I agree. I need to read your piece in greater depth....but I wanted to share this because it supports what you are saying. Primaries are in Texas so I went to look up who votes how regarding Gaza. I found H.R. 876 Recognizing the genocide of the Palestinian people in Gaza. It's sponsored by Rep. Tlaib. Only 20 cosigners. 20. That's it. The hard core House progressives. No one else in the House could be bothered to admit that there is a genocide in Gaza! Just admit to it. It was written in November 2025 - when we all knew! I cried. I'm disgusted by our Congress. Only those 20 deserve to keep their job. The rest...I hope they realize the error of their ways.
As I’ve been saying, the rule of law no longer applies. Accountability requires participation. Complicity undermines responsibility. The co opting of Democratic principles into authoritarian despotism happened behind closed doors and velvet curtains. It’s been clear since the UN’s inception that laws without enforcement power were ineffectual, powerless. International law has officially arrived at anarchy. It’s taken exactly 25 years since 9/11 changed the rule book. Without reform, no system can stand the test of time. Universal human rights are no longer agreed upon or enforceable. Rest in pieces. They’ve been vaporized just like Israel does to its victims with impunity. Defund the military industrial complex. Smash the patriarchy. Revolution begins with each person deciding they’ve had enough. I’ve had enough. Unapologetic political radicalism and community based organization to bypass the system. 🆘🙈🙉🙊
I absolutely agree, but until the break is obvious to all, it’s more important than ever that we support the work that the Hind Rajab Foundation is doing to track down and bring Israeli criminals to justice is one that is vital in the effort to hold Israel accountable. Let us hope they will also turn their sights on the criminal leaders of the countries of the west who are co-perpetrators of these crimes.
The Maldives has banned them officially. From their government website: “Effective from 15th April 2025, entry to the Maldives will not be granted on Israeli passports.”
I agree, Shaun, but Gaza was the latest genocide where consequences did not apply. South Sudan, Myanmar, co-led the way. Cuba, Iran, Venezuela have been sanctioned to the point of starvation.
The whole idea of great powers acting without limit sucks.
Prime Minister Carney said it at Davos: "If you're not at the table, you're on the menu." We are all on the menu, we are all Gaza or Ukraine or Venezuela or Greenland or Cuba or Taiwan. So it's time we took a seat the the table.
I am not even a huge fan of Carney, but he is a pragmatist, and what he knows is that Canada is vulnerable in this new time we are in, so he went ahead and told the truth as he knows it.
Shaun, I swear your headlines sound like you are going off the deep end and yet, every. single. time. I read your columns I learn something new, I make connections I had never seen before, and I wonder why you aren't running for political office! Argh! I totally get why! We need your commentary and your keen eye. I am totally with you. Keep up your work and thank you for the closing statements of your passionate hope. I too refuse to give in to this evil. I refuse to accept it as inevitable. And yes, I know what we are up against. But the reality is there are more of us good folks out here than there are of the warmongers. Keep sounding the alarm! The world does not have to be this way. Humanity has the capability, if not the will, to push back and create a world that, in my religion says, "on earth as it is in heaven." Blessings!
I promise I still am the same old Shaun. But this is not where we are going, we are already here. There are no true international laws. It’s a free for all.
Except that if any of us try to act on our own moral center out of our own moral outrage oh boy, then let’s see the law come right back on us. We would be in chains before we even know we were mad. And today it’s several countries tomorrow it’s the world all over on fire. Do I just start praying for the God of creation to wipe it all out and admit it’s mistake and start all over again with birds and bees and salamanders. I want to disagree with myself, but I’m having trouble.
Well articulated and so, so true. We will definitely reap what we sow. What a world to leave to our kids and grandkids. All due to fear, to stand up for what is right. By remaining silent you've doomed all of us to an unimaginable, ugly world that won't go away any time soon.
Well said Shaun. International law and rules mean nothing if certain nations can violate them with impunity, doing whatever they want whenever they want with no consequences. And Gaza was what revealed this stark truth to the world, it's just truly shameful and tragic to know that so many have perished, and continue to suffer and perish, to prove this point.
Shuan, what you wrote captures exactly where we are right now standing in a world that feels like it’s shifting faster than we can process. It’s heartbreaking to realize how fragile the systems we trusted really were, and how openly they’re being abandoned. There’s a sadness in watching the rules fall away, not because they were perfect, but because they were at least something to hold onto.
It hurts to see how easily human life can be dismissed when power decides it can get away with anything. It hurts to watch suffering become normalized. And it hurts to recognize that the people who will pay the highest price are the ones who already had the least protection.
But even in that sadness, there’s a kind of clarity. When illusions fall, truth becomes sharper. And maybe that’s the part we can hold onto understanding the moment we’re in gives us the ability to respond with intention instead of despair.
I don’t think sadness means defeat. It means we’re still human enough to feel what’s wrong. And that’s the beginning of staying awake in a world that wants us numb.
Thank you, Shaun, because, we all need to realize the pain is ours to accept, to manage, to engage with, to involve our hearts and minds, to ACT....so that what bursts open is a gateway that has been waiting to be breached, the gateway to a new democracy with the power to engender a new world strategy. I believe that power is in the wind with democratic candidates many of whom have not been politicians, who have been a teacher, a Capitol Police Officer, a mother...people who are fighting for change! Those of us who are watching, need to enter the game, ensure that the change-makers are elected and that we partner with them to make radical changes in the way government works, here and abroad!
There's a book I read a while ago, Democracy Doesn't Exist, But We'll Miss It When It's Gone. It had a similar thesis - our democracy was imperfect, incomplete, needed work, but for all of that it was so much better than no democracy at all. We have lost so much.
The old way, Israel could pummel Gaza for several weeks, but eventually they had to quit. They could put the people on a diet, but couldn't completely starve them. They could steal Palestinian land in bits and dabs, but not massive amounts all at once.
And the cops could kill a few people and get away with it, but they couldn't shoot a VA nurse dead in the street while half a dozen people filmed it.
How does the quote go, the strong do what they will and the weak suffer what they must? Something like that.
Oh, and speaking of that quote, what the EU did to Greece since the '08 financial collapse was another example of the move towards greater brutality. It was similar to what they always did to countries in the global south, after a debt crisis, but this time they did it to one of their own, an EU member. And they were brutal - recently middle class Greeks had to take up dumpster diving. They haven't completely recovered. And after they got Greece to capitulate to international capital comepletely, right after that Greece, for some reason, coincidentally, stopped standing up for Palestine and bowed down before the Israelis.
Somehow I feel calm. It’s good to say it like it is. The constant whining about things being against international law made me anxious. Now we need to work out how we make a new world. Peace and love (thanks Ringo!)
Israel is a terrorist country , no better than Nazi Germany! The leaders are criminals with no conscience.Israel has lost its right to exist as a country.
I agree. I need to read your piece in greater depth....but I wanted to share this because it supports what you are saying. Primaries are in Texas so I went to look up who votes how regarding Gaza. I found H.R. 876 Recognizing the genocide of the Palestinian people in Gaza. It's sponsored by Rep. Tlaib. Only 20 cosigners. 20. That's it. The hard core House progressives. No one else in the House could be bothered to admit that there is a genocide in Gaza! Just admit to it. It was written in November 2025 - when we all knew! I cried. I'm disgusted by our Congress. Only those 20 deserve to keep their job. The rest...I hope they realize the error of their ways.
https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-resolution/876/text
I don’t think they even care. Not even a little
I agree. I didn't want to select like because.....it's sad that we are here.
You are so right Mary. Oh yes. Damn them. Hell is too kind for them.
As I’ve been saying, the rule of law no longer applies. Accountability requires participation. Complicity undermines responsibility. The co opting of Democratic principles into authoritarian despotism happened behind closed doors and velvet curtains. It’s been clear since the UN’s inception that laws without enforcement power were ineffectual, powerless. International law has officially arrived at anarchy. It’s taken exactly 25 years since 9/11 changed the rule book. Without reform, no system can stand the test of time. Universal human rights are no longer agreed upon or enforceable. Rest in pieces. They’ve been vaporized just like Israel does to its victims with impunity. Defund the military industrial complex. Smash the patriarchy. Revolution begins with each person deciding they’ve had enough. I’ve had enough. Unapologetic political radicalism and community based organization to bypass the system. 🆘🙈🙉🙊
Spot on Sarina
I absolutely agree, but until the break is obvious to all, it’s more important than ever that we support the work that the Hind Rajab Foundation is doing to track down and bring Israeli criminals to justice is one that is vital in the effort to hold Israel accountable. Let us hope they will also turn their sights on the criminal leaders of the countries of the west who are co-perpetrators of these crimes.
Find out what they’re doing here:
https://www.hindrajabfoundation.org
The least we can do is donate to help them:
Support the Hind Rajab Foundation
https://donate.stripe.com/cN228hbY5g7jaM84gg
I’ve been traveling and am currently in, what may be, the only nation that has banned entry of Israeli passport holders.
Where is that? If I heard I've forgotten.
And thank you, I also give to the Hind Rajab Foundation, and it's wonderful that you keep reminding us.
The Maldives has banned them officially. From their government website: “Effective from 15th April 2025, entry to the Maldives will not be granted on Israeli passports.”
I agree, Shaun, but Gaza was the latest genocide where consequences did not apply. South Sudan, Myanmar, co-led the way. Cuba, Iran, Venezuela have been sanctioned to the point of starvation.
The whole idea of great powers acting without limit sucks.
Indeed. You are right
Prime Minister Carney said it at Davos: "If you're not at the table, you're on the menu." We are all on the menu, we are all Gaza or Ukraine or Venezuela or Greenland or Cuba or Taiwan. So it's time we took a seat the the table.
I am not even a huge fan of Carney, but he is a pragmatist, and what he knows is that Canada is vulnerable in this new time we are in, so he went ahead and told the truth as he knows it.
"Huge fan" or not, you have to agree with someone who tells the truth.
Indeed
Shaun, I swear your headlines sound like you are going off the deep end and yet, every. single. time. I read your columns I learn something new, I make connections I had never seen before, and I wonder why you aren't running for political office! Argh! I totally get why! We need your commentary and your keen eye. I am totally with you. Keep up your work and thank you for the closing statements of your passionate hope. I too refuse to give in to this evil. I refuse to accept it as inevitable. And yes, I know what we are up against. But the reality is there are more of us good folks out here than there are of the warmongers. Keep sounding the alarm! The world does not have to be this way. Humanity has the capability, if not the will, to push back and create a world that, in my religion says, "on earth as it is in heaven." Blessings!
I promise I still am the same old Shaun. But this is not where we are going, we are already here. There are no true international laws. It’s a free for all.
Except that if any of us try to act on our own moral center out of our own moral outrage oh boy, then let’s see the law come right back on us. We would be in chains before we even know we were mad. And today it’s several countries tomorrow it’s the world all over on fire. Do I just start praying for the God of creation to wipe it all out and admit it’s mistake and start all over again with birds and bees and salamanders. I want to disagree with myself, but I’m having trouble.
Well articulated and so, so true. We will definitely reap what we sow. What a world to leave to our kids and grandkids. All due to fear, to stand up for what is right. By remaining silent you've doomed all of us to an unimaginable, ugly world that won't go away any time soon.
We must fight back my friend
I don’t give up easy.
Well said Shaun. International law and rules mean nothing if certain nations can violate them with impunity, doing whatever they want whenever they want with no consequences. And Gaza was what revealed this stark truth to the world, it's just truly shameful and tragic to know that so many have perished, and continue to suffer and perish, to prove this point.
Shuan, what you wrote captures exactly where we are right now standing in a world that feels like it’s shifting faster than we can process. It’s heartbreaking to realize how fragile the systems we trusted really were, and how openly they’re being abandoned. There’s a sadness in watching the rules fall away, not because they were perfect, but because they were at least something to hold onto.
It hurts to see how easily human life can be dismissed when power decides it can get away with anything. It hurts to watch suffering become normalized. And it hurts to recognize that the people who will pay the highest price are the ones who already had the least protection.
But even in that sadness, there’s a kind of clarity. When illusions fall, truth becomes sharper. And maybe that’s the part we can hold onto understanding the moment we’re in gives us the ability to respond with intention instead of despair.
I don’t think sadness means defeat. It means we’re still human enough to feel what’s wrong. And that’s the beginning of staying awake in a world that wants us numb.
Thank you, Shaun, because, we all need to realize the pain is ours to accept, to manage, to engage with, to involve our hearts and minds, to ACT....so that what bursts open is a gateway that has been waiting to be breached, the gateway to a new democracy with the power to engender a new world strategy. I believe that power is in the wind with democratic candidates many of whom have not been politicians, who have been a teacher, a Capitol Police Officer, a mother...people who are fighting for change! Those of us who are watching, need to enter the game, ensure that the change-makers are elected and that we partner with them to make radical changes in the way government works, here and abroad!
There's a book I read a while ago, Democracy Doesn't Exist, But We'll Miss It When It's Gone. It had a similar thesis - our democracy was imperfect, incomplete, needed work, but for all of that it was so much better than no democracy at all. We have lost so much.
The old way, Israel could pummel Gaza for several weeks, but eventually they had to quit. They could put the people on a diet, but couldn't completely starve them. They could steal Palestinian land in bits and dabs, but not massive amounts all at once.
And the cops could kill a few people and get away with it, but they couldn't shoot a VA nurse dead in the street while half a dozen people filmed it.
How does the quote go, the strong do what they will and the weak suffer what they must? Something like that.
Oh, and speaking of that quote, what the EU did to Greece since the '08 financial collapse was another example of the move towards greater brutality. It was similar to what they always did to countries in the global south, after a debt crisis, but this time they did it to one of their own, an EU member. And they were brutal - recently middle class Greeks had to take up dumpster diving. They haven't completely recovered. And after they got Greece to capitulate to international capital comepletely, right after that Greece, for some reason, coincidentally, stopped standing up for Palestine and bowed down before the Israelis.
Somehow I feel calm. It’s good to say it like it is. The constant whining about things being against international law made me anxious. Now we need to work out how we make a new world. Peace and love (thanks Ringo!)
I agree with you brother, I have been saying for a long time that the Palestinians are on the brutal front lines of the greater Class War on humanity.
Israel is a terrorist country , no better than Nazi Germany! The leaders are criminals with no conscience.Israel has lost its right to exist as a country.
Eloquently stated. Reflections of the obvious to anyone paying attention.
We are all forever indebted to the people of Gaza and all Palestinians for enduring and resisting and changing the world order.