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>&#8220;It&#8217;s time to turn a page,&#8221; you said. &#8220;We&#8217;ll restore our values.&#8221; The &#8220;days of compromising them are over.&#8221;&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>We&#8217;ll &#8220;secure a more resilient homeland.&#8221; We&#8217;ll &#8220;adhere to the Geneva Conventions.&#8221;&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Freedom is too precious to lose. You&#8217;ve gone all-out to destroy it on your watch. You&#8217;ve done so at home and abroad.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You said openness and transparency in government will be a hallmark of your administration. You&#8217;ll increase whistleblower protections.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Big Brother will be banished. &#8220;(N)o more illegal wiretapping of American citizens,&#8221; you pledged.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>No more &#8220;spy(ing) on citizens who are not suspected of a crime.&#8221; No more privacy invasions.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>No more human and civil rights violations. &#8220;No more ignoring the law when it is inconvenient.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>No more extrajudicial operations. No more favoring monied interests over popular ones. No more wars for power and profit.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>No more less than treating everyone equitably and justly. No more defending the indefensible.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Arundhati Roy once called Tony Blair a &#8220;psychopath.&#8221; She described Bush the same way. She said you&#8217;re no different from them. And then some, this writer adds.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You did more to make America unfit to live in than any of your predecessors. You&#8217;ve waged political, economic and hot wars on humanity.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You threaten its survival. Your policies risk WW III. You&#8217;re unapologetic. Your rampaging continues.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Your waging multiple direct and proxy wars. You target all independent countries for regime change.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You&#8217;re waging war on Syria. You launched it. You killed tens of thousands. You bear full responsibility. You want a subservient pro-Western stooge replacing Assad.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You ravaged and destroyed Libya for the same purpose. You turned it into a charnel house. You&#8217;re doing the same thing to many other countries. Countless millions suffer horrifically on your watch.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Ukraine is your latest victim. Congratulations. You claimed another imperial trophy. As long as you can keep it.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>It&#8217;s at the expense of millions of Ukrainians deserving better. You want them marginalized, exploited, impoverished and denied fundamental freedoms.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You want Ukraine run by fascist extremists. You bought victory on the cheap. Keeping it is something else entirely.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Reports estimate you spent $5 &#8211; $10 billion transforming Ukraine from a democracy to a pro-Western fascist police state.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>It&#8217;s pocket change compared to multi-trillions waging war on Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria, and other countries below the radar.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You elevated anti-Semitic, hate-mongering, xenophobic, ultranational neo-Nazis to power.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You expressed support for their extremism. You called them &#8220;the voice of the people.&#8221; You blamed Ukraine&#8217;s legitimate government for their street crimes.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You endorsed usurpation of power. On Saturday, your<a href=\"http:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/the-press-office\/2014\/02\/22\/statement-press-secretary-ukraine\"><span> press secretary<\/span><\/a> lied, saying:<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>&#8220;We have consistently advocated a de-escalation of violence, constitutional change, a coalition government, and early elections, and today&#8217;s developments could move us closer to that goal.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Fact check: You planned violence. You initiated it. You stoked it. You funded it. You want total control over Ukrainian policy. You want ordinary Ukrainians having no say. &nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>&#8220;The unshakeable principle guiding events must be that the people of Ukraine determine their own future.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Fact check: You&#8217;ve gone all-out to prevent it. You stole their future. &nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>&#8220;We welcome constructive work in the Rada and continue to urge the prompt formation of a broad, technocratic government of national unity.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Fact check: Usurped Rada (parliament) authority has no legitimacy. It&#8217;s polar opposite real democracy.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You deplore it. You tolerate it nowhere. You deny Americans what they deserve. You operate the same way globally.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>&#8220;We welcome former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko&rsquo;s release from a prison hospital today, and we wish her a speedy recovery&#8230;&#8221;&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Fact check: She&#8217;s a criminal. She stole tens of millions of dollars. She did so at the expense of ordinary Ukrainians. She belongs in prison. Releasing her was lawless.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>&#8220;We continue to urge an end to violence by all sides and a focus on peaceful, democratic dialogue, working pursuant to Ukraine&rsquo;s constitution and through its institutions of government.&#8221; &nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Fact check: It bears repeating. You spent billions on violently toppling Ukraine&#8217;s legitimate government. You want pro-Western fascist extremism replacing it.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You got what you wanted so far. Keeping it may be something else entirely. The battle for Ukraine&#8217;s soul continues. It has miles to go. It&#8217;s outcome is very much undecided.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>&#8220;Going forward, we will work with our allies, with Russia, and with appropriate European and international organizations to support a strong, prosperous, unified, and democratic Ukraine.&#8221;&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>&#8220;&hellip;(T)he Ukrainian people should know that the United States deeply values our long-standing ties with Ukraine and will support them as they pursue a path of democracy and economic development.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Fact check: Ukrainian youths are ignorant. They&#8217;re mindless about what&#8217;s going on. They&#8217;re easily manipulated. For how long matters most.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Older Ukrainians aren&#8217;t stupid. They know how America operates. They know wherever it shows up, extreme violence and human misery follow.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>They reversed George Bush&#8217;s Orange Revolution. Don&#8217;t bet they won&#8217;t undo your 2.0 version. The battle for Ukraine&#8217;s soul just began.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Note: Anonymous Ukraine monitors what&#8217;s ongoing. It&#8217;s members are divided. Some are brainwashed by Western propaganda.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Others know their country is being colonized for plunder. They&#8217;ll fight it. They want no part of exploitive EU membership.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>They reject US meddling in Ukraine&#8217;s internal affairs. They oppose NATO membership. They deplore fascist extremists usurping power. They know your dirty hands are involved.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>They want peace and stability. They want Ukrainians deciding their own future. They want sovereign independence defended.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>They&#8217;ll be heard from going forward. They won&#8217;t stand by idly watching you wreck their country. They won&#8217;t &#8220;go gentle into that good night.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>&#8220;Operation Independence continues,&#8221; they said. &#8220;Expect us.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>One coup d&#8217;etat isn&#8217;t enough for you. You want another. You want Venezuela&#8217;s democratic government toppled.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You want Bolivarian social justice destroyed. You want Venezuela returned to its bad old days.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You bear full responsibility for street violence. You&#8217;re funding it. You&#8217;re directing it. You pull the strings.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Destabilization continues. CIA operatives are involved. So are State Department organizations.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Coup plotting is violent. Days of violence caused 10 deaths so far. Scores were injured. Your funded fascists are responsible.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Since 1999, you, Bush and Clinton spent billions of dollars targeting Venezuela for regime change. Bolivarianism survived everything done to destroy it.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>It&#8217;s resilient. It&#8217;s institutionalized. The vast majority of Venezuelans support it. They won&#8217;t tolerate your plot to steal what&#8217;s too important to lose. Or the Hemisphere&#8217;s most democratic country.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>They&#8217;ll fight to keep hard won gains. Victor Hugo once explained nothing stronger than &#8220;an idea whose time has come.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>It&#8217;s deep-rooted in Venezuela. It reflects Simon Bolivar&#8217;s vision. He wanted the imperial curse &#8220;to plague Latin America with misery in the name of liberty&#8221; ended.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>He wanted national resources distributed equitably and fairly. Chavez was his modern-day incarnation.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Chavismo reflects his commitment. Maduro carries his torch.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>The battle to preserve Bolivarian values continues. They won&#8217;t wane and die. Your dirty scheme is familiar.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You want Venezuela looking like America. You want police state viciousness replacing democracy. You want neoliberal harshness replacing Bolivarian fairness.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>You want what Venezuelans won&#8217;t tolerate. You want what they won&#8217;t let you get.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Maybe Americans will awaken to reality. Maybe they&#8217;ll react the same way. It&#8217;s their future. If they won&#8217;t protect it, no one will do it for them.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>It bears repeating what other articles said. Resist or perish. There&#8217;s no in-between. Spread the word. Tell others. We&#8217;re all in this together. Defeating your agenda is too important a fight to lose.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>His new book is titled &#8220;Banker Occupation: Waging Financial War on Humanity.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>http:\/\/www.claritypress.com\/LendmanII.html<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com.&nbsp;<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Listen to cutting-edge discussions with distinguished guests on the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>It airs Fridays at 10AM US Central time and Saturdays and Sundays at noon. All programs are archived for easy listening.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<p><\/p>\n<div>http:\/\/www.progressiveradionetwork.com\/the-progressive-news-hour<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1217,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[461],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-108548","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-editorials"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108548","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1217"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=108548"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108548\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=108548"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=108548"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rinf.com\/alt-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=108548"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}