Last week, I had the good fortune to have found and watched this movie online. The last time I had seen it was over 20 years ago, and what struck me the most, was that I had totally forgotten how dark and sad this really is. Or maybe I'm more affected by it because I have kids now. No matter what, it captures all of the backwardness ( homophobia, sexism, racism ) that the larger society is diseased with, and that punk is not exempt from, no matter how much punk tries to distance and isolate itself from "society". I know that this is a fictionalized account, what with the post-apocalyptic imagery and whatnot, but many things in this film are not too far from the truth. In my mind, it is a classic, and you should watch it if you get the chance. Oh yeah, the live footage of DI and TSOL is fucking classic. I would love to own this movie on VHS.
Yesterday , someone I know had his facefuck page open on his computer, where some reactionary asshole had posted a picture saying " Hate cops? Next time you need help, call a crackhead." Well, I found a way to do both. And yes, this amuses me greatly.
A former Platteville police officer who is facing a federal drug charge for allegedly smoking crack cocaine while on duty has been arrested again, this time after crack, heroin and a kit for defeating drug tests were found in her car by police in the Milwaukee area.
Michelle V. Salentine, 29, of Muskego, who was charged with keeping a drug house after her arrest in April, was arrested on Oct. 4 in Greenfield after police discovered her and her brother, Michael Salentine, arguing in a car.
While searching the car, according to a report by U.S. Probation Services Officer Clark Rodgers, police officers found five crack pipes, a marijuana pipe, a syringe, 1.6 grams of crack cocaine, about one-third of a gram of heroin, and 1.21 grams of marijuana.
Police also found a kit in the trunk of the car that was designed to help a woman beat drug tests, Rodgers’ report states. It appeared the kit had been used more than once, he wrote.
Salentine told police that the drugs and paraphernalia belonged to her brother, who declined to talk with police about the items.
Salentine, who had been an officer in Platteville since 2004, was arrested on April 26 by FBI agents after an informant had told police over the prior months that Salentine had used crack cocaine regularly, including occasions when she was in uniform.
Salentine remains in the Milwaukee County Jail. She resigned from the Platteville Police Department after her arrest.
According to Rodgers’ report, Salentine had passed all but one drug test she submitted. Rodgers is recommending that Salentine remain in jail until her case is resolved.
In a letter sent Oct. 5 to U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephen Crocker, Salentine’s lawyer, federal defender Michael Lieberman, wrote that a plea agreement had been agreed to in principle before her arrest.
And for a more canadian context, check out this useless whining prick....
TORONTO - A former Brantford cop who was caught smoking crack and snorting OxyContin on police video lost a human rights tribunal appeal, ending any chance of him returning to uniform.
Const. Jeffrey Servos, a former six-year veteran of the Brantford Police Service, was captured on a pinhole camera in 2007 smoking crack in his cruiser.
Servos resigned from the force in 2009 after a series of plea bargains rather than serving three months in jail.
He pleaded guilty to one count of possessing cocaine in 2009 and was slapped with 16 Police Services Act charges. The police act charges were withdrawn after he resigned.
Servos in March 2010 filed a complaint with the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario alleging “discrimination in employment on the basis of disability.”
Tribunal member Brian Cook on March 8 dismissed the complaint saying Servos had taken more than a year to file the grievance, which was too long a time.
Cook dismissed allegations by Servos that “termination of his employment was discriminatory and that he experienced discrimination during the period of his employment.”
An earlier tribunal was told Servos had notified his superiors of his drug problem and was sent for rehabilitation three times.
In an unprecedented move, his superiors placed a pinhole camera in his cruiser and a GPS on his personal vehicle to monitor his movements to determine if he was drug-free.
The surveillance video showed Servos snorting OxyContin — a prescription pain killer used alleviate medium to severe pain — and smoking crack cocaine in his cruiser while on duty in June 2007.
He had been investigated three times by the Special Investigations Unit without charges being laid.
Servos in May 2007 fired four rounds into a van that was boxed in by police cruisers.
Two of the shots went through the van’s windshield and one of them hit a
15-year-old who was a passenger in the van. The girl was treated for a gunshot wound to her left arm.
The shooting took place just a day after police received a tip about an officer named Jeff buying painkillers. Police said there were calls from other drug dealers who claimed they were robbed by a cop.
A urine test revealed Servos had also been taking methadone and ephedrine — a nasal congestion medication that can also be used as a stimulant or weight loss aid.
Brantford police refused to comment on the case on Wednesday.
Before you tell me about "how lucky we are to live here", look no further than your own government before you start placing blame for the refugee crisis in europe.....
The Criminals, and the Criminal System Behind the Deaths of Refugees in Austria
August 31, 2015 | Revolution Newspaper | revcom.us
The world—that is, that section of it capable of human feeling—is sickened and horrified by the picture emerging from Austria, where the bodies of 71 refugees were recovered from an abandoned truck found on a highway. Among the dead, four children, ages eight to 10, and an infant of around 18 months. The horrific images evoke the ghosts of other atrocities—past and recent—of marginalized, victimized people left to die in train cars and trucks around the world, including in the USA.
European officials wring their hands and absolve themselves of blame. They denounce the small-time criminals who smuggled these desperate refugees and left them to die horrible deaths. But those smugglers were only the final, and smallest, link in a series of events, the source of which can be tracked to a global system of exploitation and oppression.
* * *
The first clues as to the guilty parties in the deaths of these 71 people were the Syrian travel documents found on the victims. Based on that and other evidence, authorities seem to have concluded the victims came from Syria. But that’s where they dropped the trail.
Syrian refugees as they wait to cross the border from Greece to Macedonia. Aug. 26, 2015. Photo: AP
The question to be asked is: Why do people flee from Syria to Europe? As we reported last week in covering police attacks on refugees at the border of Greece and Macedonia, the U.S. and its West European allies essentially launched a war in Syria to knock back rivals, like Russia and Iran, who have close ties with the reactionary Assad regime. To do that, the U.S. and its allies sponsored or set loose a slew of reactionary armed forces—most of them Islamic fundamentalists who the U.S. currently finds in its interests to promote. ISIS itself has been able to take advantage of the chaos unleashed by U.S. moves against Assad to seize power in large sections of Syria—forcing millions to flee. Syria has been turned into a living hell in a multi-sided and ongoing civil war—11.5 million people there were driven from their homes by the end of 2014.
According to human rights agencies, both sides in the conflict, including the forces backed by the U.S., are seeking to cohere and shape a new regime, and have carried out kidnapping, torture, and summary assassinations of their opponents and civilians. Tens of thousands in Syria have died, and hundreds of thousands have been displaced, with many living in desperate conditions in refugee camps or worse. (See “What Drives Millions of Migrants into Living Hell?“)
A U.S.-Orchestrated Bloodbath
The essence of what exists in the U.S. is not democracy but capitalism-imperialism and political structures to enforce that capitalism-imperialism. What the U.S. spreads around the world is not democracy, but imperialism and political structures to enforce that imperialism.
Bob Avakian, BAsics 1:3
As a matter of fact, there are many indications that the rulers of the U.S. not only instigated but, as a matter of policy, are prolonging the hellish situation in Syria. Edward N. Luttwak, a prominent advisor and consultant to U.S. ruling class on matters of foreign policy, wrote in the New York Times (August 24, 2013): “A victory by either side would be equally undesirable for the United States,” and that a victory by the Assad regime “would be disastrous” and would pose “a direct threat to both Sunni Arab states and to Israel.... But a rebel victory would also be extremely dangerous for the United States and for many of its allies in Europe and the Middle East.”
In other words: the rulers of the U.S. are fine with having thousands die and millions be driven from their homes in a generalized reign of terror as long as it serves their interests. Those human beings don’t count for anything in capitalist-imperialist logic.
Seeking survival, millions of Syrians have sought refuge from madness and death. Only a tiny percent of them make it to Europe. And those who do are condemned as “illegals,” “freeloaders,” and “criminals” by the same system that drove them from their homes. Or, they are left to suffocate in the back of a truck.
New U.S. Moves Making Matters Even Worse
Recent machinations and power moves of the U.S. empire and its rivals are making the situation in Syria worse. In late July, the U.S. and Turkey made an agreement where Turkey, a reactionary regional power, would join the U.S. war against the Islamic State (ISIS, or ISIL, or Daesh) more-or-less in exchange for a U.S. okay for Turkey to bomb Kurdish forces in Syria and Turkey.
Refugees from places where the insane workings of imperialism have made life impossible do not, overwhelmingly, make it to Europe. Instead they end up trying to survive in camps in other poor countries. Above: Syrian Kurdish refugees at a refugee camp in Suruc, at the Turkey-Syria border. Photo: AP
The Kurds are an oppressed people whose nation was carved up into parts of Syria, Turkey, Iraq, and Iran. Immediately after the agreement, Turkey launched a few strikes against ISIS targets in Syria, and then quickly unleashed a much larger bombing campaign (reportedly over 100 strikes) as well as military attacks and political roundups directed at another target: Kurdish opposition forces (particularly the Kurdistan Workers’ Party—PKK).
Some of these Kurdish forces had been fighting ISIS in Syria basically in alliance with the U.S., but the rulers of the U.S., at this point at least, see more to gain by enlisting Turkey more closely into their wars in the region. A State Department official tweeted: “We have strongly condemned the #PKK‘s terrorist attacks in#Turkey and we fully respect our ally Turkey’s right to self-defense,” basically endorsing attacks on the PKK, which is on the U.S. “terrorist” list.
So this new deal the U.S. made with Turkey will unleash more terror on the people in the region, including in Syria, and is bound to drive even more people to attempt the desperate, dangerous journey from Syria to Europe.
What Kind of a System...
Syrian refugees waiting to cross the border into Turkey, June 15, 2015. Photo: AP
As we wrote last week: “Refugees from places where the insane workings of imperialism have made life impossible do not, overwhelmingly, make it to Europe. Instead they end up trying to survive in camps in other poor countries—like Turkey, Iran, and Pakistan. For all the demagogic xenophobic ranting by European fascists complaining about why should they sacrifice for immigrants, consider this: Ethiopia and Kenya—poor countries in Africa—take in more refugees than France and the UK.”
In 2014, 60 million people sought refuge from war, poverty, and oppression linked to—directly or indirectly—the insane workings of capitalism. The largest group of all is from Syria. The 71 people who died a horrible death in a truck in Austria, and the millions of others who are part of the most massive wave of displaced people in human history, are victims of the workings, and the wars, of global capitalism-imperialism. And the rulers of the United States hold down the fort as top-dog within that dog-eat-dog world.
Here we go again. The fucking circus is coming back to town. With their pious declarations and solemn vows, pretending to respect the "will of the people", those fucking criminal politicians are out to dupe us again. Do any of them actually speak for the working poor, and others on the bottom of society? Many will claim to, but they are lying. From justin trudeau, to asswipe harper, to elizabeth drunkass may, they are lying. I am on board with this:
With an early declaration of an election campaign by the Harper government, we find ourselves at the beginning of a 78-day campaign period in the lead-up to the October 19 federal election. In fact, before it was even officially called, the parties vying to administer the capitalist state had already been campaigning for several weeks. Their hope may be that, with such a long campaign, they will convince us that this election is a “special moment in Canadian democracy.” For most of us, though, it’s a waste of time!
One after the other, the competing parties will parade themselves around promising to do something for us—the working class, indigenous, women, youth, etc.; they will have sugary sweets for everyone! Some will even present themselves as a “workers’ party,” one of “everyday Canadians” or “hard-working families!” Above all, they will emphatically remind us that we must do our “civic duty” and that the election is really an opportunity to have our say on public affairs; they will repeat that this time it’s different, that the stakes are exceptional, that our rights and freedoms—and maybe Canada itself!—are at stake, and so on.
But beyond the rhetoric and propaganda, the real objective of this election is no different than the ones that came before it: to decide which team will administer the Canadian state—the state of the capitalists, the rich and the powerful, a colonialist, imperialist and reactionary state. This always has been and always will be the nature of the Canadian state until it’s dismantled and replaced by a new people’s power. In this situation, what’s really changing? For almost 150 years, an endless stream of politicians has sat in the House of Commons without ever changing the nature of this country.
This state, which itself is part of a whole system, has always and continues to serve the interests of those who hold the real power—the big capitalists. This will continue, no matter what politicians say when they seek our support and try to convince us that everything will be decided at the polls.
The true nature of this “democracy,” with its parliament and elections was again tragically exposed a few weeks ago in Greece. The masses elected a government with a clear mandate to end the austerity measures; they forcefully reiterated this mandate in a referendum. But none of this made any difference and the government of the “radical left” shamefully complied with the demands of the real bosses, to the chagrin of those who thought they were the best hope of “surpassing capitalism;” the truth is that those “leftists” who still believe in the possibility of change through parliament were the only ones who were “surpassed.”
So what’s the use of the elections? Sometimes, they serve to renew the staff who’ll manage the state, following the interests of whichever sectors of the ruling class happen to be dominant. Beyond that, they serve to mobilize and re-mobilize the masses according to the dominant ideology: that the world should continue as before and that there is no alternative, even the system will makes minor changes here and there while leaving its essential features intact.
This year’s election takes place in the midst of a crisis that sees the imposition of harsh austerity measures in all the major so-called “advanced” capitalist countries. It happens in a period marked by the intensification of inter-imperialist rivalries, unleashing of wars and threats of war and the systematic repression of the people’s genuine aspirations for liberation.
In Canada, this results in attacks against wages and social protection, continuation of the genocide and dispossession of indigenous peoples, clawing back of the gains made by women, deterioration of the “rights and freedoms” that the capitalists were so proud of in the last century, stigmatization of immigrants and Muslim communities, etc. Though they are certainly more intense, these attacks carried out by the capitalists and their state do not represent a break with what has always been the norm in Canada; rather, they are in perfect continuity with the whole history of this country. Their intensification is not so much result of any special tyranny on the part of Harper and his crew—as detestable they are—but a necessary measure to maintaining the power—and the profits—of the capitalists.
These attacks are breeding resistance: from indigenous nations who continue to struggle with so much courage for their liberation, still inspired by the heroic uprising of Kanehsatake 25 years ago; from workers, women, youth and students, from environmentalists and communities who are fighting against the implementation of projects that threaten their safety; from the African-Canadian communities who are mobilizing in the wake of the #BlackLivesMatter movement. This resistance, which the bourgeoisie would love to crush, remains dispersed.
In this context it will be tempting for some to “try something else,” hoping that it will be less bad than the Conservatives. This is already being openly suggested by some big names of the ruling class. For 10 years, the capitalists were well served by the Harper government. But it may be the case that they will have to bet on another horse, and maybe try the one—the NDP—who has never formed a federal government, but could serve them well, even if they will have to concede a few more crumbs.
As workers, we have nothing to gain by taking part in these games. Many of us already understand this, as evidenced by the steadily declining rate of participation in the elections, especially among the working class. Those who defend the bourgeois system always complain about our “cynicism,” but the only cynicism is that of the bourgeoisie and of those who are still trying to make us believe that an election can change the world.
For a precarious immigrant worker who can barely survive with her pittance, there is nothing cynical about coming home after her shift on the day of the vote and deciding not to waste her time going to the polls. For an indigenous youth, there is nothing cynical about following the example of the elders of his community and telling the representatives of the state to go away when they come around telling them to participate in this exercise, which is a pillar of the oppressive colonial system.
People who boycott the elections do so for many reasons, some good and others less so. But one thing is clear: most of us do not care any more about this circus and think that the politicians and parties are liars or, at best, pushing sad pipe dreams. And this perception is perfectly justified.
As a Party whose main objective is to fight to end the exploitative and oppressive capitalist system and to bring about a new form of social organization based on people’s power—that is, Socialism—the Revolutionary Communist Party proposes to transform this phenomenon of spontaneous or individual boycott into a conscious and organized movement. This means challenging, throughout the election campaign and even moreso after, the false solutions and hypocrisy of the capitalists and their parties, and reject the illusions promoted by the “left-wing” defenders of the system.
This campaign aims to mobilize and bring together all those who see themselves in this critique of the capitalist system and who aspire to more than simply changing the face of the capitalist system but a revolutionary transformation of the world in which we live. It aims to build and strengthen the organizations—the party and the genuine people’s organizations campaigning and mobilizing the masses for such a transformation—that are needed to achieve this objective. It aims to use the tools—leaflets, posters, newspapers, websites…—that will spread this criticism and these perspectives as far and wide as possible. And it requires that we manifest these aspirations as concrete actions confronting profiteers and the defenders of the system. In short, it is to do what we Maoists call “building the revolution.”
More specifically, the PCR-RCP is calling for a National Day of Action before election day, on Sunday, October 18, bringing together all those who are sick and tired of this rotten system, to affirm our commitment—which is totally different from an election promise!—for the next four years: waging class struggle against the capitalists and their state!
Spread the word: boycott the election! Fight for socialism and the end of all oppression!
Want to participate in this campaign? Contact the local branch of the PCR-RCP or write at info@pcr-rcp.ca.
Russia has frequently warned of major problems which Europe would face as a result of Western policies in the Middle East and North Africa and jihadist groups terrorizing people, so the current refugee crisis in the EU doesn’t come as a surprise, said the President of Russia.
“I think the crisis was absolutely expected,” President Vladimir Putin told journalists at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok.
“We in Russia, and me personally a few years ago, said it straight that pervasive problems would emerge, if our so-called Western partners continue maintaining their flawed ... foreign policy, especially in the regions of the Muslim world, Middle East, North Africa, which they pursue to date,” said Putin.
According to the Russian president, the main flaw of Western foreign policy is the imposition of their own standards worldwide without taking into account the historical, religious, national and cultural characteristics of particular regions.
The only way to reverse the refugee flow streaming into Europe is to help people resolve problems at home. And the first step should be by creating a common and united front against jihadist groups such as Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) and fighting them at their core.
“We really want to form some kind of an international coalition, therefore we conduct consultations with our US partners,”Putin said, noting that he spoke about it with President Obama.
However it is premature to discuss “direct” Russian involvement in military actions against ISIS, needless to say joining the US-led coalition, as Moscow is currently considering “other options,” said Putin.
The issue of rebuilding local economies and social spheres to convince terrified people to move back would only arise after terrorism is rooted out, Russian President said. But international support for rebuilding the statehood of the countries which have suffered at the hand of ISIS should only occur with full respect for history, culture and local traditions.
“But if we act unilaterally and argue about the quasi-democratic principles and procedures for certain areas, that will lead us to an even greater impasse,” Putin concluded.
The Russian leader emphasized that he was being critical to figure out “what is happening, and what to do next,” rather than to tease or to point out that Western policies were “shortsighted.”
Putin noted that the US is not facing a refugee crisis of the same magnitude as the EU, which has been “blindly following American orders.”
Prior to Putin’s speech, the Russian Foreign Ministry said that the EU could actually learn something from Russia in terms of offering proper living conditions to those fleeing conflict zones.
Reminding Brussels of Russia’s experience in dealing with the influx of civilians fleeing Kiev’s so-called “anti-terrorist operation” in neighboring Ukraine, the ministry's spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova said that hundreds of thousands of refugees who fled to Russia were provided with “shelter, food and aid.”
Next time you have a conversation with someone who says "We are so lucky to live here", tell them to pull their head out of their ass. The west, including harper and kkkanada, are guilty as fuck for everything getting fucked up in Syria and Libya. First, the west destroys Libya by getting rid of Khadafy and putting a more compliant regime in place, who go on to legalize polygamy. But that doesn't matter, because oil production will continue, and in the west's favour, not for national interests. Meanwhile, there is a raging civil war going on, but "we're so lucky to live here", right? Same shit with Syria. The gist of it is, if I don't like the way something is being run in someone else's house, I will go over there and destroy it, take what I want, then head home where everyone who lives there will talk about how lucky we are to live here and not there. Fuck. And who the fuck helped ISIS rise to power? Same old fucked up story, but most people do not learn.
The essence of what exists in the U.S. is not democracy but capitalism-imperialism and political structures to enforce that capitalism-imperialism. What the U.S. spreads around the world is not democracy, but imperialism and political structures to enforce that imperialism.
