Category Archives: Current Events

The Electric Universe Model and the Future of Cosmology By Ghada Chehade, PhD

14 Monday Feb 2022

Posted by in Current Events, Electric Universe, Science

≈ 2 Comments

PART I. 

Drawing on Thomas Kuhn’s paradigm shift framework, I’ve established that cosmology is presently in crisis and inevitably heading towards a revolution (or paradigm shift). When a scientific model reaches a crisis point—marked by mounting anomalies and contradictions that the model cannot resolve—then it can no longer serve as a reliable guide to problem-solving and will eventually be replaced by a different model.

This is the Model Revolution Stage of the Paradigm Shift Cycle. It begins with the emergence of a new model or models that speak a fundamentally different language, making the old and new models irreconcilable and incompatible: which means that they cannot coexist. Simply put, the main criteria for model revolution, is a new model, that speaks a fundamentally different language and is incompatible with the existing model.

To distinguish it from other uses of the word, for the purpose of this analysis, I use the word language to refer to “paradigmatic language,” by which I mean how a paradigm talks about and describes the things it observes in nature. A change in paradigm is ultimately a change of worldview (The Structure of Scientific Revolutions). So, are there presently any cosmological models that speak a fundamentally different paradigmatic language, with a different worldview?

In order to explore this question, we must first establish the lexicon of the Standard Model of Cosmology. To put a complex subject in admittedly reduced terms, I have distilled the Standard Model lexicon to the three following foundational concepts and assumptions (in order of significance):

  • Gravity—as the principal cosmological force
  • General Relativity—as defining and/or in relation to gravity 
  • The Big Bang—an expanding universe birthed by the big bang

These concepts are complementary and interdependent, while also engendering the majority of other concepts and hypotheses contained within the Standard Model, which exist to explain (often contradictory or anomalous) observational data related to one or more of these foundational assumptions. In other words, the paradigmatic language or lexicon of the Standard Model is premised on, and couched within, one or more of these foundational notions.

PART II. 

A Fundamentally Different Cosmology?

So, are there presently any alternative models that deviate from one or all of these foundational concepts and assumptions? Let’s look at what mainstream science has to say about alternative cosmologies. In the mainstream, alternatives are sometimes described as physics beyond the Standard Model (BSM). “Physics beyond the Standard Model (BSM) refers to the theoretical developments needed to explain the deficiencies of the Standard Model…”[i] According to mainstream scientists, “theories that lie beyond the Standard Model include various extensions of the standard model…and entirely novel explanations, such as string theory, M-theory, and extra dimensions….”[ii]

Examples of extensions include Eternal Inflation theory and the Oscillating model of the universe.[iii] I leave it to cosmologists and astrophysicists to explore the details of these hypotheses. For our purposes, what matters is that both of these theories rely on the Standard Model’s foundational assumption, and lexicon, about a big bang, and are, therefore, not sufficiently different. Even early big bang rivals such as Steady State Theory still rely on foundational assumptions and concepts–such as gravity as the sole driving-force of the universe as well as expansion. 

Another mainstream alternative is Modified Newtonian dynamics or MOND. MOND “is a hypothesis that proposes a modification of Newton’s law of universal gravitation to account for observed properties of galaxies.” Specifically, It is “an alternative to the hypothesis of dark matter in terms of explaining why galaxies do not appear to obey the currently understood laws of physics.”[iv] In other words, MOND (and its variants) are an attempt to address one of the many anomalies—and crises—of the Standard Model. 

While it is touted as an alternative that can eliminate the problems and anomalies created by the hypothesis of dark matter, MOND is still gravity-centric (and actually increases the galactic effects of gravity).[v] It also relies on many of the main assumptions and concepts of the Standard Model (with the obvious exception of dark matter). Thus, as is the case with the previously mentioned extensions, MOND is also not a viable alternative in the Kuhnian sense.

Overall, an extension to the Standard Model, by its very definition, could never be seen as containing a fundamentally different paradigmatic language. What’s more, while these extensions arose to address problems and deficiencies in the Standard Model, by further contributing to the complexity of the Model, they ultimately exacerbate the crisis in contemporary cosmology. Let us recall that, as noted in previous articles, increasing complexity is an indication of crisis. 

Moving on to the “entirely novel explanations” such as String Theory, M-theory and extra dimensions, the main thing worth nothing for our purposes is that these still treat gravity as the main driving-force in the universe. As such, they too cannot be seen as speaking a fundamentally different paradigmatic language, and do not qualify as serious theoretical considerations for a new model.

These are but a few examples of mainstream alternatives that exist. I leave it those more versed in the hard sciences to sift through and evaluate all of the possible add-ons and extensions to the Standard Model. As a critical discourse analyst working within the Kuhnian framework, I am primarily interested in identifying alternative models that meet the criteria for Model Revolution; ones that self-consciously and directly espouse a fundamentally different language, with a different view of the cosmos

The Electric Universe Model

One model that I am familiar with, and that also stands out for speaking a radically different language, is the Electric Universe Model of Cosmology (or EU Model for short). Proponents of this model self-consciously espouse an entirely different paradigmatic language. Let’s look at some examples in the words of its proponents.

In an introduction to an essay in The Secular Heretic by EU physicist and pioneer, Wal Thornhill, the magazine’s editors describe the EU Model as the science of the 21st century, telling its readers: “Set aside everything you think you know about all things great and small because the ideas presented” in the Electric Universe “overturn it all.”[vi] Referring to the EU Model’s take on the primary assumptions of the Standard Model, they note:

“Was there a big bang? Not likely. Einstein’s Relativity? Doesn’t hold up. Is the Sun a thermonuclear fusion reactor which will eventually run out of fuel and burn out? Nope. Are there black holes? No such thing. What about dark matter and dark energy? Forget about that nonsense and start learning about the science of the 21st century.”[vii]

Implied in this statement is the idea that the Electric Universe Model calls into question many of the foundational concepts and suppositions of Standard Cosmology. 

What about gravity? This is arguably the most important point of departure. 

For the EU Model, the universe’s nature cannot be explained by gravity alone. Moreover, according to Wal Thornhill, “unlike the Standard Model, the EU Model has a physical model for gravity as a manifestation of the electric dipole force.” In the Standard Model, gravity is the fundamental organizing force in the Universe. On the macro scale, the Universe is dominated by gravity. But in the Electric Universe Model, “The Electric Force is the fundamental organising force at all scales.”[viii]  

According to EU proponents:  

“…the gravitational theorem…does not single-handedly provide all the answers required by physical science, particularly in deep space….gravitational theory struggles to explain many anomalies in observation….Today’s most vexing scientific anomalies point to an unexpected—at times dominating—role of the electric force.”[ix]

The EU Model does not deny the role of gravity in the universe. On the contrary, as its proponents explain:

“The Electric Universe concept emerged from the principles of empirical physical science as expressed by such pioneers as Galileo, Kepler and Newton…However, there is an important corollary to the gravitational theorem…”[xi] and that is the Electrical Force.  [xii]

Due to the hierarchical structure of the gravity-relativity-big bang lexicon that I identify at the beginning, if the first foundational concept—i.e., gravity as the organizing force in the universe—is compromised, then it stands to reason that the other two would also be called into question. If the Standard Model’s views on gravity as organizing force are wrong, then general relativity would be rendered irrelevant, and the big bang improbable. For instance, based on what the EU Model has to say about gravity, the question of a big bang becomes moot. According to Thornhill, “there was no big bang” and “we do not know the origins of the universe.” 

What about theories such as dark matter, dark energy, black holes, gravitational waves., etc.? While they are presented as declarative truths or foregone conclusions by mainstream science, EU advocates would caution that these concepts are physically undefined and remain ad hoc hypotheses.

Paradigmatic Traps

However, it is not likely that the Standard Model will easily let go of these, and other, foundational concepts. This is partly due to the fact that paradigmatic lexicons/foundational assumptions can trap scientists in a discursive prison that limits the way they can talk about—or even think about—what is observed. In a parading shift, the new paradigm typically understands the language of the old or existing model (but does not agree with it). The old paradigm, however, is restricted in its ability to understand—or even consider—the language of the new model. 

For example, because the Standard Model does not allow for cohesive electrical effects in space, they are limited to describing much of the interstellar medium as gas, whereas the EU Model describes it as plasma (not least because over 99 percent of the known universe is made up of electrically-charged plasma).[x] Standard Model scientists know what plasma is, but given their paradigmatic assumptions, they default to the language, and, therefore, the physical properties, of gas. 

For more on the differences between the Electric Universe Model and the Standard Model refer to The Electric Universe Heresy by Wallace Thornhill, and this recent video by Mel Acheson.

In exploring some of the most important differences between the two models, I do not claim to assert whether or not the EU Model is poised to replace the Standard Model. As Acheson and others have noted, the EU Model is still evolving and remains a work-in-progress. However, looking at the paradigm shift framework, one could not ask for a better example of a model that meets all of the requirements for the Model Revolution Stage, embodying what it means for a model to speak a fundamentally different language than—and be incompatible with—the dominant or existing model.

Moreover, as I have shown in previous work, the Electric Universe Model is also arguably less complex than the existing Standard Model, thereby satisfying part of Kuhn’s requirements for paradigm change. In this respect, the EU Model cannot be considered as an add-on or extension to the Standard Model. It is by the aforementioned measures, a fundamentally different cosmological paradigm. 

A Note on Worldview

Implied by the major differences between the Standard Model and the EU Model is a difference in worldview. As Wal Thornhill explains, Electric Universe proponents believe in a “resonantly connected universe,” which is “self-organising,” and where “entropy can decrease.” In the Electric Universe worldview,  “the whole is greater than the sum of the parts”. The universe is “consciousness-filled…” with “instantaneous information transfer via resonant connection.”[xiv]  Overall, the EU worldview highlights and emphasizes cosmic connectivity.

While the Standard Model does not have a formally articulated and expressed worldview, the Electric Universe infers from what the Standard Model says and, more importantly, what it is silent on, a worldview of  “disconnected, random, chaotic, unconscious, purposeless, ever-increasing entropy.”[xv] A worldview that is very much in contrast to its own.

Given these differences, Standard Model proponents and Electric Universe proponents are ultimately living in two different—and incompatible—worlds. 

As stated earlier, a paradigm shift or scientific revolution is ultimately a change of worldview for scientists. As noted in The Structure of Scientific Revolutions:

“Though the world does not change with a change of paradigm, the scientist afterword works in a different world….Rather than being an interpreter, the scientist who embraces a new paradigm is like the man wearing inverting lenses. Confronting the same constellation of objects as before, and knowing that he does so, he nevertheless finds them transformed…through and through…” (pp.121-122).

From this statement, we can conclude that a change of paradigm will ultimately upset the scientist’s worldview and field of study–turning them on their head. In light of this, let’s look at how proponents of the Standard Model have reacted to the Electric Universe.

Part III.

Mainstream Response to the EU Model

For a long time mainstream science and media responded as Kuhn’s work would suggest. Once Science becomes Institutionalized and entrenched, it tends to function like other dominant Institutions—such as Religion and Politics—in that it is dogmatic and unyielding to falsification and change or newness. For years, mainstream scientists have ignored, dismissed and/or mocked the Electric Universe Model. Some even going as far as to lump it in with absurd hypotheses held by “crackpots and a few fringe contrarians.” There are also claims that EU Model’s predictions are “in absurd conflict with observations of the big bang.”[xvii]

This is ironic given the Electric Universe’s claim of a history of accurate predictions. 

Examples include: 

  • That solar radiant energy is due largely to transmutation of elements in the electrically active solar plasma, which was confirmed by an independent SAFIRE experiment in 2019.
  • The electrical “flash” discharge preceding the impact of a copper projectile on Comet Tempel One
  • That the surface of Saturn’s moon Titan has distinctive lightning scars—called Lichtenberg patterns—with virtually no large craters. 
  • Successful predictions about what would be found at the heliopause
  • Successful predictions about the heat from Saturn’s north pole

These predictions, notwithstanding, it is not surprising that the Standard Model would dismiss the EU, especially given what Kuhn says about incommensurability. In the course of a paradigm shift, new ideas and assertions cannot be strictly compared to—or judged by—those of the old model, since the two models will have no common measure. From the perspective of my field, Critical Discourse Analysis, judging the EU Model by the existing Model’s standards and/or categorizing it as a model that is not to be taken seriously, are prime examples of how language is linked to power. 

In CDA, power is understood in broader symbolic terms, including the power to represent someone or something in a certain way. 

For CDA “language….is not simply a tool of communication, but a means by which people demonstrate their commitment, in one way or another, to certain ideologies”[xix] or dogmas. From the perspective of Critical Discourse Analysis, language is always about power and control, and is never arbitrary (Birch, 1991; Hall, 1981–cited in “A critical discourse analysis of power and ideology,” 2011).

With respect to science, those working in a model that is as deeply entrenched and as heavily funded as the current Standard Model, ultimately have the power to define and control the very discourse around cosmology—including what is considered acceptable and not acceptable. Given the careers and funding at stake, and given the power it has to define and shape the discourse, it is not surprising that mainstream science and cosmology would dismiss or mock any truly alternative model that threatens or undermines it. 

Once this becomes the official discourse on cosmology—i.e., that the Standard Model is acceptable and alternative models that deviate from it are unacceptable—it functions as a form of neuro-linguistic programming, that signals to the broader population how they should think about cosmology.

Ironically, however, it is the very resistance to new ideas that eventually forces Institutionalized Science to change. By resisting novelty, normal science (or dominant science) prepares the way for its own change, not least because crises left unresolved eventually force individuals—including scientists working within the existing model—to look elsewhere for new and better answers or explanations.

It must be stressed that this entails fully abandoning the existing, broken model. For Kuhn, new models demand the destruction of the old paradigm. In a scientific revolution, the new paradigm does not simply revise—or extend and add on to—the old paradigm, it replaces it.

While mainstream science has typically ignored and/or dismissed the Electric Universe Model, more recently, there has been what I describe as “electric universe adjacent” language in the mainstream. 

Examples include the following titles: 

From the titles alone, we can see that this language is different and uncharacteristic from what’s been typically reported by the mainstream in the past; and appears to be more closely aligned with the discourse of electromagnetism. 

One title even mentions filaments. And While two of the titles deal exclusively with magnetism, according to the EU Model, it is meaningless to talk about magnetism without also considering the Electric Force.

What might this recent change in mainstream discourse foretell? 

While it is too early to say for sure, one possibility is that more advanced technology (with more sophisticated probes) will make it increasingly impossible to deny the role of electricity in space. Something the EU Model has long claimed.

Wal Thornhill notes that “the Electric Universe paradigm has an unparalleled record of successful predictions in the space age.” He expects that this will continue; and that images and findings from the new James Webb Space Telescope will further support the predictions of the Electric Universe. 

Given the recent additions to their lexicon, could proponents of the Standard Model be preparing or attempting to get ahead the curve, and make room in their discourse for electromagnetism, and cosmic electrical forces; while maintaining their authority. 

In other words, could they be preparing to include electricity as an add-on or extension. Will we suddenly be reading about E-Gravity, for instance.

Kuhn’s paradigm shift framework, and everything discussed so far, clearly demonstrate that this is not sustainable in the long-run. Mixing incommensurate models—with fundamentally different paradigmatic languages—would only hurt science and could not be considered a true paradigm shift or scientific revolution. 

Due to their fundamental differences, the Electric Universe Model and the Standard Model cannot co-exist in the same paradigm. They are too different. As Mel Acheson aptly maintains, trying to add the Electric Universe as an extension to the Standard Model would simply muddy the waters. 

Given everything we know about the paradigm shift process (including our clearly articulated criteria for a Model Revolution stage), we must conclude that the future of cosmology cannot, and will not, be an ad hoc revision to the Standard Model. On the contrary, due to the very nature and definition of a scientific revolution, the only way forward is a truly alternative cosmological model, with a radically different paradigmatic language and worldview

Could this be the Electric Universe Model of Cosmology?

Time Will Tell…

Notes

[i] https://hep.info.yorku.ca/beyond-the-standard-model/

[ii] https://en-academic.com/dic.nsf/enwiki/11813627

[iii]  https://www.space.com/24781-big-bang-theory-alternatives-infographic.html

[iv] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modified_Newtonian_dynamics

[v] See Ibid. 

[vi] https://thesecularheretic.com/the-electric-universe-heresy/

[vii] Ibid. 

[viii] As cited in a chart created and provided by Wallace Thornhill, February 2022.  

[ix] https://www.thunderbolts.info/wp/2013/11/28/common-misconception-5-what-about-gravity/

[x] See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uzw6s4nbTZA&feature=emb_logo

[xi] https://www.thunderbolts.info/wp/2013/11/28/common-misconception-5-what-about-gravity/

[xii] As cited in a chart created and provided by Wallace Thornhill, February 2022.  

[xiii] Ibid. 

[xiv] Ibid. 

[xv] Ibid.

[xvi] See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ap0nxgg9Ws

[xvii] See https://www.forbes.com/sites/startswithabang/2021/05/06/why-isnt-anyone-seriously-challenging-the-big-bang/?sh=2275dfa1689f

[xviii] https://www.grin.com/document/350636

[xix] Ibid. 

[xx] https://www.thunderbolts.info/wp/2021/06/26/not-if-but-when-cosmology-in-crisis-the-coming-paradigm-shift-part-3/

[xxi] See https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=95&v=9brYReflH3A&feature=emb_titl

Copyright © 2022 Ghada Chehade. All content in this article is the sole property of the author and can only be reproduced with the expressed permission of the author, Ghada Chehade.

On the Need for Balance In All Things

05 Tuesday May 2020

Posted by in Current Events, Political Economy, Society

≈ 2 Comments

balance

We live in a world and era that is very much out of balance. Imbalance causes problems and suffering. Balance is not some new age or airy fairy concept, it is the natural and proper state of all things in the universe. We need balance in all things, those within and those without, those big and those small. We need balance in the natural world and the man made world; balance in our societies and balance in our own bodies.

When things are out of balance, they cannot function properly–be it a plant, a human body, or a society. If farm plants do not get the right balance of everything they need to grow, bear fruit and be healthy, then they will not be properly optimized (i.e., they will be out of balance) for consumption and nutrition, in turn putting those that consume them out of balance. If the air has too much pollution, then there will not be enough clean oxygen for us to breathe, negatively impacting our lungs and our ability to live and breathe (literally) in health and balance. If society has too much poverty, misery and suffering, it will fall out of balance.

Some may believe that the social or man-made world does not require balance in the same way the natural world or human body does. That is not true. The social requires just as much balance, if not more so. Jean-Paul Sartre said that no man is an island. Whether we like it or not, we share this planet with billions of other human beings. Think of it like being on a ship full of people. If the majority of individuals are at the end or back of the ship, the ship’s weight will not be equally distrusted—it will be off balance—and it will tip and sink. Have you ever been on an airplane and asked to change seats, only to have a flight attendant tell you okay, but you have to sit on this or that particular side because the weight has to be equally balanced or distributed. Why do you think they say that? Because if the weight is not properly distributed the plane could go down; just like that ship. The weight on the plane does not have to be completely equally distributed. But too much on one end, and not enough on the other, and the plane could go down. And no one on board wants that; not the people in first class or the people in coach. Everyone is on that plane together, and if it goes down, they all go down; no matter which seat or section or class one is seated in.

The same is true of the social or man-made world. But the elites (what many refer to as the 1 percent) of today—and probably throughout history—fail to realize this reality. While you can gate yourself off from the riff raff and build entire walls and cities exclusively for the those at the very top, eventually what happens at the bottom will impact those at the top. To illustrate this point let’s use the notion of the body politic, but in a different manner than it has traditionally been employed. The body politic is a medieval metaphor that likens a nation to a corporation, with a corporation being understood as a group of people acting as a single entity. This concept is often used in discussions of nations or nation states and the authority or sovereignty of monarchs and leaders (as the head of the corporation or body politic).

For our discussion, I use that term to connote that a society or nation, collectively, make up one body, with members of that society making up the different parts of the body. While the rich and powerful may be the head or at the top of that body, if the other, “lower” parts of the body become diseased or dysfunctional it will eventually impact the head or those on top. This means that if there is too much disparity—especially of income and resources—and the “lower” parts become so impoverished that they cannot function in a reasonably healthily, and dignified, manner, this will eventually affect and infect the entire body. In other words, if the society is too unbalanced–with respect to wealth, resources, power, means, access to employment, health care–this disparity will eventually impact the whole body, including those at the very top.

Now, it does not have to be completely equal or even. It is inevitable that some will have more and others will have less. But when a very small minority have everything and the majority can barely survive—and if that minority creates, perpetuates, or exploits and feeds off of the suffering of the majority—then we are grossly off balance and have a serious problem. We end up with a body politic with diseased limbs, and a head that often exploits or creates those diseases in the first place. This is a foolish and destructive state of being, not least because what happens to the lower body parts will eventually impact the head. While the head may benefit for a while from the suffering of the other parts, in reality, a diseased or neglected limb will eventually infect the entire body. If not treated, the outcome is eventual death.

Capitalism in its present form is a socio-economic system that would rather chop off its diseased limbs and hobble itself than feed and nourish those limbs to prevent disease in the first place. It is a system that believes it profits from the malnourishment and suffering of those limbs. And in the short term it does profit; financially that is. But remember that unbalanced ship. Eventually even those at the very front of the ship—the monopoly capitalists, the bankers, the multinational corporations, the complicit governments and political leaders—will be impacted by a ship of poor integrity. When a ship with too many holes begins to sink, it will not matter what class or section one is seated in. We will all go down.

If the present Corona virus situation, and the economic fallout from it, has shown us anything, it is that many people in western society are overburdened with debt. Very few households have enough savings to get them through a couple months without work, let alone a year or more. While we are reluctant to talk about it, especially in the mainstream media, the old notion of work and employment (with regular paycheques, medical benefits and pensions) is becoming a thing of the past, and has been for years. In the era of economic globalization the reality of the workforce is one of diminished traditional employment. This manifests as either outright unemployment or underemployment. Examples of underemployment are freelance work, contract work, “gigging” or being forced to participate in the sharing economy. These terms are euphemisms for the reality of growing economic crisis and reduced economic security. The reality is that access to stable and well-paying work and income has been decreasing since the 1980s while the cost of living has only gone up. To fill in the gaps in their income, many households have had to rely on increasing debt and credit card usage just to get by. And when, suddenly, what little work and income these underemployed people do have is halted due to a virus, there is no way to service debts; not to mention, pay for rent, mortgages and food.

Basically people: The ship is sinking. The economic disparity and the uneven distribution of wealth and resources has come home to roost. Now, those on top (the bankers, etc.) will likely benefit from this dire situation in the short term. They may reduce interest rates or allow for the deferral of debt payments, mortgages, etc.–ultimately creating greater profits for themselves as individuals, businesses and governments borrow more money and go further into debt. However, with no one working and no one able to service those debts, eventually, it will all crash and burn.

A debt economy is unsustainable. It was unsustainable and unrealistic from the very beginning, but no one was willing to admit it. Not the individual that wants to live beyond their means by relying on credit. Or the individual that is forced to live on credit because they have far too little means to begin with. Or the bankers that get mega rich by keeping everyone in debt, with individuals paying back fake money (i.e., money that banks create as a credit card balance by entering numbers into a computer screen) with real money (i.e., the real interest one has to pay to use that fake money). Or the capitalist/banker/corporate-allied politicians who can stave off politico-economic uprising as long as the population is able to eat and survive by using credit and borrowing money.

The culture of debt has allowed us to ignore how unbalanced and desperate the economic situation actually is. It is a house of cards that we all patriciate in and all help to prop up, and with one ‘global pandemic’ it may all come crumbling down. Whether we will be better or worse off for it—whether the leaders and the mega-rich will use the virus situation to make politico-economic life more austere and more draconian, or whether humanity will find a way to prevent that and come together in an unprecedented form of collective living and cooperation—remains to be seen. A realist would say it will surely change for the worst; the system always finds a way to profit from disaster and come out on top. While others might say that the paradigm as we know it is shifting, and a new socio-economic paradigm is inevitable.

What that paradigm could look like, and if it is even possible, is a topic for another day…

The truth hurts, literally: On the fate of Julian Assange

26 Tuesday Nov 2019

Posted by in Current Events, Geopolitics, Politics

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File photo dated 11/04/19 of Julian Assange who is expected to appear in person in court today, as his extradition case continues. PA Photo. Issue date: Monday October 21, 2019. Assange, 48, is due in the dock at Westminster Magistrates' Court for a case management hearing relating to his extradition to the United States over allegations that he conspired to break into a classified Pentagon computer. See PA story COURTS Assange. Photo credit should read: Victoria Jones/PA Wire

This is the second time I am breaking the sites’ hiatus. And for the second time, it is to comment briefly on Julian Assange. With reports coming out that he is in such poor health that he could die while in detention at a high-security prison in the UK, where he is awaiting extradition to the US following his betrayal by the newly elected president of Ecuador—or should I say newly installed, in order to carry out the west’s bidding, a large part of that being to turn Assange over to the west—two things come to mind: First, they’re planning on killing this poor man and blaming it on his ailing health and are preparing us for his “sudden death behind bars” by reporting on his health now (It is reminiscent of Epstein. Though Epstein was a sinner, not a saint). The sudden wide reporting on Assange’s poor health across all mainstream media outlets is very likely a preamble that will be used to whitewash his death (and more importantly, his cause of death) when and if it happens.

I don’t doubt that Assange is doing very poorly and ailing, his own people are saying it. But this is most likely the result of torture and illegal treatment. This brings me to the second thought that came to mind: If they don’t kill him outright, they are at the very least torturing this brave soul, and psychological and physical torture are probably the cause of his ailing health. I very much hope that I am wrong about these observations (especially about plans to kill him). But if either are true, or become true in the near future, we should remember that the mainstream media was seeding the story of his imminent demise for days or weeks, and this is likely being done in order to whitewash his murder or death later on; and pin it (or spin it) on his failing health.

Overall, it is a sad day for anyone that values truth and respects those individuals that are brave enough to pursue and spread it (Assange helped exposed certain truths about US actions in Iraq and Guantánamo Bay). For Julian Assange, his commitment to truth is hurting him in ways that we should all be concerned about. Dead men (or severely tortured and destroyed men) tell no tales. In addition, in the case of Assange, death may be the price he will pay for alluding unjust capture and detention all these years. I hope that Assange does not suffer this fate, though he is presently suffering nonetheless. While those that care about him, believe in him, appreciate him and/or support him (or his work) suffer on a different level by not being able to help him. Such is the sad state of our so called western democracies and our ‘just’ international laws.

 

Julian Assange Arrested in UK: Plans for Extradition to the US

11 Thursday Apr 2019

Posted by in Current Events, Politics

≈ 1 Comment

assange.jpg

I am breaking the hiatus of this blog to say a few quick words about today’s arrest of Julian Assange by British authorities. After seven long years of asylum, it appears that Ecuador’s (relatively new) government has sold out the famed whistle blower. According to the RT news site, Assange has been arrested for “extradition to the United States” for publishing Wikileaks. Whatever one may think of Assange, this is a sad day. In the end, Assange is being handed over to the US for leaking something that was true.

As RT reports elsewhere, “The whistleblower garnered massive international attention in 2010 when WikiLeaks released classified US military footage, entitled ‘Collateral Murder’, of a US Apache helicopter gunship opening fire on a number of people, killing 12 including two Reuters staff, and injuring two children.” RT continues, “the footage, as well as US war logs from Iraq and Afghanistan and more than 200,000 diplomatic cables, were leaked to the site by US Army soldier Chelsea Manning.” Manning “was tried by a US tribunal and sentenced to 35 years in jail for disclosing the materials.”

The leaked footage was not a work of fiction, nor was it fake news. It is an incident that actually happened; it is the truth. Essentially, Assange has been hunted for years, and is today being arrested in the UK and will be handed over to the US, for leaking the truth. What does it say about the world we live in, and the so-called ‘freedom of the press’ the west pride’s itself on; when those that dare tell the truth or spread the truth or leak the truth are hunted like dogs?

The situation is unfolding. Check back for updates.

 

The Game

29 Saturday Sep 2018

Posted by in Current Events, Poetry, Society

≈ 2 Comments

I know you feel it. I know you all feel it:
This world is broken; we are broken

 
We walk around and pretend, but our smiles are just tokens
Paper masks that hide a fear, too deep, to be spoken

 
A fear that life may pass us by while we play by this system’s rules
A fear that we failed to even try for fear of looking like damn fools

 
It’s a game, it’s a game; it’s all just a game
And this game is really fear, to use another name

 
Instead of being human and being open, we disconnect and play it cool
Instead of love and raw emotion, we stay divided and we act cruel

 
It’s a game, it’s a game; it’s all just a game.
And this game is just the system, to use another name

 
This system has us running around
Like. Empty. Human. Shells.

Too asleep to resist it
And buying everything it sells

 
But can’t you see the bigger picture
Don’t you see the wider trap?

It’s just a ruse to make us feel empty
So we’ll fill the void with material scraps

 
But material objects can’t fill the void
It’s just our money and soul they sap

 
For it’s a game, it’s a game; it’s all just a game
And this game is just the rat race, to use another name

 
It’s a race to the bottom
A race to the end

 
We’re isolated and we feel lonely
Despite a million Facebook friends

 
For it’s a game, it’s a game; it’s all just a game

 
“Modern man”, and modern worlds
Obsessed with modern gadgets
These “modern girls”

 
Why not simplify
This “modern world”

 
For it’s a game, it’s a game; it’s all just a game
And this game is social indoctrination, to use another name
And the result is human commodification, total enslavement; such a shame

 
We’re a humanity in crisis
A society in decline

 
But the crux of the crisis, is that the decline is by design

 
For it’s a game, it’s a game
And that’s the essence of the game

 

 

© 2018

 

 

 

 

The Minority

14 Tuesday Aug 2018

Posted by in Current Events, Poetry, Society

≈ Leave a comment

This white man is not my enemy
No, this white man hasn’t done shit to me

Let’s talk about the E-C-O-N-O-M-Y
That’s the real issue here

Don’t. You. See.

It’s not just about race,
but economic d-i-s-p-a-r-i-t-y

Most white men today are suffering just like me

You see, the problem aint with the majority
But a tiny little minority:

The Uber Wealthy Authority
That enslave us through financial s-u-p-e-r-i-o-r-i-t-y

Black and brown do have it worse

But economic suffering is a global curse
Orchestrated by and for the globalists’ purse

And when we turn on each other
We. Make. The. Situation. Worse

For divide and conquer is an age old trick

It makes the majority weaker
And the rich more slick

Able to stop us from seeing our common plight
And prevent us from waging a common fight…

Against the ones with all the Authority:
That. Uber. Wealthy. Minority.

 

 

© 2018

Author’s Note: The white man I refer to in this poem is the everyday man on the street. The working class (or unemployed) man that is struggling to pay his bills and survive. While he may not be racially profiled while driving or shopping, he is not privileged in my mind—since privilege is largely tied to wealth.

ps: I’m a brown woman and a former/”old school” leftie (i.e. traditional anti-Empire Left not the new identity politics fake left). If you like this poem you may also like this article.

 

 

 

 

 

Will the Mainstream Media EVER Talk About Economic Issues?

30 Thursday Nov 2017

Posted by in Current Events, Society

≈ 1 Comment

raial harmonyI was recently in New York City and observed many things that seemed to contradict the state of US social relations as depicted by the mainstream media. Watching US news media from Canada, one gets the impression that there is overwhelming racial tension in that country. As someone that is aware and critical of the divide and conquer schemes of the establishment, and as someone that does not buy into identity politics, I know that race is often used as a distraction, so I was not the least bit surprised to find Blacks and Whites and Latinos peacefully and jovially co-existing. I spent ten days in Bed Stuy Brooklyn, a gentrifying neighborhood made up of predominately Black and Latino communities with a growing influx of white residents. While gentrification creates a host of problems, not least of which is oppressive rent, with respect to “race relations” I did not witness any outward hostility or violence between the different races. And this was the same everywhere I went in Brooklyn or Manhattan as well as on planes, subways and in airports. Everywhere I looked, people of different races and ethnicities were getting along, and gasp, even helping one another out. While I am aware that there is racial tension in the US, it was not overwhelmingly apparent, at least not on the surface (and I say this as a brown person).

AP Counting the HomelessWhat was undeniably palpable, however, is something the MSM never talks about: the massive economic disparity in cities like NYC. If there is a glaring and unavoidable tension, it is between the classes not the races. Yes, “class,” that five letter word that no one in the west is willing to address. Everywhere I went in NYC, class was painfully apparent. The gap between the haves and have-nots was wide and oppressive. On the subway I saw the anguish of working class and poor people, those who are struggling just to get by. The struggle was written all over their tired and forlorn faces. And in Soho, Wall Street and—of course—Park Avenue I saw immense wealth; much of it built on the backs of those folks I saw on the subway. People who say that class does not exist in America are either blind or lying or both. So why does the media not talk about class, economic despair and economic disparity? Why is there an endless focus on  race, when the larger issue—the issue that affects the majority of people regardless of race and ethnicity—is class and increasing unemployment and underemployment.

Could race and identity politics be a distraction for the larger issues of class and economic inequality? And what about the current media focus on sexual assault and harassment in Hollywood. While these issues are very important, I can’t help but wonder: “Why now?” In the US, the media-especially the entertainment media—are part of the Hollywood ecosystem and are privy to all of its dirty little secrets. This means that the media has long known that sexual harassment is prevalent in Hollywood. So why only report on it now? Why have the media been silent on a very real and serious issue for decades only to overwhelm and bombard us with it now. Whenever the media goes full force on a story I can’t help but think that it is using that story as subterfuge and distraction from something else. What is it we are not suppose to be thinking about right now– the failed western agenda in Syria, the increasingly failed economy, increased unemployment, crippling debt, etc, etc?

It is interesting to note that while Trump got elected by exploiting every day people’s concerns and frustrations over the economy and jobs, etc. (I say exploited because he has failed to actually address any of these issues since taking office), the media refuses to address any of these issues one year into his tenure and instead focuses on race and, more recently, sexual assault in the media and entertainment world.

While sexual harassment and sexual assault are very serious issues, it is likely that the MSM have long known about sexual abuse in Hollywood—since they swim in the same professional and social sea—and chose to remain quiet. So when the media come out like a loud speaker on the issue, one has to ask: why now and what is it distracting us from?

Just some food for thought..

As a Muslim Woman in Canada, I Understand Quebec’s Burqa Law

20 Friday Oct 2017

Posted by in Current Events, Politics

≈ 6 Comments

burqa

The recent law passed by the Quebec government, known as Bill 62-the “religious neutrality law,” will require women to remove their burqa or niqab (meaning face covering in Arabic) while giving or receiving public services such as getting on a bus or taking a book out of the library. The controversial law is getting a lot of attention and criticism. As a Muslim woman living in Canada I feel compelled to weigh in, not least because I can say things that non-Muslims may be too afraid to say.

I should note that I am secular; and am not a practicing Muslim. However, I come from a very religiously observant family, and with the exception of myself and my sister and a few cousins, all of the women in my family and extended families wear the hijab (head covering). And three of them wear the burqa. The women that wear the burqa live in Egypt, and when they adopted the practice of face covering, many in my family—the hijabi women included—thought that it was too extreme. While my family members are devout and practicing Muslims, the majority of them find the burqa (or niqab) unnecessary. Indeed when my mother worked and lived in Saudi Arabia decades ago, she defied social customs, and the law, and refused to wear it.

All this is to say that, the niqab—or face covering—is something that many Muslims consider to be off-putting and wholly unnecessary. So if it is too extreme for the streets of Cairo or Beruit then it is definitely too extreme for the west. Now before you go accusing me of Islamophobia, let me remind you that I am Muslim and, more importantly, that the Quran—the Islamic holy book—does not call for women to cover their face. In fact, there is even debate among some Islamic scholars about whether or not the hijab or head veil is mandated in the Quran, with some arguing that the Quran only explicitly mandates modest dress and the covering of the bosom [1]. I am not an expert on Islam, far from it. There is much literature that explores these issues, especially the burqa or face covering, and I urge readers—Muslim and non-Muslim—to do their own research.

With respect to the buqa, it is widely held that the practice is not mandated in the Quran—nor is the word mentioned—but instead grew out of hadith, a collection of traditions based on the daily life and practices of the prophet Muhammad. As Chris Moore explains, most followers of these “traditions” know little of their origins or authenticity.[2] Moreover, Moore points out that “for the thousands of traditions attributed to the Prophet only one bears notable credibility:

‘Do not write down anything I say except the Quran. Whoever has written something other than Quran let him destroy it.’” [3]

This implies that hadiths are not something Muslims should base their religious practices on. The practice of face covering comes largely from Wahhabi Saudi Arabia. Wahhabism is a strict and archaic Muslim sect founded by Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab (1703–92). It advocates a “return” to the early Islam of the Quran, rejecting later innovations. But there are many that argue that Wahhabism—which spread to many parts of the Middle East following the Saudi-US oil alliance of the late 1970s—is not a return to literal or early Islam but rather a complete contradiction of it or movement away from it [4]; meaning Wahhabism is not Islamic at all. In this respect, much like the practice of the burqa, Wahhabism should have no authority over the lives of Muslims.

Once upon a time, when Wahhabism far less influenced the Arab and Muslim world, Arab leaders, such as Egypt’s Gamal Abdel Nasser, were opposed to publicly mandating even the hijab (see the video below). Nasser believed that religious practices were a private matter and not a public obligation.

To date, most Muslim countries do not force women to wear neither the hijab nor the niqab, with Saudi Arabia being a notable exception on the latter. So why are western governments in countries that are secular and do not have a Muslim majority not allowed to regulate something as extreme and culturally incompatible as the burqa.

To argue that the burqa is necessary in Canada in order to ensure religious rights and freedoms is ultimately fallacious given that the burqa is not actually mandated by Islam. Like many things, the growing popularity of the burqa among Muslims over the last few decades can be attributed to politics, not religion. As I argue elsewhere, the massive oil alliance that was formed between the United States and Saudi Arabia after the oil embargo of 1973 led to religious radicalization in the Middle East. In exchange for Saudi Arabia only accepting US dollars for oil, giving the US and its currency global economic hegemony, the US allowed and (indirectly) helped the Saudis to spread Wahhabism and radical Sunni Islam across the Middle East for political ends.

Bolstered by its alliance with the US, Saudi Arabia has been able to promote Wahhabi extremism in the region. The Kingdom has spent millions and billions of dollars propping up Islamist movements and Islamist groups in the Arab world. Among many other things–such as increased terrorism in the region–the spread of Wahhabi political Islam has led to an increase in burqa wearing. Understood in its proper political and geopolitical context, the increased “popularity” of the burqa is as much political as it is religious; if not more so, given that the burqa is not mandated by Islam and the Quran.

But even if the Quran did mandate the burqa, I believe that a secular country such as Canada should be allowed to regulate expressions of extreme public religiosity, especially when matters of identity or public safety are concerned. While many Canadians are likely too afraid to say so in the current overly sensitive and rabidly politically correct culture, I suspect that a great many feel uneasy about the burqa. While most people may have no issue with a woman covering her hair (hijab), the complete draping of face and body in all black is a menacing and eerie sight that even makes me uncomfortable as an immigrant [5] from the Muslim world. This is something I tell my own burqa-wearing cousins every time I visit family over seas.

It is just too much for present-day urban society, whether in Canada or the Middle East. And what it connotes about women is very problematic. While it may be intended to reduce the sexual objectification of women, the burqa results in a different type of objectification altogether, for a faceless human being all in black garb, becomes little more than a moving object in black. For me, and I suspect for a great many others, the burqa is at once both dehumanizing and objectifying.

I feel the exact same way—though for opposite reasons—about overly exposed flesh, such as the ever-shrinking shorts some women wear that essentially reveal the entire lower buttocks. As I write elsewhere, while on the surface burqas and exposed butt cheeks are polar opposites, what they share in common is that they are both just too much for day-to-day life. Moreover, while the former may seem oppressive to women and the latter a sign of female liberation, I feel that both ultimately serve to overly objectify women, reducing them either to sinful bodies (and faces) to be covered up or sexual objects to be overly exposed. While they do so in opposite ways, by tending towards an extreme obsession or emphasis on the female form, both end up reducing women to the physical. In the end, both do not lend themselves to any form of moderation.

So before we enter into reactionary debates over the burqa in Canada, let us take pause and consider all of the above, especially the (western allied) political agenda of Islamic radicalization.

 

 

Notes

[1]http://www.irfi.org/articles/articles_1451_1500/burka_not_mandated_in_the_quran.htm

http://www.quran-islam.org/articles/part_3/the_burqa_(P1357).html

[2] http://www.quran-islam.org/articles/part_3/the_burqa_(P1357).html

[3] Cited in [2]. Taken from: Ahmed Ibn Hanbal, Vol. 1, page 171 also Sahih Muslim, Book 42, Number 7147.

[4] http://www.ahl-alquran.com/English/show_article.php?main_id=6308

[5[ My parents immigrated to Canada when I was two years old.

 

 

 

 

 

Follow Up On My Critique of Liberal Western Feminism

31 Monday Jul 2017

Posted by in Current Events, Society

≈ Leave a comment

This is a long over due follow up to my March 8 article, “We Need to Talk About Women: The Problem With Western Liberal Feminists”. In today’s post I will address some of the comments, questions and feedback that that article garnered. The main reason I decided to write this follow up piece is because, following the March 8 article on western liberal feminism, I received messages from young women who had shared that article on social media and received a lot of flack (mainly from other young women) over it. Today’s article is dedicated to the young women that bravely shared my article.

As a side note, the fact that some women were bullied for sharing that article, which was unabashedly critical of so called modern day feminism (what I describe as pro-establishment, liberal corporate  feminism) demonstrates just how intolerant and hypersensitive some of today’s politically correct Millennials are. But I digress. Back to the point at hand: Today’s piece addresses some of the concerns and criticisms that my March 8 critique of liberal, consumer feminism generated.

  1. The Article Bashes International Women’s Day

While the March 8 article was published on International Women’s Day, it was indeed not about International Women’s Day. The intention of the article was to make a statement about a certain segment of the female population in the west (liberal, consumer feminists), within the context of a broader critical analysis of identity politics. I chose to make that statement on international women’s day because it is a day where there is dialogue on women. Moreover, despite its title, the larger focus of the March 8 article is the critical analysis of identity politics. That is something I have been writing about for many years.

  1. The Article is Anti-Women

I was not going to reply to this one given its absurdity. But here it goes, anyway. First of all, I am a woman and I love being a woman; I revel in it. I am feminine or “girly” in my appearance, not that this is all there is to being a woman, and I am physically, mentally, and spiritually (in reference to the female essence, so to speak), in tune with and entangled with my femininity/femaleness. If I could be born a million times over, I would not choose to be a man instead of a woman. Well that’s not true, if I actually could be born a million times I would probably want to be a million different things—from an ameba to a giant tortoise and everything in between (including a man)—in order to have a million different experiences of existence. But in this one life that I have, I have never wished to be anything other than a woman; I love being a woman and cherish the experience thus far.

But these are all personal things. With respect to the non-personal stuff and to what people imply when they say that an individual is anti-women for writing a criticism of liberal, consumer feminists, I want to stress that being critical of a very particular segment of the female population does not make someone anti-women; it simply makes them critical. News Flash: As a social critic and writer, critical reflection and commentary is what I do. Writers are supposed to make critical observations about the world around them. And readers are allowed and encouraged to critically respond to those observations. Readers are free to disagree with my and any writer’s opinion; it is okay and it is healthy and necessary for society. Public debate and dialogue is a good and welcome thing. But today’s politically correct youth and “social justice warriors” have become so thin skinned and so anti-intellectual that they interpret any form of critical thought, opinion, analysis or commentary as “hate speech.” This is worrisome.

Nowhere in the March 8 article did I generalize about all women. On the contrary, I explicitly state that I am referring to a particular segment of the female population in the west—liberal, mainstream, consumer feminists (LMCFs). I was not singling out all feminists or all of feminism; indeed I explicitly differentiate between LMCF and other forms of feminism. And while I am not personally a feminist  (have not read feminist theory or literature, etc.), I venture to guess that some, if not many, traditional (i.e., first and second wave) feminists, socialist feminists, and third world feminists would also be critical of the type of ‘feminism’ I mention in the article.

What I critique in the March 8 article would not be considered traditional feminism (I do know enough about it to know the difference). I am talking about the co-opted, corporate, media hyped, establishment version of ‘feminism’ that we see in mainstream media culture today. A criticism of this version of ‘feminism’ is part of a much larger critique of identity politics, which, for me, is little more than a capitulation by and co-optation of the much of the traditional left en mass. Of course there are still people that are true to traditional feminism and traditional left politics, in general. In the article, I am referring to those women (and “new lefties”) that represent the co-opted, apolitical segment of the “new left”, or fake left, as it has come to be known by many.

Indeed I received positive feedback from politically minded women that identity as traditional (i.e., non liberal, non mainstream, non consumer) feminists. Here is a quote from one woman—reproduced here with her permission—that has been a feminist for almost fifty years. She linked to my March 8 article on her site, stating:

“Editor’s Note: …thank you to Ghada Chehade for so eloquently capturing my own thoughts on the subject…. I became a feminist in 1970, when Ms.Magazine printed its first, authentic edition. I followed up with the ubiquitous Feminine Mystique, The Second Sex, and The Female Eunuch, for starters. I wrote, spoke, and ran a consciousness-raising group and a local chapter of the National Organization for Women. I am appalled at the insouciance and the complete misappropriation of the terms “feminism” and “liberal” today by women who have both the means and plentiful opportunities to know better, and who have become the willing pawns of the ruling class’ classic divide-and-conquer games.

Pink hats? “Inclusive” and “Indivisible”?? Seriously?? So, all women’s genitals are pink on the outside?? And, how do your hats apply to the male “women” you claim to champion? Is a hat a serious or formidable weapon against oppression? Do you have any idea what real feminists – male and female – have gone through to achieve the level of parity you are currently crushing beneath your trivial hats, your layers of makeup, and your preoccupation with sexuality? Again, many thanks to Ms. Chehade for her work…”

I posted this quote not because I agree with everything in it (I happen to enjoy makeup now and then) but because it demonstrates that there are traditional, vanguard feminists that are deeply critical of what passes for feminism today. This is but one example. There are many other female voices out there that are deeply critical of both identity politics–and its apolitical obsession with personal and trivial matters–and liberal, consumer, corporate media-based feminism.

But I will not speak for these women. I am not an authority on feminism or women’s critiques of either feminism or identity politics. I will let these women speak for themselves. If one searches online and elsewhere there are numerous examples of such critiques. I suggest that individuals, male or female, that feel the need to bully or “shame” young women for reading and sharing articles such as mine, explore the numerous criticisms of modern day ‘feminism’ and identity politics–and how they have replaced political thought and action with an obsession over personal issues, personal feelings and personal image–by women from all walks of life.  Just some things to ponder…

 

 

Notes

Source for above quote: http://titaniclifeboatacademy.org/index.php/featured-articles/society/206-we-need-to-talk-about-women-the-problem-with-western-liberal-feminists#Editor

If You Can’t Take the Heat…. Bomb Syria: Trump Lifts Russian Collusion Heat By Bombing Russian Ally Syria?

08 Saturday Apr 2017

Posted by in Current Events, Geopolitics, Politics

≈ Leave a comment

trump-putin

As the saying goes, everyone has a breaking point. Apparently for Donald Trump, the threshold is paper-thin. He came in a like an anti-Washington policy cowboy, vowing to stand up to Washington, “make America great again,” and focus his attentions at home. He trashed those that came before him for wasting time and money and US soldiers on the Middle East. He urged former presidents not to bomb Syria no matter what the circumstances, alleged chemical weapons attacks included.

And yet, less than three months into his presidency, he does just that: bombs Syria over a conveniently timed and highly suspect chemical weapons attack. Really? Is that all it took? Did Trump really fall for the played out “Assad is gassing babies” meme? It’s doubtful. There is likely more than “gassed Syrian babies” at work here. Some claim that Trump was under immense pressure; that the unrelenting political and media attack against him, especially with respect to accusations of collusion with the Russians, was too much to bear. And perhaps it was. We do not know what was happening behind the scenes. Maybe he was being threatened with impeachment over supposed collaboration with Russia during the presidential election (a fabricated pretext). Maybe it was something worse?

Whatever was happening behind the scenes, it appears that Trump couldn’t take the heat. It took less than three months for Trump to diametrically change his tune on Syria. What better way to take the heat off of him, and show the world that he is not in bed with Russia, than to bomb Syria, Russia’s ally in the fight against western proxy war and US-sponsored terror groups (like ISIS and Al Qaeda) in Syria. Whatever his motives for caving and surrendering to the deep state, Trump’s actions are a line in the sand. There is no coming back from this– for him and for those that believed or hoped, even for a brief moment, that Trump would back up his cowboy pestering and stick to his guns on foreign policy in the Middle East.

There is no doubt that Trump benefits some how from his bombing of Syria. But what he has gained may pale in comparison to what he stands to lose or has already lost. Any geopolitical and foreign policy support he may have had from the “alt right” and the anti-imperialist left—not to be mistaken with the pro-war, fake left of the liberal progressive mainstream—is either completely obliterated or on very shaky ground.

What makes his bombing of Syria all the more mystifying is his earlier sentiments about not getting involved in the Middle East and not continuing Bush and Obama era follies in the region. It seems he doth protest too much.

He may have proven to the powers that be—and the mainstream media, which is hypocritically praising the man they loath for this recent act of war—that he is not in bed with Russia, but in doing so, he now appears to be precariously in bed with the deep state.

What this means going forward is anyone’s guess.