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Ben Norton @BenjaminNorton
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East German: "I had the happiest childhood that you could wish for. I never had any trouble, there was no war. There was always enough food, we had plenty of friends and places to go and no worries of any kind that were threatening. I never felt oppressed"
abc.net.au/news/2018-10-0…
ABC: There were increasing peaceful protests in East Germany — but they weren't about switching to a free market.

Most East German citizens were in favor of fixing the existing socialist system, and making it better.

To a large number of East Germans, the West was disappointing
(Keep in mind this surprisingly fair article is in Australia's government-funded broadcaster ABC, which has a right-wing bias)
"East Germany's society had been kinder and friendlier, and it made much more sense to them than the capitalist society that they were suddenly part of"
A 2009 study found that a *majority* of former East Germans said life had been better under socialism.

Half polled said: "The GDR had more good sides than bad sides. There were some problems, but life was good there"
spiegel.de/international/…
"Today's Germany is described as a 'slave state' and a 'dictatorship of capital,' and some letter writers reject Germany for being, in their opinion, too capitalist or dictatorial, and certainly not democratic"
spiegel.de/international/…
Today—after capitalist Western Germany imposed brutal neoliberal shock therapy on former East Germany, privatizing everything, increasing poverty and unemployment—capitalist eastern Germany has become the hotbed for the far-right. The return of capitalism gave rise to neo-fascism
This NYT op-ed is not very good, but this point is spot on: The new far-right in capitalist eastern Germany don't remember the socialist GDR. What they do remember is the neoliberal brutality of the 1990s: privatization, death of industries, and job losses
nytimes.com/2018/10/04/opi…
The brutal capitalist shock therapy that West Germany imposed on the East:
-8,000 East German state-run enterprises were sold off and replaced by privatized West German ones
-Many East Germans lost their jobs or houses
-The cost of living rose dramatically
abc.net.au/news/2018-10-0…
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(Movie Review Thread) I just saw Peter Jackson's new film They Shall Not Grow Old, a documentary on World War I. The film is technically breathtaking, but I was shocked to see a film on WWI that is completely apolitical. It's about political mass slaughter but it avoids politics!
They Shall Not Grow Old does not even try to explain why WWI was fought — let alone why it was an entirely preventable, pointless inter-imperialist bloodbath that led to the unnecessary deaths of tens of millions of (almost entirely poor) people!
Instead the whole point of the film is to humanize the soldiers fighting in WWI and show what day-to-day life was for them. And that's great; it's important to see the mind-boggling horrors of WWI and trench warfare. But that must be done *in historical and political context*.
Read 14 tweets
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I just saw @ViceMovie, and it's brilliant. The film shows how well-made narratives can capture the zeitgeist and politics of an era not only more captivatingly but even more accurately than documentaries. Because it's not just about the facts; it's about the tone and attitude.
.@GhostPanther masterfully captured the essence of Cheney and the Bush admin -- and the facts, yes, but more importantly the spirit.

Christian Bale and Amy Adams used their bodies as instruments, like musical virtuosi, to forge a sick world in which reactionary power intoxicates
Vice does much more than just retell the story of Cheney/Bush's crimes; it offers profound human insight into how right-wing aspiring autocrats think about and see the world, and their place in it

By humanizing blood-soaked Dick Cheney, it makes his crimes all the more monstrous
Read 6 tweets
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I interviewed peace activist @MedeaBenjamin of @CODEPINK, who stressed that US support for the Saudi monarchy must be fundamentally challenged.

Some US officials want a cosmetic change, simply replacing Crown Prince MBS, but the problem runs much deeper
.@MedeaBenjamin: "It's our job now to say this is not just about MBS... We have to use this time to re-evaluate the entire relationship. But it’s very difficult then, because there’s so much money that is involved in this."
therealnews.com/stories/the-re…
Back in early 2016, @CODEPINK organized the first-ever summit calling for an end to the "suicidal death pact between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia" salon.com/2016/03/10/ins…
Read 3 tweets

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AMERICA!!! AMERICA!!! This is what we need to do!!! AGAIN!
🔥🔥🔥💥💥💥💥🔥🔥🔥

Wait...what? What does AGAIN mean?

Well, let’s just see...shall we?
2). A meme was flown across Twitter over the past few months, coming to my attention again yesterday. I saved it so I could do this little investigation!
3.) According to this meme:
A. U.S. Immigration passed laws in accordance with the passing of the McCarran Walters Act of 1952., Revised & Re-Affirmed in 1965.

Chapter 2, Sec.212: As the PROHIBITION OF THE ENTRY INTO THE UNITED STATES IF THE ALIEN BELONGS TO AN ORGANIZATION
Read 64 tweets
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Here we go. After over a month of Senate chamber disruptions that culiminated in their rolling out multiple fake accusations that Kavanaugh was a sexual predator, the Left is BACK TO LECTURING *US* ABOUT BEING CIVIL ON OUR POLITICAL DISCOURSE while they talk about stalking us.
"Don't you DARE spike that Kavnaugh football while we make our plans to find out where you live, what restaurants you go to, where your kids go to school, wherer you work so we can come after you, you hear me?

DON'T YOU SPIKE THAT -!!!"

Me, right now:
FUCK YOU.

#WAR

Read 5 tweets
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At dinner, I learned more about corruption + racism built into society by our masters. A book we discussed (Zinn) was used as part of this "Left" resource's bibliography. I had to share. [A thread]

@BlackSocialists - thoughts on this resource?

historyisaweapon.com/indextrue.html
It very simply lays out the case that we are all being controlled. It covers hidden history of the United States including their (and, due to the systems created by our masters, our) racism. 

#racism #systemicracism #history
If you haven't been in school for a while (or are in a terrible school), some of the words might trip you up. Dictionary.com and Wikipedia.org are two good resources to help you.
Read 39 tweets
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ROOSEVELT BETRAYS AMERICA! prowhite.media/blog/f/rooseve…
"They sought the #war, they provoked and maneuvered to get it. They pressed the young peoples of #Germany,# Italy and #Japan wherever they could. They wanted war, a real world #war — and now they have it.
"Not only two worlds of ideas are at #war here, but the whole world.
Read 162 tweets
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The Creators of the World’s Misfortunes
by Joseph Goebbels
"One could not understand this #war if one did not always keep in mind the fact that International J//ewry stands behind all the unnatural forces that our united enemies use to attempt to deceive the world and keep humanity in the dark.
"It is, so to speak, the mortar that holds the enemy coalition firmly together, despite its differences of class, ideology, and interests.
Read 87 tweets
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1) Most of #history is a total lie, designed by people wanting to infer meaning of historical events in a modern context, as a means to elicit a response from you which suits their needs.

This is a story about the #rothschilds from the early 20th century.

#QAnon #GreatAwakening
2) Even within this tweetstorm are probably a lot of missing nuances. Do tell your stories.

I will start after #WWI and the Treaty of Versailles. It never made sense. Why divide #Germany in these pieces and leave it's people impoverished? Isn't this a recipe for resentment?
3) Why did the #Germans, even though a foreign boot never shot a boot on their soil, make overtures of peace to end the #war, while they were poised to win?

Their objectives were met.

Why was the #USA brought into WWI? Why were large payments sent to #communist #Russia? #QAnon
Read 17 tweets

Trending hashtags

#learning #Raising #Movement #Master #injustice #DoNotAbandonRojava #prophets #Fatah #mercenary #slaughter #CHN #YPG #MBep15 #domestic #Germany #RussiaSummit #Agenda2063 #Rome #satire #uprising #racism #enough #Namseok #Japan #Russians

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